The Herd with Colin Cowherd - HOUR 1 - NBA, Saban, Irving

Episode Date: July 13, 2022

The NBA is facing a huge problem and it centers around Kevin Durant Nick Saban's comments on realignment Kyrie Irving is realizing his options are limited Rasheed Wallace wouldn't be better than Giannis Antetokounmpo if he played today   Guest: Ric BucherSee 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.

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. 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 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 celebrated. So let's get to it. Listen to the Clifford show on the I Heart Radio app,

Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok's podcast network on TikTok. On the Look Back at it podcast. From 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 Herd. You're listening to Fox Sports Radio. Here we go. It is a Wednesday. We are live in Los Angeles. It's the herd. Wherever you may be and however you may be listening,

IHeart Radio, Fox Sports Radio, and FS1, you'd think it'd be a slow week. It is not a slow week. There is a ton to talk about for the next two days. J-Mack, Jason McIntyre, is filling in for Joy Taylor. J-Mack is going to grow out of this trend. of playing pickup basketball. He's got a nasty shiner on his right eye.

He's handsome enough to overcome it. You'll outgrow it at some point. Just go home after work, have soup, and then go to bed and watch Netflix. I refuse to retire, Colin. I refuse. I live through those years. Great to have you in, buddy, for the next couple of days. Let's start with this.

You know, there's this myth, and I tend to be pro player over pro-owner. I'm pro player. But there's this myth that Silicon Valley is run by 20-year-olds. No, it's not. Silicon Valley is run by 40 and 50-year-olds. And tech is a young person's world. My son's like 16 years old, lives for tech. His friends live for tech.

Silicon Valley, the tech world's run by 40 and 50-year-olds. I used to work at a company. I left. It's done fine. My company's doing well, too. But the company I used to work at, ESPN at one point, decided to let their young talent talk about anything they wanted to. And Trump was president. He was toxic and they started talking about

politics a lot and didn't have great management at the time. And their ratings plummeted. I'm four young people and four young athletes. They shouldn't run your company. Right? You grow into that. Adam Silver is figuring out that 27-year-olds shouldn't run the NBA. They've given the player so much power that Adam Silver has his state of the union discussion, you know, once, twice a year. Yesterday, he came out. Think about this, the last two years. Adam Silver last year and a little bit this year spent his time talking about having to convince his 27-year-olds to want to play basketball.

What? You don't have to convince NFL players because if they don't, you cut them. Adam Silver was quoted yesterday talking about Kevin Durant. He goes, I don't know whether the player requested a trade or demanded one, but this needs to be a two-way street. Teams provide security and guarantees. And the expectation is in return they'll meet their end of the bargain. The player will. I'm realistic.

There's always going to be some conversations to go on behind closed doors between players and reps of the teams. But we don't like to see players requesting trades, and we don't like to see it playing out the way it is. So the last two years, Adam Silver, has spent his state of the union, one of his big talking moments. moments on having to convince his players to play and convincing his star players to honor their contracts. Got yourself a little problem. By the way, it's one thing when KD left Oklahoma City or LeBron went to Miami. They were free agents.

They had earned that right. Now, fans in Cleveland or Oklahoma City may not like it, but LeBron has always honored his contracts. LeBron signed short contracts because at that time in his career, physically he didn't get hurt. He ran the league. He's like, I'm doing one-year deals. And you signed him because he was LeBron and you'd get to the finals. But those guys, KD out of OKC and LeBron out of Cleveland, they honored their contracts.

I'll defend that forever. I am Mr. Pro Player Pro Mobility. But that's not what we have here. What we have here is Kevin Durant saying, I created a mess. I wanted out. I demanded out. I'm out and I don't want to play anymore in Brooklyn. Remember what Houston did to James Harden?

They pampered him. They brought in Chris Paul. They bring in Russell Westbrook. They built a team around him specifically, defended him, market him, promote him. And in response, James Hardin got fat and quit in the team. That's what he did. Sorry if it hurt your feelings. He quit.

