The Herd with Colin Cowherd - Best of The Herd for May 28, 2020

Episode Date: May 28, 2020

LeBron should be the MVP just like he should have been most of the past decadeAnother Hall of Famer has an issue with Michael Jordan and the documentaryPeople are way too sensitive about Cam NewtonTom Brady is happy to leave BostonColin participates in a spelling beeGuest: Rob Parker, FS1 Instigator Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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

Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and Friends on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. On the Look Back at it podcast. From 1979, that was a big moment for me. 84 is big to me. I'm Sam J. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick a year, unpack what went down,

and try to make sense of how we survived it. With our friends, fellow comedians, and favorite authors. Like Mark Lamont Hill on the 80s. 84 was a wild. I mean, it was a wild year. I don't think there's a more important year for black people. Listen to look back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, what's good, y'all?

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Find your local station for the herd at Fox Sports Radio.com or stream us live every day on the iHeartRadio app by searching Heard. is the best of the herd with Colin Cowher on Fox Sports Radio. Ah, here we go. I don't even know what day it is. I think it's Thursday. Live in Los Angeles, this is The Herd. Wherever you may be and however you may be listening, we are on IHeart Radio, Fox Sports Radio, and FS1.

Joy Taylor and I having fascinating conversations before the show even begins. It has been one of those weeks where I've no idea what day it is. Like it feels like today is Friday. Yesterday felt like it was Thursday. It's... I was in, my wife gets upset last night. Like at 8.30, we jumped into bed to go to bed. And she doesn't like that.

She's like, it just feels like I've been up since six. And it's, I want more day. And I'm like, are you tired? She goes, yeah. And I'm like, let's go to bed. It's okay. I had a great night's sleep. Women like to decide when everybody goes to bed.

Oh, totally. We like to decide that. Oh, my. It's incredible. Like my wife gets mad at me if I'm like 8.50. I'm like, you know, I played tennis today. I went for a four mile walk. I'm going to bed.

It's 8.50. And I'm like, and I'm tired. Right. And if we're tired, it's time for everyone to go to bed. That is so true. God. I can't explain it. It's just a thing.

What is it about you women having to dictate when everybody goes to bed? We all have to go to bed at the same time. Folks, this is true and I don't know why. Let me start with this. finally, somebody said it. There's something about basketball that always crack me up. Why can't basketball just love what they have? The documentary, we love looking behind,

and we're always trying to find the new shiny toy. Why can't we just appreciate LeBron? Why can't we just say, yeah, best player in the world last 15 years, put our arms around him and like, let's go watch LeBron play? Finally, LeBron's got in his career three MVP's. That's embarrassing. That's embarrassing. Media that covers the NBA.

That's embarrassing. Oh, my bad. Four. He should have 11. I mean, literally, he left the Eastern Conference, and the Eastern Conference was man overboard. They're doing receding right now in the NBA. They're considering reseeding the playoffs to eliminate East versus West. They're not doing that because of Yannis.

They're not doing that because of Westbrook. They're not doing that. They're doing that, not because of Kawhi. They're doing it because of LeBron James. Finally, somebody yesterday came out because everybody thinks Janus is going to win the MVP. Nice kid, great kid like him. It's not LeBron James. It's a nice, six foot 11.

He's 250, and Kauai Leonard tossed him all over the floor last year in the Eastern Conference playoffs. Finally, Damien Lillard said, just consider everything. MVP is LeBron. This season, I think, is LeBron. You know, the number one team in the West, they've been consistent all year long. And for him to be at the age he's at with the amount of miles that. he has on his body. How often he's talked about, you know, the pressure they put on him and every little thing

that he does and the level he's performing that, I feel like, in my opinion, I think he's an MVP. Of course he's the MVP. For the last six or seven years, the NBA media has tried to convince me his run is over. First it was KD. KD's not built like LeBron. KD gets hurt a lot. KD emotionally couldn't handle Draymond G.

on Green. Katie's not LeBron. He's just a great player. He's a great score. He's probably a great kid. It's not LeBron James physically. He's not LeBron James mentally. I mean, LeBron's handled the Kobe death, deftly.

He's handled his ownership mess in Cleveland. He handled the pressure of being the NBA's villain. Occasionally, some people, I don't know why, don't like what he says. They don't like what he said about China. They don't like what he said. about, you know, moving to Miami. Those are just words. His actions have been impeccable.

And he grew up with all sorts of chaos. He hasn't had a misstep, a physical misstep. Ooh, he said something about China. Really? We're holding that against him. Like, he has to have some geopolitical acumen. Our politicians can't get it right. We have to babysit our president half the time.

And then we don't like what he said about how he was taking his talents to Miami. That's funny. Cleveland burned his jersey and then begged, please come back. You didn't really care about his words. You're insecure or you're Cleveland. The minute you could have him back, you did. But you told me KD was going to be. Oh, then it's Kauai.

