The Herd with Colin Cowherd - Anthony Davis, Lakers-Pelicans, and free agency

Episode Date: June 17, 2019

Colin discusses the Los Angeles Lakers getting F Anthony Davis from the New Orleans Pelicans and who won the trade. He also talks free agency and what the Lakers should do going forward. Guests include Chris Broussard, Bill Oram, and Doug Gottlieb. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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What's up, fam? It's Isaiah Thomas. And I'm C.J. Toledano. It's our favorite time of the year on our podcast point game, the playoffs. We're digging into the biggest surprises of the season. And I'm looking back on some of my greatest playoff moments. If we didn't talk ever again, I was harmed. you just understood.

That's how personal it got. Wow. Then after that game seven, Mark keep coming to her. He's like, you know I love you, dog. You know, it's all love. This was just playoffs.

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You're listening to Fox Sports Radio. Ah, this is The Herd. Vacake and wait, wherever you may be and however you may be listening, we're live on a Monday morning, I-Heart Radio, Fox Sports Radio, and wherever else we land, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube. Yeah, I was going to go on vacation, but I scheduled my vacay for Tuesday.

Because I thought, about a couple weeks ago, I thought Anthony Davis deal, Toronto's better than I thought. Series could go seven. So I'm going to schedule my vacay for Tuesday. So vacations can wait. Father's Day. I hope you had a great Father's Day yesterday. I watched five hours of golf and was on Twitter with Anthony Davis thoughts. So the Lakers have reached the deal to get Anthony Davis.

Who won the trade? That's what we want to know, right? Well, the Pelicans got three draft picks, two draft swaps, two starters, a bench guy, six total players, two draft swaps for Anthony Davis. Fields lobsided, New Orleans. But even with the Pelicans, I could give you several narratives. A, Pelicans, look at all those pieces. Zion plus Lonzo equals highlight film. Six players for one guy.

What a future. Or B. Lonzo Ball doesn't want to be there, and he and Brandon Ingram can't stay healthy. Draft picks are 19-year-olds. Do you watch the finals? Not a lot of those. There was one young guy in the whole finals that mattered,

Fred Van Vleet, and he went to college for a bunch of years. So he came into the league of man. Lakers this morning. We got AD. We won. I could have several narratives there. A. Now you have the best star combo in the NBA. LeBron plus Anthony Davis. Both healthy, both rested.

Also, this is big for me. Got to keep Kyle Kuzma, paying him nothing for two years, which allows you to go get another big guy. And Vegas has your title favorite. Or B, two stars. and we've only got five guys on the roster right now. And LeBron, plus a great big, is going to be good. But he and Bosch had issues.

He and Kevin Love had some issues. We always want instant analysis. A grade. Who won? But what both the Pelicans and the Lakers really did, they chose a direction. That's what they did. The Pelicans, it's a football city. run by football people until David Griffith got there,

can sell hope, future, optimism. That's good enough. And the Lakers, kids took over for dad, kind of rudderless, once again, contenders. Listen, the Pelicans chose a direction. Hope were not just a football city. That's what they need and can sell in that city. And they delivered it.

And the Lakers, you know, kids aren't as good as dad. Stock prices reeling. Standards are higher. A lot of options in Los Angeles. NFL's now in town. We need to be important today and dispel this notion. We are rudderless. Check, check, check, both teams.

You can talk about draft picks, but you know why they're excited in New Orleans? Zion. He's a star. And you know why they're excited in Los Angeles? because they have AD and LeBron. Two stars. I don't want to hear about draft picks. Folks, if you take Zion out,

the Pelicans got a bunch of questions. Lonzo, Ingram, can't stay healthy. Josh Hart, so what, bench guy? A bunch of draft picks. If you took Zion out the next three years for the Pelicans, looks like one of those edible arrangements, ooh, cantalope on a stick. I've always wanted that.

Zion's the key to everything. He's the sun, everything will rotate around it. Brandon Ingram, blood caught lot issue, and the Lakers privately told people about Brandon Ingram a year ago, they'd come to terms with not really an alpha, not great at anything, good at some things, can't stay healthy. Josh Hart, total ceiling.

Lonzo, he's missed like 60 games. And a number four pick in a draft with three, absolutes. But what I can say definitively is both teams chose a direction. Hope and optimism in New Orleans, win now and contend in Los Angeles. Neither team this morning, neither franchise this morning feels rudderless. And that's a win for both teams. Now let me shift to multiple angles on this. Let's start with this one. Reading the headline, Lakers making Kempb. Bo Walker top target after the 80 deal. Kemba's not as gifted as Kyrie, but he would be considered a third star.

You also hear Jimmy Butler. You hear Kyrie. Let me talk about this land a third star thing. Because the Lakers this morning now have a choice. Land Kemba. Go after Jimmy. Land, you know, a third guy. Wait to land the big fish.

or take the 20, 25 million and land a bunch of heady veterans. Trevor Areza, Danny Green, J.J. Reddick, Patrick Beverly's out there. That's the option I believe in. Sprinkle the infield, get a bench, get veterans. Do you watch the finals? Not a lot of babies in that. Not a lot of teenagers in that. Those are men, 28, 29, 30, 31, Marcus Saul, Sergei Bodka,

Steph Curry, Draymond Green. I mean, it was grownups. Fill their roster out with reliable B and B minus guys. Because those guys in May and June, you're not teaching them how to play basketball. Jamal Crawford, Brooks Lopez. Again, Danny Green. Listen, LeBron's always understood. Very few players are at his level physically.

He gets that. But what drives LeBron nuts, and this is when he puts his head. head down and sometimes gets discouraged and seems distracted is when you're not at his intellectual level. And there's not a 19, 20, 21 year old in America on his intellectual basketball level. There isn't. Lonzo's smart. He's not there.

And so veterans motivated to get a ring. J.J. Reddick, Rudy Gay. Darren Collison's a name out there. And let's be honest about the third star under LeBron. they always feel left out because LeBron's ball-centric. Chris Bosch felt like a valet, Kevin Love, luggage carrier. They always feel like underutilized, their agents in their ear. You're not a three, you're a one.

They're lucky to have you. LeBron's a ball dominator. In fact, the only third guy I would really consider is Clay Thompson, and that's mostly because of his personality. He's perfect. But if I can get a JJ Redick, a Seth Curry, a Danny Green, a George Hill, high IQ shooters plus LeBron, I'm not a big believer in go top heavy with a third star. You'll have no bench.

LeBron now is not 27. Okay, he's not giving you 42 minutes tonight. He's not interested, frankly, to play a ton of minutes on the defensive end. He's not giving you 82 games. He's going to give you 70. So the bench matters, depth matters. When your superstar is going to be 35 next year, and he's still great, you're not getting 40 minutes, you're not getting 82 games.

Go find a Mark Gassal. Go fill out the roster with intellectual equals. He respects you got your two stars. We have a history here. LeBron works well with smart guys, shooters, and another star. You add a third, there's always the guy feeling undervalued, underutilized. Bosch, love. Hall of Famers.

Kind of felt like valets had to marginalize themselves. Their games got, don't. And Kenball Walker's a good guy, like he's a good guy. But to get Campbell Walker, you got no bench. And for the record, AD's not giving you 82 games either. He's probably giving you 6970. All right, a lot of angles on this. A lot of angles on this.

Fred Van Bleet will join us today. By the way, Toronto Raptors, our NBA champs. We continue to show love to Canada. Last year, I vacation there. This year I talk about the Raptors. Doug Gottlieb, Chris Broussard, all sorts of stuff. Coming up next, the most interesting player in this draft is not Anthony Davis. There's another component to this draft, Lonzo Ball, and it is got, there's a lot of

certainties in this draft. He is, you might as well, what was the, the riddler? Put a question mark on Lonzo Ball. Because I got a lot of questions about that going forward. Within a year, I'm not sure he's going to be a pelican. I'll explain 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 IHeard Radio app. Last night, a blown call changed the game. This morning, the internet lost its mind. Lights are trending, opinions are flying, and nobody's telling you exactly what happened. That's where Sports Slice comes in.

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SportsSlice brings you closer to the action with stories told by the people who live them. Listen to SportsSlice on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Slic Life 12 in the TikTok podcast network on TikTok. Welcome to my new podcast, Learn the Hardway with me, your host, and your favorite therapist, Kear Games. And in recognition of mental health awareness month, I'm bringing over a decade of my own experience in the mental health field and conversations with so many incredible guests. I'm talking. Tripp Fontaine, Ryan Clark.

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This is Clever Taylor the 4th. And on my podcast, The Cliverts Show, I'm bringing you conversations about all kinds of stuff, like being an internet famous referee. We're in the middle of the first. the game. This linebacker, this linebacker walks up to me, he goes, hey, ref, my mom wants you to wave at her. What? Time out.

Quarterback on office blue 42. Hey, rec, my mama want you to wave at her. What? Hey, Ms. Parker. Listen to the Cliverts show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. What's up, fam? This Isaiah Thomas.

And I'm C.J. Toledano. in 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 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 to fly. He running up the court, licking his fingers why he got the ball. Like, after 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 Podcast, or wherever you. you get your podcasts. Just got the aluminum carry on from Away luggage. Incredible.

Every feature perfectly engineered. Go to AwayTravel.com slash Colin. 20 bucks off when you enter the promo code Colin at checkout. AwayTravel.com slash Colin. Stuff's beautiful. So a bunch of different draft picks and players and Josh Hart off the bench and the star Anthony Davis and Brandon Ingram lawns over. ball, go to New Orleans.

You ever notice this? Go with your instincts on this. You can tell right away when a marriage is not a long-term relationship. None of you thought Dennis Rodman and Carmen Elektra would last forever. None of you. None of you felt Lisa Marie Presley and Nicholas Cage

was going to last forever. Even Nicholas Cage knew. See what I can get out of this. It's not going to last long. Kim Kardashian and Power Forward Chris Humphreys. Did that say Joanna Woodward and Paul Newman? Katie Perry Russell Brand. Taylor Swift and anybody. Lyle Lovett, Julia Roberts.

You can tell. That stuff's not lasting forever. Lonzo with the Pelicans feels short-term to me. It's got two years left. A, he'd never been out of L.A. When did Lanzo and Lovar Ball ever say before this move? God, I would love to play in New Orleans. Never. They didn't visit Tulane on a recruiting trip. LA Kid, born and bred.

B. Lonzo's missed the last 35 games of last year. In his NBA career, he's played 99, he's missed 65. And even when he plays, he's rarely 100% healthy. Those wickets aren't great. C. You want LeVar ball hanging around. this organization. The Pelicans now are optimistic and fun and Zion and Lonzo is not going to be

the star here. Drew Holliday is the best player. Zion's the most magnetic player. You think Lonzo and LeVar, especially LeVar, going to be happy, him being the third most talked about guy? And frankly, most people in the NBA like Ingram is a talent over Lonzo. He could get lost in this and LeVar is a lot of static. There's also something to remember. The NBA, The NBA draft is only two rounds, and they mostly, there's a lot of exceptions. They mostly run out of players by about 15. Over the last 30 years, you get two all-stars a draft, two, two, and a half. Then you get about eight guys who sign a third NBA contract that can really play.

Then there's just a bunch of dudes. Okay? So you in the NBA draft, you just draft who you think can make the league. You don't get picky. You got a forward already. The forward's the best available guy. You take a forward. You know, it says not like the NFL where the people.

Patriots needed a pass rusher. They need a corner. They need a wide receiver. They went out and got that receiver for Arizona State. That probably wasn't the highest ranked player, but they needed a wide receiver. See, you can be a little picky. You can tell the press, oh, we just draft for value. You needed a receiver.

You went and got a receiver. And Belichick hates drafting receivers. But there's some need here. In the NBA, you just pick a guy you think can make the league. Because not many guys make the league. and right now, after the trade, Pelicans have the number four pick. And the fourth best player is Darius Garland, easily the best guard out of Vanderbilt, can play. Now, there's not a lot of video on him.

Like Kyrie Irving, didn't play a lot of college games, but he's great. So you draft him because you don't get tricky on this. Well, we have Drew Holiday, we have Lonzo, we don't really need a guard. Take a guy you think's going to be the fourth best basketball player available. the draft period. If it was another forward, you take Zion and you take another forward. You just do it and you figure it out later. So I don't think, I think you get Darius Garland, who could be potentially very good, Southern kid, comfortable there, you got Drew Holliday, you play him nine, 12 minutes, opening year. Lonzo's undoubtedly going to get hurt. He starts 15.

And then in a year, you move Lonzo. If he's not happy, you're not happy. You're not happy. got your guard. But you got to be very careful in the NBA. You got to be careful. Don't try to outthink the room. Who at number four is the best talent available, regardless of your need? Draft him. And a lot of people think it's Darius Garland from Vanderbilt, and he's a guard. So Lonzo doesn't feel like New Orleans. It's, I would be very interested in one year. Now, if Lonzo has a very good year becomes a nice trade piece, then, yes, you. have Garland. You got Drew, you got Zion, you got Ingram. Maybe now you can move them for a big. Now, now you've got a good team. Now I can be a little choosier in a trade. Trades are to fill

spots. Drafts are to just get dudes who can play and stick. So I don't think, I just don't feel of all the players, Lonzo is the one to keep your eye on. I don't, it doesn't feel like a man. This feels much more Kardashian Chris Humphreys to me than Tom and, you know, Rita Hanks. You know, It doesn't feel like it's going to last for 40 years. It just doesn't. It just does not to me. Veteran newsman, John Goulet. No, no, no, no, no.

Turn on the news. This is the herd line news. So immediately after the Raptors won the NBA title, the focus kind of shifted to if they could keep Kauai Leonard in Canada or not. And on Sunday, their guard and friend of the show, Fred Van Fleet, spoke to reporters. But he said it's out of their hands. What he came here and did what he was supposed to do. So he brought this city of championship.

