The Herd with Colin Cowherd - 05/20/2021 - HOUR 1 - Lakers-Warriors, LeBron, Curry

Episode Date: May 20, 2021

Colin discusses the Lakers-Warriors play-in game last nightLeBron James' late three point shot wasn't luckSteph Curry should considering leaving the WarriorsGuest: Chris Haynes Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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It is amazing. You know, in the NFL, you know, just like games are games. They're all fun. I mean, obviously the playoffs feel a little different. But in the NBA, you get two seasons. get kind of a regular season, and then you get the playoffs, and as a consumer, I'm just glued. I mean, that's fourth quarter last night, Lakers Warriors, is just unbelievable sports. Joy Taylor is joining me.

God, that was good last night. That game definitely lived up to the hype. It did. I told you it was going to be close. I know. I lost my bet. I didn't care. You know what?

It was only a few hundred thousand dollars. So I hear a lot of this this morning. Colin, warriors should have won they played better. Not in the second half. Since when are legacies in the NBA framed on first halves? We talk about Tom Brady's first halves in the Super Bowl. He's never throwing a touchdown pass in the first quarter of any of them. All those great Michael Jordan highlights, those are second half highlights.

Lakers were the better team in the second half. In fact, I'll take a different tack than everybody I've heard this morning. The Lakers should feel great about themselves. If I'd have told you before the game, LeBron had his worst half as a Laker. AD was terrible. Steph Curry was on fire. The Warriors hit 44% of their threes. Yeah, Lakers still won.

He went, what? Warriors should have won. They didn't. The Lakers had no juice. they had no juice. LeBron and AD were just not ready to play. Dennis Schroeder played as poorly as you can play. And they won.

Listen, man, in 2021, that game would have been over for a lot of teams. We saw Charlotte the other night. They bailed at half. They just bailed at half. That game could have been over at half. Steph's on fire. Steph was easily the best player on the floor last night. And in the NBA playoffs, now you've seen this the last four or five years as it

become more of a three-point shooting league. Team blowouts are everywhere. I mean, in the 2016 NBA finals, Warriors and the Cavs, six of the seven games were blowouts. That's what happens against the best teams. I mean, think about this. You go back to those 2016 finals, game two, I think the Cavs lost by 33. Game three, they won by 30.

That is the new NBA, because you get behind, you're playing against the great shooter like staff. You get kind of desperate. You got to catch up and you can't hit your threes. And a nine point deficit becomes 16 becomes 28 game over half. I mean, think about this. If you're a Laker fan, Steph was amazing. Dremont Green was a major headache for AD. I thought Andrew Wiggins played really, really well. Steve Kerr's a great coach. Warrior shot 44% on threes. And the Lakers won. And LeBron played his worst first half. In fact, LeBron plays poorly so infrequently, I can't remember a half like that. I mean, he had no legs.

He had no juice. Too much Drake. They went out tonight before. So, in fact, I look at the Lakers last night. I'm like, oh, this is why they should be favored to win the championship. They did things that other teams can't do. They were great late in the fourth quarter. The Clippers aren't.

They played great defense late. Brooklyn can't. They adjusted. Charlotte didn't. They played poorly for long stretches and won. That's hard to do in the NBA. A lot of teams would have folded last night in the first half. So if you look at what's happening to the NBA since the three-point shot,

players are now so efficient. I mean, centers now shoot them. Joel M.B. and Anthony Davis couldn't pull out and shoot a three. You fall behind by 12 and 13, 14 points. A lot of teams pack it in. In playoff games, they pack it in. In finals, they pack it in. I thought the Lakers, to come back and win last night when so many things worked against

them was fantastic. Their biggest dilemma for the Lakers, and they adjusted. This is what they do. This is why Frank Vogel is a good coach. They really struggle against certain teams having Anthony Davis and Andre Drummond on the floor at the same time. They're a little too heavy-footed. And Anthony Davis doesn't like to play the center or what they call the five or what they call the post. He doesn't like to. He's more of a finesse big. He wants to be out moving around. He doesn't like, but they made him in the fourth.

Get in there, big fella. Play the five. Drummond did not play a minute in the fourth quarter. And LeBron and AD were great. But I saw adjusting. I saw fight. I saw resilience. I saw a team play poorly come back. I don't look at it any other way. I don't understand this. Warriors should have won. We don't frame legacies on good first halves. The Warriors were a hot mess in the third quarter.

They had a ton of turnovers. The game went sideways. And the Lakers, in the end of the football game, the last seven minutes, who was the better team? The Lakers, they should have won. Nice performance. Now, let me get into this. This just cracks me up.

Number one Jalen Suggs hit that great shot for Gonzagin. Everybody's like, oh, it's luck. And then Mark Fugh came out and he said, no, he practices that all the time, like 35-footers. We practiced late-game situations. And LeBron James, let's just show it to you. But the sound up. Everybody's saying, oh, it's very lucky. So here's the sound up on it right here.

