The Herd with Colin Cowherd - Hour 1 - Cooper Flagg's debut

Episode Date: July 11, 2025

Jason McIntyre fills in for Colin to breakdown Cooper Flagg's summer league debut and why criticisms of his performance are overblown. Jalen Williams signs max extension in OKC. Is the big 3 sustainable?   Guest: Mark MedinaSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an I-Heart podcast. Guaranteed Human. Hey, guys, it's us. The Jonas Brothers. I'm Joe. I'm Kevin. And I'm Nick. And guess what? We created our own podcast called, Hey, Jonas.

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The story I've 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 Hypocrite Wednesdays 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 SportsRedia.com or stream us live every day on the IHeartRadio app by searching Fox Sports Radio or FSR. You're listening to Fox Sports Radio. Happy Friday, everybody. What is up? It's your boy, Jason McIntyre in for Colin Coward. He is back on Monday.

I know you're excited. Boy, a lot of venom online yesterday for some of the takes. But hey, it's Friday. Hot Take Happy Hour in full effect. I'm joined on this beautiful Friday by Alex Curry. Alex, I know you're excited for your big leave that's coming up. Yeah. Yeah, I'm excited.

There's the unknown, you know? But we're one day to time. So we're here today. We're going to have a great last day. Oh, yes, we are. I love that you were getting beat for your takes yesterday because that means that they were polarizing, which is what you want to do.

Yeah. I want to be loved, Alex. I just want to be loved in this industry. Although I'll say there was a story that dropped like eight minutes before we walked on to set. Ooh, it is spicy, and we'll get to that shortly. I don't want to say LeBron versus Luca, but something's happening in L.A.

And it does not look good for the king. We got a great show lined up. A lot of exciting, fun guests. We'll do summer league stuff, little NFL. But we're going to start with the big debut last night. Cooper Flagg, the 18-year-old phenom from Duke in his first NBA summer league game. Now, I know everybody wants to draw dramatic sweeping conclusions from a summer league game in Vegas. I'm just going to warn you, don't do that.

Okay? The 18-year-old Cooper Flag had an uneven game. Listen, this is what happens. Remember, Wembenyama last year came out in his first summer league game and was kind of awful. And everybody's not going to mind. He's got to be fine. That was two years ago.

But Cooper Flagg last night shoots five of 21, O for five on threes. And all I hear is, well, I don't know. His shot doesn't look good, Jay. I didn't, where is he elite? I'm like, guys, we saw him for a full season of Duke. He's elite everywhere. I mean, I just thought the overreaction to Cooper Flag shooting last night was goofy.

Let me tell you what he does well. The guy's a winning basketball player. Should I mention, with 70 seconds left, he makes the game-saving block on a layup attempt by a Laker guard, just swats it out of thin air, and then guess what happens? He comes down on the fast break, and Cooper, flag makes the game winning assist to a young Nemhard. Boy, did that kid look good? And the Mavs pull out the win over the Lakers. And somewhere along the line, in the NBA mostly, we got to this, hey, hey, if you're a jack of all trades but master of none, I don't know. It's just,

what are you elite at? Well, let me ask you guys, when Nicola Yokic came into the NBA at 20, what was he elite at? Anyone? Anyone? What about Janus? He gets into the league at 19, this spindly young fellow from Greece. Hey, what does Yonis elite at, Jay? Hey, sorry, length. Okay, that's not an elite trait. That's not a skill that carries over. Like, Janus came into the league.

He wasn't an elite in anything. Cooper Flagg comes in more advanced than those guys as an 18-year-old. Remember, a month ago, he should have graduated high school. That's when you usually graduate high school, right? 18 and a half? 18-ish. He had completed a season at Duke, was utterly dominant. and now is in the NBA Summer League at 18 and a half.

Doesn't turn 19 until later this year. That's crazy. And all these people who are like Jason, he shot 5 of 21. Look at the form on his shot. Guys, take a time out, take a deep breath. He played 32 minutes last night. Okay? This guy's been working for the last decade to get to this moment as a young guy.

Of course he had butterflies. I will point out he shot 84% from the line at Duke last season. Okay? Three-point shooting, you know, how you shoot free throws is a better descriptor of how your three-point shooting could go. Cooper's going to be fine from three. Shot 38% of Duke. I don't expect him to shoot 38% in the NBA as a rookie, but he's going to be fine. I just think the overreaction and this whole like, he's Andre Carolinko.

Can we stop with that nonsense? It's just goofy. People forget when it comes to the draft, it's not about what you are. are. It's about what you can be. I've tried to hammer this home in the NFL. I try to hammer this home in the NBA. Nobody cares about what Vijay Edgecombe is as a rookie in Philly. He's drafted super high because what's he going to be in three, four, five years? We've got him on the rookie deal. What can he be? Well, I'm here to tell you, Cooper Flagg, to me, I look at him and I see a young Kevin Garnett. And I know everybody who's going to hear that and see it online,

is going to say, well, wait a minute, Kevin Garnett won an MVP. Kevin Garnett was leading a league in rebounds for four straight years. Yeah, when he's like 27, Cooper Flagg at 18 is better than Kevin Garnett was at 18, period. I mean, you could look up the stats. Kevin Garnett's rookie here, he was fine. Cooper flag will be better because he's more of an advanced player at this juncture. Now the question becomes, will he continue to improve the way Janice, the way Yokic, the way KG, those guys improved dramatically.

