The Herd with Colin Cowherd - Best of The Herd: 02/18/2019

Episode Date: February 18, 2019

Colin thought the NBA all-star game pointed out that the Durant/Westbrook divorce was the most lopsided in recent sports history.  He talks about where he was right and wrong over the weekend.  Plus, NBA Champion Matt Barnes explains why Anthony Davis is being so diplomatic; pretending he would play for any team in the league.  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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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 Sports Radio.com or stream us live every day on the IHeartRadio app by searching heard. This is the best of the herd with Colin Cowherd on Fox Sports Radio. I'm with Skip. Odell Beckham's a patriot. I can see it coming. This is the herd. Wherever you may be and however you may be listening live in Los Angeles, IHeart Radio, Fox Sports Radio, and FS1. Pact today, Matt Barnes, Albert Breer, Chris Broussard, NBA All-Star weekend. Joy Taylor is joining me. Looks like Joy, you had a great weekend. I was in the wind and rain. It looks like

you had a warm weekend. I had a very nice Valentine's Day. A little Mexico? Yes. Or Alto Mena, Mexico. Ah. You guys are in that stage of your relationship is just all fun. Changes? Yes. That's not the plan. I mean, they're still loving stuff. It's just a lot more variables. Great to have you and everybody. You know, it's funny about, you know, I've said before I'm divorced and remarried very happy. And sports divorces are interesting. Generally, when you have a big sports divorce, and this is the way it would be great if this always worked in life, both sides can reasonably claim they won. Remember Shaq and Kobe. Shaq and Kobe broke up. They won three championships. We thought it would be eight. They broke up. But in the end,

Shaq won a title. Kobe Bryant won two titles. It's pretty good, right? I mean, Shaq went on to have another three or four great years. He's had a remarkable post-NBA career. Kobe won a couple of championships. That was a very good divorce. You know, I'm watching Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook.

They had a divorce, too. Has there ever been a more lob-sided divorce than that one? Two and a half years after they broke up. Kevin Durant's now got two titles, two MVP finals, favored for a third. This weekend he was named the All-Star Game MVP. It's like he's playing a different game. If he has a great second half, he's getting into that territory that he's being argued now as the best current player in the NBA on perhaps the greatest team we've ever seen in the NBA.

I think it's probably second to MJ's Bulls. And then the last two and a half years, Westbrook did win an MVP. but has had two ugly first-round playoff exits, one where he was imploding with Utah fans. He had another surgery. His shot is completely broken. And as Durant yesterday was winning the MVP in the All-Star game joyfully, having fun, it's like he's playing a different game.

Westbrook was one for eight on threes. And it looked like he stole the MVP from Janus and gave it to Kevin Durant because Janus was winning. it. Westbrook came in, took a lot of shots, and killed the momentum for Janus. Am I crazy here? This is like as bad as a divorce gets in sports. I mean, think about it. Peyton Manning left the Colts. Everybody was freaking out. Yes, Peyton Manning won a Super Bowl. But the Colts have made the playoffs four times, including one AFC championship with Andrew Luck. And it looks like they got nine draft picks and $15 million.

Indianapolis and Andrew Luck are set for the next half decade. I mean, Brett Farve and the Packers. Brett Farve went to an NFC championship with Minnesota, where he arguably had his best season ever with the Vikings. The Packers went on to win a championship, so they were fine with Aaron Rogers. And Montana and the 49ers. Everybody thought that was going to be the ugliest divorce.

Montana got the Chiefs to the AFC Championship. A couple of really good years in KC. And Steve Young won another Super Bowl title for the 49ers. But when I watched this KD. Westbrook thing. Westbrook for about an hour, you thought, okay, maybe this will work out. It's getting worse by the week. Four years from now, four years from now, you're going to owe Westbrook $47 million.

Four years from now. He's a broken player now. And every time they play together, I sit to myself and I think, man, you enabled the wrong guy, okay, see? you enabled the wrong guy. Kevin Durant said in a published story when they broke up, OKC enabled Westbrook. Wouldn't coach him up,

wouldn't tell him he was difficult to play with. So whether or not OKC wants to blame itself, the way it landed for Durant is, you enabled the wrong guy. But you got Westbrook now, who was awful yesterday, had a plus minus of minus 9.

Difficult, broken, rigid, fights with the press, uncertainly with fans. And you watch him yesterday, he's a shell of himself. He's just not the same player. And we still got four big years on that contract. And Kevin Durant, in his prime, never been better. He's floating above the floor, is going to win another championship. This is going to be called the greatest basketball team ever. And then he's going to have multiple teams fighting over him.