Kauai doesn't play every third game. Kauai is great. But he's not LeBron James. He's not verbal. He's not carrying the league. He's on the second best team in Los Angeles. Angeles. And then there's Janus. Janus is him. Oh, okay. Janus is way, 60 minutes and a piece. Janus's playoff record is 17 and 17. That's in the east. 500. The bronze never lost a first round

playoff series. Janus is only one two playoff series. Does everybody understand people do not get credit for the disasters they avoid? I've said this about presidents for years and years. I've said this about presidents for years and years. A really good president, regardless in my lifetime, avoids disasters. So you never get credit because you don't. It's like don't start a fire and then call yourself a hero for saving people. The great presidents don't start the fires. So they don't have to pull people out of buildings. The reality is LeBron has made bad ownership in Cleveland, dysfunction in Los Angeles, unbelievable pressure in Miami. He's just made it all work.

He just makes it work all the time everywhere. And Janus doesn't control every game he's in. LeBron does. I mean, if you watch a Laker game, your eyes go to LeBron. I mean, they just, he's got the ball in his hands, the passing, the distributing, the shooting, low, threes, the clock. He's coaching. Yonis doesn't do that. Katie doesn't do that.

There's lots of games the Warriors were in that Katie either didn't play, played occasionally or didn't dominate. There were games that Clay took over and Steph took over. Kauai, I think he's terrific. But he's left. The Raptors are still number one in the league in defense without Kauai. They're still very good without Kauai. Every team LeBron leaves disintegrates.

He left the Eastern Conference. It disintegrated. Like, stop. Give LeBron credit for the stuff he avoids. If LeBron's in the room, if LeBron's on the team, it's going to be okay. He's like the really successful dad, and he's got all these children under him, and some are talented and some are dysfunctional. But the successful dad comes in, and he just kind of cleans all the messes up.

He just makes it work. He makes Miami work. LeBron and D. Wade, frankly, have similar games. They didn't even really work together. And then Bosch had to change his game for LeBron. I mean, Chris Bosch was averaging 25 and 10, goes to Miami, and they kind of moved him outside and made him a shooter. LeBron made it work. Four finals, two titles.

And he and D. Wade, they're game, D. Wade's not really, I mean, LeBron's best driving, passing, three-point shooters. It didn't really work. Four finals, two titles. He made it work. He goes back. Kyrie. Kyrie doesn't get along with anybody. They rolled through coaches.

The GMs they rolled through. The owner wasn't perfect. They make it work. They win. Nobody wins in Cleveland. LeBron works in Cleveland. They go to Los Angeles. A franchise that was dysfunctional for years.

I mean, it was a mess. They couldn't land free agents. They all have all these young kids. LeBron goes in there. After about a year, boom, boom, boom. Anthony Davis shows up. They're number one in the West. Just you got to give people credit.

Too often in society, we crown people heroes for saving messes they created. LeBron just makes everything, lubricates everything, makes it work. They got the second oldest roster with the Lakers. Nobody thinks they have the world's best management. I mean, think about since he's been there. You had Magic as a president and then Magic left and Magic held an impromptu press conference without telling people and now an agent runs the franchise.

and the unspeakably tragic death of Kobe Bryant. They've had multiple trades in the Lonzo Ball situation, and Anthony Davis gets hurt. Kyle Kuzma this year is not happy, and the Lakers are the number one seed in the best road record. And of course, he's the MVP. It's not even close. An NBA media, just put your arms around him.

Why don't you give him three straight MVPs to make up for the 11 you've missed on? he's been the most essential, most impressive, most important basketball player in this league for 10 plus years. He's got four MVPs? If you would have put somebody that just didn't have the emotional stability of LeBron into Cleveland initially, and then into Miami, and then into the Lakers, does everybody understand as great as the Lakers brand was? Before LeBron got there for about five years, it was a mess. It was a mess at ownership, executive level, roster, scouting. It was a mess.

Now, Bulls talked about team in the league. For the record, I don't think he'll win MVP. I don't. It's not the way the NBA media works. He's easily the MVP. But Janus, 17 and 17, great kid, great. player, 1717, playoff record in the East, will win it.

And it's nothing against the honest. Put your arms around the guy that's carried the league for a decade. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern, 9 a.m. Pacific on Fox Sports Radio, FS1, and the IHeart Radio app. Last night, a blown call

changed a game. This morning, the internet lost its mind. Highlights are trending, opinions are flying, and nobody's telling you exactly what happened. That's where Sports Slice comes in. I'm Timbo. Every episode, we're cutting through the noise. Breaking down the plays, the controversies, and the stories behind the headlines. We go straight to the source, the 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 SportsSlic 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. 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 Keer games is we have real conversations about he growing, fatherhood, pressure, and purpose on my new podcast, Learn the Hardway. Open your free Our Heart Radio app. Search Learn the Hardway and listen now. Do you remember when Diana Ross double-tapped Little Kim's boobs at the VMAs? Or when Kanye said that George Bush didn't like black people. I know what you're thinking. What the hell does George Bush got to do with Little Kim?