Guys like LeBron and Luca came in, not as finished products, but they were different. Luca was like 21, 7, and 6 as a rookie. LeBron, I think, was like averaging 19 points, five boards, five assists. Those are other worldly numbers, extraordinary players' historic greats. I think Cooper Fly can get there.

He's obviously not there yet, but can we please stop overreacting to him shooting five of 21 in what he called one of the worst games of his life? Here's Cooper Flag on his Summer League debut. I just kind of really did into a rhythm. It's a different environment. I think it's obviously very different from college. It's probably very different from what the real end is.

It would be like, I'm not necessarily worried, but obviously just not happy with how a win. But, you know, they would get the way. Yeah, I mean, listen, the win matters, I'm sure, to those who care about Summer League and Cooper Flagg obviously wants to start his career with a win. I'll just say I see a guy who does everything well at 18. and that frankly terrifies me.

Winning, and what he is, he's a winning player. I mean, let's not bring up the loss to Houston. That cost me a lot of money in the NCAA. That was not on Cooper Flag. He's got to get the ball. And oh, by the way, just one last small thing for the basketball hoop heads out there. Go look at the reel of Cooper Flag last night. Every time he got in the lane, two, three defenders waiting for it.

Not going to happen in the NBA folks. He'll be surrounded by real NBA players like Clay Thompson, who you can't leave open. like PJ Washington, who becomes all of a sudden a good shooter when he's around Luca and Kyrie. He's going to have NBA players around him. You're not going to be able to clog the lane, and Cooper Flags will be dunking on a lot of people and have a really good rookie year. All right, I want to pivot now to a story that was just breaking right before we came on air about a fractured relationship between the Lakers and LeBron James.

Now, if you've been paying attention for a couple weeks, It's been smelling a little funky in L.A. Things have not been trending well. And according to a big deep dive from Brian Winhorst and Ramona Shelburne, LeBron James is pretty ticked off. And listen, you can see from his actions that he's not thrilled with what's going on. And according to the story, and Winhorst is a great reporter, and I know him well, and Ramona Shelburne, they're good.

They're buttoned up. This is top-level stuff. This isn't transactional reporting. that are handed to you from agents. This is stuff you got to fish for. And it sounds like the gist of it is, hey, Lakers, let's remember a few things here. LeBron picked the Lakers.

LeBron dragged the Lakers out of the wilderness. Everybody wants to remember Kobe's final game was awesome. It was. The final five years before LeBron got there, the Lakers were a dumpster fire. It was the worst stretch in franchise history. LeBron saved them. He pulled them out of that disaster.

Okay? And within a couple of years, brought them a title. Got them Anthony Davis. Okay? LeBron saved the Lakers franchise. That's not hyperbole. That's fact. He saved him.

And now, as he ages into his 40s, LeBron is feeling like the love is not quite there anymore. And the focus is on the new shiny toy, Luca Donchich. And this article, uh, really articulates how there was a big wine and dine between the powers that be of the Lakers and Luca and LeBron didn't get the invite. Maybe he's got lost in the mail.

And it was basically how can we move forward? Here's our game players what we want to do. And it was like LeBron was not an integral part of that. And you can see how he would feel salty. He was a second team all NBA guys. He's the greatest player in the history of basketball and he was awesome last year at this age. Like, can we respect him a little bit?

Now, from the Lakers camp, they will certainly push back. Well, wait a minute, LeBron. What are he talking about? Last year, you wanted us to draft your boy, Bronny. We drafted him. Last year, you won a JJ Redick as head coach. We got him. So we're still catering to you, my guy.

You're still in our game plan. But the problem is things have changed since last summer. The Luca Donchitz trade changed everything. Remember, before the Lakers were like, oh, we can build around Anthony Davis going forward as LeBron gets into his 40s. AD will be our centerpiece. Lakers had an opportunity to get younger and better, and they did that. And it's pretty clear there's some mending offenses to be done with LeBron. And Yovon Buha, who covers the Lakers closely, he was on here yesterday talking about this relationship.

LeBron wants him to spend all the picks. Here's Yovon talking about the E. issues. This is the first time you could say in LeBron's career, he hasn't been the sole focus or the primary focus of his franchise that he's been on. Like even with AD, it was always LeBron trying to pass the baton to AD. Luka just came in and got the baton, right? Like, I get it. He's a guy who's about to enter his prime, has already led a team to the finals. But LeBron's just, I think the big thing is like he sees the finish line, whether it's another year, two years, and he wants to win that fifth ring. And it doesn't feel like the Lakers are going all in on this year's

roster. So now that's a decent point. LeBron's looking around being like, are we better? Can we compete with Denver and Houston? I think DeAndre Aiton, I know the take yesterday did not go over well on the Andrew Webb's. Let's just be real, guys. DeAndre Aton at $8 million is a heist next year for the Lakers. Absolute steel. You take him over Rudy Gobert for $36 million in a heartbeat. All right? So the Lakers did get better. Obviously, Aiton's got a bit of an ugly history being a malcontent, but Let's see if he shapes up with Luca and LeBron on the roster. And I got to ask, this Bradley Beal thing, a lot of people are projecting the clippers to get him. If the Lakers get Beal, I don't want to hear this.

