The Herd with Colin Cowherd - Hour 1 - Celtics vs. Lakers, Caitlin Clark

Episode Date: June 19, 2024

Colin discusses the difference between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Boston Celtics, how the Celtics have made championship basketball work in a city without the sizzle and glamor of other places. Caitlin Clark is having a profound financial impact on the WNBA in a way no other athlete has had. Plus, memories from his youth in England and discussing soccer with the European Championship going on.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an I-Heart podcast. Guaranteed Human. 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.

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This is my best friend, Janet. Hey. And we have been joined at the hips since high school. Absolutely. A redacted amount of years later, we're still joined at the hip. Just a little bit bigger hips. This is a podcast. We're recording it as we tailgate our youth soccer games in the back of my Honda Odyssey.

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Ramos sending on to Ernie Stewart. The Chip. Score! I'm Tav Ramos. I'm Tom Bowker. On our podcast, Inside American Soccer, you'll get the real storylines, the biggest decisions,

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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 part of you. You just understood. That's how personal it got. Wow. Then after that game seven, Markeep coming to you.

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 podcasts. Hey, everyone. It's Ryder Strong and Wilfredel from PodMeets World. And now the PodMeets Twirled podcast.

We're two men who were completely clueless to reality TV, and we're gearing up for the season finale of Survivor. I know we annoyed a lot of our listeners by our severe lack of survival. knowledge. That is the point of the show. I'm just going to remind you. Again, we are experts. Listen to Podmeets Twirled on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Thanks for listening to The Heard Podcast. Be sure to catch us live every weekday on Fox Sports Radio in noon to 3 Eastern, 9 a.m. to noon Pacific. Find your local station for the herd at Fox SportsRadio.com or stream us live every day in the IHeartRadio app by searching Fox Sports Radio or FSR.

You're listening to Fox Sports Radio. Here we go. It is a Wednesday. Tom Brady later in the show Wednesday, 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.

The coffee tastes a little better today. That's what happens when you watch Stanley Cup final action. I'm telling you, J. Mack, Connor McDavid, pulled me in last night. Not saying I'm leading with it, but it was riveting hockey action. I don't know the blue line from the blue man group. I mean, hockey? Wow, I'm impressed coverage.

I commit. You've got to commit to the art form of American sports. So there's a lot of different things to talk about today. You know, people kind of poke fun at Magic Johnson's Twitter account because he's really good at stating the obvious, as if it's, a revelation, but whatever. He did have a tweet yesterday. The former Laker great.

He said, I hate that the Celtics officially have more championships than us now. Well, actually, a lot more. The Boston Celtics have 18, and the Los Angeles Lakers have only 12. But what really makes it most impressive is that the Lakers have 12. I'm not going to count the five in many hours. I don't count George Miken. Okay. The Lakers have had three of the top four or five centers ever,

Wilt Kareem Shack. The Lakers have had the best point guard ever, Magic Johnson, a revelation, six, eight and a half point guard. They had past his prime or late prime, LeBron James arguably the greatest player, not to mention the logo, Kobe Bryant, you know, James Worthy, Anthony Davis. They've had 10, 12 all-time great players, Elgin Baylor, warm winter weather in a sport that's always been about culture and entertainment too.

They're in Los Angeles, the entertainment capital of North America. They have a destination advantage over Boston, and it's a star-driven city, and the NBA has always been star-driven and player-driven. Now, the Celtics have had Bill Russell and John Havilechek, Bob Coozy, I'm not doubting. Larry Bird, Paul Pierce, K.G. Kevin McHale. They've had some stars, too, though not Laker stars. But there's not a lot to do when it's 21 degrees in the winter in Boston. It's a provincial town, more than a big city.

It's mostly famous for stuff in the 17 and 1800s, if you want to be honest about their history. And yet, there is no reason the Celtics should be this good. I mean, really. Why? It's not like players in the winter say, get me to one of the coldest cities, one of the most geographically isolated cities. No, not really. And yet, brainpower, Red Arbock, the Danny Ains, trades, and now Brad Stevens, has been the difference. That's been the difference. In fact, if you were to guess there was an eastern city that should be great, it should be the New York Knicks.

Madison Square Garden is called the basketball mecca. Again, a star, fame, Broadway-driven town. It's a bigger, cooler, richer city. Rucker Park, basketball history, tremendous. But yet it's the Celtics. I mean, Los Angeles, even the coaches are stars here. Harbaugh, McVeigh, Lincoln Riley. Stars like L.A.

Stars seek L.A. Matt Stafford, LeBron James, they had a lot of options. Shohei Otani had a lot of options. They choose Los Angeles. And they have usually chosen the Lakers over the Celtics if they're a free agent. But the difference between 18 championships and 12 is even greater.

