The Herd with Colin Cowherd - Best of The Herd: 03/29/2019

Episode Date: March 29, 2019

Doug Gottlieb fills in for Colin and thinks Cowherd is completely insane thinking Zion is a top 20 NBA player.  Doug doesn't even think he's top 50. He talks with NBA Champion Matt Barnes about the Lakers needing to be quiet for a change.   Plus, why the NCAA tournament illustrated a problem Thursday night the NFL is about to have.  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 Herd. This is the Best of the Herd with college. Colin Cowher on Fox Sports Radio. What up? Welcome in. This is The Herd, wherever you may be, and however you may be making it as part of your day.

I'm Doug Gottlie filling in for Colin Cowherd. Thank you so much. Man, we got a jam-pack show for you. Coming up in 15 minutes, you know the movie in love and basketball? Why love and basketball, love and sports are very much aligned. Little things. The chemistry. We'll get to that upcoming.

I want to start with the Zion hype train. And look, I've been a conductor on this thing. I just have. I love to watch Zion Williamson play. And when the Duke Blue Devils take the floor tonight, I just like everybody else will be watching. Tonight is a, look, it's big boy basketball. You got the Blue Bloods.

Duke, Carolina, Kentucky. Michigan State, right? Like four programs synonymous with college excellence, synonymous with great coaching and great players, and you have likable stories across the board. Carolina and their style, PJ Washington, returning, we think, for the Kentucky Wildcats and all that Kentucky has to offer

with John Calipari, Duke with Zion and Coach Kay and Michigan State, who has a little bit of, little engine that could considering the injuries and the two departures to the NBA, which has seemingly made Michigan State a better team. But I was listening to Colin Schell earlier this week, and if he took calls, I would have been the first caller. If he looked at his phone, which he sometimes does during a break, I would have texted him. Instead, I was driving on the 405, and I'm like, what are you doing? What are you talking about? Because what Colin did was he took a

tweet from Paul Pierce, and then he doubled down on it. Paul Pierce said, and this is from his Twitter account, hot take for all of you. Zion Williamson is already a top 50 current basketball player in the world. Now, look, I can sit here and debate back and forth with Paul Pierce, who is a contemporary. He and I were actually roommates way back one at the ABCD camp, and he said, I'm going to be the best player in high school basketball, and he probably was in 1995. That's a class that had Kevin Garnett was probably the best player. Stefan Marbury and you go up Vince Carter.

Paul was right there. This was in fact a hot take. Because in order to be a top 50 basketball player in the world of 18 years old, that would make him better than the top two players on every team. And keep in mind that some teams have more than top two players, right? Like, name me a Golden State Warrior starter who Zion Williamson is better than today. and what we're doing is we're conflating an argument. Would you trade an All-Star to get Zion Williamson?

Maybe and maybe yes. Yes. Look, I see it. He's the next version of Draymond Green, a guy who can guard any position and can kind of play any position. He can actually shoot the basketball a little bit, whereas Drayman's shot has fallen off. His body has kind of fallen apart,

whereas with exception of twisting a knee because his shoe blew up, there's been no issues with Zion Williamson's body. But Colin said he's a top 20 player right now. And I want you to take a breath because you're going to have to stop and tell me who he's better than. You know, is he better than LeBron or James Hardin or Paul George or Kauai or Joel Embed or Steph or Janice or Kevin Durant or Damian Lillard or Devin Booker or Kembo or Jimmy Butler or Ben Simmons or Clay Thompson or Cobb. No, no. Do you know how you lose games in the NBA when you're trying to tank? You play your younger players. The same argument we make against people who sit at seats like this on TV channels and radio networks like this and say Duke could compete with NBA teams like the Cleveland Cavaliers

is the exact same argument I'll make about Zion. Look, there's a legit conversation to be had that NBA people are trying to figure out. Is John Moran actually a better prospect than Zion Williamson? Zion Williamson is a happening. He makes basketball fun. He makes you think the impossible might be possible. But I hate to be the guy that throws cold water on this thing. But if you watched yesterday, you realize that Purdue lost four starters and is playing in the elite eight. Texas Tech lost four starters.

and is playing in the lead eight. Hell, even Michigan lost Mo Wagner, their one pro from last year, and Muhammad Ali Abdul Rahman, and they're just as good in terms of wins and losses as they were last year. Michigan State's going to play tonight.

