The Herd with Colin Cowherd - Hour 1 - Boston with the miracle win

Episode Date: May 22, 2024

Colin dissects the Celtics pulling off a miraculous win in overtime of game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals over the Pacers The reason Jayson Tatum is getting pass for almost losing the game for Boston Thoughts on the recent comments made by Aaron RodgersSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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or stream us live every day on the IHeart Radio app by searching Fox Sports Radio or FSR. You're listening to Fox Sports Radio. All right, welcome in live in Los Angeles. It's the herd wherever you may be and however you may be listening. Thanks for making us part of your day. J-Mack, you know, we said yesterday, we said, listen, this should be veteran team, home court advantage, been here before. Pacers kind of taken seven by the wobbling, hobbling Knicks.

This is going to be a fast one. We may have ourselves a series. Oh, boy. I don't know if the audience is mentally ready for where you're about to go today. I'm fired on top. This show is going to be an all-time. All right. So when Denver won a title last year, maybe I got fooled.

I thought, this is interesting. This could last a while. They had the best player in the league. They were very consistent. They ran their offense through him. They had a great closer who was always willing to shoot in Jamal Murray. I liked their coach. they could defend. They were a great

clutch time team. You never doubted them late. I kind of knew what I had with the Nuggets. And so when they won last year, I said it reminds me a lot of the spurs. Good scouting, good coaching, a dominant big. Yeah. Well, maybe I got fooled. I mean, they did lose in game

seven to a good Minnesota team. Maybe I got fooled. Maybe they come back. I don't know. But at least, I want to thank the Celtics for their transparency. If they do win a title this year, no chance at a dynasty. They're just two weird. This is the strangest team. They classify as almost a bad team at home in the playoffs, unheard of. Tatum, he's their best player, but Al Horford shot 12-3s. I don't know if they're

well-coached. What actually is their offense? Let's be honest. Pacers blew it. 21 turnovers, two ugly ones late, and Jalen Brown, here's the game winner, Jalen Brown, basically bails out Boston. No timeouts. He's got to get it in. throws to the corner. Jalen forces it up overseas. But he tied it. He did it. Jalen browned in the corner with 5.6 to go.

And the Pacers have given away game one for the moment. But Jason Tatum did not have a field goal or an assist in the last nine minutes of regulation. He was fine in overtime, Tatum was, but come on, it's the spur. It's the Pacers. They're young kids. You could tell from their turnovers. They weren't quite ready for the moment. You expect them to pull back on the road in overtime a little.

But in a star-driven league, Tatum not only disappoints, he just disappears. And I've been on this for four years. What is this offense? Where does he go? What is he thinking? To not have an assist? forget the points. You can shoot poorly.

To not have an assist in the final nine minutes of regulation. I do think Boston with this group will eventually, I think, win a title. But it's a hard team to like and a hard team to figure out. They're almost the opposite of the team everybody love the Knicks. They don't have a lot of grit. They live on the three-pointer. They actually have a lot of talent, but you're not necessarily sure it'll show up in big moments and their star

often disappears, the opposite of Jalen Brunson. They're the opposite of the Knicks. They're just not terribly likable unless you're a Celtics fan. And here's the thing. I went into this series and I'm thinking, well, young Pacers

don't defend, but after last night I watched them and I think the Pacers are long, they're deep, they're healthy, they're well-coached. We may have have ourselves a series. And for the record, the general manager of the Celtics, Brad Stevens, he addressed two things

in the offseason. So he saw the issues. One of them, you went and got poor Zingis. Al Horford, defensive liability in big games. And Pascal Seaccom attacked him last night. And the second thing he went is another offensive player. They got rid of Marcus Smart. They got a better offensive player with the same sort of grit in Jalen.

and Drew Holliday, and Holiday had his best game as a Celtic last night. He was great and necessary as Brown didn't deliver and Tatum disappeared. So Brad Stevens, who just won executive of the year, clearly saw what we have been talking about and seeing for a couple of years. They need more talent with size and they clearly miss Porzingis. Pascal C. Occam is going to be a problem without him. Report today he may come back for game four. and Drew Holliday was crucial last night. Here's Jalen Brown after escaping.

What was the difference in overtime? I think we just made some momentum plays. JT finally woke up, made some baskets, and we was able to make some plays towards the end, but we got to be better, to be honest, but I'll take the win tonight. So one of the things that happens during games like this, and it's sort of old school and new school,

So if a team, by the way, leads by three and the other team has the ball with a couple seconds left, the old feeling, the old school guys, like Rick Carlisle is, hey, I'm going to let a guy jack up a three. I'm not going to foul him. I mean, the best guys in the league shoot 39, 40 percent on threes. Go ahead, take your chance. And it was Jalen Brown's only three he hit all game. I kind of tend to be old school. Go beat me. Go hit a three. New school analytics believes, You always foul, send him to the line, instead of the chance he hits a three. Again, it's only, you know, 37, 38. At best, 40% somebody hit to late game three. But foul them, even if they hit free throws, you save a point, right? And you play the math game.

