The Herd with Colin Cowherd - Hour 1 - The Warriors dynasty is over

Episode Date: April 17, 2024

Colin believes it's time to officially call an end to the Warriors dynasty after they were eliminated from the play-in tournament and what this means for Steph Curry He gives the truth about the Lakers who advanced into the playoffs to match up against the reigning champion Nuggets Bill Belichick has nobody to blame but himselfSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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Wherever you may be and however you may be listening, thanks for Megadus part of your day. J-MAC, the playoffs are here. No more slow days allowed on this real estate. Only vibrant dynamic shows going forward. forward. So I sat and watched five and a half hours of NBA playing basketball last night. It was fun. Sad, melancholy for the Warriors. That's a great word. All good things come to an end. Trees don't grow to the sky. Tough morning for big Steph Curry fans like me, no NBA playoffs, and he's got Draymond Green to blame.

Well, okay, sure. You bet. Third time, five years, the Warriors are out of the playoffs. Twice, it's been playing game. You know, there's very few true difference makers. Outcome changers. They lead dynasties. Steph Curry, Tom Brady. Do you remember that moment Tom Brady? Last year in New England, he was on the bench, imploring, yelling at wide receivers. Can somebody please just get open?

It poured out. Brady's frustration with Bill Belichick's inability to draft and develop skill people. It was no coincidence that Tom Brady left for Tampa, Mike Evans, Chris Godwin, an offensive coach. That was Steph last night. The last champion standing. Clay Thompson 0 for 10. Andrew Wiggins hasn't been the same player last couple of years.

Chris Paul didn't show up. Trace Jackson Davis had to be pulled from the floor. Last guy, along with Draymond with championship pedigree, feels like he could be part of something special. That's it. Again, Draymond Green, I'd keep. but Steph Curry needs somebody next to him that can score 27 to 28 points a night.

Minimum. He's not going to get Luca. We know that. There are a handful of players that aren't going to. Jason Tatum's not going to be a warrior. We know that. I don't know where you go. Steph was efficient last night,

43% on threes. But Steph Curry last night scored 22 points. The rest of the starting lineup for the warrior scored 26 points. points. It is time for the big pivot. I'd keep Steph. I'd keep pods. The young kid.

I'd keep Dremon. And I'd move everybody else. They do not have a ton of assets. Here's what I believe you have to cross your fingers and root for a couple of things. And they're very possible. The clippers unravel, bit of a mess against the Mavs, get beaten like five games. Paul George has a player option. Paul George played at Fresno State.

Californian, loves California. Bro, our flight, come up north. And then, depending on how the Lakers season goes, LeBron gets frustrated with DeLo, I would make a call to LeBron. LeBron, and it's no secret, it's close with Draymond, and the one player he said he would always consider playing with, without a doubt, you could ask people close to LeBron. You may be able to ask LeBron is Steph Curry.

I'd call LeBron. Player option, Paul George North. Those moves would allow you to keep Moses Moody. Jonathan Cominga, the Young Center from Indiana. You could keep those. But last night, if you look at the numbers, the warrior starting five was outscored by the Kings, 104 to 48.

They don't have a lot of assets. I'd keep two, maybe be three players. I love the coach. Bob Myers knew this is how it was going to end it was going to be sad it was going to be bumpy it was probably Clay Thompson's last game as a warrior

though Steve Kerr wants him and here's the coach after we've been really blessed here with amazing players and you know multiple championships and finals appearances and the highest of highs

and this is the flip side this is life this is how it works You don't get to stay on top forever. Our guys have been fighting for so long. They're incredible competitors and warriors, and I couldn't be prouder of them. But, you know, we've got an off-season where we've got a lot to think about for sure. The trio of Clay, Draymond, and Steph just isn't as dominant as it was. Now they have to get something out of Jonathan Cominga.

They have to get something out of Moses Moody. And so they just are not the same dominant-level team, even though the names are there and you on occasion, they have that look. It's not any one person's fault. It's father time. All right. Meanwhile, the Lakers, so I'm one for one on my five bold NBA playoff predictions. I said eventually the Warriors would not.

get past the plan, and the Lakers would. And they did last night. In a game against the Pelicans, they're a better team than the Pelicans. They've shown that the last couple of years, but it was a game of runs, back and forth, wild runs. The Lakers are a great do-or-die team. Sudden Death team. Got to win

tonight's game. They're a great team. LeBron is 12 out of his last 12-0 in his last 12-do-or-die games. Game 7s, playing games, he's 3-0. In-season tournament games, 12-0. great. If the Lakers were a band, they could rock you all night

long once. They are not built for a world tour. There's no encore here. AD is a very old 31. You always cross your fingers on his health, and LeBron's just old. Listen, they're great playing with the kids, but they need a nap every afternoon.