They lost their two lottery picks and don't have a lottery pick on their team, and they won the Big Ten and won the Big Ten tournament. Why is that? Well, the truth is that college basketball is trending the way of college baseball. Look, if you're anything or any good,

you're at least think you're a one and done. Think about how many guys have left early. And so the attrition of guys leaving early has allowed programs like the Nevadas of the world to compete or even Gonzaga where you have late blooms like a Brandon Clark. The idea is this. You have to understand

who Zion is competing against. He does look like a man against boys because he's playing against boys. When you're a boy playing against men, you look like a boy. If you've seen him in person, you know that upper body, he looks like a brick, you know what house.

But his lower body is still thick. He hasn't yet leaned out. He hasn't yet lost all that body fat. He's just now beginning to shoot the basketball, kind of a set shot from college three point range. Hey, in the NBA, here's the saying, you don't get longer, you don't get faster. You, everybody else does. The shots are deeper.

Yes, the floor opens up and you can score more, but you can also get exposed more. Look, I'm not sitting here going to tell you Zion Williamson stinks or that eventually he doesn't project to be a likely all-star. I love him. But at 18 years old, with 20 games under his belt, playing for the Duke Blue Devils, as an undersized power forward who continues to improve and impress, let's catch our breath. In order for him to be a top 20 player in the NBA, he has to be better than two-thirds of the league's best players on their team.

And that's just look at DeAngelo Russell, who is the number two pick, who absolutely dominated college basketball. He comes out, and it's not until year four where he's an all-star. that doesn't mean that Zion won't be better than DeAngelo Russell, but right now, if you're going to play a game tomorrow, no one on earth in the NBA who loves basketball and loves Zion Williamson would take Zion ahead of DeAngelo Russell. No one, not a single soul, not a human being. I mean, you wouldn't take him ahead of Jason Tatum, would you? Of course not. Jason

Tim's got a couple years in the league now. Plus the year under his belt at Duke. You wouldn't take him ahead of Campbell Walker, would you? Look, I'm already three. deep on the Boston Celtics roster. And I haven't gotten to Al Horford. Al Horford, well, he moves, he's slow. Yeah, but you know what? If I want to win a basketball game tonight, not look good, not dunk good, I take Al Horford. Six days a week, twice on Sunday. Let's not conflate the argument about what he could project to be and why some people may move mountains in order to get him with the conversation of what he is today, have reasonable expectations. the reason you play young players in order to tank is because they're just not as good as the older players.

They haven't yet hit their basketball prime. Let's stop making insane arguments. Insane arguments like, he's a top 20 player in the world. No, he's not. He's probably not a top 50 player in the world. Is he a top 50 prospect? Would you rather have him than 30 other guys in the NBA? Maybe.

Sure. I'll have that conversation. But this is like the conversation of would you trade LeBron James? You can't because he's not moving. It's not happening. Stop having conversations over things that aren't possible and aren't comparable.

He looks like a man against boys because he's playing against boys. Anyone who pays any attention will tell you that college basketball, as much as I love it, I've covered it for 16 years, I played it for five. I've been around it my entire life.

I'm going to take my son to the final four. This is like my 13th or 14th final four that I've been to. Actually, maybe more. I got to redo my math. I can quote chapter and verse in all of them. And the reason he looks like a man playing against boys is because he's playing against boys. And a boy playing against the man looks like that.

So catch your breath. Understand that what a guy projects to be is not what a guy is now. enjoy this ride, whether it ends tonight against Virginia Tech, who does have grownups, who does have more manlike bodies, or if it ends in a national championship crowd in Minnesota, where Duke has won two national titles. However, it ends, just enjoy it. Know that he's probably going to be the first.

