The Herd with Colin Cowherd - HOUR 1 - Murray, Durant, Morant

Episode Date: April 27, 2022

Interesting update on Kyler Murray and the Cardinals Kevin Durant doesn't put winning titles as the most important Colin's thoughts on Ja Morant last night Guest: Nick WrightSee 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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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 IHard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win.

I don't care what I'm saying. Yep, that's me, Cliver Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, my basketball and college football journey, or my career in sports media. Well, now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifers Show. This is a place for raw, unfilled conversations with athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but the show. celebrated. So let's get to it. Listen to the Clifford show on the I Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast.

And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok podcast network on TikTok. On the Look Back at it podcast. For 1979, that was a big moment for me. 84's big to me. I'm Sam J. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick a year, unpack what went

down, and try to make sense of how we survived it. With our friends, fellow comedians, and favorite authors. Like Mark Lamont Hill on the 80s. 84 was a wild year. I don't think there's a more important year for black people. Listen to look back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Thanks for listening to The Heard Podcast. Be sure to catch us live every weekday from 12 to 3 Eastern, 9 to noon Pacific on Fox Sports Radio and FS1. Find your local station for the herd at Fox Sports Radio.com or stream us live every day on the iHeartRadio app by searching Heard. You're listening to Fox Sports Radio.

Here we go. It is going to be a great Wednesday heard live in Los Angeles, wherever you may be, however you may be listening. IHeart Radio, Fox Sports Radio, FS1. Tomorrow we flip the page at NFL draft one hour from now. Joel Klapp, I am his mentor. I will teach him a thing or two about college football in the draft. he will be joining me in one hour. It is great to have you here.

Joy Taylor is joining me. A lot of things, some football things moving around. Katie's doing some talking. Very, very interesting stuff today. It is very interesting. You know, we talk so much about what's happening in the playoffs right now and who's going to end up being healthiest at the end. But this net situation could carry on for a very long time.

There are layers. Yeah. Let's start with a football story. It's a big story. According to Bob McMinneman, a veteran reporter in Arizona, Kyler Murray, Cardinals going to pick up a 60-year option. The Cardinal's going to pick up his 50-year option, and they're working on a deal. My rule is just pay the stars, all sports, all industry, pay the stars, everything else will figure itself out.

Listen, Kauai Leonard Spurs. You're not going to find another Kauai. I know he gets hurt, but what have you been since he left? Just pay him, figure it out. Now, when you pay the stars, it doesn't. always work exactly like you want to. Green Bay is not one of the Super Bowls they want to, but it's way harder to replace Aaron Rogers. That's way harder than paying a star and not getting the great results. I mean, Green Bay is not firing people left and right. They may not be winning

Super Bowls. There's not chaos in the organization. Pay the star. If you don't win Super Bowls, if you're good, you're viable, you're a playoff team. Nobody's getting fired. It's not chaos. Arizona without Kyler Murray, you're going to have some chaos. So, in fact, that's why I said the Seattle Seahawks are going to spend the better part of a decade or more trying to find Russell Wilson. That's why it's not a terrible idea for the Seahawks to let go of Bobby Wagner, gut the team, play Drew Locke, finish fourth, win four games, and get a top two pick and then get C.J. Stroud next year from Ohio State. It's not a terrible idea. The easiest way to explain why Arizona needs Kyler Murray is about 3,000 miles away from Kyler Murray in Boston. Bill Belichick since Tom Brady left.

Bill Belichick, best coach ever, is a 500 coach. Yeah. Kyle Shanahan, let's go 3,000 miles back to the West Coast. Kyle Shanahan, San Francisco, great young coach. Only young coach that gives Sean McVeigh in the Rams' fits. He's significantly under 500 without Jimmy Garoppolo. I'm not saying Brady. I'm not saying far without Jimmy Garoppolo.

He's way under 500. it. You need a catalyst. Kyler Marie's a catalyst. This is all what we predicted. Arizona needs Kyler. And frankly, they've done Kyler well. They got him DeAndre Hopkins. They've gotten them good tight ends.

They got him an offensive coach. They kind of build the offense around him. They build that offense around Kyler, more than Pete Carroll would build his offense around Russell Wilson. They went and got him a college coach who tried to recruit him. I mean, they've really made it work for him. And he's made it work for them. they were in a bad spot.

They drafted a quarterback. They had a coach. Neither worked. Kyler saved the franchise and jobs. And just to think about this, if you think paying him a fortune's too much, this draft has, in my opinion, and most observers opinion, one legitimate first round quarterback. And he's only played against Division I teams twice and didn't throw a touchdown in either

one of those games. And next year, there's two really high-end quarterbacks. Bryce Young, Alabama, to me, is a little small. C.J. Stroud, Ohio State, I think it's going to be a pretty good player. So we already know the floor for Kyler Murray. The floor is in a season with a coach we're not sure is great, losing his best receiver, in the toughest division in football, he got you into the playoffs. That's the floor.