Because it looks like Boston, because of the way they're built, they still maintain most of their top picks next five years, has 18, and you would not be surprised if they rattled off with this group, two or three more in the next five or six years, and the Lakers appear to be miles away from winning another one. Proving that in sports, even in the artistic, stylistic, flashy NBA, smart Trump's sizzle.

the Celtics have been on average a much smarter basketball operation. Now, Jerry West, Pat Riley, Phil Jackson were involved. It didn't feel that way. But like the Dallas Cowboys, those guys all leave. The Parcells Jimmy Johnson leaves. And they are, as we found in Los Angeles with the Lakers, very, very hard to replace as the Lakers will be announcing a new basketball coach this week.

What is that? The 7th in 13 years? Smart wins. So I saw this this morning. Sportico published WNBA team evaluations. How much are WNBA teams worth? Not much.

If you want to see the Caitlin Clark effect, here it is. bad team, small market, and they are worth more, the Indiana fever, than the Los Angeles sparks, the Dallas, Atlanta, Washington teams, and almost equal to a team in Chicago. This is a bad team in a small market. I feel like I'm watching a little bit like when Tiger Woods a little bit came to the PGA tour, suddenly within a year two or three, all. the purses, all the golf purses

started to explode. It lifted all boats. But the difference is, Bryce Harper to baseball, Tiger Woods to golf, let's say Connor McGregor to the UFC, they did not save those sports.

Golf was making money. Baseball's always made a ton of money. Dana White and UFC were making money. It did, however, illuminate those sports to a greater level. More people watched. More people were interested. But the WNBA,

since its inception in 1996, I think 97 was the first year they played, they've lost big money every year. The losses aren't as sizable last year in the previous seven or eight years, but they were like $10 million. Losing money. In fact, so much so that in 2018,

teams moved to smaller arenas in a city of 10 million people, New York, the Liberty, we're averaging 1,700 people a game. The WNBA finals, this past year, got 700,000 viewers. About half of what the newly formed UFL championship game got. Caitlin Clark, to some degree, is saving the WNBA. This is not Connor McGregor. The UFC was ascending and profitable.

This is not Bryce Harper to baseball. Teams in baseball are and remain flush with cash. This wasn't exactly Tiger Woods to golf. You still had legendary tournaments like the U.S. Open, the British Open, the masters that people watch and coveted. That's not so with the WNBA. It is an incredibly harsh truth. This league was in some trouble.

They were making money. They were downsizing arenas. nobody's watching the final and it has been totally subsidized not sort of kind of remotely totally subsidized by the NBA but that's okay that is okay

lots of businesses have to be subsidized lots of businesses need a catalyst to take them from non-profit to big profit but never forget this this is the Caitlin Clark effect

she may not be good enough to be on the Olympic team, but she is easily the greatest player. Without even playing half a season, she is the greatest player for business in the history of the league. And it's not close. These valuations, I'll throw it out there, will be worth three times this much. Okay, so right now the Indiana Fever is worth 90 million. they've been around for years.

These will triple. These will triple within 24 months. The evaluations of these teams will triple. The Las Vegas Aces will be worse somewhere in the 300 million. Think I'm crazy?

It's amazing what Beckham and Messi did to the MLS. They got that big Apple TV contract. It's amazing what a star can do. It's okay that it was subsidized by the WNB. It's okay that it wasn't a big profit center. A lot of companies need a catalyst, but let's not kid ourselves here.

Caitlin Clark is easily the greatest player in that league's history in terms of business. And the only reason these lights are on in this studio is not sports. It's business. J-MAC, we have quite a show today. Tom Brady will be stopping by in a couple of hours. Did you see the story where Justin F. Fields is struggling a little in Pittsburgh? Oh, yeah.

So terrible to see that. Justin Fields struggling in a defensive situation in Pittsburgh with Mike Tomlin as a head coach. We'll see. No quarterbacks been able to succeed there since Big Ben. Well, even Big Ben in his latter years, it was choppy. That's fair to say. It wasn't as good as they didn't have any big wins as last several years against no big playoff wins. No.

It's been a rough go. Well, it's a defensive culture. It's why Green Bay does quarterbacks well. It could be Mike Home Green. Mike McCarthy, Matt LaFleur, it's an offensive culture. Packer fans don't like that their defense usually underachieves, but they're on the right side of the ball going forward. 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. Hey, it's me, Rob Parker. Check out my weekly MLB podcast Inside the Parker for 22 minutes of pipe and hot baseball talk featuring the biggest names and newsmakers in the sport whether you believe in analytics or the i-test we've got all the bases covered new episodes drop every thursday so do yourself a favor and listen to inside the parker with rob parker on the iHeart radio app or wherever you get your podcast imagine an olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged it's the enhanced

games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast 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 IHard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. What's up, fam? This Isaiah Thomas. And I'm C.J. Toledano, and our podcast Point Game is about defying the odds. Like LeBron heading into the playoffs without Luca and Austin Reed. And finding ways to win no matter what.