You need 16 wins to be an NBA champion. And it probably would take the Lakers 25, 26, 27 total games to get there. with old LeBron and older than his age, AD, that's not going to happen. If you watch that game last night, LeBron and A.D. look cooked in the fourth quarter. In fact, the Lakers got a big break.

Zion Williamson, they could not stop that freight train. He had 40 points and then walked off the court. I don't know what it is. He was hurt. He didn't limp. He walked off. I don't think they win if Zion stays. He was unstoppable last night.

Championship teams almost always have a star, a vibrant dynamic star in their 20s. Delo can't trust him. Reeves, come on. Rui, nah. And now they face Denver. And Denver is big, and they're thick and they're physical. And the games in Denver will be in high altitude. I think the Lakers match up with Denver.

I've said that all year. They match up with them physically. But to beat them four times in 15, 16 games, and then to go win 16 total games out of about 26 it would take to win a championship, I don't see it happening. Here's LeBron, though. Nuggets up next.

This is a defendant champion. They know what it takes. They know how to win. They've been extremely dominant in their home floor over the last few years. You know, they got an MVP on their team. We got a closer on the team. They got high-level players, high- IQ players. They got a hell of a coach.

So if we can play, as the greatest game we can play, they're going to play as greatest game they play. It's going to come down to one or two possessions, you know, and they see who executes in. Isn't basketball great when the games mean something? Warriors out, Lakers in, fun last night. The playoffs officially underway. And again, everybody loves Grandpa playing with the kids.

But about 2.30, he needs a gin and a nap. And I don't think the Lakers can rack up 16 wins to win an NBA championship. What say you, J-Mack? Yeah, let's not overreact to one game. But yeah, it's going to be a tough go. If they couldn't stop Zion. Boy, was that the best game Zion's ever had as a best big game as a pro? And it ended kind of ways.

Yeah, like Zion's career. Basically. But he was a freight train. They couldn't stop him. Unstoppable. I forgot to ask about that first segment. How did your guy Chris Paul do? I know you champion that move.

I did champion that move. He looked a little. Was he on the court last night? Did he play? A little. D.N. Pee coach's decision? I didn't see him on the court. Oh, he played 18 minutes and did nothing.

Come on, Colin. Well, he was brought in to me the top of the second unit. It's, again, everything has to be on Steph's timeline. I like Cominga, but he's not ready to be a big time player in the playoffs. He was good last night. It was good last night. He was better than Draymond last night. But you're not going to get him on a consistent basis.

Steph needs 28 and a half points a night next to him. So how do you get that? Is it Carl Anthony Towns? I don't know who it is. Is it Yonis? Again, if the Clippers unravel, is Paul George want to be part of this? Pretty easy sales job to get a California kid up to a championship team that wins, that wins regularly in maybe the greatest arena in the league.

I thought maybe your buddy Darry from yesterday's show would have said, we want Paul George this offseason because they've got ruling. But he didn't want to go east. He likes California. And Fresno State guy chose California. Yeah, when he demanded out of Indiana, he said, I want to go to L.A., they didn't happen. One final question. I'm looking for Draymond's next podcast to drop.

Will he admit that he's the reason that the Warriors season tanked getting suspended? Well, actually, Draymond, you could argue Draymond and Clay Thompson were actually the reason the last 30 games, they were so good. Those guys played great basketball. Oh, yeah. The only reason they're in the play-in is because Draymond suspended for, you know, foolish activity. In retrospect, it wasn't one of his great moments. Yeah. Okay.

He's going to be dropping that podcast later today. I'm very eager to hear that. I'm the reason the season went sideways. I punched out Jordan Poole. I'm the reason the dynasty is over. Well, he's also a reason they have a trophy room. Fair. A substantial trophy room.

Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern 9 a.m. Pacific on Fox Sports Radio, FS1, and the IHeart Radio app. 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.