So if he doesn't get hurt, I do think Kingsbury is getting a little bit better every year. The Seahawks won't be as good. So the division won't be as good. Russell Wilson's out. The floor right now is even injured, even missing DeAndre Hopkins in that division, which won't be as good next year. He'll get into playoffs. Pay your stars. Just figure it out later, Pam. Doesn't always work, but it's much harder to find the next Kyler Murray than it is to write that check every week and watch him win games and keep you in games. That's not hard to do. You'll find the money.

NFL's got money. There's gambling money and fan money and TV money and made of money. Not a lot of Kyrie, not a lot of Kyler Murray's. All right. This is interesting. It's kind of interesting. So Kevin Durant held a press conference yesterday. And, you know, he was talking about the season ended.

It was kind of disappointing. And it was very interesting. He talked about, you know, because Tom Brady is so obsessively. with winning, and he's the best player ever in the most popular sport. We think that all players, it's all about winning. But I mean, Ben Simmons is almost indifferent to basketball. But Kevin Durant had a lot of quotes yesterday, and I'm going to let you see a couple of them. And he said things like, you know, of course I'm disappointed the way it ended, but I would

love for Kyrie Irving to play. But, you know, life's way more important for me than judge that. Our friendship is based off who we are as human beings. the basketball adds to it. If we don't get along in the basketball court, we can easily talk it out as friends. Yeah, I'm not going to get too mad at him. We had conversations when he missed games.

And he goes on to talk a lot about life, not just basketball. And so we know not all athletes, Tony Gonzalez, a Hall of Famer, sat down on this couch one time and told me 3% of professional athletes are totally committed. I talked to Damien Lillard yesterday. We talked about this. He said, yeah, a lot of guys like the check more than they like basketball.

That's fine. I've worked with people like that. You've worked with people like that. Multiple NBA players a couple years ago. Stars were willing to forego the regular season for a social cause. Black Lives Matter. LeBron stepped in and went, whoa, whoa, whoa, we can support the cause and also play basketball and not give up leverage to the NBA machine and the owners.

But, I mean, that was a go-either-way decision for a social cause. Kyrie Irving wanted to take a stand more than being available for his teammates. Okay. So many people, and I'm one of these, I kind of, I tend to be, uh, results oriented, task oriented, competitive. That's me. A lot of people are more process oriented. Uh, they're more, uh, about community. That's okay too. Um, just think about Katie, though. Two titles, regular season MVP, couple finals MVP's legacy is cemented. Maybe he's good. I mean, I remember when he was at Golden State, and I talked to a current executive in the NBA working for one of the two LA teams.

And he told me not for public consumption. He said he's not going to stay in Golden State. He's a wanderer. He's a different cat. It's just not title after title after title after title. That's not the way he's built. I'm like, who would leave that? And he's like, KD.

and it's hard for us to put our arms around that because we glamorize Brady, Kobe, Michael Jordan, Peyton Manning. I mean, that documentary on Michael Jordan, that was a flawed human. I liked him more. I was like, I like that. I want my guy to be like that.

I want my guy punching teammates and screaming at owners. It's very alluring as a fan. My guy would bleed for the win. Athletes have not always been like that. The greatest boxer I've ever seen Muhammad Ali. Boxing was part of him. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, arguably the smartest professional athlete in American history. It's not all about basketball.

But we've been conditioned to think it is about basketball, right? It is about football. It is about winning. You know, KD reminds me a little about a really great actor, Leonardo DiCaprio. And so they're young, they're ascending. We're talking about greatest ever. and they're pursue, pursue, pursue, pursue. And then Leonardo gets the Oscar. He's done two movies since that he was the lead actor. That's it. It's not to say it won't. He's got a 30-year runway to do more.

But it's like, now he's going to do the planet thing. Save the planet thing. That's what matters to him. I mean, he's he got it, the Revenant, right? Didn't talk much, cold, bear, all that stuff. I watched it. And, you know, as he was forming his legacy, man, he was getting close to that Oscar, man. He was getting close. He was getting close. He got it. And it was like, all right, I did that. There's other stuff. I'm going to still make movies.

He's still great. Kevin Grant, pursue, pursue, pursue, pursuit, pursuit, pursuit, got close. Pursue, pursue, pursuit. Got it. And it's like, he's still good, 29 a game. Still a great closer. But if you listen to this interview, these quotes are a lot about, hey, man, there's more to life here. It's not be all end all, not just Hooper.

And now, now, now, Tom Cruise, Tom Brady, and they're still wildly competitive. That's who they are. That we love that. I mean, Tom Cruise, how does he have his hair still? How does he look 42? Good doctors, good jeans, I'm not going to argue. But Brady still looks good, still plays great.