James, two defenders on him. To Calvo Pope inside. He's tied up by Green. throws it back up top. James puts up the break. Oh, it's gone. A desperation heave and the Lakers are up three. He didn't grab the basketball and throw it.

It wasn't a two-handed chest throw from 40 feet. He maintained his shooting form. That's a jumper. That's how he shoots jumpers. I'm going to show you now five, six different LeBron shots. Just because you can't do something doesn't mean it's luck if somebody else can. LeBron can make that shot. Most guys in the NBA don't.

LeBron practices these shots. You think that's out of control. I've seen LeBron hit that bank shot, sorry to the radio audience, 20 times. That shot, he's leaning. LeBron practices these shots. Phil Mickleson's a golfer. Phil has what they call a flop shot. He'll use it twice a year.

It doesn't mean he doesn't practice it all the time. Just because an athlete does something in. frequently doesn't mean they don't practice it regularly. Remember the great Michael Jordan shot where he switches hands, right? You think he never practiced that? You think Michael just in the moment is like, try something I've never done before. Michael had done that either by himself at practice.

This is what players do. Steph Curry took a shot last night, six minutes, about six, 20 something in the, I think it was fourth quarter last night, 26 feet. leaning the wrong way. I'm not sure he got a good grip on the ball. And I'm like, man in his face, well, that's what he practices.

Steph Curry's out there for an hour and a half. I remember as a kid going to the kingdom in Seattle. It was a terrible place for basketball games. It was a barn. And I wanted to go watch Larry Bird. And I can remember I had binoculars because I didn't have any money, but bad seats. Larry Bird's out there at like 3.45 in the afternoon.

Like the minute we could get in his fans, You know, I was sitting there at the gate and I rush in and I watched Larry Bird's out there an hour before everybody shooting threes when they didn't even shoot threes. It's like, yeah, that's what they do. LeBron practices that. You talk to anybody, we had Tim Grover on yesterday, MJ's trainer. You don't have to beg these guys to come to the gym. The great practice. Phil Mickelson practices the flop shot all the time. Steph practices all these goofy shots that go in. LeBron's not throwing it.

He's not doing a chest heave. He's maintained his form. He's maintaining his form. So you watch dunk contests. Those guys have practiced goofy dunks. They're going to use once in their life. So that to me is just a shot. If you maintain your form and you just, you're probably, by the way,

LeBron called for the ball. LeBron set himself. He knows where he is on the floor. He knows what the clock is. He set himself up in a spot that he can hit that shot. and luck. A little dramatic on the eye stuff, but it's not, it's not, you know,

people are like, oh, he's by the R at the staple center. Steph Curry weighs 60 pounds less, has less muscle mass. Steph shoots from that area all the time. LeBron's as strong as any player in the NBA. That's a 33-foot shot. Not 70? By the way, LeBron talked about it after the game.

I saw it was, I had to get it up, at least get up on the rim. second thing I saw was three rims from being a poking eye on that previous possession when I drove to the hole in transition so I just aim for the middle one you know I've been I mean I practice enough you know I work on you know my game

and I was able to a man above and through a lot of practice I was able to drain it yeah they practice this like Mark Fuse said with Jalen Suggs like Gonzaga practices all right eight seconds like this is what coaches do it practice. Eight seconds left, no time out. Go up the court. This is what they do all day. This season lasts 200 days. Do you think they practice this stuff? It's just like Hoosiers. Back door cuts. Do it over. Guys are goofing around all the time practicing crazy shots.

Coaches give them time to do their independent stuff. All right. And I was thinking about this last night watching. You know, Steph Curry is a free agent next summer. One year left. Is it time? Is Steph Curry too good to be on an average team the next five years? I think it's time for him to leave Golden State. I really do. I'll talk about that coming up. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon eastern, 9 a.m. Pacific.

On Fox Sports Radio, FS1, and the IHeart Radio app. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. grotesque, others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's Superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth.

Listen to Superhuman on the I-Hard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win. Yep, that's me. Clipper Taylor the 4th. might have seen the skits, the reactions, my journey from basketball to college football, or my career in sports media.

Well, somewhere along the way, this platform became bigger than I ever imagined. And now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfiltered conversations with some of your favorite athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. One week, I'll take you behind the scenes of the biggest moments in sports and entertainment, and the next we'll talk about life, mental health, purpose, and even music. The Clifford Show isn't just a podcast.

It's a space for honest conversations, stories that don't always get told, and for people who are chasing something bigger. So if you've ever supported me or you're just chasing down a dream, this is right where you need to be. Listen to The Clifford show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast.

And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. What's up, fam? It's Isaiah Thomas. And I'm CJ Toledano, and our podcast Point Game about defying the odds. Like LeBron heading into the playoffs without Luca and Austin Reed.