It's like Russell Westbrook. It's absolutely not. They're not even close to the same player. Westbrook's kind of an unhinged, I'm going to get mine, I can do it myself guy. That's not Bradley Beal. Bradley Beal's never won anything, never been anywhere. He'll fall in line. I think obviously LeBron is upset with how things.

went, remember at the deadline, they could have got Mark Williams, which would have been good. Lakers nixed that trade. I think in hindsight, we'll look back at that moment and be like, that was smart. Why? Because the Lakers are not going to be hamstrung for the next three, four, five years. They're able to build quickly around Luca. And I guess I can wrap up with this. The whole two timelines thing is difficult.

You want to know? Go ask the Golden State Warriors. Remember, after Durant left, they had injuries to come. Clay and Curry, they end up with a top five pick. And that's where they got James Wiseman. And they also got Jonathan Cominga. And those were two guys they thought they could build around going forward. But they had this old regime, Draymond Green, Clay Thompson, LeBron.

How do you merge those two timelines and get them on the same page? Now the Warriors, while they technically couldn't figure it out, they did figure it out because they got another title. but they didn't secure the long term with Wiseman and Comingo. Weisman got shipped out of town. He really hasn't panned out anywhere. And Cominga is probably going to land elsewhere here in the next 10 days. So that timeline's done.

It's difficult to thread that needle between young guys and old. Luca, what, 26, LeBron, 40, that's going to be immensely difficult. There are going to be some hiccups. I think they just, Lakers need to just man up, get to the table, table, tell LeBron, hey, we can compete. DeAndre, hey, by the way, LeBron, did you watch how O'KC struggled against Yokic? Did you see how OKC struggled against Zubak? They can't handle Biggs.

Then they got to go Biggs and their strength of guards and wings goes out the window. We've got Aiton. Obviously, he's not Yokic, but he can hang inside. He'll give OKC problems. Like, there is a world where the Lakers compete. But I think LeBron just needs to be shown to love. And frankly, sometimes we all need a little bit of love, right? We have a phenomenal show today and coming up next.

OKC, you know, I just mentioned them. They just signed another guy to a massive contract, but their title window, it's smaller than you think because of some dumb NBA rules. That's next year on the herd. 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, what's up everybody? It's me, three-time Pro Bowl of LaVar Arrington, and I couldn't be more excited to announce a podcast called Up on Game. What is Up on Game, you ask? Along with my fellow Pro Bowler, T.J. Hushman Zada and Super Bowl champion. Yep, that's right. Plexico Burris. You can only name a show with that type of talent on it. Up on Game. We're going to be sharing our real-life experiences loaded with teachable moments.

Listen to Up on Game with me, LaVar. Arrington, T.J. Hushmanzada, and Plexico Burrits on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast from. Hey, it's us to Jonas Brothers, and guess what? We have some big news. What's the news, huge news? We created our own podcast called, Hey Jonas. We invented a podcast. Well, we didn't invent it. We just contributed to it. We're the first people to do podcasts. Pretty, yeah, pretty wide range of podcasts throughout there. But this one's extra special. So how do we actually come up with a name Hey Jonas, guys?

I honestly don't remember. I think it was on a call about what we should call it. Well, we were thinking I'm originally calling it one of the early names of our band before Jonas Brothers. This is how you guys remember it going down? Yes. I have a very different memory of this.

We were talking about a thing, a bit for the podcast, where people could call in and say, Hey, Jonas. And then I wrote down on my little notepad, Hey Jonas, Jonas, and offered it up as a potential title for the podcast. But thanks for remembering that, guys. Listen to Hey Jonas on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your

podcast. Just listen. We don't care where you hear it. 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.

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. The French Open is one of the toughest tests in tennis. And I know firsthand because I competed there myself. I'm Renee Stubbs. And on the Renee Stubbs tennis podcast, I'm breaking down everything happening at Roland Garris.

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Consider this your court side seat to the French Open. Listen to the Renee Stubbs Tennis podcast on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Presented by Capital One, founding partner, I heart women's sports. Welcome to my new podcast, Learn the Hard Way with me, your host, and your favorite therapist, Kear Games.

And in recognition of Mental Health Awareness Month, I'm bringing over a decade of my own experience in the mental health field and conversations with so many incredible guests. I'm talking, Tripp Fontaine, Ryan Clark. Sometimes when we're in the pursuit of the thing, we get so wrapped up in the chase that we don't realize that we are in possession of the thing.

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Search learn the hard way and listen now. Back here on the herd. Very fun stuff coming up. Marlon Humphrey, the Baltimore Ravens cornerback. We'll be dropping by next hour. Oh, we'll be asking him probably some tough Lamar Jackson questions. Or maybe not. But I highly recommend that LeBron story.

