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Norm Hitzges ranks as a sports talk show legend having spent 48 continuous years on the air in Dallas. Now begins his next chapter with his new podcast "Just Wondering..."
From major interviews to waxing philosophical, join Norm every day as he talks sports, travel life or...anything he's just wondering about.
On today's episode of just wondering, two different segments on the incredibly important draft coming up for the Cowboys and lots of different scenarios for them, including the names of draftable players that the Cowboys like. And then when is a win actually a loss? Ask the Dallas Mavericks. And now a word from our title sponsor. Eying retirement? We aim to turn your nest egg into a paycheck with half the amount you've been led to believe. Fluent Financial combines in house portfolio design risk management with income generating investments designed to aid your financial independence. Our goal is to develop an effective portfolio strategy to help you retire sooner and have a better lifestyle. Fluent Financial can also implement a program that allows business owners to install a cash balance plan, which may potentially reduce income tax payments. You've worked hard to become successful. Let us help develop an effective portfolio strategy that works for you. Learn more today about Fluent Financial. Retire sooner, better lifestyle. For more information or to schedule a meeting, visit fluentfinancial.com or call (972) 852-4800. I don't think you can overstate just how critical next week's NFL draft is for the Cowboys. They have picked twelve and twenty in the first round. They have no second rounder. They have eight picks in all. When free agents began, this team had a lot of holes. Now they signed free agent safety Jaylen Thompson, who will step right in and start here. Also, cornerback Kobe Durant is probably a starter at this moment that's awaiting results of the draft and the health of Duron Bland. They traded for outside linebacker defensive end, Rashan Gary from Green Bay, and they signed what is now a starting defensive tackle in Otito Albonia. Now his history isn't all that good. In four years in the league with the chargers, he he only started one of his four years. And in his four years, he has one half of a sack and four tackles for a loss. But right now, he's a starter. There are still so many holes. And remember, they traded away defensive tackle Osa Udigizuwa to get a third rounder in this draft. He was a pretty good player. So what's left? What do they need? Well, they need an edge rusher. I think they need two linebackers, a cornerback, and a safety. That's all on the defensive side of the ball. And let's hone in on that number 12 pick in the first round. That pick's gotta be a walk in starter for the Cowboys this year. Several top defensive players are at the very top of the draft, but there's always a but. There might be a very real scenario happen where the Cowboys don't get any of the five or six defensive players they'd like still on the board at number 12. Here's the Cowboys first round wish list, if you would, for who they'd like to be at number 12. I think they'd take any of these players at 12. Linebacker Sonny Stiles, I think that would be the very best pick. This is a star out of Ohio State. Safety Caleb Downs, another star out of Ohio State. There's defensive end David Bailey from Texas Tech, probably the best edge rusher in the draft. There's Ruben Bain, the Miami of Florida edge rusher. Good player. There's the cornerback, Mansoor Delaine, out of LSU. And finally, there's yet another Ohio State player, outside linebacker, edge rusher, Arvel Reese. But here's a very real problem. The consensus draft experts I follow when I take all their picks combined, all these players are gone before number 12 in the draft. That doesn't mean one of them might not slide. But right now, there's a very real chance that that happens. Stop. That might leave Dallas taking the best player left available, quarterback Derman McCoy from Tennessee. Fantastic player in 2024. Looked like a top 10 draft choice until he blew out his knee in 2025 and didn't play a single snap. Now, he he has run at the combine and ran a solid 4.384. But Dallas got burned last year, taking the cornerback, Siobhan Raval, who'd blown out his knee while he was playing at East Carolina. He wasn't ready to start the season. Cowboys hand cannot have a ready, not have a non ready player at number 12. And they also said, right after the season ended, that in this draft, they didn't intend to take anybody coming off a significant injury. They'd gotten burned with Revolve, and they didn't want don't want that to happen again. But McCoy might have to be the choice if those first six are gone. There's talk of Dallas trading up a few spots, maybe into the top, I don't know, seven or so. But Dallas doesn't have the ammo to potentially trade up that far, unless they're willing to give up that third round draft choice that they acquired for Odigizuah, and they need that third round pick. But still, how far would that get them up in the first round anyway? And Dallas must have whoever they take starting again. Now there is one possible trade scenario If Dallas is willing to do it, to move up to say, I don't know, number six, where I think they would gut styles. Would they give up next year's number one draft pick, leaving them no number one next year? And also realize that the people who study drafts for a living suggest the '27 draft may be one of the richest they've ever seen. And if they do make that trade, Dallas also doesn't have a number two next year. So their first pick would be in the third round. I don't know if Dallas would