The Herd with Colin Cowherd - Best of The Herd: 02/07/2019

Episode Date: February 7, 2019

Colin points out that Kevin Durant wants all the fame and recognition of being an NBA super star but none of the questions that come along with it.  LaVar Ball comes in studio to discuss what is wrong with the Lakers internally.  Plus, NBA Champion Richard Jefferson explains to Colin why the Pelicans might have made a huge mistake trying to hurt the Lakers.  Presented by Perky Jerky. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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Another podcast from some SNL late night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smigel and friends. Me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman help make you funnier. This week, my guest, SNL's Mikey Day and head writer Streeter Seidel, help an a cappella band with their between songs banter. Where does your group perform? We do some retirement homes. Those people are starving for banter.

Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and Friends on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. What's up, guys? This is Clivert 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? Time out. Quarterback on office blue with 42. Hey, Wreck, my mama want you to weigh better. What? Hey, Miss Parker. Listen to the Clifford show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast.

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, Marquis come in to her, he's like, you know I love you, dog. You know, it's all love. This was just playoffs. This was just basketball. So listen to Point Game on the IHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Thanks for listening to the best of Heard podcast.

Be sure to catch us live every weekday from 12 to 3 Eastern, 9 to noon Pacific on Fox Sports Radio and FS1. Find your local station for the herd at Fox SportsRodio.com or stream us live every day on the iHeart radio app by searching herd this is the best of the herd with Colin Cowher on fox sports radio ah here we go trade deadline herd day it's a Thursday in

Los Angeles we are live wherever you may be and however you may be listening we are on iHeart radio we're on Fox Sports Radio and we are right here on FS1 Chris Mannix Richard Jefferson a LeBron teammate Chris Broussard LeVar ball next hour and Joy Taylor is joining me. We've got, this is kind of a trade deadline show today.

This is what it is. Yes, it's a trade deadline preview show and maybe we'll have some news as the day goes on. Yeah, it will be. The trade deadline ends at about the end of our show. So the next three hours, we're going to give you the very latest stuff. I do want to start, though, with late, late, late, late, late, last night, Kevin Durant went to a microphone and he's just tired of hearing his. name out there with the Knicks.

There was an article written by a young person named Ethan Strauss. Been covering the Warriors forever. Some speculation, some discussion of Kevin Durant, and he just didn't like it, and it set him off last night. Here you go.

We've noticed that you hadn't talked for a while. Why do you care? Anything to do with conversation about free agency? That's the conversation you're going to have. I don't think about that type of stuff. That's your job. You got to do Ethan Strauss who come in here and just give his whole opinion on stuff and make it seem like it's coming from me.

And he just walk around here. Don't talk to nobody. Just walk in here and survey and then write something like that. And now y'all piling on me because I don't want to talk to y'all about that. I have nothing to do with the Knicks. I don't know who traded Porzengis. They got nothing to do with me. I'm trying to play basketball.

Y'all come here every day. Ask me about free agency, I ask my teammates, my coaches, you rile up the fans about it. Let us play basketball. That's all I'm saying. And now when I don't want to talk to y'all, it's a problem with me.

Come on, man. Grow up. Grow up. Yeah, you grow up. Come on, bro. We're talking. So? Who are you?

Why do I got to talk to you? How are you playing? How was the team playing in the last couple weeks? I'm done. You know you don't care about that. I just asked you. Grow up are the perfect two words for Kevin Durant. So Kevin, you want the money, the power, the fame, and the worship.

But don't ask me a question. Well, excuse me, but when LeBron James signs a one-year contract, when Kevin Durant signs or a one- or a two-year contract and it's up soon, that begs for speculation. That demands the question. Your boss will tell you as a reporter, you've got to ask KD about this. and then Kevin Durant had gone silent the last eight days, wouldn't talk to the media,

that's their first opportunity to talk to him. I am pro player. I've always been pro NBA player. But if you want the power and the fame and the money and the leverage, you got to answer a question, especially when you like playing the one-year contract game. You can't get a one-year deal. you make a decision as a star player in this league, as a difference maker, which LeBron is, Kevin Durant is, those are difference makers and they're superstars.

When they sign one year deals, you're toying with your team and you're playing with your fans. And then the media, we're going to play a game too. It's called the speculation game. Steph Curry's on this team. He never deals with this drama. Why? Because Steph Curry's totally committed long term to the Warriors. therefore the media doesn't poke and prod and ask questions.

We're not digging here just to dig. There's a gold bar underneath the surface. Okay. I, as a reporter, I don't like making athletes uncomfortable, but I would have to go and answer the question and ask the question because Kevin Durant's got a contract that demands and begs that I ask the question. Here's the funny thing about Kevin Durant. Like, he's telling everybody to grow up.

Dude, you're the one that wants to be LeBron. Okay, LeBron and Michael Jordan are on this elevated plane. And Kevin Durant wants to so desperately be in that plane. We know that. We know it bothers him. That's been reported multiple times. You can tell in his responses when he said everybody is a suck up to LeBron and everybody worships LeBron and everybody's got a man crush on LeBron.