And I think he's earned his freedom and his career to do what he wants to do. And we'll all respect and admire him. And if he's on another team, then we'll just have to kick his eyes next year. Hopefully he'll be back. What are the odds that the Raptors can keep Kauai? I don't know. I'm reading all this stuff. I read a story this morning.

Oh, Kauai is going to the Lakers. It's like, I've said this from the beginning. I don't buy any of the reports on Kauai. I don't think anybody knows. And if you do, I'm not going to go and try to scoop it. You tell me and I'll retweet your tweet because I don't know. And he doesn't talk. Well, that brings me to my next story.

According to former LeBron teammate, Damon Jones, there is a, quote, strong possibility that Kauai Leonard could become a Laker next season. That would be a pretty big departure because we kind of thought it's either stay in Toronto or go to the Clippers. This also brings into play the timing of. of the Anthony Davis trade. Right. Without going into too much detail, if the trade happens on July 6,

which reportedly it will, the Lakers actually do not have a max slot available. They're kind of closer to $23 or $24 million. If the trade gets put on hold until July 30th, they would have a max slot available. Do not ask a follow-up to me on that one, because I have no explanation as to why that is. Yeah, but they don't have, unless it was brokered in the deal,

do we know if it was... Well, right. That would be either... That would have to have been agreed to by the Pelicans, the Pelicans would have to do the Lakers a favor and say, we'll wait to do the trade. If I'm the Pelicans, I'm not going to help you get Kauai. We're in the same conference. That's your problem.

Forgetting all of that, do you actually think Kauai to the Lakers is possible? It doesn't. I know you can't read him, but it doesn't feel right, does it? No, again, so now he's not only going to give up a guaranteed year of income, he's going to take a bargain price. Like, I just don't, again, I don't buy. and join two other superstars. Listen, first of all, if he was there, again, you'd have no bench. And Kauai's going to take 20 off.

And LeBron 15, you'd be a very good playoff team. You'd only get two on average per night. You'd be a good playoff team. You'd probably, you know, you're going to be in the finals. We'll see what happens. Yeah, I mean, again, if you could make it happen, I'm not a big believer in getting a third star because I don't buy Kauai's coming here. But if you told me, sprinkle the infield or get Kau.

the NBA history tells you get the star. Well, also, if he's looking to win a title immediately, which the Lakers would be doing if you teamed up with LeBron and AD, he could just stay in Toronto for another year. Remember, they have the same team coming back next season. He could just say, you know what,

let's try to win two in a row, and then I'll look at free agency. There's no rush. And finally, despite a big push from two-time U.S. Open champion, Brooks Kepka, Gary Woodland held on to win the U.S. Open at Pebble Beach yesterday. Tiger had an interesting day. He struggled early on

the easy holes and then was on fire on all the holes you're supposed to struggle with. I watched five hour, five and a half hours of that. Never moved off the couch. That's so much Father's Day. It's my day. Right. You know, you've often criticized people who spend that much time actually golfing. And you spent five and a half hours watching

other people golf. Yeah, I mean, I don't, I can't, the thing is, not only that I watch golf, but I watch U.S. Open golf, I watch the most beautiful course on the West Coast. And I also watched that when everybody felt like by Friday they had a shot. So I think everything sort of lined up for me to sit and watch five hours.

Woodland's a nice guy. You know, he's not big personality guy. He's reportedly like the nicest guy on the tour. I don't know if you saw a lot of the other golfers stayed on the 18th Holt to like congratulate him when he was done. That's nice. And some of those guys. I actually thought even though he won by three strokes, it was an interesting final round

because he kept making mistakes and then he would recover from them. How about that chip put? How about that? Oh, that was the shot of the tournament. Wow. I didn't, I mean, I didn't know you could chip it from the green. Apparently, you can do that. That was a great.

That was a crazy shot. Yeah. That's the news. Veteran newsman, John Goulet. Well, that's the news. And thanks for stopping by. The Hurd Lie News. Oh, it is great to have you in here today.

It really is. It is so much fun. Listen, I'm going to have a game later next hour called Vacayor Stay. Because the staff this morning said, as we were prepping for the show, said, how many stories would have kept you from your vacation? And they're going to give you about 10, and we'll see what they are. I heard one of them. It's actually pretty funny. I wouldn't have stayed for a lot of stories.

But I think when you have the Laker brand, free agency is huge. Anthony Davis is a top five, six player in the league. It's the LeBron thing. And, you know, my brand is, you know, connected somewhat to LeBron, the Lakers. I talk a lot about him. So, you know, it's one of those things where I kind of felt like today's a day where you got to be in. There's too much going on. And you go for it.

You just go for it. I think it's one of those days you have to go for it. Chris Broussard will be joining us. I'll get a thumbs up from our crew when he's available and we'll go from there. I will say this in regards to Brooks Kepka. This is one thing I'll say yesterday at the U.S. Open. That guy is effortless. And not all great athletes are effortless.

Steph Curry, I can see struggle. Bryce Harper, I see a struggle. LeBron, I can see him lose confidence 17 years in into his jumper. Brooks Kepka, man, it's like Gretzky like. He's just skating around having fun. Irons work, putter works, Fairway Woods, T, everything works with that guy. And it's just, you don't see the struggle.

Everything works. And it's not that way with all the great ones. There's about seven of them. Gretzky just was skating around, smarter than everybody, and the puck just always ended up in the right spot. It looked like Wayne was just skating on a Sunday by himself, and then you put a bunch of NHL guys around him. Some guys, MJ had this.

It's just effortless. It's just easy. Kepka's that guy. I mean, it's something to behold. All right, Chris Broussard, Fox Sports Radio with Rob Parker every day, the odd couple. You know, the feeling this morning Lakers gave up. too much. What did you make of that thought? Well, look,

I definitely think it was a good deal for the Lakers. I think it was a good deal for both. This is not a cop-out. People want you to pick a side. But I do think both teams got what they needed. The Lakers obviously are in win-now mode with LeBron so they got AD.

Not to mention these young, and he'll be there much longer than LeBron at the centerpiece. And obviously New Orleans got a ton. To answer your question, I do, though, think the Lakers gave up too much. Like, they didn't, I think obviously Kuzma was a sticking point. But I may have said it on your show last week.

Instead of Kuzma, I thought it would end up being Hart and, you know, still the number four pick. They got, you know, New Orleans got the three players. They wanted Ingram Hart and Ball, the number four picks. I think that would have been enough to throw in the two future first round picks. That's what I think takes it over time. and when the fact was the Lakers had the leverage or some, you know, had the leverage, and I don't think they had to give up as much because Boston obviously wasn't going to break the bank

and give up all their young assets on the chance, you know, that he would stay after one year. So I think that being that they were in the drive receipt, the Lakers did give up a little too much. Yeah, I mean, they gave up every draft pick for years, which I'm not a big fan of, though I don't think draft picks end up in the NBA finals. I kind of agree with you on that. I'm hearing now Kemba and Kyrie to the Lakers. I would make the argument. The third star with LeBron has always felt left out.

Bosch, Kevin Love. I'd make the argument now, you got your great big. LeBron's the ball handler and the score. And now sprinkle the infield. Patrick Beverly, Darren Collison, J.J. Reddick, get some depth. Get veterans. get smart guys.

I don't necessarily like the idea of getting a third really good player who may not feel utilized or happy. And then you have zero bench and you got a bunch of young guys that'll drive LeBron crazy, you know, either starting or at the end of the bench or first or second off the bench. That's a great point. And it's not just a third star with LeBron feeling left out. That generally is a lot of NBA history.

Remember when it was Kobe, Shaq, and Glenn right. Glenn Wright was a great player. He was a star and they won a championship, but he didn't like it. He was the third wheel, didn't get a ton of shots. I think he averaged 15 points that year. He won it out. So the third wheel, unless that's where like a Clay Thompson in Golden State, because

he's such a catch and shoot guy that he can just, he doesn't have to have the ball very much at all to give you 20 points. It can work with him. It can work with a Magic Johnson. because Magic is always looking the path and get the other two stars the ball and make them scores before himself. So without that, that's why I like Kyrie, for instance.

If Kyrie were the type of point guard that was going to set guys up, then it will work. But no, he's going to be wanting to get his and same with Kimba. So I do agree with you. There's one superstar out there that I would, if I could get him, I would get him,

and then I wouldn't even work. about the rest of the roster. That's Kauai. Yeah. If I could get Kauai, and somebody told me last week that if AD goes to the Lakers, Kauai will seriously consider going there. That's a little hard for me to believe, but this person was a bit plugged in. So I'll just put it out there.

But if I could get Kauai with A.D. and LeBron, I think it's over. I mean, period. They're awesome defensively. LeBron is essentially your point guard. Kauai, in addition to all he does, is also a very good three-point shooter. Like, it's over. So I would go for him outside of that. Now, when I turn Kyrie down, probably not if he really wants to go.

I still don't think he goes there. But I'm with you. I'm looking at a guy like Patrick Beverly. You mentioned Darren Collison, Bogonovic, Brooke Lopez, Marcus Moritz. Like, I'm looking at those types of got Seth Curry. Seth Curry can shoot it. And I know Damien Lillard like playing with Seth Curry because he stretches the floor in Portland.

I mean, that is big time nowadays. So I do agree you got two major superstars. Go out unless you get Kawhi and pack good players around them. You know, Chris, you know, we know there's three really good players in this draft. We know Barrett's going to score a ton, Zion, John Morant, the fourth best player in this draft, and there will be, but there's no real conclusion among all general managers. I could make an argument. What I read in here is Darius Garland's probably your surest success story, can shoot, didn't play a ton in college like Kyrie, but can really ball. If I'm the Pelicans, you can't get, you can't worry about needs.

get a guy who's going to be a really good player. You draft him. And then, frankly, Lonzo Ball doesn't feel like a Pelican for life. Lonzo's the odd piece here for me. I don't think he's going to be happy. I think they'd get worn out if LeVar starts talking. What do you make of the Lonzo ball fit in New Orleans? Well, you mentioned Garland.

There's Kobe White for North Carolina. There's Cam Reddish, you know, who obviously was a team. mate with Zion. So that fourth figure, you're right, it's all over who it could be. As far as Lanzo, I do know that the Pelicans like him a lot.

Alvin Gentry likes him. We know Alvin Gentry is a very good offensive coach. My question, and they like Lanzer, they picture him pushing the ball, playing up tempo, and getting, you know, Zion Williamson, Alley Ups, and so on and so forth. So I do

like Lanzo with all those offensive pieces as a ball mover. Here's the question I have about Lanzo with Alvin Gentry's offense. Alvin Gentry is a Mike Dan Tony disciple to some degree offensively.

And then Tony typically has ball dominant point guard. Steve Nash, as crazy he was, was ball dominant. James Hardin is Jeremy Lynn, who excelled under Dan Tony, handled the ball a lot. And they were high, you know, high pick and

roll. That's not Lonzo's game. Lanzo likes to get it out of his hands quickly. So I'm not saying Gentry can't figure something out to work with that, but that's the one thing I question. Is Lonzo the type of point guard for an Alvin Gentry type office? Ryzon and Rondo was great under Gentry and led him to the second round of the playoffs. Rondo dribbles the ball a lot. So all of that is not what Lanzo does. That's what. concerns me. But I know right now, everything I've been told is they're in on lines, though, so I think they're going to give him a real chance to be the guy there. By the way, I thought Kyle Kuzma, I was told privately Lakers think he's a grown-up,

leadership skills, not paying him anything, and understands his value in the league without a big ego. I thought Kuzma was an essential piece to keep. And I was told about a year ago, maybe less than a year ago, nine months ago, the Lakers thought Brandon English, had a higher ceiling than Coosma, but that they didn't feel like Brandon had a lot of alpha, and they kind of feel Coosma does and will play big in big spots, i.e. the playoffs. So my intel was maybe Ingram's more talented, but I got injuries, no alpha. Your thoughts about keeping Coosman all this? Because I do think they're paying him nothing for two years.

There's value here. Yeah, I mean, I thought that was a good move. If push came to shove, I think they would have given up Kuzma, Hart would have remained with the Lakers, and maybe those draft picks don't go. But as you said, you still need other offensive guys who can be productive. And Kuzma does – Kuzma showed last year in addition to the other strength that he can play in the clutch.

Like he's not afraid to take the big shot. Not at all. He makes a big shot. Yep. So I do like that about it. And the other thing, Ingram, who did show – greatness or potential greatness at times, you know, especially after the All-Star break, I still question would he have been, he and Ball would not have probably reached their

potential with LeBron because both of them are particular, LeBronzo can't shoot. Ingram is good with the ball in his hands. And of course, that's LeBron's role. It reminds me of Julius Randall. Everybody's raving. Oh, Julius, you saw what he did without LeBron last year. Yeah, he wouldn't have done that next to Lerone. LeBron.

Because LeBron would have had the ball and Randall wouldn't have that room to shine. It's similar with Ingram, whereas Kuzma can play off the ball better. And so I think he's a better fit with LeBron. Chris, good talking to you. Odd couple later today, Rob Parker, who, for the record, did predict Raptors in six. They're having their parade today. He did. Chris, good talking to you.

All right, Colin. Coming up next, the Lakers went back to a formula, and you can go back to George Mikan. This is what they've done forever. Not just a star, but certain stars. That's coming up. Plus, Colin Wright, Colin Wrong, top of the hour, just starting here.