Well, you can find out on the Look Back at it podcast. I'm Sam Jett. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick you here, unpack what we. went down and tried to make sense of how we survived it. Including a recent episode with Mark Lamont Hill, waxing all about crack in the AIDS. To be clear, 84 is big to me, not just because of crack.

I'm down to talk about crack all day, but just so you all know. I mean, at this point, Mark, this is the second episode where we've discussed crack. So I'm starting to see that there's a through line. We also have AIDS on the table right now. Thank you for finishing that sentence. Yes. I don't think there's a more important year for black people. Really? Yeah. For me, it's one of the most important years for black people in American history.

Listen to look back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. What's up, guys? This is Clever Taylor the Fourth. And on my podcast, The Cliverts Show, I'm bringing you conversations about all kinds of stuff. Like being an internet famous referee. We're in the middle of a game. This linebacker, this linebacker walks up to me. He goes, hey, ref, my mom wants you to wave at her. What? Time out. Quarterback on office blue with 42. Hey, Wreck, my mama want you to weigh better. What?

Where's she at? Hey, Miss Parker. Listen to the Clifford show on the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. For years and years, people think I'm pro-Lebron and anti-Michael Jordan. That's literally what people thought. And I always said, LeBron does more things well than anybody ever. Michael Jordan's probably the greatest player.

but I don't think it's a wild huge gap. I think Michael was cooler. There was more glamour. His shoes, his apparel sells better. There's a coolness to Michael. There's a willfulness. There's an aggression that LeBron sometimes isn't quite, you know, kind of the killer that Michael is. It's a different generation.

I mean, LeBron is more, let's get along. Michael's more old school. Cigars and, you know, bourbons and, you know, LeBron's more wine and let's all get along. it's a different generation. You know, Warren Buffett always says, every generation's got a better quality of life. LeBron's kids are going to grow up even more uniquely than his dad. And so, like, we're all different.

Every generation changes. Grandpa, the dad, the son, the brother. It all changes, right? But I do think Michael's probably the best player I've ever seen. I think LeBron's the second. I think Magic's the third. I don't count centers. Nothing against them, but, you know, kind of a genetic lottery thing.

So, but it shows you the power of Michael because, How many people are still upset about the documentary because Michael was honest. Now, Michael wasn't totally honest. He didn't want Isaiah on the dream team, and that's why I wasn't on it. And we still don't know about that pizza thing and that sickness thing. There's a lot of questions about it. But the reality was when it comes to individual players, he was totally honest. And it drives them nuts because basketball culture in America is fine talent, coddle talent, worship talent, paid talent.

They don't hear a lot of criticism. They control the GM. They control the fans. They control the coach. It doesn't work that way in the NFL. It doesn't work that way in hockey. Doesn't work that way in the MLS. It doesn't work that way in college or high school sports.

Works that way in the NBA. They get used to it, the coddling, the worshiping. You know, every, you make more money on shoes than you actually do the millions you make on your, you know, your contract. And so when somebody points out your flaws, they're not used to it. NBA guys are not used to getting criticized. It's a love fest their entire career. So Clyde Drexler comes out yesterday. And he now doesn't like the way he's portrayed in the Michael.

Jordan documentary. Here's Clyde. That's Michael's documentary. Of course, obviously it's going to be from his perspective. And a lot of times guys didn't like each other from other teams. But as you get older, you've got to get beyond all of that and show some love

and some respect for the people you play with and against. This is a team game. It's not one guy. I mean, you could have 50 points and 40 rebounds, but if you lose, are you less of a player than anybody on the other team? No. So it's team game. So I hate when people act like it's an individual competition. I didn't take 35

shots and get 20 free throws a night. So you're not going to score 47 points tonight. Clyde also didn't play defense, you know, much. So now four people who are upset with the documentary, Pippen, Isaiah, Horace Grant, and Clyde Drexler. They deserve their reputations. Isaiah Thomas, talented, not well-like, can be a phony. That's been the knock on him forever. That's earned. Scotty Pippin, talented but immature. Let's see, the gun charge, wouldn't get surgery, wouldn't go into a game, the DUI. That's deserved.

Clyde Drexler, mega-talented, but not nearly as committed as Michael Jordan. He once got a job at the University of Houston. He would show up at Tipoff. Two years disaster. He just didn't play much defense. He didn't commit to practice. That was always the knock on Clyde. Hell, he never developed a left hand on his entire career.

Head down, right hand, drive to the basket. great talent, and I'm told a great guy. And then there's Horace Grant, a one-time All-Star who always felt he was much better than he was. He was a very nice player. He wasn't a star. He wasn't great. He was really, really good. One All-Star appearance.

