FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, May 21st, 2020

SCOTT BORAS ON ECONOMICS OF A 2020 MLB SEASON; DAVID SHAW ON PAC-12 FOOTBALL — QUOTES FROM TODAY’S LUNCH TALK LIVE WITH MIKE TIRICO AND THE RICH EISEN SHOW ON NBCSN

“There is ample economics that it is very feasible to play games without fans…The game is very, very healthy.” – Scott Boras on a potential MLB season

“We would like uniformity… Not rushing back and not being able to handle the eventualities of what’s going to happen because someone is going to (test) positive.” – David Shaw on requirements for PAC-12 football to occur this fall

“These (drivers) are the best in the world driving stock cars, but they do make mistakes…We haven’t seen or heard the end of this.” – Dale Jarrett on last night’s incident between Chase Elliott and Kyle Busch at the Toyota 500

“You have to make sure there is some level playing field in terms of intensity…So while 24 teams sounds like a lot, maybe due to logistics, that makes the most sense.” – Capitals D John Carlson on NHL’s potential 24-team playoff

STAMFORD, Conn. – May 21, 2020 – Mike Tirico hosted today’s episode of Lunch Talk Live on NBCSN and was joined remotely by:

    • Stanford head football coach David Shaw
    • Washington Capitals defenseman John Carlson
    • NBC Sports motorsports commentators Leigh Diffey and Dale Jarrett
    • Top Chef lead judge Tom Colicchio

The Rich Eisen Show followed Lunch Talk Live on NBCSN, as host Rich Eisen was joined by:

    • Agent Scott Boras
    • ESPN NBA insider & senior writer Ramona Shelburne
    • Actor Rob Riggle

 

Following are highlights from Lunch Talk Live on NBCSN:

David Shaw on potential college football season within the PAC-12 Conference: “We would like uniformity…Standards and having minimums that need to be met…Not rushing back and not being able to handle the eventualities of what’s going to happen because someone is going to (test) positive. What are you going to do about that to protect the rest of your team, your staff and coaches?”

Shaw on how he has coached his student-athletes during the pandemic: “We allowed them to be people for a little bit. Get their lives figured out. When we came back, we had really small meetings and individual meetings with their position coaches, so they had a chance to have a dialogue…Football was not imminent at that time, there was no reason to push those guys hard. We wanted them to get settled and be supported.”

Shaw on what it means to coach at Stanford: “Stanford is a destination for me…I love being at Stanford because I get the brightest guys, the most competitive guys on and off the field…I love the energy and the passion.”

John Carlson on winning the Stanley Cup in 2018: “It’s real special…Winning the Stanley Cup is all any kid dreams about. Once you have won it, with your name on the Cup, it brings you into another category…All-encompassing hockey royalty.”

Carlson on the NHL’s potential 24-team playoff plan to resume the season: “Twenty-four teams sounds like a lot of teams to me…You have to make sure there is some level playing field in terms of intensity…So while 24 teams sounds like a lot, maybe due to logistics, that makes the most sense.”

Carlson on his outlook on the return to play: “I’m not worried about myself, I’m worried about that next step and who I would potentially be giving it to…I have a family and kids, what are the repercussions of that?…Certainly, if the testing is all there, I’m all for it.”

Dale Jarrett on the Kyle Busch-Chase Elliott incident in last night’s Toyota 500 at Darlington: “These (drivers) are the best in the world driving stock cars, but they do make mistakes. Things are going to happen…There was nothing intentional about that…It was racing, (but) we haven’t seen or heard the end of this.”

Jarrett on Chase Elliott’s race: “Chase Elliott really had this race in hand, he had the best car at the time and was probably going to dispose of Denny Hamlin (the eventual winner).”

Jarrett on driver retribution during his career: “I think the best thing I ever felt from doing something with another driver wasn’t ever hitting them — just getting them loose to where it was uncomfortable for them.”

Jarrett on the return of NASCAR: “The sport has been able to showcase itself and will continue to be able to do that…Hopefully gaining a few more fans.”

Leigh Diffey on how this year’s Indy 500 being run on August 23 will impact the drivers: “They will get amped up like they always do, but for the guys who have been around for a long time, this is so unusual…For all of them, they are going through this weird and different feeling, but come August, they will be ready.”

Diffey on the INDYCAR opener on June 6 at Texas Motor Speedway: “I think INDYCAR will be well prepared…and there is a lot to look forward to. I think the (racing) doubleheaders are very much the theme for this year.”

Diffey on the new aeroscreen featured on cars for the upcoming season: “All for the umbrella of safety, they want to keep the drivers cocooned and safe…They look like fighter jets on the ground. It will take fans some getting used to, but not too long.”

Tom Colicchio on the impact of Top Chef in the cooking industry: “I think people have a much better appreciation for the work a chef does and a better appreciation for the creative side of food.”

Colicchio on co-founding the Independent Restaurant Coalition during the pandemic: “My concern is that a lot of small, independent restaurants will open, but because we will open in a severely depressed market, we’re not going to stay open…The place you want to go to once we get on the other side of this (needs help saving).”

Following are highlights from The Rich Eisen Show on NBCSN:

Scott Boras on the economics of an MLB season in 2020: “There is ample economics that it is very feasible to play games without fans…Whatever games they do play, we know that the players will receive a pro rata share of their salaries for doing it.”

Boras on issues surrounding MLB revenue split with players: “I’ve learned long ago that the definition of revenue is something that is — it’s like galaxies. It’s undefinable. You can’t really determine what revenue is because there’s so many ways to move that needle around…We just need to give them time to work through what they’re going to work through before we make any assessments…The game is very, very healthy.”

Boras on the financial impact of playing without fans: “The bottom line is, it’s definitely, without question, more beneficial for owners to play and have a season and earn those media contracts without fans, than it is for them to not play and suffer very serious losses by not producing the game.”

Boras on if baseball will be played in 2020: “When you have all those things [tests, treatments, etc.] evolve with the great medical minds, that’s what’s making me so positive about the idea that we can create an employment environment and a game and put it on and continue. Frankly, give America something that really tells us we’re back to normalcy.”

Ramona Shelburne on her interview with Jerry Reinsdorf regarding “The Last Dance”: “He pointed out to me that he did try to get them (Michael Jordan and Jerry Krause) back together in the end.”

Shelburne on if Reinsdorf took any responsibility for the end of the Michael Jordan-Bulls era: “Not really. I didn’t get that from him…I think he didn’t want to swing the hammer, I think he didn’t want to have to choose between them.”

Shelburne on the NBA’s return to action in 2020: “I think over the next week or two, we’re going to see the safety protocols…the conditions that are going to start making some decisions. Are we going to be at home practice sites? Are we going to be at Disney World? Are we doing a combination of both?… It’s not just enough to make a plan to come back, you actually have to do it.”

Rob Riggle, an avid Chiefs fan, on the Chiefs winning the Super Bowl: “Had the Chiefs not won the Super Bowl, this would be the worst year in recorded history.”

–NBC SPORTS–