The Herd with Colin Cowherd - Hour 1 - The Timberwolves stay alive

Episode Date: May 29, 2024

Colin discusses the Timberwolves staying alive after winning game 4 of the Western Conference Finals Comparing Jayson Tatum to past Celtics players USC needs to punt on playing Notre Dame moving forwardSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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It's the herd live in Los Angeles, wherever you may be in, however you may be listening. A lot of choices. Thanks for making us part of your day. J. Mack, after a night, I was very tired at the end of the T. Wolves. I crashed. I got a fantastic night's sleep. You know what happens when either I get red, bull before the show or I get a great night's sleep the takes get stronger more dynamic more

robust so what is that leading to Minnesota's coming back from down oh three to win the series that is that how strong they're going to be today they're not beating Dallas four times in a row but they did win last night and I'll tell you what I think the most interesting part of this series and I'll get to that in a second but last night the T-wolves got a good night offensively from a cat And a great night offensively from the face of the league by the trade deadline next year, Aunt Edwards, and they won. Defense was better as well. But they don't get that offensive duo consistency. The Celtics get with Tatum and Brown, or the Mavs get with Luca and Kyrie.

And that's why they're down 3-1 and are not going to reel off three straight more wins to win the series. They got here with defense, and it's that defense that sort of bays. on them, or maybe it's just a bad matchup against Dallas. And I think most of it is a bad matchup. Their identity for Minnesota is size and physicality and an emerging star in Aunt Edwards. And they're 7 and O, by the way, Minnesota in the playoffs when they hold people to 100 or less. What's really interesting, though, about Minnesota, because I think they're really well-constructed, great front office, great coach, is what do they do in the off-season? What is the move they make in the offseason?

Because that will tell us who they truly fear going forward. Denver or Dallas. If they move off Carl Anthony Towns and don't replace him with size, they're telling you they fear Dallas. They fear Luca. Because if you fear Denver, then you either have to keep Carl Anthony Towns, who is offensively inconsistent,

or then replace him with somebody like a Mitch, Robinson with a Knicks if you made a trade with New York, you got to at least give us Mitchell Robinson. But then you have two bigs that don't score, and that probably doesn't beat Yokic. So for me, Minnesota, this season's over. They're not winning four straight against Dallas, three more after last night. And I think their future is great. The front office, the roster construct.

But that piece they can move around is one of those bigs. And if they move both of the bigs, which I doubt, then they really fear down. us. If they don't move either of the bigs, what they're betting on is, yeah, the Kyrie thing will eventually implode. We don't think Kyrie is going to be in the way five, six, seven years, two, three, four years. He's just on one of his heaters, but eventually he won't feel right above the shoulder. Something will tick him off, like in Cleveland with LeBron and he'll bail, and he's done that multiple times where he says he's happy an hour later he wants out. That was Cleveland. In Brooklyn, I love everybody. I want out.

So my guess is Minnesota views, not Dallas, but Denver as the future of the Western Conference. Because they view Yokic as less temperamental than Luca, harder to defend. Both are great, but, I mean, there's just nobody out there with Yokic. He's the distributor, the passer, the score, the driver. he can run the ball in transition. So I think it'll be interesting to watch what Minnesota does. It'll be a tell. They'll tell you who they fear.

Now, Oklahoma City's going to be tough too. Keep your eye on the Warriors, Lakers, whoever. But what they do with Carl Anthony Towns, if they just move off him and shrink a little as a team, that tells you they think Dallas is the future. I tend to think Denver is the future and Dallas and Kyrie right now and Luca on a heater, but I don't think it's sustainable over three or four years.

because Kyrie's personality isn't that sustainable over three or four years. And here was Ant after forcing a game five. You were different before this game. You were loose. You said it's not time to go home yet. What felt different about tonight? I mean, I ain't never been swept in my career. See, Hans takes me this morning and told me that, even though I've been to the playoffs only three times,

I've never been swept. So, you know, I took it personal, man. I didn't want to go home. I didn't want to get swept. I definitely didn't want to get swept. Not on their home court. hearing the fans talk trash all day. So, I mean, I think we came out and we competed at a high level today.

All right. The winner of this series, probably eventually, my guess very quickly is Dallas, and they will play Boston. And this is really an interesting, this is one of these things I like about sports, is that everybody knows Jason Tatum is really good. But there are different standards for different franchises. I mean, I've said this before. If you do the all-time starting five for the Lakers, the logo Jerry West comes off the bench.

