The Herd with Colin Cowherd - Hour 1 - The Celtics should be fine

Episode Date: April 12, 2024

Colin talks about the Celtics taking their foot off the gas after clinching the best record in the league for the regular season and why there's no reason for concern He loves the idea of a Tom Brady comeback and makes the case he would still be an elite QB if he returned to the NFLSee 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. On the Look Back at it podcast. For 1979, that was a big moment for me.

84 was 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. 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. Thanks for listening to The Heard podcast. Be sure to catch us live every weekday on Fox Sports Radio in noon to 3 Eastern, 9 a.m. to noon Pacific. Find your local station for the herd at Fox Sports Radio.com or stream us live every day in the IHeart Radio app by searching Fox Sports Radio or FSR. We're listening to Fox Sports Radio. All right, it is a Friday. We are ready to roll.

Live in L.A., it's the herd. Wherever you may be and however you may be listening. Thanks for me, that's part of your day. Joel Clad will join us in a couple of hours live from the Ohio State Spring Game. Finally, people are putting spring games on network television. I wondered for years why people don't put big brand spring games on national TV. Ohio States will be on. A team that probably, I think, should win the national champion.

Jay Mack, this is exciting. The Masters, Bryson de Chambon, here at the top. And they got the NBA playoffs, all that positioning. We got the draft, all sorts of things. Rumblings happening there. Minnesota moving up, maybe not for J.J. McCarthy. Yeah, hey, by the way, you're aware of Bryson Deschambeau's amazing nickname, right? Bryson Dersham swole because he's so jacked and all he does is lift weights.

It's a great nickname. 17 pieces of bacon for breakfast. I'm in, I guess. So the Boston Celtics wrapped up the best record in the NBA. The Celtics wrapped up the best record in the NBA. April 3rd. The playoffs don't start until April 20th.

So they're not the most focused team right now, but Charles Barkley last night, as they were getting dragged by the Knicks, would not have it. If they're going to play like that, they shouldn't play. I'm going to tell you something happened to me when I was in the playoffs one year. The year we made it to the finals, we had the best record in the NBA, and we shut it down the last two weeks of the season.

We lost the first two games at home to the Lakers. And, like, I've always said to myself, they had nothing to do without losing to the Bulls and the finals, but I'm saying I regret it to this day that, like, you play to the end of the season. I know they're going to finish with the best record, but man, you just can't turn it off and turn it on. Maybe that used to be the case,

but the NBA has changed, and here's one of the things that's become noticeable over the last three years, four years. Jay Mack and I, I think you've touched on this. The three-point shot not only rules the world, but if you're an offensively gifted team, Golden State, OKC, to me, Boston. you can play poorly and have a big fourth quarter surge of threes now that five out of five starters can hit them.

It's a life raft on bad nights. So teams like Boston can mail it in, get out played, and have a five-minute run late third quarter and end up blowing out a team by double digits. That wasn't the way it was in Barclays Day or Shaq's Day. The Lakers may have had one three-point shooter, maybe two, a Kobe, a Derek Fisher. or in Barclays day, he could hit a three-pointer, maybe Kevin Johnson could, but it's different now. Teams go on these massive runs. I mean, we had an NBA team with Kevin Durant and Booker on it that trailed 34 to 5 at home this week. You regularly see in the NBA a team down 20 early and they win by 10 late.

It happens all the time. By the way, I love Shaq, but he was perpetually. distracted and Barclay was not known for laser focus either. Michael Jordan had criticized him to his face and behind his back saying, you're just too distracted. You're not committed enough. So the Boston Celtics led the NBA in blowouts. They were 39 and 11 against the east. This is human nature. They take their foot off the gas. It happens all the time. And it happens all the time in the NBA now. So when I look at Boston, my issues with Boston aren't Aren't, because the top five or six teams in the NBA are a mile ahead of the bottom 10.

This is not the NFL where you may have Carolina's really awful and maybe one other teams amass. In the NBA, 10 teams at the bottom cannot compete with the six teams at the top. It's not even, the rosters aren't close. And so my takeaway is, in the three-point world we live in, when you wrap the best record up 17 days before the playoffs. It's not like the Knicks are a bad team. The Knicks are a playoff team. Frankly, better since Julius Randall got hurt.

They're better. And so I get it. And I don't think it's a lack of care. I think it's a reality of the three-point shot. If you're offensively gifted, you can fall asleep. Come back in the third quarter, a four-minute run. You see runs in the NBA now. And not only do you see 20 to four runs, they happen in three minutes.