None of these are unjustified. That's how they were portrayed. Michael didn't bang on Clyde Drexter. He said he was definitely worthy. But when I was compared to him, I took that personally. You should. Michael was way better, more committed, more willful, better defensive player, more clutch player, more all-in. But basketball players don't take heat well.

I mean, God, Kevin Durant left Golden State, great owner, great GM, great coach, great roster, great teammate. Does Raymond Green got in his kitchen for five seconds? He left. They're not used to it. Michael's old school. He's honest about it. He's not always honest. I'm not saying he's the Pope.

He's not the beacon of honesty all time. But if you said, if you took modern players today, let's take four modern players. Let's take KD. And 20 years from now, you said, oh, he was talented. A little bit of a flake. That'd be fair. Westbrook. Oh, my God, great talent.

Not a winning basketball player. James Harden. Oh, my God, an all-time great score. I'm not sure he's a great teammate. Kyrie Irving. I'm not sure. I've ever seen a better finisher under 6'5 in my life. Didn't get along with a lot of people, difficult to play with.

Those would all be justified. I said great for all of them first. Clyde was great. Pippin was great. Horace Grant was good. Isaiah was great. But there's a but after each of them. All of it justified.

None of it unfair. I watched this documentary with a completely open mind. I remember so much of it. Basically, it just reintroduced me to stuff I already knew. I mean, there was some footage I hadn't seen. There was a funny story about the, you know, the Chicago Bulls team full of cocaine when Michael walked into the room. But there's not a single thing said here that I thought misrepresented the truth.

Even Isaiah Thomas, Barclay didn't like him. Chuck Daly, his own coach, didn't support him. They didn't want him on the dream team. Michael was a better player. Barkley was a better player at the time. If two great guys don't want a less great guy on a team and you're going for three weeks to travel together, eat together, sleep together, dine together. They don't want you?

You're not going. Eh, so what? Be sure to catch live editions of the herd. Weekdays at noon Eastern 9 a.m. An anonymous general manager said this week, anonymous because I guess you can't criticize Cam Newton publicly or you get blowback. I don't know why you couldn't just say it. But the quarterback said, the GM said the decline is evident. And there's a lot of confusion on why the market, there is none for Cam.

Now, I predicted it would be very, very small because the NFL's been telling me for years what they want from quarterbacks. So I try to listen. Employers all the time will tell you this is what we want. Like sportscasters, you can talk politics, but your bosses don't like it. And next contract, it'll work against you. But go for it. You have a right to talk about it. It's not going to hurt you.

It will not help you in your next contract negotiation. I can assure you that. I can give you nine examples. No reason to name names. The NFL is telling you with one move what they want with quarterbacks. It's Carolina. They took Teddy Bridgewater. over Cam. Teddy's smaller. Teddy had a worse injury. Teddy doesn't have a huge arm. Teddy's not

the athlete. So instead of trying to figure out this complicated reason why, just look at Carolina. Carolina's former coach, Ron Rivera, traded to get Cam's backup. And Carolina's new coach chose Teddy Bridgewater, who two years ago we would have seen as Cam Newton's backup. Why? Because the NFL's telling you what they want with quarterbacks. Cam's distracted. They're not into that. Cam's a celebrity.

They're not into that. Cam's coachable, but there's drama, I've been told for years. They're not into that. It's not the injury. Teddy Bridgewater's got a worse career injury. Cam's got a bigger arm, a better body, won a lot of games, won an MVP. Just look at Carolina. The former coach, I'll take his backup.

The current coach, I'll take a guy that we think is his backup. Nick Wright was on their show earlier this week, and I think his opinion is shared by many in the NFL confusion over Cam. It's an unfortunate time as far as given the pandemic, he can't go into work out with teams and they can see that he's healthy. I think another is you've got, I don't know what the number is, but maybe a quarter to a third of teams in the league that just aren't Cam Newton friendly, so to speak. For some reason or another, there are certain guys who you just say, well, they get to be backup quarterbacks and nobody will bat nine. So I don't get it. I don't think it's just football with Cam. I don't think it's ever been just football with Cam. I still think he's a top, at the very least, top 18 starter in the NFL column.

That's interesting. He said it's not just football with Cam. That's exactly it. GMs want just football with their quarterbacks. They don't want celebrity. They don't want drama. They don't want fashion. They frankly don't want politics. But if you're great, they'll deal with it. And think how good Aaron Rogers is. There's a story today that suggests the Packers are going to start integrating Jordan Love into the offense. Like they're telling you what they want in the NFL. They want that. They want that. Teddy Bridgewater. They prefer Teddy Bridgewater with more talent. Kirk Cousins got re-signed.

Marcus Mariotto still gets jobs. Nick Folles still gets jobs. James got a job. James isn't distracted. He just throws too many picks. James isn't a celebrity. He just throws too many picks. Employers tell you, this is what we like.