So think about the optics of the NBA right now. Ben Simmons quit playing basketball. Kevin Durant wants to quit the Nats, James Harden quit Houston, and Kyrie Irving, the world is flat. Sorry, not great optics, and I'm an NBA fan. I talk more NBA, outside of maybe Stephen A. Smith and Skip, I talk more NBA than any opinionist in the country doing sports. I love the league. Love it. But the optics aren't great. And think about this. In America, the pro sport always beats the college sport. NHL gets much bigger ratings than college. college hockey. Major league baseball gets much bigger ratings than college baseball. As much as we love

college football, NFL crushes it in ratings. Yet March madness often thumps the NBA playoffs. It's optics. The NBA has always been more pro player than any other league. Now I hear this all the time. Nobody goes to see the GM. Yeah, nobody goes to the game to see Belichick either. Nobody goes to a baseball game to watch a manager. Nobody goes to a hockey match, a hockey game to watch, you know, the backup goalie or an executive. We all know that to be true. We know we go to the games to watch the stars and the NBA is star-driven. But there's a line that leagues have crossed.

And as much as I like Adam Silver, he is soft. He is two pro player. And in the last two years, he's literally spent time talking about. In his big talking moments, yeah, I've got to convince my players to want to play and to honor their contracts. It's a bad look. And this is from somebody that loves the sport. I'll defend the KD leaving OKC, LeBron leaving Cleveland. As much as fans hate it, they earned it and LeBron honors his contracts.

KD right now, Harden, Ben Simmons, Kyrie, it's an awful look for the league. And the ratings are illustrating. People don't like it. They don't like it. All right. So the best college football coach of all time is Nick Saban. And I have finally figured out Nick Saban's genius. He's convinced himself that Alabama doesn't dominate college football. What's he got? Seven titles, 15 years.

His genius is he's convinced himself, well, we're an underdog over here. What we don't want in college football is a powerhouse, winning the title every two years. So Nick Saban was on some podcast and he doesn't like all this mega conference stuff. And here's the reason he is worked up over this Big Ten expansion and all these mega conference deals. Here we go. My biggest concern is competitive balance. You know, the NFL, every rule that they have is to create competitive balance. And if they could have every team go eight and eight. So at the end of the season, every team was playing their last game to get the playoffs. They would be a static. We don't have any guardrails on what we're doing right now.

So we have no restrictions on who can do what. Some people are going to be capable of doing certain things. Other people are not going to be capable. The bottom line is we'll lose competitive balance, which everything we've always done in college football is to maintain competitive balance. Who outside of the state of Alabama buys that? Let's look at Alabama's schedule this year, which Sabin controls the out-of-conference schedule. He tells him who he wants to play.

Are we going to have competitive balance September 3rd when they host Utah State or September 17th when Bama hosts Louisiana Monroe, who's not good at all, even at their level? Are we going to have competitive balance when they host Austin P? Nick scheduled those games all at home. You could have competitive balance and Nick touched on it. This is where he's right. And it would take about two years to get it done. You'd have to unwind some contracts.

In the NFL, if you win your division, you face other division winners the next year. In college football, you could very easily create this, very easily create this, that anybody that won a Power 5 conference, that's your out-of-conference schedule. So Bama this year would have to go play at Georgia. they'd have to go play Ohio State and Baylor. Now, I don't think you'd have to play all the other conferences, but they'd have to play maybe Utah or Pitt. And maybe one in a rotating basis,

you wouldn't have to face every. So you'd pace maybe three or four, not five. But if Sabin is on to something and you had to play conference champions, including one in your own division, like Georgia, then this year, Alabama would go to Columbus and for the record, they'd lose and they would go to Georgia and probably, probably lose. They would host Utah and win and maybe host Baylor and it'd be, you know, Alabama. But that would be competitive balance.

What Nick's really bothered by, and I'll say it again, is that with a new name, image, and likeness, teams now can buy players. And Alabama, the state of, does not have the economy to compete with Texas A&M and Texas because of the big oil money. Texas A&M and Texas have oil money coming out of their ears. Alabama does it, and Nick knows it. If you follow recruiting and I do, Bama's doing a great job. But a lot of those five-star guys, they're choosing Texas schools because of getting paid.

And let's not be too definitive on, you know, why they're getting paid, how they're getting paid. They're getting paid. I'm not here to judge. I don't know all the rules on the NIL, but I know some schools are paying big money for high schoolers. All right. You know, I'm not judge, jury, whatever. But that's what he's worried about. Nick Saban's never worried about competitive balance.