And finding ways to win no matter what. He's the smartest player to ever play the game. His IQ is at a level that we've never seen before. And he knows without Luca and Austin Reeves, I got to manipulate the game. We get a player's perspective on the challenges of the playoffs. I think Joker's going to be exhausted this series because when they don't have Rudy in the lineup,

he has to really guard guys like Nas Reid. He has to guard Julius Randall. And then he has to give us everything he gives us on the night-to-night basis on offense. And when IT's friends stop by, like Quentin Richardson, we dive into some playoff history too. Steve Nass would get that thing. That man, hell get the flying. He running up the court, licking his fingers, why he got the ball. Like, you go through a training camp with that, Isaiah, you figure it out real quick.

Get your ass up and down the court, and you're going to get the ball. So listen to Point Game on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. The story I've told myself about love or relationships can then shape my behavior, and that can lead me to sabotage the possibility of connection. This Mental Health Awareness Month, tune into the podcast deeply well with Debbie Brown and explore the journey of healing, self-discovery, and returning to yourself. We explore higher consciousness, emotional well-being, and the practices that help you find clarity, peace, and self-mastery. a world that can feel overwhelming. The world is becoming lonelier. We're not becoming more social and connected. We're becoming more individualized, but we actually meet people in connection. If you've been searching for a soft place to land while doing the work to become whole, this podcast is for you

to hear more. Listen to deeply well with Debbie Brown from the Black Effect Podcast Network on the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. Are you ready to smell like a gentleman should use cremoh company.com. Not a pre-mixed formula products designed with good uncommon sense. Bourbon and oak body wash among the great ones. So I'm watching the Warriors last night and the Lakers like everybody else who's a sports fan. And I'm thinking to myself, yeah, I'm not, and Joey and I have talked about this. I'm not a traditionalist.

I didn't go to church much as a kid. although I can appreciate it when I move from the West Coast where we just blow stuff up and build new stuff. And I went to the East Coast. I do think the old churches and the prep schools, the Hogwarts feel to it. I think it's awesome. Some of the places, you know, you see some of the architecture. It's amazing. People have been sending their camps, kids to camps for like 70 years out east.

There's a lot of tradition I can appreciate. But when you listen to my show, I don't wax. philosophic about the 50s and 60s in baseball. It's just not who I am. I'm not interested in it. I didn't grow up in that culture. So I don't fall in love with stuff that's happening now. I fall in like with everything with an eye on getting better.

That's my person now. I think Joy and I kind of share that. And so I look at the Warriors dynasty. It's the second best team I've ever seen to Michael Jordan's Bulls. But I look at them now and I think Steph is way too good to just linger with Golden State. His contract's up in a year. He's a free agent next summer. I mean, let's be honest. He was easily the best player on the floor. He's 33 and his skills will age really well. Shooting ball handle, be smart. Lakers threw everything at him. Totally ineffective as the best

NBA defensive team. Totally ineffective. Draymond Green now, 41 minutes, two points. He's a liability on the floor offensively. Andrew Wiggins, Good, but way too expensive. Clay Thompson's back hasn't played in two years. James Wiseman's, a rookie center, lost several years from even being a potential star, so his timeline does not line up with Stephs. The Clippers right now are a good team that would die for a leader. Hello! LeBron James getting old.

You think it's a coincidence in the last two years? LeBron's buddy, buddy with Steph Curry? see him talking last night, see him talking all the time. LeBron throwing bouquets at Steph Curry. Didn't used to. LeBron was a Westbrook guy. Now LeBron's like, oh, that's the MVP easily. You think this is just random?

Come on now. LeBron's working it every day of the year. He's the best off-ball player in the league. He's the best score. He's the best ball handler. He may be the smartest or second smartest player. He's a free agent. By the way, it's not all doom and gloom for Golden State.

they could get a ton for him. You'd get an All-Star or two for him in several draft picks. But you look at the contracts next year between Clay, Draymond, Wiggins, and Steph. It's $139 million. You've got to blow this team up. It's over. Marcus Thompson was on earlier this week. You can't live in the rearview mirror with the Warriors.

It's over and it's time to just dismantle. all this puppy? We got to let go of that dynasty team for sure, right? This is post dynasty. This is Kobe after the shack Kobe years, right?