But here's the thing. In the NFL, analytics also tell you you should always go for two points after a touchdown. Always. Yeah, if I have McVeigh and Stafford or Mahomes and Andy Reed or Kyle Shanahan. or a Sean Payton. But what if I have a Shaky O line, limited weapons, and Kenny Pickett, and a defensive culture? I'm kicking the PAT. So a lot of the analytic mavens, they always think it's sort of a one-size-fits-all.

And my take has always been, no, it's all situational. I do not believe you always go for it. Peyton Manning has talked about this at length, is that, you know, everybody wants the two-point conversion. But if you're playing the Ravens in their prime and you somehow off a turnover, cobbled together a seven-play drive to score a touchdown on a great throw by Peyton,

you're struggling to pick up yards, your interior offensive line is getting pushed back, you've got elite corners for the Ravens in their prime. You just kick the PAT. So I think in this situation, Al Horford was their big three-point attempt guy last night. Jalen Brown

hadn't hit one, I tend to be a little old school. Like, I get it, though. I get the math. I'm not anti-analytics, but I think it's a lot more contextual than people say. I don't think it's one-size-fits-all. I don't think you should always go for two. Brandon Staley got fired with the Chargers. One of his big misfiring early was going for it deep in territory, his own territory,

you know, against a team that had a pretty good quarterback and a good field goal kicker, and he went for it because, analytics say you should go for it. And in the end, you know, Charger Nation buried them. These coaches, you've got to be careful. We all overreact to everything. And so here was LeBron James on a podcast talking about this situation, which seemingly happens every third playoff game. Do you foul? Do you let them shoot the three? Here's LeBron. A lot of coaches are afraid to tell their team to file one of three because one, either one, they haven't worked on it or two it is you know with our rules and things it gets tricky sometimes

and you send a guy to the to the to the free throw line you know because you try to file them um in a case but i am filing mind the game podcast now i was thinking about this if i coached the celtics and i had drew holiday tatum brown porzingis and they were all on the floor even in now Harford. They're old veteran players. I would trust them to make the right foul. But as LeBron pointed out, the Pacers are young, they're terrible defensively,

they're on the road, you know, do they hesitate, do they foul somebody as he's shooting, they hit a three, so again, if I'm Boston's coach, I would be much more confident late game fouling. Play the analytic math game.

acers, I wouldn't feel that same level of confidence. Carlisle after took the loss, took the blame. I get it. That's what you do. You want your team to feel like, hey, I screwed up. You played great. Now, I would hope that the Celtics in game two at home would play with a lot more urgency. But I'm watching that last night. And I don't know Jay Mack what the line is for game two. I would think Boston's favored by six or seven or eight. But I was I was, I was, looking at the Pacers and I'm like, with Porzingis out, Siakum can eat, they're deep,

you know, they have a good rotation, they're well coached, we may have a series. What is the line? I will try to pull it up here online now. I would bet you it's seven and a half Boston. Historically, when a team blows an opportunity to win a game one like that,

they get destroyed in game. Yes. But, I mean, was this just a bad showing by Boston, or did you watch it and think, with Porzingis out, they've got a ton of length, they're going to keep it close.

Indiana blew the game, clearly. Halliburton with the turnovers late. Holiday did come up great. Holiday shut down Halliburton. I think Halliburton was 0 for six shooting with two turnovers, matched up with Holiday, who's a superstar. I'm a little surprised at the Jason Tatum

disrespect out of you, Colin. Not a single point or assist at home against the bad defensive team for nine minutes. What happened in overtime? No, no. He did a good job. He hit an open three on a blown defensive assignment.

But again, this is not MJ's Bulls. This is the worst defensive team in the league. They're young, they're on the road. 21 turnovers. They were anxious. They were tight late. I give them that. The Pacers need to win these games comfortably.

If these games are close, you wouldn't take the young team. You'd take the veteran team with a Tatum. Brown combo. But nine minutes at home against the Pacers, not an assist? The offense is weird. I mean, Indy was saying we won Horford to take all the shots. Horford said, I'll take all the shots. He's like 37 years old and he played 40 minutes, Colin. I didn't think that was a great job by the Celtics coach. Like, get the other guys in there. Get the end of the bench guys in for a few minutes. Horford, he was getting destroyed in the pick and roll fourth quarter. I think they attacked, five for six shooting against Horford. They were like, bring me Horford. Yeah, and that's a

exactly what they're going to do. So Porzinga should play in game four. That's what they're saying. Our take was you don't play Porzingas until you lose after last night. You know, this is why these playoffs have been great. Like I thought OKC was going to take advantage. Kyrie sort of disappeared. All of a sudden, Kyrie reemerges.