We just talked about this LeBron Lakers rift. I wonder if Luca feels like he's caught in the middle, like a lover's quarrel, a spat. The word microaggressions appears. in the article. Gosh, I love a good microaggression. All right, I want to quickly pivot to the Oklahoma City Thunder. Congratulations, guys. You won your championship. When do we start tearing the team down? Folks, this is staggering. So they win the championship, obviously win game seven, Tyree Saliburton gets her, blah, blah, blah. This is what they've done since the finals. They inked 26-year-old SGA to a four-year-old

285 million dollar contract. That's crazy money. Obviously he's the MVP of the finals, MVP of the season, he's young, understandable. Then they ink Chet Homegrid, who's 23 to a five-year, $250 million deal. Okay? There will not be a math question at the end of this. I'll just give you the answer. Then yesterday they announced Jalen Williams, aka J-dub, got a five-year $287 million deal. He's only 24 years old. So in the span of 10 days, 12th, whatever, they signed $822 million of contracts to three players, $822 million to three players. Now, because they're signing them early and that contracts don't all kick in immediately, they will not be in the luxury tax next year, so they're fine. They could repeat. I don't think they will, but they could. However, in the,

26, 27 season. Just with those three players, they will be over the luxury tax and over the first and second apron on three players. Now, obviously they have a billion draft picks and they have salaries they can move. It's probably going to be okay. But the NBA wanted this crap. And I'm just telling you, I'm calling it crap, I'm sorry, I think this is horrible. the way the Celtics built an amazing team and had to instantly tear it down because of one injury

and avoiding the luxury tax in second apron and repeater, it has made this, this new NBA where the days of, hey, let's build a Kobe and Shaq, a tandem that brings us rings. Oh, wait a minute, we're going to have to tear it down in a minute? Well, that kind of stinks. Hey, let's build an awesome team. a Michael Jordan type bulls team. Is it going to last three years?

Because you just got to tear it down instantly. And I don't like this at all. I'm just telling you guys, the NBA over the last 15 years, we were spoiled. Okay? You would go into free agency and be like, ooh, where's, what's going to happen with Kauai? Where's he going to go? What's Kevin Durant doing? What's LeBron doing?

That stuff's not happening anymore. We're not seeing any of that. Now you could say, well, Jay, we're going to see it. There's no sign that this is on the horizon. And that's where the NBA got super interesting. Stars leaving teams. Stars staying, whatever. It's boring.

It's not that interesting. Frankly, is there anything sexy about OKC keeping their three stars? They're not polarizing at all. They're not like driving a wedge between the fan base and other fan bases. Nobody cares. It's like, oh, OKC won the title. And they're keeping everybody in there. Oh, my gosh, they're paying everybody and they have draft.

It's not fun and exciting. We heard Chris Haynes, a respected reporter, say that this new CBA kind of killed free agency. And then I look around free agency. I'm like, well, what's happened? Oh, Kevin Garnett, I'm sorry, Kevin Durant got traded to the Rockets. What's been the second biggest deal?

Miles Turner going to the bucks? Because that doesn't really move the needle at all. It doesn't really help the bucks. It hurts the paces a little, but that's not like a sexy move. And I just, I know some people will disagree and everybody wants their stars to stay in their towns, but like, that's not fun and exciting.

What made the NBA fun was player movement. And I think you need to get back to that. And OKC signing these three guys to $822 million of contracts, like what do we even do? They're going to have to tear this down in like two years. So, hey, let's build it up, sign the guys to the big deals, then we can move them. I mean, this Devin Booker move where he signed a contract, he's going to get $72.5 million for the next couple of years. We talked about this yesterday. It's like,

how is that good for anyone? Other than Devin Booker is not good for the sons. It's not good for the rest of the league. Can we get Devin Booker to, I don't know, the Miami Heat? That would be interesting. And I just, I know OKC signed their guys and OKC fans are happy, but for the rest of the league. It's just not fun or exciting. And I'm sure you guys are going to hate that, but that's how I feel. Let's go to Alex Curry with the news. No, no, no, no, no. Turn on the news.

This is the Herdline News. Jemak, I think the other interesting thing we kind of touched on yesterday is just the mentality after you get paid. Like, this OKC team that won a championship, all these guys were playing on their rookie deal. Now they're all like, like

some of the highest paid players in the league, which is insane. Yeah. So that's going to be something interesting to keep an eye on, too, just to kind of mentality. Jayla Williams at like $8 million is fine. Jayla Williams at like 50 million. It's like insane jumps for like all the guys that they paid. Okay, let's start in the NFL though. Dak Prescott's season ended prematurely last year after tearing his hamstring in week

nine. And the team, they missed him. They finished seven and ten missing the playoffs with Cowboys training camp set to open on July 22nd. Dax spoke to where his health stands ahead of the 2025 season. I'm healthy. I'll be full goal for count. I'm healthy.

I think soon here, I'll probably get an official sign off from Doc, but I'm healthy. He needs to have a strong season. Dak is officially the highest paid quarterback in the NFL. He doesn't have the playoff success. He's two and five, but hasn't won a divisional round. The Cowboys in general haven't had the playoff success. They haven't made the NFC championship game, JMAQ, since 1995. That's 30 years.

They have the longest NFC championship game playoff drought. Last time that they were in it is when they won the Super Bowl in 95. That means every other team in the NFC has gotten to the championship game over the cowboys since the Cowboys have last been there. I'm not buying Cowboys stock until he showed me something. Will Dak Prescott win another playoff game with the Cowboys? I mean, they got a lot of new this year. Their first time head coach, right?