He's the smartest player to ever play the game. His IQ is at a level that we've never seen before. And he knows without Luca and Austin Reeves, I got to manipulate the game. We get a player's perspective on the challenges of the playoffs. I think Joker's going to be exhausted this series because when they don't have Rudy in the lineup, he has to really guard guys like Nas Reed.

He has to guard Julius Randall. And then he has to give us everything he gives us on the night-to-night basis on offense. And when IT's friends stop by, like Quentin Richardson, we dive into some playoff history too. Steve Nash would get that thing. That man, hell get the flying. He running up the court, licking his fingers why he got the ball. Like, after you go through a training camp with that, Isaiah, you figure it out real quick. Get your ass up and down the court, and you're going to get the ball.

So listen to Point Game on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcasts. When you listen to podcasts about AI and tech and the future of humanity, the hosts always act like they know what they're talking about, and they are experts at everything. Here, the Nick Dick and Poll Show, we're not afraid to make mistakes. What Kugler did that I think was so unique. He's the writer-director. Who do you think he is?

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the worst advice from the dumbest people you know. Listen to Help from Hypocrat as part of the Mike Coutura podcast network available on the IHart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, wherever you get your podcasts. The story I've told myself about love or relationships 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 and explore the journey of healing, self-discovery, and returning to yourself.

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radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get to. your podcast. So I thought this was interesting and we'll go to Pittsburgh less than one hour from now. Talk to Mark Koboli who wrote this story this morning that Justin Fields, the former electric, often dynamic quarterback for the Chicago Bears, who was moved for only a six-round pick to be the backup in Pittsburgh, has struggled early. And Russell Wilson, as we predicted, has completely separated first quarterback. first team, QB1 snaps, has been accurate.

It's according to Koboli, and we'll go to him live in an hour. It's not terribly close. That's what we thought. And here's the thing with Justin Fields. It's a cautionary tale. Got to learn from your mistakes, right, in life? Is that you can see him peel off a 40-yard run once a game or make a big-time throw down the field.

You see the gifts. But quarterback is the only position. in American sports that much of the greatness, you can't see. Brady, Breeze, Peyton Manning, pre-snap movement, audible into yards and out of trouble. That accounts for about 30 to 40% of this game. The ability for a quarterback to feel the game and see the game. This has been my knock on Justin Fields and Trevor Wilson.

Both athletic, both move well, both good arms. I don't think they can see the first. field. I think people are open. Highlights and tape have shown it, and they can't see it. By the way, not a huge Brock Purdy fan, but both Kyle Shanahan and Sam Dardled when he was a nineer, both had publicly said Brock Purdy at the line of scrimmage pre-snap and post-snap really sees the field, really gets himself into yards and out of trouble. That is a big chunk of this league. So athletic ability can really be foolsgoat because you can see it all.

And Justin Fields is an unbelievable athlete. Yet he was over the last three seasons the most sack quarterback in the NFL. He couldn't audible out of sacks. And you say, oh, it's the offensive line. Did you know last year, by the end of the year, PFF ranked the Bears' offensive line above the Niners. I watched the games. It was better. And it was in the same class as the Kansas City Chiefs. The difference is Patrick Mahomes and Brock Purdy, audible out of sacks. This is what I've said with Justin Fields and Zach Wilson. I can see the talent. You can see why they're drafted

high first round. Both have live arms. Both move really well. I mean, even the report this week in Denver. Zach Wilson has the best arm, not Bo Nicks. Zach Wilson. Easily the liveliest arm. But so much of playing quarterback is what you don't see. And that's where Russell is going to have an advantage over Justin Fields.

J-Mac with the news. No, no, no, no, no. Turn on the news. This is the herd line news. All right, let's stick with quarterbacks, and we saw that Trevor Lawrence got paid last week. Chua is on deck,

Dak Prescott, but let's put Matthew Stafford's name out there, Colin. He's tumbled down the list of highest paid quarterbacks and reportedly wants a reworked contract. Ian Rappaport of NFL Network indicates that while Stafford won't hold out from camp,

he wants more guaranteed money. Now, we talked about it on the show last year and that the Rams approached Stafford to rework his deal. He's like, no thanks, I'm good. Yeah. And now Stafford is saying, oh, all these other guys are getting paid, I'm not even on the list of one of the highest paid quarterbacks anymore. Yo,

can you guys hook me up? I I think the Rams will play hardball with him. I don't think he's going to get anything this summer. Well, what the Rams are doing, and it's really smart, they're the only team in the league I can think of that has paid big money for two guards. And they drafted a guard. They've moved to center.

