The Herd with Colin Cowherd - Best of The Herd: 05/16/2019

Episode Date: May 16, 2019

Colin says that this Warriors dynasty is actually better than we think and has the data to prove it.  He says Wednesday night proved Kawhi is a one-and-done in Toronto.  Plus, 3x Super Bowl Champion Mark Schlereth questions whether Odell Beckham Jr. is more concerned with his brand or with winning.  Presented by Perky Jerky. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an I-Heart podcast. Guaranteed Human. I'm Michelle McPhee, and I've been unraveling the strangest criminal alliance I've ever reported on, a Mormon polygamist and an Armenian businessman.

Multi-million dollar house, Ferrari's and Lamborghinis, private jets, a billion-dollar fraud. But how long can this alliance last? Tell me what you know. Is somebody coming after me? Listen to Kingdom of Fraud

on the I-Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Life is full of hurdles. So how do you keep going? On Hurtle with Emily Abadi, we're talking with the most inspiring women in sports and wellness from professional athletes, coaches, and Olympic champions about the challenges that shape them and the mindset that keeps them moving forward. At our level, at this scale, being able to fail in front of the entire world. Like, I can do anything. I can do anything. 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. 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 Sliced 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 IHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Thanks for listening to The Best of Heard Podcast. Be sure to catch us live every weekday from 12 to 3 Eastern, 9 to noon Pacific on Fox Sports Radio and FS1. Find your local station for the herd at Fox SportsRadio.com or stream us live every day on the IHeart Radio app by searching Herd. This is the best of the herd with

Colin Cowherd on Fox Sports Radio. Ah, loaded on a Thursday. This is The Herd. Wherever you may be and however you may be listening, live in Los Angeles, IHeart Radio, Fox Sports Radio, right here on FS1. Joy Taylor is joining me,

Catino Moblee, Jason Terry, today stopping by. How are you, I'm great. Good morning. Good morning. We all know you've got to have good players in all these sports to win, right? Culture, though, is where it all starts.

Culture is where it all starts. Mike Shoshchevsky didn't have all these great players. But when he started at Duke, he changed the culture. Barry Alvarez didn't have a lot of great players at Wisconsin when he started. He changed the culture. He never lost a Rose Bowl. Kevin Durant's not going to play tonight. And Las Vegas has the Warriors favored by eight in the Western Conference finals against a very good Portland team.

They're favored by eight tonight. I want you to think about this. This is how much better Golden State is, I'm not saying than just the NBA, than NBA playoff teams. Michael Jordan and Scotty Pippen, in their six years they won a title in the dynasty. Scotty missed one game, Michael didn't miss any playoff games. We all acknowledge if Michael wouldn't have played in those six years, they wouldn't be the same team.

Good, not the same team. And we know that Scotty, let's be honest, Michael was one and nine in the playoffs before Scotty. But with the Golden State Warriors, Steph has missed 12 playoff games. He's a superstar. in the five years of this dynasty, he's missed 12 playoff games. Golden State's 9 and 3.

KD has missed four games. They're 4-0. So when one of their superstars has missed a playoff game, they're 13 and 3. Shaq and Kobe, one of those guys missed a playoff game. Lakers were not the same team. Pippin and MJ, not the same team. team. I'm not even counting Andre Iguidala,

who's missed seven playoff game. Sean Livingston has missed five. I'm not counting boogie cousins who's their only legitimate center. This is why culture is such a big deal. It's why I don't buy into the Cleveland Browns as much as everybody else does. When you

beat the Patriots, you're beating New England and the culture. You're beating Alabama and the culture. Okay, when you're, Cleveland's just players. They have a losing culture. They got their hands full already this morning with OBJ. Golden State. I want to add a layer to this.

When Steve Kerr has missed a playoff game, they're 12 and 0. I want you to just think about that. So when they've missed their coach, a Hall of Fame coach, Steve Kerr, KD, arguably best player in the game, and Steph Curry, most revolutionary player in the last five or six years, they're 25 and 3 in the playoffs Milwaukee this year 10 games without Janus 4 and 6 Philadelphia couldn't score when Embed was off the floor against Toronto the Houston Rockets think they're this close they think they're this close to Houston James Hardin

didn't play well in two fourth quarters and they're out of the playoffs He was still playing. He just didn't play well. Chris Paul last year missed a couple of games. What, what, what, season over. Houston this year didn't have to face at the end, KD. Boogie and Steph didn't score in one of the halves. And because James Hardin didn't have a great, dynamic, robust fourth quarter, still there,

couldn't win. And you think Houston's close? Houston doesn't have the culture. This team is, and this is why I don't fall in love with guys and the Cleveland Browns and every single time you grab a player and the Raiders got all these guys and the Raiders have a losing culture. The Browns have a losing culture. The Pittsburgh Steelers have a winning culture.