He might be the second round pick, and people are having a discussion about, hey, boy, I kind of like Jha, and Jah Morant is a dominant ball handling point guard, which you look around the NBA and from the rookies, you know, like Trey Young, or, you know, maybe even Luko is not really a point guard, but like a point power forward, guys that have the ball in their hands more. And then you go to a James Hardin and you go to a Steph Curry and you go to a Damian Lillard or you go to a Russell Westbrook. Those guys have the ball in their hands so much. They make so many more plays. They have a better value.

This is like a quarterback, like a Kyler Murray versus a Nick Bosa, right? That's essentially what this argument is. John Morant is a Kyler Murray type. Quarterbacks have way more value than a defensive end, no matter how highly rated a defensive end is. And I think having a small ball power forward center, even if he's only 6 foot 5 and 1 half, 6 foot 6, If he can guard all five positions,

then he can make a shot, he can pass. He has a high basketball IQ and ridiculous pair of legs. He has value. That's an actual conversation taking place. But nobody who's reasonable is having a conversation whether or not he's a top 20 player in the world because we know it's men and he's playing against boys. 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 SportsSlice comes in. I'm Timbo.

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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 Sliced 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. Join me, Kear Gaines, as we have real conversations about healing, growth, fatherhood, pressure, and purpose on my new podcast, Learn the Hard Way. Open your free, Our Heart Radio app. Search Learn the Hard Way and listen now. 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 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 plant 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. Life throws hurdles big and small. The question is, how do you conquer them? On Hurtle 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 Layla 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 Ledecki. 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 IHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Presented by Capital One, founding partner of IHeart Women's Sports. Let's bring him in. He played over a decade in the NBA. Of course, won an NBA title. He's Matt Barnes. He joins us here in the herd.

You know, it's interesting, Matt. I mean, you are a guy who brought kind of toughness and cohesiveness and chemistry to every team that you played on. And I do think, like, whether it's the Warriors and what And what Andre Godala brings to them and what Sean Livingston has brought to them or whether it's last night with Kay Clark, the kids. from the valley, brings to Virginia. We are all trained. Our eyes are trained to look at the stars, but it's those other guys that do the little things that really make championship teams, no? You can be a star in your role.

You know, and that's said, you have two or three superstars. You know, now with the NBA is two or three superstars, but you can always be a star in your role. And I think that's what gives some guys longevity. You know, I was allowed to play 14 years. You know, Sean and Iggy or, you know, can play as long as they want.

I think it's, you know, once you understand what your role is, you can be a star in that role. You don't have to necessarily be a star. superstar, but you could be a star in that role and understand your role and have a long career. All right, let me just quickly put a cap on last night and get ready for tonight. Last night, Purdue wins. They shoot the eyes out of the basketball, and Tennessee has this incredible comeback. Did you have any issue with the foul call at the end of regulation between

Purdue and Tennessee? He got fouled. He got to foul. He got to protect the shooter, right? Right, exactly. You know what I mean? It looked like he was out. I don't know if he was exactly out of all the angles, but, you know, at the end of the day, he got fouled. And that's one thing you definitely have to do is, as a shooter, when you're up in the area, you're as vulnerable as it can be. You know, so if you're not protected, it gets, it gets dangerous. And like you said, he made two out of three of the free throws, and then Tennessee had a chance to win it again in overtime and it couldn't. But this try, it's been a great tournament. It's been fun to watch. You know, I finally got my twins into actually sitting down and getting off their iPads and

watching college basketball, which is amazing. So it's, it's been a fun time to watch. Yeah, yeah, me, me, me too. My son's always been like YouTube and then watching highlights. I'm like, no, actually watch the games. Watch the games. Watch the games. Watch how people play against the zone. Why do they play zone? Because it works. Okay, tonight we're going to see Zion. And look, I've talked to NBA people and they're like, we all love Zion.