So what they've done, they're going to have an excellent guard-setter guard combination. That is what Tom Brady had in Tampa. So as a quarterback gets older, they can easily step up. but right if somebody comes on the edge they can step up but what the rams have done through money and draft picks has fortified the interior line for stafford they want stafford they don't want a young lively quarterback that wouldn't be nearly as big a deal if you had a young guy that's running around they want stafford in town they are trying to keep him upright for two years so they have totally committed the last two years to they've made trades they've spent money they've drafted

to the offensive line, especially the interior O line. Next year, my strong belief is they'll go left tackle or right tackle in their first pick in next year's draft. So what they're doing is the smart thing to do. They are committing to the O line, not necessarily wide receiver. They only pay Cooper Cup. Not necessarily. There's a lot of other places they're not spending money. They're very young defensively.

they want to keep Stafford. And what they're trying to do is just extend this career as long as they can because the miss rate is so, you know, it's 50, 60% on quarterback. So they love Stafford. It's been a little uncomfortable with the money talk last couple of years. But Stafford here has the leverage. Because if you're going to be in a division, you know, with San Francisco, you can't ham a negative quarterback. Well, they, I think they thought Stetson Bennett.

Remember they drafted him? Yeah, but he was a 40. round pick. I know, but still, they thought like he could be something. We get work with. McVeigh. He wasn't even with the team last year, due to some personal stuff. So now Stafford is set to make 31 million this season, has no guaranteed money after this year. So is there a world where they convince him, hey, man, we'll give you the bump now, but you got to give us a hometown discount next year because there's no quarterback in the pipeline after him. Yeah, and I think if you watch Stafford play, he always gets, you know, he

blood of bangs his hand on a helmet. It's not stuff that generally knocks him out for a season. I think the Rams are viewing it as a two-year proposition. This year and next year, can we have Matt? I believe they will make a move next year in the draft for a quarterback, left tackle

and a quarterback. They've drafted heavy defense the last two years. First, second, third round pick's been all defense. The Rams are going to pivot next year in the draft to offense. They're going to go tackle, quarterback, wide receiver.

They're going to pivot as a franchise to offense next year. The weird part about this whole quarterback's getting paid stuff. You and I agree. Stafford is 100% of top 10 quarterback in the league. No, he's at top five on a lot. I mean, when he's healthy, he's a great player. And he's not paid that way. And yet you look at the top of the list and there's a bunch of guys in there getting paid

because when their deal was up that aren't top five, maybe not top 10. Yeah, so Stafford's got two things going for him. Leverage, talent. and the richest owner in the NFL. So this got bumpier than the Rams wanted to admit last year. Remember, they pushed back on narratives, and then Stafford acknowledged the narratives that we had talked about and reported on were true.

Yeah, this whole thing, they love him, he loves them, but what Stafford can really threaten is retirement. What he can really threaten is, I'm not going to another team, I'm just going to wrap it up. Yeah, I mean, look at this list, Kirk Cousins, Kyler Marie, Deshawn Watson, I mean, they're not in the same galaxy as Stafford.

And they're getting paid. It's weird. It's clunky, but we know Stafford wants to be out here. No, you and I know he bought a place recently in the area. Both sides totally into each other, but I would say Stafford has the leverage because he could retire now.

Yeah, he could just walk away. And they got nobody in the pipeline. All right. Next up, we've heard from a lot of players about Jim Harbaugh's impact on the Chargers already. Well, L.A. recently gave a little more.

insight into Harbaugh's time at minicamp they had it miced up and here's some of his best quotes at Chargers camp put that work in you feel like you got better you go to sleep at night you know your head hit the pillow body's a little sore it's aches you sweated you know your mind is concentrated you hit that hit pillow and you're out you're out that's how you know that's how you know you had a good day I mean every day I want to just come up and get some what you got what do you got give me some of that I just feed off I got guys like you, Derwin.

I feed up a guys like you. And it's an all-you-can-eat-a-buffet. Great day today. Got to stack one. Stacking, stacking, stacking plays, stacking days. I love Harbaugh. I love him. I can't wait.

You know what they're going to do? It's so obvious. They're going to become, you know, the last four years with two different coaches, they've been like 28, 29, 30th, rushing per game, rushing yards, and attempt. They've been a terrible run team with Austin Echler. So that is going to change. Because even when he had Andrew Luck at Stanford, one year Andrew Luck was ninth in the PAC 12 and pass attempts with Andrew Luck.

Harbaugh, this is going to be a run first, physical team. The league is zigging, he'll zag. I can't wait to watch it. It's great for the league because you remember there were a bunch of Mondays where we would have been texting on Sunday. Boy, Brandon Staley, he's so bad. Did you see this disaster? This is the best kind of job to take over.

You and I would know. you never want to replace like Howard Stern on FM radio. It's hard to replace, you know, Andy Reed in Kansas City someday. That's not what you want to do. What you want to replace is a team like the Chargers where you've got your left tackle, your pass rusher, your star quarterback, and you're replacing a coach who was a little over his skis.