It's all different. Now, now, that's fine. I don't have a problem with that. And I would prefer my athletes to be more Jordan than KD. I would. And when you do lose, you're going to get heat. You're going to get some heat. And I'm not saying KD likes losing.

But we've kind of been conditioned here to think all athletes are Brady. They're not. And all actors, it's just compiling Oscars. And we know in Hollywood it's not. And so I thought it was, I don't think it was a cautionary tale about athletes. I thought it was a peak inside a different dude. a dude I was told years ago while he was being named MVP at the NBA finals was going to leave. I was like, what?

I don't believe that. He's a different dude. And yesterday, we saw another example of that. All right. Listen, the John Morant stuff, pretty nice dunk. He appeared to get just a little bit above the rim. It was pretty nice dunk. But I have a question about that series.

Obviously, he's a remarkably entertaining. player, great player. So I have a question about John Morant and the Grizzlies. It's a small question, slight, little box, I'm just looking for an answer, and I can't find one. That's next. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern 9 a.m. Pacific on Fox Sports Radio, FS1, and the IHeard Radio app. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal, but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashed. 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 I-Hard Radio app, Apple Podcasts,

or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what I'm saying. Yep, that's me. Clifford Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, the reactions, my journey from basketball to college football, or my career in sports media. Well, somewhere along the way, this platform became bigger than I ever imagined.

And now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfiltered conversations with some of your favorite athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. One week, I'll take you behind the scenes of the biggest moments in sports and entertainment, and the next we'll talk about life, mental health, purpose, and even music. The Clifford Show isn't just a podcast. It's a space for honest conversations, stories that don't always get told,

and for people who are chasing something bigger. So if you've ever supported me or you're just chasing down a dream, this is right where you need to be. Listen to The Clifford show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok.

Do you remember when Diana Ross double-tap Little Kim's boobs at the VMAs? Or when Kanye said that George Bush didn't like black people. I know what you're thinking. What the hell does George Bush got to do with a little Kim? Well, you can find out on the Look Back at it podcast. I'm Sam J. And I'm Alex English.

Each episode, we pick it here, unpack what went down, and try to make sense of how we survived it. Including a recent episode with Mark Lamont Hill, waxing all about crack in the 80s. To be clear, 84 is big to me, not just because of crack. I'm down to talk about crack on day, but yeah, yeah. Literally. But just so you all know.

I mean, at this point, this is the second episode where we've discussed, correct. So I'm starting to see there's a through line. We also have AIDS on the table right now.

Thank you for finishing that sentence. I don't think there's a more important year for black people. Really? Yeah. For me, it's one of the most important years for black people in American history. Listen to look back at it

on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, this is Robert from the Stuff to Blow Your Mind Podcast. Joe and I are both lifelong Star Wars fan, so we're celebrating May the 4th with a brand new week of fun, thought-provoking Star Wars-related episodes.

Join us as we tackle science and culture topics from a galaxy far, far away, such as the biology of taun tons and wampas on the ice planet hot, or the practicality and corporate business sense of the Sith Rule of Two. Listen to Stuff to Bole Your Mind on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. It's just so much easier for big companies. to find money than to find the next star. And it's just so much easier.

Like all these billionaire owners, the NFL is just money. It's a bank. In fact, it's richer than a bank. Banks don't carry that much money around. When you're an owner and you have your other billionaire friends in the box, there is nothing worse. You're down 283 in the first quarter.

It's embarrassing. It's like an embarrassing. Might as well own a waste management company. It'd be more fun. Empty stadiums, ripped by the media. you're driving the billionaire, you're being driven around in the back of your town car, and talk show hosts are ripping you and rip. But of every joke in town.

Or you can pay Tyler Murray and be like, well, the Seahawks will be worse. We don't know how good Trey Lance is. You do get, by the end of this year, we could have an argument, it's the Rams in Arizona for the next five years. You know how many home games that is? Like, like, I said this before. I don't like taking stuff public. that's just not my that's not my jam but it is way easier to sign a big check every week when you're

viable that it is to find that guy because they say he's the best high school football player in the history of Texas that's a lot of dudes that Vince Young was in that Vince Young's the best high school football player I've ever seen and they I didn't see Kyler in high school they're like this guy's better okay so it's you know the the billionaires they never struggle to make money and hide it. I mean, yesterday, two days ago, Elon Musk spent $44 billion on an app, and the next day yesterday, he lost $120 billion Tesla in the stock market. No checks are bouncing for Elon Musk. He got plenty of money. He'll make it back today. Elon Musk is never going to have a money problem. He's going to have a disengaged problem.

He may lose top engineers to NASA or other companies. You never got to have a money problem. this league, and I've been watching the NFL for 40 years. They've never said, we're out of money. They have had years when they run out of good quarterbacks or good players. And we have too many players hurt in October. I've never watched it. And it's like, hey, sheesh, hey, checks are bouncing. We've got nothing here.