They play real defense. They knock out OKC. We loved Denver when they were up three, two, in that series. They evaporate. We thought the Knicks would win game seven at home. They fell apart. We thought last night would be a blowout. when you don't have a great team

and you have good teams to very good teams, you get a lot of surprises. I mean, I think that's the one thing. In the NFL playoffs, there's not that many surprises. You have star quarterbacks often at home. They should be favored. I mean, Baltimore losing to Kansas City, you're like, it's Mahomes and Reed.

Okay. But the reason I think we're seeing a lot of these elements and these surprises, these are just good teams to vary. I think Minnesota and Dallas are very good. I think Boston is very good. But I'll tell you, that length of Indiana and that depth, we may have a series. I think Boston was up 12, late third quarter. They pulled Tatum, and Indy just torches them.

And you've got a close game. Halliburton hits a shot at the buzzer, and you're like, oh, my gosh. Remember, Tatum was plus 20 last night. When he's on the floor, Boston's rolling. There's no question. When he's off the floor, it's like, oh, maybe they're not as deep as we thought. Too many small guys. I don't know.

Yeah. 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. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential.

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You got Amazon now. You got your traditionals, Fox, CBS, ESPN now, Disney involved. The schedules are different. The new normal in the NFL is you're going to plan a bunch of different games. The Kansas City Chiefs are playing on six different days. They're playing on a Wednesday. You got games on holidays. You got more overseas games.

Again, you have more broadcast partners. So you're shuffling things around. round, and it means if you have Patrick Mahomes, it's going to be an inconvenient schedule. They can handle it. They've proven it. I mean, they've overcome the loss of Tyree Kill, bad offensive line play, underachieving wide receivers, and they still win Super Bowls. Well, the Jets have Aaron Rogers, six night games and four short week games this year. It's inconvenient.

And he acknowledged yesterday, yeah, it's a pain in the butt. Well, supposedly we owe the league a little bit, so the Thursday games are always tough. It doesn't matter if you're a first-year player or a 20-year player. A little bit harder, probably at 20 years than first year, as far as being able to bounce back. But, you know, I'm sure that Robert will do some creative things with the schedule. We're going to have to. You love the Thursdays because of the weekend, the mini-buye. But to start the season now like that is definitely a good challenge for us.

it is a big ask to ask a team to have multiple night games and multiple short week games thrown in overseas game. That's a big ask. But it's a bigger ask for the Jets because of their impulsive ownership, a more relentless media and a prickly quarterback. I mean, let's throw out this scenario. The Jets get crushed by San Francisco in the opener, and they're like a six-point dock. And the offense really sputters. I mean, remember, the old offensive linemen they brought in will not play in the preseason much. Old offensive linemen don't play in the preseason.

September, October, you're trying to build chemistry that O line. So O line for the Jets gets worked. Nathaniel Hackett gets criticized because the offensive line's out of sync. And then you lose one of those games early you should win to Sean Peyton and Denver or the tall Sean McVeigh, Kevin O'Connell, and Minnesota over in London. Uh-oh, and here come the bills, and you're just figuring stuff out. It's very interesting if you look at the Jets' schedule with all these short weeks. Now, they're probably going to beat Tennessee and New England handling.

But Sean Payton and Denver, that great offensive talent for Minnesota overseas, here comes Josh Allen. Mike Tomlin's teams is an underdog. He's one of the best underdog coaches. The game's at Pittsburgh. Russell Wilson's more than competent. So, again, it's a big ask to ask Kansas City to do it. But from ownership down, you know, they're not impulsive.

They're incredibly stable. Like, you always trust Andy Reed to win the coaching battle. Do you trust Woody Johnson? Robert Sala on a short week. A patched offensive line. with several guys past their prime to build chemistry short week. I always think short weeks better for young players than old players. Ray Lewis used to tell me he was sore on Thursday still.

He was just getting the sore out. So I do think Aaron Rogers is honest about this. It is hard. You've got to be creative. Kansas City's built for it. I think it's a much bigger ass for the Jets. And here's J-Mac with the news. No, no, no, no.