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I'm Sam Jett. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick a here, unpack what? went down and tried 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 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. Welcome back. It is great to have you in. Chris Mannix on Peter Schroger today.

I love once the playoffs start. I love the NBA playoffs. So here, according to reporters, one I know, the other two I trust, Don Van Nottah Jr., Seth Wickersham and Jeremy Fowler of ESPN, are reporting Arthur Blank, the owner of the Falcons, when he was going to hire a coach, spoke twice with Robert Kraft, Bill Belichick's former boss, owner of the Patriots. They spoke twice. And during those conversations, Kraft acknowledged he felt betrayed by Belichick at the end. They were not trying to sink him, but they weren't going to send him a lifeline and get him hired. They were brutally candid about Bill Belichick. So first of all, Belichick ruled with an iron fist and was never terribly collaborative. If you're seeking a great job referral after 20 years of keeping your thumb on people, good luck.

It's the basic physics for every action. There's a reaction. Belichick was secretive, controlling, waved off the scouting department last eight, nine drafts. That's why New England's were so awful. There's a reason Brady's adored and Bill's not. He even alienated the greatest player in league history. So again, you can lead in several different ways. But it will not end well for people like the late Bobby Knight

or maybe Bill Belichick when you rule with an iron fist. When, you know, being nice and collaborative isn't difficult. And it never really goes. out of style. And oh, by the way, players talk to players. They keep it real. Coaches talk to coaches. Owners also talk to owners. When Bill was difficult with craft, did he not have the self-awareness, the wherewithal to think, you know, this could come back to bite me in the arse. Really? Again, being nice and a little cooperative is not that difficult. Never goes out of style. And again, look at the Patriots last eight drafts.

This is just my theory, but the last eight New England drafts were inept, embarrassing. And yet Nick Casario leaves New England, goes to Houston, and he's been unbelievable in personnel moves. How is that possible? He was in New England, because Bill waved him off and wouldn't listen enough. So football's a team sport. You know, Bill didn't ingratiate himself to the crafts enough. Brady enough at the end. He was a bit of a tyrant.

And even for Julius Caesar, you'll get stabbed in the back at two Bill. That's the way it works. Did Bill never, when you lead and you have all the power and you keep your thumb on people, once the winning dries up, don't be shocked if there's a little resentment. I don't feel sorry for Belichick. Reap what you sow. J-Mac with the news. This is the Herdline News.

Talk about raising the level of discourse in sports. You open the show with Melancholy and now a Julius Caesar reference? I mean, it's good. Anytime you can work Brutus into the show. I mean, it's a little Latin. We need more of you watching five hours of hoops and knocking back a couple gin and tonics or whatever you drinking. Let's start with the Cowboys. Guys, Colin, this team, man.

So obviously they made the silly deck. declaration they'd be all in this offseason. But so far, the biggest splashes have been quarterback Jordan Lewis and linebacker Eric Kendricks. In an appearance on Dallas local radio, Stephen Jones is still addressing the all-in claim. When we're all said and done, we max out our salary cap every year. And we will have done that. And, you know, what comes with having a good roster, which we do. And, you know, we also are looking towards signing our own guys. mean it happens overnight, but when you're wanting to sign players like Dak and Micah and CD, then, you know, that certainly you have to hold money back if you want to have a realistic

chance at signing those guys. Yeah. You know, I understand the Cowboys are a big brand and people talk about them a lot. But is everybody ready for a reality check that we have seen the best of the Dallas Cowboys with Dak? He broke into the league. They had the best O-line for about six years, six, seven years, and Zeke was in his prime. And the Amari Cooper team was pretty interesting.

And McCarthy over McDaniel gives them a little extra juice and energy. We have seen the best of this team. They do not have the cap space. They're going to pay DAC. You can't have a top five quarterback salary and win Super Bowls unless you have Mahomes. So just everybody bemoans the last seven, eight years with DAC. That was the best of it. Just like Tony Romo.

Everybody used to lament Tony Romo. You didn't appreciate the good years. By the end of it, Tony Romo was so beat up because the O line was so bad for most of his tenure that you didn't appreciate Tony Romo when he was running around making plays and doing great things. By the end, the last year and a half, Tony was just he didn't get Dak's offensive line. And we can bemoan DAC, but you've seen the best of it, the free DAC for several years, then the overpaid DAC, but still pieces around him. Going forward, what happens when they have to move off Micah?