And it's like, you got to recreate yourself. I think that's what Steph is doing. You got to reinvent it. I think a lot of people are clamoring to you know, hey, they won three championships. They had all these all-stars. They've got to reinvent themselves. Because keep in mind, these dudes

are a 30 map. You know, it's funny in the NFL, we're seeing teams do this all the time now. They're just like, all right, do over, draft a guy, all right, we're done. And we're like, it almost always works. I mean, Jared Goff gets to a Super Bowl. Two years later, we're done with that. And we're like, all right. And they paid him a lot. They still owe Jared Goff some money. The NBA has always been the progressive league. Like there's an old saying in sports. The NBA thinks of it first. Baseball makes the most money off it and the NFL gets it right. But the NBA thinks of it first. This is not baseball where they're stuck in the mud. They want to, I mean, when I talk NBA, I don't ever talk George Miken. You know, I don't, you know, Michael Jordan's

about as far back as I go and he's the best player of all time and he's still a relevant person and in the NBA, he owns a team. So I just look at this team and I think, is done. And Steph is way, you don't want him to become Bradley Beal where you're like, bro, what are you doing? Steph's got a lot of titles in him. Steff's got a lot of titles in him. I mean, I'm watching last night, he was so far and away the best player on the floor.

Totally controlled the game. I mean, he's just there. I mean, and I don't think it's a coincidence that LeBron has become his biggest fan in the last two years. He wasn't early in his career. he used to kind of roll his eyes at Steph. Now he's like, oh, he's the best player in the world over there.

Be a joy to play with it. What a player, Steph Curry. That's not a coincidence. But he may fit the Clippers better than the Laker. And I'm not saying those are the only teams. Who wouldn't want Steph Curry? I mean, everybody wants Steph Curry. I mean, Phoenix would figure out a way to get him over there alongside Chris Paul and

David Booker. Just bring him in. We'll figure it out. But I just, what I don't want to. to see as athletes because of tradition and loyalty, giving away championships. Steph's got like four left than him. He needs to be in three or four more finals here in the next five or six years. Joy with the news.

No, no, no, no, no, turn on the news. This is the herd line. Loyalty. There's no loyalty in business. There just isn't. And this is a business for them. If we weren't fantastic, we'd be out of here. Thank God we are.

Well, yeah, being excellent can garner you some loyalty. But no, I mean, it's just, it's not romantic to talk about loyalty so flippantly. Like, it's a, when you say loyalty, like, that's something that really stirs people emotionally. Right. And fans are supposed to be loyal and they're loyal to their team. So they have some expectation that players are supposed to be loyal back. But at the end of the day, Steph gets a paycheck to play basketball. So therefore, that is his business.

and everybody moves around in business. You haven't worked at one job your entire life. Be loyal to your kids and your wife and friends. Yeah, your family and friends. I'm loyal to my dogs. Sure. I don't even, I ignore other dogs in their presence. But I'm not going to be loyal to, as a basketball player,

to an owner who is moving in his stocks every day. Well, yeah. I mean, they're a great organization. It's not like this is, you know, a dysfunctional situation. But the idea of loyalty is a bit, it's over-dramatized when it comes to professional sports. So the Grizzlies won last night's first play in game to keep their season alive. They beat the Spurs 196.

Jonas Valentunus got hot early at 23 points in a season high, 23 rebounds. Dylan Brooks and John Moran also had strong performances, 24 and 20 points each. And they will now face the Warriors for the final playoff spot in the West on Friday night. Spurs missed the playoffs for the second straight season. It's first time in franchise history that they failed to make the playoffs and back-to-back seasons. That's pretty remarkable. Also, they shoot the fewest threes in the league.

That is a little bit of arrogance. It's problematic. Yeah, when you are saying, we do not adapt to the current NBA model. Say what you want, but this is the arrogance of Popovich. I know better than everybody. It's like, bruh,

you don't even make the playoffs in a sport where half the teams do now. Well, it's become a trend. I mean, you have two seasons in a row now. they've never missed back to back. Yeah. And I'm not somebody that lives and dies with analytics. On this show, I call them analytics.

I like them, but these are humans. I'm not going to reduce everybody to code. Like, I need my guys to be guys and feel good about themselves and not be a number. Baseball managers now, you know, they don't even manage.

The GM manages. I'm not into that. But there are certain things you need to do, which is, you know, there's some analytics in football, where you really should go for it on fourth and two the minute you pass midfield, just go for it.

The analytics tell you, you're going to make it as much as you don't, and it's not going to be punitive. You need to shoot threes. You need to crank them up. Well, the whole, the game has changed at every level. Youth all the way up through professional, so it's time to update it.

The Warriors are three and a half point favorites over the Grizzlies, according to Fox Bet. That's about right. Yeah, I would go with the Warriors in this game, but I do think it's going to be a very competitive. Yeah, no, I like the Warriors close. Yeah, they've been more guys that have been here. Exactly.

Tim Tebow is officially a Jaguar. He signed his contract to play tight end today and is expected to join his teammates for off-season workouts. In a statement following the signing, Tebow thanked Jacksonville for giving him the opportunity to earn a spot in the team and said he is embracing the challenge ahead of him. He last played a game in the NFL at the quarterback position in 2012. I'm trying to remember what I was doing in 2012.

