The Herd with Colin Cowherd - HOUR 2 - NBA lottery, USC

Episode Date: May 18, 2022

Colin's thoughts on the NBA lottery and draft Lincoln Riley is a better fit for USC Guest: Eddie House See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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You're listening to Foxxport's Sports Radio. Here we go live. Ben, Los Angeles. It's the hurt. I got a Lincoln Riley story today. Very excited for that. Wherever you may be and however you may be listening.

IHeart Radio, Fox Sports Radio, FS1. Not going to get to that yet. I don't want to be obnoxious this early in the day. Lincoln Riley's story about USC and how things are rolling. It's very exciting. If I was a young man and had the opportunity to play with Lincoln Riley, I would sign on the dotted line immediately, but I am in no way getting in the way encouraging players, young players, to go to USC.

Although if they did, probably get some free marketing on this show. Anyway, I lost myself there. Joy, how are you? I'm great. Is that rant going to include any Oklahoma slander? No, I don't spend any of my day worrying about Oklahoma. I know you don't. They worry about me, which is sad.

Well, I'm kind of interesting. I don't worry about Oklahoma. I don't care. I'll get to that story. I mean, I don't care. It's like one of those things where the breakup, USC won the breakup. It's over. Yeah, it is.

It's over. So I saw this. About a month ago, it was unfortunate. I had to righteously defend Derek Carr, who is going to make the Hall of Fame. And Joy and Ryan, very sad, people mocking me at the company. But the PFF came out today, and I've got my squabbles and disagreements with a pro football focus. But they came out with a quarterback tier thing today. And they had like 10 tiers.

It was nonsense. But the three that were interesting at the top were Tier A. These are the elite guys over the age of 30. Brady Rogers, Wilson, Stafford, Matt Ryan. And it wasn't a ranking. It's tiers, right? And then the shooting stars was Tier B. That's the best under the age of 30.

And that's Mahomes, Alan, Herbert, Burrow, Lamar Jackson. All right. And then they had Tier C, which they called Mixed Bag, the most polarizing players, Dak Prescott, Kyler Murray, and Derek Carr. And I laughed at this. What exactly is polarizing about Derek Carr? Doesn't miss games, accurate, productive,

and good enough to carry a tire fire into the playoffs. Haven't we always said that about Dak? He needs to be carried. He can't carry. That's not Derek Carr. By the way, that's not Kyler Murray. Kyler Murray carried Arizona to the playoffs. Derek Carr carried the Raiders to the playoffs.

it's the Raiders. He will have his sixth coach in his ninth year. So let's do. It's time for another edition of Blind Resumé to remind you how good Derek Carr is. So here I said, let's go to the last three years with the Raiders. That's probably three different coaches. So in this period, the Raiders have been nothing but nonsense. Battle lines, GM fired, coach fired, Henry Rugg's disaster.

It's been a mess. but I said, let's take the last three years of chaos for the Raiders. Derek Carr completes 69% of his throws, two and a half to one touchdown interception ratio, and a passer rating at 98.5. So blind resume, we put somebody else on the other side. So he's got a better completion percentage, better touchdown interception ratio,

and a much higher passer rating. Who would that quarterback be? All right. So I think Derek's better than Matt, but I think it's close. So that doesn't shock you, right? Let's do it again. Let's do it one more time. Under total chaos.

By the way, the franchise moved in three years. The Gruden mess. Henry Rugg's situation. Fire the GM. So he's got a higher completion percentage. Pretty much even Tied interception. Better passer rating. Who was this guy?

Oh. This is Kyler Murray. He's pretty good. All right. Let's do it again one more time. He's got a higher completion percentage than this guy. This guy's thrown for more touchdown passes and it has a slightly higher passer rating.

So this guy, this guy is like a quarter of a grade better than him, but it's pretty darn close. Who is this guy? That's interesting. The guy just won the Super Bowl. Okay. All right. He just, who this year had no chaos.

Great players, great coaches. All right. I mean, folks, at some point, the slander against Derek Carr. I love how pro football focus. Then there's the controversial group. Well, it's controversial. Dak, you could argue, has been carried. And many people think he is a, what are they?

It's a tractor trailer thing. But Kyler and Derek Carr have carried some dysfunction. There's no controversy about Kyler and Derek Carr. They are capable of getting to the playoffs. with less than ideal situations and carrying some people. Dak, we can argue about that. Dak falls into that. Kirk Cousins, I think, falls into that.

Dak, Kirk Cousins. Baker Mayfield could fall into that. Jimmy Garoppolo could fall into that. Tyler Murray and Derek Carr don't fall into controversial. Accurate, productive, playmakers, good enough to carry, like, non-winning cultures historically. And in Derek Carr's situation, a mess into the playoffs, into the AFC. playoffs. Not the NFC. The stronger conference, the AFC. Hall of Fame. Get ready. Canton speech is happening. Not sure when, but it is.