And since about mid-season, it's been that he's going to be the number one pick. But then you watch John Morant and you look at the league. And you look at how dominant ball handlers dominate this league, at least in the regular season. whether it's from from steff to james hardin to what trey young is doing now here late in the season as a rookie and like i think zion projects to be some form of berkeley meets draymond meets blake griffin right like a small ball five starting at your power forward and he's got he's got some work to do in his jump shop but he seems to have a high basketball IQ and a motor his body's a little bit in question can you play it that big if you took away the fact that his name is

Zion Williamson, and he's a thing. He's going to sell out every seat in your barn for the entire year. Who do you take, John Morant or Zion Williamson? That's a lot to take away, though. You know, so I'm taking Zion from the standpoint of, you know, he's still young. When people talk about his strength and he's playing man amongst boys, which he is, but at the same time, at his size and strength right now, he's one of the bigger players in the NBA as well. You know, when you come just pound for pound, he's probably top five and weight. You know, was he about 275, 28? I believe he'd be the heaviest player in the NBA.

Only, what's the big dude? Brumman or someone? Okay. Only Bobon weighs that much. So I think, you know, as NBA players, I think he'll definitely lean out, but at the same time get stronger. I don't see him staying at 280. I think his playing weight, like, once he's really,

when we see the best design, he'll probably be around a 265. But I think, you know, he's so skilled and soft touch, and he can handle the ball, he can pass the ball. He gets knocked for shooting, but, you know, his job is, going to be to learn to shoot, you know, for the next 15 years or however long as he plays in the NBA. So I think the excitement factor and the wow factor and the way he dunks the ball, he's the number one pick. And I think, you know, a franchise like New York needs that. They need eyes and they need someone who can fill seeds. They need someone who's going to have

huge shoe contract that they can start making commercials about and all that kind of stuff. So I think more, he's more of a franchise revitalizing pick. Now when you talk straight skill. RJ Bairdon and the other kid, Marano are very, very skilled and very, very talented. So it's going to be, I said it like last week, I think this is going to be like a Carmelo-Lebron-D-Wa type of situation. When you look at it, maybe 10 to 12 years or all three of these guys have very successful careers and have done very well for themselves. Who's going to get that UCLA job? Matt Barnes, obviously, a UCLA alum continues to join us. You got any idea?

Like it has been a really a state-held secret who gets the UCLA. Yeah, I mean, there's talks, there's rumblins about some big names. and then, you know, I heard Earl Watson did really well in his interview. You know, to me, if you can't get a historical name that's bigger than the program that can really change things around, I think for once they need to go grassroots with someone that can get some of the alumni back and really build that UCLA pride back up that the school so desperately needs. Yeah, it is interesting.

Like, look, I haven't been in that position before, I can tell you that, like, part of the sale is like, hey, look, recruiting is about telling a story. When it's your story, it's a lot easier to tell, right? A lot easier to tell. And then, of course, the bringing back guys, instead of having to be told, hey, this guy played here then, this guy played here then. I mean. Especially with how many guys, I mean, we have a UCLA group chat, whether it's about 20 of us, anywhere from, you know, Charles O'Bannon to Toby Bailey to Baron Davis, Earl Watson. All of us are still very well connected. And that's the disconnect with UCLA is there's no connection with the alumni. Right. And the former coaches aren't necessarily around. I know that coach Herrick is now at Cal State Northridge, but I wonder if Charles Rochland, while he doesn't get on that, well, he doesn't get on that, that. that group. I'm an old school UCLA guy. All right, Matt, Matt Barnes. Let me, here's what I think the Lakers are.

Have you noticed that, have you noticed that all the moves the Clippers have made? Blake Griffin traded. Chris Paul traded. Tobias Harris traded. Did anyone see those moves coming? Did anyone see them coming? Poker hand, poker faces.

Correct. Yeah. And that's generally the way the NBA works, right? When Kauai Leonard was moved to the Toronto Raptors, there was no rumors of, right? So here's how I related. and you've been married, you have kids, you know how this works. Like there are times as a dad where you got to sneak out early.

And when I say sneak out, it sounds sneaky, but I'm just saying you got to get out of the house early, go get coffee or go to work. And when the kids are asleep, you can't wake them up. And some dads just don't have the ability to be ninja dads. You know, they step on every Lego, they stub their toe, they rattle their keys constantly. Right? Like there's a way to pick up your keys where instead of doing this and it wakes somebody up, You grab them and you grab the key and then you have them in your hand.