Turn on the news. This is the herd line news. Let's start in the NFL with the Chicago Bears. There were a lot of questions about how the locker room would respond to the team moving off of Justin Fields and drafting Caleb Williams. Well, Albert Breer sat down with Chicago coach Matt Iberfluse and told him, everybody's rallying around the rookie quarterback, likening it to when the Cowboys rallied around a rookie name Dak Prescott back in 2016. Dack had a fine rookie year. He was excellent.

13 and 3. They had the best running back in the league in Zeke. They had the best offensive line going away. That was Tyron Smith, younger player into his prime. Cowboys, Dack's first year had the best O-line in football for four straight years. Almost like Detroit now. Detroit's got the best offensive line. Elite center, elite left tackle.

And it matters a lot for quarterbacks. Gough now is a veteran, so it's not as crucial. But I would say Chicago's O-line is okay. It's workable. It's not great. It's not very good, but it's middle of the pack. I think it's slightly above average. Yeah, good tackles. I like their tackles. So, Colin, here's my only issue with this. If you read the beer piece, all we are hearing is Caleb, Caleb, Caleb, Caleb, Caleb. And all the comparisons, and now we're hearing, oh, it could be DAC 2016.

If I'm the Bears, I'm starting to steer any interview away from Caleb Williams and say, Stop adding pressure to this rookie. He turns on a TV, opens his phone, listens to a podcast, listens to the radio. It's all about him all the time. I don't think that's healthy for a rookie quarterback. I think the Bears should start, hey, we got a great wide receiver crew. Our defense is lined up. You know, the schedule really will do anything you can to just dial back the pressure.

Colin, they're already saying he's going to be the greatest quarterback in Bears history. Like, that's a little much for a guy who's never played an NFL snap. Is it not? Sure. But again, this is not college basketball where you come into the league at 19. So Caleb's been a star since high school and at Oklahoma and two years at SC. So I do think there is an advantage to be an NFL young star over a college to pro NBA star. I think it's much harder.

Also, that league's international. So some guys come over and get our American aggressive media. They're 19 years old from France. I think Caleb Williams fine. Yeah. You said he's been a star a lot. Is he won anything? He won 11 games at USC with a pretty average roster first year in a total rebuild for a program.

What was that, a holiday bowl victory? Come on. Listen, my only problem is like when Trevor Lawrence was coming out of Clemson, it was like, he's the next thing. He's the best in luck. And Trevor Lawrence has been good, but I'm just telling you, this pressure thing is real. Like, we're seeing Lawrence, I don't want to say sputter, but it's kind of been up and down. And if that's the thing with Caleb, it's going to be always a failure. He's not the greatest quarterback in franchise history.

I also... I think Trevor Lawrence has been a bit disappointing, but Andrew Luck wasn't. He had a disappointing front office and coaching staff. They couldn't protect him. So John Elway, the media was different, was talked about for a year and a half, two years before he got drafted. He's the biggest star in my broadcast. I mean, I'm too young to really... I don't know what the year was for Elway.

It was 70-something, early 80, whatever it was. You know, I wasn't in the media then. But, I mean, I can remember... It was like the story when I was in the Pacific Northwest. Like a year before he came out, everybody was talking about the L.A. Family in L.A., he handled it fine. I think if you're, I never really worry too much about football players because most have gone to college for four years, lived on a big campus, been the big man on campus,

I've had pressure on campus. I worry more about NBA guys like John Moranth that come in and they're just not ready for it. They can't drink at the hotel bar. So the best quarterbacks the NFL's ever had. Patrick Mahomes, Tom Brady. There were no expectations coming in. None for Mahomes. He was like, what, the 10th pick? They traded it up to get him?

Dan Marino had a ton. Elway had a ton. Dan Marino never won a Super Bowl. He's not considered a top five quarterback. Well, Peyton Manning had a ton. Peyton Manning, okay, one guy. And by the way, he didn't win a playoff game for like the first five years. Remember that?

I don't think there's an absolute. I think some guys can handle it. Some guys can't. I think in this league, if you're a great quarterback talent and you get a really, really good coach, you're going to be fine. The question with Caleb isn't him. It's Matt Eberfluse. I don't worry about Caleb.

I worry if this is the right coach in a division with Matt Lafleur and two other offensive coaches that are highly respected. That's what I worry about. Not the kid, the coach. Okay. Moving on, second story, Miami Dolphins. Everybody says they're great at home.

We know that, and you love to make fun of how they shrivel up in cold weather. They have not been great on the road since Mike McDaniel took over this season. Allen, look at the schedule. I think this has to change our trajectory. Miami will play four of their final six games on the road, including brutal winter weather. McDaniels, though, he loves a chance to flip the script. I think, well, if you're wanting to change the narrative, you're going to have an opportunity.