Eddie House played in the NBA for over a decade. He played for the heat, the Celtics, the suns. A lot of these teams you're watching right now, and he's joining us. Eddie, I haven't seen you in a long time. He got your sun devil stuff on. Good for you. So I want to ask you about this. Jimmy Butler. So analytically, you know, everybody loves the analytics. He's a mid-range guy. he's that's what he is he's a mid-range guy but it is interesting how jimmy's stats get better in the playoffs which is weird because it's against better teams better players better coaches better cultures how do you view jimmy butler i view him as a superstar i mean he's a guy who's the face

of the franchise with the he didn't he's miami heat personified if you ask about the miami heat culture he's exactly what the miami heat coach he represents that miami heat culture to a t a guy who's hard working. Doesn't really get a whole lot of credit, just like the organization didn't get a whole lot of credit this year for being the best in the East all season long. But when it comes down to it, he makes plays. He's gritty. He's a grinder. He gets defensive stops. He, last night was something that he showed you that not only was he prepared. Like that play right there, that means he's been watching film. Understand that Robert Williams catches the ball with his back turn. Jason Tatum tends to throw a lazy pass right there. That play there. And that's just film, being prepared. And that's what the

Miami Heat do. And it's not glamorous, right? He's not the guy that you're like, man, you look up he had 41 points, but it wasn't loud 41 points. He just goes about his work in a workman-like manner, and he just gets it done on both ends of the court. You know, it's Boston has had, you know, it's funny, Robert Williams, I went to stats last night, and he's the classic Celtic. They draft him at a Texas A&M. He averages two and a half, then five, then eight. Then I think he averages like 11. they're very patient. They've been patient with Marcus Smart and Jalen Brown and Jason Tatum. And it's not a great free agent market. A lot of NBA players don't want to go up to cold Boston in the winter. We know that. They want to go to Miami, L.A., Phoenix, wherever. But I said this the other day.

If Boston doesn't get to the finals and they need to win one because they can make fun of the Lakers, but in 35 years the Lakers have eight titles, in 35 years the Celtics have won. And they've been really patient and they develop. But Eddie, if they get knocked out by Miami in what's mostly been the weaker Eastern Conference for 35 years, do you just bring this team back and these guys? I kind of feel like Tatum's, this is what he is, and this is what Jaylon is, this is what Marcus is. If you can't win it this year, because you got a break because Chris Middleton was hurt, you got a huge break. What do you do with this Boston team? You can't break this up. I think you're looking at Jason Tatum emerging as a superstar.

He didn't have a superstar second half. but definitely was the best player in the first half of that game yesterday. Jalen Brown is a guy who is knocking on the door of stardom, right? He's a star and he's trying to become a superstar. He has levels that he has to reach and he has some things in his game that he has to tie up. And Marcus Smart, you know, just being a defensive player to year, I don't think you break that core up. I think you try to add pieces around them like they have been doing with the Grant Williams,

with the Payton Pritchers, and then you bring Al Horford in an OG vet who just knows how to play the game. You add Robert Williams in there, a guy who protects the rim. I think everybody forgets how young these guys are. They've been to Eastern Conference Finals before. So they've been knocking on the door. You've got to just stay patient with this. You don't want to break this group up. I mean, they're the perfect group because they have the size, they have athleticism,

they have both scoring, they have a one-two punch, and then they all can switch defensively. Yesterday, I don't think we want to press the panic button because of what happened yesterday. That was a third quarter. Without that third quarter, you look at what the Celtics did. they outplayed the Miami Heat for three quarters. But unfortunately, it's a 48-minute game for the Celtics. And in that third quarter, it was just a horrible, horrible third quarter.

You know, having played in the NBA, you were two finals appearances, three conference finals appearances. And what happens, Eddie, you know this, is that good teams get old. The Utah Jazz got old. You know, the Jordan team got old, but they won a championship. We saw the Lakers this year. You start getting old. Guys get hurt. You know, you had Mello and A.D. and LeBron. And, you know, I look at the warriors right now. And Steph can get injured. And Clay's not the same. Dramon's still great. And then they have the emerging Jonathan Cominga and Jordan Poole. And I look at them and I think, here's Dallas younger, a lot of energy, Luca.

So this series to me feels like the energy in the youth of Dallas and the experience and the wisdom of the warriors. Who do you like? and why? Well, it's hard to go against that championship pedigree, but the way that Dallas is playing, they've been coaching great, Jason Kidd making great in-game adjustments, game-to-game Justin, end-quarter adjustments, and that's what it's going to take. And Luca just being a beast, I mean, there's really, and it's funny because the way he plays is so at his own pace, and it's not fast, it's not athletic, but he plays these angles with his body, and he's able to get whatever he wants when he wants it. And to me, that's what is so special about him that he plays at a pace. He puts people to sleep and he gets where he wants to go. But once he gets that going,

if you start gearing your defense totally towards him, he's such a great passer. So it hinges on what are the Dallas others going to do. They didn't show up at the beginning of the series against the Suns. But late in that series, they were there. Denwitty was there. Jalen Brunson was there. Guys were knocking down shots from the outside. And once that happens, it makes them very hard. to guard and they are guarding on the other end. So I'm going to go with all that being said, I'm still going to go with the experience of the warriors. I think that where the warriors can get beat, though, I think they could get beat up on the glass a little bit. But Dallas really don't have huge players to where you have to worry about that. I think at the end of the day, the way Steph can