It's a different standard to be a Laker. And there's a different standard to be a Celtic. So Jason Tatum's never won an MVP and has no titles. Five All-Star Games. That would rank him tied for 13th most in Celtic history. And people keep telling me, Colin, you're very tough on Tatum, he's very young. Now, ain't that young. Lucas, Lucas's younger, Ants younger, Halliburton's younger.

A lot of the stars in the league are younger. He's a veteran now. This is his seventh full season. He plays hard on both ends. He plays virtually every night. He's played 108 playoff games, more than a full season. so he's not really in year seven he's really at the end of year eight

because those playoff games those are hard minutes ask lebron ask mj who age quickly the NBA now is harder teams play faster there's more skill you can't take defensive possessions off he's not that young so when i hear people

defending jason tainem we're not criticizing him we're saying the standards are different. Right now, he is maybe the fifth best forward in Celtic history. Broughianne Havlchek, he's not Bird or McHale, and Paul Pierce has double the all-star appearances and a ring. For a lot of franchises, maybe a third in the league, he's their first or second third best player ever.

I'm not sure he makes the all-time Celtic second team. In fact, I don't think he does. Here's the good news. The Celtics and the Lakers have each one 17 titles. So whoever wins the next is the tiebreaker. So if Tatum's part of that, it's pretty cool. But it's okay to say this. The standard is different.

The standard is different. It's like if you go to Harvard or Yale and you become president of the United States, cool, you're our 14th, I think. Maybe it's 15. Not that it's not great, not that Tatum's not special. But Larry Bird, Bill Russell, John Havilechek, Kevin McAil, Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, Casey Jones. I mean, you start going down the list here. The Yankees, it's different.

A-Rod was the best player in the game. And you know what the Yankees told him? Hey, can you move over to the list? third base, we got a guy named Jeter. If the Lakers had a starting five all time, Shaq, Wilt, and the logo come off

the bench. And that's okay. It's called standards. The Celtic standards are simply different. And if Jason Tatum, this year, before he signs a massive contract, will in very short time limit this franchise, the

depth in the roster construction, he's going to be a guy. a really talented guy that on any other franchise would be an all-timer. That's not a criticism. It's the standard that Boston, the Yankees, the Lakers, Alabama football, Duke and Kansas basketball have set. Standards matter. Jay Mack, I know you roll your eyes at that heavy-handed criticism, but it's actually a compliment to the storied history of Boston.

Oh, Calhurt. A hundred, a hundred eight playoff games already. That is the third most by any player in the league history at 25 or younger. Just think about that. 108 playoff games already for Tatum. And again, that's a credit to him. Yeah, I think he had 36, 10, and 8 in game four against the Pacers. That was the only game with those stats ever in Celtics history.

Well, they are the worst, the second, worst defensive team that made the playoffs. Yeah, of course. So basically we're comparing Tatum at 26 and his career to guys who played into their 30s. Okay? It's just so unfair to Tatum. Oh my gosh. I mean, first of all, listen, JJ Reddick, future Laker coach. Yeah.

Didn't he say one of these guys, Havlicek, one of these a coozy, these guys couldn't even dribble with their left hand in a team with like 12 teams? Come on. I mean, I think it's affectionately referred to as the plumber era. right you know like guys would play basketball and then they would go and be like an off-duty that's not how i view that i mean listen you plop jason taitam in the 1950s oh my gosh he would eviscerate the league come on i don't know i just i love how you put derrick white in the 50s he's the best player yeah zach levine would be like the MVP of the league for five straight years in the 50s so to compare those guys in 1960s to like jason tatum okay i like when

you this is why you're one of the best in the business you are going to going deep in your bag on a late May day to find some interesting numbers. Okay, so coming up next, and I feel strongly about this, and coming up next, this will be viewed as a

hot take, but I'm right, I know I'm right, and it has to do with USC and college football, and why I think we got to get over history of the sport. It's been punted. College football's history has been punted.

They now, the granddaddy of them all, the Rose Bowl, they put Granddaddy in a retirement home and locked the key. They threw away the key. Granddaddy's sitting there knocking on the door and nobody cares. They marginalize the Rose Bowl. So my hottest take. Next. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern, 9 a.m. Pacific.