Do what they like. Want more herd? The herd streams 24 hours a day, seven days a week within the IHeart Radio app. Search heard to listen live or on demand whenever you'd like. So Joy, you and I have lived in a bunch of places. Yes. And I lived in

New England for 10 years. About an hour drive from Boston, about an hour 45 from New York. I prefer New York. For a lot of reasons, but I prefer New York. Nothing against, nothing against Boston. But this story reminds me of Boston. A radio host at W.EEI, Lou Merlone,

I think he's a baseball guy mostly. He says, I don't like the new Tom Brady. This is not working for me. he's putting himself out there I don't like it and this is this is not working I watch the match here it is I'm not so sure I like the new Tom Brady

I'm starting to worry about it you know he defended him the whole like TB12 supplements and then the video came out I don't know what it was Thursday or Friday and I was like oh Jesus like just enough he doesn't have like the personality of Peyton you know what I mean doesn't have the personality of Phil Mickelson joking around whatever

I'm not so sure putting himself out there is really a good thing you can match wits with me he's a nice guy but he's not like, you know, witty. I don't know. Like, I just, I think he should just concentrate on playing football and let us judge him on his football. I'm not so sure it's going to be a good thing. No, Tom's aspirational.

You know when Mark Wolberg and Bill Simmons and Dana White and Ben Affleck and Matt Damon got rich when they left Boston? Because there's a better world out there. Boston's fine, but the old saying is, Fences make good neighbors in New England. In other words, we do it our way. There's our way.

We care about us. It's about us. We don't want to learn new. We don't want to do new. It's about the way we do it in Boston. That's fine. It's a great city. Intellectual hub, great sports city, politically savvy.

But it's a suffocating city if you're into aspirational, bigger things than having a condo up in Portland, Maine to retire. hiring out in a state with more caribou than people. I like Boston. I thought it was fun. But it is. Their DNA is they're not growing. A friend of mine met him, owned a gym. He started a gym in New York.

And he was worried because New York's got some of the world's best gyms. Very competitive. But he created a gym. It was great. And it succeeded very quick. Within two months, he was making money. And he thought, well, this is. This is easy.

I'm going to move on, open it up in central Connecticut, which is all Bostonians. Struggled for years. Why? Because New Yorkers don't care where you're from. If you're good, they like you. If you're great, they love you. They're always looking to grow. New York's an aspirational city.

Come on in. Can you elevate the city politically, sports? Come on in. Boston's not. Boston people, even though the gym was significantly nicer than the surrounding gyms in the area, I was there, it was a mile better, they don't want new stuff. We do what we do. We live what we live.

We don't need new friends. Fences make good neighbors. Tom Brady's aspirational. Tom Brady wants something bigger than just what he did. He wants a brand. He marries a supermodel. He wants to, I mean, Tom is just grow, grow, grow, do new stuff, keep, you. young. That ain't Boston. That's not. That's New York. That's L.A. There's a lot of cities like that.

So it doesn't surprise me that there are people in Boston that would be, I don't like the new guy. You don't like new stuff. Like that's not what Boston is. It's heavy, heavy into tradition. And its tradition in sports is amazing. And its tradition in politics is amazing. And its academic depth is fantastic. but it's a lot of rearview mirror, and Tom is a windshield guy. 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. Rob Parker hosts a radio show with Chris Broussard. It's called The Odd Couple. I believe it's the fastest growing sports talk radio show in the country. Very sticky,

as they call it. Very funny. At Fox Sports 1, we're giving him a new nickname today. I've never done this. Change the guy's nickname on the air. He works at your. USC as an adjunct professor. The new nickname is the professor for Rob Parker. So we're just going to call him the professor? He is the professor now. Let's bring in, I'm not saying he's not loony.

Some professors can be loony. He's Rob Parker joining us via the Coward Global Satellite Network. So how does that sit with you, the professor? Do you like that? I'll take that. Yes. And my students at USC, they will love it as well. You know what, Colin? I love teaching.

You know, I brought my class in. met with them. They loved it. They loved it. There's so many smart, young, energetic, bright minds out there. So I love teaching at USC. Let's start with this. You are a diehard baseball fan.

You're on my herd podcast. Baseball, I think they got to get on this thing. You can't have your season all into football season. Do you have hope they're going to get this thing right soon, Rob? I do have hope. know sometimes, you know, when there's negotiations, it doesn't look good, you know, or it doesn't sound good. But Colin, baseball cannot afford to go 18 months without a season. It just would be ridiculous. First of all, there's too much money on the table, television wise. And it can only

hurt the players as they go into next year looking for a new CBA if there's no baseball and the owners don't make any money. Here's the other thing. America needs baseball. America needs America has always Colin healed from baseball. Don't forget 9-11. Do you remember George Bush throwing out that pitch in the World Series in 2001? Do you remember that? Yeah. In the third game, how awesome that was and how much that made people feel like life was back to normal.