This is not a rebuild. Now, they're going to be a little light in perimeter speed, but if you look at what wins in the NFL, head coach, quarterback, left tackle, edge rusher. Those four boxes they check. They're okay at corner, they're not great. They miss weapons, but you know, here's the thing. You and I talked about this.

You can criticize them, but their whole take was, Keenan Allen's getting old and Mike Williams can't stay healthy. Let's just go into the draft and find it. And for the record, that's what the Houston Texans did, and it worked. You can find a second round pick. They got the kid out of Georgia. They're pretty good at tight end, and they went and got some second tier running backs.

but receivers are not winning Super Bowls. Coaches, quarterbacks, pass rushers are winning Super Bowls. So I think they'll be fine. I think you and I both believe they're one of the better over-bets on the board. I think you've got to be a little careful with that. What are they nine and a half? The Chiefs Division, the AFC stack. I like them.

Initially, I didn't. Listen, it's not going to be an easy season for them. Because remember, they're one or two injuries away, as usual, in the offensive line. You and I did this one. Have you looked at their schedule? I haven't looked at it in the last five minutes. It's softer than you'd think.

Remember, Kansas City's won back-to-back Super Bowls. They still have a weak receiving core. They're hoping a late, tiny first-round receiver hits. A noisy, weird off-season. Travis Kelsey's not getting younger. Oh, here it is. So look at their schedule. That's a win.

Raiders, Carolina, and Steelers to open. Those are incredibly winnable games. I think they're favored in, I think they'll probably be favored in definitely the first two. Well, in the first Chiefs games at home, and then they get a buy. I don't like the early buy. No, I mean, look at this. Ask yourself this. Weeks 1 through 10 in the AFC.

Find me a weaker schedule. Raiders, Carolina, Steelers, Chiefs is tough buy, but two weeks to prepare for rival Denver, Arizona, Saints, Cleveland, and Tennessee. Yeah, they're favored in, I'm guessing seven or eight. of those games. They'll probably be dogs. That is and now. Now, and I think the league did it on purpose. I think the league wanted to give Harbaugh and the Chargers a lot of sunlight. Now it gets tough.

Then it's Sinci and Baltimore. Kirk Cousins. Mahomes. You know, then it gets, but you look at those first 10 weeks, you would not be surprised if they're 7 and 3. The seasons bookended against the Trash Raiders team. I mean, that is... I think that is a... I said this about

USC this year. Harbaugh left Michigan, no Oregon, no Ohio State. USC's schedule in the Big Ten, and LSU is not rolling. Defensively, it's a rebuild. Jaden Daniels has gone. U.S.C.'s Big Ten schedule is sneaky soft. The Chargers schedule is a lot of young quarterbacks, average quarterbacks, and new coaching staffs in the first nine, ten weeks. It is, for an AFC team in Mahomes' division, there's a lot of W's on that board. Final story to Major League Baseball. The league lost a legend yesterday.

After Willie Mays passed away at the age of 93, Mays was considered one of the all-time greatest players in the sport, ranking sixth all-time with 660 home runs. He won 12 goal gloves in Centerfield, made a famous, there it is, catch over the shoulder, just amazing. He was the first ballot Hall of Famer, two-time NLMVP. 24-time all-star. That doesn't even sound right.

Yeah. 12-time gold glove winner, Willie Mays, the legend, passes away at 93. A lot of people, you know, Babe Ruth is a more iconic name, but a lot of people feel Willie Mays was the greatest athlete in the history of baseball. Willie Mays passes at 93. I saw this story this morning. Adrian Wojianowski, who covers the NBA. The Detroit Pistons, after one year, have moved on.

from Monty Williams. So that means they have to pay off five years, 65 million. That is, that is, that is, that is nuts. So it made me think about this. So the Sixers tanked, trust the process,

haven't had a lot of playoff success. The Pistons tanked. They're awful. Portland tanked. And they were a bit of a mess this year, worst record in the Western Conference. Washington tanked. When have they ever been good?

And, you know, who refused to tank? OK, C, and the Celtics. One just won a championship, and the other is really close. This whole tanking thing, it's, I don't think it works. And I'll tell you why. Even if you have the worst record, the Pistons, the way the lottery works in the NBA,

you only have about 15% chance to get the number one pick. That's it. Tanking does not guarantee the number one pick. Secondly, this is not the NFL draft. You get a 19-year-old. So there's two things about a 19-year-old. First of all, they're not close to ready to carry you in the playoffs. Secondly, you're kind of guessing on what?

they become as people forget basketball players i mean i've got six kids biological or step the gap between 17 18 and 23 is significant not at what they do professionally but personally so in the NFL many players have redshirted in football and then played three or four years you get an often married 23 year old with a degree who's been in a college campus, experienced many different kinds of people, classes, cultures, they're mature.