If you're playing the right competitive football, you'll always have unique challenges to your schedule. If you're playing the right type of football, You'll have primetime games. I think that the opportunities down the stretch of the season are ones that this team at that point in time will be thirsting for. You know, that's something that, you know, when I saw the schedule, I was pretty excited. Breaking news, I just crossed Miami off my playoff team list.

Look at the end of the season for their final six. Okay? Brutal. At Green Bay, Thanksgiving-ish weekend. You guys are making it sound much worse than it is. Hold on. Vers the Jets. They're a playoff team. At Houston, they were in the playoffs.

Versusanne, that's a loss. And then they have to go to Cleveland in the dog days of December and the Jets in early January. First of all, at Houston is warm weather. Yeah, but that's not a win. Houston's good. Jets at home, week 14, is warm weather. That's probably a loss. Cleveland will unravel by about week eight.

Oh, I don't know. Cleveland, you think Miami is going to show up if it's 15 degrees? Come on. They're going to need heated benches out there. You know, climate change. It could be 70 degrees in Cleveland and December. Come on. Climate change.

What that? Anyways, I don't think the dolphins are a playoff team. Do you have them in there, by the way. That early schedule. I have, I think Miami and the Jets in week 17 are, that game, that final game is a playoff game. No, that's what I do. Jets are probably rusting guys that game because I got the division sewn up.

But I don't even know Miami's start is easy. Jacksonville and Buffalo back to the No, no, it's not. It's, it's, the Jets have an easier schedule. But I think Miami's got the better coach. Yeah, not debating on that one. And they have more dependable electric, offensive players.

Who's got a better quarterback? Well, I think you know, we said this yesterday. Last time I saw Aaron play a full season, he had a 91 passer rating with Matt LaFleur. Now he's got Robert Sala and Nat Hackett. Like this is being totally overshadowed. I get nothing against Sala. I've been very supportive on this show.

I think he has an understanding of offense. Some defensive coaches don't. But Sala and Nat Hackett or Matt LaFleur in an easier conference and an easier division, you could argue. And Aaron Rogers had a 91 passer rating. I'm sorry, that's what I saw. And that was with an offensive coach, a better, more formidable O-line,

and inertia and momentum in the organization, and no chaos, no relentless media. Aaron was really average. And now it's two years later off of surgery with a defensive coach on the hot seat, an impulsive owner, a makeshift offensive line that won't play in the preseason, and you pray that Brees Hall stays healthy

because it gets pretty lean after that. I mean, yeah, Bruce Hall, by the way. Can we get a highlight package of that guy? He is so damn. He might be the second best running back in the league. Let's slow down. Let's slow down. Take a deep breath.

story. I don't know if I'm going to be able to do this one with a straight face. So the Lakers still hunting for a head coach. All signs point to J.J. Reddick, who is announcing NBA games right now. According to the Athletic, not only has L.A. interviewed Reddick, but they view him as a Pat Riley-like coaching prospect. No, maybe he is. Who could both help the franchise in the short term and lead it for years. What's wrong with that? A Pat Riley-like coaching prospect? You know that Pat Riley was doing Laker games on radio. I'm aware.

I watched the Lakers show. Yeah. And then became a coach. So, I mean, everybody's got to start from somewhere. Pat Riley's beginning was pretty humble. Nobody believed in him except him and his girlfriend. I go back to that book and that HBO show. Like, nobody believed in Pat Riley, and he just determination.

He was like a legendary basketball player back in the 40s or 50s or whatever. He was really good for that 40s, but like, you know, 50s, 60s, whatever he was playing. But what is it, white guy with the slick hair? Like, come on, this is comical. Pat Riley, one of the great coaches in the history of the sport. You basically lumped him in with George Mikan and Bob Pettett. He was a little after George Mikan. Also, I'm sure you love this.

Shams, who's on a heater right now, reports that in an ideal perfect world. This is a direct quote. LeBron would have Kyrie Irving on the roster and Ty Lou as headcoats. Shams is saying this stuff. What is happening, Colin? Well, why? People have suggested that Kyrie to the Lakers is not a long shot. Oh, that was like over a year ago.

There's no chance of that now. It's resurfaced. I'm just, it's out there. Why? Because Kyrie's having a good postseason? Well, I just, you know. The Mavs are going to trade him now. I would, there's an argument to be made.

You sell Kyrie when the geton's good. because it will eventually turn. Okay. So, my low, sell high. He's hot. Right now, the Kyrie stock is, redemption. No more nonsense.

Oh, really? I think it's going to be like that for four years? That's a great point. I would largely agree. I would strongly consider because Luca's the franchise. They got their PJ Washington and their bigs now. Go find a second score.