Clearly, Kevin Durant. It bothers Kevin Durant, right? That's why he talks about it. He wants to be on this Michael Jordan-Lebron plane. But the reason he's not, he can't handle it. Michael Jordan brilliantly played the media forever on his terms. He was playful and fun, poked and prodded. LeBron, by and large, he just kind of has fun.

Goes to social media, pokes and pronds. He didn't melt down. Michael wasn't melting down. Kevin Durant's melting down like six times a year. You got to be able to handle it. Part of being a superstar, and this is a big part of it, is handling being a superstar. Samuel L. Jackson's a superstar. He can handle it.

Russell Crow could not. He threw phones at people behind a desk at a hotel. Russell Crow couldn't handle being a superstar. He's just a good actor. By the way, Jay-Z can handle being a superstar. Kanye melts down about three times a year. LeBron can handle it. Michael Jordan could handle it.

Magic could handle it. Kevin Durant can't. He wants all the, he loves being talked about. He criticizes us when we do shows that are very LeBron leaning. He's noted that it bothers him. He calls us fanboys and suckups. So it clearly bothers him. Then handle the questions about your future because you're

sign one and two year deals. That's the game. And by the way, this is why Kevin Durant can't go to the Knicks. Golden State is perfect for him. He's insulated. He's protected. Steve Curry used to be a broadcaster. He's incredibly media savvy. So he deflects a lot of the KD stuff. Steph Curry, the world's greatest teammate got a star next to him, deflects a lot of the stuff. If the Warriors lose, Kevin Durant doesn't take all the heat. Sometimes they blame Draymond. Sometimes they blame Clay. Golden State's perfect. They insulate Kevin Durant, who can be incredibly insecure.

This is another example, lecturing people to grow up. When it's really, Kevin, bathrooms have mirrors. They still work. Use them. This is about you wanting to be the superstar, wanting to be LeBron, wanting to be MJ, but you can't handle questions at a press conference and speculation on blogs and the internet. That's really keeping you up at night. That's aggravating you.

What Michael Jordan had people chasing him around the country. LeBron James has helicopters flying over his house. And you can't handle an article from a blog? The warriors are built for Kevin Durant. He's protected and insulated. Can you imagine him going to the New York Knicks? Or if they lose, it's on Kevin. Where if they don't advance to the second round, it's on Kevin.

That's not the issue anymore. When I hear he's going to go to New York, I just roll my eyes and think, you've got to be kidding me. They've got the savviest head coach in the league with the media, Steve Kerr. They've got Steph Curry as a teammate. It's a world-class organization. And they win the title every year. They're barely even, they run unopposed. They're like a politician.

And the Democrat drops out. I mean, they run unopposed. So if you want to be a superstar, part of being a superstar is being a superstar is being able to handle, oh my God, a question at a press conference. LeBron has had people helicopters. Michael Jordan couldn't get married. Helicopters. I mean, they had to literally buy security and buy islands because people are hovering

and chasing and stocking. And Ethan Strauss is wearing you out? You're not LeBron. Example number 28. Why you're not LeBron. All right, let me shift to this. Trading deadline. It is interesting that a New York Nick Christopps Porzingas got traded to Dallas.

I didn't hear a word of it before it happened. Involved a star and involved a big city. Of course, this thing has been a nine-day three-ring circus. Let me just ask you a question. I don't think Anthony Davis, who I support wanting to leave, is going to end up a Laker by noon today. and what is going to happen if he doesn't? There's some losers in this.

There's some carnage in this. There's some shrapnel in this. First of all, the biggest loser is going to be Luke Walton. I mean, every teammate knows now they are just a pawn in the bigger picture. I think you're going to have a very messy second half. I think you're going to be a borderline playoff team that's distracted. LeVar Ball will be on our show next hour. he's got issues with his son ever having to play in New Orleans.

I think Luke Walton is in big, big trouble here. This is going to be a very messy second half, and the Lakers are going to be a borderline playoff team. Secondly, I don't think the Lakers look good here. I think it's a bad look for the Lakers. At one point, it was reported they were giving up seven players and six draft picks. Are you kidding me? What do you?

The Buffalo Bills, the Cleveland Browns? You look desperate. There's a story out. Brian Winhorse said the Pelicans never intended to move Anthony Davis to the Lakers. They instead wanted to leak things to sabotage the young Lakers as revenge for what New Orleans saw as tampering. Can you imagine that? The Lakers being manipulated by the Pelicans? That's like the United States going into a trade war and getting worked by Trinidad at Tobago.

that's a bad look. And third, I don't think it's great for LeBron. He's got a deal with his current teammates who probably just aren't mature enough to handle being mentioned as trade pawns. They should be able to handle it, but I don't think they will handle it. Also, I think it's hard for LeBron now

because is he getting a reputation as the Lakers struggle as kind of a coach killer? I think Luke Walton's dead man coaching. Also, Kauai doesn't appear interested. Paul George didn't. I saw a story yesterday that Anthony Davis, he wants to be a neck. I mean, this is, this is not a good look for Luke. It's not a good look for the Lakers. I don't think it's a terribly good look for LeBron James. The Lakers have been worked by Del Demps. Do you remember what David Stern said a year ago? He was no longer even the commissioner. He talked

about Del Demps and the New Orleans Pelicans and he said he doesn't know what he's doing. doing. He's a lousy general manager. If the Lakers at 1201 Pacific, if they get nothing, they have been worked by the worst franchise in the NBA. A franchise in New Orleans where they're having NFL people run their NBA team. This is just not good. And this is another reason. Don't leak.