Or they pay DAC and CD Lamb? So, no more Tyron Smith left tackle to protect. You're not going to get a left tackle that good again. That's over. Tyron Smith is a once-in-a-franchise left tackle. No franchise in NFL history has two Tyron Smith left tackle. You get one of those. Ever.

You get one like Aaron Donald. Lawrence Taylor. Giants, Fibodeau's great. There are no more Lawrence Taylor's. New England will never get another Brady. Rams will never get another Aaron Donald. You're never going to get another Tyron Smith at left tackle. Like that's the top five ever. Those days are over. I think this is kind of an ownership, Colin. Yeah, yeah. It's useful. How many times, by the way, have the Niners ownership come out and talked about the IUC situation?

Zero. Why are the Cowboys owners going on radio? Because they want to hear their voice. They want to be out in the media? You know, there's an easy brief saying that sums up to Cowboys. Do more, say less. Just stop talking. Stop giving an interview, stop talking, stop putting pressure on your team. Same if you're a quarterback in New York on podcast, maybe a little less talking. That's a different story.

Why'd you have to do that? We're not talking about that. At least not on my watch. Next up, let's go to the draft. Very interesting scenario unfolding in Washington. So they have the number two pick, and according to Albert Breer, Washington hosted Jaden McDaniel. or sorry, Jaden Daniels, Drake May,

J.J. McCarthy, Michael Pennix, and 16 other prospects at the same time this week. They started yesterday. They went to Top Golf as a group and now they're going to do it today at the facility. This is kind of interesting.

I like what Adam Peters is doing, right? He had done something like this in San Francisco where he's bringing in a group to try to see how things go, how guys work together or against each other. I don't hate this strategy. I think it's fascinating. Anytime you go to Top Golf,

It's a good decision. There's no losers in that equation. Yeah, but you go to Top Golf and you're going with a guy who you're competing against to go higher in the draft. You're looking over your shoulder. Yeah, but what if that guy gets to go to somebody like, you know, a better operation? One of those guys gets to go to Sean Payton. One of them gets to go to the commanders. So, I mean, it depends on where you land. Yeah, well, Cliff Kingsbury is, I think, well liked among young quarterbacks, right?

Very good play caller, yeah. Yeah. I think this is a, I think Washington is the spot. You would... I would take Washington over New England and Hartman. You and I said, I mean, there's certain things we know to be true. The most talked about draft picks going to be Caleb Williams, but the Bears only right now have like four draft picks. The Chargers want to move down, and if they do, they have a chance to win the draft because of Harbaugh's understanding of college personnel.

So my guess is there's two or three teams. Like Arizona's got a lot of picks. We're going to love their draft. The Chargers Harbaugh, we're going to love their draft. The Bears are going to get talked about a lot. The commanders have made a massive executive ownership coaching shift. If Jaden Daniels is as good as I think, buy commander stock for the next decade, they will not get the publicity because the Bears' quarterback selection will trump everything.

And Harbaugh's selection is going to get massive news. But the winner in this draft, man. end up being, just keep your eye. The commanders have some nice defensive pieces, excellent wide receivers, winnable division with Dak now about to get with Jalen Hertz. The bag. Jalen just got it. Dax's going to get another.

And they're going to have a quarterback on that rookie contract. By the way, Daniel Jones overpaid. Dack probably overpaid. Jalen Hertz highly paid. One team in that division is going to have a quarterback and a rookie contract. the Washington commanders, and they're going to load up for the next four years around Jaden Daniels. That's going to be the team to watch. You're very high on him. I'm less high. This idea that like all the four quarterbacks could

be in a setting, right? And Washington's looking for little things. One of the good stories I heard from Sanchez is that, you know, he would go to the combine and all the quarterbacks are hanging out. And, you know, the kind of, the alpha kind of emerges from the crew who's like the cool guy and more just gravitation. People want to be around him. He's telling funny jokes. He's a big dude. And I wonder of these four quarterbacks

who that guy is, where they're like, hey, we're going for a ride. Well, Caleb Williams is that guy. Well, he's not in this group, though. He's separate. So now it's like May, McCarthy, Daniels, or Pennix. And I don't know if any of those guys are the guy. Well, is that good?