You can find a second score. It's hard to find guys that play with Luca. Kyrie Irving's stock right now? everybody oh this people are what they are he'll go sideways he'll get on one of his uh you know he'll go he'll go Aaron Rogers or KD they tend to go back you know they they circle back to sort of their base personality this is this is probably your best take of the week um I did not consider that but I can't imagine that they would deal in that like they're rolling this is the best they've been Lucas got a wingman but I do like you do you do get

If Pat Riley played in the 40s, he didn't play in the 40s. He would be now 104 years old. He didn't play in the 40s. Pat Riley, before the games were on TV. Remember he was a big time college basketball? Well, the games were on TV. They were just not as many games, but they were on TV in the 70s. I watched them from my bunk bed.

I remember watching Bill Walton and the Blazers win a title from my top bunk bed. Was that our tape delay? Probably on CBS. Brent Musburger was the, I remember. remember Brent Musburger at CBS, I believe, was the voice. It's early 70s, mid-70s. I remember it very, very well. I got to check all my parents to see if they were in this country.

I'm not even sure was there an NBA of 40s. I mean, Russell in the 60s is like, that's when the NBA kind of, you know. Is that when you had your first job in the 40s or no? No. 1980s. 7. J-MAC with the news. Well, that's the news.

And thanks for stopping by. The Hurd-Lie News. It is talent, not that it's fools gold, but it sucks you in. And so, you know, a KD or an Aaron Rogers has a run. We fall in love with a talent, but people tend to kind of go back to their base personality, whether it's good, bad, indifferent. And Kyrie has a history in Boston and in Cleveland and in Brooklyn and in Dallas early, where he sometimes goes a little sideways and sometimes you have to reel him back in.

And now he's viewed as, oh, it's all good. I'd make the argument that's the time you move off this player and go find a younger, more dependable two that can play with Luca because you got your front line, you have Luca, you have the coach, you have the front office, you go find a Dejante Murray or something like, you know, whatever you want, just go find a guy. Be sure to catch live editions of The Herd weekdays in noon Eastern, 9 a.m. Pacific. Bali Fusco here with Tony Fusco.

You know, as the host of the number one rated Polly and Tony Fusco show, We get tons and tons of fan mail every day. Piles of it. In fact, Tony, why don't you open up one of those letters right now and read what's inside? Yeah, listen to this. Dear Paulie and Tony, your sports takes are the dumbest and most terrible. Wait, not that one. Open this other one.

Dear Paulie and Tony, you suck more than anyone. Not that one. Try this one. Dear Paulie and Tony, you guys are the absolute best. There you go. At coming up with the stupidest takes possible. You know what, forget what those clowns say. Just listen to the Paulie and Tony Fusco.

show on the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. Yeah. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal, but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's Superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year.

Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the iHartner. Hard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, it's Edwin Castro, also known as Castro 1021. And I'm Conky, his best friend, and business manager. And we've got a new show called The 1021 Podcast. I'm taking you behind the scenes on how I became one of Twitch's most popular streamers.

We also love sports. And with the World Cup right around the corner, we'll be breaking down the biggest storylines ahead of the big tournament here in the U. Listen to the 1021 podcast on the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, I'm Jared Adano. You might know me as that loud guy who yells out, help on the internet. Help! Somebody! Please! But there's so much more to me than me.

I'm an actor. I'm a comedian. And recently, I've become quite the helper myself. And on my new podcast, Hope from a Hippocrite, I'll be changing lives. helping people in need with my sage advice and thoughtful solutions. Sike, I'm a comedian! I'm not qualified to give good advice. Join me and my comedian friends as we riff rant and recommend some of the most legally dubious advice known to man. If I'm calling you, even if you're on your phone, let it ring twice.

One ring is too scary. Oh, cream a chicken suit. Hey, cream. Cream a chicken suit. This is help from a hypocrite. The worst advice from the dumbest people you know. Listen to Help from Hypocrite as part of the Mike Cultura Podcast Network available on the IHart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Will Ferrell's Big Money Players and IHart Podcasts presents soccer moms. So I'm Leanne. Yeah. This is my best friend, Janet. Hey. And we have been joined at the hips since high school. Absolutely. Now a redacted amount of years later.

We're still joined at the hip. Just a little bit bigger hips. Wider. This is a podcast. We're recording it as we tailgate. Are you soccer games in the back of my Honda Odyssey? With all the snacks and drink. Sidebar.

Why did you get hard seltzer instead of beer? They had a bogo. Well, then you got it. Do you want a white collar or something here? Just a second. What are y'all doing? Microphones? Are you making a rap album?

I would. Come on. I would buy it. Cuts through the defense like a hot knife through sponge cake. That sounds delicious. Oh, you're lucky. I'm not a drug addict. You are.