They'll be fine. New England loses Grong. They have a winning culture. They'll be fine. Just think about the gap. the gap between the Warriors and Houston. Curry, Durant, and DeMarcus cousins. I mean, missing stars, stars hurt, head coach out, 25 and 3.

There'd never been a basketball dynasty, including MJ and Scotty, that could withstand that. Let me shift to this. Well, well, well, well, well, I said yes. ready to start the show. If I represented Zion Williamson, if I was Zion Williamson, if I was Nike was Zion Williamson, I try to broker a trade somewhere or sit the year out. I've seen Zion Williamson in New Orleans. It's called Anthony Davis. In fact, Nike is so upset that he now wants to play for the Pelicans. They've changed their slogan to just don't do it. But here's the reality.

Is Zion's a good kid? Zion probably doesn't want to make waves. Zion's got the smile, the magnetism. I hope it works out. And his stepfather, Lee Anderson, says they're very excited to be Pelicans. We're excited about that. This is one of the things that he had nothing to do with is the process of the NBA. And certainly, we're excited about the country.

Crescent City down there in New Orleans, and you said about returning to Duke, you know, there has been a lot of speculation, but that is not nothing that we have even considered. Okay. All right. This, by the way, is the predicted result. I said yesterday, and I have a right to do this as a talk show host, this is my opinion. I wouldn't. And I've also said, I've seen this before. It's called Anthony Davis. And I think Zion's going to be a great player, but Anthony Davis has averaged 25 and 12 down in New Orleans. I don't think Zion's going to average a ton more than those numbers, although I do think he has more magnetism and more upside than Anthony Davis. And Anthony Davis is very good.

But everybody says the big difference this time, though, is it's different. David Griffin. GM. This time, we got a good GM. Well, he is the luckiest GM in the world. He's been in five lotteries. He's won four. So I'll give David Griffin that.

He's the world's luckiest general manager. And I do like him and I do think he's smart. But folks, Sam Presti's smart. How did that whole Harden KD Westbrook thing work? There's realities about Oklahoma City. Messiah Eugeri in Toronto is smart. Nobody doubts that, but if they lose to Milwaukee, and I think they will. And if Kauai leaves, and I think he will, they're rebuilding.

There's realities about Canadian NBA teams. We had one briefly at left. We have the other one. Stars leave. There's a reality to college football. Most of your good top 10 programs are now in the South. Why? Because that's where all the players are. It's much harder to accumulate great talent in cold weather cities.

That's the reality, regardless of your coach. Okay? You could see at the end. Urban Meyer, his team could not keep up with some of those southern powers. And he's a great coach. So I do think, since Zion wants to go to the Pelicans, here to me is the best case scenario. And I do think David Griffin is smarter than the average cat. I do, is that you make a trade with the Knicks. I don't buy the Lakers, and here's why.

I think if you have Zion and you make a trade with the Knicks who won Anthony Davis and you can get R.J. Barrett at Duke and all those first round picks the Knicks have, four or five really good first round picks, that at least feels optimistic and hopeful. I get his best friend at Duke. I get a kid that can take a little pressure off him, another great rookie player. Duke is the biggest college basketball brand. It's also kind of southern. Into the Pelicans, Zion, two dukies, draft picks.

That feels big and interesting to me. What doesn't feel fascinating to me is making a deal with the Lakers and getting Kyle Kuzma, who has a fairly low ceiling, we've seen it, Lonzo Ball can't stay healthy, dad issues, and the number four pick in the draft, who I asked multiple GMs yesterday or executives in the league who would be your fourth pick. I got nine different answers. That's not even a player. It's a silhouette.

But if you make a deal with the Knicks and I get Zion and R.J. Barrett, and they're both, by the way, ready to score in the NBA. That can't be disputed. This is a three-guy draft. After that, there'll be five or six good players, but nobody knows who they are. It's like Clay Thompson wouldn't have gone 11 if everybody was a genius. That then feels to me like, okay, you have these really good teams in the West, Golden State, old, Houston really old, you know, Oklahoma City, Westbrook, another surgery,

Paul George's surgery, getting old, and then you got three young teams. Denver's good and young, can't deny that. and New Orleans? Oh, that's kind of exciting. New Orleans is young. Dallas Mavericks are young. And then you can become part of three really exciting young Western teams. Denver, Dallas, and the Pelicans.

That feels like to me, all right, I can buy into that. Picks another dookie, but I'll tell you, from a Laker perspective, if I live in New Orleans or I'm an NBA fan, if you think I can get them jacked up for the number four pick in your what is by any stretch, an okay draft, very good for three picks and then a crapshoot, Kyle Kuzma and Laker young players that can't stay healthy, that is not good for Zion. It's not good for the NBA. It's not good for the Pelicans.

