The Drive

In hour 3 of The Drive, Zach, Phil and the group compete in our weekly trivia competition vs the morning show. Can we beat the morning show’s 3-1 performance from today? 9News Broncos insider, Mike Klis joins the show to discuss if the Broncos could go with an unexpected pick at 20th overall, how soon the Broncos top draft picks will get on the field, and much more. What is the confidence level of the guys as the Nuggets head into game one tomorrow?  How important will game one be for the Nuggets to win the series? What will Russell Westbrook’s role be in this first round series? Zach shares about his time at Avalanche practice and the seriousness and focus by the team. The guys breakdown how the Avs can win this heavy weight fight of a first-round matchup vs Dallas? Will the Avalanche lack of experience in goal factor into the Avs chances in round one?

In hour 4 of The Drive, Zach and Phil take a deep dive into the Nuggets and Clippers playoff series. How much will the lack of experience from Nuggets interim coach, David Adelman be a factor in the series? How much pressure will Adelman be feeling to win this series and potentially win the next Nuggets head coaching job? Will Jamal Murray be able to hold up vs a tough defense in the Clippers? Who strikes more fear into Zach and Phil between James Harden and Kawhi Leonard? We wrap up the show with our predictions for each game one of the Nuggets and Avalanche series as well as the entire first round series.

Hour 1 of The Drive kicks off with Zach and Phil cross talking with Dover and Cecil. The guys discuss if Ashton Jeanty is worth trading away assets for the Broncos to move up and draft. How much of a gap is there between Jeanty and the rest of the running back draft class? Zach and Phil revisit CU’s decision to retire Travis Hunter and Shedeur Sanders’ numbers. Was this move premature? We hear Coach Prime address the issue and claim if Shedeur Sanders wasn’t a “Sanders” this wouldn’t be a problem. If Shedeur wasn’t a “Sanders” would the university even be retiring number 2? DenverSports.com and CU alum, Jake Shapiro joins the show to share his thoughts on the controversy at Colorado. Has Coach Prime ruined many of the University of Colorado traditions? How difficult of a matchup will the Clippers be for Michael Porter Jr.? What kind of defensive issues will the Clippers bring the Nuggets as a whole?

In hour 2 of The Drive, Zach and Phil dive into the Broncos draft prospects as we are only a week out from the first round. What did the guys make of Ashton Jeanty’s letter to NFL teams? Was Jeanty overly confident in comparing himself to Saquon Barkley? We hear from Broncos GM, George Paton on the process of talking with other teams on trading picks and assets. How much will Sean Payton be involved in the Broncos draft selections vs George Paton? Today’s “Three Count” includes the Nuggets and Avs sharing 5 gamedays during the first round of each sport’s playoffs, ESPN College Gameday’s Lee Corso retiring after week 1 of the college football season in August, and the Rockies firing their hitting coach today after the team’s 3-15 start to the season. Is Nuggets nation overlooking the Clippers? Who will be the x-factor for the Nuggets in this first round playoff series?

In hour 3 of The Drive, Zach and Phil question which team has the better “core four” between the Clipper and Nuggets. How does Jamal compare to James Harden? Will Aaron Gordon be the defensive force he has in past post seasons? Will Norman Powell continue to be a “Nuggets killer”? Zach and Phil revisit CU’s decision to retire Travis Hunter and Shedeur Sanders’ numbers. Was this move premature? We hear Coach Prime address the issue and claim if Shedeur Sanders wasn’t a “Sanders” this wouldn’t be a problem. If Shedeur wasn’t a “Sanders” would the university even be retiring number 2? DenverSports.com’s Jake Shapiro joins the show to break down the Nuggets and Clippers playoff series. Will Michael Porter Jr. shrink in this series like he has in the past vs physical defenses? What defensive schemes will Ty Lue throw at Jokic and the Nuggets?

In hour 4 of The Drive, Zach and Phil dive into the Broncos draft prospects as we are only a week out from the first round. Could the Broncos get aggressive and trade up to draft Ashton Jeanty? How much of a gap is there between Jeanty and the rest of the running back draft class? How much will Sean Payton be involved in the Broncos draft selections vs George Paton? We hear from Avalanche GM, Chris MacFarland on Gabe Landeskog’s potential return and the importance of Val Nichushkin to the team. Why would the team wait to play Landeskog until game 3 of the series? Should we be concerned about Val potentially slipping up and missing playoff games for the third straight post season? We wrap up the show with the biggest stories in Denver sports today.

Hour 1 of The Drive kicks off with Phil and Richie cross talking with Dover and Cecil. The guys discuss if the Broncos should be aggressive and trade up for Ashton Jeanty. Is Jeanty a “can’t miss” prospect?  What would the guys be willing to give up, to ensure the Broncos could draft Jeanty? Richie and Phil react to Jeanty comments about the Broncos and how much they have been in talks. With the Nuggets and Clippers playoff series around the corner, we pick who will be the Nuggets x-factor in the series. Who needs to step up the most for the Nuggets? Will we see a fully healthy Jamal Murray in the 2025 playoffs? Will Aaron Gordon and Christian Braun be able to limit Kawhi Leonard and James Harden?

In hour 2 of The Drive, Phil and Richie debate if Gabe Landeskog should be on the ice for the Avalanche come playoff time. Is it fair to ask Gabe Landeskog and Avs faithful to wait until next season to see him in an Avs jersey? Does Avs coach Bednar have to protect Gabe from himself and rule him out of the playoffs? Today’s “Three Count” features the Rockies having the worst start to a season in franchise history, the Warriors securing the 7th seed in the western conference with impressive performances from Jimmy Butler and Steph Curry, and former Tennessee quarterback, Nico Iamaleava finding a new home at UCLA. What are the top five positions of need for the Broncos in the upcoming NFL draft?

In hour 3 of The Drive, Phil and Richie examine the potential fits for rookie running backs for the Broncos. What does each top end rookie running back bring to the table? What position group on the defense needs to be added to from the draft? Phil walks us through what his draft experience was like as an undrafted free agent. How will Sean Payton and George Paton split their duties when it comes to selecting players during the draft? We pivot the Nuggets and Avalanche and question what will be the toughest thing each team has to overcome to make it out of the first round. Will David Adelman inexperience come back to haunt the Nuggets? Will the Avalanche’s depth be able to continue to shine in the playoffs? How will a first-time playoff goaltender perform for the Avs?

In hour 4 of The Drive, Phil and Richie debate if the Broncos would and should trade up in the draft to select Ashton Jeanty. Is Jeanty the running back that could take this Broncos offense to the next level? How much are the guys willing to give up to the top 10 of the draft? How important is it for the Broncos next running back to be a “three-down back”? Phil explains his frustration with CU for retiring Shedeur Sanders and Travis Hunter’s numbers. Does CU need to stand up to Coach Prime and tell him no? We wrap up the show with the biggest storylines in Denver sports today.