I meant the Laker game the other night. J. Mack and I are Lakers Warriors. Warriors had four-shot possessions. They come back with 12 points. It's a minute and a half. Didn't used to happen. All right, the Masters, and by the way, golf is a very, very insular sport. Right?

But the truth about golfers is they watch more golf when Tiger Woods was rolling. is that all sports could be, you know, F1 racing overseas, it's women's basketball, personality is better for your social life, your country club, everybody needs a little personality. Bryson DeChambo leads Scotty Sheffler at the Masters by one. Now, Sheffler's your classic golf purest favorite. Doesn't ruffle any feathers, got a nice game, pretty quiet. Bryson DeChambo, J-Mack just told us,

Bryson DeCambeau's nickname is Desham Swole. Okay. It's amazing. He used to have these, maybe he still does protein shake breakfast, 17 pieces of bacon. He's a villain. To some, Tiger Woods was a villain. He would swear, throw a club.

Golf was more interesting. And by the way, Brooks Keppka, Dustin Johnson, Bryson DeShambo, Patrick Reed, their personalities. They've all joined the live tour. And so you get them at a major, but you just don't get them on the tour as much. And the tour is more bland than ever, more vanilla than ever. So I got to be honest with you. My initial reaction with Deschambo was he's over the top.

But now that these big swing guys and the personality guys have gone to the live tour, PG is boring all the time. I'm not going to just watch because of a golf course. Nothing against Augusta or Pebble Beach, but it's the golfer and the personality that brings me in. Not the putting green. And DeCambeau acknowledges he's not

for everybody. I'm a very passionate individual and some people can take that in a pretty negative way. Others can take it in a way of while he's trying to pave the pathway and his own path. I think that's a pretty big misconception is that I'm divisive.

I'm really not. I don't try to be. It may come off that way because I'm passionate about certain things and certain subjects. That's up for interpretation and a opinion, but, and look, I respect everybody's opinion what they think. I have no, no issues, and I understand that the pathway that I, that I pave is, can be viewed in multiple ways. You know, when a lot of these big hitters, and I like watching Brooks Keppka, he's my favorite current golfer. I like Phil Mickelson. What can I say? Maybe I'm a casual. I like Phil

Mickleson. If Phil Mickelson Sunday was in the final group, I'm watching. If DeShambo is, I'm watching. If Sheffler is leads by seven strokes entering Sunday, yeah, whatever. He's great golfer. I mean, golf can make major league baseball

at cutting edge, and they always push back on this stuff. But the thing about Bryce and DeShambo, he makes you feel something. Politicians often win elections when they're not qualified. They make you feel something. That's really important. Caitlin Clark, by the way, sort of made a lot of Americans feel something. Like they

were along for the ride, Midwest girl, hustler, underdog. Wasn't just hitting shots. A lot of people make shots in college basketball, men's and women's. Caitlin Clark made you feel something. Now, you don't have to be a villain to create that, but that is often the case. Michael Jordan made us feel cool. LeBron James sometimes makes people angry. He talks race and race and politics. Whatever it is, I'm for it. Now, maybe I'm a sportscaster, I'm a golf casual, but I'm telling you, since all the big hitters left

and golf said good riddance, PGA is not as interesting. The numbers prove it. Bryson DeCambo, Dustin Johnson, not a huge fan of Patrick Reed. You get villains, I don't have to love all of them, but I wish I got more Brooks Kepka. I wish I did. He's more interesting.

I root for interesting. Not being a hypocrite. I've said that forever. And I know golf guy at the golf clubs, somewhere in Florida's looking at me, shaking his fist in Arizona, Vegas. That's wrong. Pure golfers. But you know what? Tiger Woods made a lot of guys rich on that tour.