Did we have the internet? My memory doesn't go back that far. I don't know. Anytime you're critical of Tebow, I just the other day I was listening to a radio show. It was a southern-based radio show. And, oh, Tebow is a victim of this terrible media onslaught. First of all, May is slow in our business.

Yes. All right. Like the NFL schedule release is a big day. And then we pray for playing NBA. Day game. So May is slow. Joy and I spent officially about a day and a half on Tebow. He plays in the world's most popular sport.

The idea people are picking on Tebow. No. He made himself... Picking on him for what? Well, if you come out like me and you say, he was bad eight years ago. It's silly. That's like, everybody, he deserves a chance. Well,

he certainly hasn't earned it. If you want to just, you know, put him on that 90 man offseason roster. I'm not losing any sleep on this. No, he does not deserve a chance. No, he hasn't, he certainly hasn't earned it. That doesn't mean that he, like, so what? He got it, so what?

But he has not done anything to deserve an opportunity to play on an NFL team at tight end. Think about if he was a great, like let's say Wayne Gretzky, left hockey and nine years later came back and said, I want to be a goalie. Now, that's Wayne Gretzky. We would laugh at him. Only the greatest ever. Yeah. We would laugh at him and say, Wayne, get a life.

Tim was terrible at quarterback, now wants to be a tight end. And we're supposed to go, yeah, I'm down with it. It's like, dude, get a job. Like, I know you're a nice kid. But if Derek Jeter, nine years after retiring, Derek Jeter, Hall of Famer, said, I want to come back. I want to be a catcher. We'd be like, oh, that's adorable. But he would in some ways have earned the opportunity to try because he was

one of the greatest to ever play the sports. Tim was a first round bust at his position. Nine years later wants to play another one. And if you and I are kind of like... Yeah, and to be clear, I'm not outraged by it at all. No, I'm not losing any sleep. But for us to not go eye roll, I mean... No, it's absolutely an eye roll.

It's absolutely not deserved. The worst tight end on the worst team last year is better than Tim Tebow is right now. And that is just factual. Of course. He's never played the position at the car. college or professional level. And I, and I don't quote me, but I don't know if he's played at past his freshman year of high school, which he's a year younger than me.

So I can say there were dinosaurs then. So it's just there's, this is not a, this is not a fair situation. This is a matter of knowing the right person at the right time. And that's it. And by the way, that happens all the time. Yeah, I'm not losing any sleep on it. All the time. It happens all the time, whether it's fair or not, fair is for fairs skills and ho-hoes.

It's not real life. If you, if you opened up a car wash tomorrow in Los Angeles, you would probably hire some people that you know and trust who'd never worked at a car wash, but you're like, I trust her, I trust him. Everyone does it. And some guy would go, I've worked at car washes for 28 years. You didn't give me the job. And you're like, well, I don't know you.

Some of this, most of the just. Yeah, and I might still. I probably would, right? But everybody operates differently. Urban's comfortable with him. That's right. I don't think it's a good idea. I don't even think he's going to make the team.

But also there's the undertone that he gets all this because he's religious and that is just not the truth. Like nobody hates Tibo. When you question being out of a sport for eight years, trying another position, you weren't good at the first one. Nobody's picking on him. You know this very well, Colin. You can't throw reasoned at emotions. Can't.

You can't. It doesn't work. Finally, the Falcons are reportedly ready to move on from Julio Jones. According to the athletic, Atlanta would like to deal Julio, due in large part, obviously, to their salary cap issues. He has the highest cap hit amongst all wide receivers. Yeah. Next season at $23 million, and they would save $15 million in cap space in 2021 if they

trade Julio after June 1st. And this is one of these, this is one of these situations where I get it. He's been great and nobody would deny it. Right. But they also have other good young receivers and there are times where relationships like, it's time. He's also the kind of guy that a great team with cap space could say, oh, I'd love Julio.

Like Green Bay. So this is not like, he now has become very, very expensive for a team that can't pay all this money to two positions. Matt Ryan and Julio. They're rebuilding in Atlanta. They have to go out and get younger players. He's also missed time in six of his last 10 seasons. So he still has lots of good football left in him,

but to your point, it's too expensive for the injury history and they have other wide receivers. You bring him into a team like Green Bay. You don't need him to play 17 weeks. What you need him is to be great December on. That's the advantage to be in a great team. Is that like Tampa Bay this year, Leonard Fernett didn't need to be great all the time.

They had other weapons or gronk. But gronk, will you be good in the playoffs? So a great team doesn't need regular season excellence. Kansas City with Sammy Watkins. Dude, just show up in the playoffs like you always do. So Julio Jones, if he can go to a good team, you can play 12 games and be a perfect fit. Enjoy with the news.