Knicks, Celtics, Kyrie, Lakers, Warriors. Man, most of these sports divorces, actually, both teams win. You better hope in OKC, Westbrook continues to pass more than shoot, and they can get past the first round. Because yesterday, KD and Westbrook, in the same All-Star game, Kevin Durant is pulling away in that divorce. Adam Silver, let me shift gears, is the commissioner of the NBA. He stated, and I think this is true, quote,

nobody likes to see players demanding trades while under contract. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar said this weekend that Anthony Davis's team mishandled the trade request, and Kevin Garnett, Anthony Davis's trade was a bit unprofessional. Let me ask everybody this. Do you like honesty? I do. You know how somebody says, hey, do you want the good news or the bad news first? Joy, what do you say? Bad news? I'm the same way. I think most people are like, okay, give me the crap. Just tell me the bad stuff.

Well, because also I may decide what the good news is from it. So if you start with the good news, you may be twisting the narrative. So just tell me what it is. Okay. And I think I agree with Joy. And the reason we want that is, listen, We're almost everybody watching this show and listening takes the bad news first. And the reason is, okay, be honest, be up front. It can't be that bad. Let me solve the problem. That's what you're basically saying. Okay, let me solve the problem.

So Anthony Davis could have done it the way LeBron did. No warning whatsoever. Out of town, you get nothing for him. In Cleveland, they burn his jersey. Anthony Davis could have been done it the way Carmelo did. Carmelo's like, I'm out of here, and I'll give you a little warning. And you burn his jersey too. Or he could do like Co-I Leonard.

Literally, you're missing. What country's he in? What hospital? Where'd he go? And the Spurs wanted to burn his jersey. But clutch sports and Anthony Davis were hyper-aggressive. What they were is the opposite of passive-aggressive. and now everybody's hammering them.

So let me ask you, as a fan, as a consumer, as a GM, as an owner, don't you want your star to be brutally honest? Give me the bad news first. So therefore, you have a heads up and you have time to get draft picks and players. Because you burn LeBron's jersey. You burn Mello's jersey. So Anthony Davis told you. a year and a half out. This is not working for me. NFL people running our NBA team. You're not

committed. Don't like the GM coach. I'm out. And you want to burn his jersey. There is a reason everybody says, good news or bad news. We all say, I'll take the bad news first. Because you want the ability to get the time to make it the least bad it will be. and the Pelicans acted like children. Lakers offered them multiple picks and multiple players. The Indiana Pacers, by the way, had no emotion. When Paul George said, we're out of here, I'm out of here, I'm leaving. What do the Pacers do?

All right, an hour later, they were on the phone, Kevin Pritchard, they got Victorola Depot, they got Sabonis, they got a bunch of good players. Indiana took the emotion out of it. Indiana said, give me the bad news. Paul George said, I want out. Indiana went, damn. All right, let's make it work. The Pelican said, give me the good news, give me the bad news first.

And Anthony Davis said, I want out. And the Pelicans pouted. You don't get it, do you? Do the Pelicans not get this? There is never, aren't we all seeking honesty? Don't we all want bad news up front? So we have time to engineer a good trade. good therapy, good pieces to reassemble what we had.

It's amazing to me. I will always take a superstar coming up to me and saying, this is a bad organization. I want out. What terrifies me is I literally, like Pat Riley said in Miami, he said that last couple months with LeBron, nobody was communicating. You're having to guess what the superstar's thinking. Is he staying?

Is he going? Can I move him? Can I depend? Can I commit? Well, what's worse than the silent treatment? Nothing in the world is worse. When my wife and I used to argue, I just eventually gave up. But when we used to have real fights, I used to always say, come on, scream at me, let's go.

Let's go. Tell me what the worst is when she's simmering and there's steam coming out and she's not talking to me. So everybody out here is Kevin Garnett, the commissioner, Kareem, Abdul Jabbar. Everybody's upset with Kevin with Anthony Davis. And my takeaway as always, there is a reason.

What do you want? The good news is the bad news. We all say, give me the bad news. So you can, okay, let me reassemble this puppy as much as I possibly can because we're broken here.

I just don't get it. What do you want these athletes and these superstars to do? By the way, Anthony Davis, this weekend, talked about where he's going. wink wink nudge nudge all 29 other teams are on my list everyone's on the list I don't have a preferred destination um like I said I just want to win you know they actually big market small market I don't care you know I want to win you know and

obviously whatever team you know I get traded to you know play for that year or whatever if I get tried I'm not sure but um just make the best up there and then you know we're free age you come see what happens you know I can't tell the future but all 29 teams are on the So just to follow real quick, so people who had reported, it's the Lakers and then it's the Nix. I never gave a destination. Well, we all know it's not 29 teams. Because if you want to go to somebody that can win, it bails it, knocks it down to about seven, eight teams, ten maybe. But there you go.