Don't talk. Don't rush to blogs. Porzingas got traded. Nobody liked it in New York, but it was a one-day story. This is going to be a 9-10-day story, and it's a cautionary tale for the Lakers. Be careful when you get into business with the worst franchise in the NBA. I mean, the Pelicans aren't real smart here.

Once the summer hits, my argument is, I don't think the Pelicans are getting more. I think they're going to get less. The summer changes things. Anthony Davis is going to have, less time to sit out. I think Anthony Davis has the every day this goes on, Anthony Davis can look in the mirror and go, I'm just going to sit out the season.

Now it's like a year and a half. I mean, this is just, it's just bad news. I don't think it looks good for LeBron. I do not think it looks good for the Lakers. I think it's a really bad situation for Luke Walton. Be sure to catch live editions of The Herd, Weekdays and New Eastern 9 a.m. Pacific. So Kevin Durant blew up last night. He's upset with all the speculation about him being traded. And it was an article written by Ethan Strauss, who's a, I don't know,

but he covers the Warriors. There's a quote in here where it says, Durant believed beating LeBron in the 2017 finals would get him hailed as the game's top player. K.D., who was tired of being second way back in 2013, was still stuck there reputational. But in the end, even though Durant was the superior defensive player and hit the game winning shot in the series in LeBron's face, there was no grand reordering of the rankings. Nor should there be. Kevin Durant will never catch LeBron. It doesn't matter if he wins four more finals. He will not.

He will not. Kevin Durant at some point, and he's not there yet, may be better than LeBron on the fourth. floor, better, he will never be greater than LeBron. Folks, if it was all about titles, then Bill Russell's the best player ever. He was excellent and he's got 11. Michael Jordan was excellent and has six. Titles are not everything. He's got almost double Michael Jordans.

We never consider Bill Russell in Michael Jordan's class. Ben Hur, the Titanic, and Lord of the Rings have the most Oscars. Nobody considers them the three best movies of all time. Kevin Durant has acknowledged, has admitted, he just wants to play basketball. LeBron has never just been about playing basketball. LeBron is a global icon. People, you know them, they've got one name, Oprah, Hanks. Obama, LeBron.

Kevin Durant's not even the biggest one-name guy in his own team. That's Steph. Durant is a great basketball player. LeBron's an icon. Andrew Luck could win the next four Super Bowls. He'll never be bigger than Peyton Manning. Peyton Manning changed the game. Peyton Manning's iconic.

Andrew Luck's just a great quarterback. The totality matters. The mythology matters. There's a reason that Wilt's better than Russell. Wilt has two titles. Russell. Russell has 11. But Wilt had a hundred-point game.

Wilt was an urban legend. Wilt changed teams multiple times and changed the league and changed the rules he was so dominant. He was also a statistical monster, and Wilt had enough titles. It wasn't like Russell had 12 and Wilt had none. Magic will always be bigger than bird. You know, magic's got more titles, but magic was always a bigger story.

Magic mattered more. Magic changed the game. Magic changed the way kids on the street played. That matters in the NBA. That matters in life. It matters in sports. It matters. We've had presidents who during the recession, during wars, whether they're not

they're the best president, they're viewed as simply more impactful and more important. important. Kevin Durant's living in this tunnel of more titles, I'm better. LeBron is way past that. And every time Kevin Durant says, I just want to be about basketball, he shrinks his profile. He shrinks it. At some point, Kevin may be better than LeBron on the floor, but he'll never be greater than LeBron. I'll put their numbers up on a screen for our television audience. it doesn't even really matter that LeBron has 10,000 more points or 6,000 more assists, or four times the MVP's, or even one more title and six more finals appearances. It doesn't matter that LeBron is statistically significantly greater.

Go ahead, add four more titles. LeBron has enough titles. Peyton Manning has enough titles that even if luck wins more, Manning will always be bigger. because Peyton changed the way football was played at the line of scrimmage. Peyton Manning was his own coach. The coaching staff largely gave the team offensively to Peyton Manning. He would go to a line with two, three, four audibles.

Nobody else did that. That's not a knock on Kevin Durant. He is a great, great basketball player. But the three most important basketball players of my life, Magic Johnson made the league popular. Michael made it global and LeBron made it mobile. And in fact, if you asked me who the fourth most important NBA player ever is, it would be a Kevin Durant teammate, Steph Curry.