But the genius of him has been exposed or illustrated that he has convinced himself he's an underdog. He's convinced himself this sport, anybody can win every year. Okay, every other year it's me. But besides that, he's not worried about competitive balance at all. And I'm going to make an argument that competitive balance has never been what college football is about. It didn't have it in the 40s, 50s, 60s, 70s, 80. It's never had it, and we keep watching it. It's about the college campus.

It's about big games. It's about rivalries, the bands. It's about the feeling. It's not the best football. The NFL is. It's about how it makes you feel. It makes you feel like you're putting back to your school. It makes you feel young again.

You go to the games. tailgate the bands, and we all know Alabama at the end wins every other year. It's never been driven by competitive balance. And I don't think competitive balance is going to get worse because it can't get worse. Because in the last 15 years, the SEC has won or been in 14 of the games. It can't get worse. Miami, Texas, they got the right boosters. They're buying five-star guys.

I'm totally okay with it. That would be competitive balance. And Nick's afraid of it. The sport could change within two years and he would fight it tooth and nail if they said from this point forward, you have to face the winner of the SEC East, the winner of the Big Ten, the winner of the Big 12, the winner of the ACC out of conference, half of them on the road. Anyone like that, that trip to Columbus. Not that fun. Hosting Louisiana Monroe at home, that's a lot of fun every single year. and that schedule he controls.

All right. A lot of stuff today. J. Mack is in for Joy Taylor, who is a well-deserved lighter summer schedule. 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 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 which I'm saying. Yep, that's me, Clipper 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 Podcasts,

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-taped Little Kim's boobs at the VMAs? Or when Kanye said that George Bush didn't like black people. know what you're thinking. What the hell does George Bush got to do a little kill? Well, you can find out on the Look Back at it podcast. I'm Sam Jett. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick 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 y'all No. I mean, at this point, this is the second episode where we've discussed correct. So I'm starting to see that there's a through line. We also have AIDS on the table right now. Thank you finishing that sentence. Yes. I don't think there's a more important year for black people. Really? Yeah. For me, it's one of the most important years for black people in American history.

Listen to look back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Welcome to my new podcast, Learn the Hardway with me, your host, and your favorite therapist, Kear Games. And in recognition of mental health awareness month, I'm bringing over a decade of my own experience in the mental health field and conversations with so many incredible guests. I'm talking, Tripp Fontaine, Ryan Clark. Sometimes when we're in the pursuit of the thing, we get so wrapped up in the chase that we don't realize that we are in possession of the thing. And we're still chasing it. And we don't know when we've done enough. Because people scoreboard watch. Life becomes about wins and losses. Steve Burns,

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Search Learn the Hardway and listen now. Good to have you back in. sometimes stories are so transparent why they're out. It's kind of laughable. I often say on the show, it's not about just the story, but why did the story get out? So here's the latest. The New York Post, a fine newspaper. Two different sources told the New York Post yesterday,

Kyrie has not asked for a trade. If the Nets don't want him, that's different. Kyrie not said he wants a trade. He opted in. He wants to play. Kyrie wants to win a championship. Yeah, this is Kyrie and his agent saving face. Never want it out.

Loves KD. Loves the Nets. Why did this story drop in the last 24 hours? Because the Lakers have drawn a line in the sand. We'll give you Westbrook in a future first round pick. But Kyrie's a flake. We're not giving you both of our first round picks. We're not doing it.

The Lakers have drawn a line in the sand. Rob Polinka, I'm told, said, I'm not giving you both picks. I'll give you one and Westbrook. But Kyrie's not dependable. And for the record, I get it. I don't care much about draft picks in the NBA, but I get it.

There is the value, the optics of, we're not selling the farm for Kyrie. If he flames out, you look really bad. But this is all because the Nets don't really want him. The Lakers want him, but don't want to give up much other than a bad Westbrook contract. And the other 29 teams in the league are saying, hard pass.

That's why this story broke. And years ago, somebody warned me. They said, be very careful about wanting total power. Because if the fit hits the shan, you'll get blamed for everything. Kyrie Irving

overplayed his hand, burned bridges, had power, and used all of it. And this is where he is. The netstone want him. The Lakers kind of do, but won't give up more than Westbrook and a draft pick in three years, which could be at the bottom of the first round. And the other

29 teams are saying not remotely interested. Kyrie has earned all of this. Every single ounce of it he's earned. Jay Mack with the news. No, no, no, no, no. Turn on the news. This is the herd line news. All right, Colin, let's get started with your guy. Trey Lance in San Francisco. Brandon Ayuk, one of his wide receivers, posted footage training with Lance, and was kind of making fun of the arm fatigue. A big topic of yours, Colin.