Will Levis would be that guy in last year's draft. What does that mean? I don't need, I don't need an... If you were a quarterback, And that's what I think is funny about this. Bow Nix is fat. Like Bo Nix and Pennix are interesting. They're going to drop, meaning they're probably going to go to better teams.

Wouldn't you want to go to Denver with Peyton or Miami with McDaniel or Seattle now with great wide receivers? What's funny about that? And I think about this, teams always want to bring the players in to sort of manipulate the players and watch the players. But if I was a player going to Washington and thought Dan Quinn got fired once, I mean, Cliff Kingsbury, I like him, but I don't know. the O-line's bad, there's no run game. I think I'd step back and let the other guys be alpha-un impressive and drop to Sean Payton, drop to Mike McDaniel. That's fair.

One of the good stories I remember reading about Deshawn Watson when he was going on recruiting trips, and he would like go, I think he went to Clemson on a recruiting trip, and everybody went to sit next to him. Like they want to hang out with him. Other trips, you hear about quarterbacks, they go to the cafeteria and, like, they're on a recruiting trip. They're like kind of hanging by themselves. They're not ingratiating themselves with a team because they may be a little nervous high school. kids. But you want that guy

who people want to be around. And I just don't know enough about Daniels. He had that Arizona State thing where he was like, okay. He wasn't the guy. Let's be fair. I know that was like three years ago. It was Herm Edwards, a defensive coach. They had no players. I mean,

come on. They had the eighth best roster in that conference. I watched him play at Arizona State. I thought he was excellent. I watched them as a true freshman. I said it on the air when he went to LSU.SU just got a great quarterback. I got nothing but pushback from Arizona State fans and LSU fans. I said I watched him.

He was very good at Arizona State. Speaking of, I'm curious, if you give Drake May the star receivers and neighbors and Thomas, who are first round picks, if you give them to Drake May, how good does Drake May live? Well, we don't know that. We don't know that. I mean, LSU's had great receivers forever. Only Joe Burrow was unbelievable. There's a reason.

Joe Burroughs unbelievable. Michael Pennix had two guys who were going to be drafted early, How many did Drake May? I just thought I put that out there. What is your point? Well, I just think people are undervaluing Drake May because he played at North Carolina in like a weekly... Listen, if you have a chance to go second in the draft, who's undervaluing him? No.

He's not Caleb Williams as a prospect. So if he goes two or three, he hasn't been undervalued. You're just saying there's a huge difference going Washington the Cliff or New England. Well, that's... But there's not a big difference going second or third. You're making the case that he's being undervalued. being undervalued. He's undervalued if he goes 28. No.

But if he goes third, it's like, well, Jaden Daniels moves better than him and was a much more accurate thrower of the football consistently. So I would take Jaden Daniels over Drake Mae, even though Drake May's got the physical traits I like. Okay. Fair enough. Final story. Let's go back to Zion Williamson, man. This is sad. So he put up 40, 11, and five assists last night, totally took over in the fourth quarter. LeBron couldn't stop him. AD could not stop him. and then he had to drive late where he puts in this floater lands and just comes up lane. And then he like moves. Now watch him.

There's one report that it was a hamstring injury. I didn't see him grab the back of his leg. I couldn't figure it out. So is it a foot? Is it a knee? You know, it's funny. Before the game, Barclay was critical of him in the pregame show saying he needs to go out and score 40. I don't want to hear any excuses.

Go get 40. And he did. I'll go get a 40 piece. Here's coach Willie Green on Zion. Right now, we know his left. egg soreness and he's going to get some imaging on it tomorrow and we'll figure out more. That's the report that I got back. I haven't talked to him or anything like that, but we'll see how we feel. We see what happens tomorrow when we get the results back. It was tough to see him

go down. You know, we're all praying and hoping that he's okay, but he was battling. He was going and the team was right there with him. So it's tough. We'll see what happens. we'll go from there. So I don't think they got a chance against the Kings. Without Zion. No. Oh, by the way, Brandon Ingram benched in the fourth quarter. He was, I don't know if he still hurt.

C.J. McCollum was abysmal. Without Zion, they got no shot. Yeah, I mean, Sacramento, everybody loved last year. They got beaten seven by the Warriors. I don't know. I think it's a pretty good sir. We'll see. We'll see.