And he's signing one deal. Because remember, he's going to make $9, $10 million a year on Nike. He's going to make money in a shoe deal that nobody's ever made. He's going to make a ton. So he doesn't need to sign a second contract in New Orleans. That's why guys generally sign a second contract like Anthony Davis. They want to get their money. But if you're making 10 million plus on a shoe deal with Nike, you don't need to stay for a second contract like Anthony Davis.

Who, by the way, a year before his second contract was done, he wants out. Dwight Howard, you know, a year before the second contract's done, he wants out. Shaq wants out. But when you, because this kid's going to make so much money on shoes, he's not going to need to sign a second deal. But you give him a dukey, you give me another star, take a little of the pressure off, a bunch of draft picks. That feels big. It feels optimistic.

There's a lot of mystery. There's no mystery to Kyle Kuzma. There's no mystery to Lanzo Ball. I mean, I know what they are. Lonzo Ball is inconsistent and can't stay healthy. And Kyle Kuzma is like a fourth starter, you know, on a good team, about the fourth best starter. Then it feels bigger to me. some of the league getting old, three new young teams out west.

But you can't tell me David Griffin, he's just really smart. I don't doubt that. So is Sam Presti. So is the guy in Toronto. There's a lot of smart football coaches. North. David Shaw, Chris Peterson, North. Jim Harbaugh is a real smart guy.

Yeah, a lot of guys are good coaches in North. But college football is a reality. There's a way more players in Georgia, Florida. Texas, Los Angeles, Mississippi, Louisiana. That's the reality of college football. That's why the southern teams are better. Sometimes the coaching's bad in the SEC. It's got so many darn NFL bodies.

So there is a reality to the rafters. There's a reality to Memphis. There's a reality to the Pelicans that even a good GM is going to face. To me, a deal with the Knicks, though, does make it feel fun and optimistic and big and two dukees and draft picks that I could buy into. Be sure to catch live edition. of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern 9 a.m. Pacific on Fox Sports Radio, FS1, and the IHeart Radio app. 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 McPherson. and this is one of the most shocking criminal conspiracies I've ever come across. When Jacob met Levan 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. 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 Slicelife-12 and the TikTok podcast. network on TikTok. 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 WMBA standout Kate Martin and rising hockey star Layla Edwards. If a boy can do it, I don't see why a girl can't. 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 on. Don't let that be the reason you don't do it.

An Olympic champs Gabby Thomas and Katie Ladeki. 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 IHart Women's Sports. 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 started.

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 or are you a good person because you're afraid because that's two different intentions bro absolutely and that that's two different levels of trust i want you to just really be a good person join me keir gains is we have real conversations conversations about healing, growth, fatherhood, pressure, and purpose on my new podcast, Learn the Hardway.

Open your free iHeartRadio app. Search Learn the Hardway and listen now. Raptors dominate most of the game and then lose, run out of gas in the end. It's not just that they lost, it's how they lost. They missed their last eight shots. They were worn out. Kauai Leonard was a shot fighter by the fourth quarter, never hit a basket, only scored two points for the player I'm being told

the best player in the world. I think he's really, really good, and I'm not blaming him. He's out of gas. He shot 39 times against Philadelphia in Game 7. The Raptors have been very solid for a long time. Six straight years they made the playoffs. They won a

playoff series in four of those years. But man, does this feel like a one and done? And if Kauai Leonard leaves, with the East, improving, they are now a rebuilding franchise. guys. I honestly think we've seen the last of the Raptors after this series because I think Milwaukee's just better. And last night wasn't about losing. It's how they lost. Kauai Leonard had nothing left in the tank. This is Carmelo Anthony at Syracuse. This is

one unbelievable talent surrounded by guys. And that won a championship. And this one doesn't feel like it has to or can. But if you watch that game last night and Kyle Lowry, that's as good as he can play. Don't kid yourself about the reality here. Toronto does not get free agents. Toronto's now too good for the next couple of years to get a great, great draft pick. And Kyle Lowry, $34 million a year, that is a prohibitive contract that can hurt you going forward. This does feel, I think it was Charles Barkley said, they lose this series to Philadelphia.

It's the end of basketball in Canada. that seems hyperbolic and it seems drastic. But we've had Vince Carter and T-Mack. And if Kauai Leonard leaves, and I'm told Kauai Leonard goes apartment to the facility, facility to the apartment, apartment to the arena to the apartment. He's made no bones about it. He's a California kid. He likes a warm weather.