Fred Van Bleet, Doug Gottlie, Bill Orham, covers the Lakers for the athletic. My thoughts on the U.S. Open 2, it's the Hurt. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd. Weekdays in noon Eastern, 9 a.m. Pacific. Last night, a blown call changed a game. This morning, the internet lost its mind. Highlights are trending, opinions are flying, and nobody's telling you exactly what happened. That's where Sports Slice comes in. I'm Timbo. Every episode, we're cutting through the noise, breaking down the plays,

the controversies, and the stories behind the headlines. We go straight to the source, the athlete themselves, their locker room stories, their reactions, the stuff nobody gets to hear. The laughs, the drama, the triumphs, the moments that never make the highlight real. From viral moments to historic games from buzzer beaters to controversial calls, we break it down, give you context, and ask the questions everybody wants answered. SportsSlice brings you closer to the action with stories told by the people who live them. Listen to SportsClyce on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Sliced Life 12 in the TikTok podcast network on TikTok.

Welcome to my new podcast, Learn the Hardway with me, your host, and your favorite therapist, Kear Games. And in recognition of mental health awareness month, I'm bringing over a decade of my own experience in the mental health field and conversations with so many incredible guests. I'm talking. Tripp Fontaine, Ryan Clark.

Sometimes when we're in the pursuit of the thing, we get so wrapped up in the chase that we don't realize that we are in possession of the thing. And we're still chasing it, and we don't know when we've done enough. Because people scoreboard watch. Life becomes about wins and losses. Steve Burns, Dustin Ross.

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Open your free, our heart radio app. Search Learn the Hardway and listen now. What's up, guys? This is Clever Taylor the Fourth. And on my podcast, The Cliverts Show, I'm bringing you. conversations about all kinds of stuff. Like being an internet famous referee. We're in the middle of a game.

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Listen to the Clippers show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever. wherever you get your podcast. American soccer is about to explode. The World Cup is coming. Ramos sending on the only score at the chip. I'm Tad Ramos. I'm Tom Boe.

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he has no shot at making this. World Cup team. And the truth about the U.S. national team. It wouldn't be a huge surprise if our team ends up in the quarterfinals or potentially a great run into the semifinals. The World Cup is almost here. Experience it all with us. Listen, Inside American Soccer with Tom Bogart and Tabramos on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, wherever you get your podcast. Yankees Battle Arrays in our Discover card key matchup with a Discover at Miles card. They match the miles you earn at the end of your first year. 30,000 become 60.

Discover at Miles. Discover.com slash travel to learn more. Discover match for new card members only. If you go back, Lakers are favored to win the title according to Vegas. That's not my opinion. That's what Vegas is saying. Right now, I would not make the Lakers a favorite to win the title because it's LeBron A.D. Kuzma and nobody else on the roster.

I don't feel the Lakers are the best team in the NBA. this morning. I think Embeded, Simmons, Tobias Harris, J.J. Reddick, and Jimmy Butler's better. I think Milwaukee's core of six, seven guys I like are better. I think Toronto, if Kauai State is better. I think Golden State, frankly, even though Clay will be out until March, I think Clay, Steph, Loonie, Draymond, Steve Kerr, Livingston, Iggy's better. I don't think the Lakers are the best team in the NBA this morning. I don't. I think keeping Kuzma mattered much. more to me than apparently anybody else on Twitter. He's free for two years. He's a grown-up. He's got alpha. He plays 70 games. He likes defense. Players like him. He's versatile. He's long.

He's smart. I like him a lot. People thought he was an end table and a furniture sale. Nobody cared. But I think LeBron A.D. and Josh Hart this morning feels good, but not close to a title. I think Kuzma gets you into a group of about seven, but I would not make the Lakers a favorite yet. They've got to fill the roster out. And if you don't get a bunch of Patrick Beverly's, and I think those guys have value, then I wouldn't make them the favorite.

But I will say the Lakers have a formula. And it kind of goes back to Jerry West and Wilt. The Lakers don't have a history of tiny point guards. It's not a Laker thing. What they get is a great ball. handler score with the best big man. Jerry West and Wilt. Now, you had Gail Goodrich, but Jerry West was a scoring guard with the best big man in the league.

And then you had Magic Johnson, who was a big ball handler who could score with Kareem. And then you had Kobe who wasn't the point, but was often the ball handler in the triangle with Shaq. And then you had Kobe with Gassal. a big ball handler score distributes but scores and a big man. Now you got LeBron the best big ball handler score in the league. He is. Kauai's not the ball handler. He's not.

LeBron's the best big ball handler slash distributor score in the league. And AD is arguably the best big man. It's very formulaic for the Lakers. AD, now you can say best big man, Janus, you don't want him near a free throw line. late. Embeded, a lot of big injuries, scary injuries, not like AD that gets a back spasm or soreness. Ambide's had stuff break. Or the Joker in Denver. Sorry, dad body. Great, but he's not AD defensively. So the Laker blueprint is big ball handler, Kobe Magic, LeBron West, that can score, and a great big, Mike and Wilt, Kareem, Shaq.

They kind of went back and reinvented their history. The Knicks, by the way, are doing that too. Talk a big game, land nobody. They're reverting back to their last two decades of history. But that's what the Lakers do. It's their thing. You know, draft picks, it's not that I'm anti-draft pick. And the Pelicans got a bunch of draft picks.

Okay, awesome. And some GMs are really good at R.C. Buford at San Antonio would find guys 27, 30, third, second round. Draft picks give you viability, hope, and a sense of optimism. And that's a big thing for New Orleans. But if you watch the finals, one young guy played a lot and mattered. Fred Van Vleet, and he went to college for several years. It was a bunch of 28, 29, 30, and 31-year-olds.

And the one guy, the one, quote, young guy, Fred Van Bleet, stayed in college, undrafted, grinder, grown-up. So, I mean, that's why Kyle Kuzma came to the Lakers. Kyle Kuzma was at Utah for three years. So the time he came to the Lakers, they felt he was the best leader. By the way, they also felt Josh Hart, who stayed at Villanova for three or four years. He had leadership qualities. They thought Lonzo was talented, but not ready to lead. And they never thought Ingram, One and Dunner, had leadership qualities.

This was the knock on DeAngelo Russell for the Lakers. One in Dunner, immature. So, you know, you look around, you can have all these draft picks. The Celtics have been winning trades for years and collecting draft picks. One of them, Jason Tatum, feels like a potential star. One, and he's not there yet. Collecting draft picks, and I, listen, for New Orleans, that's all they got. Because AD didn't want to be there.

That's all they've got. But collecting draft picks feels like collecting Star Wars memorabilia that you put in your closet and you're absolutely sure it's going to be worth a fortune. but Chewbacca, it never really is. It's just never worth what you thought it was going to be worth. And remember about the NBA draft. It's not the NFL draft. You get about two stars, two all-stars, a draft.

That's it. 2013, Yonnasola Depot. A 2014 Mbid missed a couple years, The Joker. A 2016, one, Ben Simmons, and half of you hate him. So, you know, of the Pelicans five picks or swaps, one's guaranteed. Zion. After that, Zion will be a star.

After that, you're rolling the dice. And also now, the draft gives you 19-year-olds. It used to give you Patrick Ewing and Tim Duncan. Chris Paul, been playing college basketball for multiple years in the ACC against other third and fourth year men.

So, you know, Tim Duncan walked into the league, Patrick Ewing. They had developed games. They'd played against. against other 22-year-old pros. They were ready, day one in the NBA, physically, mentally, ready to go. You played in the biggest East. You were ready to go. Those games were like NBA games.

Those games outrated regular season NBA games. It was nothing but NBA guys on the floor. Now, a 19-year-old comes in the NBA. He's maybe in his conference played against one max-2 NBA guys. So a lot of these draft picks, those cats will have no impact. in big games in the NBA. I mean, if you go look at the last number four pick in the last decade, one number four pick, Chris Stops Porzingis has been a dude and he can't stay healthy

and has some personal issues. I mean, mostly, but a number four pick in the current draft. It used to be different again. You got men. Now you're getting kids, meaning scouts don't see a ton of them, meaning you're rolling the dice big on these number four picks. Here's some other fours in the last decade. Cody Zeller, Josh Jackson,

Dragan Bender, cool name, Wesley Johnson, Aaron Gordon, Dunk Guy, Dion Waiters, Tristan Thompson. That's your fourth pick in the draft. That's it. So draft picks, eh, eh, eh, eh, hour two next. One more herd? The herd streams 24 hours a day,

seven days a week within the IHeart radio app. Search Herd to listen live or on demand whenever you'd like. Last night, a blown call changed the game. Morning, the internet lost its mind. Highlights are trending, opinions are flying, and nobody's telling you exactly what happened. That's where Sports Slice comes in. I'm Timbo. Every episode, we're cutting through the noise, breaking down the plays, the controversies,

and the stories behind the headlines. We go straight to the source, the athletes themselves, their locker room stories, their reactions, the stuff nobody gets to hear. The laughs, the drama, the triumphs, the moments that never make the highlight real. From viral moments to historic games, from buzzer beaters to controversial calls, we break it down, give you context, and ask the questions everybody wants answered. SportsSlice brings you closer to the action with stories told by the people who live them. Listen to Sports Slice on the Iheart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast.

And for more, follow Timbo Sliced Life 12 in the TikTok podcast network on TikTok. Welcome to my new podcast, Learn the Hardway with me, your host, and your favorite therapist, Kear Games. And in recognition of mental health awareness month, I'm bringing over a decade of my own experience in the mental health field and conversations with so many incredible guests. I'm talking, Tripp Fontaine, Ryan Clark. Sometimes when we're in the pursuit of the thing,

we get so wrapped up in the chase that we don't realize that we are in possession of the thing and we're still chasing it and we don't know when we've done enough because people scoreboard watch. Life becomes about wins and losses. Steve Burns, Dustin Ross, you find it important to be a good person while you hear on earth?

Are you a good person because you're afraid? Because that's two different intentions, bro. Absolutely. And that's two different levels of trust. I want you to just really be a good person. Join me, Kear Gaines, is we have real conversations about healing, growth, fatherhood, pressure, and purpose on my new podcast, Learn the Hardway.

Open your free iHeartRadio app. Search Learn the Hardway and listen now. What's up, guys? This is Clever Taylor the Fourth. And on my podcast, The Cliverts Show, I'm bringing you conversations about all kinds of stuff. Like being an internet famous referee. We're in the middle of a game.

This linebacker, this linebacker walks up to me. He goes, hey, ref, my mom wants you to wave at her. What? Quarterback on office blue of 42. Hey, rep, my mama want you to wave at her. What? Hey, Miss Parker. Listen to the Clippers show on the I-Hart Radio app,

Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcast. American soccer is about to explode. The World Cup is coming. Ramos sending on to Ernie Stewart the chip. I'm Tab Ramos. I'm Tom Bo. On our podcast, inside American soccer, you'll get the real storylines. I'm not worried about Policic.

I'm not worried about Balagan. I'm not worried about McKinney. My only concern is what happens in the back. The biggest decisions. If you're going to look at stats and numbers, he has no shot at making this World Cup team. And the truth about the U.S. national team. It wouldn't be a huge surprise if our team ends up in the quarterfinals

or potentially a great run into the semifinals. The World Cup is almost here. Experience it all with us. Listen, Inside American Soccer with Tom Bogart and Tab Ramos on the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, wherever you get your podcast. Ah, here we go on a Monday, hour two live in Los Angeles. This is the herd. Wherever you may be and however you may be listening,

my vacation on hold for a day. Leaving tomorrow. Of course I'm here. Come on. Later in the hour, vacay or stay, what other stories would have kept me in town? Every Monday, we do something called Colin was right, Colin was wrong and stories that develop over the last seven to ten days where I've had a strong opinion and I either whiffed or was spot on. So here we go. Where Colin was right. The Celtics

never a real player in the Anthony Davis trade. I contend they leak stuff to make make it worse for the Lakers and make the Lakers give more picks because Danny Aange hates the Lakers. The sticking point was trading Jason Tatum, which we said would over. always be the deal breaker. Danny Age, according to two reports, was willing to trade Jason Tatum, but didn't want to include anything with Jason Tatum, just a straight swap. And Anthony Davis right now is a much better player than Jason Tatum, who, for the record, I love. So I wouldn't give up Jason Tatum either. I contend next year the Celtics are going to win 55 games and be in the Eastern Conference finals. I actually think Kyrie heard him. So I wouldn't have made the deal

either because he was a rental and I don't think Anthony Davis truly, Rich Paul told you, his agent, you're not going to stay there. But I never bought they were, you know, I never bought this thing. And now it's all a bunch of post-trade comments. Never close. Where Colin was wrong. One day after the Warriors lost the finals, did Kevin Durant sit back, reflect, come to his senses? No. He already met with Kyrie Irving. Really? I don't get the. move. Money, less. Roster Knicks, awful. Owner in New York, weirdo.

I don't get it. The Warriors showed Kevin Durant at every opportunity they loved him. And I also think this finals reshaped the narrative that they absolutely need him. There's no question now. Steff's not going to win it without KD. He needs help. I mean, God, Vegas has the Warriors at like sixth, fifth best odds to win the championship. They wouldn't if KD came back.

But he apparently is, at least emotionally, interviewing Kyrie already moved on. Where Colin was right? Never understood how so many smart NBA media types keep falling for the regular season stories. The NBA regular season is a dress rehearsal. It's the driving range of golf. Milwaukee number one regular season, most double-digit wins in league history. Couldn't even win the East without LeBron. Denver. Number two regular season. Couldn't win a second series. James Harden, 36 a game. The Altette

looked exhausted by the end. Folks, regular season is a different sport than the NBA playoffs. Guys like Draymond Green are 7.7 rebound guys and then transform into key starters in the playoffs. Kauai Leonard completely shifts gears in the postseason. Don't fall for Mr. January. It never works. Where Colin was wrong. Congrats to the baby dinosaurs. I never envisioned. Fred Van Vleet would be hitting the key shots in this NBA finals.

I'm not going to lie, I whiffed on that one. I didn't think Kevin Durant, Clay, and Kvon Looney would all get hurt. My bad, I couldn't predict that. I've never seen a finals like that where one team physically fell apart. I've never seen anything like it. Seriously. I've never seen anything like it. and I thought Warriors in six, and it was the Raptors in six.