It's a pretty good series. Yeah. I know you're not going to do a lot more on the Kings because I like the beam. But the guy that watched there is Keegan Murray. Yeah, no, he's a very good young. player. He's a good American player, by the way. Very fundamentally sound, hitting the three, no flash

in his game, no Kyrie layup package. No, no. Just lockdown defender. Great defender. Yeah. They have good players. I see, you know what they remind me of? A poor man Celtics. So like, Tatum's better than De Aaron. Jalen Brown's better than Sabonis. I think the Celtics

have 2A players and B-plus players, Jew Holiday Porzingis. I think the Kings have one A player, De Aaron Fox, and then everybody else is a B player. Now, is Keegan Murray a B-plus player? Is he becoming that? There's certainly an argument to be made. People like Sabonis. But I feel like they're kind of like Boston in the West, where I think they have an excellent starting five. I really like them. I just think Boston's got a little better player across the board, and Boston doesn't have a title yet.

So it's not that I don't like Sacramento. Again, Boston's got two stars. They have one. And I think Porzingis drew Holiday. I'd take over Keegan Murray and Samonis at this point. Harrison Barnes, Derek White. So it's not that I don't like Sacramento. I watched them all last night. I watched them last year. I watched them five, six, seven times this year. I like them. I don't see them as championship caliber. By the way, one final word on Zion. When he's dominating the Lakers, did you get the idea? Damn, how is he not in consideration for Team USA basketball? Why wouldn't he be on the team? I mean, he looked unstoppable against a defensive player of the year candidate in Anthony Davis. Like, I thought Zion should have got Team USA. When he gets a,

matchup. When he gets a matchup advantage and he's coming into the lane, do you see LeBron take the charge from him? Now, LeBron is 6-8-and-a-half-250. He folded like a deck chair when Zion hit him. I mean, it was like a dog run over a napkin holder at full speed. The stuff flying everywhere. And I'm like, Zion's a, he can be the truth physically.

He could just stay healthy. There is nothing like him. He is just bulldozed LeBron James. LeBron took two charges last night in year 20 whatever. It showed in the fourth quarter when he was one of eight shooting. He was cooked. Yeah. Uh, J. Mack with the news.

Well, that's the news. And thanks for stopping by. I got some stuff to do. The third line news. Sure you don't want to talk about that Aaron Rogers' podcast appearance? Um, the media gets so mad. I always find this funny. Whenever Aaron does like, you know, one of his conspiracy theories things, the media gets frustrated, but you got to remember something.

Aaron is single, never married, no kids, doesn't connect with his family. I've been told he sends presents back. He's got nobody to call him out in his crap. I'm not joking. He's got nobody to call him out in his crap. He's rich, single, never married, no kids. My wife would call me out. I mean, I'd get a phone call and just, so that's the first thing.

The second thing is everybody, your neighbor's got conspiracy theories. People always had them, but the only people that knew were family members. You'd have to hear them on Thanksgiving or Christmas. Now you have IG, you have Twitter, you have X, you have TikTok, you have podcasts. So you hear everybody's conspiracy theories. So the media is always banging on Aaron for his conspiracy theories. And my takeaway is, you do get your neighbor's the same guy. It used to be if you had a conspiracy theory outside of family, maybe in the neighborhood, you'd be like, yeah, Bob's a little crazy.

He thinks men didn't land on the moon. It was shot in Hollywood. There'd always be that guy. But he didn't have a platform. He didn't have a platform. Now, all the conspiracy people, have platform. They've always existed. And by the way, there are conspiracies that are true. Right there, and I'm not a conspiracy theory guy at all. But, you know, there was the, it was a

theory that cigarettes were really bad for you. And all the executives for years knew we found out cigarettes are really bad for you. So there have been a few that have been, but you know, man didn't land on the moon. That's cuckoo for cocoa pops. The root of this is not everybody should have platform because now you're putting all this nonsense out there and it's just cluttering the internet and you know what's going to rise to the top well usually CEOs uh public officials don't go on platforms to tell you conspiracy theories you know the president of american airlines probably going to stay off the internet even if he believes something but errand's different again never married no kids nobody in a family to call him out he's not a CEO he's kind of a you know he's got his

money and he's rich and he's single and and and so When he comes out, the media is always like, this guy's crazy. You better be comfortable with conspiracy theories because over half of America or roughly half thinks the election was rigged. And that's the problem. You've got carnival barkers like Elon Musk saying nonsense 24-7. And guess what? They're signaling to their tribe. Hey, I really know the truth.