Don't blame the star because you have a lousy organization and he's brutally aggressively up front and honest. He gave you bad news. Your job to be unemotional and fix it. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern 9 a.m. Pacific on Fox Sports Radio FS1 and the IHeart Radio app. 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 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. 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 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. 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 hard way and listen now. Life throws hurdles big and small. The question is, how do you conquer them?

On hurdle with Emily Abadi, we sit down with the most inspiring women in sports and wellness, professional athletes, coaches, and Olympic champions to talk about the challenges that shaped them and the mindset that keeps them going. From the WNBA standout, Kate Martin, and rising hockey star Lela Edwards. If a boy can do it, I don't see why a girl can't. Like, I've never understood that. Like, it didn't make sense in my brain. It's hard to be in spaces that no one looks like you,

but don't ever feel like you don't feel like you don't feel on. Don't let that be the reason you don't do it. An Olympic champs Gabby Thomas and Katie Ladeke. The ability to show a gold medal to someone and have their face light up and smile, that means the world to me. And that's what motivates me to win more gold medals. At our level, at this scale, like being able to fail in front of the entire world. Like, I can do anything.

I can do anything. Because resilience isn't just about winning. It's about showing up, even when it's hard. Listen to Hurtle with Emily Abadi on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Presented by Capital One, founding partner of IHeart Women's Sports. Jacob Kingston grew up in an isolated polygamous sect. We were God's chosen kingdom on earth. He felt destined for greatness.

So when a swaggering Armenian businessman catapults Jacob into an extraordinary, ordinary world, he doesn't look back. Ferraris and Lamborghinis, private jets, meeting the president of Turkey. I'm Michelle McPhee, and this is one of the most shocking criminal conspiracies I've ever come across. When Jacob met Levant this went to a billion dollar fraud. But with two kings from entirely different worlds, just how long can their empire survive?

The largest tax investigation in American history. You need to tell me what you know. Is somebody coming after me? Jacob told Levan, you're ruining my life. Listen to Kingdom of Fraud on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Yesterday, you know, Anthony Davis came out, and there's always two stories. There's the story you're being sold, and then there's the real story. And Anthony Davis came out, I'd just let you listen to that bite.

It's, hey, all 29 teams. I'm out there, I'm open for business, and that's a bunch of nonsense. Anthony Davis is represented by clutch sports. LeBron is represented by clutch sports. Clutch sports exists, though Rich Paul is the head of it, it exists because of LeBron. If LeBron wasn't one of the greatest basketball players, maybe the best of all time, this whole story would not be here, right? Okay.

So LeBron's been cool, brings along friends along for the ride. they're more than competent, but it has been created because of the empire of LeBron. I just want you to think about this. So clutch sports was very hyper-aggressive, maybe too much, but I didn't have a problem with it. They came out and they said, we won out, and the NBA pushed back and Stars pushed back, and everybody pushes back, and it was kind of, you know, it was kind of uncomfortable. I didn't have a problem with it. A lot of people did.

I'd rather be aggressive than passive-aggressive. But now, now they're going the other way. Well, you know, it will play for anybody because they got their hands. hand slapped. They were a little aggressive. Clutch sports, connected to LeBron, like it or not, was too aggressive. And people clapped back and said, no, no, no, no, no, you're not running the league. And they felt it. And clutch sports was calling everybody around the league, all the media and saying, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, let's slow this, this thing down. We got in a little trouble. Commissioner didn't like it. League didn't like it. Ticked off the Pelicans.

Broadcasters didn't like it. Charles Barkley said it was collusion. It was ugly, right? So now they're overcompensating. But one of the reasons I think Anthony Davis is probably 90% of Laker is really simple. LeBron James has been the face of this league. Warriors are the best team. LeBron's been the face of this league for now 10 to 12 years. Whether you think he's this or think he's that, Michael Jordan was the face of the league for about 10 years. There were a bunch of other good players around.

Charles Barkley was a good player. Akeem was a good player. A lot of good teams around. Okay, but Michael was kind of the face of the league for about 10 years. LeBron's been the face of the league. And during that, Kobe was great. You know, we've had Paul Pierce. We've had good teams, big three.

LeBron's been the face of the league. And for 15 years, this has been a real big boy business. LeBron's going to end up owning one of these teams. That's Big Boy money. That's Michael Jordan, LeBron, Magic. Not many guys have done that, right? Well, what happens if Clutch Sports and Anthony Davis don't go to the Lakers.