He made a lot of guys rich. J. Mack, Tom Brady said yesterday, he may still play. And people kind of freaked out. It was funny to listen to people. People are either in the camp of, I mean, just stay retired, which, by the way, I think you and I've talked about this, if you do something that's fun for a living, you're a magician. you're a talk show host you play athletics

you do something that would be viewed as fun I don't get retirement I get it if you're in a lug nut factory you lift things you're in a dangerous job you're in an oil Derek oh I totally get that your shoulders are shot your back is bad

it's hard physical labor you want to go play golf I totally get it but when you're in a job and you're lucky that you found your love six seven eight nine years old built a career up retire to what bridge what old shuffleboard action

no backgammon all day my take is I'm Tom Brady I was great two years ago PFF had me as like the third highest graded quarterback above back and Kirk cousins above Justin Herbert if you got a call from Minnesota Donald goes down first week

Justin Jefferson Jordan Addison wait I thought Minnesota was getting J.J. McCarthy I'm just saying you'd be if Donald got banged up in camp Kevin O'Connell DeTal Sean McVeigh called. I'm just saying

you wouldn't take the call? Not saying to go to Carolina. Well, what's Carolina is more beautiful in the winter than Minnesota. Who cares? Minnesota plays indoors. Oh, that's right.

Damn it. I don't know. It's a tough one for TV. We'll talk about that. 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 what you're saying. Yep, that's me, Clivert 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 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 Jett. 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, Mark, 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. 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. By the way, not just in sports, but all the time successful people, men and women in America retire, get bored and then start another company or go back to work. It happens all the time. Retirement is overrated for people who love their work and people that are good at their work.

The longer you do something, especially if later in your career you can surround yourself with young, smart, techie people who can keep your current, you know? So Tom Brady surrounds himself, right, nutritionists, longevity people, he's a fitness freak. So on a recent podcast, Tom said, yeah, I think I'd take a call if somebody called and asked for my services. Let's say one day there's a situation, right? Maybe it's a 49ers, maybe, you know, headed to the playoffs, offense is great. God forbid somebody goes down. Would you pick up that phone?

I'm not opposed to it. I don't know if they're going to let me if I become an owner in the NFL team, but I don't know if, I don't know, I'm always going to be a good shape. Always be able to throw the ball. So to come in for a little bit, like MJ coming back, I don't know if they let me, but I wouldn't be opposed to it. All right. So he would have been, Tom would have been,

the number one free agent quarterback this year. Russell Wilson, tiny, tiny market. Tiny. Basically, Steelers said you're free, we'll take you. And Kirk Cousins is off an Achilles surgery. Tom would have been more interesting. So if you're great at something, a fitness freak, this isn't Drew Brees, where Drew Brees acknowledges, he can't lift his right arm above his shoulder anymore.

When he plays with his kids, he throws with his left hand. Let's just say the Minnesota Vikings call Sam Darnold, slight injury, and whoever they draft that quarterback is not ready to play in that division with the Packers' offense, the Bears with Caleb Williams, and the Vikings like their team. They're off to a three-and-one start. Look at what they would have. Kevin O'Connell, the tall Sean McVeigh head coach. Brady, top five running back Aaron Jones, best receiver probably in the league, Justin Jefferson,

an excellent two, Jordan Addison, T.J. Hawkinson, tight end. maybe the best young left tackle probably in the sport, Christian Darrasaw. Seven elite people, including the head coach. Who's more gifted in the NFL offensively? Maybe San Francisco's certainly not a quarterback than that. Nobody. I mean, Detroit's good. San Francisco's pretty good.

They're not that. And by the way, Brady's last year in Tampa, 4,700 yards, five game winning drives, 67% completion percentage with no run game. No run game. They were last place. Led the NFL in attempts and completions. So it's different than Dan Marino. His knees were shot.

Drew Breeze, right arm was shot. Peyton Manning, physically shot. That's not what we have here. We have a quarterback for a variety of reasons that just sort of said, yeah, the Tampa thing's getting murky. I'm out. I mean, just think about this. Joe Flacco had not started a full seat,

had not been a starter for a full seat. season since 2017 and is not the physical workout freak of Brady goes to the aFC north tougher division tougher conference than tom brady did and he leads cleveland to the playoffs and brady's all in on this longevity stuff brady's in on this pliability stuff i don't think it's crazy i'm not going to get into tom broadcasting to i don't know what happens but i'm just saying if minnesota called if what if jared goff went down the lions are not draft The Lions are not drafting a quarterback, I would suppose, early. Jared Goff goes down.

With that offensive line, those weapons, you don't think Ben Johnson would say, you know, if we thought about Colin Brady. Last year, over 50 quarterbacks played. And you're Detroit, you feel like you've got a young roster that you're not paying big money to this year or next. You got about a two-year window in Detroit before you've got to pay all these guys. Tom Brady goes, I'll come in on the chief. You don't think Tom Brady?