All conspiracy theories start with this sentence. I do my own homework. Oh, boy. But I'm saying is this has existed my entire life. nobody had platforms. If you would have been a conspiracy theorist 50 years ago and sent a letter to the local newspaper, they wouldn't have published it in the letters to the editor. They would have been like Bob's a kook, throw it out.

Now he goes on TikTok or IG or his podcast or something and says it, Twitter X, whatever it's called, and you have it. So the idea that Aaron is in a small group of conspiracy theorists, it's an industry. Conspiracy theorists are, this is an industry now that makes lots of money. Can we just blame the internet for all this? No, I mean, the internet, it's like everything else. I mean, I got paid thanks to the internet with the website. Listen, there's a good and bad to everything.

This idea there's a church in America. There's a lot of good things. Church in America. Catholic Church, we've had scandals. There is no perfect place. Family, I love my family. They also drive me nuts, right? Like everybody says that during the holidays.

So, you know, I mean, it's just the downside of the internet is. There's a lot of vile stuff on there. There's terrible. racism. There's trolling and just awful to women. But there are amazing things happening that I can literally go on Amazon yesterday and order four things. I ordered a book. I ordered some stuff for my espresso machine. And it's here like I feel, swear to God, it's here six hours later. But like when you're rooting for a team like the Jets, I mean, I'll take Jared Gough at a heartbeat. Let's just do that swap right now. Rogers for Gough, please. I know Jared Gough's not going to say stupid stuff

constantly in the news. Whatever. This is part. Green Bay, is laughing at all this. They are. They're getting a big laugh and Jet's fans are just. Green Bay is howling at this stuff. But that's, you know, you knew it when you're a desperate franchise. You knew this is what you were getting. But I guess my, Super Bowl and it's all good, Aaron. Well, my original take was the media just attacks Aaron when he does this. I look at it this content. And I also look at it is this is your neighbor. He just doesn't have a podcast. Half of this country thinks the election rig. I mean, you'd be amazed.

and it's just not crazy people, it's people you work with. Just most people don't go online and talk about it. Are you trying to signal to me people you work with? Are you trying to say something here? Jeez. Where were you on January 6th? That's my birthday. I was home.

It is. Be sure 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 grapevine. 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 Haines and Mark Stein.

On the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, 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 beings. potential. Either way, the podcast, Superhuman, documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the I-Hard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever

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

and the next we'll talk about life, mental health, purpose, and even music. The Clifford Show isn't just a point. podcast. It's a space for honest conversations, stories that don't always get told, and for people who are chasing something bigger. So if you've ever supported me or you're just chasing down a dream, this is right where you need to be. Listen to the Clifford show on the IHeart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. Do you remember when Diana Ross double-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 kill? Well, you can find out on the Look Back at it podcast. I'm Sam J. And I'm Alex English.

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

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. Fox, the United Football League continues with hard-hitting action as the Michigan Panthers battle the San Antonio Brahmus or the DC defenders take on the Birmingham stallions. Check local listings for the game in your area. So this is pretty amazing. Michael Rubin owns runs, founded a company called Fanatics. Caitlin Clark number one pick to the Indiana fever. Her Indiana fever jerseys, according to the CEO of Fanatics,

sold more on draft night than any player in any player in. any sport in the company's history. Like more than Brady, more than Mahomes. So that tells you Caitlin Clark's drawing power. I'll say it again. Her jersey sold more on draft night. Not after a championship.

On draft night, more than any player in any sport in the company's history. Fanatic sells everything. So Caitlin Clark, it's a movement, and that movement is to support not only Caitlin, but women's sports and women's basketball. You know, I've watched my entire life. Men get rich and famous and worshipped and awarded for being good at sports.

Not always terribly grateful. There is something that feels good about supporting Caitlin Clark. And when you buy a jersey, you want to be part of something. It makes you feel something. And I think that it's not a religion. It's not her Instagram. It's not edited. it's not her attitude, it's not her personality, it's wholesome, it's her game.

It's great and she's grateful. It's authentic, unedited. It feels cool. It's a little like Taylor Swift. You know, Taylor Swift and Caitlin Clark, really high expectations, and they never let you down. They're unifiers, they're not dividers, and in a world where politicians are making big promises, she makes none, she just delivers every time. And it's better like a Taylor Swift concert than you ever would have guessed.