On Fox Sports Radio, FS1, and the IHeard Radio app. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged. It's the enhanced game. 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 you're saying. Yep, that's me. Cliver Taylor, the fourth. You might have seen the skits, the reactions, my journey from basketball to college football,

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so we're celebrating May the 4th with a brand new week of fun, thought-provoking Star Wars-related episodes. Join us as we tackle science and culture topics from a galaxy far, far away, such as the biology of tauntons and wampas on the ice planet hot, or the practicality and corporate business sense of the Sith rule of two. Listen to Stuff to Blow Your Mind on the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your friends. podcast. 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 on 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 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, I was just looking at this and for the NBA through the first 74 games in the NBA playoffs this year is down 15% versus last year's average through 74 games on the same networks. What's going to be interesting

for the NBA, they're signing a new deal, is that now, as it gets more international, go ask hockey and baseball. That can be hard for domestic ratings. You know I love the NBA, but now they're splintering off to NBC. They'll put games on Peacock and NBC and have to reintroduce the audience to that,

and they're moving games off to Amazon, which I think Amazon's becoming a sports power. I would do that if I was the NBA too. But now you're going to ask your audience to go to different places and find games. I have some baseball fan friends, and they're like, we can't even find games now. So that's easier to do when you're the NFL

and you force people to follow Lamar Jackson or Patrick Mahomes on Peacock. They'll go over there and get it. The NBA's not the NFL. Okay, so the NFL mostly puts it on the big. big dogs, but they give Netflix a little taste on Christmas. They give Amazon a little taste on Thursday. That's smart business.

And they move some games overseas, a little sample for Dusseldorf, Munich, whatever, Brazil. That's good business. But when you're the NBA or you're baseball and you're putting stuff on Roku and peacock and good luck. And I'm an NBA fan. A lot of people don't like the NBA. I'm a fan since the 70s. I'm an NFL, college football, World Cup, NBA, UFC fight guy. That's what I mostly love.

But it's very interesting. They're down 15% this year. And it's not because the games are bad. It's because it's pivoting off of LeBron and Steph and Durant. And it's pivoting to these new young European stars who are unbelievable. It's going to be fascinating to watch. The winner on this new NBA contract is going to be the owners and the players. It's not going to be the rights holders.

Everybody's going to lose money. Now, Amazon's got a reservoir of cash that goes miles deep, so they're fine. But it's interesting. 15% is something. I mean, the NFL went down with the Kaepernick stuff, 3%. The media was just going. Oh, my God, the NFL is done. This is five times that loss.

And now they're splintered off to streaming services, have to reintroduce their audience. I mean, NBC. Would I really have to go over there? I've got it on ESPN. I've got it on ABC. I already have Amazon. Do I have to buy that? Much easier to do in the NFL.

Much easier. Howard Stern got off radio, went to Sirius. Howard Stern can do that. You know, mudflap and chapstick in the morning out of Baltimore. They go to Sirius XM. Nobody follows them. That's a whole different ballgame. So I saw this story.

I told you I was smoking today. I saw this story. So according to Saturday down south, college football site, last couple years, Lincoln Riley, USC have been trying to get out of this year, season opener against LSU. They're moving into the Big Ten, also have Notre Dame on the schedule. They're like, listen, how much can we take here?

And, yeah, I know everybody's going to go after Lincoln Riley, but it should have never been scheduled. I mean, good God. Michigan won a national championship last year. You know who they played in the off-season or the out-of-conference? You and LV. Bowling Green. That's how you win a national championship.

Ask Nick Saban. But I was thinking about this. And you know I'm not. a sports traditionalist not interested I'm not interested that doesn't mean I don't like history I just started watching the Netflix show fascinating what America was like with crime in the 70s people get worked up now crime rates are down start going to the 70s and 80s and watching crime it's like people have short memories I like some history stuff but not with my sports what's the game on tonight ESPN created a channel ESPN classic nobody watched and I want to

watch old Rose Bulls. You know, I'll go occasionally to YouTube and watch Bill Walton highlights, or, you know, when somebody passes that I admire, you know, somebody, you know, a musician passes, Prince passes, and I want to go watch some music for a couple days. I don't want to watch old games. And I was thinking about this with USC. So now USC is going to have on their schedule, Ohio State, top two program, top three programs, Michigan, Penn State, Wisconsin, and only the best of the PAC 12. Oregon, Washington, UCLA, their rival. I'm going to ask a question.

Why do they have to keep playing Notre Dame? Colin the history! Oh, give me a break. College football punted on history last year. They disbanded the only Power 5 conference west of the Rocky. punted it into the ether. Every man for himself. So spare me on the history.