It is a really, really frightening tipping point for LeBron's career. He'll be in year 17, had an injury on a week to slightly below average team. Luke Walton will probably be getting fired. And the narrative that nobody wants to play with LeBron will be heightened. there's a reason multiple stories have said there is tension in the Laker building because LeBron knows what I just said is absolutely true. LeBron's on the back nine of his career,

but like Tom Brady, he wants to extend it. Kobe wanted to extend it. Shaq wanted to extend it. Stars want to extend it. You know, car racing, NASCAR, Daytona 500, that's one of the only sports. Guys have 15 years of prime left and they're like, I'm out.

generally you're trying to extend the championship window and just extend the big money window and the U-Matter window. If Anthony Davis doesn't go to LeBron, there's other guys out there. But that is overwhelmingly because Anthony Davis and his connection to clutch sports, that is overwhelmingly the best option. Perhaps the best fit. I'm not sure of that. But there's a reason all these reports are out there.

there. There's tension in that building. Everybody can feel it. Because if we get to the end of this season and the Lakers are a first and out playoff team or not a playoff team, and Anthony Davis does not come to Los Angeles and LeBron, it is a tipping point moment in his career. The guy who's run the league is no longer the most important guy in the league. That would be a massive moment for this sport. Be sure to catch live editions of the Hurd. weekdays in noon Eastern 9 a.m. Pacific. Well, Matt Barnes played for a decade and a half, won a title with the Warriors. You know him as a Laker and a warrior and a clipper.

Let's bring on Matt Barnes, NBA champ. Great to have him. Stylish as always on a Monday. Matt Barnes. Hey, hey, hey. You know, I was saying this earlier is that when Shaq and Kobe split, Matt, Shaq won a title. Lakers kind of had to eat it for about a year.

But then Kobe won a couple titles. and I felt like both of them won. Like in the end, Shaq's had a great career. Shaq got another ring with D. Wade. And then Kobe had a great ending. It worked out well for everybody. The Russell Westbrook-Dorant divorce, I mean, I think Kevin, when I watch him yesterday,

I think he's got seven years left of great player. Russell looks like a broken shooter. It looks like that post-surgery, something's upstairs. You can't go from 82% free throws to 64 and tell me some of it's not mental. what do you make of the Durant Westbro? I mean, OKC at one point. OKC will argue this, Matt.

We didn't choose Westbrook. But organizations enable certain things, so they kind of do choose. The Lakers kind of chose Kobe over Shack in their own way. What do you make a Durant and OKC in Westbrook and how it's landed? It's a tough situation. You know, at the time, they were both two of the probably top five players in the game at the time. You know, I know knowing both of them, I'm sure Russell is a more,

outgoing personality. So maybe they let some things slide that, you know, should have been addressed. But what I see from KD now is he's just happy. He's having fun. He's playing. He's probably the most efficient player, one of the most efficient players ever to play the game.

I think it's safe to say he's the best player in the game right now. Today, the best player. It doesn't make him better than LeBron overall. Just, you know, age is catching up with LeBron. Katie is younger. He's the best player in the game right now. But I think what I like at OKC and West right now he's finally okay with being robin.

You know what I mean? And I think that's going to be huge for not only him, but the franchise, especially Paul George. Paul George is playing out of his mind right now. Out of his mind. And should be, obviously, in the MVP consideration. But Restbrook is still special. You know, I think a lot of it is mental right now.

And, you know, when you have the world telling you what you can and can't do, I like what he said. He has that gene. That's an important gene to have. That made me laugh. But I think Russell bounced back next year. But, I mean, it's no fault to OKC here. whatever, just Katie is that good.

And, you know, if they made a choice between the two and he was the one that chose, I think they're looking back like, okay, well, maybe we would have did it this way. But it's hard to say in hindsight, 50-50. You know, Matt, you said something, and I was talking to a friend about this the other day. And you said right now Kevin Durant's the better player. And I've always said, there'll be a time when Katie's better on the floor than LeBron, but not greater than LeBron in total. It's a whole package.

Yeah, when you judge in history and where they rank. KD is a better player as we stand now. And I'll throw this at you. And I notice this with LeBron, that LeBron understands his body. You guys all know your bodies. LeBron doesn't have the continuous juice. He takes more time off. It's more sporadic.