They did get him another weapon in George Pickens, but he's a bit of a, we've heard. We don't know what he's going to be. Yeah, he's playing for a contract. How is he going to be a number two behind Cidie Lamb too? And he's going to have like 10 times the amount of spotlight on him now that he's a cowboy. Yeah. Opposed to when he was a stealer.

So like everything's going to be picked apart. Yeah. It's interesting. I mean, I don't know that DAC will win another playoff game in Dallas. Whoa. He's probably only got two years left. I mean, they're making the playoffs this year? I don't think so.

And then next year? No, I mean, Philly commanders. I mean, I think they finished what third in the NFC East? Yeah, in the division. Probably not going to cut it given Vikings, Packers, Lions, Bears could be in the mix, Rams diners. Tough. Yeah, I don't see it. I don't either.

Which is, and again, first time head coach. Yeah. Like there's a lot of new. Shoddy. Who said that he's still developing? Like, just weird. A lot of weird energy coming out of Calibu. Boys Camp. So again, I'm not buying stock. I'll believe it when I see it. Okay, let's move to LA.

Crazy story from the Chargers where offseason edition, Najee Harris apparently suffered an eye injury on the 4th of July. According to his agent, Harris has a superficial eye injury after a fireworks mishap. But the expectation is that he'll be ready for the upcoming season. The Chargers have declined to comment on the matter. Now, he's not the first and he's not going to be the last of 4th of July accidents. I mean, remember when Jason, Pierre Paul lost his index finger and part of his

thumb in a fireworks? I just, I don't what are people going to understand it is not safe to play with fireworks? Especially when you use your hands for your career. Like, again, like, it's not totally clear what this eye injury is, but if

you lose any part of your vision, that's your career. A superficial eye injury. What does that mean? I don't know. That's what they're like and the chargers aren't commenting on it and they only signed him to a one year deal. So like your future is not guaranteed past this season plus the Chargers they drafted Hampton out of North Carolina. Like it's they already have their future. They're already thinking of their future. So the San Francisco Chronicle had a story about this. Yeah it happened at like 12 20 you know like that early morning I'm guessing there was some partying going on.

one of the guys in the crew lost a couple fingers. But I hear superficial eye injury, and I'm kind of like you. I don't know what that means. Did it brush your eye? You can't see it. Again, if you lose any part of your vision. So wait, it's July 11th. This happened six days ago.

If it was superficial, just come in front of the camera, I'm fine. I can't wait to get ready to start the season. They're like hiding 90s girls. What are you going to do? Superficial. Superficial. Superficial. One story is this, not that this is funny, but yesterday, I guess this started to blow up online

and it was in certain pockets and there were some text threads going around here. Naja Harris might have lost an eye. And it's like, okay, we got to wait. And I guess one article prompted Schaefter and others to finally hit up the agent and they were like, okay, here we go. But like it almost feels like they were trying to hide this story. Definitely. But it just got out somehow.

Definitely. I mean, what is a superficial eye injury? Anything to your eye you can't see. If you don't have your full vision in a job where you need your full vision, like that could be your career. When did you stop messing around with fireworks? I never did fireworks. I had this fear.

When people told me things when I was young, it like stuck with me. And I grew up in an all wood house. And my mom was like, fireworks could burn down the house. So in my mind, I equated fireworks with our house burning down. So I was like never wanted to do it. We had a fireman who lived on the block. So like he would do the fireworks on the block growing up. But I never, I don't like things that are dangerous.

Like I'm afraid of knives. I don't like sharp items. I don't like fireworks. Life is good. I don't like it. I don't need to. Okay. How about this?

Do you do at amusement parks? Do you do the scariest rides? Yeah. Okay. Love roller coasters. Definitely love the thrill. Like, those are tested though. They're a little safer than fire.

By the way, this was labeled as a high-grade fireworks. Yes. What are we talking? Like an M-80? I don't know. I don't know, guys. I don't know. Just going forward.

People, be safe. Be smart. Let other people mess around the fireworks. Not you. Watch it. Yeah, watch them from a safe distance. You use your hands in your eyes for your career. Yeah.

It's just, it's heartbreaking, honestly. But let's finish in the NBA where Steph Curry is entering his 17th NBA season and has been fielding questions about his NBA future at 37 years old. Curry has two years left on his career. contract and recently told the athletic that he doesn't know how much longer he has left adding that he's taking it two years at a time, obviously referencing his contract. But is this kind of like what we've seen LeBron do with his last few contracts, the one year with the player option?

So you kind of get to gauge where the team is at after a year. I mean, Golden State's chances this season, all their major piece. are coming back. They picked up Jimmy Butler last season. We saw a potential there when everyone was healthy. But they haven't made

any real big moves this off season yet. Maybe we're hearing they'll add to Al Horford, but we haven't heard anything yet. And right now, the Warriors' odds to win the NBA title

are middle of the pack. They're plus $2,500. They're tied with the hawks. Tied with the Hawks? Yeah, that's literally tied for 10th best. Or middle of the pack. Like, it's...