Bottom line, think about what top programs in college football now have to face. And I'm talking to the Ohio states. These are the big dogs. These are the ones with the most talent. Bama, Georgia, Texas. You got to get through your conference schedule. Oh, wait.

They just added Texas, Oklahoma to the brutal SEC. and USC, UCLA, Oregon, Washington to the second best conference of the Big Ten. And then if you can get through that, you have a conference champion game. You may have to play one of those teams again. And then we're going to have a 12-team playoff. So you're going to have to play four more of those teams potentially.

You think I want to add a Notre Dame to that? It's actually a respectful move. We don't want to play Notre Dame. USC is going to have schedules going forward where they open with Michigan. Three weeks later, it's at Penn State. Two weeks later, they're at Oregon, Ohio State later. They have to play the Buckeyes again in the conference championship, and then they may play them a third time in the playoff in a perfect year.

No, thank you. So when you start, when you start the salty discharge from your eyes, comes down your cheeks talking about USC Notre Dame, this is a sport, and I was here for it. I got it. That punted on an entire region of the country. Hey, Utah, good luck. Colorado?

Yeah, go down to Texas and play. Oregon State, Washington State, yeah, whatever. Longtime regional rivalries into the ether. Why is USC playing Notre Dame? All good things come to an end. Trees don't grow to the sky. There have been a lot of good games, But when you marginalize the Rose Bowl, which is the greatest college football venue, the granddaddy of them all, and several years ago, all of a sudden, Texas is playing in it against USC.

And it's the best college game I've ever seen live. You can grasp and hold and just keep pulling it history. But if I was USC, I'd be like, nah, been there, done that. You want to join the Big Ten Notre Dame, then we'll play you. But I got Michigan, Wisconsin? Penn State? You ever gone to a Saturday night game in Penn State? I have the whiteout.

Good luck, USC. 3,000 miles in that crowd, James Franklin and all those NFL athletes. Camp Randall on a Saturday night? Columbus? Eugene? Husky Stadium? And then I got my rival at the end of the year. And then I got the conference championship.

Then I got the 12-team playoff. I'm putting Notre Dame. Out of respect for Notre Dame. J. Mack with the news. No. Turn on the news. This is the herd line news. You weren't kidding.

You're fired up today, huh? Just kicking Notre Dame off the schedule. Sacred cows in college football. Jason, take them in Notre Dame. It's done with love and respect. Let's start with the Buffalo Bills. Obviously, their offseason was highlighted by trading away Stefan Diggs to the Texans and absorbing a $31 million dead cap hit.

Buffalo GM Brandon Bean spoke to why the bills decided to move off Diggs when they did. A player of his caliber, you weigh a lot of things on the situation. But, you know, ultimately, we just talked about the cap. I would say from a cap standpoint, we decided just to go ahead and eat it now. And we think we can compete and do what we need to do by eating it now. And then not walk in the next year and go, all right, because if we didn't, if we tried to come up with some way and split it up too many different ways, then now it's just like that albatross. You're just hanging on your neck all year.

Yeah, I get it. It was the right time. Receivers to plentiful via college, and he was becoming dramatic. Move on. By the way, sometimes a divorce benefits both people. Stefan Diggs going to C.J. Stroud's going to be terrific, and the bills are going to be fine. It's okay.

Not every divorce has to be like fighting for the next 20 years. Sometimes it's just time to move on. Something had to be done. Right, they could not afford it. Albatross seems like a strong word. And by the way, if this Florida State receiver, Tion. Yeah, I mean, if he can play, they're fine. They have excellent tight ends, good back, Josh Allen, O-line's fine.

Yeah, listen, they're going to be good. They'll certainly be 500 or better. Like, I don't think they're in... They'll be good. I don't think they're at an 11 or 12-win team. Just a lot of newness on that defense, Colin. I mean, back end of the secondary, totally new. Linebackers, some newness.

I just... I got news for you. If the thing you're worried about is, we got some new faces at linebacker. Well, no weapons. That's also a problem. Two excellent tight ends. Two good tight ends. Okay, wonderful.

They finally found a star back. Josh Allen. And I think they're receiving core. It's not elite, but it's fine. Shakir. Clever. MVS. Like him a lot.

Yeah, those are fours. Okay. Keon Coleman, a lot of pressure. But we've seen rookies deliver. I just schedule looks difficult. By the way, just keep selling that stock. I'll take all your share. It's not like I'm selling Tesla here.