Now, I'm not saying right now, he's as vibrant as Jared Gough, but the gap's not that big, is it? So some of these teams, like I get, not building around him, but a phone call, swoop in, parachute in, Vikings, lions.

I mean, Brady chose Tampa. Why? Because all they needed was a right tackle and a receiver, Gronk that he could trust. I mean, that was kind of it, right? They got that. You went and got letting for nothing. net, the roster was there. The division was winnable.

It's something. Jay Mack with the news. No, no, no, no. Turn on the news. This is the herd line news. All right, NFL draft less than two weeks away. Only three of the top quarterbacks will be at the draft. This is, I don't know, something, nothing.

But Caleb Williams will be there. Drake May will be there. Jaden Daniels will as well. No word on J.J. McCarthy. I don't know what that means. Maybe it means nothing. Maybe he rejected them. but only the top three quarterbacks will be there.

The top receiver prospects, Marvin Harrison, Malik Neighbors, Roma Dunzei, they will also be there. Here is the full list on screen of players who will be at the draft. Brian Thomas, the LSU receiver, might be a little under mocked if you've looked at mock drafts lately. And you've got some cornerbacks, one edge rusher. I mean, interesting. It's a very, technically, too. Offensive heavy draft. It's a great offensive tackle draft.

maybe the best ever. It's a strong quarterback draft. It's a very good receiver draft. And there's a couple of good edge rushers. It's not a defensive draft. Yeah. It's a good draft, by the way. First four rounds, a lot of really high-end NFL players. My guys say it drops off heavy about mid-fifth. Mid-fifth round gets kind of junkie. Right where Puka Nicole went. Yeah. But mid-fifth round, it's not real salty. But up to that point, it's a really above-average draft. It's an excellent, excellent first 50 pick draft. So any thoughts on J.J. McCarthy not being there?

I mean, it's going to be, well, it's not going to be weird. If he goes fourth or fifth, which I don't think is happening, it's just a little odd that he's not there, but... Why are you saying it's rigged? I'm not saying anything's rigged. I am curious. Maybe McCarthy said, I know, it's possible that he said no thank you to the invite. You know, there's a lot of option. Maybe he... Well, also. All this, all this trade. Show the list again. I didn't see a Bow Nix or a Michael Pennix either. No, they're not on. So, so J.J. McCarthy grades closer to those players.

I mean, these guys are absolutely getting drafted in the first round. Like, I, there's, like, of the people that could fall, let's say Drake May falls, he's not falling out of the top 12. But you, absolutely. I could see, I could see absolutely the Vikings move up for Jaden Daniels when New England doesn't take a quarterback. If New England doesn't take a holiday. When?

There's a lot of discussions going on right now. All right. Stick it in the NFL. Josh Allen, the bills, you know, they've been Super Bowl contenders for years, haven't been able to get over that hump and get by Kansas City. They've lost some big pieces this off season. But Tom Brady, who's in the news a lot this week,

Tom Brady, was asked which quarterback he thinks will win his first Super Bowl next. And that's Josh Allen. Now, I'd love to. get Tom Brady on that couch and hear him say that because Colin you and I think the ship is sailed. The windows closed for Buffalo. I said that. I don't think it's closed, but I don't think they're going to be as good next year. Your Super Bowl windows never closed when you have a top three quarterback in the league. I don't think it's ever closed. I think Mahomes, Josh Allen, are the two best quarterbacks in the league. I think Joe Burrow-Wen Healthy is in that class.

So I think Burroughs, and Allen are always in the Super Bowl bubble. I do not believe Buffalo's as good this year, and I believe Kansas City, because their young defense will get better, will be better. They'll also have to be better at wide receiver. They'll draft somebody. So I don't know what the Rishi Rice situation is. They may go back to the drawing board at wide receiver. That's kind of... Kind of have to.

That's kind of a dicey. The Josh Allen thing is interesting. So if you look at the Kansas City structure, Andy Reid was always at the top of the pyramid. There was no disputing that. He had his lieutenants leave and some of them have come back, right? Nagy and some of these other guys. In Buffalo, they lose Daibol and then they lose Shane. Both are now with the Giants.

You could make an argument, a credible argument, that Brian Daibble was more of the gene, what mattered more to that team than the head coach did, McDurray. And I know some people will push back and that's fine. Well, I'll push back because they got to the playoffs before Daible and they got to the playoffs after he left. But when was their best run? Well, no, no.