They come in ready to play. Football players also know, because of the level of regulated violence, careers don't last as long. They come in serious. They come in focused. They are not distracted. They come in briefcase,

ready to produce. NBA players come in as kids. I mean, a brain doesn't fully develop until, what, 23, 24 years old. They're kids. Their games aren't refined. They aren't refined. Can't drink in the hotel bar. And so there's some guessing going on on what you're going to get as a person.

Here's what works in the NBA. The best teams have the best front offices. Right now, Oklahoma City, great front office. Boston Celtics, great front office. That's what works. I do not buy in tanking. Not only that, but number one pick surprisingly do not lead the titles from the original team that drafts them. You have to go back to 1998.

It's 26 years ago. That a number one pick won a title for his team. It's Kyrie Irving. And before LeBron got there, they were over him. Nobody liked him and he couldn't stay healthy. Like he was a marginal bust in some eyes. Talented, but couldn't stay healthy. Couldn't stay healthy at Duke.

Fragile player. And he only wins when LeBron arrives. He's great briefly. And then he goes to Boston and the whole thing unravels. So you're not guaranteed when you tank the number one pick. Number one picks don't win titles for their original teams. And you get an unrefined not only player, but kid. Of course you can get a Wembe or you can get a LUCA.

But what you're finding in basketball, and I've noticed this, I don't remember as I was growing up and watching NBA and NBA drafts. There used to be seven rounds, by the way, it's down to two years and years and years ago. But it's become more of a guessing draft because, you know, the Villanova guys are the outlier. They go to college for like four years. There's a reason Villanova guys don't bust as much because you know what you're getting. You're getting a mature adult who's been hard coached at Villanova, a willing defender, a good teammate, and he spent three or four years in college. He's an adult.

It doesn't feel like the Villanova guys bust much. I mean, we have a term, Villanova guys in the NBA. I mean, there's Kentucky guys, but there's been a lot of high, low, miss, hit. Villanova guys, you know what you get. they're older. They come in, you know, they've gone through the tunnel of college basketball for several years. So this whole tanking thing, I look at Detroit, and I'm like, they're a mess. It hasn't worked.

About every third draft in the NBA is a bad one. This is a bad draft. You know, it's just to show you how much guessing there, semi-guessing there is. The best player in the league Yokic went in the second round. Kauai went 15th. Yonis went 15. SGA 11th, Devin Booker 13th, Jalen Brunson, the first big time star winning player in New York in forever, second round. That's not because the GMs are incapable.

It's not because the executives are dummies. How much tape do you have? What do you have? I mean, you've got European guys playing against older men, and you've got college kids with one year where it's a coach-dominated offense. in the NFL, New England for the last six, seven years, with Belichick running the draft, drafted poorly. That's on Belichick. You got more than enough tape.

You got three and four years of college tape. There is no excuse to have a bad draft with seven picks. The good GMs in this league, the Bill Polians, they didn't miss on first and second round picks. They didn't miss on a lot of picks. There's no excuse for missing on several picks, having a terrible, like the Jets several years ago, pre-Joe Douglas had a draft where they had like nine picks, seven, eight couldn't play.

There's no excuse for that. But in the NBA, there is kind of an excuse. They just don't have much tape. You're doing a little bit of guessing. That's why so many of the great players, I mean, the best player, Yokic, second best player, arguably Yonis, second or third. You know, one guy's second round, one guy's mid-first. Tom Brady's going to be showing up today. Love to have Tommy on the show.

Be sure to catch live editions of The Herd, Weekdays, and noon Eastern, 9th,000. 9 a.m. Pacific. 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 I-Hard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. What's up, fam? It's Isaiah Thomas. And I'm C.J. Toledano and our podcast Point Game is about defying the odds. Like LeBron heading into the playoffs without Luca and Austin Reed. And finding ways to win no matter what.

He's the smartest player to ever play the game. His IQ is at a level that we've never seen before. And he knows without Luca and Austin Reeves, I got to manipulate the game. We get a player's perspective on the challenges of the playoffs. I think Joker's going to be exhausted this series because when they don't have Rudy in the lineup, he has to really guard guys like Nas Reid. He has to guard Julius Randall. And then he has to give us everything he gives us on the night-to-night basis on offense.

And when IT's friends stop by, like Quentin Richardson, we dive into some playoff history too. Steve Nash will get that thing. That man, hell get the flying. He running up the court, licking his fingers why he got the ball. You go through a training camp with that, Isaiah. You figure it out real quick. Get your ass up and down the court, and you're going to get the ball. So listen to Point Game on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

When you listen to podcasts about AI and tech and the future of humanity, the hosts always act like they know what they're talking about and they are experts at everything. Here, the Nick Dick and Poll show, we're not afraid to make mistakes. What Coogler did that I think was so unique. He's the writer-director. Who do you think he is? I don't know. You mean the, like, the president? You think it was the president?