Yes. Where are you on the Trey Lance arm fatigue? Because remember, this is a guy who threw just 71 passes as a rookie. Well, we know they're trying to rebuild his throwing motion a little. We know if you watched him play, he has struggled with accuracy. His completion percentage was like 56%. We know he played at a small school. We know he's big enough, mobile enough, smart enough, gets along with people.

That's not an issue. He would be starting now if they trust his accuracy. There are reports as they rebuild somebody I trust told me. As they rebuild sort of his delivery, he, you know, it's like anything else. He's doing a new thing. There can be arm fatigue. So he's fallen into the Mack Jones category. When I hear too much about how great your offseason is, why is everybody projecting this?

Just let's go watch him play. Don't worry too much about telling me how great he is and defending him. Because right now, if he was as great as you keep telling me, Garoppolo would be gone. He'd be traded. It's funny. You mentioned the off-season stuff. Colin, don't you love reading about how chubby guy has shed 15 pounds? He's in the greatest shape of his life.

We hear that all the time. Trey Lance, no arm fatigue at all. Right. Next story, Colin. The Panthers just picked up your guy, Baker Mayfield. The GM Scott Thitterer was speaking to the media and said a lot of people were went to bat for Baker Mayfield. I'm curious, are you one of them?

No, I think Baker is what he is. When he says he went to bat, Panthers GM says plenty of people went to bat for Baker. Is he talking about Cleveland Brown players? Now, now, some on the record did. OBJ did not. OBJ's dad did not, but some did. Well, also, you know, Matt Rule famously coached in the Big 12 with Lincoln Riley.

Maybe put in a call to Lincoln Riley, because I looked at the Panthers roster. It doesn't look like there was anybody who played with Baker Mayfield. This could have been one of those things where you're hiring. somebody for a job, Colin, and you're calling to verify that this guy's a credible dude? I will make my prediction that the people who made this happen were primarily the GM who wanted competition for Sam Darnold, because Sam has a history of getting reckless. The owner wanted to make the move, but would not spend any money. I don't think Matt Ruhle had final say here. I think Matt Ruhl was interested in Deshawn Watson. That's been reported. I don't think Matt Ruhle

wants to go into a season that is his professional career hangs in the balance, right? This is Steve Ballmer as an owner with a quarterback competition in August. You cannot tell me that any coach on the hot seat wants that. What you want is a leader and a capable Colt McCoy backup. All right. So here's the sound of GM Scott Fitterer on Baker Mayfield. We reached out to a lot of people that knew Baker, that were there when they drafted Baker, that were in the organization.

I had coaches that have coached him in the past. They actually called me unsolicited to go to bat for him. It doesn't matter what he's done in the past. It's what's he going to do when he gets in this quarterback room. A lot of people really want to bat for Baker. And I think there are a lot of circumstances of why things happen. And obviously, a lot of things are said that get out in the media that aren't portrayed exactly how, or isn't exactly how it happened.

But we're very comfortable with Baker. We're excited to add him to the room. I look forward to working with him. All right, Colin, the quarterback competition starts at a month. Who you got, Baker or Darnold? Darnold wins initially. Makes mistakes replaced by Baker. End of the year, they move off both.

I would agree. All right. Final story, Colin, the sources say the Utah Jazz are now willing to listen to Donovan Mitchell trade scenarios. This is interesting because Mitchell's one of those shooting guards who's very good, but he can't be the best player on your team, right? Because we've seen his ceiling in Utah. what do you think? I've got some draft king gods. I'll give to you in a second for where Mitchell may end up, but your initial thoughts here.

Well, I thought they got so much for Rudy Gobert that they would retain Westbrook and not bottom out. If you trade, not Westbrook, Mitchell. If you trade Gobert and you trade Donovan Mitchell, you're bottoming out. Now, Utah's got Salt Lake City has a diehard loyal fan base, only game in town. So fans will go to the game. It's almost collegiate. They'll support their team. this is not a distracted market, right? But Danny Ains, who now calls the shots, when Danny Ains rebuilt Boston and accumulated draft picks, they were still viable. So I think Donovan Mitchell in the current roster, you can win some games, play hard. If you get rid of Donovan Mitchell,

you're not going to win a trade. You're going to get back picks and rotational guys. You can't win in the NBA West with that. So I think my gut feeling would be, I know Donovan Mitchell. I think he's a really good guy. I think you can build around him. I think you're a championship team if he's your second best player.