He picks his spot, especially on the defensive end. When you watch the two, where do you see LeBron's age? I just think from a standpoint of since he's been in the league in his Cleveland years, he's always carried the team. He's always carried the franchise. So, I mean, that's going to catch up to you, not only mentioning, you know, making the playoffs every year, playing the Olympics, playing on All-Star games, pick-up games in the summer. That's just a lot of wear and tear. And he came right out of high school. You know what, a year or two in college? You're not playing as many games. You get to save your legs. And then he's always had an amazing sidekick. Now he's got two amazing sidekicks, three when, you know,

Bougie gets healthy. So KD has been able to preserve himself. That's why you see him in the finals. He's at his absolute best, where everyone else might be tired. KD is full of juice because he's only doing what he needs to do. You know, people talk about James Harden MVP, Paul George MVP, they have to be amazing every single night for those guys to win. Even though Katie is pretty amazing every single night, if he has an off night, the Warriors can still win a game. So that's where Katie is able to save his legs.

So LeBron just has always had to do so much. And with the Laker team this year is no different. You know, I feel this Laker team in the East would be top three. You do? I think so. You know, maybe top four, excuse me, not to disrespect the top. you know Toronto, Boston, Philly, Milwaukee.

So maybe, you know, top five, excuse me. Yeah. But you know what I mean? But he's always been able to. He's always had to carry the franchise, and this year is no difference. So I just think it's finally catching up to him as much money as he spends and as much times he takes off.

There's no denying that he just has a lot of miles on his body. You know, Anthony Davis, I didn't buy this. Anthony Davis said 29 teams. I'm open to the world. And my takeaway is, listen. You and Rich Paul in clutch sports came out hyper-aggressive, and the league didn't like it, and you got your hand slapped. Right.

And now you're trying to play nice. Backdraft, yeah. Is that what we're? He's just trying to say what's right, so hopefully the story dies down a little bit. Like you said, I saw what you said earlier. I respect the fact that he came out and said what he said. So right. Because I don't, Pelicans, don't build your team around me anymore because I don't want to be here.

So you have to respect that. Now, whether, you know, Rich Paul went above and beyond and wanted a lot of attention in the situation and came out. and maybe they approached it the wrong way, excuse me, but I got to respect AD for being honest. You know what I mean? Like, I don't want to be here. You know, and I think when that happened,

instead of putting their business hats on, like, let's make this deal, the Pelicans got in their feelings. And the GM was fired over that. You know, I'm glad that Lakers didn't make that trade because I thought they were giving up too much. So did I. You know, you're giving up way too much. You're never going to get an AD back.

AD is a generational player, but you had five solid players with draft picks and you turn your nose up to it. Like, you're not in a position to turn your nose up to a city. situation like that. You know what I mean? So it didn't work out. The GM got fired. But to me, they've been in their feelings. And now you're going to play him 20 minutes, 25 minutes. Don't play him in the four. If you don't want him to get hurt, don't play him. But if you're going to play him, let him play him. If you ran the pelicans, you could make an argument. Just sit Anthony for the year.

I'm not, and I'm not mad at that. But if you're going to decide to play him, play him, you're putting Alvin Gentry in a messed up spot. You know, I know, I know, good coach. And he's probably going to, you know, he's probably on the hot seat. He probably won't be back next year. And it's unfortunate because to me, as the president of the team or whoever's running, calling the shots, if you want to save your piece, which is AD, and don't want them to get, don't play them at all, but don't play them 15 minutes. Don't play them 25 minutes. Either play them or don't play them. So, but I think, you know, that situation is going to have to be dealt with this summer because it's an uncomfortable work environment. And I'm sure players are getting frustrated, coaches are getting

frustrated. Ad is probably frustrated. So, you know, at the end of the day, they're going to have to make a move this summer on that situation. Finally, something I mentioned. I said, if you were a supermodel and then after 20 years of doing that, you've been reduced, even though you're beautiful, you've been reduced to go into the local mall at a fashion show, it doesn't feel the same. When you're LeBron and you're the centerpiece of the league, and you know for the next 30 games, this is not a championship team. Right. I mean, it's not close. Is it hard to go to work? I don't think it's hard to go to work. I think because he loves the game, but I think it's an understanding. And I think everyone's making a big deal with the Lakers make the playoffs. The Lakers

are, they care about championships, not making the playoffs. You know what I mean? So if they make the playoffs this year, it'll probably be a short exit. You know, they'll probably end up playing Golden State. I think they know that they're really banking on this summer. And one thing I like to say, even if they don't get AD, it won't be a failed summer because I still feel they're going to get somebody, maybe a player or two. Ideally would be AD and, you know, I know AD wants to be there and LeBron wants them there. But if it's not AD, I think it'll be summer. somebody. But I think they're looking for, you know, take a look at this next year and the year after and judge us. But unfortunately, we live in a society where you're judged every single

day and you're L.A. and you're the Lakers. You're going to be judged. And like Joy said earlier, it's going to be a hot summer if they don't make the playoffs and there's going to be a lot of criticism on LeBron. But I think he knew coming here. There was a chance of that and he has to be ready for it if it doesn't happen. Yeah. Great seeing you, man. Love having you. Are you like a regular now? Can we depend on you? I think so. Yeah. I like that. I need to start getting my suits Taylor. All my suits that I wore in games don't fit no more. I think I'm like 15 pounds over my playing weight, so I need to get some more suits so I can come back more.