Whoa. There's not... I mean, they won game one in Minnesota, but Curry got hurt, and otherwise they win that series. I know how they would have fared against OKC. Probably would have lost, but A, because they haven't done much right now? Wait, they have the same odds as the Hawks? Yeah. That's wild.

Yeah. I'm bullish on the Hawks, but not that bullish. Yeah. I guess they're in the East. 10th best. But this whole taking it two years at a time, it's interesting because in that LeBron article, LeBron was upset the Lakers didn't come to him with a contract offer. as like an extension.

So I wonder if Golden State would do that with Curry. I just... Different though. Because you have to remember, like, Golden State was a dynasty for eight years. They won, what? Was it four titles in eight years? In mid-7?

Like, yeah, yeah, yeah. Something around that. Like, and he was the face of the franchise. It's different. It's different when you are and have always been the franchise. So I think he might be treated a little differently. Warriors, Steph with LeBron Lakers.

And they drafted him. Yeah. He's like literally homegrown. Maybe if Janus came over via trade. Yeah. Then you start to build around Janus and you phase Curry out,

which isn't right. But again, I think there would be a respect factor of like, where do you want to go? Do you want to go somewhere else? Do you want to stay here? Well, you would think that, but the Lakers aren't doing that with LeBron. Different, though.

Different. This is like someone who like made your franchise what it is. Well, LeBron got the Lakers back to what they were. But, like, he also is one with two other franchises, and he's been a bunch of other places, and it's new ownership. Like, you also have to remember with the Lakers. It is new ownership.

He signed on with the bus family, which is, like, family-friendly deals. This is a completely new situation. Almost a new team with the Lakers since LeBron signed on. As you mentioned, like, once they got Luka mid-season, everything changed. And then this offseason, it's new ownership. Yeah. It's all different. 37?

37. I could see him playing to LeBron's 40. Like, he's still moved well and she's 12. The way he plays the game, like it allows him, I think, to play long. Shooters have a longer, look at that. Oh, my gosh. Highest career points per game post-35. KD. LeBron Curry.

Yeah. That's incredible. It's great. I hope he's one of my all-time favorite players. Obviously, he's my cousin. We share the last name. So I told him. By the way, it's so funny, that's after 35.

So Larry Bird, Magic Johnson, Isaiah Thomas, they were all done by 35. Like, non-factors. It's different. It's different now because everyone takes such, like, intense care of their bodies by what they eat, how they train, how they work out, the off-season regime. It's just a different lifestyle now, which is why we're able to see these athletes play into their 40s. Alex with the news. Well, that's the news. And thanks for stopping by.

The Herd Lye News. All right, coming up next, we're going to Vegas. Did Cooper Flag live up to the hype last night in Vegas? We'll talk about that next. Be sure to catch live editions of The Herd weekdays in noon Eastern, 9 a.m. Pacific. Hey, it's us, the Jonas Brothers, and guess what? We have some big news. What's the news?

Huge news. We created our own podcast called, Hey, Jonas. We invented a podcast? Well, we didn't invent it. We just contributed to it. We're the first people to do podcasts. A pretty wide range of podcasts throughout there. But this one's extra special.

So how do we actually come up with a name, Hey Jonas, guys? I honestly don't remember. I think it was on a call about what we should call it. Oh, we were thinking I'm originally calling it one of the early names of our band before Jonas Brothers. This is how you guys remember it going down? Yes. I have a very different memory of this. We were talking about a thing, a bit for the podcast, where people could call in and say,

Hey Jonas, and then I wrote down on my little notepad, Hey Jonas, and offered it up as a potential title for the podcast. But thanks for remembering that, guys. Listen to Hey Jonas on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. Just listen. We don't care where you hear it. Another podcast from some SNL late night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smigel and Friends.

Me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman help make you funnier. This week, my guest, SNL's Mikey Dave. 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. The French Open is one of the toughest tests in tennis, and I know firsthand because I competed there myself. I'm Renee Stubbs, and on the Renee Stubbs Tennis podcast, I'm breaking down everything happening at Roland Gere. every match, every upset, and what it really takes to win on Clay.

Jen she won. I mean, she went down to three to Rabakina, but I'm delighted. She's an outsider to win the French for me. And she likes Clay. Listen, Lena Rubakina is arguably the best player in the world right now, and I actually can win on any surface. Because if she's serving, well, good luck. Consider this your court side seat to the French Open.

Listen to the Renee Stubbs Tennis Podcast on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Presented by Capital One, founding partner of IHeart Women's Sports. Last night, a blown call changed a game. This morning, the internet lost its mind. Highlights are trending, opinions are flying, and nobody's telling you exactly what happened. That's where Sports Slice comes in.

I'm Timbo. Every episode, we're cutting through the noise, breaking down the plays, the controversies, and the stories behind the headlines. We go straight to the source, the athlete themselves, their locker room stories, their reactions, the stuff nobody gets to hear. The laughs, the drama, the triumphs,

the moments that never make the highlight real. From viral moments to historic games, from buzzer beaters to controversial calls, we break it down, give you context and ask the questions everybody wants answered. Sports Slice brings you closer to the action with stories told by the people who live them. Listen to Sports Slice on the IHeart Radio app,

Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Slices Life 12 in the TikTok podcast network on TikTok. Welcome back. Great game last night from Cooper Flag. I know the shooting numbers weren't there, but we're going live to Vegas right now to talk to Mark Medina, who covers the NBA. He was courtside for Brony versus Cooper Flagg. We'll get to the brawny aspect of it in a minute. But Mark, I want to start. Cooper Flagg, your first impressions, not talking to people, just you watching the game, courtside in Vegas last night.