The Lakers are the guy that's rattling in the keys, making the noise, when they get up in the morning. Like everyone sees them coming. Why is that? I think it's, you know, the old out of loose lips sink ships. Yeah. I think it's, they're almost a desperation stage where if they have a good move, they want to tell the world because, you know, they didn't do a very good job last season. So they want to let everyone know, like, okay, you know, with magic, we're going to get another one now. year and this is the coach we're going after now and this is what's going on.

I think it may be an LA thing, it may be a Laker thing or it may be a fact of, okay, we haven't done so well this far, thus far. So let me say what our plans are and maybe that'll take some pressure off us. But to me, that's backwards thinking. To me, you have to move very strategically this summer with everything you do from trades to coaches to if there's management changes. Everything has to be very strategic because they're going to be, they could possibly be at a point where, you know, they're dangling all their young talent again and don't really.

really trade for anybody. Then you've got to bring these same guys that you tried to trade at the trade deadline. You tried to dangle them all summer. And then you're trying to tell them, okay, now we believe in you. Let's have a good season. So I think this has to be a very big, quiet from a strategic standpoint summer, but they really need to make some stuff happen. The problem with that, though, is, and that's smart. Problem though is now we get the Rick Harlis story. Right. Look, Rick Harlow makes sense, right? Offensive mastermind, guy who's got a healthy ego, but it's supported by the fact he's been into NBA finals and won an

NBA championship against LeBron. And, you know, part of the deal is, in order to win in the NBA, you have to have respect to the locker room. In order to have respect to locker room, you have to have one in the NBA. So, like, I get, now, the Doc Rivers thing. Okay, was that just floated? Was that Doc trying to get a new contract, which you got with the Clippers?

Or was that a real possibility? I heard it was a real possibility. And when I first heard, I'm just like, no way. You know, like, to me, the Clippers look like they're on the up and up. They look like a smooth situation, but then I happened to be somewhere the day it broke and the people I was working with are, you know, very entwined to, you know, what's going on. And they said that was a real situation. Now, whether because it broke and it got so big that they had to kind of hush that up, they don't want to have a distraction going into the playoffs because all of a sudden now he has

a handshake deal to be the coach next year. You know, I've never really heard a handshake deal. You know, normally if you're getting an extension, you're going to sign it. So, but for what I was, what I was told that day that it was, it was really. it was a serious move. Okay, so that's not going to happen. I don't think the Carlisle thing is going to happen. I don't think Jason kids getting the job. Dude, you can't go on TV talking about a job that's not open.

Like, that does not go well in most NBA circles. Right? So then you have, you know, Mark Jackson, you got Ty Loo. You got, you know, college coaches out there. Like, who's the guy who can fix it? I don't know if there's a coach that can fix it. To be honest with you, I think you kind of have to go more along the lines of this team is built. this is LeBron's team, so to speak,

so I think you've got to get a LeBron guy from that standpoint. Maybe someone that can get out the way and let LeBron be LeBron, but I think more than anything, you need personnel, you know, that fits him. They didn't have any, from the beginning last year, you know, everyone was excited about the team, but a glaring weakness was shooting. You know, LeBron is very successful when the court is spaced, he can attack and he can penetrate and kick or score.

They didn't have that kind of spacing this year mixed with a lot of other stuff. So I think more than a coach, I mean, a coach will be important somewhat, but this is a players league more than anything. You need a coach that can, you know, have respect, obviously, but then probably his best attribute for the Lakers is going to be to get out the way. Yeah, the one question I have is he was able to cover up some of those shooters' weaknesses defensively for a long time, and now he can't, right? And so it dramatically changes when you kind of got to hide LeBron defensively.

Last thing, I don't know if you saw this story, your former warrior, Jordan Bell was suspended for a game, and apparently was because he changed. charged a candle from like bed, bath, and beyond to Mike Brown's room, right? And I guess there's like a running, it's like a running prank that, but there has to be something more to the story than just like a $15 candle. Yeah, I can't, I mean, I remember, this is a funny story. I remember we were in Phoenix with Shaq and, man, me, him, Steve, Roger. We all went to eat one day and we charged a huge bill to Terry Porter's room. And they were pissed. Like, we ate and they were pit. I'm I might have just snitched, my bad.

