This episode of On The Ball hits two hot-button topics with one throughline: who gets to shape the story—players, fans, media… or the loudest clip on social media.

First, Ric breaks down his NBA All-Star starting fives and why this year’s ballot was shockingly simple—while the bigger question looms: what happens if LeBron James doesn’t “make it” the traditional way? Ric digs into the realities of fan/media/player voting, the new All-Star format, and why the definition of “All-Star” keeps shifting.

Then the conversation pivots to the viral Jacksonville Jaguars postgame press conference moment—and why the internet’s reaction says more about society’s trust in media than it does about one reporter’s etiquette. Ric explains the old-school rules (“no cheering in the press box”), how they’ve been blurred, and why “anti-journalism” rage has become a profitable brand.

• 0:00 “We’re cooking with gas” + show intro
• 0:39 Where to find Ric (FS1 / Fox Sports Radio) + third book tease (“coachable”)
• 1:27 Why this episode goes beyond the NBA
• 1:57 Ric’s All-Star ballot: starters + why it was “the easiest” ever
• 2:39 New All-Star format: Americans vs Internationals + round-robin breakdown
• 3:24 How voting works: fans / media / players—and why it matters
• 4:20 Ric’s East starters + West starters (and the “free-throw merchant” jab)
• 5:02 The Scottie Barnes dilemma + why closers get rewarded
• 5:41 The LeBron question: where fans have him—and why player voting is the wildcard
• 7:10 Fixing the system: how Ric would restructure All-Star voting
• 8:16 The viral Jaguars presser moment: what happened, what people missed
• 10:26 “No cheering in the press box”: why decorum still matters
• 20:56 ESPN, fame, and the collapse of old media lines
• 23:26 Pat McAfee’s rant—and Ric’s response to the hypocrisy
• 25:01 The key point: compassion isn’t the issue—time and place is
• 28:44 Wrap-up + sponsor (Mizzen+Main) + promo code

#OnTheBall #RicBucher #NBA #AllStar #NBAAllStar #LeBronJames #ShaiGilgeousAlexander #LukaDoncic #NikolaJokic #VictorWembanyama #AnthonyEdwards #GiannisAntetokounmpo #JalenBrunson #CadeCunningham #TyreseMaxey #JalenBrown #SportsMedia #Journalism #UnitedWeCast

Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/bucher-and-friends.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.