And even when we go to the ballpark and we stand for the national anthem, them. Baseball started that trend back in World War II. So baseball's a part of our fabric. It will return us to normalcy. We hear it every day, whether we're watching the game, whether it's on in the car, whether it's in the background, or you're sitting out on your deck. So baseball needs to be back for the recovery and the healing of this country. So Damian Lillard, one of my favorite players, came out yesterday and said, come on, man, consider everything LeBron's this year. He's the MVP most valuable player, what he's had to deal with, an old roster, throwing it all together. Rob, I know you must agree with this. No ways, no how. It's not a

lifetime achievement award. What is Damien Lillard talking about? It makes no sense. First of all, Anthony Davis has better numbers than LeBron except for assist. So that's number one. Number two, Janice is having an unbelievable number. Go ask all the stack geeks and pencil protectors. They'll tell you it's one of the greatest seasons ever put together. His team has the best record. This is not about rewarding LeBron. And plus, he added Anthony Davis to his team, right?

He has two of the best three or four players in the league. So they should be doing well. They should be winning. Damien Lillard is off here. if he put out a rap album and this was on it, I wouldn't buy it. How's that? By the way, there's been articles. I think this is the most, you know, I said, Jordan had the last dance. For LeBron, this is the last chance. This is an old roster, a bad free agency class, the cap's coming down. It's a lousy draft. This is LeBron's chance to win. I do not, I think

the clippers are built for five or six years. I think the Lakers are built for five or six years. I think the Lakers are for this year. Agree or disagree? Totally agree. Colin, I wrote this in my column at Deadspin.com. That LeBron could wind up being the biggest loser when the season reboots because he has to win this year. Just what you talked about, where the Lakers are.

You'll never know if they'll be this good again. A.D. becomes a free agent. Does he re-sign? He can be flaky. You don't know that. And here's the other part. and LeBron should be worried about is all the other competition that also is going to return. Brooklyn will have Durant and Kyrie together.

Don't forget, Golden State will be a player. Steph and Clay will be back, right? And they'll get a good draft pick because they have their terrible season. So when you start to look around, and you're right, the Clippers, to me, were a good team this year, and they didn't even get a chance

to really gel. Those guys were in and out of the lineup with injuries. So now them a year later, they'll be even better. So I think the competition only stiffens. And it's going to be tough. So LeBron has to win. If he doesn't win, he's the biggest loser, especially because he's so long in the tooth at this point. A Boston radio host, W-E-E-E-I, Lou Merloney said, I don't like the new Brady. I don't like the way he sounds. He's trying too hard. He got thrown out of a park. He's not good on the match. And my argument is, Boston is insular paralyzed by tradition. They don't like anything that's not like them.

And I think Tom Brady has opened up a whole new exciting world on jet skis with his kids down in Tampa. What do you make of this claim that the new Brady doesn't work? The new Brady is a phony. Where was this Brady for 20 years in New England? You know this, Colin. He was all shucks, gee whiz. He never gave you anything. Don't you remember when Peter Alexander from NBC News asked him,

is Tom Brady a cheater? He shrugged his shoulders and said, I don't think so. That was a Tom Brady. I'll never forget that moment. Melody is right. And now he's like a college kid down in Tampa, eating at Hooters, enjoying life.

He's great now. Let his hair. down. Come on. I'm not buying this new Tom Brady. At all. Do you think he's got a better record, New England, Tampa? I'm going to go with New England. I know everybody's going to say, I'm crazy and, oh, you hate Tom Brady. I'm not buying into the Tampa thing. I do not believe they're going to. Remember this. Mark is taped out. They will not. N-O-T make the playoffs. Tom Brady is an old 43. We We saw him last year with the Patriots.

It wasn't a pretty sight. One of his worst seasons. And I think everybody, the seasons is not played on paper just like a year ago when everybody in their uncle piled on the bandwagon for the Browns and they didn't even make the playoffs. That's not a bad. That's not a bad take. All right. The professor.

Rob Parker. What's your shirt say? Pull it up there. Let me see it. It's Fox Sports. All right. You know, I have all kinds of. gear at get rob.com, you know, Colin. I got to get you one of these. You enjoy. All right,

get rob. Houdy.com. Very nice. Thank you, Professor. All right. Thanks, Colin. Appreciate it. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern, 9 a.m. Pacific. Last night, a blown call changed the 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 SportsSlic on the Iheart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Sliced Life 12 in the TikTok podcast network on TikTok. Welcome to my new podcast, Learn the Hardway with me, your host, and your favorite therapist, Kear Games.