Where Colin was right? Well, the Oakland Raiders wanted hard knocks, a business decision, and they got it. Listen, we said all along. The Raiders are trying to sell season tickets in Vegas. Now that the Golden Knights are there, Vegas has a professional franchise, and they want to sell 40,000 season tickets, so they're being active and aggressive and noisy. This is a game plan.

Antonio Brown acquisition made no. no sense if you looked at what they'd done with Coleo Mac and Amari Cooper. It made no sense at all. Why not just keep Amari Cooper and Kalil Mac? Not the noisy guy. But John Gruden's got a 10-year deal. He and owner Mark Davis in cahoots have come to terms with let's sell tickets for a couple of years. You're safe here.

I'm not buying you out. And then we'll worry about winning years three on. But we got to sell tickets. So Hard Knocks was a business decision. And to me, that's always been the first two years for the Raiders. where Colin was wrong. Ratings way, way up in the U.S. Open. Now, Brooks Kepka, I thought was actually interesting yesterday.

I don't think he has a big personality. But his last six majors, a second of first, a second of first, a second of first, 39th, and a first. He's the first player to shoot under 74 straight rounds and not win the U.S. Open. Again, I don't think he's a captivating personality, but I think his game is unbelievable. There's no visible flaws.

and he's kind of a fascinating personality in that at major, at non-majors, he barely cares. At majors, he's all in. He's not going to give you a lot verbally, but I did think yesterday, Kepka, with a chance to win a third, moved the ratings up like 40%. They got a 5.2. That's a big number. Now, some of it is Pebble Beach is a painting. I mean, I sat there and watched five and a half hours.

It wasn't because of Brooks Kepka. until probably the last 90 minutes, but he had some ability yesterday to move the needle, and I think he did. Where Colin was right? LeBron's a win now player. We predicted this trade last week. We said it would happen and it would happen fast.

That's why I scheduled a flight on Tuesday. I had a feeling this puppy was going to come down either Sunday, Saturday, or Friday. The Pelicans wanted the Lakers number four pick, because that's the best pick. Out of all this for them is this number four pick. Most of those picks are swaps. There's only one top 10 or top 8 guaranteed.

So this was a trade that you could really, I mean, I think all of us saw it coming, but I felt it was going to happen 48 hours and it did. Where Colin was wrong. Lonzo Ball's Laker career ended up being a bunch of nothing. A 44% free throw shooter, 10 points a game, 38% from the field, and never, ever healthy. A loud dad, some bad rap songs, talented, but never popped.

You know, he's a little too quiet and a little too passive for my liking. I did think before he got hurt last year, he was more aggressive attacking the basket and finishing at the rim. And I really like that, Lonzo. He gave me about 10 games of that. And there are elements of his game I love. I still think he's long. He's got incredible vision. I think he's a good teammate.

I think guys like him. David Griffin likes him a lot. But I thought in the first two years he would pop. He just, frankly, he misses one out of three games or more. He's hurt. And even when he plays, he's not 100%. Where Colin was right? Well, we predicted last week the Golden State Dynasty,

they would lose game 6 to Toronto, and they would lose their last game at Oracle, and the dynasty would feel like it's over, and Vegas has them as the sixth best title odds. I think they're going to be a really, really, really good version of Portland, A great back court, a couple of decent wings or a big, but not intimidating, not scary. These dynasties tend to last five years. The San Francisco Giants dynasty reminds me of the Warriors.

Five years, three titles, and then there's this sense that, you know what, we owe all these guys the max amount we can pay them. You do and you get old and you have no bullpen and you have no bench and you're really, really top heavy. and that feels like what they're going to be. KD's probably gone and Clay's not planned until March coming off a major injury. It feels at least now it's on hold.

Where Colin was right. We told you Baker Mayfield would get pushback when he criticized running back Duke Johnson who wants a new team. Don't mess with another guy's money. Tom Brady, Russell Wilson, Andrew Locke, Drew Breeze, be pro teammate,

Swallow your opinion. Several teammates approached Baker Mayfield, not the end of the world, but Baker, you don't have to win the moment. Sometimes, again, I'll say it. Talent, never dispute it. Maturity often do. Quarterback is not just about you can throw the ball and hit a 26-yard out. Are you a 12-year personality? The bore four.

Russell Wilson, luck, Brady. It's why I like Jared Gough. He hides. He's not worried about his brand. He's worried about being a good teammate and winning. It's why I like Sam Darnold. It's why I like Andrew Locke. It's why I like Russell Wilson.

You don't have to win every argument. And when you're 23 and 24, you've got to find the right personality, not just the right talent. Jay Cutler had the talent. I never liked his personality. Philip Rivers had less talent. I like this personality.

Colin right. Colin wrong on a Monday. So nice to have you. I just had a fantastic Whole Foods Burrito. What a breakfast. This is a life of luxury.

Fred Van Vleet later in the hour. And coming up next, Bill Orham covers the Lakers for the athletic, smart guy right around the corner. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern, 9 a.m.

Pacific on Fox Sports Radio, FS1, and the I Hard Radio app. Last night, a blown call changed a game. This morning, the internet lost its mind. Highlights are trending, opinions are flying, and nobody's telling you exactly what happened. That's where Sports Slice comes in. I'm Timbo.

Every episode, we're cutting through the noise, breaking down the plays, the controversies, and the stories behind the headlines. We go straight to the source, the athlete themselves. Their locker room stories, their reactions, the stuff nobody gets to hear. The laughs, the drama, the triumphs, the moments that never make the highlight real. From viral moments to historic games, from buzzer beaters to controversial calls, we break it down, give you context, and ask the questions everybody wants answered. SportsSlice brings you closer to the action with stories told by the people who live them.

Listen to Sports Slice on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Sliced Life 12 in the TikTok podcast network on TikTok. Welcome to my new podcast, Learn the Hardway with me, your host, and your favorite therapist, Kier Games. And in recognition of Mental Health Awareness Month, I'm bringing over a decade of my own experience in the mental health field and conversations with so many incredible guests. I'm talking, Tripp Fontaine, Ryan Clark. Sometimes when we're in the pursuit of the thing, we get so wrapped up in the chase that we don't realize that we are in possession of the thing. And we're still chasing it. And we don't know when we've done enough.

Because people scoreboard watch. Life becomes about wins and losses. Steve Burns, Dustin Ross, because you find it important to be a good person while you hear on Earth? Are you a good person because you're afraid? Because that's two different intentions, bro. Absolutely. And that's two different levels of trust. I want you to just really be a good person. Join me, Kear Gaines, is we have real conversations about healing, growth, fatherhood, pressure, and purpose on my new podcast, learn the hard way.

Open your free iHeartRadio app. Search Learn the Hardway and listen now. What's up, guys? This is Clifford Taylor the Fourth. And on my podcast, The Clifford Show, I'm bringing you conversations about all kinds of stuff. Like being an internet famous referee. We're in the middle of a game. This linebacker, this linebacker walks up to me.

He goes, hey, ref, my mom wants you to wave at her. What? Time out. Quarterback on office blue with 42. Hey, rec, my mama want you to wave at her. What? Hey, Miss Parker. Listen to the Clifford show on the IHeart Radio ad.

Apple Podcast or wherever you get your podcast. Hey, I'm Deanna Maria Riva, actress, mother, lover, and a Gen X woman walking through life one hot flash and hormonal crying jag at a time. You ladies know what I mean. I'll bet you a perimenopausal chin here you do. So let's talk about it. Join me on my new podcast. How hard can it be with Deanna Maria Riva, where I call on my GenX squads from Ohio to Hollywood as we navigate midlife's most fantastic BS. All of a sudden, I'd had hanginess happening on my own.

I was like, what the hell is that? I was married when I had her, so I didn't even consider how empty that nest was going to be. Mood swings, night sweats, fupas, sex drive. Wait, what sex? Dating at 45. How high can it be, getting naked at 50 with the new guy? That one's kind of hard. Well, that's lighting.

They say we can't polish a turd, but we're sure going to try. So let's get blunt with laughs, tears or tears of laughter, and dive into it unfiltered and unbothered and ask, how hard can it be? I cannot believe I'm about to say this out loud in public. Listen to How Hard Can It Be with Diana Maria Riva as part of my Cultura podcast network available on the IHart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. I will say this. I'm watching the parade in Toronto. And there's a million and a half people there.

Short term, it may not help the ratings, but long term, you know, in the Dallas Maverick, shock everybody or the Pistons beat the Lakers or the Raptors beat the dynasty. It's hope. I remember when I was a kid, Georgia Tech won a national title in football. It was like, whoa, where did that come from? You know, that's BYU won a national championship in college football. You're like right now, it doesn't feel like anybody outside of Bama and Clemson, or maybe Georgia can win a national title. As much as we say the NFL is lobsided, this is big.

A Canadian team with one star just won the NBA championship, and it is a beautiful, beautiful day. Fred Van Vleet's supposed to join us. I don't know how he's going to join us. I don't know how he can hear himself think. What phone is strong enough that he'll hear me over a million and a half people. Well, I came off vacation for one day

because this story broke, and ironically, Bill Orham, Laker Insider for the Athletics, been on paternity leave, and this is his first day back. So we'll just try to cobble this together. We're kind of distracted. Let's start with this, Bill.

they gave up a bunch of picks, three players, in your opinion. Give up a little too much? It's a lot. I mean, it was everything, right? It was everything except for Kyle Kuzma. But at this point, I have a hard time. Did we lose him? We got you there?

Do we have Bill Orham? I think we just lost him. We'll try it again. We'll call it Bill Orham one more time. It's really a scene in Toronto. It's really great. It's a beautiful city. And it's a gorgeous, gorgeous 75-degree day in Toronto.

They don't get too many of these days. They're summers like Vancouver. Pretty short, but unbelievable. It's really a scene. It is really a scene. Good for them. Good for the Raptors. Good for the NBA. Next year,

it's going to be very interesting. Parody's never worked in this league. But you're going to have about six teams. Milwaukee, Lakers, Golden State. you know, throw in Portland, Boston, you know, Denver. I think Denver's, you know, it's funny. Nobody's talking about Denver. Denver is the Joker who's great and a bunch of kids.

They're all getting better. Denver is just, you know, it's funny. I didn't buy Denver this year. But the Denver Nuggets next year with playoff experience? Oh, God, yeah. It was funny. The other day somebody said, who do you like in the West? And I said, well, I can tell you who nobody's paying attention to in the West.

Denver. They were tough out this year. Now, they didn't, they lost at home several times, and they weren't a team, they weren't a team that had lost much during the regular season. So let's go back to Bill Orham of the athletic Lakers guy. Let's start again with this. Lakers gave up a lot. Your overall take on, did they give up too much, Bill? I mean, yeah, probably.

You'd rather, you know, you didn't have to include all those picks or, you know, I mean, the players, you know, had to happen mathematically, but you would like to hang on to some of those picks maybe because it does cripple your ability to rebuild. through the draft long term. But the reality is the Lakers had to make this deal. They had to go get Anthony Davis kind of no matter what the price was. It was the only way they could control their own destiny this summer. Otherwise, they very much were running the risk of, you know, going into free agency, trying to pitch the free agents on playing with LeBron and these young guys who just had a

catastrophic season. And hey, you're in L.A. also. And that wasn't looking very promising. It didn't seem like there was going to be a very robust market. Now, not only do you have the answer. Anthony Davis, you've been able to change the narrative around the team going into, I guess, June 30th now, with those free agents. I don't know if, you know, it's going to change the way Kauai Leonard ultimately, you know, makes his decision or Tyree Irving. But all those free agents now have to look at the Lakers at least differently than they did.

They have to have a different conversation with their agents than they were having previously. So in that sense, I think the Lakers did what they had to do, which was just get the deal done. There's some pain involved. They gave away some players who, you know, they obviously, you know, invested a lot in. I mean, there were entire seasons devoted to being bad enough to ensure they got the picks that turned into those players. Lakers fans have invested a lot of energy into teams that were bad so they could get good through these young players. And, you know, they've now served their purpose in terms of leading to Anthony Davis in a trade. And, you know, I think, you know, it'll be interesting to see how we talk about this trade, you know, seven, eight, ten years down the road.

But the thing that occurs to me is this trade had to happen. This trade is not the move that is going to be on trial if things go sour for the Lakers eventually. It's going to be the decision to sign LeBron James in the first place because if you didn't have LeBron, you would not trade your entire young core for any one player. Even Anthony Davis as unique and skilled and wonderful as he is, you wouldn't do that. You wouldn't trade away your whole team for one guy. But because you have LeBron there, because you understand he's going to turn 35 this year, and because of all that comes with employing that man, they had to make this trade.

And so that's the move. That's the decision point where they kind of changed their course of their future. Now, listen, if Kauai wanted to come, I'd certainly say, let's go with it, Kauai LeBron, AD. But if I can't get Kauai, my takeaway is I don't think Kyrie's a perfect fit with these two or Kamba's worth the money. I think you now go out and get J.J. Reddick, Patrick Beverly, Brooke Lopez. I think you get depth, a bench, high IQ veterans that LeBron can, I mean, I think you have your team. You've got your two stars. You have a good young player.

You're not paying any. Now I think you go get three to four veterans who want to be part of an it team. That's my takeaway. I don't think a third star generally works. You get a lot of pushback. Kyrie didn't like being a number two guy. He's not going to like being a number three guy. Would you go after another star or would you sprinkle the infield?

I mean, I think if it's Kauai or Karee, they have to pull the trigger. The skill level is just too high with those guys, not to have the chance to have, you know, the best, the best, you know, true core in the league, I think, in terms of a big three. But the reality, I mean, beyond that, I agree. It falls off pretty quickly, and you run the risk of things being, you know, is Jimmy Butler, a guy who would respond well to that situation? is Campbell Walker as good as what you'd be committing to financially. But the thing that I do worry about with this team is what kind of contracts are you going to be getting the JJ Reddick, Brooke Lopez type guys at?