Now you got these new world, now you got all this revenue from gambling companies. It's like a nut. I mean, I always tell people all the time. When I got into my business, I got a check from radio. It was a fine check. And then I added TV. to it, simulcast. And now I got a podcast check and I have a gambling check.

It's like I can't complain about anything. Like stop it. The NFL just got a third. They got paid by fans. They got paid by Lee TV networks. The NFL just found a third revenue stream. Gambling company. Money ain't your issue.

Finan star quarterbacks. That's where you struggle. Denver had to go to Peyton Manning. off his fourth neck surgery to find one. Miami's still looking for one post-marino. Chicago hasn't had one since I think the name is Johnny Lujack, who I still contend is a disc jockey in Chicago, was not a quarterback.

It sounds like somebody who spun oldies records, you know, like 94.5 Johnny Lujack in the morning. Apparently he was a quarterback. Like that's the issue in this league. Finding the guy there. It is never a money issue. Salary cap, give me a break. good players always get paid and the good teams always know how to find

40 bucks under the sofa to pay the star players Rams may be in on Robert Quinn. I heard Robert Quinn this morning's on the market. Wouldn't be shocked if the Rams were like, yeah, we found $9 million. Let's bring him in. Joy with the news. No, no, no, no.

Turn on the news. This is the herd line news. Well, that's, heat culture is strong. God, Atlanta. Trey Young got worked in this series. It was not a great series for Trey Yon. It was not. So the Heat did not have Jimmy Bellar or Kyle Lowry yesterday, but that did not keep them from closing out the series. Now, this game was close at the end.

The Hawks did everything they could to stay in this despite Trey Young not having a great performance, but they were pretty good defensively. The offense was, it was a rough watch from both teams, to be honest with you. But the Hawks were able to stay in it with some pretty good defense. But in the end, the heat prevailed. They are moving on. Victor Oladipo and Bam led the way with 23 and 20 points respectfully. Victor Oladipo is just a pro.

He's been in here the league a long time. He's had some injuries. But Victor Oladipo is one of those guys. He can get your buckets. He can get your stops. He really stepped up. They needed them, obviously, being without Jimmy Butler and Kyle Lowry. The defense also stepped up against Trey Young.

Once again, he had 11 points on 2 of 12 shooting. and now Miami will face the winner of the Sixers Raptors series in the Eastern Conference semifinals. Trey Young also had an obscene amount of turnovers in this series. But again, this series looked a little like Boston and Brooklyn where they just decided we're not going to let KD beat us and we're not going to let in Miami, we're not going to let Trey Young beat us.

Yes. And if everybody else scores 20, Boston's like, we're going to make KD, he's going to get no. help. We're going to double him, and he struggled. And Trey Young, I mean, it's pretty obvious what Miami did. Like, okay, rest of you dudes, we're going to give you opportunities. Tray's not beating us. Yeah, and that's what you should do when you have a very top heavy team. And you have the defensive capability of doing that. And you can actually score on the offensive side of the ball. I mean, that's a Belichakian approach to this series. They both had it, which is just play

really great defense and take away the thing that we know you're going to do. and make your lesser players beat us, which obviously did not happen. Gentlemen, sweet for the heat. I mean, look, I didn't expect the heat to lose this series. The Hawks get a game. That's completely respectful. But Atlanta is going to have to find some way to balance out their roster.

It can't all be Trey Young. Look, Trey Young struggled. But when a defensive team, the level of Miami, the number one seat in the east, throws everything they have at you. That's to be expected. Yeah. So the Sons are one win away from the second round of the playoffs.

Phoenix is still without Devin Booker, to a hamstring strain, but... He's working the refs. No, he's very involved. He is very involved. He's very vocal. He was up out of his seat several times. They were able to take a 3-2 lead on the Pelicans

with a 112-97 win in game five. I will hand it to the Pelicans, though. They're giving the Sons everything they can handle. The Sons are obviously the better team, even without Devin Booker, but the score is not reflective as to how close the game. No, I mean, how competitive the Pelicans made it throughout the game. Chris Paul looked exhausted by half.

Half time you walked in and I'm like, man, they could be in for a fight here. The Sons did a great job of holding on to their cushion. Like the Pelicans kept pushing for it and the Sons were just making shots to keep the lead throughout the second half and did a nice job. McCau Bridges was the star of the night, 31 points, five rebounds, four blocks in 47 minutes of play. Chris Paul also had 22 points and 11 assists. So they will have a chance to close out the series on Thursday. Brandon Ingram also added 22 points and C.J. McCullum at 21 points. I think you're learning a lot about this Pelicans team.

I think we probably wrote them off a little too soon. It's interesting to imagine what they would look like if Zion was healthy. And what they'll do in this offseason rehabbing Zion back and implementing him into what looks like a really good, well-rounded, well-coached roster. I mean, this is the best team in the league, the sons, that they are pushing and giving them everything they can handle. And it's going to game six right now. So the sons are favored by one and a half according to Fox Bet in game six. And that'll be a fun watch. So the Warriors are being very careful with Steph Curry when he returned from a foot injury this season.