When I'm watching them last night and you can just see Kauai's got nothing left, this is not a shot at him, you're asking him to take every big shot. shot, 39 shots against Philly, every big shot in that game. He had nothing left. And Milwaukee's got a better bench. Milwaukee's deeper. And as big as Yonis is, Chris Middleton on certain possessions and nights is every bit as big. So there are ways you lose.

And the way they limped at the end last night, this has a one and done. I know that's a term we use in college basketball. It's really got a mellow Syracuse one and done feel to it. It does. Be sure to catch live editions of The Herd, weekdays in noon Eastern, 9 a.m. Pacific. So yesterday, the GM of the Jets got fired and a lot of people are saying, I can't believe they fired him after the draft. My theory on when you fire people, when you finally discover they're not the right people, then you get them out. Sometimes, you know, there's contracts to deal with, other people aren't open. You know, you may want to fire somebody, but somebody else isn't available for three months.

when you fire somebody at the last seven eight GMs fired they've been fired in a bunch of different months this is also a 365 day a year league okay like there is no perfect day you could say the perfect day is in the summer but i could argue a GM's job starts labor day with all the college football so you can't fire a guy in august because then i have to get an entirely different staff and all the best guys have already been hired by Labor Day there is no perfect time to fire a GM before the draft is that smart well who's going to run your your draft. You had a fired him a month before the draft and you fire all the scouts. Well, who in the hell's in the draft room? So they basically knew once they hired Adam Gase,

these guys weren't going to work, but they just wanted to get through the draft. This was an incompetent general manager who drafted a quarterback Christian Hakenberg, who I said at the time had no chance to ever even be a backup in this league. When I can figure this out over a GM, you're not good at your job. They have whiffed. They have whiffed on draft after draft, even the guys they've hit on, Leonard Williams, Jamal Adams, Sam Darnold, Quinn and Williams were obvious picks that anybody could have made. Quinn and Williams was the best player in the draft. Everybody knew it.

Just the two teams in top of the jets. Arizona needed a quarterback and the Niners needed a pass rusher worse than Quinn and Williams. That's not a big pay. Anybody can make that pick. You'd make it. I'd make it. Anybody would make it. The reason you had to make this move fast, though, is because of Sam Darnold.

It's the reason it's the reason last year the Cleveland Browns got. rid of Hugh Jackson and Todd Haley because of Baker Mayfield. When you find what you believe is a young star for the next decade, you are on the clock, baby. You don't have any time to waste. So they got Todd Bowles out immediately, and let's get an offensive guy, and they did that because Adam Gase was going to get a job somewhere else, so let's get him quickly. Offensive coach.

That's why Freddie Kitchens got the job. He was in-house. He's an offensive coach. You got to get these quarterbacks offensive guys. Matt Nagy and Mitch Trubesky saved his career. Okay, reality. You've got to get these young quarterbacks offensive coaches. Sean McVeigh saved Jared Gough's career.

Okay. The other thing is Gace gets a lot of heat here. Adam Gase had a winning record when Ryan Tannihill was his quarterback. And then he got hurt. And he had Jay Cutler, Matt Moore, and Brock Oswider. By the way, he was 13 and 11 with Tannehill. Seven of the 11 losses were one possession. coaches get fired all the time.

Pete Carroll's been fired twice. Andy Reid's been fired. Bill Belichick's been fired. Mike Shanahan's been fired. Who cares? It's the NFL. It's like being a DJ. Howard Stern's been fired twice.

Every DJ has been fired. There are certain industries you get fired. You don't get fired as a school teacher unless you're inappropriate. You get fired as a head coach if you're great. But you just don't have the quarterback. So, by the way, why aren't we crushing Kyle Shanahan? The media is not doing their homework on this. Why are we not crushing Kyle Shanahan in San Francisco right now?

He has a losing record. Because he didn't have Jimmy Caroplo. You can't win in this league without a quarterback. Pete Carroll had a losing record in Seattle before Russell Wilson. Belichick fired in Cleveland. Had a losing record in New England. And then Bledsoe got hurt. Brady comes in.

You can't win in this league with a bad quarterback or an old quarterback or an injured quarterback. Adam Gase is good. Winning record. Beat the Patriots twice. 13 and 11. Seven losses, one possession. That's with a dysfunctional owner. So you got to get bad people out of a building,

but the timing is overrated. I've been in this business 20 years, 30 years, right? There have been people I know that are getting whacked at my old place. You'd know it, but you got to wait for the contract, who you're going to replace them with. You got, there's a lot. of things to think about here. And, you know, ideally, you'd like to, I'm told the ideal situation is fire the GM in

December. Everybody's, ah, that's a fire. Okay. But maybe the guy they had to replace the guy they fired wasn't available in December. So you wouldn't want to fire a GM in December and just flowed out there as you're looking for a new coach, Adam Gase, who was going to get more than one offer. and Adam Gase is like, I'm not going to the Jets. You don't even have.