And in recognition of mental health awareness month, I'm bringing over a decade of my own experience in the mental health field and conversations with so many incredible guests. I'm talking, Tripp Fontaine, Ryan Clark. Sometimes when we're in the pursuit of the thing, we get so wrapped. up in the chase that we don't realize that we are in possession of the thing and we're still chasing it and we don't know when we've done enough because people scoreboard watch life becomes about wins and losses Steve Burns Dustin Ross 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 Keer games is we have real conversations about I call 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. Do you remember when Diana Ross double-tap Little Kim's boobs at the VMAs? Or when Kanye said that George Bush didn't like black people. I know what you're thinking.

What the hell does George Bush got to do with Little Kim? Well, you can find out on the Look Back at it podcast. I'm Sam Jett. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick you here. unpack what went down and try to make sense of how we survived it. Including a recent episode with Mark Lamont Hill, waxing all about crack in the 80s.

To be clear, 84 is big to me, not just because of crack. I'm down to talk about crack on day, but just so y'all know. I mean, at this point, Mark, this is the second episode where we've discussed crack, so I'm starting to see that there's a through line. We also have AIDS on the table right now, so. Then you're finishing that sentence. Yes. I don't think there's a more important year for black.

Black people. Really? Yeah. For me, it's one of the most important years for black people in American history. Listen to look back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. What's up guys? This is Clever Taylor the Fourth. And on my podcast, The Clivert show, I'm bringing you conversations about all kinds of stuff. Like being an internet famous referee. We're in the middle of a game. This linebacker, this linebacker, this linebacker walks up to me. He goes, A, ref, my mom wants you to wave at her. What? Time out. Quarterback on office blue with 42.

Hey, Rhett, my mama want you to weigh better. What? Hey, Miss Parker. Listen to the Clifford show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. I didn't know if I was back because they turned off all my monitors. Everything is black in the studio for me. I can't see anything because today should be the script spelling beer yesterday, but it got canceled because of the virus. Right.

So we thought we would do to end our show best for last. The herd spelling B. So they turned off the cameras. Everything in the studio is pitch black. My monitor's black. The middle one, it tells me to read something, but it's Discover commercial. So that's all it has. And then this one doesn't have any words on it.

So I'm ready. So you cannot cheat. I can't, no, I can't cheat. So here we go. We're doing to do the hurt. I can't even look at, they won't even let me look at myself. Why can't I look at myself? Can I use a pen?

No. I can't use a pen. Those kids can't use a pen. Yeah, they can't use a pen. They mimic writing on their hand. Yeah, you can write it out. Okay, here we go. All right.

The word is, well, let's just say the name is, the name is Rothlessberger. Ben Rothlisberger. R-O-E-T-H-H-L-I-S-B-E-R-G-E-R. Yay, very good. All right. All right. I'm impressed. You didn't even need to use it in a sentence or anything.

The name is Garapolo. Jimmy Garapolo, 49ers quarterback. Correct. G-A. Oh, boy. Is it one R or two? Hold on. Hold on.

G-A-R. Lord, is it one R or two? Hold on. Hello. G. G-A-R-A-P-A-L-O. G-A-G-R-O-P-P-O-L-O. God, I butcher.

That was not your best effort on that one. It went off the rails quickly. I can tell by your facial. All right, let's see if you can get this one. Ants-a-C-C-U-N-O-U-N-S. Can I just do Giannis? No, you cannot do Yonis. You want me to just hit the wrong buzzer now, or do you want to wait?

Give it a try. No, I've looked at this for it. A-N-T-E. anti and then it goes T-O-K-O okay U-N-M-P-O

whoa pow very good yeah I did not think you were going to I'm now convinced you are cheating somehow there's no way

that's amazing first of all I butchered Garapolo I mean there's no question you butcher Garapolo it was it's I have also seen Janus and Rothesburgers's

names a million times. Like Garapolo's the 14th best quarterback. I don't see his name as much. I'm impressed with I thought you had no chance of getting that one. How about Donchich? Luca Donchich. I think it's D-O-N-C-I-C-I-C. Yep.

Yeah, that's an easy one. Very good. All right. Shashefsky. I'm going to drink of water on this. Hold on. So years ago. By the way, you can ask for a

country of origin or to be used in a sentence if you need. Yeah. Yeah. How would you use it in a sentence? Shashefsky? Yeah. Mike Shishchevsky is the coach of Duke. How about if I spell coach K?

No. All right. Here we go. So years ago, I figured out a way to remember this because I had interviewed him so many times, I was kind of embarrassing that I couldn't spell his name. Okay. So I remember it was K-R-Z-Y, Zuski. So K-R-Z-Y-Z-E-W.

S-K-I. Wow. But I did that years ago because I was embarrassed. K-R-Z-Y-Z-Z-Y-Z-Z-E-Susky. Pretty good. Yeah. All right. Pulisic.

Christian Pulisic. You love Christian Pulisic. What's his country of origin? It is Croatian. That helps a lot. Okay. Okay. Again.

Can I close my eyes? Yeah. I can write on my hand or I can't write out. No, you can not use a pen. You cannot use a pen. You cannot use a pen. You can't use pen. I can't use a pen?