Yeah, Jay Mack, similar to what you just said. Yes, he didn't. didn't shoot the ball well. 10 points, 5 of 21 from the field, didn't make a three, but he had a complete game all the way around. Six boards, four assists, three steals, one block. Love this competitive juice. I think the fact that he was able to defend in multiple positions, move really up and down the court pretty fast. It's a lot of good signs to come. And even with it being Summer League and you take it for what it's worth, it's got Mark Cuban pretty giddy. I mean, he was talking about how he has a stepback shot that reminds him of Dirk Novitsky. He has a lot of competitive juices like Kobe Bryant.

So, yeah, the shooting wasn't there, but everything else was. So this is just the beginning of what should be a pretty fun career to follow. Yeah, and this is what's difficult about the Cooper Flagg discussion. Everybody wants to say, well, wait, Dirk Novitsky, he's not there. Well, obviously, he's 18. It's not about what he is now. It's about what he can be. I've said Kevin Garnett, but hearing me,

you talk about Mark Cuban gushing about Kobe, I mean, that's next level stuff. We don't normally hear that. Is this just your typical hype machine or is there a lot more behind this? Well, Mark Cuban always likes to feed the hype machine, but I think there is some context. He made it clear he's not comparing him to Kobe Bryant. They have completely different games. Kobe, he was very much having a scores mentality, even though he had a balanced game. Cooper flag is pretty much all around. Where Mark, Mark, Cuban came up with the Kobe idea was just more of his trajectory. Even though we know Kobe Bryant as this five-time NBA champion, one of the best players

ever in the league, it took him a while to develop. He got drafted out of high school, but he didn't start most of his games his rookie season. So he became a very special player. But I think Mark's point is because Cooper Flag is on a team with Kyrie Irving, Anthony Davis, Clay Thompson, he's not going to have the same kind of pressure as most of the most number one picks have to carry a franchise and be that franchise savior right away. He can kind of grow organically as well as lean on all those players as mentors. And so that's where the comparison lies.

The game itself is completely different. So let me ask, it looked like they wanted him to handle a lot last night, and he did. I mean, I know the Lakers double teamed him and were really physical with him, which is a little while. But what do you anticipate him playing? Obviously, it's just one summer league game. but I thought all the talk about him maybe being a point guard was goofy, but the way he played last night, you know,

and we have positionless basketball now, you play with multiple guards if Max Christie, Clay, and Cooper Flagg start in the back court. There's no point guard per se, but do you think he starts? I thought he would come off the bench as a rookie, at least for the first half of the season. I think it's all fluid,

but I want to be surprised if he starts because we had to keep a few things in mind. One, Cooper Flagg's really good at a lot of good things. one, two, Jason Kidd is trying to make him feel comfortable with running the offense and really make him feel empowered to allow him to make decisions on the court without any fear of making mistakes. And three, Kyrie Irving's not going to be with the Mavericks to start the season. He has that ACL injury.

You never know timeline specifically at this point, but most players that are coming back from ACL injuries, the previous season, do not come back until middle of the season. So it's inevitable that he's going to have. a heightened role. So even when you add in the fact that they got DeAngel Russell in the offseason, he's a really good point guard, they have a lot of good depth around him. They're going to really lean on Cooper Flag to fill a lot of different roles.

Actually, you're right. DeAngelo Russell probably starts at point, but my gosh, that's not going to be for long. All right, let's move to the other side of the Mavs-Lakers game last night. This is Bronny James. I know sample size is tiny. The Broni I've watched so far in the Summer League, whether it was versus the Warriors and whatever that California thing was, I see a totally different player. I'm not saying he's a starter or a six-man.

He just looks like a much, much better player than he did last year. Yeah, I completely agree. Much different player. Obviously, California Classic Luxemga Summer League, much different comparison than an actual NBA regular season game. But I think that from what you saw last year in Brani's Summer League debut, you've seen a lot better shooting. And you see Bronte hitting some shots here to open the night.

He's a lot more aggressive. He's a lot more decisive. He was really getting into it with Cooper Flagg trying to size him up defensively, despite having that size disadvantage so much that I think that he did force a turnover. The officials called him for a foul, but I think that he got a steal. So what this means for next season, who knows, he didn't get a lot of playing time beyond that debut with LeBron James opening night. But there is a pathway for him to at least be at the end of the rotation because he has a great practice player. He's all about the right habits.