This place is good with a clothes thing. They'll take care of you here. Let's do it. Good seeing you, man. Thank you. 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.

Albert Brewer is writing an article, and he's writing about Kyler Murray. He is the quarterback for Oklahoma that's going to enter the draft. Now, I've said before, I think he's a first round talent in 2019. You know, ideally, I'd rather have a six, three and a half, 220-bound guy who runs a little less. A big component to Kyler Murray's game is running. It's why I'm very cautious about Mitch Trubisky. I'm very cautious about Lamar Jackson. Now, Russell Wilson can do it. I've never seen anybody as gifted at Russell Wilson. And Steve Young did it. So you can't have

running as an essential part of your game. But I think athletes, are bigger and stronger than ever in the NFL, I'd rather you not run a ton. You know, a couple times you take off, I'd rather you run to throw, run to get space. But three different people, scouts, GMs talk to Albert Breer and hear the quotes about Kyler Murray and why he is so valuable to all of us. First, AFC executive said, kids way better than Lamar Jackson, better arm, more accurate, better anticipation, better processor, better athlete. I think he's better across the board than Lamar.

Let me just say this. I think he is a better thrower than Lamar. That to me is not disputable. So I agree with that executive. Will he be as transformative as Lamar was? I don't know. But is he a better prospect. I think he is as a thrower.

I do worry about his size. The second AFC college scouting director said, listen, he's really good. He throws the ball well. There's no throws he can't make. I don't think him being small is a big factor. Let me address that. Small is a factor, but I had Lincoln Riley on the radio Friday talking about his size,

and here's what his college coach said. Barry Sanders, speed, elite quickness, and as a feel for not taking any smart about it as well. Then Albert Breyer got a third opinion from another AFC executive. And that executive said basically a little caution to the wind saying, great offensive line hasn't been hit a ton. The passing skills are there. But he didn't get hit much in college.

I agree with that as well. That's what worries me. But here's the thing. And we do this a lot, not just in sports, but in life. We're always looking for the next blank. you also have to look for the new blank. Uber is not the next taxi. It's a new way to get around town.

We had an issue in the NFL for years that 50% of the first round quarterbacks were busts because they all had to fit this one prototype, six, three and a half, 225, stay in the pocket. but the more variables that work, the more types of quarterbacks that work, we should root for Kyler Murray because it'll mean fewer crappy quarterbacks and fewer dead teams. Cincinnati with Andy Dalton kind of feels dead.

Jacksonville, Blake Bortles, kind of feels dead. If Kyler Murray works, I mean, let's be honest, he looks like a punt returner. When I look at him, I think he'd be a great punt. returner. If guys that play a little bit like a punt returner with an arm work, that is a huge win for all of us if you love football. It's a huge win for GMs, fewer bus, coaches, fewer bus, fans, better product. So I find myself, he may not be my ideal quarterback, but God, I'm rooting for him to win. God, I'm rooting for him to be interesting. There's got to be more than one prototype that works in this league.

Listen, Trubisky wouldn't be my guy. But Mitch Trubisky got to the playoffs. And Lamar Jackson wouldn't be my guy. But Lamar Jackson got to the playoffs. You know who didn't? Joe Flacco, sit in the pocket six, three and a half guy that throws darts. So Kyler Murray, like, even if you wouldn't draft him, root for him. You know, I was saying this, driving to work this morning, thinking this,

the great thing about Whole Foods, you don't have to like organic. Sometimes I think it's overrated. Sometimes I like it. I think it's a bit too expensive. But it's important that Whole Foods worked because it added another type of grocery store. And all I'm looking for is options. That's all I'm looking for. If I was a general manager in the NFL, I'm just looking for options.

What if we only had one type of receiver? He runs fast and straight down the field. We don't. Sometimes you have possession guys. slot guys, small guys, OBJ, finesse guys, power guys. There's really the only position that you would think of, or positions is the offensive line. Like in general, you've got to have a big, large, strong offensive line. It's not really interchangeable.

But even on the defensive line, they don't necessarily have to be the same. Aaron Donald's six feet tall. That's all he is. He's six feet tall. He's not towering. Some guys are, like, to your point, we should all be rooting for Kyler Murray because if I, for the next 50 years, if I can also use 5-8 quarterbacks who look like punt returners, imagine the talent pool you've just expanded into. Exactly.