No. What's the difference between writing on your hand and writing on paper? P-U-L-I-S-I-C. Yes. Yes. All right. God, I butcher Garapolo. I wasn't even close.

We may give you another go at that if we have more time. I think if you did, I'd still butcher it. Tua, Tsangabailoa. Oh, come on. Now. That is, I hate, he's, barely played. I don't, I'm going to butcher that. That is true. But so this might be worth like Shoshavsky, you learning how to spell if you can't get it. What's his family of

origin? He's a moan. Oh, that helps not at all. Colin likes Tua Tungabailoa more than Joe Burrow. What's the one after him? Can I skip one? Can you do that in a spelling bee? No, but I mean, this is our spelling B. Can you pass? You pass. Oh. You're not allowed to pass in the spelling thing. No, you just have to keep spelling stuff right until you lose. I'm not, I don't want to humiliate him or me. Come on. T-U-A. T-U-A.

I can't put it. Okay, Tung-V-A-L-A-L-A-L-A-L-A-O-A. You've seen it at Al-G-G-G. Okay, I'm gonna, T-U-N. With T-U-N what? T-U-A-L-A-L-A-L-A-O-A. So I'm trying the Tung-A-O-A-O-A thing. Okay.

T-U-N-G-A-------------------. God. Tell me how to spell that. You lost it out. after T. Yeah. Literally. T-A-G.

Oh, come on. That's not even... O-V-A-I-L-O-A. It is not spelled how it is pronounced at all. I bet you his dad misspelled it twice this week. No, I don't think so.

I don't think he misspelled his own name. All right. Since you wanted to skip, which you probably should have, the last one is T-J-Hushman-Zata, our friend. Oh, God, if I misspell this, I'm embarrassed for life.

I consider him a friend. If I can't spell his name, this is why I learned how to spell Shoshsky. I've actually gotten good at spelling his name. Okay, Hushmanzada. H-O-U-S-H. So am I right there, H-H? Oh, Lord.

And he'll get an archive tape of this. It'll be brutal. Don't talk yourself out of it. H-M-M-Zata. H-O-U-S-H. What's his origin? It says he went to Oregon State. That's not the origin.

That's his country of Oregon. No, that is not the origin. Oregon State. His father's Iranian and his mother is African American. Menzada. God, there's an A in there. M-E-N-D-M-E-N-D-A-H. Close.

Close. So it's H-O-U-S-H. You're right about that. M-A-N. M-A-N. M-A-N. Of course it's that Kushman Z-A-D-H. D-A-D-A-D-H.

It's actually not a. hard to spell if you. And his country of origin is Corvallus, Oregon. It says Oregon State. You want to give Garoppolo another try? Let's try it again. All right. Jimmy Garapolo. G-A-R-A-P-P-O-L-O. What?

Garap. Okay. G-A-R-O-P-O-L-L-O. God, what not? G-A-R, no, G-A-R-O-P-P-O-L-O. Very good. Fifth times the charm. That's always how it's been. You actually did a lot better than I thought you were going to do.

I did not think you were going to get one. Well, Coach K I knew from years ago. Right. That one I knew from years ago. In Rathlisberger, I've seen, R-L-L-L-L-L-E, and it's easy. When we mentioned this morning we were going to do this, I didn't realize you had already had.

a memorization method for Shoshchowski. I feel like you kind of knew that's probably why you were okay with this. You knew you'd have one of the curveballs figured out. Well, if I want one for nine, I'd still be a public humiliation. So I had to get more than one. If you went one for nine, but you got Shoshchewski, I don't know if that'd be that bad, because that is the hardest one to spell.

It's worse not being able to spell a friend's name. Mike was on my show. Mike texts me. I can't not be able to spell Mike Shishki's name. He texts me. Andy Reid texts me. T.J's a friend's a friend. I know. That's why I'm humiliated. I can spell Ocho, O-C-H-O. 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 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. Another podcast from some SNL late-night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smigel and friends.

Me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman help make you funnier. This week, my guest, SNL's Mikey Day and head writer Streeter Seidel help an a cappella band with their between songs banter. Where does your group perform? We do some retirement homes.

Those people are starving for banter. Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and Friends on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. On the Look Back at it podcast. In 1979, that was a big moment for me. 84's big to me. I'm Sam J.

And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick a year, unpack what went down, and try to make sense of how we survived it. With our friends, fellow comedians, and favorite offers. Like Mark Lamont Hill. on the 80s.

84 was a wild year. I mean, it was a wild year. I don't think there's a more important year for black people. Listen to look back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, what's good, y'all? You're listening to Learn the Hard Way with your favorite therapist and host, Kear Games. This space is about black men's experiences, having honest conversations that it's really not safe to have anywhere, but you're having them with a licensed professional who knows what he's 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 IHard radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. This is an IHart podcast. Guaranteed human.