So they wanted to bring Gace in. Hey, we've got a GM. You publicly support the GM. You get through the draft and then out. But this franchise is Darnold and Gase. That's what it is. And for the record, that's what it should be. That's who should be running this franchise.

Adam Gase and Sam Darnold, that's the franchise. The great young offensive quarterback with nothing to work with, thanks to the last guy that you just fired. And Adam Gase, who had a winning record in this league. But you got to get over this hole. Adam Gase, why aren't you crushing Kyle Shanahan in San Francisco? He's got a terrible record. But he's got a good record when Jimmy Garoppolo's healthy.

So, you know, when you fire people is, NFL is a 365-day proposition. It just is. And by the way, the reality is this general manager, I like their moves in free agency. They overspent for people, but, you know, I get it. It's just in order for this franchise going forward, they're going to have to pay Sam Darnold big money in a couple years. They have got to nail the next two drafts. And this guy was bad with drafts. So the next two drafts, the Jets have to nail it because in three years, they are bringing the Brinks truck for Sam Darnel.

And by the way, they're doing the same thing for Baker Mayfield in two to three years. So these drafts for these teams like Cleveland and the Jets are. are really, really important. The Browns are doing their part. The Jets have been a mess. Now they got to get rid of the guy. 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. 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 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. 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. 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 Slica Life 12 and the TikTok podcast network on TikTok.

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 WMBA 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 on. Don't let that be the reason you don't do it. An Olympic champs Gabby Thomas and Katie Ladeki. 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 IHart Women's Sports. 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 Fantine, 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 Hardway.

Open your free iHeartRadio app. Search Learn the Hardway and listen now. I want to start with this story. You know, again, Colin, you're a hater on Russell Westbrook. Three years later, you all now acknowledge, I wasn't a hater, I was right on Westbrook. Right? You get that. By the way, Nick Foles, you're a hater.

No, Howie Rose. Rose been one of the best GMs trades him to Jacksonville. I was right. Wentz is better than Foles. Stop with a hater. Hater aid stuff. It's nonsense. It's what like 12-year-old say on Twitter is when I'm tough on somebody, they deserve it.

I was tough on Mello. I was right on Mellow. I was right on Westbrook. I was right on Nick Foles. Okay. The Cleveland Browns, yep, yep, yep, yep, yep, yep, yep. Okay. This story's real.

Mary K. Cab at Cleveland.com. She's an excellent NFL writer. I've had her on many different shows. Her article today, Odell Beckham, Jr. was here and gone in a flash. Practicing on the first day of OTA's Tuesday and gone by the second. Freddie Kitchens acknowledged he's still getting his mind right after the trade. No, no, no, I'm not ready for that yet. Kitchens, I'm reading this article, who defended Beckham's part-time participation in the program.

from the start admitted he doesn't know the team's offense terminology teammates or coaches quote it's not that easy it's mary k cabot she's not a hater freddy kitchens you can listen to all this this is what a parent sounds like when they're disappointed with their kid i still love them but here's now freddy kitchens on obj being in cleveland three days since the trade I've never disputed the fact that it's not important for him to be here, but it's also important for him to be mentally ready to be here. So I'm not giving him an out by any stretch of imagination. Nobody here knows the conversations that O'Dell and I have. So I'm just saying it's better for him to be here when he can present his best self.

Emotionally, physically, everything. This is what wore the New York Giants out. 65 days from the trade. He got to get his mind right. I mean, come on now. Am I being a hater? I'm being honest here. And I like OBJ.

But the injuries, the net, the boat, most of his career now is the catch and a bunch of nonsense. And Cleveland Brown fans, because they're fans and fans short for Fanatic, are giving you the classic, it's all good here. Just drive on by, nothing happening here. This is everything is perfect here. No, it's not. No, no, no it's not. That's a coach sounding like a disappointed parent.

Wide receivers and quarterbacks, it is all timing. This is not a corner. If Denzel Ward didn't show up, Denzel Ward can go out and cover people. If Nick Chubb didn't show up, Nick Chubb, here's ball, hit gap. Quarterback and receiver is a timing. issue. That's why Tom Brady is literally vacationing with his wide receivers. That's why wide receivers and quarterbacks vacation together offseason. They fly them out to L.A. or good weather if they live in cold weather to work out together. Okay. And would some people, whoa, well, Gronk and Brady, they missed.

I trust Gronk. I trust Brady. I trust Belichick. I trust New England. Cleveland hasn't earned that trust. I don't trust Freddie Kitchens. I don't trust OBJ. I don't trust. I don't trust. I don't trust. I don't Cleveland. They have not earned that. Okay, don't give me gronkin other veterans that missed time. The New England Patriots wrote the book on football in America. It's a hardcover. It's a bestseller.