Well, that's the news. And thanks for stopping by. The Hurd-Lie News. All this playoff stuff. Fox Sports NBA analyst. us Chris Haynes. Now joining us live, brought you my Mercedes best, the best or nothing. Senior NBA insider, TNT's everywhere. Man is employed by a lot of people. That's a good sign. You know, it was funny. I'm watching last night, Steph, and I'm thinking to myself, you know,

he was the best player on the floor easily. His skills will age well. The Warriors have 140 million bucks into four players. They got to blow this thing up. They don't, Wiseman's not on the same timeline as Steph, and I look at Steph, and I think he's a free agent next summer. And I say this as a compliment, I don't want him to become Bradley Beal. This is an iconic, great player. He led the NBA in scoring. He could be the MVP, and I think, I don't want to see him part of a rebuild. That's not what I want to see.

Your thoughts on Steph Curry this time next year. Like, is it maybe time to just, hey, the dynasty was fun. Let's start over for Steph? Well, I think it all depends on how Clay Thompson comes back next. season. I think the Warriors want to run it back. I know Draymond Green, Stefan Curry, they want to see what they have left in the tank with those three cornerstone players mixed in with the addition to Andrew Wiggins, who has been a good complimentary piece with Steph this season. I played the best, you know, overall he's

had in his career on both ends of the floor. So with that being said, I think we're another year away from even talking about blowing it up. I think they still have a lot of ball left in them. And I think it's all going to be dependent on how Clay Thompson comes back. Can he come back and still be a force? You know, my takeaway on last night was a lot of teams would have folded it half. If you'd have told me, Chris, LeBron had his worst first half in the playoffs in years. Steph was on fire. They shot 44% on threes. AD didn't really show up until the fourth. Andrew Wiggins played well. Dremont was a tear on defense. And the Lakers won, I'd be like, oh, that's, I mean, they had to make big adjustments with Andre Drummond.

They had to rally the troops at halftime. I came out of that and I was like, that was an impressive win for the Lakers. I mean, what was your view on it? Well, I think they realized that it would have been an utter embarrassment if they would have lost that game the other night. You know, to be the defending champions, then to put themselves in position to where they're actually in the playing game. and then to fall to a team that is a rival of LeBron James, it would have been an embarrassment. So I think pride finally got into them, you know, at halftime

where they felt like they had to come back in the second half and get things in order. And they did that. And it would have been like they would have been one of the laughing stocks of the season. I think no matter who won the title, if the Lakers lose in the playing round, that would have been the talk of the rest of the postseason and going into the off season.

And you look at some of the moves the Lakers that made were Andre Drummond, Montrez, Harold, and Dennis Schroeder, and he still had to find his time. But remember, they took him out down the stretch of that game. They had to go with Wesley Matthews down there. So they had to find themselves. And I just think they realized what was really at stake. And once they did that, they got it going. What did you make of the foul Draymond Green? I didn't think it was a flagrant.

I thought LeBron was a tad dramatic. What was your takeaway on the whole moment? no lebrun sold it he's he's not going to admit it but he sold it i mean but that's what players do they sell it they get the refs to go and review the play but this is what i will say about the fouls to the head collard i i get a little perturred about how officials officiate when players get hit by the head i'm all about intent and but to the letter of the law is if you really if you get hit in the head or around the face area it's almost all the time a flagrant one or a flagrant two And a lot of times, you know how acrobatic and athletic these players are.

They'll bring the ball up and then swooping around their head. And the player may swipe at the ball. The ball might have been there at one second. And the next second is completely somewhere else. And the only thing that's in that space is a person's head and they get hit. And a lot of times they're giving that flagrant. And I don't think those should be flagrant. I don't think the Draymond play should have been a flagrant.

You know, I think they made the right call on that play. He was going for the ball and wanted to contest. LeBron James' head just got in the way. So it's very interesting now. So you look at the West playoffs. Everybody's got a little bit of a flaw. Denver lost Jamal Murray to injury. They don't have as much offensive juice.

Portland gets very reliant on their back court for all their offense. Dallas is young, doesn't play high-end defense. Phoenix, it's a huge, they're very young. by the way as well, big leap to go from bad to the championship. Clippers are a team that struggles with an identity down the stretch of games. They're really, really under five minutes to go. They're just, they're a bad watch. They don't quite know what they are.

And then the Lakers are old beat up, but really good. Like when you look at the West, is there going to be an upset in the West? Is there what is kind of your sense of, I mean, we're not even talking about Utah, and they had the best record in the NBA. So kind of give me your thought. about a potential upset and your thoughts going forward? You know, Carla, there's going to be an upset, but this season, the way the teams are structured, there's not a definitive upset out there.

Like, take the Denver Portland series. I think Portland might be favored, even though Denver is the higher seed. And so even Utah, like, it's wide open. I think anybody can beat anybody in this Western Conference playoff bracket. And I think that's a good thing. I think that's a good thing. I think we're going to see a lot of good basketball, potentially we're going to see a lot of these series go to distance.