I mean, is it all one-year deals? Are you running a team that, you know, going to the next summer, you're having to completely retool again? That's been one of the Lakers' big issues is a complete lack of continuity, you know, throughout the organization and the roster. So are they going to be able to get some guys who they know can be. part of their future for at least this run with LeBron and AD, you know, presumably at least three years. And so, you know, can you get a couple of guys on, on multi-year deals to kind of really start to see what this is going to look like, you know, for several years. I don't, you know, I was joking earlier that you see certain relationships, you know, Nicholas Cage

and Elvis Presley's daughter, and you're like, that's not going to last forever. That's not going to be Paul Newman and Joanna Woodward. And then, you know, I look at Lonzo and the Pelicans and I'm like, oh, yeah, that's not lasting forever. You know, loud dad, can't stay healthy. Darius Garland could be the best player available at the number four pick. And I think in the NBA, you just take best player available, so they'll have another guard. Lanzo Pelicans doesn't feel like a 12-year marriage to me. Ingram, I can see, Zion I can see.

What say you on the Lonzo Pelican fit? Yeah, I think Lonzo is a pretty critical, just juncture in his car. career. He's going into year three. He's played about 50 games, his first two years. You know, the dad had kind of disappeared for a while, but now he's obviously back in the mix with, you know, Lonzo being on the move. And I think, you know, this is a chance for Lonzo really, last year I thought he really kind of established himself as, you know, a more independent figure. And even before he distanced himself in Big Baller Brand and obviously had the financial issue with his family's financial manager, but the fact that

you know, he became a father. I really thought he stepped out of his dad's shadow a little bit last year. And I think, you know, going back to when he was drafted, I thought a situation like New Orleans, Milwaukee, something like that would have been much better for him. Get away from home. Get away from that spotlight. But it does seem like I think you have a good point that he's getting into a situation

where he just is maybe going to be the odd man out. But I do think the chance for him to go play basketball out of the spotlight without the huge expectations of Los Angeles in a small market. with a good, young, fast core around him. I think he pairs well with Drew Holiday. That's a pretty good defensive backcourt. Maybe the best defensive back court in the league. I'm curious to see how it can work out,

but he does have to deliver on the hype and all the extracurricular stuff that has always come with him. Well, first of all, thank you for coming off paternity leave, and congratulations to you and your family, Bill. Hey, thanks very much, Colin. Appreciate it. All right, Bill Orham, great writer, The Athletic. We love having him on the show.

covers the Lakers and he's going to go back and join his family, which is amazing. They have a new little person in their life. And I've got a bunch of older people in my life. Veteran newsman John Goulet. No, no, no, no, no. Turn on the news. This is the herd line news. So after the Anthony Davis-Lakers trade was announced, it only took about 10 seconds for someone to find Lovar Ball and put a microphone in front of him.

Oh, boy. To get his thoughts on the deal. Shockingly, he did not think the Lakers made a good decision. Like I said, I guarantee you. Like I say again, it would be the worst move the Lakers ever did in their life and never win another championship. Guarantee it. Clearly a little upset that his son is now in New Orleans instead of the Lakers,

which was always what he wanted. Do you think there's a chance the Lakers regret, including Lanzo in this deal long term? I think they would have rather kept him. I think it was, I would have, I don't mind giving up the draft picks. I would have, but I was adamant about Coosma, and I would have loved to have kept. I'll tell you that, you know, Josh Hart can shoot. So even keeping Josh Hart, I'd have Cousma and Josh Hart can hit a jumper.

You know, I don't think, I think they knew they were going to have to give up one of the forwards, and I think they knew they had to give up Lanzo. And when I had LaBar on two weeks ago, I said, this deal's not happening without your son. They're not going to take both forwards because Zion's a forward. They don't need two more forwards. And when I said it to him, he said they'd never trade my son. And it's like, LeVar, this is an easy one. They don't have a point guard because Drew Holliday, although I may not want to hear this,

is a better two than a one. He's great. But this was kind of an obvious, you know, I think it was painful. He's going to have some pretty big highlights throughout the year, I would say, because he's going to have a few alley-ups to Zion that are going to make people regret the trade. But that doesn't mean long-term. He's a good fit necessarily. So this morning a piece came out on ESPN about the layers of dysfunction with the rockets

among the many issues. One of them is some tension between James Hardin and Chris Paul. Yeah. Chris Ball has had problems with teammates before. He's just he doesn't let things go. He's very focused and he wants to win, but he doesn't kind of allow for a lot of things to get by. He apparently always tries to coach Hardin. Oh, boy.

Hardin is basically watch Chris Paul erode physically. basically thinks he should just shut up and watch as opposed to telling him what to do. Darrell Mori was on Sports Talk 790 in Houston and addressed some questions about Chris Paul and the dynamic with James Hardin. Does Chris Paul want to be traded? No, he doesn't want to be traded. You know, there's been a lot of reports about how they had tension. It's a really bit, it's been odd to me because, you know, really too high-level competitors, they're going to have, they're going to have tension on the bench.

I mean, it's going to happen. And it probably happened, you know, 30, 40 times last year where the team on the bench is having a heated discussion about how to beat the other team. I don't know why. I think it's because obviously the situation magnified game six or last game of the season. Maybe that's where, maybe that's where this comes from. But it was really surprising to see, it's really surprising to see all the noise about that. I never have a problem. Brady barks at an offensive coordinator.

When a game's going on, whistle blows, whistle blows to end it. I don't have a problem with guys chirping at each other. That's sports. What I'm bothered by is team playing, team functions. Your girlfriend, Mike, you know, that stuff worries me. I never get caught up in, you chirp during games. You're a, you know, Brady. I've seen Peyton Manning bark at a guy, Jeff Saturday.

That is called sports. I think Paul and Hardner, I think the bigger issue there, Chris Paul's legs. He looked shot. Yeah, is it over for them? I mean, you go back about 13 months, right? And they look like they were the only team that could dethrone the Warriors. And now the Lakers are way better. Clippers could end up getting Kauai.

Mori said today he wants to bring in another star, not trade Chris Paul. But how? They don't have any assets or cap space to really do anything. Are they done? I think they're going to be one of the eight teams with a chance, but I put them in the lower rung of the eight. Gotcha. And finally, Aaron Rogers might already be having issues with his new head coach, Matt LaFleur.

What? Yes. Specifically, his offense and his inability to change it. Apparently, LeFleur's system does not allow much freedom for the quarterback to change things at the line of scrimmage. Oh, boy. Aaron Rogers told Mike Silver of Enneville Network, quote, I don't think you want me to turn off 11 years. There's stuff that not many people in the league can do at the line.

That's not a humble brag. That's just a fact. First of all, that's just straight up bragging. It's not like a humble brag. So we're not through June. And Rogers is already unhappy with the new head coach. And I think more alarming to me, he's already vocal to the media about it. I mean, he's telling Mike Silver.

And him and Silver are close. I understand that. There's a Cal connection there. Considering he was. criticized for being passive aggressive with the last head coach. He's already passive aggressively taking shots at the new offense. It's June. They haven't played anything yet.

This is like Baker Mayfield. This is what he's going to be. He's got to win the moment. Aaron Rogers can be passive aggressive. He's going to take shots and he's verbal. I just think it's who they are. I think your quarterback DNA is identified very early. Andrew Luck, first year, you're like, oh, he memorizes the playbooks and he

always takes the blame for everything. And that's who he's going to be for the rest of his career. Brady is completely willful, very coachable and ridiculously determined. And that's who he's been for the last 18 years. Veteran news man, John Goulet. Well, that's the news. And thanks for stopping by. The Hurd-Lie News.

All right. Now, is Van Bleet joining us next segment? I would say it's unlikely considering they're still on floats. Unless he's calling live from a float, which would be cool, but probably tough to hear him. By the way, this Kyrie Irving thing, I don't think Kyrie Irving to the Lakers works at all. And I'll just give you my opinion. Let's just do word association with Kyrie. Distracted.

Injuries. Weak locker room guy. Poor defender. Well, what is LeBron now in his 17th year? A little distracted. No longer plays elite defense. Hurt last year. What's Anthony Davis?

A little injury prone. Three guys. Injuries. I don't think it works. I think if you're going to get a guy, get a guy that's the opposite. Kyrie Irving is distracted. LeBron's a little distracted. Kemba Walker, never misses starts, never distracted.

Kauai Leonard. Misses starts, but never distracted. If you're going to go for a third star, Kyrie is not the guy for me. LeBron Kyrie and Anthony Davis says a lot of distractions and a lot of miss starts. and two guys that don't want to play defense. You're just duplicating what you have. You've got to give me some diversity.

If you're going to go for a third star, Kemba, great locker room and never hurt. Less talented, but never hurt, great locker room. Jimmy Butler plays real defense. Kauai Leonard, real defense. LeBron's no longer committed on the defensive end of the floor. He's not. And Kyrie's never been committed there. Now, Anthony Davis is, but, you know, again, you've got to remember, Kyrie, and I don't think this, I would tell him this, he's high maintenance.

Listen, he struggled being the number two guy. You think he's going to be okay being a third? Kemba's got no maintenance. If you have Anthony Davis, Kyle Kuzma, Kemba Walker, those three guys, you got no maintenance. LeBron could be your maintenance guy. But if you have two guys that are high maintenance, you're done. Kuzman's got no maintenance. AD, no maintenance, doesn't talk much.

Campbell Walker. But Kyrie is more of what LeBron is. They're strangely have some similarities now. Distracted, injuries, and have kind of made up their mind. They're going to give you offense. They're not really committed on the defensive end. So I don't like Kyrie at all. And again, it's just like anything else.

when you build a roster. You can't have all pass rushers and a bad Mike linebacker, no free safety, and no defensive tackle. That's what the Chargers had the last two years. You've got to stop people up the middle. You got to draft or find stuff in a trade you don't

have, not duplicate stuff you do, unless it's just more great shooters. But even the Warriors now have all these great shooters. They don't have a lot of girth. They don't have a lot of big. Katie's gone. They won't resigned boogie. Luni got hurt. They don't have a lot of size. They got the work. They had three of the

world's best shooters. But it's, you know, you don't have, you don't need, I mean, Toronto just won a championship. Who's their elite shooter? Midrange Kauai. Danny Green won. Elite three shooter. So I'm, I'm not on the Kyrie thing at all. I'm down on the Kyrie thing. Coming up next, vacay or stay? What stories like this one would get me back on a vacation and thoughts on Brooks Kepka. Also, Doug Gottlieb today. It's The Hurt. Be sure to catch live editions of The HARD weekdays in noon Eastern, 9 a.m. Pacific.

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What's up, guys? This is Clever Taylor the 4th. And on my podcast, The Cliverts Show, I'm bringing you conversations about all kinds of stuff. Like being an internet famous referee. We're in the middle of a game. This linebacker, this linebacker walks up to me. He goes, hey, ref, my mom wants you to wave at her.

What? Time out. Quarterback on office blue 42. A rep. My mom, I want you. you to way better. What? Where's she at? Hey, Miss Parker. Listen to the Clifford Show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast.

Will Ferrell's Big Money Players and IHeart Podcasts presents soccer moms. So I'm Leanne. This is my best friend Janet. And we have been joined at the hips since high school. Absolutely. Now a redacted amount of years later, we're still joined at the hip, just a little bit bigger hips, wider. This is a podcast we're recording. as we tailgate our youth soccer games in the back of my Honda Odyssey with all the snacks and drink

sidebar why did you get hard seltzer instead of beer they had a bogo well then you got it do you want a white collar something here just what are y'all doing microphones are you making a rap album I would I would buy it cuts through the defense like a hot

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It is a Monday. Yes, I was, I'm not, you know, not a hero or anything, but I'm sure many of you have done this. You've had a vacation plan and then something big at work happens and then you think, you know what, this is a day I can't miss. and, you know, I just kind of thought today I can, I booked a flight for Tuesday for my vacation because I told my bosses a couple of weeks ago, either we're going to get a game seven of the finals. I think this thing's going to go longer than I think. Or we're going to have a Laker AD trade. And I, because that one, I knew it was going to happen before the draft.

And I said, what happens if it happens on Saturday morning? Well, there you go. So we thought we'd play a little game today. When Colin heard about the Lakers trade, he decided to postpone his vote. vacation just so he could come to work today. Thanks a ton, Anthony Davis. Anyway, we wanted to know what else would have to happen to get Colin to postpone his vacation again and totally ruin our day off.

This is vacay or stay. All right, so I will read you the scenario and you will let me know if this would make you cancel a vacation or not. All right? Credible reports come out that any big free agent will sign with the Lakers. Kyrie, Jimmy Butler, Kauai, or Anthony Davis. I think I see the L.A. radio ratings. I do well in the Lakers season.

My brand is somewhat tied to LeBron and the Lakers, so I would stay. Sorry, I would stay. I'd make you all work. Credible reports come out that Kauai Leonard will sign with the Clippers. Again, he would be the only star. It's the second biggest team in Los Angeles. Kauai is not, I would say, doesn't have a ton of magnetism. think I would go on vacay.

Credible reports come out that Kevin Durant will sign with the Knicks. I'll come back to that one. I'll come back. I'm not sure. Let me think about that. I don't have a sound effect for. We'll come back to that one. Okay.

The Rockets trade Chris Paul. I don't think he's a difference maker now. I did a year ago. And I don't think he has the magnetism of a James Harden. I think I would go on vacay. staff would be very happy Oh you'll like this one The Thunder Trade Russell Westbrook

Again he's first round and done I think I am tied to him A little bit yeah But I think I could I think I could do that on Twitter I think I could be on Twitter for an hour I think I'd go on vacation That feels like a

You would call in as a guest To your show from the beach But I'd still fly to Utah and go water ski. Wait a second. Russell Westbrook wouldn't get us in here for a show. Get you in here? I wouldn't get me. No, I'm shocked. I think the world would demand you come in to do a show for that. So he gets traded to Brooklyn. My audience doesn't care. Oh, I think your audience on that subject, Russell Westbrook, they care. No doubt Russell Westbrook. I'm sorry, but I think you've got to call everybody and cancel that vacation.