But anyway, so this is something that happens where, you know, players will charge stuff to other people that happen on the clippers before charging stuff. So that's funny. But for him to be suspended, I think there has to be a little bit more because we charged a lot of money on some coach's bills and no one ever got suspended. Can the Celtics get it together for the playoffs? I think so. They're such an intriguing team. And I think if there wasn't so much drama with the Lakers, that would have been more dissected because I think that was a very unhappy locker room.

but then at times you see how talented they are. And I think more than anything, normally a team has to, you know, mold their game to the superstar. I think this is one exception where Kyrie has to mold his game to what those younger players are doing because they've done it without him. I think if Kyrie can do that, go out there, play basketball, share the ball, have fun. They're going to be, you know, they're definitely something come out of the east. You know what the one that no one's talking about? The Thunder. Like the Thunder have gone from second best team in the West, legit challenger to, you know, eighth seed in the West.

played better last time out against the Pacers, but what happened to Thunder's chemistry? I think a little bit of, to me, it's always been less as more with Wes, Westbrook, and I think that he showed flashes this year where he's kind of taken a little bit of a backseat and let Paul do the bulk of the scoring because normally a point guard shooting that much

is not going to work if you're called on to be the main distributor. You know, Steph can get away, taking 20 shots because they have a lot of other distributors on that team, the guys that get people make plays for other guys, but Russ is counted on so much to distribute as well that I think when he takes around 15 to 16 shots instead of 24 to 25 shots, obviously they're a better team. What's going on, everybody? John Middlecough, three-and-out podcast, brought to you by the Colin Coward Podcast Network. You like Colin's show, you will like mine. This week, owner's meetings, coaches pictures.

You know we're talking about new rule changes. I think the fourth and 15 slash on-site kick rule is fascinating, and Gronk retires. Again, John Middilkoff, three and out podcast, go subscribe. I think the reaction to the NFL changing the replay rules where you can either challenge calls or non-calls on pass interference, or of course, under two minutes, they can review calls or non-calls on past interference, judgment calls, if you will, has been met generally with, okay, well, they saw the problem and they tried to fix the problem. them, right? There's a certain pragmatism to it where you're like, look, you can be dug in all you want, but this was clearly a mistake and we made a fix. But there are, there's a law of unintended consequences, right? The intended consequences of this type of rule are to get it

right. That's it. To always get it right. To take a snap judgment out of the hands of an official and put it in the hands of somebody who is removed from the field of play, removed from the officiating crew, and just can look at it and view it and see it and rule on it in a timely fashion where they have, instead of just having two eyes, they can have 20. Makes sense, right? And in truth, the idea of having an official using their eyes to make calls in games of this speed, this quickness, this excess,

explosiveness. Do you know what the most unreliable testimony in a courtroom is? Right. Like we're taught by some of our leaders and by conspiracy theorists to not trust science. But scientific fact, 97% is a scientific fact. When there's DNA evidence and it's one in a billion, one in a trillion, that means that's the guy. right the least reliable testimony is eyewitness testimony it just is i don't know you ever seen the tv show brain games you understand the brain games and one of the brain games episodes they'll have somebody come and they'll be talking to people and somebody'll come and steal somebody's wallet and watch right before everybody's eyes and then hey describe what they walked it what they wrote in on what and everybody's got it no one actually remembers correctly why because i

eyewitness testimony is in fact the least trustworthy testimony. It just is. Corroborating evidence is actually more accurate. Just is. So if we really want perfect, then you kind of have to take the human element completely out of the sport. But since we're not willing to do that, we're going to try and perfect something, which is imperfect, but really, really good, which is NFL officiating. I was watching the Sweet 16 last night.

Tennessee was taken on Purdue. Purdue had a huge lead. Tennessee comes storing back, actually took the lead late. They're up two points, and that's when Carson Edwards gets the ball in the corner, shoots a three-point shot, and appears to get fouled. Now, this comes on the back, on the back of Carson Edwards driving to the basket, and the ball gets deflected and from one replay angle

looked like it might have gone off his leg but if you look and I thought they did a good job on the game saying hey look when that ball gets deflected if you look at a different angle and you look at the fact that the ball doesn't move doesn't change trajectory it's Purdue basketball so what do they have to do?