Again, why is the story out? I think the story is out because Danny Ains wants it out saying, listen, if you give us another Rudy Gobert deal, we'll take it. And that's a total rebuild. But I still feel that after you got five picks for Rudy, do you need picks? Like what you need is a good player to build around. And to me, Donovan Mitchell, is that. So the Jazz are plus 250 to retain Mitchell.

Miami Heat are co-favorants at plus 250. Then the Knicks plus 600. The Nets plus 800. Then you've got the Lakers, the Mavericks, the Cavs, the Raptors. But the Miami Heat are interesting because they're supposedly in the Kevin Durant sweepstakes. If they figure out they can't get Durant, do you pivot to Donovan Mitchell? And can you go bam out of bio, Donovan Mitchell and Jimmy Butler? Are you the best team in the East then?

I don't, sometimes with the NBA, there are certain trades you can't make. I could see Utah saying this. All right. Rudy Gobert's contract was outrageously bad. BAMs isn't as bad, and we think there's similarities. We can get 85 to 90 percent of Rudy Gobert with BAM. Would the heat, say, Jimmy Butler, Donovan Mitchell? Will you, we'll find another big on the market.

Because to me, I've heard this from NFL GMs for years. if you trade Russell Wilson, the Seahawks didn't just want picks. They wanted Noah Fant. They wanted a defensive lineman. You don't want just picks for a star player because the draft is, to some degree, after the first round, you know, it's a lot of crossing your fingers. So again, go bare, you're going to get five picks. Two of those, if you look at draft history, could be nice players.

As good as Danny Ains did in Boston. Tatum's only front-line star of all those draft picks. And Jalen Brown's emerged as a really good, too. But he's not a marquee star player. So you got so many picks, so much draft capital with Gobert. I don't think that's what you need. Now, Miami, I would give up Bam out of Bayou for Donovan Mitchell. No quite.

Because then I'd have, then I got two guys that I know can give me 28 points in a playoff game. Bam, once he plays, an elite defensive center shrinks. How about Julius Randall from the Knicks and five first round picks or whatever the number is? So the Knicks then have Jalen Brunson and Donovan Mitchell. They would love that in New York. Julius Randall is probably a three. He wasn't all NBA a couple years ago. Bam is closer to a two.

Randall's a three. I think to win a championship, Bam probably has to be a three, two. Julius Randall is really expensive. I don't think I'd make that move. I do think, you know, we haven't discussed this before. I do think the NBA is better, absolutely better when the Knicks are interesting. I think New York is a baseball city, but it's an amazing basketball city, and the league is better when they're fun. And if you put Donovan Mitchell and Brunson together, it would be a bad defensive team, but Thibodeau is a good defensive coach, but it'd be fun to watch.

So you'll have L.A., right, Lakers and Clippers, Chicago, the Bulls are going to be good and the Knicks. The NBA needs that badly, as you alluded to earlier in the show, the ratings have been pretty bad last season. Jay Mack with the news. Well, that's the news. for stopping by. The herd lie news. So I saw this story. Andre Aguadala,

going to be a really nice player, great career, has an NBA finals MVP. Said yesterday, if he played now, Rashid Wallace would be better than Janice. I covered Rashid. Here's the sound from Andre Aguadala.

Rashid Wallace. Awesome player. Rashid Wallace. Yep. Probably could have been top five player in the league for a 10-year stretch. He just chose, I just, I'm doing my thing over here. Right.

He was shooting threes from half court. No, he was shooting half court shots, left-handed and right-handed. Yeah. If Rashid Rawlis played in modern day basketball today, if he played in our league today, he'll be the top five player in the league. I don't leave, but he'd be better than Janus, and I love Janus. This is, of course, not true. I covered Rashid.

He never averaged over 20 points a game. Um, work ethic, Janus. Disposition, Janus. maturity, Janus, reliability, Janus, self-control, Janus. Forget basketball. All the intangibles in a hundred-yard race, Janus would start with a 70-yard lead.