Let me think about that. Let's slow down on that one. All right. How about the Cowboys give Dak Prescott a massive contract extension? Well, I mean, it's off-season, and we all think he's getting it, so it's fairly predictable. I go on vacation. I mean, it's an off-season. It's a contract that somebody signed a piece of paper. It's not fair. If that number per year starts with a three, I'm not showing up for work the next day, but that's just in protest.

Like the Anthony Davis thing's fascinating because they could add another one. Like now you're talking about numbers, because we got to, because this is the first big move of what could be seven in the league. So I think you come back for a big Laker move and a big Laker contract. You don't come back for a cowboy contract in June. Okay, this would be a big one.

Tom Brady retires. Oh, God, yes, I'm staying. Absolutely. Sorry. Yeah, that's, come on. You need to ask that question. Tom Brady retires in June? I would cancel the whole vacation. I'd say, say Jackson, you can swim in the backyard.

I mean, I'm not, that'd be two days. wouldn't it? You'd have to be here for that. You might need to take some time off to grieve if that happened. No question. All right, after a wild night out, Baker Mayfield gets arrested. Oh, come on, that's an easy one. I'm staying. Yeah, that's also a reaction of his fans. Yeah, I mean, I think for better or worse, he reacts to stuff I say, and I feel strongly

about it, and I hope that never happens. But come on, if that happened, my Twitter, Instagram, that stuff would just, my Facebook would explode. You know, he got the second highest, most watched piece of video on my Facebook last year, which had over 300 million views. He had the second most watched individual piece of tape,

which was me and him arguing or interviewing or whatever you call it. So, let's go back. I'm going to go back. You want to go back to the Durant one? And the other one, yeah. Credible reports come out that Kevin Durant will sign with the Knicks. I don't think I'd come back. He's not going to, he's not

going to play next year. Again, it's a piece of I would agree. If he was going to play, I think, or if he was going to join up with someone in play, I think it would be bigger news. But the fact that he's out for the year, it's a little bit dull. And what's the other one? What was the, well, Westbrook? Westbrook was the one that you got some disagreement from the staff on. You really think that people, I mean, I know people would want my opinion. I couldn't just tweet it. I mean, let's say he gets traded. I think it depends where he's traded. If they traded him to the Lakers, I think he would be here.

Then I come and do the show. If he's traded to Memphis, I just don't think, if he's traded to a team like he could be combustible. Like, let's say you traded him to Boston. You'd be like, oh, God, no, or Milwaukee. Or you'd be like, oh, no, don't know, that doesn't. Or like Houston. And then you got hardened Chris Paul Westbrook. I think there's a handful of I would come in to work for it.

Yeah, you know, Sam here, Colin, I just, I'm sorry, but I think Westbrook is tied so much to you and to your brand that even hearing you say that, that it doesn't matter, I think would shock people all over the place to do an entire show. I think you could. I'm sorry. I'm sorry, guys. I think we're coming in for Westbrook. I think I'd even make that call. Stay or vacay? Let me just say this again. I watched a ton of U.S. Open yesterday, and I've said with Brooks Kepka, he doesn't get me to a TV. Yesterday I got to a TV because Tiger played well. Kepka was good. It was close at the top. You had a three-man race. And I think, frankly, Pebble Beach is my favorite golf course. course in the world. St. Andrews and Pebble Beach, they just feel different. They look different

to me to the two greatest golf courses. I'm not saying too toughest because I don't think Pebble Beach, when it's not windy, this weekend wasn't windy. So, you know, a lot of made pots, a lot of made chips. I don't think these like, you know, beach courses, when there's no wind, I don't think they're terribly difficult. I don't think it's a terribly long course, like a Pinehurst. But I will say about Kepka, he's got a Michael Jordan, Rinaldo, Brady, Gretzky, Federer, Fetter, to him. It seems effortless. I mean, it just looks effortless. Everything works for him. He gets out of trouble easy, off the T, EZ, greens. And by the way, that's not, all stars are not like that. LeBron, I see LeBron's struggle. I saw LeBron early struggle with his jumper. Then I saw LeBron

middle of his career struggle with his low post game. I've seen him lose confidence multiple times in his career. In fact, recently with his three-point shot, it never feels effortless with LeBron. He's just the NBA's biggest, strongest freight train. Steph Curry. Again, he's small. I'm seeing him work at it. I'm seeing him crash to the floor.

I see him shift gears. Bryce Harper, I see struggle. But Kepka is smooth, man. He can hit every shot. He gets out of trouble. I don't see nerves. There's what I would call like an ease of greatness. Big Ben's great.

but still struggles with precision. Peyton Manning outsmarted you at the line of scrimmage. You could see his work ethic, but it was never elegant. It was just Peyton Manning was amazing. Randy Moss is effortless. I mean, Randy rolls out of bed could catch it one-handed, sideline, deep. I mean, Randy Moss rolled out of bed and was a superstar wide receiver, and it was effortless, running, catching, gliding.

He went to New England, figured out the playbook in about a week. They just figured it out. Football was just Gretzky. Randy Moss. I mean, Randy Moss would catch the ball without effort. Now, Russell Westbrook is great, but it never looks easy. I mean, you can see the oil spitting from the engine. I mean, you see, it is never easy.

Cam Newton, still, they're working on his mechanics. Dustin Johnson, PGA. It always feels like, you're, not that far off from an utter implosion. But Brooks Kepka, U.S. Open, 69, 69, 68, very tiger-esque. He's the bar. And again, I never thought the game was easy for McEnroe.

I thought he grinded it out. Or Jimmy Connors. Federer, good on grass, good hard court, good at the net, nice serve, baseline, it's just, you know, backhand maybe wasn't great early in his career. Now it is. It's just easy. And not all great players. Westbrook's a great player. It never looks easy. I can see his time in the gym. I can see Peyton Manning's work ethic. Brady, it's just effortless. Hour three, Doug Gottlie. One more herd? The herd streams 24 hours a day, seven days a week within the eye hard

radio app. Search Herd to listen live or on demand whenever you'd like. Hour 3, here we go. This is the Hurd. Wherever you may be. However you may be listening. I've got to get it right for the whole week. I'm sorry. Go, go. I'm sorry.

No, I'm done. Doug Gottlieb's going to join me. But she's do, thanks so much for making this part of your day. I used to do that too. IHard Radio app and Fox Sports Radio and Fox Sports 1. You don't do that anymore. Well, I do. I'm on I heart radio today. on Fox Sports Radio and a bunch of apps and stuff.

Yeah. It used to be apps were just Brussels sprouts. And now it's... Blooming Onion. Big app. Blooming Onion. Doug Gottlieb, Fox Sports Radio. All right, let's start hour three with the Dugger because he's got a show after mine.

One hour from now, which is in a different studio, but on Fox Sports Radio. All right, the question, you know, first of all, everybody says it's kind of, you know, who won? I don't really care because, you know, you can never really tell. But I think a real question is, did the Lakers give up too much? Yeah, I guess. I mean, yeah, I don't, there were some, I thought they could have held a firmer line of a couple of other things.

Yeah. I'll give you an example. We're all, and rightfully, kind of poohing this fourth pick because the top heavy, top three draft, right? Yeah. I was told that there was a workout with Darius Garland, who could be the number four pick. Vanney point guard, yeah. Yeah, that he was as impressive as anybody that the Lakers have seen workout since Donovan

Mitchell and before Donovan Mitchell. Like when they drafted Lonzo Ball, the collective group that was with the Lakers then thought that, one, they liked Deerrin Fox better, and they thought that Donovan Mitchell was the best guard that they saw. Magic and Rob Polinka decided to draft Lonzo Ball. But Garland's, Garland was that impressive. He's a Damien Lillard type player. He is a score.

He's only 19, and he only played a couple of games this year because of Miniscopal tear. But they saw him like, man, this. This is a hell of a player. So because of the timeline of what they can and can't do with the salary cap and they might not. Like, I would have, why not hold on to that fourth pick if you're going to go away all those picks? But look, they had to trade. Ingram was going to go anyway. Yes.

They grew to like Ingram. They never loved Ingram. He's got an injury issue. And he's a mid-range shooter. He's like a poor man's, poor man's version of Kevin Durant. and he's the only guy remaining that wasn't drafted since Rob took over, right? So he was going to go. Josh Hart, they kind of fell out of love with.

He hit his ceiling last year. Yes, he's not a starter. He's a backup player. Good culture guy. Got a little sensitive at certain times when he wasn't playing well and didn't have as many minutes. And then Lonzo Ball was the prize get of this trade. Yes. They really like Lonzo.

Lonzo fits with LeBron. Lonzo's dynamic defensively, a rebounding guard, great athleticism. This will be a summer which he should, should really improve. And I think that's one of the reasons the Pelicans wanted this done earlier rather than later is so they could get Lonzo in there and begin working with him, integrating him into what they want to do. But I joked earlier, Julia Roberts, Lyle Lovett, you knew instantly that's not going to last. This doesn't feel, Pelicans Lonzo does not feel like the Hank's marriage. It doesn't feel like, well, look, I'm going to disagree from this standpoint. Drew Holliday, tremendous defensive player.

A very good passing two guard who can play some points. He's a good player. Lonzo Ball, tremendous passer defensive player, right? Brandon Ingram, long and agile and can defend a bunch of positions. And Zion Williamson, who can be a Swiss Army knife defensively, like, they should be very dynamic. But you hit the nail on the head of the difference in knowing who you are. The Lakers believe, Lakers, people are like, well, they give them away all these picks. Lakers believe, look, look, if they start winning again and it becomes showtime again,

they'll be able to get back to picking who they want to come to L.A. Patrick, Beverly, J.J. Reddick, maybe. Yeah, we'll get to that in a second. But I'm talking about in the long-term future, after LeBron. People are like, what happens after LeBron? Well, after LeBron, they'll do what they've always done, which is pick who they want, who wants to come in L.A., and they'll come to L.A. That's what they've always done.

Right. Whereas the Pelicans, the secret to New Orleans is they know that whether it's Lonzo Ball or Drew holidays next deal, it's really hard to get somebody to stay in New Orleans and sign another contract. It is. It just is. So you have to have younger, you have to have younger players. But to answer the question, who won the trade? Anthony Davis is inarguably one of the top 10 players in the league, arguably one of the five best players in the league. And there was discussions going into last year that he might be the best all-around player. Yeah. Lakers won the trade. They got the best player. It's not even

something you just pointed out, which, and I think this is something, it's like, When Harbaugh goes to Michigan, Harbaugh to Michigan's bigger than Harbaugh of Purdue. Lakers now are an IT team. Branding tickets. I mean, they were off TV the last, even with LeBron, it was like they weren't a sexy TV play. It's like they are now for the next three to four years. They're going to be the IT team. And IT teams tend to get guys like JJ Reddick and, you know, Patrick Beverly, who will Trevor

Areza, who kind of want to be part of it and chase the rate. Rudy Gay. You bring up J.J. Redick is a great one because B.J.J. was overpaid the last two years, right, to fill salaries. He made a lot of money. Made a ton of money. So now, like, look, do you want to come back and be the Kyle Corcorfer to this team? You can. I think they're going to go after. I think Kamba's the guy that they would want the most. Why don't you like Kamba? It's not that I don't like him. But here's my thing. I would take Kauai as a third. But once you go to a- Take Kauai. Yeah, done. Right. But I wouldn't take Kyrie. Here's my thing. Not all, first of all, Kyrie struggled to be a second guy. Good luck being a third. Well, look. I mean, look, the idea, I mean, look, we haven't even gotten into Frank Vogel is going to coach this team. It's going to be interesting. Like, he's, he's coached Paul George and Roy Hibbert were his two biggest names. But isn't he pretty good with Biggs? No, yes, but there are no Biggs anymore. Like, again, it's coaching, there's nothing wrong with coaching LeBron and coaching Anthony Davis. Like he can coach.

It's the managing all the other stuff, right? Because we know Anthony Davis, end of the day, is going to be playing outside that three point line, and LeBron's going to be having the basket. Like, can Anthony Davis accept the Chris Bosch role at times, right? How do you manage those egos? That's what it becomes about with LeBron. So we don't even know how that works,

let alone the rest of the coaching staff is going to be kind of fascinating. But look, Kimball Walker is a dynamic competitor. He is a walking kind of bucket. score and LeBron likes and respects him and he has a good relationship with several other people on the Lakers staff. No maintenance. No, not the maintenance to level of Kyrie, you know. Kyrie's one of those guys that's pretty intelligent but thinks he's brilliant and so

he tries to outsmart the room and kind of annoys people. I think if they don't get Kemba, then they go to the, hey, let's go get a Darren Collison and then a JJ, spread the money around, get a shooter and a quality point guard that can shoot as well. I think, so, you know, let's just, let's just, I think, I don't think the Lakers are the best team in the league because they only have five guys in their roster and they need another shooter. But I do think Kuzma, LeBron, Anthony Davis, put you in the group of six, seven. So I'll just throw these teams out that I think that our will be, at some point next year, we'll watch a weekend, a game, a moment and think, oh, they could win it. Lakers, Milwaukee, Clippers if they get Kauai, Boston for a minute, Houston on the bottom end.

And I'll throw Denver in there because they're young, and I think Denver's pretty interesting. Yeah. I think there's about those six teams feel like we'll watch them next year and think, you know, if they stay healthy. Well, we're also bearing the lead. Rome burned down to the ground last week, right? I mean, that's what happened. You know, just like it was in ancient Rome, the Golden State Warriors were incredible dynasty. and it had a chance to continue on.