They have to go to the monitor and there's like a five-minute review and oh yeah by the way Purdue gets a timeout. that they didn't earn, right? They just drove to the basket and Grant Williams, the star for Tennessee, deflex the basketball clean, and it should have been Purdue's basketball out of bounds. Now, did it give Tennessee a chance to set their defense? Yes, but it gave Purdue a chance to draw up a play. And this is exactly what is going to happen in the National Football League under two minutes.

You remember they have to review not just penalties but non-penalties on pass and interference. What's one of the magic to the National Football League is, hey, how many timeouts do you have? When do you ground the football? Do you get out of bounds? Do you throw it over the middle? This totally changes the sport. Forget about the fact that NFL guys like, wait a second, Al Riveron in New York, who we don't trust to make calls anyway, is going to make calls on our game. And in super slow mo, past interference sometimes looks like it always occurs. There's always contact before a play. right do we really want to call split second contact right beforehand i mean honestly the ram saints game even though it was an error it was also one a bad throw and two it all depends upon where your

camera angle was in that fox camera that was behind the play behind the play it looks like wow what an incredibly blown call when it's even with that that angle right there if you're watching on fox sports one i can't believe they missed that call but if you look at where the judge or the side judge was equal with the play, it was bang, bang. It was right as the football arrives. And oh yeah, by the way, it was a bad throw by Drew Brees who was thrown over the middle when it should have been thrown to his outside shoulder or back shoulder. But the bigger point is this, say you have no timeouts and you're under a minute to go and you throw a football and a play like that, it's not past interference, but they have to review it. Guess what you get, free timeout.

So in addition to the fact that it's really hard to watch games in person where there's all kinds of untimely delays, forget. about the fact that it screws up the actual rhythm of a football game allows everybody to catch their breath. Just the idea that it gives you a timeout that you didn't earn. That's what happened to Purdue last night. Now, they're able to benefit and get fouled on a three point shot and make two free throws and then go into overtime and win the basketball game. But that review, the process of that review, while it's see, and you can sit there go, well, all you got to do is put a time limit on it. Why? You started with the premise of we put

this rule in to get it right, why not take the time and get it right? And I'm not sitting here saying that replay doesn't work and that we haven't had blown calls that could have been fixed. Patriots, it looked like a, it looked like a fumble against the Kansas City Chiefs. Did it not? Julie Nettlement covering a punt, looked like it hit his hand, look like he hit his thumb. Then when you get the right review, right angle, you're like, oh, okay, no fumble. When it comes to plays of judgment, bang, bang plays where there's always contact. Forget about the fact that sometimes the offense pushes off to create space, then the defense closes up that space.

Are we going to go back and call a penalty in the offense? Forget about all that. Dude, five minutes? For a timeout, you didn't earn? Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern, 9 a.m. Pacific. Last night, a blown call changed a game. This morning, the internet lost its mind. Highlights are trending, opinions are flying,

and nobody's telling you exactly what happened. That's where Sports Slice comes in. I'm Timbo. Every episode we're cutting through the noise. Breaking down the plays, the controversies, and the stories behind the headlines. We go straight to the source, the athlete themselves, their locker room stories, their reactions,

the stuff nobody gets to hear. The laughs, the drama, the triumphs, the moments that never make the highlight real. From viral moments to historic games, from buzzer beaters to controversial calls, we break it down, give you context, and ask the questions everybody wants answered.

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 and the TikTok podcast network on TikTok. Welcome to my new podcast, Learn the Hardaway 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. Trip 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, Keer Gaines, as 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. 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 our meaning, businessman, catapults Jacob into an extraordinary 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 Levin' this plant 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 I-Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. Life throws hurdles big and small. The question is, how do you conquer them? On Hurtle 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 Layla 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. Don't let that be the reason you don't do it. An Olympic champs Gabby Thomas and Katie Ledecki. 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, like, 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 IHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Presented by Capital One, founding partner of IHeart Women's sports. I was told a long time ago that the smartest guy in the room usually says the least, right? There's the old adage. You have two ears and one mouth, listen more and speak less, or maybe here's the more effective parallel. Be a ninja dad. Ninja dad. To do the herd, we usually meet a couple hours for the show. And I don't live right next to the studio. So I like to get up super early in the morning. But if I get up, the morning, my dog gets up with me.