Sheed never embraced being the man. Janus covets it. I covered Sheed. It was like covering a really talented kid. One year he had like 30 technicals. He never wanted to be the man. In fact, he would write a check, and I love Sheed. He would write a check I was talking.

told. This is what I was told. He would write a check before the season started to pay for his fines for not working out, not lifting weights. So there are certain tangible skills that transcend eras. She's got a lot of those, right? But here's what always guarantees you will not be a top three or four player in the league. Average work ethic. Semi-dedicated. From the time he gets up in the morning, to the time he goes to bed at night. Janus is completely committed to basketball, the city of Milwaukee, his buck's teammates, and getting better. There are no days off.

I know this is hard for people to embrace because he's not as glamorous. Janus is the best player in the league. In almost every game he plays, he is the most dominating offensive player and defensive player. Sorry he doesn't have a cool shoe deal. sorry he's not glamorous. Sorry he doesn't covet fame. I like Andre Iguodala,

but there's a reason that most NBA players and most pro athletes should never be general managers. They should not be. You'll find the great GMs and the great coaches are often marginal players who had to use things beyond talent. Magic Johnson's amazing. Not a good coach, not a good executive. That's not what he does. Three years ago, just three years.

ago, if you would have polled NBA players, more of them would have chosen Westbrook than Steph Curry as a teammate. Remember that a couple years ago? When Curry was winning the MVP, overwhelmingly players liked Westbrook. Three to four years ago, if you would have pulled NFL players, they would have taken Cam over Russell Wilson because Cam's cool. Cam's career is over. Westbrook now is viewed as a complete utter liability in the NBA. Players tend to fall for glamour and flash and hyper-athleticism. I said this about Baker and Johnny Mansell when they came into the league. I'm like, that's a firework show.

Somebody's got to clean up a fireworks show. We all go to fireworks shows. We watch them that we get in our car and drive away. You ever seen the mess after a fireworks show? That's not going to work. Here's what's going to work for a long time. Justin Herbert. It's kind of boring.

Matt Stafford, never seen him in Los Angeles. Justin Herbert never seen him in Los Angeles. Baker Mayfield had 42 progressive commercials. I was exhausted by the end of the first quarter of a Baker Mayfield game. And so work ethic, disposition, commitment. I think a lot of people in the NBA, they're struggling with Janus being the guy. They like him, but he's not as cool or as flashy or as glamorous. Rashid Wallace was temperamental.

15 years ago, 20 years ago, throw in social media, the pressurized world of the NBA, the global nature of it, the constant 24-7 examining of your life. Sheed in today's NBA, you know what it would be? We have it. It's called Anthony Davis. Not reliable, not totally committed, really good player, certainly can win a title with him. But we have Sheed. It's AD. And if any of you this morning think AD is better than Janus, stop talking basketball. Just stop talking hoops. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in 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 eye test, we've been. 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 IHeartRadio 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 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 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 just so y'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. So, 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. 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 conversational. with so many incredible guests. I'm talking. Tripp Fontaine, Ryan Clark. Sometimes when we're in the pursuit of the thing, we get so wrapped up in the chase that we don't realize that we are in possession of the thing and we're still chasing it

and we don't know when we've done enough. Because people scoreboard watch. Life becomes about wins and losses. Steve Burns, Dustin Ross, because you find it important to be a good person while you hear on earth? Are you a good person because you're afraid? Because that's two different intentions,

bro. Absolutely. And that's two different levels of trust. I want you to just really be a good person. Join me, Keer Gaines, is we have real conversations about healing, growth, fatherhood, pressure, and purpose on my new podcast, Learn the Hardway. Open your free, our Heart Radio app. Search, Learn the Hardway, and listen now. Good to have you back in. Bruce Feldman, some college football talk next hour. Chris Brousar, Rick Buecker, now joining us live. Fox Sports NBA analyst, my buddy, Rick Bukes, joining us live. Okay, first of all, let's go to the Janus, Rashid Wallace thing. Because I do think the NBA's history is many times the greatest player. LeBron, Magic, Dr. Jay, when I was a kid, Michael Jordan, obviously, Iverson.