You think Canada has a president. You think China has a president, Lozah Crosette. God, I love that thing. I use it all the time. I wrap it in a blanket and sing to it at night. It's like the old Polish saying, not my monkeys, not my circus.

Yep. It was a good one. I like that saying. It is an actual Polish saying. It is an actual Polish saying. Better version of Play Stupid Games, win stupid prizes. Yes.

Which, by the way, wasn't Taylor Swift, who said that for the first time. I actually thought it was. I got that wrong. Listen to the Nick, Dick, and Pol, show on the IHeart 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 USA. Listen to the 1021 podcast on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

The story I've told myself about love or relationships 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 and explore the journey of healing, self-discovery, and returning to yourself. We explore higher consciousness, emotional well-being, and the practices that help you find clarity, peace, and self-mastery in a world that can feel overwhelming. The world is becoming lonelier.

We're not becoming more social and connected. We're becoming more individualized, but we actually meet people in connection. 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. Tomorrow, the summer of stars rolls on as the tournament favorite England faces Denmark at noon on FS1. And over on Fox, it's the biggest game of the group stage at Spain takes on Italy

at 3 p.m. Eastern. Then Argentina squares off again. against Canada at 8 p.m. on FS1. The quality of these tournaments, we've got COPA coming up, we've got the Euros, you're somebody that owns part of a soccer team. I have tried, I've said this before, I have tried on two occasions

to buy into the MLS. It's like a passive, you know, a passive, you know, second, third, fourth, fifth owner, and it's, uh, I can't afford it. So you went overseas to get involved. Mexico, yeah. We, uh, yeah. Yeah. We, good offseason for our team, Arrow pointing up. But I was just on a text thread with buddies debating the Brazil Copa America squad.

They left off a couple of superstars. Brazil's loaded. Namar's hurt. Like there's so much juice here with soccer right now. Copa America's going to be awesome. I can remember. It's funny about soccer. I can remember.

So I grew up in the Pacific Northwest. So long story. So when I was a kid, my mom was British. We went over to England in the 60s. So it was, I'm guessing here. I was probably 6970. we went over to England. And I remember the Netherlands,

Johann Kroif, was the big star in soccer. And so England was great, and the Netherlands were great. And my family, my mom's family, her twin brother and a lot of family, they were big soccer fans.

In fact, my mom bought me a little soccer game. And on this window ledge, I was playing soccer. So it was my first indoctrination to soccer. It was in the late 60s. I was like six, seven years old.

I remember, I remember the soccer game, and I can remember, they had the TV, and it was an orange team in England, they talked a lot of soccer. We also ate a lot of potatoes. I remember that. The family didn't have, we didn't have much money. And then, you know, I'm from the Pacific Northwest, so I grew up with the Seattle Sounders. Tony Chersky was this great goalie.

So more than the average American sports fan, I had a British mother, I went to England as a kid, it was during a World Cup. then I had the Seattle Sounders, the Portland Timbers. And then I worked in Portland, and a Clive Charles was a legendary collegiate soccer coach. And the University of Portland had a legendary college soccer program. So what people think for years and years, like Colin, you talk soccer because Fox had it. No, I've tried to buy MLS twice. I, because of where I was raised and what I was erased, I grew up with a lot of soccer,

saw it as a kid, six, seven, Seattle Sounders. People forget there used to be something called the N-A-S-L. That was the first, that I can recall, the first big American League. And it had the Minnesota kicks, San Jose earthquakes, Seattle Sounders. It was a thing. So I grew up with, you know, it was predated, way predated by 30, 40 years, I think, the MLS. But it was a viable league. I remember New York Cosmos, New York Cosmos.

And they had a great star off the top of my head. I forget it. But it was a great international star. one of the great stars in the league was in the New York Cosmos. So I watched that as a kid. So I have always been, and as I've aged, and I think moved out of watching a lot of regular season baseball, I've always been an NFL college football. I like a fight or a UFC fighter, a boxing match. I like that.

But some of my sports has changed. Like some of my sports, I grew up loving baseball. I don't watch as much. I loved college basketball. I don't watch as much. And soccer I'm more into. So these Euros, it's really high-end soccer. These are some of the best teams in the world.

And then you get Copa, which is crucial to America this year, because we have international talent. For the first time in my life, we have like multiple international players, our guys playing internationally, and there's a lot of pressure on Burrholtz. Because USA runs through coaches. We just run through coaches.

So it's whenever I, oh, you like it. No, no, I really, I have no problem. Last night I watched the Stanley Cup, you know, Edmonton for hour and a half. These European soccer stuff and this COPA stuff, it's a big deal. This COPA tournament for those of you who don't follow soccer, but kind of follow the United States men's national team. We have real talent. These guys are playing overseas and some are flourishing.