And so with that being said, that's why I'm saying. It's hard for me to say it upset because I just don't think there's a team out there head and shoulders above anybody else. And I'm not trying to disrespect Phoenix. I'm not trying to disrespect Utah. But even take Phoenix. I haven't looked at the Vegas eyes. I don't know what they're saying, but is Phoenix really favored over the Los Angeles

Lakers? No. And so I look. So that's what I'm saying. I don't see real major upsets being had. I just think there's a lot of parity, and I think we have an opportunity to see a lot of lower seats taken down higher seats. By the way, to Chris's point, the three best odds to win the NBA title had these records in the regular season,

fourth best, sixth best, and tenth best. Those are the favorites. I mean, so a lot of this stuff, and I want to address that why the regular season and the playoffs are different. I'm going to do that on the other side. Chris Haynes, great as always. Thank you, man. Appreciate it. Thanks, ma'am.

Yeah, the NBA is different than any other sport. And I've said before, baseball doesn't have a clock. I'm okay with it. Football's got a regulated level of violence. So does the UFC. I'm okay with it. Basketball, you get two seasons. You get the regular season and you get the postseason.

And I'll explain why that's okay. and why I don't think sitting around watching NBA games all regular season makes you more accurate on your predictions. The NBA has now shifted, you saw it last night, into a different game. That's called the playoffs. It's totally different. I'll tell you why coming up. Be sure to catch live editions of The Herd weekdays in noon Eastern, 9 a.m. Pacific. Hey, what's up, everybody?

It's me, three-time Pro Bowl of LaVore Arrington, and I couldn't be more excited to announce a new podcast. podcast called Up On Game. What is Up On Game, you ask? Along with my fellow Pro Bowler, T.J. Hushmanzada, and Super Bowl champion. Yep, that's right. Plexico Burris. You can only name a show with that type of talent on it. Up on Game. We're going to be sharing our real-life experiences loaded with teachable moments. Listen to Up on Game with me, LaVar Arington, T.J. Hushman Zada, and Plexico Burris on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast from. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's Superhuman documented it all,

embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the IHard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what you're saying.

Yep, that's me, Clifford Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, the reactions, my journey from basketball to college football, or my career in sports media. Well, somewhere along the way, this platform became bigger than I ever imagined. And now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show.

This is a place for Raw, filtered conversations with some of your favorite athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. One week, I'll take you behind the scenes of the biggest moments in sports and entertainment, and the next we'll talk about life, mental health, purpose, and even music. The Clifford Show isn't just a podcast. It's a space for honest conversations, stories that don't always get told, and for people who are chasing something bigger. So, if you've ever supported me, or you're just chasing down a dream, this is right where you need to be. Listen to the Clifford show on the IHard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast.

And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. What's up, fam? It's Isaiah Thomas. And I'm C.J. Toledano, and our podcast Point Game is about defying the odds. Like LeBron heading into the playoffs without Luca and Austin Reed. And finding ways to win no matter what. He's the smartest player to ever play the game. His IQ is at a level that we've never seen before. And he knows without Luca and Austin Reed.

I got to manipulate the game. We get a player's perspective on the challenges of the playoffs. I think Joker's going to be exhausted this series because when they don't have Rudy in the lineup, he has to really guard guys like Nas Reid. He has to guard Julius Randall. And then he has to give us everything he gives us on the night-to-night basis on offense.

And when IT's friends stop by, like Quentin Richardson, we dive into some playoff history too. Steve Nash would get that thing. That man, hell get the flying. He running up the court, licking his fingers, why he got the ball like, after you go through a training camp with that I said, you figure it out real quick.

Get your ass up and down the court, and you're going to get the ball. So listen to Point Game on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. If you're watching the latest season of the Real Housewives of Atlanta, you already know there's a lot to break down. Georgia accusing Kelly of sleeping with a merry man.

They holding Kay Michelle back from fighting Drew. Pinky has financial issues. I like the bougie style of Housewives show. I think it looks like it's going to be interesting. On the podcast, Reality with the King, I, Carlos King, recap the biggest moments from your favorite reality shows, including the Real Housewives franchise, the drama, the alliances, and the team everybody's talking about.

As an executive producer in reality television, I'm not just watching it. I understand the game. As somebody who creates shows, I'll even say this. At the end of the day, when people are, at home, they want entertainment. To hear this and more, listen to Reality with the King on the IHard Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast.

You know, every sport in this country gives us something that's a little different, and I don't want all my sports to be the same. I mean, baseball has no salary cap. NFL's got a very rigid salary cap. NBA's got a salary cap. They got all sorts of exemptions, and just the way their trades work, you've got to match salary. It's okay. You know, soccer and hockey are more international. Football's more domestic. The labor comes from American University. It's okay. All of it's fun to me. But I always hear this.