give up next year's pick, but they want a star. They want a star, and they'd like to get another really good player at number 20. If they did give up number one next year, well, they'd still have that star they traded up for this year and the twentieth pick of the first round. Now understand that cowboy the Cowboys have eight picks, but only four of them come in the first 151 players drafted. The Cowboys have three number fives and the number seven. Dallas Dallas needs this draft to be a big hit. They need both number one sitting to three and the four to provide really good players. Would they give up draft capital to try to get the one player they could call is going to be a star? Well, that's the first round. The twelfth pick. But you know, there are lots of other scenarios for their second first round pick. Number 12, and that's next. What do you want from your favorite restaurant? Fantastic personal service, a cheery, welcoming, spotless atmosphere, and of course, food. The primest of beef, Wagyu, and lamb, incredibly fresh seafood, lobster, salmon, shrimp, hall of fame food from a hall of fame restaurant, two locations of Bob's Steak and Chop House, the original Bob's on Lemon Avenue, and the gorgeous new Bob's at Craig Ranch McKinney. My wife, Mary, is the cocreator of Full Moon Healing Balm, And I guess I'm the reason this terrific cream was developed. A few years ago, I began getting these huge, ugly blood blotches just beneath the skin of my arms and hands. The condition's called senile purpura. And no, you don't have to be senile to experience this embarrassment. It happens as you age. And then to cover it up, we begin wearing long sleeves, even when it's hot. It took two years working with a New Jersey lab to refine the all natural ingredients of full moon healing. Gently massage a very small amount into the skin, and within a day, the blotches begin to fade. See now, purpura usually takes weeks to disappear. But this bomb cuts the timeline to about a week. And ordering's so easy. Just go to the website, fullmoonhealingco.com. In every first round of the NFL draft every year, there are exactly 32 picks, one each for every team. But that doesn't mount mean there are actually thirty two first round talents. I've seen years where there may be only 13 or 14 players that you could actually call first rounders. This year, well, the people who studied the draft, that includes me by the way, think there may be sixteen, seventeen, 18 players who actually qualify as first round talents. And this is a draft, though, that has really solid depth for the second, third and fourth rounds. And if Dallas gets the chance, they might be thrilled to swap the number 20 pick for perhaps an early second rounder and third rounder. Why do that? Well, this draft has lots of players at positions the Cowboys would love to have. It's got solid depth at corner, and there's good linebackers available. And there's even an edge rusher or two that the Cowboys like. And by the way, many of these players, most of them, the Cowboys have had in the visit at the star this offseason. So, who might be on this list of second round potential Dallas targets? These are potential second rounders the Cowboys could very much like to have. Linebacker Jacob Rodriguez from Texas Tech is a tackle machine. Oklahoma Edge rusher R Mason Thomas. Another linebacker from Texas, Anthony Hill from the Texas Longhorns. And there's several cornerbacks who could be available in the middle of the second round. So if Dallas hadn't filled their needed corner with their first pick, either number 12 or by trade, they would be looking for a corner. And that list could include San Diego State corner Chris Johnson. He's a rising player in this draft. Miami corner Calante Scott, another player the Cowboys have brought in. And there's even a chance that South Carolina's Brandon Sisay could fall that far. All six of these players are projected to be taken somewhere between about picks thirty five and sixty. But to dance, you've got to have someone to dance with. You need a trade partner who's identified someone at number 20, still on the board, that they really want, and and they're willing to pay for it. But if such a trade is made, the Cowboys are amongst the NFL teams most likely to do it. Since Jerry Jones took over this team in 1989, Dallas has made a whopping 73 draft day deals, more than any other team in the NFL over that period. So here's the Cowboys dream that draft scenario for me. Have one of those players fault you at 12 or be aggressive, and perhaps trade next year's number one to up to maybe six to get styles or I don't think Bailey's there. I don't think Reese's there. Downs could be there, but to get a star at that point, and then to be able to trade down in the second round so that they could have a second and an extra third, and get one of those players we identified who would be second round targets for the Cowboys. And speaking of drafts, the Mavericks draft, and a scenario about a forgettable victory on last Sunday. Stolen water media is making a move. After two plus years, it's time to change and keep up with our growth. You can continue to view all eight of our podcasts on our Patreon pages. But now you can get all episodes at www.stolenwatermedia.com. This is a developing story, but you can begin by watching and listening right now at www.stolenwatermedia.com. Continue to find all audio wherever you find your favorite podcasts, and some you may not have heard of, but I think will enjoy. Are you just wondering where your next spectacular vacation will be? Relax. Feel the sun on your body. Let your cares melt away at the all inclusive Cerenian Bay Resort in Southern Belize. It's literally built