We tend to embrace the glamorous vertical players. Tim Duncan was unbelievable, but, you know, everybody leaves them off top 10 lists all the time. And I think that's part of the Janus issue, is Janus is just committed. and repetitive and good every night. It doesn't make headlines. But when you heard Sheed by Andre Aguadallah, who you know, she'd today would be better than Janus. What was your interpretation of that? That he's going strictly by talent. This is also the Andrea Gwadala who said that Kyrie Irving, without questions, should be an all-time top 75 player. And again, if you're just going by pure talent, pure ability, I can see why a player in today's game would make that case. But there's

all sorts of intangibles involved. Pound for pound, Rashid Wallace is as good as any power forward I've ever seen play the game. I've seen him shoot threes casually left-handed and he's a right-handed player. He could do everything. Offensively, defensively, great two-way player. But like Kyrie, he was always battling or having battles with things and issues and people that got in the way of his ability to be the best player he could be. And you have to count those things.

The availability, the mentality, the focus, the drive, the concentration. Those are all things that sidelined or caused Rashid Wallace not to be or to make the most of the talent that he had. So I get why Andre would say it, but it really is a disservice to everything that Janice had. accomplished and I and it's surprising to have it come from somebody like Andre Aguadala who has been a champion who knows that there's so much more that goes into being a championship player than just pure talent. So a your take we were J-Mac and I were just talking about Donovan Mitchell. I think he and Jalen Brunson would be great for the Knicks they wouldn't be a championship team neither

one wants to play defense but they'd be fun the NBA is better when the Knicks are fun and and but my My takeaway remains this. They got such a haul for Rudy Gobert that they don't need another hall for Donovan Mitchell. They need a player. Otherwise, there are going to be a bottom three team in the league. And I think rebuilding, I think it's really hard, Rick, in 2022. When we used to charge $7 for a baseball ticket, you could sell the future.

It'll cost you $75 for a good baseball ticket. To sell the future in Utah, we're in a recession, gas prices, inflation. Hey, we'll be good in seven years. I think it's a hard ask. I don't get moving Donovan Mitchell. What do you make of it? Well, it is a hard ask, but it also indicates how the NBA system is broken. And this is not my take.

This was brought to me by a GM, but I think he makes a great point. Look at the four teams that the small market teams that traditionally have been great. Indiana, Utah, Oklahoma City, and San Antonio. Yeah. And look at what all four are doing. All four have traded away in the last few years a star player. And it's because they can't afford to load up on a star player or they recognize that that star player is going to go out the door. And so they've been left with no other option but saying, you know what, we just have to rebuild.

And we can't give Dejante Murray. The San Antonio, Dejante Murray is a good player? Is he a max player? No, but everybody on Dejante Murray's level, regardless of what team they're on or what success they've had, is getting a max deal. So that is a reflection. What Utah is doing, they've never done before, all these teams, these were all quality teams. in spite of being small market teams. And they're looking at it and saying,

and Donovan Mitchell's in the same camp. Donovan Mitchell, the hints that he wants to go, you don't think that that affects in a small market, the ability to attract other players. When you have a star player there saying, hey, I don't know how long I'm going to be here or they're trying to get out, that creates a problem for those teams

to remain relevant and viable. And so that's what you are seeing. And I believe that the Utah Jazz situation is a microcos. of that. And you're going to see as a result of a debate not just between the players and the owners in the next

collective bargaining agreement, but arguments or debates are going to arise between the owners themselves. So, stories come out for a reason. Stories are leaked for a reason, right? Because you and I have had secrets,

trade secrets, or we've known things for years, they don't get out if we don't tell people, right? So Kyrie suddenly, the story gets out to the New York Post, double sources. He always wanted to be a net. And my takeaway is it's pretty transparent that Rob Polinka and Jeannie Bus have said, we'll give you a Westbrook

and a pick. We're not giving you two picks. We're not doing that. He's not dependable enough. And the minute the Laker said, we're not doing it, Kyrie goes to the New York Post, not blaming the reporter. If somebody called me and gave me a scoop, I'd take it. But now Kyrie is saying, oh, his side, we never wanted to be a

Laker. That's my takeaway on the news that broke. Your thoughts. Yeah, look, everybody is trying to paint the picture that puts them in the best light. And Kyrie being rejected by the Lakers or the idea that they're only willing to go so far to get him, I completely understand why Kyrie in his camp would try to present it that way. But the reality is, for all that Kyrie has done over the last couple of years and the price tag that it would cost, well, it's lowered the price tag. It's not his talent.