Steph Curry is, in my opinion, the fourth most important player in NBA history. He eliminated centers. Nobody goes back to back. He eliminated the mid-range jumper. He basically changed the way kids play basketball. I hear parents all the time now. They say my kid goes into a gym. All they do is hoist up threes.

College basketball coaches now recruit bigs, and their parents say they will not go back to the basket. They've got to be facing the basket. So Durant has to just come to terms with this. He is a great, great basket. ball player, second best over the last 10 years. Better than LeBron some nights. Better than LeBron maybe in the next five years.

He'll never be greater than LeBron. And it does matter to him. As Ethan Strauss and others have said, he doesn't want to be number two. Well, he is. And he is always going to be when compared to LeBron James. And that is not a massive criticism. Let me also say this before I get to LeVar Ball. Let me say this, is that I think it would be a massive mistake for Kevin Durant to go to the New York Knicks.

I think it would be massive. That would be like John Elway in his prime saying, I want to go and play for the Detroit Lions. That would be like Derek Jeter in his prime saying, you know what? I want to give the Seattle Mariners a try. Isn't what all NBA stars, aren't they all looking for the same thing, to win titles and play with great? players. Joy, I'm checking in on the Warriors. Do they do that part really well? Yeah, they, they're pretty solid. They're pretty solid when it comes to that. I think it would be idiotic. I mean, could you imagine Tom Brady leaving Bill Belichick in his prime for the Cincinnati

Bengals? I would say, what are you doing? Even Tom Brady would get criticized. What are you doing? This is Bill Belichick. Nobody willingly, willingly, left. the New York Yankees in 1998. Nobody willingly left. David Wells was shipped off and he was pissed. You don't leave dynasties. And especially when you have Steve Kerr, the player-friendly coach. Steph Curry, the world's greatest superstar teammate.

Organizationally, the best franchise in the NBA. The city's cool. The title potential is basically uncontested. this would be a massive mistake. If you're a superhero, the goal for superheroes is to be an Avenger. You team up with other superheroes to save our planet and protect our planet. You don't work all those years as a superhero to get to the Avengers and then go,

you know, I'm going to take off and go to a small planet in the middle of nowhere and protect the plants from, you know, the harsh air of the galaxy. No, dude, once you're an Avenger, that's the top. When you get to that league, you don't leave it. You don't go to another league, smaller planet to worry about less crucial things. Kevin Durant will be making a massive, massive mistake leaving. And the fact that he's suggesting it that gets prickly about it, I think it would be a disaster.

Elway doesn't leave the Broncos for the lions. Cheater doesn't leave the Yankees for the Mariners. Robert Downey worked his whole career to get to be Iron Man. If he wakes up tomorrow and goes, you know what I want to do? Low-budget indie films. Then shame on Robert Downey. You work your whole life to get on the Warriors,

the 98 Yankees. You work your whole life to do that. You don't bail on it, or you're goofy. Want 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 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. Sports Slice 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 Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Slic Life 12 and 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, 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.

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This is Clivert 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 with 42. A rep. My mama want you to weigh better. What? Where's he at? Hey, Miss Parker. Listen to the Clifford Show on the IHeart Radio app,

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Third, fourth, fifth time on the show, I lose count. Founder CEO, Big Baller Brand, father of course of Lonzo. Another son right now is playing at a high school, a prep school in Cleveland. That's Lamello? Yes. Lovar Ball is joining us along with Joy Taylor. All right, let's start here. I don't want this to feel like an interrogation, but I'm going to ask, I'm a journalist.

I'm going to ask probing questions now. That's right. Okay, there are some people today, and many people that feel like, you know, you kind of got a little comeuppance Lanzo may be traded Lithuania thing wasn't ideal there are people you were a phenomenon

in the country you were discussed weekly there are some people applauding that it hasn't gone perfectly do you sense that does it bother you no it doesn't bother me everything goes preferably for me

it's just the way the media portrays it it's just like people saying oh we haven't heard from LeVar yeah you ain't heard from me because I'm in another country You know, if I'm traveling, I'm not going to be stuck on one thing just like, I have three boys. My ultimate goal is to get all of them in the NBA. The second goal is to make sure all of them play on the same team. And it's going to happen.

And like I said, it can be done. And that's one of the reasons I kind of like said, okay, Phoenix is good. They got some players. But I'm not trying to be a one hit or quitter. What I mean by that, like the Lakers are trying to do. Get all these players try to get you one ring. I want to build a dynasty, a baller. dynasty from the bottom on up.

So go to the weakest team. Nobody ever wants to go to and go there and make it grow. Did the Lakers tell you when LeBron got here to pipe down? No. Lakers can't tell me anybody. Nobody told me anything on the fact that they can't. You can't come to my house and knock on the door and be like, hey, LeVar, don't say nothing.

I'm not going to go up there. But you did talk less. You were less vocal. I was less vocal because I'm in Europe. I'm in Belgium. I'm in London. Do you feel that the Lakers have been honest with you? I read all the trade speculation this week? I don't believe the Lakers been honest with me

on the fact that we had some discussions on things that should have been done. It wasn't done. It's just like saying, before the season they start, I ask what do you need from Zoe? You know, it's got to be stronger.