I'm not saying Daible wasn't the icing on the cake, and I love Brian. But this is like the KD argument. Steph won pre-K-D, Steph won post-K-K-D. Steph was the soul of the Warriors, even when KD was there. He was the best shot maker on many nights. They got to the playoffs. Pre-and-post-D. Now, Daible made them better.

K-D to the Warriors. When the Warriors win pre-and-post-KD, Steph is the soul of the franchise. The sole of this franchise is not a coach. It's Josh Allen's the soul of the franchise. Correct. But when Josh Allen was at his height with Day Bowl, he was on the rookie contract. He was on, yeah, so there's two things there.

He was on his rookie contract and had a great O.C. Now he's got okay OCs, and he's expensive. Very expensive. So some of that is, and I think the Chargers did this. The Chargers and the bills wasted opportunities when they had gifted quarterbacks on the cheap. They didn't waste them. They just didn't deliver. I mean, it sounds like the...

Kansas City did. And that's generally the way it works. There's four or five teams that have this shot, and the chiefs are the one that took advantage of. But let me know. Well, San Francisco and Purdy, Purdy's not in that class. But San Francisco last couple of years has gotten there with Purdy, and he can't deliver it.

Well, I'm not going to relitigate Brock Purdy's Super Bowl and how they merely and should have won it. But again, when you look at Josh Allen and the bills, Colin, he was cheap. They had an awesome, incredible supporting cast. That roster is great. diminished from the offensive line to the defense. They've lost, I think, five or six starters, including

Stefan Diggs. This team's not going to be remotely as good as they were last year. Not even close. And now you've got the Jets and their stacked roster breathing down their necks. Miami probably going to stick around. Colin, I'm just, I don't, you know, again, Tom Brady is now a teammate here. I would love to hear him explain why he thinks Josh Allen. And this argument, oh, whoa.

Hey, Josh Allen's one of the top three quarterbacks in the league. That doesn't hold water, man. You're not winning the Super Bowl just because of Josh Allen. You need the coach. You need weapons. You need defense. I don't think he has any of that. Final story, Lakers and Warriors.

Appear to be on a collision course for the 9-10 play-in. That would be so bad for the Lakers. So right now, explain what's going on here in the West. It's nuts. So there's a three-way tie after the King's loss last night. Kings, Lakers, Warriors. And of course, the Lakers lose the tiebreaker with both of them. So the Lakers now have to win.

As of today, they have to win. win twice. On the road, I believe. As of now, now things could change depending on the final two games, but here's the real story. Dremont Green, your friend, is confident that Golden State would have no problem with the Lakers in the playing game. I am very confident, you know, if we play them in the playing situation, that we can win, that we will win. And saying that, you know, anytime you're playing against AD and Braun in a one game,

situation. It's tough because you know, they're always more than capable of putting a great night together. And it's more likely in a one game situation that they're going to put a great night together than a bad night. So it's always tough. Nonetheless, that is where we are and I have total confidence that we can take advantage of some things that they do and win the game if that is the case. I always think it's hard though because the last time they will have played, Warriors blew

them out in L.A. No AD. That's right. So now, it's like when Phoenix got dogged by the Clippers, the next night they go into L.A. and beat the Clippers. So the last time these two teams played, Lakers stunk. The rotations were bad by the coach. There's no AD. They couldn't hit shots.

And the Warriors are on fire. I would take, in a one game, I would take the Lakers. I would agree. I just want to go back to last year's Lakers Warriors series for a second. Lakers total control of that series. Remember, they went in a game one on the road in Golden State. Their size is a huge issue and the warriors are not going to shoot like that the next time they play them. Are the warriors better than they were last year?

It's a lot of the same. I think Kaminga's more, I think Kaminga is more productive, but I think it's the same issues are the same. The strengths are the same. Pods has been a really nice addition. TJD is playing well. Yeah, I think they're slightly better because of pods and the energy gives them another good shooter. So I think they're a better version. of last year, but I think the West is better than last year. Okay, and now the Lakers, are they better or worse, or same than last year? Well, they made it to the conference finals

last year, so I think they're about the same. I think it's the same player. I think D. Lowe's playing better. But I think LeBron A.D. and Austin Reeves feel like the same guys. D. Lohs playing much better. So, Lakers slightly better, warriors, better because they have an energized comminga and pods. Yeah, I think

they're both better, but I think the West is way better. I think Minnesota's better. I think Minnesota's better. No K.C. is better. So I think tonight is one of the biggest night. I almost want to say every team in the league is in action. Tonight's a big NBA night. And there's so many swings in the east and west that could happen tonight based on the game. So start your weekend with some NBA?