It had a chance. And it still may reform itself, much like the Bulls did. Like, people forget that the Bulls, the first incarnation had Jordan and Pippin and Horace Grant, and it had Bison Delay, was there for a while. He didn't play. It had Paxon. And then B.J. Armstrong was the starting point guard the third year, right?

And Paxon hit the big shot against Phoenix. The second incarnation had Dennis Rodman. You know, it had Luke Longley, as opposed to Bill Wennington and Bill Cartwright and the first one. You know, so the other parts changed, but the two superstars remain the same. But Kevin Durant being hurt, being out for a year,

and Clay Thompson being out probably for a year before he's back right. Like he could play next year, but he's not going to be right until two years from now. It changed the whole league. Yes. Changed the whole league. Yep.

And so now the Lakers are like, wait, we have the two best players in the West. Houston still has, what do they do with Chris Paul? He's getting older or not younger. What do they do with Clint Capone? They can't play him late in games. The clippers are still, maybe we'll get Kauai. And even if they do, if you don't have Patrick Beverly and you do have Kauai,

do you have the same culture you had previously? Are you actually good enough? Do I know what the rest of their roster is going to look like? I don't. Do I think they spent a lot of capital to get him? I do. But you got two superstars, one in his, you know, in his athletic prime. The other one coming out of his athletic prime in LeBron James,

who's had the most time off, he will have. had, so you'll probably get the best version of him. I mean, I think we're exactly where we thought we would be. It was just the path of getting from last year to this year. We all thought he was going to be a Laker. We all thought they were going to have to trade a bunch. And the only thing difference was they didn't trade

Kyle Kuzma, which most people thought they would have to give up together. You know, it's interesting, Doug. It used to be, I'm older than you. I remember when you got a Duncan or a Ewing or a Leitner, they had not only were like 22, but they'd played against NBA guys.

in the ACC or the Big East. And those environments back then were rabid. In fact, I could argue a big college basketball Saturday was as big or bigger than most NBA. Sure. And so now you get 19-year-olds. Kids. I watched the finals, and Fred Van Bleet is the only young guy.

And by the way, he's not down. He played a lot of college basketball. Yeah, I played four years. Yeah. And why the Lakers like Kuzma is he played three years in college. Josh Hart, they liked his maturity, played three, four years in college. I don't really mind giving up a bunch of draft picks because what they are now is not what they were in 1991.

They're just kids, and I don't think kids win in the playoffs. No, they don't. The kids don't win in the playoffs, but you do, you have to backfill with some youth for the regular season, right? That has to kind of carry you on for the regular season. And they need to have, you know, some depth. I mean, what killed the Golden State Warriors really was they just, they didn't have a lot of depth. And so their starters had to play extended minutes. And I don't believe, like you're going to hear people say that, well, you know, because KD played 12 straight minutes, he tore his Achilles tendon.

His Achilles 10 was probably torn partially before he went on the floor, right? And then it fully popped when he made that one move. That's not why he tore his Achilles tendon. But the idea was, remember, they had to play the Clippers six games. And they got worn down physically because they didn't have as good a bench as they used to have. We've seen baseball pitchers. You don't get a third. Verlander's an outlier.

Yes. But the third time he asked Kershaw to throw $2.50. They're not the same guy. Correct. So I'm with, I agree with you. There were no kids that played in that playoffs. None. None of them helped you.

And so in order to win, if you want to win a championship now, you've got to do with grown-ass men, right? Veterans that know who they are, know what their role is. You give it to them in a set spot. They know where their spots are on the floor, and they make shots, and they don't blow defensive assignments. And so I think, look, J.R. Smith's going to get bought out. He's, you know, don't be surprised.

if he ends up being potentially a Laker because they can get him on the cheap. And I saw something on Twitter today. It was pretty funny. Like, what if Campbell Walker gets $100 million to appear in Space Jam and only $10 million to play for the Lakers? That's funny. Right? It would be really funny. But when you come out of it going like, okay, normally I would say trade most of the house except the kitchen sink in Kyle Kuzma to get Anthony Davis.

That's a questionable trade. But what did they give up? Josh Hart, rotation guy. Brandon Ingram, a starter, but they weren't in love with and doesn't fit with LeBron. And they give up Lonzo, who's going to be really, really good, but is a bit of a pain in the ass. And if that's what you have to give up to get Anthony Davis, you got Anthony Davis, you got LeBron James, you got Kyle Kuzma. And you still have a big salary cap spot or two. You got a chance to win the NBA championship next.

There are no perfect players. Even LeBron, I saw him struggle with his, when he broke into the league, shooting a three. Then his down low game exposed in the Dallas series. And even now, he'll lose confidence on that. jumper. It's not like Kobe where Kobe just shoot his way out of it. Sometimes LeBron moves away from the three. But it took Kobe a while to learn

how to play with others to win. It wasn't until they got Phil Jackson that he figured out how to win basketball games. So let's talk Anthony Davis. He's not a perfect player. I'll tell you what I... Here's my overview of him. He is the only big, I trust at the free throw line late. You can pick and roll him defensively. He can defend. He's got good feet. He's had a lot

of soreness, back spasms, no breaks. Not a not an alpha, but LeBron is. He's a really good player. I do worry, when I look at the games played, I think to myself, it's a lot of soreness. He was choosing not to play. Could he play in L.A.

if he felt like he could win? What's his reputation in the league on playing hurt? I mean, look, I think he's a guy that's been dinged up and banged a little bit. But I also think that everybody's a copycat and they see Kauai Leonard. resting was at 22 games this year and they're like, we're going to do that. It's going to be load management city. So I would expect regular season.

It's funny. You started the column was right, column was wrong. Yeah. And you said that the regular season, what did you say? Regular season is the driving range of golf. Yes, but you actually bought the, you bought into the Warriors were better without KD because of the regular season numbers without KD as opposed to the regular season. Just, you know, they are powerful numbers, just like the 73 wins.

It was a powerful number that people get like, they were the best team ever. Like, no, they just went for it when other teams were load managing back then. Yeah. Well, I think one of the things we said going into the finals was Toronto is long. And Durant, I know his offense is great. Kevin's not a terrible defender and he's long. Like that one quarter he was on the floor, Gassal went from a straight to a liability. You're like, oh, Mark's got to go out and guard him.

Now it's a problem. Well, that's there's two parts to it that I think sometimes people miss on. just nailed it, is when Durant's on the floor, it allows them to play small and still defend the rim, right? Right. To do both. And it completely changed that they had to take, you know, Marcus Saul off the floor. And you take Marcus all of the floor.

It's just, it's different. All of a sudden it becomes, and now you have with Serge Abaka, and even Sergei Baca, and even Sergei Baca can struggle to guard out on the floor. He's a shot blocker. And yes, he can catch and shoot, but it's not like he's crazy agile off the dribble. So it changed the whole matchups of the series. series. The other part, and the real indictment of the Warriors, was when Steph Curry is not out on the floor, you're going to have, you're going to have, you know, Quinn Cook, who was, you know,

Quinn Cook is not as good as Fred Van Fleet in terms of knocking down shots and understanding his role. So the bench of the Warriors really got exposed. Look, I think today you sit here and Vegas is telling you the Lakers are a favorite. Some of it is because of Anthony Davis and the respect he has. Some of it is because the rest of the league sees that the Warriors are going be down for at least a year and may take more than that more than that to recover what's anthony davis's reputation he does everything really well yes i don't know if he he's not a great shooter's ball spins kind of sideways but he's become a decent three-point shooter but outside of that you know he grew up as a guard and then grew into this incredible body he can defend positions one through five

yeah he's a good defender oh it's it's a great match for lebron because lebron is not nearly the defender he used to be. Right. And, and, like, the criticism at times of Anthony Davis in the playoffs was there were times in which you could take him away and he would disappear. And that's okay with LeBron because LeBron's going to dominate the basketball and get him open shots. I think it should be a good fit. I'm not sure it's a perfect fit because he's not really a catch and shoot Chris Boss jump shooter, but he's a spectacular talent that can really help you at both ends on the floor. And as we've seen from Kauai, both ends of the floor of players. LeBron, you mentioned KD. Even Janus, who lacks the jump shot, but you got to be able to play both ends to be

considered one of the top five players in the game. Not many bigs all time. You trust at the line with four minutes left. And Anthony's, I think he's almost an 80% free throw shooter. Did you hear this? This is a crazy stat. This is a total aside. Did you see the stat? Steph Curry swishes 84% of his free throws. I'm not saying mix, you know? And I've heard so many, so many people like, well, he's, oh, of nine in NBA finals games. I think it's a little bit of indictment of the shots he takes. He takes deep three-point shots as opposed to LeBron's ability to get to the rim.

But to anyone who says, like, well, he's not clutch. Like, I saw him against Houston make eight straight free throws, and none of them touched the rim to win that series, right? So, I, you know, like, eventually, look, Steph is going to need help. He does need somebody that plays both ends. He's an incredible player, but I've never, the 84% of free throws that don't hit the rim is the craziest stat I've ever heard in basketball. Yeah, it is funny.

I have said before we let Doug Gottlieb go. He's got a show after ours here in 40 minutes, 45 minutes. It is interesting about Kauai. So I don't understand Kevin Durant going to New York, less money, lousy roster, kooky owner, I don't get it. There is this, oh, but if he can win in New York, then he'll change the narrative. What's funny is,

Kauai just won in Toronto with no other star. We don't think he's better than Michael Jordan. It's like, we think Kauai is great, but I bet you by next year, we're not calling him the best player in the league. Like, did Kauai winning without a star massively change the narrative on him? I think it did. You do?

Yeah, I used to come on your show and say he was the third best player in the NBA. And now if I said, considering Kevin Durant Torres-A-Killies tendon, so we don't know what he'll be like when he... I think Kevin Rand actually has the best chance to be close to himself because I don't think, though he's explosive for a seven-footer, that's not like totally his game. So I think he can get back to being close to. But if Kevin Rand's not healthy,

and we both agree, LeBron James is not what he used to be because of 16 years in the league. And also, LeBron kind of acknowledged, I'm not going to play much on the defensive end. Right. But even when LeBron, even at his best, like, Quy Leonard, probably the best player in league. And we'd never had that discussion before, ever. Did we? So it did change.

And when you win a championship in San Antonio, then you go to Toronto who couldn't. And was it helped out by LeBron not being in the East? Sure. Sure. And was it helped out by a very fortunate role of a three-point shot in the corner against the 76ers? Sure. But he made that shot. He made all the plays.

And look, he didn't score a point in the fourth quarter of the deciding, what, game six, until point nine seconds to go. So, but he was the MVP because he defends at both ends. He's a great player. I don't think he's, I mean, like now with KD. Hurt, yeah, kind of by default, he becomes the best parent league. But we never had that discussion before. Look, the whole KD thing was a search for respect. And then he finally got it.

And now he's going to leave it. In a weird way, the injury not playing got him the respect, which is, oh, God, they really do miss him here. That, that combined with, they're playing the Clippers the first two games and people were like, hey, how come you're not scored? People missed at the end of the season. He was trying to move the ball. He wasn't shooting that much. He wasn't playing that many minutes. And then the first two games in the Clippers, and they're like, hey, dude, how come you're not scoring all the time? He's like, oh, you'll be a score all the time. Okay, I'll score all the time. And he dominated it. And then he was like the Death Star. They pressed the button and it's

like, bam, bam, bam, bam, bam. And they're like, oh, oh, yeah, he can score any time he wants. Yeah. Doug Gottlie. Doug got to dig a good scene, buddy. Enjoy whitewater rafting. make sure you wear protective clothing? Oh, I am very conscious. We can't have like that would be a major news story if something happened to Colin Cowherd, Whitewater rafting in Utah. I don't know how this network would survive.

Doug Gottlieb. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon eastern 9 a.m. Pacific on Fox Sports Radio, FS1, and the IHeard Radio app. By the way, I watched a ton of U.S. Open this weekend. And congrats to the people at Fox. Did a great job today. great, great job. I'm just reading a couple of things here.

I want to make sure I get it right. Okay, okay. Good stuff from Doug Gottlieb today. Bill Orham, Chris Broussard, stopped by. We thought we may get Fred Van Vleet, but it looks like the massive parade of 1.5 million people. Most of those raptors are jammed in that thing, and they're not going anywhere.

They are packed. Yeah, I swear to God, other than an old couple from Ottawa, the entire country today is at the parade. What's the population of Canada? 38 million. They got a million and a half people. So that would be the equivalent in America of having 30 million people or something at a parade. Look at that.

Look at the jets flying over Toronto. Well, yeah, Colin, Sam here. I read this earlier. There are a million and a half to two million people at this today. Yeah. There were one million at the Warriors last parade. And of course, everyone thought that was a massive crowd. And it was, but Toronto is crushing that number right now.

They've got the flyover. Beautiful. Veteran newsman John Goulet. No, no, no, no, no. Turn on the news. This is the herd line news. Colin, yesterday before the U.S. open, the U.S. women's national team beat Chile, 3-0.

Yes. All three goals in the first half. I can't say I followed the team super closely, but they certainly may have started their B squad a little bit. A few of the more popular names didn't get the start. They also did something I thought was kind of funny. After the Carly Lloyd's goal, they kind of celebrated with a little golf clap. Did you see that?

I did see that. Yeah, a little bit of a nod to all the criticism they got for celebrating their last win too much. They play Sweden on Thursday at 3 Eastern, which is a pretty big game from what I understand of women's soccer. It's kind of amazing to me that our team is so good. They can start their backups and beat another pretty good team, 3-0. Hey, by the way, David Spade just texted me. Can I ask you a question?

I listen to you on my serious app. Haven't been able to find you the last week. Is something going on I don't know about? I believe they've been having some of the World Cup games on our normal serious channel. It's not broken. It's just, they're airing what's on FS1. Hey, you don't screw with David Spade. David Spade's a friend of the show.