Okay, they wrote the book on how to win Super Bowls. Cleveland is just a flashy brochure full of chatter and talk. Hey, we got a bunch of guys here and a tiger next to a Bentley and a quarterback with shirt off a boat. That's just You're selling time shares to me. Okay, one of them wrote a book on how to do it.

One of them's a flashy brochure. And so when I question this OBJ thing, don't tell me, don't give me your classic bad franchise saying it's all good here. Freddie Kitchens is telling you. teammates, routes, timing. And this is a young quarterback Baker. This is not a 12 year in the league guy. So I got a young quarterback, a diva receiver.

He's not there. three days in Cleveland, basically since he signed, and his mind's not right. This is what drove the New York Giants crazy. And I'm not saying everybody's, you know, Russell Wilson and Kumbaya, they walk into the league and they're a complete grown-up. I'm not saying that. I'm not saying everybody's Andrew Luck and Russell Wilson. I'm not saying everybody's Julio Jones and Larry Fitzgerald.

They're like the model on how to be an NFL player. But you can't deny it. OBJ and I like him. He's a lot of work. A lot of stuff. And this is not a book. This is now a flashy brochure. And I don't buy any of it right now. This is just, you're selling me a timeshare right now.

That's a pretty flashy brochure. I think that's a Rolls Royce too. And not a Bentley. I've never driven either. Well, me either. But I don't, I mean, O'Dell has, is in a very interesting position because he going to play the card of chip on the shoulder guy this year. But the way that this situation is starting off, it seems as if he's still kind of separate from the team. It has a little bit of a LeBron Lakers feel. Like it's me and then the guys, even though Baker is saying that he has a

relationship with him. Obviously, Jarvis Landry has a relationship with him. Nike feels like they have a relationship. So to me, this is the year that the Browns have the opportunity to create an actual culture, right? And you think of the Browns, you think of habitual losing. This is the year where they have the new coach, they have the quarterback of the future, they have the talent around, establish what your culture is. So in some ways, this is kind of on Freddie Kitchens. Odell has to play there this year.

Why not call them out? Why not be aggressive? You and I both had one question about this roster, Freddie Kitchens. We both said, this would be a hard team to coach for Sean Pate. Right. For Tony Dungey. It's hard to manage egos and personalities. For Bill Parcells, this would be a hard team to coach.

It's why Sean McVeigh is admired the way that he is, that he came in there and created a culture with a bunch of personalities that were kind of put together the same way the Browns are. Mark Slareth in 10 minutes. Last night, the Bucks beat the Raptors. Did anybody notice Brooke Lopez? Has anybody noticed that Brooke Lopez can shoot threes? Has anybody noticed what's happened to the league?

in the last six years. Brooke Lopez had 29 points, 11 rebounds, four blocks, four threes. He is exactly what the Lakers had and gave up. I want to remind you of the incompetence of the Lakers who had a seven-footer. I don't know if you've noticed, but LeBron tends to work well

with Chris Bosch, Kevin Love, and Biggs who can shoot. They had him. He was making nothing, and the Lakers let him go. It should be noted when Brooke Lopez was let go. He was surprised, quote, it just didn't end up working out. It kind of went in one direction. pretty quickly. From that point on, I was looking at other options. I mean, I would have wanted

to play here. And they went and got Javelle McGee who can't shoot. So you do get where the league's going. You do get that Brooke Lopez is high IQ and can shoot threes, which is exactly what the Lakers need, had, and let go. And they're now 29th in the NBA in three-point shooting. And as Milwaukee goes to the finals, because I do think they'll beat Toronto, you're going to watch a former Laker who would have cost them nothing, who's exactly the kind of player. teams are looking for high IQ cheap veteran who can hit threes. Then they traded that young center, Zubach, who was a rim protector to the clippers for a end table. And oh, by the way, Kyrie said yesterday, I'm not going to the Lakers.

Clay's not. KD's not. K. K.D.'s not. Kauai's not. They don't have a team president. Shall I go on? And now the Knicks not getting Zion. They're going to go after Anthony Davis. and they have seven first round picks over the next five years and the number three pick in this draft, which is significantly better than the Lakers four pick. And for the record, Brian Winhor said this about the Lakers and the Knicks battling for Anthony Davis.

From what I understand, the Pelicans are not interested in making a deal with the Los Angeles Lakers. Maybe had they gotten the filet mignon. Yes. The Zion pick. But the Pelicans have the filet mignon or the crawfish Chetoufay, whatever you want to say in the scenario.