So you would start. I would bet two NBA games this year. I think on draft games, I'm two and oh. If the Warriors Lakers played, I would take the Lakers. That's a bettable game. They're just, what you did last time you played matters a lot in this league with veteran players. So the other game would be Sun's Kings. I'd stay away from that.

And then Lakers... Nobody... I can't figure the Sun's out. But here's the thing. The Lakers would have to beat the Warriors and then the Kings. And they have... I think they're 0 and 9 the last 9 times. AD is faced a bonus. Oh and 9.

I know. That's weird. J. Mack with the news. Well, that's the news. And thanks for stopping by. The Hurd-Lye News. All 30 NBA teams are in action tonight. and and Sunday. That's good scheduling.

So they put it out there. Like the NFL moves the division games to the last couple of weeks of the year. So you're going to have your Cowboys Eagles playing later in the year and your Cowboys Giants and your Ravens, Bengals. The NFL has smartly moved the big games to the end of the year. Some are inconsequential.

Some matter a lot. So the NBA has stacked the end of the season last weekend. Tonight and Sunday, everybody plays. So there's going to be, you've got to, forcing you, you, all this playing stuff, seating's going to change. So, I would say, you and I agree on this, J-Mack. The biggest disappointment in the year

for both of us is Phoenix. You have been more accurate on Dallas, and, you know, that's it. You've been a little hotter on Dallas than me, but we both think Phoenix is the disappointment of the season. Yeah. You had them winning the championship, and I had them in the Western Conference Finals.

So I kind of feel like that one I missed on. Yeah, a lot of people did. By the way, Mavs, quick number I just saw here, with Kyrie Irving, 39 and 11. Without Kyrie Irving, 11 and 11. No, he's great player. They're playing way, way better with a healthy career. He has two careers. The two years he was focused with LeBron and this year with Luca.

There's that, Kyrie. He's unbelievable. Then there's the Brooklyn Kyrie. the pre-Lebron Cleveland, Kyrie, the Celtic Kyrie, and the first year, last year, Kyrie with Luca, and it was a lot of turbulence. But he's had about a two and a half year stretch, two years with LeBron. He was absolutely unbelievable.

They go to Golden State and win a game seven. That team was, he was great. And then I think it's fair to say that this year, especially All-Star Break On, he's been fantastic. When he's focused, there's a little Aaron Rogers thing. here when Aaron's not talking about you know conspiracy stuff and doing this whole thing and just stays on football and is Aaron's great but he can get distracted and you have to answer to it and Aaron thinks everybody's out to get him and nobody really cares he just says stuff we report stuff

nobody's lying awake and night in the media worrying about Aaron Rogers it's the same with Kyrie Irvin when Kyrie's into Kyrie in basketball like he's great he is the best six three and under closer in league history both hands what they call it a finishing package. I think he's got the greatest finishing package for a small player in the history of the sport. Both hands, unbelievable. Okay. That's fair. Yeah. I'm saying. I was a critic, but, you know, I've got a lot of years and two of it great. And so he's back, he's pivoted back to great, Kyrie. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays

in noon Eastern, 9 a.m. Pacific. Hey, we're Kavino and Rich. Fox Sports Radio every day, 5 to 7 p.m. Eastern, but here's the thing. We never have enough time to get to everything we want to get to. And that's why we have a brand new podcast called Overpromised. You see, we're having so much fun in our two-hour show. We never get to everything. Honestly, because this guy is over-promising things we never have time for. Yeah, you blubber lips.

Blame in me. Well, you know what? It's called Over-Promise. You should be good at it because you've been over-promising women for years. Well, it's a Kavino-en-rich after show, and we want you to be a part of it. We're going to be talking sports, of course. but we're also going to talk life and relationships. And if Rich and I are arguing about something or we didn't have enough time, it will continue on our after show called Overpromised. Well, if you don't get enough, Kavino and Rich, make sure you check out OverPromise.

And also, uncensored, by the way. So maybe we'll go at it even a little harder. It's going to be the best after show podcast of all time. There you go. Overpromising. And remember, you could see it on YouTube, but definitely join us. Listen to Overpromised with Kavino and Rich on the IHeartRadio 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, Clivert 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

and at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. Do you remember when Diana Ross double-tapped 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 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 all day, but just so y'all know. I mean, at this point, Mark, 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. 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. What a time to be alive. It is week two of the UFL. You got to field. Floats it downfield, a gutsy call. Over the middle, he's got a man. Some fireworks here early. Showing up angry.