This is not a Tesla. This is more of a Mitsubishi. That's a little harsh. Okay. Let's move on. Hopefully they're not an advertiser. Okay. Cincinnati Bengals.

They're in the midst of OTAs and they have Joe Burrow back. They're missing their two-star receivers. T. Higgins, Jemar Chase. Both receivers are angling for new deals. Despite their absence, Zach Taylor is not concerned. I understand it's voluntary. I appreciate them showing out. the guys that don't are still working hard elsewhere and they'll be back at the right times and so

and the beauty is we know those guys we know what they're about and that they'll be ready and focus when it's time to come back they have the information so i know that they're staying on top of it and when they get here and are able to get those reps i know that those two guys are vets and they'll be in a road spot i do think it's funny how many people in the media are selling bills ravens and bingles stock and i am buying all of it well i don't know about the bengals being sold Hey, a lot of people sold that Packer stock. They want to buy it back now. There's a lot of stock sellers.

NFC, AFC. And you're all buying, you're all buying Houston Texan stock. Let me ask you, what would OTAs look? Let's say we had OTAs here at Fox. And in August, we had, you know, it was optional. August is the slowest time. You can come in and work, or you could take the week off. You're probably vacationing, right?

I'm just thinking like Jamar Chase and T. Higgins, It's optional. Joe Burrow, the leader of the team, the face of the franchise, he's there. And T. Higgins and Chase are not? Well, you always get a little more drama at wide receiver. It's just a position. You know what I've said this? I mean, if Joe Burrow can show up, who's hurt all the time, he's got all the money, he's super famous, he can show up.

But your two receivers are like, I'm good. Yeah, I don't love it. You tell me there's not something there? Well, I've said I would keep Jemar Chase. I like T. Higgins, but I find you have to be careful how you spend your money, and it's the only way I'm spending big money

on two receivers if my quarterback's on a rookie deal like C.J. Stroud, then I'll go out and buy Stefan Diggs. But I think Cincinnati's at that crossroads, they moved off Joe Mixon. I think you get to a crossroads. I think, I mean, Kansas City moved off Tyreek Hill. Those are hard

decisions. You usually have one weapon you keep. So Kansas City is like Travis Kelsey, we'll keep him. You know, Buffalo, they've got a tied-in and a running back now, so they feel like we can move off him. And I think Cincinnati, they moved off a running back. I mean, they moved off Boyd. They moved off Mixon. I think they'd like to keep T. Higgins.

Maybe that's why they moved off their number three receiver and their starback. These are tough choices. I'm workshopping an idea about a wide receiver bubble. Just the numbers are astronomical. And you've seen rookies come in, whether it's second, round, third, fourth, fifth. and they're having a big impact. And I just wonder if these receivers are almost pricing themselves out. Because we're seeing a lot of guys not get deals yet.

That's a good workshopping project. I agree with you. I mean, we've hit a little bit of a bubble where there's about four guys. I'm going to pay astronomical money. Another four to five guys. I'm going to pay big money, not astronomical. But there's very few guys. I mean, when you can get Puka, Nakua and Tank Dell,

and they come in and immediately are game change. Rangers. Very few position players can do that. I mean, CJ Stroud did it at quarterback, but even good quarterbacks often struggle for two to three years. You're telling me you couldn't find two receivers in the aggregate to combine and give you what Jamar Chase is giving you. You couldn't find. I know Chase is amazing. I think Jamar Chase is. I know he's amazing. Justin Jefferson's amazing. He doesn't have a deal yet. Yeah, but Jim, I think those two guys qualify. Devante Adams qualified. But DeAndre Hopkins, I think I can find that in the market. Well, again, is Justin Jefferson. I know he's

going to sell a ton of jerseys and the Vikings stands on. We're going to talk about him next hour. He doesn't have a deal yet. I don't know. I would pay him. Could you get a Hershal Walker Hall for him? Because I would take that in a heartbeat. No, Herschel. I, there's five, let me, here's the receivers I would pay for. And I know it's big. Justin Jefferson, Jamar Chase, DeMonte Adams, Devante Adams. Brandon Ayuk is pretty special. He's awesome. He's very, very good. Then you get into a, give me somebody whom I miss. Devante Adams is up there? No, I said that. I'd put him there. He's one of the three, and I think, I think. AJ Brown, Tyreek Hill.