The talent pool explodes. That's all I want. Steph Curry was a mold breaker. Steph Curry, Russell Wilson was a mold breaker. Tiger Woods. Golfers weren't ripped. Now it's like Tiger competes against himself. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd

weekdays at noon Eastern 9 a.m. Pacific. on Fox Sports Radio, FS1, and the IHeart Radio app. Well, we do it every Monday at this time. I make mistakes. I whiff. I have strong opinions. Where Colin was right. Where Colin was wrong.

Let's not waste any time. Where Colin was right? Luke Walton shouldn't be fired. And Jeannie Bus stepped up and rightly said Luke Walton's finishing the season as a Laker coach. Listen, LeBron arrives and there's always tension with the coach. He got to the finals with David Blatt. He got to the finals with Ty Lou, and he got to the finals with Mike Brown.

I think Luke Walton is maybe not as good as Ty Lou, but he's certainly in that class of coach. And I think Jeannie Bus is saying, okay, all you alpha males, okay, all you egos. I'm with Jeannie on this one. LeBron is not easy to coach. By the way, Kobe maybe wasn't, and MJ wasn't, and Magic ran out Paul Westhead. I'm not saying superstars are easy to coach. I'm not being tough on LeBron here. but Luke Walton and I totally defend him here

you really want to blow him out and bring in with all these young players another coach and who's on the market right now that's significantly better Jason Kidd are you sure if Jason Kee? Why is he on the market if he's so great? Let me ask you that didn't he? If he's so great why is he potentially out there Luke Walton should be the Laker coach for the rest of the year Jeannie Buss made the right decision where Colin was wrong Outside of the baseball all-star game, I think these all-star games are mostly totally unwatchable,

but I thought yesterday was pretty good. There was actual pride. I know the score feels like nobody played defense, but late in the game, people play defense. I thought the dunk contest Saturday night was the best dunk contest in a long, long time. I thought the skills challenge was kind of oddly entertaining. And I also think the NBA with the stars picking the teams is really funny and very transparent. I thought the All-Star weekend was a lot of joy, a lot of laughs. Again, I thought the dunk contest, that's about as good a dunk contest as we have seen in a long time.

And as a television product, I thought it was pretty good. Where Colin was right? Listen, I've been saying it this year. Russell Westbrook's a Hall of Famer, but is he an All-Star right now? Because I watched that game yesterday. He's like the least effective player. He had a minus 19 plus minus. He was one for eight on threes.

I mean, he honestly, he was like throwing garlic into an apple pie. Some ingredient. He was the ingredient that just did not work. And again, he's a Hall of Famer. I'm not denying that. And he was an MVP, and I'm not denying that. But is he an All-Star right now? Is he?

Are you absolutely sure? Because I see a bunch of great players out there. And I thought yesterday he kind of played into what I think he is now. A lot of energy. not always it's sometimes ill-placed activity instead of smart activity and I thought yesterday Yannis was on his way to win the MVP

and Westbrook came in and sort of blew it for him where Colin was wrong You know I thought the Celtics rebuild if you made a book called Rebuilding for Dummies you do it the way the Celtics did it get the coach draft the right guys I gotta be honest with you right now they're fourth in the east

Jason Tatum came out this weekend and guaranteed they're going to win it all. And then Jason Tatum a week ago came out and there were rumors he said, I wouldn't mind playing for the Pelicans. And Kyrie Irving's hurt again. And, you know, Brad Stevens, the head coach, do we know that he works with stars? Now, Gordon Hayward did play better last four or five games before the All-Star break. But this situation in Boston does not feel as rock solid as it did. I predicted before the year, I said, this team's going to be a lot.

going to win the championship. They're going to upset the Warriors in seven games. Right now, I think Toronto's better. I think Philadelphia, I agree with joy. I think they have more high-end players if they can get their chemistry right. And Boston isn't going forward, isn't the lock I thought they would be. Where Colin was right? Bryce Harper and Manny Machado were great baseball players. But they're unsigned right now. And they will sign, and they'll make a lot of money. But finally, baseball general managers have caught on to an obvious truth.

None of these 10-year contracts work. Miguel Cabrera signed for eight. They'd get out of that thing yesterday. Robinson Canoe, Albert Pooleholes, Joey Votto. Now, these guys will get money and they'll get paid, but GMs, now 90% of the teams have no interest signing star players. These are great players. Mani Machado's giving you 37 rips. He's giving you 110 RBI, and he plays every game. Doesn't play hard every moment, but he, and Bryce Harper's an all-time first ballot Hall of Fame power hitter. Finally, baseball GMs, I don't buy into this collusion.