Okay, we got that. Yeah. How about giving my other son a chance that you said, build around a family, they're not, they should have did it. Summer League, come on.

Summer League, you get thrown jello in the summer league just to see what he can do. That's not a big deal. They ain't even given that opportunity to play with his brother at least one time. Let's see what they can do together. But no, but if you tell me you're going to do something and say you're going to try to build something around a family

and we don't take no steps, it's just like all these guys you get. You've got four and five guys rippling the ball up the court. What you need Lonsor for? If you say he's the face of the franchise, but you don't relate that to the coach. And now it makes magic seem like he's just the face. Maybe they didn't want to set a precedent

that maybe if Kyle Kuzma, Josh Hart's father come in and they say, hey, LeVar's son, he got LaMello. Maybe the Lakers just didn't. Their father can say that. Why? Why would they? These fathers are not like me? Well, they don't want to set a precedent.

The Yankees don't want to give. Well, why they don't want to, it's not even about setting a precedent. You know what? Fathers can say what they want about their kid. Look at Darren Fox there. He said something, but it's not relevant because you know why? You don't have a brand. Don't put me in the same boat as these guys.

I have a brand and I'm not just one son. I got three sons. Lonzo Ball does not appear if you read what you read to be part of the Lakers' long-term plans. How does your son think about that? What is he thinking about? My son is like this.

Lonzo, he goes with the flow because he's cool like that. What I'm saying is he's not going to have an attitude. He won't have his own feeling, but he's not going to speak out like me. He's going to do whatever you all want to do with him. It's just like this. When Luke takes him out,

he goes sit at the end of the bench. I'm like, okay, he took me out. But in his mind, he's like, I need to be playing the whole game. Let me finish this. but he's not going to show no attitude. He's not going to do like that. I'm a guy.

He pulled me to the bench. I might stop at the coach and look at him and be like, for real? That's just how I am. But Lonzo is different being raised in Chino Hills. The attitude is not there. He's been cool and sheltered by me for a long time. So it's like they're never going to come at that. So Lonzo's like this.

If you got me here, you want me to play, I'll do it. If you ship me off, okay, that's fine. I'll go to my next step. Do you believe it's inevitable he will be traded? he's going to be traded or if he's not traded, Luke is not going to be there because him and Luke don't mix. So it don't matter if Luke came and said, Lonzo, you're going to start every game.

I'm going to play you 45 minutes. Lonzo's like, okay, but the loyalty is gone. Okay, give me clarity on don't mix. What does that mean? They don't mix because he didn't use Lonzo the right way. So don't, people talking about Lonzo was getting better on the fact that everybody on the Lakers was hurt. So now you've got to play Lonzo more minutes.

And all we said, playing 35 plus. and start him in the fourth quarter and let him go get these victories. But if you don't start him in the fourth quarter, that means you don't have no confidence in him. If you let him wait to the last five or six minutes to say, hey, go in there and see what you can do. You miss a shout of something like that.

Come on out of there. I mean, he would play lawns on the first six minutes and regardless of good or bad, first quarter, you're coming out. For what? So now you're telling me, we're not trying to get this victory. Three fouls, oh, sit down, sit down,

three fouls, too many. You get six. Well, Luke has won a lot of games. in the NBA. He's lost a lot in Golden State. And he's lost a lot of games. He's been losing for three years. And that's the mentality when I told people they changed my son into a loser talking about you'll get it. You're a rookie. You got time. I don't want to hear all that. Go out there and do the job. But Lonzo has been, and I think this is fair to say, he's become a little injury prone. Launzel's been hurt multiple times.

He's been hurt multiple times on the fact that Lonzo was used to playing a whole game. But don't have him go out and be 100 miles an hour, set him down for 12 minutes. Every time he's coming back in the game, I see him doing all this extra stuff stretching and trying to get back in the game. It's like going in a fight and say, you're fighting and stuff, and they say, hey, come on out and sit down for him

and take a breath for a long time. You're not even got to sweat no more. So now you're going to get hurt if you go. If you drive your car 150 miles an hour, and as soon as you get off the freeway, just turn it off, some hoses and stuff is going to bus because you've been going so fast. But if you let it cool down like this,

no problem. Could I make the argument, and I think this is something we discuss, LeBron and Lonzo are not a perfect fit because LeBronzo Alonzo needs the ball in his hand to control the court. Well, that's LeBron's game. LeBron works well with shooters. Chris Bosch, big guys with LeBron, not necessarily great,

but he's great with shooters. Once LeBron came here, it was over for Lonzo. This was never going to work. It was never perfect. LeBron needs the ball. You know what? It would work if they were played the right way, which is together.

their IQ, which makes them both great. You've seen Lonzo throw the ball head a lot. If LeBron just leaks out and runs out, if you don't get a rebound sprint, we're going to give you the ball. Same thing with Lonzo. When Lonzo leaks out there, LeBron's the only one who ever threw him alive.