And he doesn't have any kind of sense of entitlement, even though, you know, LeBron is his dad. He is very coachable and is someone that really tries to, you know, chip away at his different weaknesses. But the biggest thing that he's trying to really lean on with his calling card is defense. Yeah. And that's why, you know, in our morning meeting, I was like, hey, is there a way? world where, you know, Bronny fashions himself as like a T.J. McConnell. And I know some people will scoff and

be like, come on, no way. T.J. McConnell, yes, he had like 18 points in a quarter of the NBA finals. That's veteran T.J. McConnell. I'm saying a young one who's an energy guy coming off the bench. Give me 10 to 18 minutes a night. You don't need a lot of shots. I want 94

feet of defense, harassment, energy. Can he be that guy as like a number nine or 10 guy in the rotation? Well, Jemak, I don't see that right now because of his skill set, but I remember even before he got drafted talking to some executives about what his trajectory could be, and they all acknowledge the unknown. But they said the very worst, that because of the intangibles I talked about and his professionalism, work ethic,

that he could carve out a pretty good career being an end-of-a-rotation guy because you need good practice players. You need guys that don't cause problems when your playing time is sporadic. And I think the third point is that they didn't want to necessarily put a ceiling on specifically if he could be a rotation guy or not because a lot of times players in those positions, they always overachieve because of their work ethic and practice habits. So, you know, let's be clear, no one's mistaking that Bronte could have an All-Star kind of caliber career. But as far as, you know, where it ends up of being in the end of the rotation or being part of a rotation coming off the bench, it very well could happen depending on how disciplined he continues with his work happens and his attitude.

And so far so good. Let me ask the Thunder just locked up, SGA, Chet, and J-dub for $822 million worth of contracts. Mark, I don't know who you're listening to, but all I heard leading up to free agency was this could be the wildest, craziest free agency since 2019. There's been like no movement. It was a Kevin Durant, Miles Turner. That's it. Nothing else spicy, interesting. Did this new collective bargaining agreement kind of kill free agency?

Because even though the Thunder are retaining all their guys, they're going to be in the second apron and the repeater and all that stuff in a few years. And they'd have to dismantle this thing the way the Celtics are. So I don't know. There's a lot there. Your thoughts on free agency and what's happening because it hasn't been as exciting as anticipated. Yeah. NBA indirectly eliminated a free agency once they allowed players to become eligible for Supermax extensions before the end of their contract actually expired.

And the thought process with that was allowing teams to have a better opportunity to retain their stars, number one. And number two, to avoid the scenario when star players are playing the final year of the contract, there's a lot of oxygen sucked out of the room as far as in the locker room, the uncertainty on if he's going to stay or not. and how that final season could dictate things. But as a result of that, you're not having these elaborate free agent pitch meetings that we're used to seeing with star players. You're not seeing those star players' decisions create a domino effect with the rest of the role players

once free agency starts in early July or late June. So, yeah, all the actions already taken care of well before that. And really what's happened with these extension talks is even if a player has a misgiving or a team, team has a misgiving nine times out of ten they signed the extension for the player because of the money for the team because they can solve that problem later when they have to it's much easier to have some level of commitment now and deal with any potential tough choices later down the line all right last one we got about a minute left um devon booker just signed a two year deal

basically paying him 72 and a half million dollars for each of the next two seasons. I'm happy for Devin Booker. I'm sure he's going to buy a bunch of new cool cars. But I'm going to ask you, is this a terrible contract or an awful contract? Because it makes no sense for the Sunsmark. I mean, none. Chey Mac, you can disagree all you want here. I think it's actually a good contract. I mean, look, the Phoenix Suns have not been well run in the last few years because of the top heavy roster and the construction around their star players. But I think Devin Booker has shown this past decade since entering the week that he's not a, you know,

fat-filling guy on a bad team. He's a winning player. I think it's very telling when he was on the Olympic team last year. Steve Kerr described him as my favorite kind of Feeba player because he can score, he can defend. He's very amenable to different roles. And so again, there was a lot of different issues with injuries, roles with everyone else on the Suns. I think Devin Booker was really the beacon of consistency everywhere else. So yeah, they have a lot of questions how they build around Devon, but I think that it was a no-brainer to secure it. All right, good disagreement to wrap up on Friday. All right, Mark Medina.

Enjoy the rest of Summer League. Cooper flags up again this weekend. We'll talk to you soon, buddy. I appreciate you guys. Yeah. All right, ooh, strong Devin Booker take. All right, coming up next. Yesterday we did a six-pack of NBA teams.

Today is the six-pack, a six-er of NFL Super Bowl teams. Hey, guys, it's us and the Jonas Brothers. I'm Joe. I'm Kevin. And I'm Nick. Guess what? We created our own podcast called Hey Jonas. We invented a podcast?

Well, we didn't invent it. We just contributed to it. We're the first people to do podcasts. We get to ask other people questions because we're sick and tired of being asked questions. Well, sick and tired is a strong way to put it, but, you know. Tired and sick. Tired and sick. Listen to Hey Jonas on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast.

Just listen. We don't care where you hear it. Another podcast from some SNL late night comedy guy, not quite. on Humor Me with Robert Smygel and Friends, me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman help make you funnier. This week, my guest, S&L's Mikey Day and head writer, Streeter Seidel, help an a cappella band with their between songs banter.

Where does your group perform? We do some retirement homes. Those people are starving for banter. Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and Friends on the I-Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. I'm Joey Dardano. And on my new podcast, Hope from a Hypocrite,

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Hey, it's Edwin Castro, also known as Castro. 1021. And I'm Kunky, 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. This is an I-Heart podcast. Guaranteed human.