But Steve Kerr, so that Steph will no longer be on a minute's restriction. I love them tonight, big. Love them. Step's been coming off the bench in the series against the Nuggets. Kerr wouldn't comment on whether he would rejoin the start. lineup, but it's likely he will get his first start of the playoff run in game five. Tonight, they are favored by eight and a half, according to Fox Bet. They are up three one on the Nuggets. I tend to agree with you.

I think Steph back 100% healthy. They're going to, they're not going to play around with the Nuggets and close this out tonight. They're not struggling to get buckets. They struggle to get stops in Denver in the fourth quarter, but they're not struggling to score. So they're just quicker. They got more good shooters.

Well, I mean, yes. Nuggets don't have two of their key players. Everything is on Yokic. And to Yokic's credit, this is why he's, you know, at the top of the MVP race. When he goes off, he's going to go off. And if anyone else contributes, it's going to be a rough night forever they're playing. But it's just, this is what happens when you play a series. The better team is going to win over a seven-game series.

And Steph back healthy tonight is big trouble for the Nuggets. Good stuff. Joy with the news. Well, that's the news. And thanks for stopping by. The Hurd Lie News. My buddy, Nick Wright, he's co-hosts First Things First. Also got What's Right, he's got a new podcast, Sunday, Tuesday, Thursdays. And Nick, I said earlier, listen, Michael Jordan's career ended kind of sloppy.

So did Shaq. So did Brett Farves. You know, that's just, they don't, I mean, I can remember like Ewing in a magic jersey and a Keem in a Raptor jersey. And to me, Kevin Durant's legacy, ascending star, number two to LeBron, won a bunch of titles, MVP, and now it's ugly. I think his legacy is set. Do you believe losing the way he's losing and a bit trapped in Brooklyn?

Is it going to ding his legacy? Well, listen, I don't think that, I think his legacy is mostly set, but I think he has room to grow. And obviously, this year didn't help grow his legacy. I want to discuss something about Kevin Durant with you, though. Because we were just talking about this on the podcast. My apologies for not getting in my regular television wardrobe. We just finished the podcast, and so I sat down, talked to you. I'm wearing the more podcast casual wardrobe.

I hope you're not offended. I am bringing just the exact same energy and takes for you just in a slightly more casual outfit. So here's the deal, Colin. My only issue with KD at the present moment is he seems to take issue with the way he is being a value. by us in the media, by Barclay, by contemporaries, which denies the fact he is being evaluated the way all of the greatest of the greats have been evaluated, which is we do not measure all championships exactly equally,

and we do add context. Colin, if I were to say to you, Kobe Bryant has five titles, are some more important for his legacy than the others, you would say, yes, obviously. The last two that he got without Shaq are wildly important for how he is remembered as a player to do that without Shaquille O'Neal.

Let's pretend for a moment that LeBron James, after leaving Miami, never won another ring. Do you think people would still be like, oh, might be the greatest player ever? Or do you think people would say, listen, LeBron, one of the greatest players ever, however, could never win outside of D. Wade's cocoon in Miami, what they'd been built there. And while he was the best player on those teams, couldn't win elsewhere. No, of course we would. But then LeBron won in Cleveland and won with the Lakers. These are all, so Kevin Durant being so bothered by the fact that we are treating him the same way. People treated me. Magic Johnson. Magic, all-time great. But can the Lakers win a title once Kareem declines when it's not Kareem's team? Yeah, they could and they did, and it elevated him.

Kevin Durant has not yet answered that question. And until he does, when you are, because he is now in the world where he is compared to Kobe and Bird and Duncan and Dr. J. And Shaq and the Kame. Those are his contemporaries. He is going to be held to those standards. And so he is better than Berkeley. Berkeley's an all-time, and he's better than him. Because Barclay joined a team that had won titles,

a team that had knocked him out when he joined Houston, and they didn't win. So, like, I just, I don't know exactly what Kevin Durant wants in this regard. I feel like it is treating him with respect to hold him to the standard of. The only box you haven't checked off is winning a title that you put together as a a leader. And we're waiting to see him do it. A lot of the world thought he was going to do it this year or last year. He's come up short both times. Well, it's interesting. We know winning matters to him. That's why he left Oklahoma City and went to Golden State. We know winning matters.

I will say this, just thinking about it as you discussed it, is that Aaron Rogers and Kevin Durant, the minute a contemporary wins more than them, suddenly both have this, hey, life's more than my sport. It's like, ah, if you had gone to Brooklyn and won back-to-back titles, would you be so casual and indifferent to winning? If Aaron had four Super Bowls, would he be like, you know, Jeopardy, Hollywood, it's easy to pivot to, hey man, my life's bigger than my sport. When contemporaries are winning the titles and you're getting knocked out, at Lambo again off a by, and Brooklyn swept in the first round.