AJ Brown, little drama, but AJ Brown's a difference maker. I would probably pay for A.J. Brown. I mean, listen, the argument for A.J. Brown is the Eagles got him and went to the Super Bowl the next year. And the Titans' offense collapsed. Titans were a desert. So I think A.J. Brown's probably in that four or five spot I'd pay. Yeah, well, they are pay. I think he's got like $32 million.

Yeah. And he's a difference maker. You have to shift your role your defense over. Not many of those guys, though. It was about five. And then there's another five to seven to 12 guys I like a lot and would try to figure out a way to keep him, but I'm not paying him 30 plus.

Just not. But like Stefan Diggs is in that next group, not in the first group. But he was in the first group, right? And now he's kind of getting up there in age a little bit. It's an interesting topic. And it doesn't have to do with the Chiefs punting on Tyreek Hill and still winning Super Bowls. I'm taking them out.

Garrett Wilson and Cooper Cooper in the second group. Carol Wilson is amazing. Now he has a quarterback this year, so we'll see he might actually be better. Final story, Colin, Mavs entered last night with a chance to sweep the wolves and head to the finals. But Minnesota kind of held them off following the game. Luca and Kyrie took the blame for poor shooting nights. Yeah. That's fine.

I think that game is on me. Just didn't give enough energy. So we've got to do better. They want one game. We just got to focus on the next one. He's not alone in this. I expect him to say something like that, especially knowing how much he cares

and how much he wants to win and how much he wants to lead our group. So I expect nothing less. I think you heard me too. Just say that it's on me. And that's what you're supposed to hear from your leaders of your team. Yeah, I think it was okay.

I didn't feel they were quite as locked in at certain times last night. I think it's very hard. I mean, if you watch that Celtics Pacers game, the Celtics were locked in for the last four minutes. but until then they were fine then all of a sudden defensively they locked in and the Pacers didn't hit a field goal last three and a half

minutes. So I think last night it just didn't feel like they were quite as locked in which is understandable. If you look who's on the floor more for loose balls, it's Minnesota all night, diving everywhere. I will say the rookie lively, the seven footer, not being there. Yeah. Carl Anthony Towns' his first seven shots were at the rim. Yep.

He's not doing that against Lively. That's right. Now listen Gafford's a good shop, Walker. Lively's totally different. In this era, to be able to get a rookie to come in. Now, he was a Duke guy, so he was a five-starer, but he's been massive game change. He wasn't even a top 5%? Wasn't he like the 11th, 12, something like that? I think he went like 10 and was traded, 13, somewhere in that range.

But I mean, for that, at this time in our lives in college basketball, he's been a fantastic rookie. I mean, on a, on a team playing pressure games. He looks to be like an all-defensive guy, maybe next year. Now I know center because of Wembeenama is a bit skewed. No, but we got some, he's a good. He's a good. To get that as a rookie in the NBA from college basketball where they play for an hour,

that's been a good get. I'll tell you, that front office in Dallas has had a great year and a half. Oh, tremendous. They've had a great year and a half. I'll just, any thoughts at all that Minnesota can get this to seven? No. You sure? I think it's a little bit.

I think they were built to beat Denver. They're not built to beat Dallas. I think Dallas wins the next game. So last year, Boston was favored against the heat, fell behind 03, won the next three. Okay, but you're taking a historically unique series. This is not going to be historically unique. I sure hope you're right. I will be, and my wallet will be financing.

Extremely frustrated if the Mav somehow blow this. More strong takes coming. J-Mack with the news. Well, that's the news. And thanks for stopping by. The Heard Lye News. I haven't even shifted to second gear. I'm just idling so far.

to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon eastern 9 a.m. Pacific. Two NBA insiders podcasting twice a week to plug you right into the NBA great vibe. All happening in only one place. This League Uncut. The new NBA podcast with me, Chris Haines. And me, Mark Stein. Join us as we team up to expound on everything we're covering, hearing, and chasing. Listen to This League Uncut with Chris Haynes and Mark Stein. On the IHeart Radio, Apple Podcast 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, Clifford Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, the reactions, my journey from basketball to college football, or my career in sports media. Well, somewhere along the way,

this platform became bigger than I ever imagined. And now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfiltered conversations with some of your favorite athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. One week, I'll take you behind the scenes of the biggest moments in sports and entertainment, and the next we'll talk about life, mental health, purpose, and even music.