He's the only one that throws the ball early to Lonzo. So they're going to mess in that if you have the right system. Everybody's worried about the players. There's nothing to do with the players. It's the system and the coach. You can get all the players in the world, but if you don't have a coach that can coach them, it's not going to work.

If you don't have a system, It's not going to work. The last nine days we have seen Kyle Kuzma, Brandon Ingram, your son, Lonzo Ball, picks, Josh Hart, we've seen all these players on the internet, on newspapers being told they are basically pawns. They're just in the furniture business, their end tables. Right, right, right. How do you believe that affects the chemistry the rest of the year on that roster? Well, it's going to affect the chemistry if none of these guys get traded.

because now you got them stuck in there in LA but you got them understanding saying patting folks on the back and saying you good and you this and that and then all of a sudden you're out of here. So do you sense chemistry is an issue now? The chemistry is definitely going to be an issue on the fact that whatever happens

if they go, fine. But you don't give up all these young players for one guy because what's going to happen after this year goes by? And like I said, as far as 80s is a good player. LeBron's good player. LeBron ain't the, LeBron, he used to be, he got injured, just falling down on his growing or whatever.

You're getting older, and your mind might have you thinking that, oh, I'm taking care of my body, I'm doing this, but you're still getting older. And the same thing with AD's a good player, but he's never been a guy where you say, you know what, you're the man, you're going to take us to the problem. He doesn't have the alpha. There you go. But he's a great player. He's a great player.

No, no, no doubt about that. He's not what I would call him a classic. He's not a vocal guy. He's not a floor leader. Not a floor leader, but he can't even Okay, if you don't have a ball in his hand, somebody got to give him the ball. And the thing is, it better be on the run

or for a clear-out. He's not heavy enough to just go sit on that box and do what he do. Biggie Coussons go sit on that box. Joel and B., they can sit on that box. He goes down and sit on that box, they can push him out because he's still got that thin frame. But long as you running like this

and giving him some shots at the, you know, facing the basket, he's going to be wondering. He's going to do his thing. Do you worry that your criticism of Luke affects your son going forward? No, no, no, because I believe this. Who's ever going to believe in my son? That's who's going to prosper the most. What if he goes to New Orleans?

And they believe in him. And they believe in him, and you get my other two sons, we'd be there. But here's the thing that I was talking about New Orleans, a cold place. My son don't want to play. You don't want to get up and see the snow and don't want to go to work. You know what I'm saying? These are unrealistic expectations. I've had to move. I'm old.

Right. I've had to move a bunch. I had to live in a state where it snowed one time in October. That's as you're coming up. Well. You're where you at now. You don't have to do anything. Well, no, I still have to.

You do what you want. Basically, but you still got to hire. I'm shoveling snow here every day. Yeah, you can't just go out of here. Talk crazy like me. But anyways. You're kind of, you're saying your son didn't want to play in snow. He doesn't want to play.

But here's the thing. Go somewhere where you want to be. And New Orleans, I mean, they got some guys that's already there. that's already playing point guard. Right, they do. Phoenix, you don't have you. We're in a warm area. Go somewhere where nobody who's talking about,

but who's saying, hey, I want to go to Phoenix. Nobody. So if you have somebody who's good and wants to go to Phoenix, that would work. But do you believe the Lakers now with your public criticism would do any favors for Lovar Ball? I mean, I could.

They haven't done me any favors anyway. So what's the deal? They haven't done me any favors anyway. So it's not like, oh, okay, I'll be quiet. The Lakers will do what I want. They haven't done what I want. Do you think LeBron is in your son's corner? I think LeBron is in my son's corner.

LeBron, I've never had, and I hold this true to what I say, I've never seen or heard of a person that doesn't want to play with my son. On the fact, he's just a heck of a player to play with because he makes everybody around him better regardless of who's there. And so LeBron can always be able to play with him. only do so much, you know, as far as say so here or there. You don't think LeBron's controlling all this. Oh, LeBron is not controlling all this. Magic is.

Magic is not controlling all this. Magic is just the face. I don't know. Some other things going on. As far as you can tell, magic's not controlling it on the fact that Jeannie Bus just said something in the paper where it said, Magic wanted Fox, but she told him to get Lonzo. I don't know where that came out from.

but it had to come from somewhere. So a lot of times, magic is just a face to get things, but he's not actually the one making things happen. Elsewise, the orders would have been down. Okay, Lonzo's our guy. He said he was the face of the franchise.

How you go from the face of the franchise and getting ready to be traded? That means you don't have those say so. You're just a face. Do you get along with magic today? Do I get along with magic? I used to get along with magic. You don't anymore.

I don't get along with magic no more on the fact that I haven't talked to him and he said some things he was going to do and didn't do. So now I'm like, okay, I know where you at. So it's all right. So it's okay for people to change their mind and do things. But then I go about my business and do what I'm going to do. Would Lonzo your son, if given the option today? Uh-huh. And I said, Lonzo, you can go to somewhere like Phoenix and start over and be the man or be part of the Lakers, the third or fourth guy in the Lakers.