And so the WNBA draft television ratings came out yesterday. I mean, I'm looking at this graph. It's like, it's insane. Ten times higher than previous drafts in the WNBA. And here's Caitlin Clark. Now a member of the fever. I'm super happy to be here. Thank you, the fever, the Pacers.

This is a dream come true. At times, like, it doesn't feel real is, like, the biggest thing. I feel like I'm kind of stuck in a dream at times, but I don't know. I think the biggest thing, like, I try to remember is, like, how grateful I am to have this opportunity. And, you know, there are so many people that would kill to be in my shoes when things seem like they're long and they're tired and I have to do this and I have to do that. I just try to remind myself of how grateful I am. And, like, I get these opportunities. You know, I'm lucky to have these moments.

Great and grateful are really, powerful. We were talking about this yesterday. I think about who was really, really popular in like the 60s and the 70s, 80s. And it comes from all directions. I remember, J. Max's not going to like this.

There's a late pitcher named Mark Fidrich, Detroit Tigers. He was a very quirky personality. He had all these weird mannerisms on the man. I think he's passed away. But he got really popular. And then they're sort of like Jeremy Lynn who got popular for a month. but we really didn't think it would last long.

His game wasn't good enough. Tim Tebow was wildly popular for about two years. It was his religion, not his game. I think one of the things with Caitlin Clark is, it's just her game. It's, I mean, nice enough personality. It's not a religion thing. It's not an IG thing. She's not selling us anything.

She's really, really great, really grateful. And I, you know, I think those are really powerful mechanisms for popularity. But a lot of the people that have gotten popular, like a Jeremy Lynn won't last, the game's not good enough. Or Tebow at the NFL, his game's not good enough. Mark Fidreitz, the late great pitcher, he was quirky, but, you know, his game didn't endure. I don't know WNBA talent well enough to project how good she's going to be at the next level. I'm going to make a guess she'll be the best shooter in the league.

You know, Jimmer Ferdet was a great shooter in college, didn't translate. That I could have guessed. I think she'll be a dominant score very quickly, but I have, I mean, that would be my guess. I mean, if you can shoot from where she shoots from and handle the ball like she handles the ball, I mean, you know, Tebow was popular, but it was a religion thing. And the truth was, Tim couldn't make certain throws up the field. Slow release, didn't have the arm. I don't know how great she's going to be.

I mean, what's the projection? Is she going to be the best player in the league soon? Does she project as that? The best scorer, but I do think, you know, middle of the, I've said this before with Patrick Mahomes and Brett Favre, there is some value to me in being right in the middle of the country. The Midwest has seen as important, but often flyover country, don't get the attention of the coasts.

I do think if she played, you know, maybe for St. John's or something, it wouldn't be as embracable. It's cool that it's Iowa. It's cool that she's like, you know, an underdog, even though she's great, is the projection she's going to be great? I have no idea with WNBA draft prospects. Yeah, I mean, what, may MVP candidate in two years? Like, I think that's reasonable, right?

Well, I mean, listen, it is in the NBA, I mean, you run out of players by about the 11th pick, and even sometimes the great players, like a Yokic is a second rounder and develops into it. She's fourth right now. Okay, I was just told this. She is fourth in the MVP odds. Now, again, it should be noted, unlike men's college basketball, she's played for a long time. So she comes in with a lot of experience.

She's going to have to adapt to a more physical pro game. Right. But the biggest thing that I think people are missing is she was playing with like mostly just regular college basketball players at Iowa. She wasn't with a stacked Yukon team or South Carolina where it's all future pros. once she gets around all pros, I don't see why she won't dominate the game. Lead to league and assists.

I think if you can handle the ball like that and shoot like that, at any level, you're going to score. And if you score, you've got tremendous value in basketball. All right, our one is down. We're just starting what to do with Clay Thompson and the Warriors. Where does he go? What do they do? That's 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. 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 Fourth. You might have seen the skits, my basketball and college football journey or my career in sports media. Well now I'm bringing all of that excitement

to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfiltered conversations with athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. So let's get to it. Listen to The Clifford show on the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast.

And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok podcast network on TikTok. On the Look Back at a podcast. 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.

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