Is that fair to say? Yeah, listen, I think that's fair. I also think Kevin Nourin is very clearly obsessed with basketball, loves basketball, a true gym rat. We know this. KD. has talked years ago when he was talking about comparisons with he and LeBron. He talked about how LeBron spent, we all have the same amount of time, right? And he talked about how LeBron spends so much time on his body, while Katie prefers to spend time in the gym on his game. Now, one could argue that was, you know, that maybe he should.

should have done a little more LeBron in that regard. Maybe LeBron should have done a little more KD. Maybe he'd be a better free throw shooter, right? Maybe they both should have met in the middle a little bit more, one could argue. I think Katie truly loves basketball. I don't, but I think what is interesting about Katie and Kyrie is I think they love basketball, obviously, and love being NBA players, but don't seem to particularly enjoy a lot of the things that go along with it.

And what, like, Kyrie, I got the impression during these playoffs. He'd prefer to be playing at times in empty arenas. But that's, but you could do that, but you don't get the platform to spread whatever message you want to spread, the money, the fame, all of those things. Kevin Durant's going to make probably half a billion dollars, if not more, off the court because of the media attention, because how much people love the game.

Well, what goes along with, that is when you are one of the greats you are going to be scrutinized. And I just, I think it is slightly immature to act surprised or shocked or dismayed that you are

when you were the favorites to win the title and you were the only team in the league this year to make the playoffs and get swept and you had the worst series of your career that there's going to be some discussion about that and how that impacts how we view you compared to

the greatest of the all-time greats. So this is interesting. You have a much more dynamic nightlife than I do. I go to bed. I eat chicken parm. I watch games. I get up. I don't smoke.

You are the James Harden. Yeah, you're the James Hardin of talk show hosts. You close nightclubs. You are very dynamic. And I'm watching James Harden. And I'm thinking to myself, well, he's aging really fast. and this is what happens when you've made a lot of money and you've closed the nightclubs. And LeBron, Russell Wilson, they're obsessed.

I mean, it's like, you know, a body. Well, that's where their careers last longer. It's not a knock on James. It is a reality of James Harden. And we both, I think you like it more than me. But my takeaway is I think they won the trade. But this is maybe how the last few years are going to be, Nick. He's just, he's slow.

I'm concerned. Colin, I'm concerned about his inability to get past people. He can't. There's no way around it. Let's be clear. Hardin's brilliance was never raw dynamic athleticism. He's one of the smartest players ever. If you want to put it kindly, he's one of the craftiest players ever.

His passing is brilliant, all those things. But these plays, some of which that were showing, he used to be getting by guys. He would get guys on his hip. He would go up for that floater. he's not getting past anybody anymore. That is concerning ever since the hamstring injury, which, to his credit, despite the nightlife,

despite everything you're saying, he was an absolute iron man. He was playing 80-plus games every year, heavy minutes, was never hurt. And so I give him massive credit for that. But right here, this play is concerning, man. And I understand, I think it's hard for me to see from here. I think that's Scotty Barnes.

Scotty Barnes' excellent player is also a rookie. Like James Hardin is not beating anybody off the dribble anymore. That's concerning. And, you know, for Philly, there's a lot of things concerning. I mean, everyone says no one's ever blown a 3-0 lead. Well, only three teams, Colin, up 3-0, have even had to play a game 7. And one of them was the 1951 Rochester Royals. I don't know if you covered that team, but it was a little before my era.

So it's pretty damn rare. You're up 3-0 and you even face a game 7. Philly is staring down the barrel of a very, very dangerous situation. So I have my takeaway on it, but I'm going to hand the floor to you. Jerry West said this week, I'm going to take it to the Supreme Court. I don't like how I'm being treated by HBO and Adam McKay. What do you make of the logo in his twilight years of a basketball executive ship? What do you make of this stand?

And the Lakers as a whole being very turned off by it. All right, I'm going to answer this quickly. Please ask me a John Morant question. Sorry, I know it's your show, but please do. But here's my answer. I empathize because I don't think I'd like it either. And I think, you know, if in 30 years somebody made a, you know, a docu drama about the creation of FS1, which 30 years from now is the world's largest sports platform.

And I'm watching it. Forget even if I'm portrayed poorly. I don't even know if I'd make it. But if in that docu drama, they make old Uncle Colin seem like a, a jerk, a bad guy. I think it would bother me. I think I would, on your behalf, I would be like, I want to sue. However, it's make-believe.

It's not, I feel like you're allowed to take liberties on things you're trying. It's entertainment. And as long as they are not presenting it as this is a 100% accurate portrayal, then I, I don't, you know, listen, God only knows, Supreme Court surprised me a lot. in the last 18 months, Colin, got to tell you. So I'm not really up on the latest libel laws in America. However, I don't, I'm not certain he's going to have a great success there. Okay. So here's my John Morant thing.