It's just called intelligence. But if something doesn't work, then you stop doing the something and 10-year contracts in what industry would, I don't care if. if it was Janus. I wouldn't sign Janus to a 10-year-contract because what if he rips his knee up, dunking in your four of it? You're trapped for six years. Where Colin was wrong.

Golfer Matt Coocher folded like a cheap tent. Friday I supported him. I did a radio show only, and I said, listen, he's a little cheap. He won a tournament and only gave his caddy $5,000, which is a very small percentage, but he offered him 15, and frankly, it wasn't a full-time caddy.

It was a part-time caddy. He was a rent-a-caddy. Not somebody he leaned on, like Phil Mickelson leaned on bones or Jordan Speeth leans on his caddy. Now, I would have paid more than an extra $1,000 for winning a tournament, and I probably would have given him $25,000 to $50,000. But I thought the outrage on social media was generally what social media is, just over the top.

But Coocher felt the heat. Literally, Saturday morning, got up and said, I'm a horrible person. I cringed, and I'm sorry, and I'm writing the dude to check, which is the nice thing to do. But I was surprised. I thought Matt Coocher had an opinion, not a popular one. Wouldn't be what I would do.

But he's known as a pretty tough, you know, strong opinion dude, and he folded Saturday morning a couple of days of Twitter, and Matt Coocher was out. Where Colin was right? So I watched the American Alliance of Football again yesterday, A-AF, and I've got to be honest. on television is a pretty good product. I got legitimate announcers.

I got coaches, Mike Riley, Steve Spurrier yesterday, guys I've heard of. I think the quarterback plays decent. You know, it's better than college. It's better than Canadian football. I love that backwards. Yes. Lob pass. And by the way, the game I watched, there was a nice crowd in San Antonio.

There's something there. You can't have both teams need different colored jerseys. Yeah, that was odd. That's got a fix. But I'll tell you something. I'll say with this, I think spring football is going to work, and I am more convinced every time I watch this league, I'm absolutely convinced spring football is going to work. Now, the XFL is going to be introduced a year from now,

so you'll have two concurrent leagues running, and I'm not sure if they'll both make it, but either they're both going to make it or they're going to join and one's going to make it, but the quality on television, it's not half bad. I think the XFL is going to have a different approach. They're going to be more theatrical. A little bit. I mean, if there's, they're going to keep any of their traditional original XFL style. Where Colin was right. I always told you I love Bradley Beal.

I think Bradley Beal is the most underrated player in the NBA. And Bradley Beal, thank you. Admitted. All he did this weekend, recruit guys. For the record, his teammate John Wall, who I'm not a fan of, refuses to recruit. It's an ego thing. Bradley Beal's like, you kidding me?

It's like a convention here. It's all I'm doing recruiting guys. folks the tampering charges against players are unfair unjust and ridiculous listen man i was on the phone the minute i landed at fox sports one calling anybody who would listen that's what everybody's doing in the country you're trying i don't care if it's wall street or main street and you're going to tell me you're going to have an all-star weekend guys are partying together playing together hanging out together and they can't have conversations about hey dude you want come in D.C. You want to come to San Francisco. You want to come to Phoenix. You want to come to

Charlotte. I love that Bradley Beale did this. It confirms what I've always thought about Bradley Beal. He is a complete get-it guy. Bradley, you keep recruiting. Don't listen to the tampering. I don't know how many people D.C. can afford with Wall's contract and your contract. I don't know how many stars you can get there. And I'm not sure if it'll ever happen. But it made me love Bradley Beal even more. This tampering stuff is ridiculous. If you want to get on the owners and GMs, I get it. But getting on players for it, give me a break. Unfair.

I think it's just an anti-Lebron thing, to be honest with you. I think, you know, you NBA commissioners and you NBA owners, you gasp up all the players. You make them stars. And then you're shocked. Everybody wants to talk and hang out with stars. Well, that's the league. Courts guys won't play with James Hardin. Courts guys won't play with Anthony Davis.

I mean, you market the stars. Come watch the stars, be with the stars. Yeah, guys, even players want to hang out with the stars. It's not tampering, it's reality. Last night, a blown call changed a game. This morning, the internet lost its mind. And nobody's telling you exactly what happened. That's where Sports Slice comes in.

I'm Timbo. And every episode, we're cutting through the noise, breaking down the biggest moments in sports and giving you the real story behind the headline. And we're going straight to the source, the athletes themselves. Their locker room stories, their reactions in the moment and the stuff nobody gets to hear.

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. 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. Hey, what's good, y'all? You're listening to Learn the Hard Way with your favorite therapist and host Kear Games. This space is about black men's experiences, having honest conversations that it's really not safe to have anywhere, but you're having them with a licensed professional who knows what he's

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