And he wants to go to the park. And I have a couple of chores. Take him to the park. Get myself some coffee. Get my wife a chai. Come back. And listen, if he hears me in my room or in any other room of the house, he's not trying.

He's clomping around on the wood floor. Now, the way to be a ninja dad even with that dog, dog is to take off his collar the night before, to take your keys and put it close to the door, to make sure you have socks on because no matter how quiet you think you are with bare feet, you're much quieter with socks on. Make sure you're not wearing the type of pants that slosh.

Shh, shh, shh, shh, shh. Even when you pick up your keys, don't pick them up like this. Grab the keys with your hand softly. If you're going to brush your teeth, sorry, dude, you're going to spit, but you've got to do it quietly and you can't wash the spit out. That's part of the deal.

Don't flush the toilet. No matter how gross your wife thinks it is, the second you flush the toilet, the dog is up, the dog is up, the kids are up, the kids are up, the wife is up, and nobody's happy. Instead, could be a ninja dad. Get outside, get in the car, close the door, roll down the street, and you're on your way. They're asleep. You're relatively happy. You didn't have to take the dog to the park, and you can get on your way to work.

Now, the Lakers are the guy that forgets to take the collar off, forgets to turn off the alarm. So they open up the door. The Lakers are the guy that picks up the keys. The wake up, your alarm goes off. Not once, but they press news. Then it goes off twice in case anyone wasn't awake.

Everybody's awake. Every move they have made, they have telegraphed. Right? Boy, actually, there's an analogy that maybe needs refining. Does anybody know what a telegraph is? Is there anybody alive that actually has used a telegraph anymore? A telegraph was something that used to send out. You'd tell somebody else and they would use some sort of Morris code

and send along the lines back from World War II. That's what the, that's what the Lakers have done. From who they were going to acquire in the offseason to potential trades during the season to now potential hires for next season. They haven't even fired Luke Walden and there's already, well, we want Doc. No, we want somebody else. house. No, we want Rick Carlisle. No, we want this. Now, everyone knows their moves beforehand. It's

almost like they're playing cards, but instead of the cards looking at them, the cards are facing everybody else. See? See? I kind of got close to a full house. No, you have one ace. They just need to do everything in the shadows like every other NBA team. Remember when the clippers are going to trade Blake Griffin? Was there any warning? Nope. When the clippers traded Chris Paul for like 15 players. Any warning? Nope. When they traded Tobias Harris, any warning? Like, don't tell me it's L.A. The Clippers have operating the shadows, and no one knew. The Knicks traded Christopps-Brasingas. The same day

he said he wanted to be traded, he was traded. There wasn't this build-up, wasn't this nonsense? They just need one mouth, two ears. Listen more. Operating the shadows, being ninja dads. You want to change your culture? First thing you can do is, Stop sharing your information with people who are going to leak it to the media. Everybody wants to be important. Everybody wants to share their story.

Everybody wants to see it on the bottom line, whether it's Woge or Broussard or whoever it is. Shams. Oh, I'm going to text this guy and get my story out. No, no, no, shut it down. Get into your bunker. Make your moves. And don't let anybody knew they're going to happen until they've already happened. Last night, a blown call changed the game.

This morning, the internet lost its mind, and nobody's telling you exactly what happened. That's where SportsSlice 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 Sports Slice on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast.

And for more, follow Timbo Slices Life 12. and the TikTok podcast network on TikTok. Another podcast from some SNL, late-night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smygel and Friends. Me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman help make you funnier. This week, my guest, 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 I-heart radio app. podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, what's good, y'all?

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

Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's Superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the IHeart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

This is an IHeart podcast. Guaranteed human.