I'm not an alcoholic. You are. I'm not a killer. I love this team, and I'm really trying to be a figure in their lives that they can rely on. Oh. Listen to soccer moms on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. So Celtics Pacer series started last night with a thriller. Pacers had it and blew it, and Boston, oh, was weird at home, escaped in overtime.

Tonight, Minnesota and Dallas open up. I like Minnesota in the series. but Dallas is a different team than they were at the trade deadline. They went and got a couple of bigs. They protect the rim at a much different level. Minnesota's Chris Finch says right now, there are no dynasties. It's been a great season. We've accomplished a lot.

But, you know, we said from the beginning, and as a season was unfolding, like, why not us? The league's wide open. We're not in a dynastic period. And as proven, it's going to be a new champion this year. year. So everything's still to play for, but a long, long way to go. So when Kevin Durant got hurt in the finals for the Warriors, that was the 2019 finals, and the Raptors won, that was the end of the dynasties to me. Now, the Warriors did win a couple of years later against the Celtics, but it felt like a last gasp. They weren't dominant. They had struggled at times.

They looked like they were getting beaten down three games into it. That didn't feel like part of the dynasty. They were dripping and sputtering to the end. So since that KD injury, we have had the Raptors title with Kauai. Again, a lot of that is Golden State fell apart physically. Go back and look at it. Clay Thompson was heard as well. Then there was the Lakers' bubble championship, AD and LeBron. The Janus Buck's title, pretty good team.

Warriors' surprise title. And then again, the Nuggets title last year. And we're going to have a new champion this year. Minnesota and Dallas, if they even won the championship, they would not be favored to win it next year. Draft Kings already has the Nuggets as favorites to win the West next year. Now, Boston, if they win the championship, they'll be favorites. But I do think there's something to be said is none of these teams are great. I think we are going through a spell, and I don't know how long it will last,

but it's pretty clear from the Raptors Championship on. We're in a non-dynasty European players spread out through the league, the depth of talent around the league, better than it's ever been. So we'll see what transpires. I like Minnesota and Boston to get out of these, but Dallas is more than formidable. And after last night, maybe the Pacers are too. So Justin Fields played for the Bears.

I said about halfway through his Chicago career, 55-45, 45, think he's going to make it not sure, not very good late in games, hurt a lot, too many turnovers, inconsistent. And then in the last year, about Thanksgiving, I'm done, it doesn't work, he's not getting better. Jordan Love's gotten better in the last month and he gotten three, four years, so it's over. And so he said recently that, and before he said this as well,

that Pittsburgh's actually where he wanted to go. It was definitely a relief to, you know, how to be on a team and know where I'm going to be at. Shout out to, you know, Poles. He, you know, who would communicate it to him, you know, through my agent. And, you know, I told him where I wanted to be. And this was a place I wanted to be. So, you know, he honored that.

And I appreciate him for that. And glad he was able to put me in the spot where I wanted to be up. Well, the AFC North is not exactly the path of least resistance. Most believe it's the best division in football. And I think that in the NFC North probably are. But it is interesting His judgment that this was the place to go. I'd want to be the number one starter.

I would want to have an offensive coach. I already had a defensive coach. I would want all the snaps in the OTAs. That's what I would want. First team snaps. He's not getting those. So he's once again going to have a defensive coach and a defensive culture,

a so-so offensive line, in a tougher conference and arguably probably a tougher division. Now, I would understand Justin Field saying, get me to the Raiders. They got weapons and they need a guy. That makes sense. Or get me a young, smart, offensive coach. I get that too. Or give me, like Jared Goff, just give me a great offensive line.

Atlanta's got a great O line. Get me to Atlanta. Or the NFC South period. But I would argue this is actually not a great place. Pittsburgh has struggled offensively. 2018 is the last time they were a top 10 offense with an old big bend. Since then, they've been in the toilet offensively. It's a tough division with great pass rushers everywhere.

Pittsburgh's a defensive culture. And now you're a backup to Russell Wilson. So it's like to me, when Matt Stafford left perennially losing Detroit to Sean McVeigh, that's where you choose and that's a relief. Kirk Cousins saying, hey, Atlanta's got weapons. They're young, a great O line, weak division. I can see that being, I don't have to play the Packers twice a year, the Lions are rolling, that's a little bit of a relief.

I don't know how you phrase Pittsburgh as a relief, and that's the place you wanted to go. Pittsburgh now has an offensive coordinator who struggled last year with a great O-line with Desmond Ritter, don't they? Isn't that their coordinator now? So I don't know. I don't know. I kind of look at this thing in Pittsburgh

and I think it's going to be messy. Russell's the best of the quarterbacks. He'll get primarily the snaps. Deontay Johnson is gone. There's new offensive linemen. The division's brutal, pass rushers everywhere. And Mike Tomlin always has the defense. figured out. He's a great motivator.