LeBron, Anthony Davis, if they brought a Jimmy Butler in, what would be better for him? Starring for the Sons or being a component, a part of the Lakers. Here's the thing. If Alonzo was starting for the Lakers, under a different coach that lets him do his job, be third, fourth, fifth, whatever you want to call him. But you call him a winner.

I think the Luke stuff is odd to me. Luke is likable? That's what I'm saying. Who's on the market? You fire Luke. on the market now. Brad Stevens. Brad Stevens, no, you don't want him. It's somebody off.

Brian Shaw is the guy. Anytime you fire a head coach, that assistant coach, he got a good rapport with that team. He knows what's going on. He just has to wait his opportunity. I'll give you an example. With Blatt at Cleveland. Tyrone Luton, he knew what to do, but he's not going to give this guy the insight

that head coach and let him look like he's doing the right thing. So you're just going to sit back and be quiet. Ryan Shaw, man, I'm watching coach a game after Luke got thrown out, it was night and day. It seems to me that Luke, you know, they were winning 48 games this year before LeBron got hurt. They were on-Pas. They were going to win more than that if you play Lonzo the right way. You can't have.

Is it fair to say sometimes you're a little unrealistic? No, I'm not unrealistic. I'm very realistic. That's what makes it seem like I'm unrealistic. People were telling me about, oh, you know, all your sons playing on the same team, it's a billion and one. Shoot, it's four billion and one of me coming in the league. with my own brand.

That ain't going to stop me from doing things, but things seem not realistic to people that don't understand me or don't like me. Now it's not realistic. LeVar, you're talking crazy. But people don't understand me, but I mean, you know what? That's true. Like I said,

I'm in a building a dynasty, and you have to start from the bottom and build something solid. You can't, Lakers had too many number two picks not to keep them all and let them jail and get something out of this, as opposed to before somebody's about to take off and do some things, that's what's going on.

Think they make a deal today? I think they'll make a deal today. You do? I think so. I think it'll happen at the last minute or something like that. I think it will. But if it doesn't, two things happen. You trade my son.

We get started somewhere else. Or you get rid of the coach and you get a new coach in there. Like I said, the perfect coach would be Brian Shaw. All right. LeVar, appreciate you coming on the show. Man, I appreciate seeing you guys again. And like I said, man, it started out, a little reckless with me and you as we kept going up.

The time is going by, and we both evolving. It's good to see you guys again. It's definitely good to see Joy in a different spot, and it's just good, man. Appreciate it. So bless all you guys and stay safe. All right. All right. When your son starts for the suns, you're welcome back.

We can talk about Phoenix. Yeah, we'll talk about that. Yeah. I like Phoenix. Yeah, I like it on the fact that if they can get all my sons, that's what I'm trying to say. Let's slow down on that. I'm not going to slow down on that because that's part of my thing going to Phoenix. I need help.

I'm just trying to, you know, help you. I feel like he just gave us the scoot. Yeah, he needs help. I mean, Jell are going to be ready in the summer. They got at least let him try. Lakers never gave me a chance to play with Lanzo. All right. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern 9 a.m. Pacific on Fox Sports

Radio, FS1 and the IHard Radio app. Let's bring in Richard Jefferson. It doesn't appear they have any interest in doing anything. Hello. How are you doing? All right. Thank you. So, what are you?

It does look like, Richard. the reports that the Pelicans were just ticked off at the way Anthony Davis clutch sports happened that they just wanted to make the Lakers look bad and put a bunch of crap out there. What do you make of that? If that is true, let's start with that. If that is true,

I think that is one of the most reckless, immature things that you can do, right? Part of the reason why they're in this situation is because they haven't really been able to sign free agents in New Orleans. Right. And you want to go and frustrate a bunch of young players and send a message to all of these young. The young players for the Lakers did nothing to you, right? And eventually, Lanzo Ball could be a free agent.

Kuzma could be a free agent, right? Eventually Brandon Ingram could be a free agent. And you will bring none of those guys will even look at New Orleans, right? So even though you want to get back at the Lakers and you want to cause problems. You're winning the battle. You're losing the war. You're losing the war, right? Like, yeah, that's fine.

That's cool that you did it. And you did. Right? you cause some problems inside that organization. But ultimately, is that going to help your franchise? Is that going to help you long term? Is that something? Is that a big picture move or is that a little picture move?

And I just feel like if that is true to me, I think that was disappointing. Now, look, a lot of things have been disappointing, but if we're going to focus on New Orleans and kind of that narrative and that story, how are you going to sign free agents? You're going to have to overpay for him and you can end up with like a Solomon Hill situation, who went to Arizona. That's my guy. But you had to overpay to get a young player in there.

that didn't work out. So wild earth would you go and just make a bunch of young talented players a bunch of pawns in this scenario? Why would you do that? Yeah, I think it's seen as a dysfunctional organization. And this is petty and juvenile. If you don't want to make the move... Just say it.