We would have an occasional land in Donovan or, you know, we always had a goalie that could go overseas. I mean, goalie is one of the weaker spots, I would argue, on our team, which has never been the case. Matt Turner, we're not exactly sure. We got a shot here in Copa. I wouldn't rule out us making a run to the final. It'll be difficult, obviously, Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay. But it's different. Now, this is not just me selling soccer. No, no, no, no. We've got really, really good players. Like really, now, and most of them are just moving into their prime.

So we were insanely young, yet got out of the group stage, got a draw with England. We were insanely young. we were the first or second youngest team in the last World Cup. Something like that, yeah. We're still on the young side in a couple of years. This is, we're still on the young side, but now it's here. There's pressure. You have to get out of the group stage.

And, you know, you, that's why that day they draw for the groups is fascinating because sometimes American teams who have been weak, get a favorable draw. This time we have a team that can, you know, We can score. As a host country, you would hope we get a favorable draw. You would hope we get a favorable draw. But this isn't me hyping at this. The Euros, this is high-level stuff.

And Mbapé broke his nose, so we don't know the future of that right now. But the Copa thing is huge because I am a Burr-Haltor believer, but I'm in the minority. If we throw a stinker up at Copa... Hey, don't lose to Bolivia and the opener. Okay, buddy, let's just not lose to Bolivia. No, it will be chaos

in American soccer. Let's get a nice 3-0 victory. Start out strong. Yergen Cleansman had some support. I was a big fan. And then they had that disaster against, was it Trinidad Tobago. They lot, they went and the field was all wet and like it hadn't been, it was a bad,

it looked like the Bears field in the NFL, like that's not maintained at a high level. And they lost, and it was over. So it's funny about American soccer. It can literally be a match. Because the expectations are always a little unrealistic about our guys. This is the first time in my life that I'm on the hype train, that I actually think we can compete with Brazil. I think we can compete with Argentina. And I've never, I never, I always felt like whenever we played those teams, we had to play hyper defensive soccer. We had to be very careful, attack briefly, and then we were,

retreat or we'll get burned. I do not feel like that anymore. And I think I'm a realist. Every Ethan, Liam, and Josh, and Beckett and Holden thinks, you know, we're going to win the cup. I've always laughed and rolled my eyes and said it ain't coaching. It's players. I think we can compete. In space

with the ball, we have elite players. Beckett, huh? Ethan is funny. Beckett's just a random first name. I've never known anyone named Beckett. You don't know soccer fans. There's Beckett at every turn. Mark Kavoli is going to be joining us on the Pittsburgh Steelers. By the way, Jason Tatum's expected to sign a record-breaking contract.

Does that bother you? Three years, three hundred, sorry, five years, $350,000? Well, why would it bother me? I know. I want all these guys to get paid. Yeah. Everybody. Shovel the money into the pockets.

And Tatum's the kind of guy that you'll pay him. You don't worry about it. No. I mean, there are players in the NBA like Zion. You worry about his weight. We've worried about his discipline. You know, there have been players in the NBA. You're like, I don't know.

that's a lot of money you cross your fingers. Like Tatum, he's good. Yeah. He is, by the way, the two times I watched the Celtics live this year, he was the first guy on the floor, working on his craft. First guy on the floor. Hour two next. 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 Acapell a band with their between songs banter. Where does your group perform?

We do some retirement homes. Those people are starving for banter. Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and Friends on the I-Hart 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. A redacted amount of years later, we're still joined at the hip. Just a little bit bigger hips. This is a podcast where we're recording. it as we tailgate our youth soccer games in the back of my Honda Odyssey. With all the snacks and drinks.

Why did you get hard seltzer instead of beer? Oh, they hit a bogo. Well, then you got them. Listen to soccer moms on the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. What's up, fam? It's Isaiah Thomas. And I'm C.J. 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. You just understood. That's how personal it got. Wow. Then after that game seven, Marquis come in to you, 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 podcasts. American soccer is about to explode. The World Cup is coming. Ramos sending on to Ernie Stewart the chip. Score! I'm Tad Ramos.

I'm Tom Boe. On our podcast, Inside American Soccer, you'll get the real storylines, the biggest decisions, and the truth about the U.S. national team. It wouldn't be a huge surprise if our team ends up in the quarterfinals or potentially a great run into the semifinals. Listen, Inside American Soccer with Tom Bogart and Tabramos on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, wherever you get your podcast. Hey, everyone, it's Ryder Strong and Wilfridell from PodMeets World. And now the Pod Meets Twirled podcast. We're two men who were completely clueless to reality TV, and we're gearing up for the season finale of Survivor.

I know we annoyed a lot of our listeners by our severe lack of survivor knowledge. That is the point of the show. I'm just going to remind you. Again, we are experts. Listen to Podmeets Tworl on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcasts. This is an IHeart podcast. Guaranteed Human.