This dude is an animal. It's time to play. A big hit. Tackled and the ball comes up. What a quick turn. of events. Haked off. Game changer.

One-handed touchdown. That is something special right there. And it's caught. May now, week two. Are you going to finish? Tomorrow on Fox, the United Football League kicks off the week three action with a battle between the Memphis showboats and the Birmingham Stallions. It all begins at 7-Eastern on Fox.

Spring just got stronger. By the way, a lot of top. this week on LeBron James' son getting drafted. I saw a story yesterday. Lakers are the odds-on favorite, Nick's second, to draft Brony James, who was not a great college player. One year at USC, didn't average much, but he did have a cardiac arrest, which set him back. So I'm reading what scouts are now saying. They're going to do this anonymously.

They're not going to try to, you know, ruffle feathers. said one scout. There are probably three rounds worth of prospects more talented than Brony in this class. So picking him is more about getting LeBron's attention. There was another quote, Bronny's nowhere near ready. Should be noted, most of these guys aren't ready. That's not a wild quote.

He should go back to school, develop at his own pace, or he risks getting lost in the shuffle. You're not going to get lost if he's LeBron's kid. but there's an argument and I think scouts are usually right that he should go back to school. That's probably the best answer. Now remember one thing, and this isn't arguable. This is a historically bad draft. This is a bad draft.

So eight of the last nine players picked at the 55th spot, in stronger drafts, none are starters. they are at best deep on NBA benches. Many not rotational players. None have played more than 50 games. So coming from better drafts, these guys don't play. They're rotational guys. If you look at this year, this year's 55th best player on one service we looked up this morning,

it's Yukon role player, Alex Caraban, who's never really been viewed as an NBA guy. That's the 55th ranked player. It's a weak draft. By the way, Kevin O'Connor, who wrote this article, his current 55th best player, I'm not making this up, is PJ Hall a senior at Clemson? In his scouting report, pluses, this is what he does well.

He's an elite screener. He sets fundamental picks. Okay. So I'm not going to lose a lot of sleep in a historic weak draft if the Lakers took LeBron's son over a guy that sets excellent screens at Clemson. I'm not going to lose a lot of sleep on that. Mick Cronin recently on our show about brawny. Whatever went on with the heart situation.

I mean, can you imagine how, I mean, that's how hard that is. Well, I'm just going to imagine it wasn't like he was able to run around stay in shape. It's hard enough as a freshman in college basketball. in this era of 20, you know, the fifth year guys, to come in as a freshman that had an entire summer of training. Well, he had no summer. He had no fall, really. And then all of a sudden he's back on the court.

So he was a shell of what I saw it in high school. Okay. So in high school, Mick Cronin says, a pretty good player. He was ascending. Heart issue, not the same player. So the ceiling, you can see video clips of him. But again, this is a bad,

draft, the 55th ranked player in this draft is not an NBA player. Like, it's at best a rotational player. In stronger drafts, none are starters, deep of the bench guys. So I would argue he probably should go back to college. But if the Lakers had the 55th pick, I don't think it's outrageous that they would take LeBron's son who could stay in L.A. and train. J. Mack doesn't like this. He's very bothered by the.

this and yes sometimes connections matter in life you get opportunities i'm not now look at him here skying for the block there's obviously talent but the heart situation set him back i got to start hiding my emotions better over here as you're reading is kevin o'connor and i read this piece and i i like o'connor nice guy he's been here and talked um i thought this was wildly inappropriate way out of bounds i mean the mick cronin stuff had immense value putting into perspective what it's like to You've got a heart issue. You can't play basketball for four or five months. Yeah.

Of course your season is not going to go great. And don't give me this PJ Hall stuff. By the way, I was on Clemson. All tournament, won money on them. I like PJ Hall's game. He's a 22-year-old role-playing poor man's Nick Collison. Don't compare Bronny James to PJ Hall. And I like PJ Hall.

That's silly. You think LeBron's worth drafting? Of course. Not in the first round, obviously. But yeah, he's a second round pick. Can we just not scrutin? I mean, I know it's a. sounds like I'm caping up for LeBron in his camp.