Just say, we're not going to make a move. Don't leak stuff. And that's what I'm hearing is they're doing a ton of leaking. And to your point, when I look at them, I've always seen an organization that's using, football people to run their NBA franchise, so I don't love it there, but they just come off as kind of Bush League. How do you think it's landing with your friend LeBron? Well, I think overall, the construct of this team from beginning has really struggled, right? I think Braun's kind

of on an island. I think he's a little bit on his island. If you look at every great player in NBA history has had a formula to what made them successful. I agree. Shack always needed a high-level score and a wing player. So Shaq will get you three and a half quarters. He needs a closer kind of neck. So I'm not saying the Shaq can't close, but he needs that Kobe, that Penny Hardaway. You didn't want Shaq at the free throw line. No, you didn't, but you needed a killer. And he had

that when he got Deweighed. He had that when he had Penny Hardaway. He had that. For LeBron, it's always been he needs another score and he needs tons of shooting around him. And he also needs to have people around him that he feels comfortable with, right? Whether it's James Jones. It's people

like that that can kind of be in his ear in a positive space. And I don't think that this team had any of it. This team had no shooting, right? This team didn't give him any other veteran that he was familiar with. It was basically LeBron and a bunch of young players or mercenaries that they brought in on one year deals with the best player in the world. So I think it kind of put him on a little bit of an island.

So I'm not surprised that he was trying to facilitate or people around him were trying to facilitate getting him a second superstar. So he needs a second superstar. He needs shooting, like high-level shooting, and he needs people around him on the team that he trusts. I don't, Richard, I don't think Anthony Davis, I think he's terrific, but I've seen what LeBron does to Bosch and love. He can kind of, just because the way his game has played,

he's a ball control guy, he's a quarterback. He needs the ball. He's got a Russell Wilson. He can throw it. He can pass it. He can run and score it. And there's certain receivers that work with Russell Wilson and a certain style and offensive line.

and I see that with LeBron. Is Anthony Davis actually a great fit with him? I think it is. I think because there's different ways to kind of kill a bear, right? And for me, I view Anthony Davis as like a Swiss Army knife. He's got a lot of different tools. He's going to do a lot of different things. But you don't necessarily want to go kill a bear with a Swiss Army knife.

You want a hatchet. And Braun is a hatchet, right? Guys like that, Kobe Bryant's a hatchet, but you need guys that can do a lot of things also around him. And I think Anthony Davis can block shots, he can rebound. And so Braun looks at it from a standpoint of like, hey, if I got to throw the ball to him 25 times and let him do jumpers or post-ups or whatever it is. So to make sure he's averaging 25 points a game and then I'll go do what it is, whatever it is that I'll go do. I think it can fit because Bron will make the best of whatever the situation is.

But I don't know if you want AD to be your number one guy, right, to carry you all throughout the postseason. I don't know if he's there yet. I think he will be. but I think it would be a good fit if it got to that spot, mainly because I think Braun is, he's that guy that's just, but he needs someone around him that can do a little bit of everything. Chris, Chris Bosch, Kevin Love, they can post up, they can shoot, they can do that, but there was also a third superstar, which people forget.

Now, if Kevin Love was the second superstar, if Chris Bosch was the second superstar, it's not the same thing. It's not the same thing. It's when they became the third superstar that they had to make those sacrifices, but I think Anthony Davis, and this is no disrespect to Kevin Love or Chris Bosh is a far different player than both of them. Luke Walton is a college teammate of yours and a friend. LeVar Ball, believe him or not, says he just doesn't think he's done a very good job,

that he doesn't, he hasn't been honest with Lonzo Ball. What do you make of the criticism, not just from LeVar, but many have criticized Luke for it not meshing? I think that is, if you have half a basketball brain, I think that is one of the most ridiculous things that you can say. First, let me say this. What are LeVar's Ball's credentials to give us this information? Right. Now, is he thinks he's not the best coach for Lonzo? That's fine, right? You're a dad. You should act like a dad. But we don't sit here and interview dads across this Lee. Right. You had Anthony Davis's dad say, I don't think my son should go to Boston.

Right? He openly said that. And so it's like, yo, we don't focus on dads. And I think for Luke, I think it's been a very, very difficult situation in the sense that, you know, he started off with a young team, and he's been growing that young team. Brandon Ingram, in three years, he's been in this league. He doesn't have one player on his team that started with him three years ago, right? So that means that there's been an overhaul to this lineup every single year. And every year they've gotten better. Every year from Luke Walton's beginning, their win count had improved. Like, they didn't get eliminated from the playoffs last year until about six games to go.

Right? And even this with injuries and all this other stuff. Meshing, is there a person on this planet that looked at this roster and said, oh, this roster was going to mesh? And people keep talking about the LeBron James injury that happened on Christmas Day. But people forget that Rondo got hurt that same day. Yeah, yeah. That exact same day, Braun and Rondo both went out. So you lose those two veterans, right? And you lose those two guys that control your team.

And then it falls on to Lanzo. Then it falls on to these young players. And even in that stretch, there was a few guys, Lovar missed some games. Ingram missed some games and Coosman missed some games. So there was three of those guys missing. Richard, I could talk to you all day. It's the herd. Last night, a blown call changed a game.

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