The Cliverts 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 Clivert 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. Hey, this is Robert from the Stuff to Blow Your Mind podcast. Joe and I are both lifelong Star Wars fan, so we're celebrating May the 4th with a brand new week of fun,

thought-provoking Star Wars-related episodes. Join us as we tackle science and culture topics from a galaxy far, far away, such as the biology of tontons and wampas on the ice planet hot, or the practicality

and corporate business sense of the Sith, rule of two. Listen to Stuff to Blow Your Mind on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. 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 a little Kim? Well, you can find out on the Look Back at it podcast. I'm Sam J. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick it here, unpack what went down, and try to make sense of how we survived it.

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, so... 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. On June 8, it doesn't get any better than Super Saturday on Fox. First, it's Phillies Mets from London, followed by the Belmont Stakes live from Saratoga.

And in prime time, it's Dodgers versus Yankees all on Fox in the Fox Sports app. Good Yankee team now. Yankees, Phillies World Series. By the way, where would Aaron Judge rank as an all-time Yankee right now? Oh, he'd be maybe in the AAA baseball team or something. Come on. No, Aaron Judge. Aaron Judge.

He's awesome. Even in the Yankees history, oh, he's all-time stuff. He is in, not Babe Ruth yet. He is all-time stuff. But Tatum's not in Boston lore. Well, I love that opening rant. That was a top, top 20 opening rant since I joined the show. Didn't know you were keeping track.

but I appreciate that. So according to an NBA executive, well, it could be anything. He thinks LeBron James' future is connected to his son. And the NBA executive says you have to have the conversation internally about drafting Brawny James if you're a Western team because it could help you land LeBron. I'm rooting for Bronny just because everybody's rooting again.

against him. So I want to see the kid do well. By the way, watch some workout video yesterday. I swear to God, it looks like Brony has sped up his release. I swear to God, it looked like it. Maybe I'm wrong. But I'm watching this and reading this. And I'm listening to all these NBA teams that think they have a shot with LeBron. Phoenix, Philly. Come on, man. He's not leaving the Lakers. He's not 24. This isn't Tom Brady at the end of his career thinking, I want to prove I can win without Belichick. LeBron's proven he can win without everybody. Coaches are irrelevant. He won without Spolstra and Pat Riley.

LeBron is going to opt out of his contract, but that's procedural. He doesn't want to start over again. He's still got another kid in high school basketball in L.A., and this kid is the better prospect. So winning another championship for LeBron James does nothing to his legacy and nothing to his net worth. He's a marketing machine. He's a billionaire. He got two in Miami, one in Cleveland, one in L.A. Another one in Phoenix is not going to change everything.

One of the things we know about football is we make decisions very quickly on the goat. Brady wins in Atlanta immediately over Montana, push to the side, it's Tom's league. And at some point, if Mahomes won six or seven, we'd go, Tom, you're a baby goat, we have a new goat. But in basketball, people dig their heels in because the aesthetic, not just data matters, how you play matters, how, what you look like, style matters.

And so people have made their mind up, even though LeBron James has one of the one with three teams is the all-time points leader crushes Jordan in every statistical data point. But people have made their mind up. And I will say this about Michael. Michael's game was cooler. Michael's game was more dramatic. It was more stylish.

It was kind of more fun to watch, in my opinion. I liked watching Michael, his mid-range jumper, the hand size, palming the ball, switching hands, tongue out. there was something about Michael that was different. I think LeBron does more things well. He's a bigger, stronger player, a better distributor, ball handler, a more dominant defender physically because he can be because he's 40 pounds stronger, almost all of it muscle.

But Michael has won the hearts of America. He makes you feel a certain way. LeBron doesn't. He's just great. Michael made you kind of feel cool. He made people in Chicago feel like, we've got the coolest guy on the planet. LeBron's never felt like that. You just have the best guy in the planet.

And so this idea that he's going to LeBron now, I'm going to go playing Philly with often injured Ambide, or I'm going to go live in a rent-a-house in Chandler, Arizona to play with Moody KD. It's not happening. It is not happening. Bronny's already said he'd like to chart his own path, and LeBron has said about Brony, I'd like him to chart his own path, whether it's true or not.

people have made their minds up you're either a LeBron guy or a Michael guy I guess it's impossible to like both I do and think both could be one and one A for greatest player ever, magic being third but

you're kidding yourself you're not getting LeBron you're not leaving he's posturing it's procedural he'll opt out he's got the Olympics that'll add more to his legacy frankly make him more likable frankly

than winning a title in Phoenix. So I thought this was interesting. I had said that the WNBA has never had a financial catalyst for the league. They've had a lot of great players, a lot of great coaches, players, all that stuff, some good marketing. But they've never had, like a Tiger Woods of Gulf, a financial catalyst that could get them on private chartered planes. Caitlin Clark is that. So last night, she didn't have a very good team. She scored 30, and the team lost to the team.