Oh, the media. Oh, John Morant. You are struggling as a two-seat with a marginal team that played a playing game. By the way, the T-Wolves were a bad road team, one of the worst fourth quarter teams. For the second, led by 11th. last night. I watched every second of this game. And if not for, I mean, seriously, John Morant being John Morant with about a minute left,

they've lost two home games. By the way, in the East, the two seeds swept the seven seed, and they had Katie and Kyrie. This team is struggling with a mediocre basketball team, and all I hear about is, oh, John Morant, this, John Morant, that something's off with Memphis, because this is not a good Minnesota team. Yeah. Something's off. Okay, well, first of all,

You're slightly underselling Minnesota. Minnesota's a dumb team. They play silly basketball. They make ridiculous mistakes. But they have a lot of talent. And you say they are in the playing. They're in the playing because the NBA changed the rules. They were the seven seed.

They were the true and fair seven seed if they were pre-play. And so they're a legit playoff team with a couple number one picks and a number two pick. Like, I think Minnesota's fine. They're not great. If you're saying, ah, this is why I don't think Memphis will beat Golden State in the next round, fine. But you, as you often do, it's like you survey the sports landscape and you say, who is amazingly exciting and everyone loves? I don't think I like him.

Who can jump the highest and run the fastest? Not my type of guy. Like, how can you be anti-Jamaranth? The guy yesterday, here's a different take on Jom Rant yesterday, had one of the single greatest playoff dunks ever that spurred his team from 3rd. 13 down to the biggest win the Grizzlies have had as a franchise in a half decade. And he scored their final 13 points, including going 6 of 6 at the free throw line, hit a key three and the game winning layup.

How about that for a guy in year three who's 21 years old, number two pick of the draft? How about your root for John Morant, Colin? I'm not rooting against him. I think he's a great kid. He's really funny. He's the most dynamic guy in the league. He's the most, listen, I love Janus. He's not that fascinating to watch.

John Morant's fascinating. John Morant's, you're ever sitting the side of a road to see a Maserati drive by? It doesn't get good gas mileage. I wouldn't want to own one in bad weather. See, there it is. See, there it is. Even in the John Moran, Maserati analogy, you can't help yourself. But like, ah, it's terrible in the snow and the gas mileage is awful.

But you can't help yourself. For some reason, if a vertical leap is above 42 inches and a 40-yard dash time is sub 4-3, Colin's like, I don't know if I can trust you. So I got to, Joy, we need to investigate this. We need to turn Colin pro-John Morant. I'm not. I am pro-Jam-Morant.

I am not anti-Jaw-Morant. I am offering critical thinking that we're getting a little crazy on the dunks, although I watch them. I just think, I can't figure out why they're struggling in this series. They're a way better basketball team. They were 19 and 2 without Jahl. How are they struggling at home with this team again? How?

Something's off. Okay. They're young, they're new That's fine But just come on man You and I weren't friends We didn't know each other I felt like I knew you but I didn't

During the Derek Rose heyday And I know you're like Ah the Derek Rose thing didn't work His knees blew out You don't get to do a Derek Rose victim The guy's knees blew out So let's just Let's just try to enjoy

An electrifying Fun basketball player That is bringing life to a great basketball city. All right. I'll sleep on it. All right. There's Nick Wright.

Next time, next time, collard shirt if you can, but at least it's Maham Ali. Yeah, I know. Listen, buddy. Sorry, there's my third show today.

I just got done with the podcast. I sat down. My apologies. All right. Nick Wright, first things first. Got a new podcast. I actually have a different thought

on the Lakers, Jerry West, all that stuff next. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays and noon Eastern 9 a.m. Pacific. 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'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 podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what you're saying.

Yep, that's me, Cliver Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, the reactions, my journey from basketball to college football, or my career in sports media. Well, somewhere along the way, this platform became bigger than I ever imagined. And now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfiltered conversations with some of your favorite athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. One week I'll take you behind the scenes of the biggest moments in sports and entertainment,

and the next we'll talk about life, mental health, purpose, and even music. The Clifford Show isn't just a podcast, it's a space for honest conversations, stories that don't always get told, and for people who are chasing something bigger. So if you've ever supported me or you're just chasing down a dream, this is right where you need to be. Listen to the Clifford Show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at Tickford. Talk Podcast Network on TikTok. Do you remember when Diana Ross double-tap Little Kim's boobs at the VMAs?

Or when Kanye said that George Bush didn't like black people. I know what you're thinking. What the hell does George Bush got to do with Little Kim? Well, you can find out on the Look Back at It podcast. I'm Sam Jay. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick a here, unpack what went down, and try to make sense of how we survived it. Including a recent episode with Mark Lamont Hill, waxing all about crack in the 80s.