And the Lakers have a nice ribby, but they don't have the fillet. So I think the Lakers are actually still out of position. Brooke Lopez, lighting it up last night. Lakers were paying him $3 million. Wanted to be a Laker. That works with LeBron well, like Bosch and Love. Biggs can go outside, take a big with him,

clearing the basket for LeBron. I mean, this stuff, these, These aren't jokes, but they write themselves. They're going to have nobody to blame. Absolutely nobody to blame. He's just going to spend the next two weeks bombing threes. And he cost you a nickel. I got a globe in my office that cost more than Brooke Lopez.

He was unreal last night. Just, just, just boards, blocks, steals, threes, had him, wanted to be a Laker. Works perfectly with LeBron. For the record, Luke Walton was upset when they let him go. I'm not sure if it was magic. Polinka, I'm not going to point a finger, I don't know, but that building decided

we don't need a seven-footer who costs nothing and can hit threes and would work perfectly with LeBron. And now he's on display for the rest of the league to watch. Lord. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern, 9 a.m. Pacific on Fox Sports Radio, FS1,

and the I-Hard Radio app. Mark Schlereth is joining us, three-time Super Bowl, champ, multiple-time pro-bowler, and America's great sports talk storyteller. Hey, by the way, my daughter, Alex, who works here. took me to the U.S. Open a couple of years ago. How great is it?

It is on, like, that should be a bucket list for anybody to go to follow the golfers, and they are not from this planet. Like when you're sick, because you get right on top of the, like the T-box and stuff, when they hit the golf ball, the sound that it makes. Yeah. Like, it reminds me the first time I ever played in the NFL, I'm watching one-on-one run blocking the very first camp. I've come from the University of Idaho,

and Russ Grimm's coming off the ball against Russ Grimm, Hall of Famer, versus Dexter Manly. And that thing, whoa! And I was like, oh my God. I mean, this is a different world. Like, what have I gotten myself into? Like, the sound it made was completely different.

U.S. Open was phenomenal. OTAs. People say they don't matter. O'Dell Beckham won practice. I'm back. I'm leaving 65 days from the trade. And as coach said, he still has to get his mind right.

I know Cleveland wants to tell me, move along. It's all good here. Right, right. It doesn't feel right, Mark. No. I mean, it doesn't. Like, do you want to be a great football?

He's an outstanding football player. He's an outstanding talent. Right. Okay. Do you want to be a legendary football player or do you want to build a brand? Like, which is it? I'll tell you this about Instagram. Like, you want to lead the league and Instagram followers?

You know what happens to the guy who dies with the most Instagram followers? He's dead. Nobody cares. He's dead, right? There's no Hall of Fame for that. No. You don't take, they don't put a plaque up. I mean, like, he died, but he had a lot of Instagram followers.

Like, Peyton Manning is the greatest pitchman in the history of the National Football League. Easily. Easily. The biggest brand still to this day. Yeah. He did it in Indianapolis. You can do it anywhere. You know what?

You know what the qualifier is? You got to be great. You've got to be a great player. Peyton Manning didn't do commercials for nine years. He just won games. that's what it is. Joe Gibbs used to say this to us all the time when I first got to Washington

and Joe Gibbs, the only, you know, the only coaching history win three Super Bowls with three different quarterbacks, right? Yes, yeah. With Joe Thisman and Doug Williams and Mark Rippin, right? And he said this all the time. He goes, hey, listen, guys, you know, these voluntary camps and stuff, he used to say to us all the time, you don't

have to live here in D.C. You don't have to. You don't have to spend the off-season here. You don't. Unless, of course, you want to make this team. He goes, because then if you want to make the team, you need to be here. He believed and he preached in us being together. I mean, I coached a little league team with my strength and conditioning coach, Dan Riley. Joe Jacoby and Russ Grimm didn't even have kids at that time.

They coached the little league team. Like, we were barbecuing together. We were together. And when you're together like that, you tend to sacrifice more for one another because it becomes important. It's not about you. It's about us. Yes. And that's what wins football games.

And so I just believe in being together. I believe in working out together. I believe in that fellowship aspect that draws you closer together. I believe that's how you create championship teams, not just putting a collection of talent together, because I guarantee that Cleveland Browns are as talented as anybody on the face of the planet. But everybody in the NFL is talented. You don't line up against the blind sisters of the poor ever.

Nobody would ever say New England is the most talented team in the league. They weren't last year. No, but they just win Super Bowls because they're together. Adam Gase, who you know very well, actually. He's one of these coaches you've had a lot of conversations with. I think he's Kyle Shanahan. We don't crush Shanahan for a losing record because Jimmy G. got hurt. We crush Adam Gase for getting fired, which, by the way, Shanahan, Belichick, Pete Carroll, and you would have been fired.