Can we just not scrutinize a guy? He barely played basketball this year. But the talent is clearly there. Sure, he's probably not 6-5 or 6-4 yet. He's still growing. A guy's like a teenager, isn't he? So, what are we doing? Ask yourself this. So we do this sometimes.

Jordan Love had a great, great junior year. I think it was sophomore junior. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Then he lost a receiver, a coach. He had a bad final year. He led the country in interceptions. Yeah. So he went from, wow.

to, ugh, the Packers are like, we're going to go with the wow stuff, and we see circumstances that hurt his game. Drake May, I talked to a GM last weekend in the NFL. He said, go back to Drake May's film the year before. He was better. Did he lose a receiver? Did he lose an offensive lineman? Did he lose a coordinator?

Did he lose a quarterback coach? He goes, I believe, the GM told me, that Drake May a year ago showed me he threw with anticipation. He ran for a bunch of yards, 700 yards. This GM also had told me on Jordan Love. Be very careful about young people. They need more support, and if they lose parts of their support system, a great coach. I mean, you don't think J.J. McCarthy was elevated by Jim Harbaugh?

You don't think Justin Herbert, who's still young, won't be elevated. Joe Burrow got an offensive coach in Jamar Chase. When you're older, let's just take, you know, an old accountant, you know, an old golf, you know, an old golf. The caddy may not be as important, but when you're young, you need circumstances mostly to line up. C.J. Stroud would not be as good with a bad GM and a bad head coach and a crappy OC. Now, C.J. Stroud's talented, but everything lined up for him. He crushed. And so my takeaway is Brony had a circumstance that absolutely has to be considered. Mick Cronin watched him. He was an elevating player. His heart gives out. He literally couldn't move.

for former. He couldn't do cardio. So he's basically learning to play again to some degree. So to your point and our point, we do this all the time in sports, where a kid has a better sophomore or junior year than a senior year. And the scouts I talk to are always go, go back to the better year and they go, well, examine what he lost, what happened. He didn't get less talented. He got less support. And so I think in the brawny situation, in a bad draft, where a screen setter is now ranked as the 50-fifth best player. So listen, again, I should be careful what I say here. I know some people around the USC program.

I put the Andy Enfield News out there before a lot of people had it. Yeah, you did. There are some circumstances that are not basketball related that Bronny's going up against, okay? Everywhere you walk, oh, that's LeBron's son. He must be his own guy. Sure. So he's making some money, like, you know, involved with playing video games and stuff. But now he's playing video games, like, a lot, and it's impacting, you know, his hands.

Like, he's playing a ton of video and making a lot of money. He's his own guy, right? And, listen, if it were just basketball, I would totally bet on this kid, certainly. But there's, do you know what it's like to be the son of LeBron? It's not easy. Look, go, you aren't, we should interview Michael Jordan's kids about what that was like in high school and college. Go to Hollywood. Like, it's very.

Go look at Hollywood's actors kids. Now, what's the term they use? It's almost a rule child actor. No, no, like the offspring of famous people. There's a popular word that's out there now. And it's basically like they're entitled and they get everything. Oh, we shouldn't feel sorry for them. It's hard.

And again, I know they're wealthy, but it is difficult where everywhere you go, everybody's looking at you. Oh, that's his son. And living up to that name, that's not easy. And your dad's the greatest basketball player ever. Do you know how hard that is? It wouldn't be easy. It wouldn't be.

Like psychologically, that is difficult. Even if you were a grinder, people wouldn't believe it. Even if you had a great work ethic, you'd never be given credit for it. And I know everybody resents, you know, the 1%, that's fine. But it's like, the truth is, even if your parents were great, and I think LeBron's been a good, you know, good parent, and it makes his son's work. You'd never be given credit for it. Yeah.

I just thought of the word. It's Nepo baby. I'm sure you've heard that phrase. And like, again, he's got two options. I can totally grind and do my best, or I can just, you know what, I got the money, I got the fame. I don't need to do anything. I'm not going to go to school.

I'm not going to play basketball. He's not doing that. I'm rooting for him, and I think some of this stuff's just not. Yeah, I'm rooting for him too. I don't like rooting against people. I mean, there are some creeps in the world, but by and large, it's just more joyful experience. Hour two and a Friday 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 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 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, my basketball and college football journey, or my career in sports media. Well, now I'm bringing all up. that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfills 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 Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok podcast network on TikTok. This is an IHeart podcast. Guaranteed human.