right on the sand. The ocean, your ocean, is just a few barefoot steps away. Laid back luxury, terrific food, a swim up bar, a spa, air conditioned gym, unimaginable service, fishing, snorkeling in gorgeous turquoise waters. Do you want relaxation or do you need adventure? You choose at Sirenian Bay. Mary and I have been there three times and this summer will be number four. Take a cozy bungalow for two or bring the whole family to villas that can accommodate up to 14. Sirenianbay.com, S I R E N I A N. The sand and the sea are just waiting for you to get here. Staying with draft talk for this third and final segment of just wondering, when is a win actually a loss? I know that sounds somewhere between silly and dumb, but the Mavericks season closing win over Chicago, that victory was actually a loss. The Mavs blueprint for the future depends on how many quality players they can put around superstar in the waiting Cooper flag. The Mavs have this year's lottery pick to add a terrific young player. Probably they'd like to add a point guard in this year's draft. To add to the importance of this year's pick, next year, 2027, Dallas does not have any picks, not a first or second rounder. And this number one then must be a centerpiece part of the Maverick future. That brings us back to that win over Chicago. On Sunday, that victory was truly a totally useless win. That victory injured the Mavericks draft position this year. Going to that game, Dallas was tied for sixth, the sixth pick, sixth or seventh pick with Memphis. But by winning Sunday, and when the Grizzlies lost, Dallas moved up in the draft. They moved into a tie for seventh or eighth with the New Orleans Pelicans. Memphis will now assuredly select before Dallas, unless the Mavericks again get crazy lucky in the draft, in the lottery, and move into the top four, as they did last year when they got Cooper Flagg at number one. But if lightning doesn't strike twice in the same place, that means the Mavs will choose either seventh or eighth in this draft. If after the lottery, the Mavericks and New Orleans remain tied, that means neither of them have moved into the top four. If they remain tied, there'll be a draw to tell which one gets to pick seventh and which one gets to pick eighth. By the way, that Sunday victory, it also means that the Mavs will have less ping pong balls in that lottery pick. So if Dallas doesn't move up, thereby not getting one through four in the draft, and then they lose the draw with New Orleans. They will pick number eight, And if one of the teams further down gets lucky and jumps up into the top four, as Dallas did last year, it would move the Mavs down yet another notch. Listen. There are lots of good players available in this draft. But this dropping down a notch or two or three. Dallas, by everyone's thinking, wants a terrific point guard in this draft. My favorite, Arkansas's Darius Acuff. I believe he'll be gone by the sixth pick. And probably, almost certainly, Houston's Kingston Fleming's, not a great name, Kingston Fleming's will also be off the board. Should Dallas fall even that spot or two later, if they don't win the the draw with New Orleans, they fall down because someone jumps up in the lottery. Illinois freshman point guard, Keaton Waggler, may have disappeared also. That would leave only one pretty accomplished young guard. And that's still a pretty good player. His name is Braden Burries from Arizona. But I think in the estimation of the people who follow college basketball, Fleming's and Acuff would be considered a notch above Waggler and Burry's. And maybe Waggler still a touch before Burries. In that final game against Chicago, Dallas played a whole bunch of its kids, Rested a whole bunch of veterans. Just threw a bunch of kids out on the floor. Kids like guard Ryan Nemhardt, center Musa Sisay, one of the great names in NBA basketball. Musa Sisay. Tyler Smith and John Pulakidis, who just started a period games for the Mavericks about maybe a month ago. But those kids desperately wanting to show they belonged in the NBA. Those kids didn't give a damn about NBA draft positioning. They played their hearts out. They wanted to show Dallas the whole league, hey, I belong here. None of these players started the year in the NBA. They all worked their way up onto a Maverick team. Now, in that game Sunday, Nemhard set the all time Mavericks record for assists in a game with 23. Sisay had an incredible 20 rebounds. Pulikidis poured in his career high by a lot, scoring 28. And Smith chipped in 20. They, they totaled, these four kids in the game totaled 80 points, 38 rebounds, and 29 assists. Hey, they don't care about the Maverick draft position. They had to feel thrilled at their last game performances. And you know what? You had to be happy for them. But what that one win might have done to the Cowboys future. Last line, do it again. But what might that one win eventually cost the Mavericks? And now a word from our title sponsor. Today's episode has been brought to you by Fluent Financial, Retire Earlier, Live Better, and by Bob's Steak and Chophouse on Lemon in Dallas and in Craig Ranch in McKinney. Bob's a Dallas tradition for more than thirty years. If you've enjoyed Just Wondering, please hit follow and a fresh new episode will land in your mailbox early every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday morning. Should you know a sports fan who might like our work? Please share our contact information with that person. Thanks for listening to today's episode of Just Wondering. I'm Norm Hitschkes, and know that every day, I'll be just wondering about something. And I'm Mary Hitschkes, and I'll just be wondering too. This is a Stolen Water Media production.