It's not his ability. Right. It's his availability and everything that comes with it. And teams are just looking at it saying he's good, but he's not that good. Okay, I want to ask you this. We've got a couple minutes. I think the most interesting player that was drafted, not saying he's the best, but the most interesting, and I would have drafted if I was Oklahoma City because they had multiple picks in the top 35 picks.

If I had one pick, I may have gone Paulo Bancaro or Jabari Smith. But if I got multiple, he's got two high of a ceiling not to pick. So I think OKC was totally right. But what are your sources saying about Chet Hongan? Boy, we've seen everything so far in the Summer League. What are your guys telling you? It is a mix. There are scouts and executives, and I was in Salt Lake City.

I went there specifically because I wanted to see Chet's first game, and I wanted to see him in what I expected to be a hostile environment playing against the Utah Jazz in Utah. It doesn't matter whether it's summer league. It's the seventh game of the NBA finals. Those people are going to be lit for their home team. Now, the Utah Jazz were a horrendous summer league team, and you got Taco Fall matched up against him. He just primarily made threes over him. He's going to be up and down, and it's truly in the eye of the beholder.

There are scouts who believe that he has a chance to be really, really good, and there are scouts that question it. And it all comes down to his body. It comes down to be in 195 pounds and 7 feet plus and with a frame that raises questions as to whether he's ever going to be able to add weight to it. His skills, nobody's questioning that. Because of his physicality, he's a big, it's 195 pounds and yet he has more of a perimeter type game. So he's a, look, there's, there's a, there's a, there. hasn't been an answer yet. I will just tell you, after seeing him play in Salt Lake City and seeing

him in Las Vegas, he is, I believe he's going to be good and he's going to be good for a long time. And more important than anything, he fits the mentality of Oklahoma City. He's not a guy who's going to blow up and become great or is going to demand star treatment. So I understand why Sam Presti, the GM, went the direction that he did. He and Josh Kitty, I think they're going to be fun to watch. I said this about Cleveland last year. Mowgli, Darius Garland, they brought in Jared Allen. I'm like, say what you want about Cleveland. It's really a fun team to watch.

And they're about a year away from developing. I feel like Oklahoma City is probably about two to three years away, but I think Oklahoma City is going to be a fun team to watch. I love Josh Giddy. I don't know that I put him on the Darius Garland level. No, he's not that. But let's not ignore the fact that the Oklahoma City Thunder tilted the scales for Chet Holmgren.

A guy like Josh Giddy who started every game and played 30 minutes, you normally don't see him in Summer League, okay? Yeah. He has a monstrous advantage over everybody else. And as a result, Chet Holmgren has a monstrous advantage because he has a guy like Josh Giddy. If you watch those games, when Chet Holmgren goes in, Josh Giddy goes in. When Chet Holmgren comes out, Josh Giddy comes out.

They've made sure. that there's a guy on the floor that is going to be able to play and make the most out of what Chet Holmgren is right now. Good stuff. All right, Rick Buecker, as always, buddy, good seeing you. You got to come. All right. So let's guess right here, J-Mack. Holmgren, forget Chet Holmgren's, the number of games he plays are minutes. Points and rebounds and blocks this year, guess? 13. I was going to say 13 and 1.7 and 2.

Those are good numbers. No, that's what I would guess. I think Paulo will put up better numbers because he's going to be at the center of Orlando's offense, right? Right. He's going to be the fulcrum. Chet's going to be like an ancillary piece. And you've got to bring him along slowly. You know, you can't play him every night, can you?

Well, if you want, we said this, I said this yesterday with Joy. If you know he needs the game 20 to 25 pounds, that's understood. Can you really take him from 36 college games to 82 NBA games? Probably not. And play him 40 minutes. No. Reduce his cardio. Get him in the weight room.

22 minutes a night, maybe 24, 57 games. The key in this kid isn't getting better at shooting jumpers. It's putting on 20 pounds. Year one, that's the issue. Hour 2 next. Another podcast from some SNL, late night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smygel and friends. Me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman help make you funnier.

This week, my guest, SNL's Mikey Day and head writer Streeter Seidel, help an 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. 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, 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 of conversations with athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard,

but celebrated. So let's get to it. 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. On the Look Back at a podcast. From 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 here, 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.

It was a wild year. 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.