Who had a winning record, by the way, Adam Gase, when Ryan Tannehill played. I think it is his franchise. I had no problem with what the Jets did yesterday. Darnold and Gase are the franchise. It takes a while to figure out the GM doesn't work with him. Were you bothered yesterday by what happened? Well, initially, when it went down, I was like, that's the most jetty thing that Jets could do, right? Go through the whole off season, have the guy pick the head coach, right?

Be very instrumental in picking Adam Gase and then doing the draft and signing all the free agents, $125 million spent on free agents, and then all of a sudden firing the guy. But here's where I think it could be beneficial. Adam Gase comes from Miami. That's where he was coaching. and Miami is, I mean, it's dysfunctional. It needed a culture change. And I think Adam tried to change the culture, couldn't get it done in Miami because he wasn't empowered.

He was appointed, but not empowered. And to change a culture, you have to be empowered. And you've got to set the culture and then you've got to live the culture every single day. And if you're not given the power to do that, well, it's really hard to actually have that culture change. I'll tell you a quick story. I was there on a Friday practice calling a game for Fox, and I literally thought I was going to get in trouble. The practice was so dysfunctional, it was so bad, 12 years of playing, 18 years of broadcasting, two years of doing games here at Fox, and I pulled Adam aside after practice, and I said, dude, that's the

worst practice I've ever seen in my entire life. The worst. What do you say? Tell me about it. Like, if you're not supported from the organization and you're not empowered, I don't care who you are. You're not, you will, I promise you, you won't win. So if this was about empowering your head coach to set a culture and giving him that ultimate power, you know, that kind of veto stamp, then this could be a really good thing for the Jets if you spin it that way. If that's indeed what went on. I have no idea. Now there's a report that he didn't love the Levian Bell contract.

And I've said this before. Sure. My theory on running backs is just go to the SEC, draft one every year. They can all play. Just draft SEC running back. Alabama's third running back will make the league or LSUs, right? But Goff, Gurley, Dak, Zeke, darn old Lavian. When I have a rookie on a rookie quarterback, I will overpay for a transformational running back for about three years.

Because Goff isn't the same without Gurley. We saw the numbers this year. Right. Zee get hurt, Dax's not the same, and Darnold needs, with that O-Line, he needs him. Lavian Bell works for me with the Jets. I don't think the Steelers needed him with their own line, their weapons, and Big Ben. What do you make of Gase, Lavian Bell, and the fit here? Yeah, I actually think it's a really good fit.

I think it's more about, I just came from Miami, where I ended up trying to ship out in Domen Sue, Jarvis Landry, because I was trying to change the culture. Not that they're not great players, but, you know, I'm trying to change the culture. And this is, to me, overpaying for a guy who, you know, took a year off, maybe didn't want to be there. But he is historically great. But here, this is where I think it's great. Now, I think that's probably Adam Gase's issue with Levyon Bell. But when you talk about the fit, Adam Gase probably runs 11 personnel, which is three wide receivers, one back.

One back. One tight end. It's a spread type of offense. He probably is in that. I think the last time I did a game last year for them, I had them at about 78 to 80%, somewhere in there, 78, 79, 80% of 11 personnel. And they run, I mean, he wants to be proficient in wide zone blocking.

That's what they want to do. It's a zone system, wide zone, play action off the wide zone, and then multiple formations where you can motion backs out, throw it to a back, and all that stuff. Like, Leveon Belt is perfect. one, he's one of the most, if not the most patient runner I've ever watched. So when you get to that wide zone, that wide stretch, and you stretch, stretch, stretch, stretch, stretch. You set up those blocks and then you have the ability to cut back underneath that stuff.

Like, he is a perfect fit there. So I think this could work. I think it's just that, one, I'm not empowered as the head coach to make these decisions, and I need the culture, the way I need the culture. I think that's the problem he had. And now, as a general manager, you get a. set the tone as the interim general manager. And I'm sure they'll hire somebody else now because he's

the head coach, offensive coordinator, you know, general manager, grand pooboff of all things football. That's Adam Gase right now. I think they'll go in a different direction. But ultimately, I think Levy on Bell is a great fit for what Adam Gase runs. I'm very excited for football.

And it just feels like, it feels good. Yeah. Yeah. By the way, Mark is part of Schlereth and Evans and the mornings in Denver. That thing is a smoke show. Yes, it is. Big numbers. Yeah.

Well, you know what? We pride ourselves on copying the stuff that you do. We just kind of take it. And it's really been successful for us. Good thing. I like what I's called. I'm Michelle McPhee, and I've been unraveling the strangest criminal alliance I've ever reported on. A Mormon polygamist and an Armenian businessman.

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