So I'm going to get a hold of David. All right, so that's why, because we put on Sirius X-N, we put the soccer on. Correct. You know that Spade comes to us for all his best material. Oh, yeah, by the way, David, get us on IHeart. Yeah. Iheart Radio app to Heard channel. There you go.

All right. Speaking of the Fred Van Fleet, who judging from what we can see of the parade, will not be joining us unless he calls from a crowd of a million and a half people, which probably not great sell reception. Right after the Raptors win, a lot of the focus became about them keeping Kauai Leonard. Yesterday, Fred Van Fleet spoke to reporters and said it is out of the Raptors' hands. He came here and did what he was supposed to do. So he brought this city to championship, and I think he's earned his freedom in his career to do what he wants to. do and we'll all respect and, you know, admire him. And if he's on another team, then we'll just have to kick his ass next year.

But hopefully he'll be back. Now, there's also a report circulating from Damon Jones, who used to be a cavalier with LeBron James, that Kauai is now very interested in the Lakers, not that Anthony Davis. Are you buying that he is a Laker? No. It feels like Clippers or Raptors, right? How would the nation merit? When KD joined the Warriors, people were very mad.

if Kauai and Anthony Davis joined LeBron, oh, they'd be seething, wouldn't they? The nation would just come unglued. But again, this league has always been better when it's got a dynasty. And that thing would last about three years. And for three years, you'd have a dynasty. And then that would tail off.

Well, the Lakers would be the bad guy again. And we like LeBron as the bad guy was fun when he went to Miami. I think LeBron is the bad guy with the Lakers. I think it would be amazing. So my wife doesn't watch sports in yesterday. So I said to my wife yesterday, I'm going to go work tomorrow. She's like, well, I don't understand. And I said, well, Anthony Davis signed with the Lakers.

You got to work. And my stepdaughter, Lexi, doesn't like sports. And she's like, Mom, every one of my friends is talking about it. He has to work. So I'm like, honey, listen over there. I got to. But it was surrounded by non-sports fans at home. Nobody.

My son, you know, skis. He doesn't like sports. Nobody likes sports in my house except me. I have to fight. They must get tired of you talking about yourself all day. I'm like, hey, take care of the guy here. I'm watching golf for five hours. That's all I did. It was great.

And finally, some big baseball news over the weekend involving your childhood favorite team. The Mariners. Seattle Mariners, completely giving up at this point. They traded the American League home run hitter, our leader, Edwin and Carnacion, to the Yankees for cash and a pitcher called Juan Then. Swear to God, double-checked it, didn't believe it, but Juan Then. There's a lot of puns we could have fun with that. By the way, is that the same Encarnacion who's 70? Did he play with Detroit?

70, 36, either way. How old is he? That's the same guy that played in. God, he's been playing for like. He's been around a long time. I was surprised as well. He 21 home runs the season in 65 games. Get this.

He has 18 career home runs at Yankee Stadium. That's the second most he has at any park that's not his home. The stadium he has the most home runs in is Fenway. So I'm going to bet the Yankees knew all of that. He has been playing forever. So now the Yankees have the AAL home run leader. They have Gary Sanchez, who's among the ALE home run leaders. And I believe in the next week or two, they are getting Aaron Judge and John Carlos Stanton back into the lineup.

I think they'd walk off. They would walk back that John Carlos Stanton contract today if they could because they have, I never understood that deal. They had him. It's called Aaron Judge and he's for free. Let's not pay any money. anything. Like I never understood John Carlos Stanton. They had kind of a friendly, I mean, like Aaron Judge

is beloved in New York. He's the next guy. Why would you go pay for the duplication of it? What are they cash strapped? I mean, what are they? There's no salary cap. I know. I just, I think if you asked him today, if they could just say, we'll do a mulligan on that. And we'll just just now it's... Considering some

of the other deals that have been signed since them, is that really that bad? At least he can DH for the rest of his life. Well, it's like the Lakers. Like, like if you're the Yankees, You can do a mulligan on Jacoby Ellsbury, who you paid to watch. The Lakers were dysfunctional for the last year. When you're a big brand, you can make a bunch of mistakes. Alabama made a bunch of mistakes, and they finally got the coach right.

I mean, USC, Paul Hackett, big mistake, Pete Carroll, boom, in an hour later, you're like the school of note in the country. These big brands, Apple, we talked about that, 90 days from bankruptcy, get the right guy and run the world. Google's had a zillion whiffed products. The big brands bounce back really fast. Veteran newsman John Goulet. Well, that's the news.

And thanks for stopping by. The Hurd-Lie News. I can't believe Encarnazion. I remember when he... Now, look it up. He played for Detroit, right? That feels like it was in the early 90s. He's been around forever. Raptors Championship Parade.

today. Bill Orham from the athletic, Chris Broussard, Doug Gottlie, the Dugger will be on Fox Sports Radio after this show. Yeah, I mean, you know, I really believe everybody's looking for a winner, and my takeaway on this trade is both teams pick the direction. Worry less about who won and be happy that in New Orleans, they chose the direction of optimism, hope in the future. That's good enough. Their standards are lower. The Lakers chose a direction. We want to be discussed, relevant, and in the title conversation. That's what both teams did. They chose a direction. The Pelicans in a football-centric city, Saints LSU football, SEC territory, high school football is big there. They want to sell Hope. Zion, the four-pick, Lonzo, Brandon, talented

Lakers, picks for the future. That's good enough for them. They're not going to be in title contention for three years, but you can sell that there and it's big. You're trying to sell season tickets to a city that generally doesn't buy them. It doesn't watch them on TV. And the Lakers, they want to get back in the discussion. And now they have two of the top five, six players, maybe two of the top four players in the NBA. They are.

I like they kept Kuzma. He's cheap for the next two years. He plays defense. He played three years of college, so he's a grown-up. I would have loved to have kept a couple of those draft picks, but they're draft picks. NBA draft gives you two stars, two all-stars, a draft. That's it.

Half the NFL is undrafted. Half. Think about this. The NFL has seven rounds, and half the league starting now playing is undrafted. NBA's got two rounds, and they run out of players by about 14. So there's not a ton of talent.

So draft picks to me, the Pelicans' best draft picks are going to be this year, the one in the four. Probably end up being your best players, unless you find a Kauai, which you may, but that's a complete and utterance. aberration. Who are the best players

LeBron's ever played with? Is Anthony Davis the best player LeBron's ever played with? Wrap up the show, best for last next. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern, 9 a.m. Pacific. Good day have you in. Rapping it up, I'll be on vacay starting in about 15, 20 minutes. What were you saying, John?

Unless another trade happens. It keeps you here. Yeah, no, if Kauai becomes a lake here, I'll have to, you know, we'll figure that out when it happens. but it's been great to be here on Fox Sports Radio. Congratulations to Fox Sports for the Women's World Cup and the U.S. Open coverage this weekend was just fantastic. And I thought this morning, I thought, you know, so here comes Anthony Davis.

And I thought, you know, LeBron's career now spans a decade and a half. He was the young guy with all that energy in Cleveland. And then he made everybody mad. And he went to Miami to join Stars and Win, veterans. And then he came back to Cleveland. and he kind of engineers a trade to get Wiggins out, Kevin Love, and now he's on his fourth team, Cleveland, twice, Miami, and the Lakers. And I thought, you know, let's look at the 10 best players LeBron's played with.

Now, I'm not talking about their career when they played with LeBron. Who are the 10 best LeBron teammates when he was in that town? Cleveland the first time, Miami, back to Cleveland, and now the Lakers. Here we go. Number 10. I'm going to go Kyle Kuzma. Last two years, he's averaged 17 and a half points and six rebounds. He's available.

He came into the league with three years of college experience. He's a grown-up. And he's an efficient player. He shoots 45% from the floor. I think Kuzma's underrated. I think he's the 10th best player LeBron's ever played with. Number nine. J.R. Smith gets a slight edge because he was such a

lethal three-point shooter and help LeBron win that title in 2016 where Kuzma hasn't helped him win anything. JR shot over 38% from threes on that title team in 2016, number nine. Number eight. Ray Allen also added all the three-point shooting and a title in 2013, but I think you got Ray Allen's Moxie, one of the smarter players in the league. And again, shot 40% from three-point shooting. point line with the heat.

And again, he had championship pedigree out of Boston, where J.R. Smith, though, was a little kooky, a little nutty. Ray Allen is dependable. Number seven. I think a lot of us forget how good Zodrunas Ilgascus was, and he played the most games of anybody with LeBron on the Cavs and the Heat. He was a 13-7 guy, one of the great energy guys in the NBA. He was LeBron's best teammate that first run in Cleveland.

as Zedrunas Ilgascus played a ton with him. LeBron liked him. A great energy, and he gave you 13 and 7. Number six. Well, I would put Rich Paul, his agent. He founded Clutch Sports, engineered the Anthony Davis trade. Small, not a great defender, but Rich Paul, you can't deny now, the Anthony Davis trade, engineering that, is kind of rebooting LeBron's seemingly paused career.

Number five. Kevin Love. Never forget the 14 rebounds in game seven in that title went over the Warriors three years ago. And again, he was somewhat marginalized. But Kevin had a great career in Minnesota, which probably that alone got him near the Hall of Fame. Now he's for sure a Hall of Famer. And he averaged 17 and 10 with LeBron. Number four.

This will be lower on the list for me because I think Kyrie Irvin's a flake. Now, they're the only teammates to both score 40 plus in a finals game, and he had that clutch three in game seven three years ago. But let's be honest. Kyrie's career before and after LeBron has been a lot of meh. And so I like Kyrie, but I've always felt LeBron has absolutely elevated Kyrie Irving's career. Number three.

Whereas Chris Bosch's career was great before LeBron. He was a high school All-American, a college All-American, and an All-Star, and Toronto was a decent team with him. And he won two titles with LeBron. He's an 11-time All-Star. And by the way, his days with a heat were 17 and 7-5, 17.7.5 rebounds. Now, again, I think he's a better pure talent than Kevin Love. That's why I have him above Kevin Love. And I think he had more of a career, college and pro, without LeBron.

He was going to be a 10-time All-Star without LeBron James and would get to the playoffs without LeBron James. Number two. I think it's Anthony Davis. I think he's the modern big. We haven't seen him play together, but he does everything well. He runs the court. He can put it on the deck. He's not a great three-shooter but can hit one or two a game.

He's going to, he's averaged 24 and 11. He'll average 24, 25, and 12. He's the modern big. You trust him at the free throw line, can hit an occasional three. He can defend anybody on the pick and roll. You don't have to worry about him defending if you've got the two-man game. And I think number one. Number one.

I think people forget how great Dwayne Wade was. I'm not talking about his career, even with LeBron. With LeBron, 22 points a game, 51% from the floor. Two titles, and he allowed LeBron to come to the heat and start the dynasty. his IQ and the ability to say, you know what, it's my city, but this will be LeBron's team, was really redeemable. Kyrie couldn't do that. Kyrie struggled with that. And that's the difference between Wade.

Wade has a physical toughness and a mental toughness that Kyrie Irving does not have. Kyrie's just sick talented. But Dwayne Wade's ability, this is really the emotional and mental discipline that makes makes Wade an all-time great top 20 player. Kyrie's like, I don't want to be the second guy. Duane Wade's like, I own the city I'm in. I'm secure enough to step back, let LeBron, still my city, but it's LeBron's team. And I'll tell you, the last couple of years, Wade struggled back-to-back to play well.

Those first two years, Duane Wade was filthy good. those teams were a highlight reel waiting to happen. So I think now, I think Anthony Davis could surpass Dwayne Wade number one all time. But to me, Dwayne's the best player he's ever played with. Good to have you in. I love that all NBA music. That's like NBC, NBA, like 20 years ago. John Tesh wrote that.

I think I've seen John Tesh perform. Hold on. No, I've seen the other piano guy. name the other piano guy. Aren't you an actor, Sam? You run in those circles. Not Billy Joel. He's more piano than he is a singer. His last name starts with an S.

I swear to God. He's like John Tesh. Bruce Hornsby. Yeah. Hornsby does not start with an S. Pretty sure. Bruce Hornsby. Yeah, I saw Bruce Hornsby in a wine in Oregon.

drinking wine in a, what would you call it, you would call it in a... Vineyard? Vineyard. Yeah. I don't know why words are so hard for me today. Yeah, I watched Bruce Hornsby in a... It's tough considering your profession. Yeah.

Words are kind of... Words today are tough from me. I'm already water skiing. So I saw Bruce Hornsby in Oregon at Willamette Valley performing doing his thing. It was very enjoyable. It was nice. John Tesh has got a little of that, right? Red Rock Canyon.

You know, a lot of that. thing going on. You guys don't get Bruce Hornsby? Hornsby, I love. That's just the way it is, of course. That's just the way it is. I don't know. I don't sing.

Sam, of course, is a natural performer. Sam is a former actor. I'm not kidding you not. We have a comedy writer, an actor. It's an eclectic crew here, no doubt. Goulet, what's your second talent? I don't even know if I have a first talent. That is self-loathing at its very best.

Facial hair, by the way, for Gulae. You look fantastic. So the Raptors Championship Parade, tip of the cap to the peeps up north. It's great. They got this giant bus. Mark Gassal, you know, you see a seven-footer during an NBA game, and you're like, no, he's a seven-footer.

He's just a big guy. Then you see Mark Gassal standing on the second floor of a bus, and he's like, giant. You're like, oh, yeah, he's a seven-foot man. He is a big, big dude. All right, so glad I came in today. We had business to do. I hope you enjoyed it.

You know, next week, I'm going to just be off. Maybe tweet, text a little. I'm going to watch the draft, have some thoughts on that. And I don't think we're going to get another big trade for a few days. We'll see you. Thanks for joining us. It's been the hurt. Last night, a blown call changed a game.

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