Well, the NBA, the regular season doesn't matter. Nobody's saying it doesn't matter. But the regular season in professional basketball is different than the regular season in the playoff season in the NBA. First of all, you can burn 4,000 to 5,000 calories a night playing professional basketball. Baseball players do not burn that much. Baseball players, when they travel, and they have a lot of travel, but a third of the team's pitchers, they don't even play. They go into a game not knowing they're going to play.

NBA is a schloid. It is a lot of travel. You're talking about, you're running, you're cardio. NFL, it's 12 minutes of action. That's it. Bursts. NBA, you're running up down the floor, guarding the world's best athletes for 40 minutes.

It's an exhausting sport. And so the veteran teams tend to pace themselves. The stars take more time off. The stars are often older. They are more beat up. It's their 11th year in this travel schedule. You've ever seen a 50-year-old

NBA coach who played? They're all hunched over. All of them, like Phil Jackson. They got bad backs. So the Knicks, the sons, jazz are built for the regular season. They got depth and they're young and they got a new coach and the Knicks are an underdog to Atlanta in the postseason. Sons are a massive underdog to the Lakers in the postseason and the jazz are not a top three favorite despite having the best

record. So why is this so different? There's a lot of reasons. First of all, depth matters a lot in the regular season. It's long. You got nine, Utah's got like 10 dudes that can play. But in the playoffs, you play coaches trust about seven. So the depth advantage for a Utah is just not going to matter as much, right? Because those bottom two or three bench guys, you're not going to play. You're not going to put them out on the floor against LeBron and A.D. They're not going to be out in the floor. The second thing is you play the same team over and over and over and over and over.

Right. Coaching becomes really important. No more tricks. You will find a team's flaw. Like Janus in the regular season, unstoppable. But if I get to play Yonis six times, you can marginalize him. There's things he doesn't do and you just keep refining it and refining it and refining it until Yonis is a liability late in a playoff game if they're trailing.

The other thing is veteran teams, and this is obvious, tend to be better in late game situations because they've played in them a lot. I mean, last year was very unique. Only time in my life, young teams outside of the Lakers were way better than older teams. a lot of that was the pandemic. The older players missed their wife, their kids. It was depressing. Players talked about being depressed.

Young players weren't. It's like AAU basketball. Video games play. Sleep, eat. Video games play. It's great for a 23-year-old kid. But in the playoffs, generally, young players, noisy arenas, go on the road. They panic.

Veteran teams, stars, your Ray Allen. I mean, that Miami Heat team, Haslam and Wade and Bob. And Bally, a zillion games. Those guys have been in that big spot forever. The other thing now is coach travel. I'll give you an example. The Phoenix Sun's top four players averaged 69 to 70 games in a 72 season. Three of them are very young kids.

They play. They're healthy. James Hardin for Brooklyn played as many games for Houston this year as he did Brooklyn. So there's a lot. It's not the officials are doing this and the officials. Depth matters a lot in the regular season. It doesn't in the playoffs. Coaching becomes more significant.

Veteran players, bigger bodies, rested, better late game situations. They're very good in the playoffs. So nothing against Phoenix or the Knicks or the Jazz. But a lot of their, I mean, Tom Timito teams are all the same. They just grind the hell out of you in the regular season. And they just play harder than teams in the, a regular season. But in the playoffs, everybody plays hard. So their big advantage in New York disappears.

Like Mike Dunleavy told me years ago, if you just play hard, if you commit to the defensive end, an average team wins 45 games. A slightly above average team wins like 48, 49. The next one, a slightly above average team plays hard. Now everybody plays hard. So that advantage goes away. All right, hour two, Chris Broussard. You Tebow fans got me worked up this morning.

I got to give Tebow about five minutes. Just five minutes. Hour two. Live in L.A. It's the hurt. Another podcast from some SNL late-night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smygel and friends. Me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman help make you funnier.

This week, my guest, S&L's Mikey Day and head writer, Streeter Seidel, help an a cappella band with their between songs banter. Where does your group perform? We do some retirement homes. Those people are starving for banter. Listen to humor me with Robert Smiley. and friends on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal, but encouraged.

It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's Superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the IHard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, what's good, y'all?

You're listening to Learn the Hard Way with your favorite therapist and host Kear Games. This space is about black men's experiences, having honest conversations that it's really not safe to have anywhere, but you're having them with a licensed professional who knows what he's doing. How many men carry a suit or armor? It signals to the world that you're not to be played with. And just because you have the capability that does not mean that you need to. Listen to learn the hard way on the AHA radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. Therapy is fantastic. But once again, it does not have a monopoly on healing.

That's why I create the resources and that's why I create the community because I really just want you to have more access. On the podcast, cultivating her space, Dr. Dom and Terry Lulmex create a space where black women can show up fully and be heard. It's tough because we're suppressing our emotions and so many of us are like high achieving individuals. Listen to cultivating her space on the IHeart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. This is an IHeart podcast. Guaranteed human.