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

Yeah. For me, it's one of the most important years for black people in American history. Listen to look back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, this is Robert from the Stuff to Blow Your Mind podcast. Joe and I are both lifelong Star Wars fan, so we're celebrating May the 4th with a brand new week of fun, thought-provoking Star Wars-related episodes.

Join us as we tackle science and culture topics from a galaxy far, far away, such as the biology of tauntons and wampas on the ice planet hot, or the practicality and corporate business sense of the Sith Rule of Two. Listen to Stuff to Blow Your Mind on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. So Jerry West does not like the dramatization of HBO's winning time. Jeff Perlman's book, I think, is better than the series,

but nonetheless I think it is wildly entertaining. Winning time on HBO has taken a lot of liberties. Jerry West does not like those liberties. Jeannie Bust did not work for her dad at 16. That's just false. And Pat Riley's first game as a coach was not a blowout. Everybody looks a bit cartoonish. The Lakers and not just Jerry West have been very critical of this.

Here's my spin. I'm generally less sympathetic for people in life that benefit from something and then it turns on them. In the history of America, there is no sports franchise that has leaned into and benefited more from Hollywood than the Lakers. Not every franchise in Los Angeles leans into Hollywood like the Lakers. The Dodgers don't. They leaned into wholesome. Vince Scully, Dodger baseball, Farmer John. That's what they leaned into.

The Raiders didn't lean into Hollywood that much. Some Raiders ended up in movies. I mean, it is L.A. They are stars. But the Raiders sort of leaned into counterculture. Look at their fans. Not the Lakers. Showtime, Forum Club, courtside seats, Laker girls. Jack Nicholson for 30 years sat right next to the team bench.

It was cool. You wanted to be part. of the Lakers. Free agents wanted to be stars. LeBron did not come here for basketball, just basketball, folks. The Lakers were a mess. The roster was young and bad. LeBron came here because of the connections, and he has doubled as net worth, and good for LeBron. But the Lakers, more than any American franchise, have benefited from this, leaned into Hollywood. And now they don't like that Hollywood has turned on them. And perhaps the message is, don't trust Hollywood

they've always used people I mean Hollywood's eating itself now the Oscars may not be around in three years maybe that's the message and maybe that's fair but the two franchises in this city and I'm not a full-time lived here my whole life guy in L.A.,

so maybe I'm wrong but my perception is the two sports teams that have leaned into Hollywood most are USC football and the Lakers forum, club Laker Girl Showtime. Jerry Buss, this brilliant, brilliant man leaned into it. Hefner, sexed it up, glammed it up. It's all good. That's why guys want to come here.

They're in their dreary winter NBA city and they're like, I want some of that. And it came back to bite them. Maybe this is not analogous, but sometimes I see videos on the internet. Big game hunters love to shoot animals and sometimes the animal turns on the big game hunter. I always love those videos. You benefited for a long time. I go to Africa. I shoot this. I shoot that. Look at my wallet's hanging there. I'm a man. Sometimes

the tiger turns on you. Not as sympathetic as I would be for a family that goes on an African tour and gets mauled by a rhino. He kind of benefited from it. Like forever. My entire life. I grew up in the Pacific Northwest. We didn't have a Hollywood. We had rain.

We tried to get those free agents. They didn't want to come to our place. because we didn't have movies. And maybe this is the Pacific Northwest kid and me talking. But the Lakers have always used every ounce of the art and the movies and the glamour and the scripts and the, to their advantage. Sometimes Hollywood turns on you. But man, you got to be honest.

When you're my age, when you're in your 50s, Lakers were cool. I hated them and they were cool. I was jealous of them. That's why people in Atlanta for years held up signs beat L.A. They didn't have beat Sacramento. They didn't have beat the Sonics. They didn't have beat the Suns. They were all kind of jealous of the Lakers.

They were cool. The Yankees were often richer and greater. I don't know if they were cool. Don't know if the bears were cool. When you lean into something, I'm less sympathetic. If it comes back to bite you. Hour to next. Another podcast from some SNL, late-night comments.

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, 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. 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 podcasts. A win is a win. A win.

I don't care what you're saying. Yep, that's me, Cliver Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, my basketball and college football journey, or my career in sports media. Well, now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Cliford Show. This is a place for raw, unfilled conversations with athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. So let's get to it.

Listen to The Cliford Show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifference. and at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. On The Look Back at it podcast. From 1979, that was a big moment for me. 84 was big to me. I'm Sam Jay.

And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick a year, unpack what went down, and try to make sense of how we survived it. With our friends, fellow comedians, and favorite authors. Like Mark Lamont Hill on the 80s. 84 was a wild year. I mean, it was a wild year. I don't think there's a more important year for black people. Listen to look back at it on the IHeart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

This is an IHeart podcast. Guaranteed human.