They draft well. They can't get the O-line right. The run game's not consistent. It just doesn't feel like they click offensively. Now they're on another offensive coordinator. I'm still waiting for the offensive line to pop, which Andy Reid and McVeigh have proven they can reboot in a year in an offseason. Pittsburgh can't in five to six years. So that's weird to me. That would not have been the place I would have chosen. I want to be a starter. Give me weapons. Give me an offensive line. an offensive coach.

I do not want to go to a shaky line with great pass rushers in the AFC North. Just my take. For the record, JMAQ thinks I'm hard on Jason Tatum. I don't. I think he's a really, really good player.

When you were saying top two or three in the league, I always said, I feel he's about eighth. There's something missing, but he's a really good player. In most of my life, the eighth best player in a league at any time is an automatic Hall of Famer,

and Tatum will be an automatic Hall of Famer. But my pushback is, sometimes he gets lost on the screen, sometimes like last night, he goes eight, nine minutes, he just doesn't do anything offensively. And that was a bad Indiana team, your favorite, and at home, make some shots, create some opportunities,

be a playmaker. So it'll be very interesting top of the hour because I'm going to go to the best players in the league and give you actual data on who would you take, like, with a minute left in the fourth quarter. And I think we're getting to a time, in the NBA, we have never had more good closers. And when I went and looked this morning at some of the numbers, I mean, there's been a lot of tough guys in the NBA, you know, back in JMAX, the 40s era. There have been a lot of different eras with great coaches and tough teams and talented players. But right now, we have great European talent and great closers in this league. LeBron's still a great clutch time player. Tatum falls shorter than you think of this.

So is this like the first nine minutes of the fourth quarter? Is that one of those where you kind of skew it to make your point look amazing? Let's be real. He had 36 and 12. He was a plus 20. I think he had nine points in overtime. And you're tearing him to shreds. Meanwhile, Anthony Edwards, your new face of the league goes six for 24 in game seven.

But they win and he gets like a pass. And well, the wolves Anthony Edwards. It's just... Anthony... I love you, buddy. but this. All right. I think you're going to be surprised, almost a revelation.

So it's just final minute, right? Well, we're looking at fourth quarters of playoff games. So I don't want to just break it because clutch time's weird. Sometimes you're taking shots you have to because you're down three. You shoot at three. You don't want to. We'll just go maybe to fourth quarter stats. That's fair, right?

An entire fourth quarter. All right. What do you have left in the tank in the fourth quarter? So, by the way, that means if, Tatum has a very good first six minutes. It's a blowout, and he rests for the last five. I'm not going to punish Jason Tatum for that. How about the entire fourth quarter?

Well, the problem is they blew out more people than anybody in the league this year, so not a lot of competitive fourth quarters, but I'm curious to see the data. Data, data, whatever. Oh, is an excuse. Hour two on a Wednesday. Another podcast from some SNL late-night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smygel and friends. me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman help make you funnier.

This week, my guest, SNL's Mikey Day and head writer Streeter Seidel, help an a cappella band with their between songs banter. Where does your group perform? We do some retirement homes. Those people are starving for banter. Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and friends on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. What's up, fam, it's Isaiah Thomas.

And I'm CJ Toledano. It's our favorite time of the year on our podcast, Point Game. the playoffs. We're digging into the biggest surprises of the season, and I'm looking back on some of my greatest playoff moments. If we didn't talk ever again, I was crying. You just understood. That's how personal it got. Wow. Then after that game seven, Mark keep coming to, he's like, you know I love you, dog. You know, it's all love. This was just playoffs. This was just basketball. So listen to Point Game on the Iheart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. The story I told myself can then shape my behavior, and that can lead me to sabotage.

the possibility of connection. This Mental Health Awareness Month, tune into the podcast Deeply Well with Debbie Brown if you've been searching for a soft place to land while doing the work to become whole. This podcast is for you to hear more. Listen to Deeply Well with Debbie Brown from the Black Effect Podcast Network

on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. I'm Joey Dardano. And on my new podcast, Hope from a Hypocrite, I'll be changing lives. helping people in need with thoughtful solutions. Sike, I'm a comedian. I'm not qualified to give good advice.

Join me and my comedian friends as we riff, rant, recommend some of the most legally dubious advice known to me. This is Help from a Hypocrite, the worst advice from the dumbest people you know. Listen to Help from a Hypocrite Wednesdays on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

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