LA Sparks. But there was a real moment in this game, end of first quarter. I want you to watch this video. Fever, L.A. Sparks, end of the first. Erie MacDonald is at the free throw line. She rushes over after hitting the first three-frow to get in the face of Caitlin Clark. She literally forgot she had a second free throw. There's a term called a marked man in sports.

To some degree, that's Caitlin Clark. That would happen with no other player in the first. the WNBA. No other player. That Erie McDonald forgot. She was more concerned about getting on Caitlin Clark than shooting your second free throw. So all Caitlin Clark needs is just better teammates. She's dropping 30.

She's not terribly efficient because she has to work so hard to get looks. She didn't have a great offensive teammate at Iowa. She doesn't have one in the WNBA. That's all she needs. You know, Michael Jordan's early Chicago career. We kind of look at it. It was kind of messy. But he had a couple of really good offensive players around him.

Orlando Woolridge, I think Quentin Daly, somebody else that could hit an occasional jumper, take the heat off occasionally. Now, they weren't Jordan or close. But Jordan had Sam Perkins and James Worthy in college. Jordan had guys immediately, even on his worst NBA teams that could occasionally help him out and hit a jumper.

This is the issue with Caitlin Clark. She just doesn't. Didn't it? Iowa doesn't now. You just need somebody to take the heat off a little. They are so focused on Caitlin Clark that Ari McDonald, literally, after a free throw, rushes, sprints over to guard Caitlin Clark,

forgetting she has a second free throw. Here's Caitlin after. I think she was just trying to pick me up. I don't think she had realized that she got another free throw because it was the technical free throw. I saw that, though, yeah. Okay. So she didn't say anything?

No, no, no. Okay. Kind person, honestly. Yeah, I think everybody's physical with me. You know, they get away with things that, you know, probably other people don't get away with. And it's tough, but that's just the fact of the matter is like this is a very physical game. But yeah, I mean, you're going to get pressure. That's just professional basketball.

She's going to be just fine. 30 points. Needs another good teammate. Remember those Peyton Manning early years through five games? Anybody remember that? Now, the staff looked it up this morning through five games. Peyton Manning was a disaster. One win, seven losses, 16 picks, 55% completion percentage.

It's hard. Andrew Luck was winning 11 games with nobody around him. Like, that's the outlier. She just needs help. And then she's going to turn it up, lead this league in scoring, and be phenomenal. I thought that video was funny. That video is hilarious. I mean, listen, I'll be honest.

I play in men's leagues. I'm the guy who guards the best player. I just don't want him to get the ball. But I would never forget that I've got another free throw and sprint over to fight. Where's Caleb? But I was at the Sparks Fever game, and basically that's the treatment she gets, like, round the clock.

They're just in her jersey. Now, what the league is not, do it. They're not calling the grabs and the holds and the job. They're not calling that, which Clark's getting frustrated with. You'll see her slap hands away frequently throughout the game, which happens in the NBA, too. I think it's just, it's fascinating to watch her. She had 30 last night.

30. She's finally starting to get loose. Yeah. It's fun. She's going to lead this league in scoring. Oh, without question. I think she's probably got to be in an all-star game this year, right? Another podcast from some SNL late-night comedy guy, not quite.

Unhumor me with Robert Smigel and Friends. Me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman help make you funnier. This week, my guest, SNL's Mikey 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 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. Hey, this is Robert from the Stuff to Blow Your Mind podcast. Joe and I are both lifelong Star Wars fan, so we're celebrating May the 4th with a brand new week of fun, thought-provoking Star Wars-related episodes. Join us as we tackle science and culture topics from a galaxy far, far away. such as the biology of taun tons and wampas on the ice planet hot, or the practicality and corporate business sense of the Sith rule of two.

Listen to stuff to bowl your mind on the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. On the Look Back at it podcast. 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 here, unpack what went down,

and try to make sense of how we survived it, with our friends, fellow comedians, and favorite all. 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. This is an IHeart podcast. Guaranteed human.