shoot, the way Clay can shoot, Poole's been playing well. If Draymond is taking his eyes to the rim a little bit, just a threat at scoring like he did in game six, I think the Warriors get it done. you've got your Arizona state stuff on, Eddie House joining us, NBA champ with the Celtics. When you look at the Phoenix Suns, so they could let DeAndre Aiton walk, but then they wouldn't have any size. Nick Wright came on earlier and said, you know, Chris Paul's 37. Clearly he looked worn out at the end of that series. Should the sons consider saying, listen, Booker, DeAndre Aiton, and the McHale Bridges are going to be our future. Chris Ball's been amazing

but we probably the Booker Chris Paul thing we've seen it, we've got no titles. What do you do if you're Phoenix two years left with Chris? Do you let Aiton walk? You can't pay everybody in this league. There's a salary cap.

What do you do if you're Phoenix after that horrible Game 7 performance at home? You know what I think that you could blame that game 7 on a couple things, right? I think that you look at how they played last year a very long season, a finals run, right? You go to the finals, you lose in the finals, you have a short off season. Then they went for the gusto to have home court advantage throughout the playoffs, right? Guys were tired, and it was the last game that, it was the game seven is a game where

you're not ever supposed to get tired, but it looked like everybody collected him was tired. And then, plus the looming thing about D'Andre Aiton, not signing him, I think that affected that team a whole lot. I think that wore down on the team. And that was something that was looming over all season long. And they kind of played. played through it, but I just think it came to a head in game seven. And when the pressure started ratcheting up from Dallas and then they're at home and nobody's knocking down shots, I think you have to, you have to sign DeAndre Aden is at the end of the day.

You're not going to find another guy like him to replace him or another two guys that are going to replace what he can do. So I think that that was a, they kind of dropped the ball on that. They should have got that done. That way he was not worried about anything except playing basketball and they weren't worried about anything except trying to win a championship instead of thinking like, man, I got to get numbers. I got to do this. Are they going to re-sign me? Am I going to go somewhere else?

And then all those grumblings and just, it's the wrong mindset to be having when you're trying to make a title run. You were a second round pick out of Arizona State. I showed the top 12 players remaining in the four teams. Only two, Bamada, Bayou, Kentucky, Jason Tatum, Duke were from Blue Bloods. Jalen Brunson and Draymond Green are kind of from Blue Bloods, but they were second round pick. So they came in with a little bit of a chip on their shoulder.

and that when you look at the players remaining, it's remarkable how many came from Washington State, Marquette, Cal, as I put it up here, international, guys, Oklahoma State. I'm not saying they're bad programs, but it's funny because you came and had a great career from a non-traditional basketball powerhouse. And my argument is like NFL quarterbacks that a lot of these players, none of them were number one picks, none of them were number two picks, most did not go to Blue Bloods, is that the difference between college and pro isn't just talent, it's toughness. That you have to understand the game's more physical.

The coaches are coaching you harder. Your takeaway when you, I mean, Jimmy Butler's a great example. Goes to a non-power. Marquette, D. Wade, Marquette. When you were a second round pick, am I kind of reaching here? Or do you think there is something to be said about toughness, durability, coachability? It's not just, hey, this guy's really talented. It just shows it as ballers everywhere.

And you don't have to go to a blue blood to get to the league, but you do have to have some sort of toughness. And you've got to have a good coaching staff that develops you. You know, you're looking at Spencer Denwoodie, a guy that went to Colorado. Tab Boyle's a great coach. He develops his players. A lot of players go there. They're usually two, but three to four-year players.

He gets guys that transfer in as juniors. Derek White is another guy that went to Colorado. So, I mean, you look at these guys who get great coaching that, get developed and stay for a while. They usually come in preparing ready to play. Like you mentioned Jalen Brunson. That's a guy who was a four-year player at a school, and he got coached by Jay Wright.

He's coached up. He's ready to play when he steps into the league. So I think it has a lot to do with the coaching staff and then also the players, the players. You've got to have a tough mindset. And a lot of us coming in in the second round feel like, hey, man, I should have been in the first round. There was a couple of cats that I know for sure I'm way better than it.

But it just didn't happen that way. And you play like that throughout your whole career, knowing that, you know, you have something to prove all the time. Eddie, it's great seeing you again. Haven't seen you in a while. I see you too, man. Eddie House. Yeah, he was a second round pick out of Arizona State.

Arizona State James Hardens from Arizona State. There's something about it. There is, you know, it's, I remember talking one time to a child psychologist, and she said, you know, you are for the rest of your life what you were at nine. You'll get a mustache. You'll get, you know, you'll develop. But at nine years old, a lot of your habits are developed. And it's so true because I've got six kids.

And they're just different. They're variations of what they were very early in their life. So my point is when you get that chip on your shoulder and you don't get, you don't get Duke, Colorado comes after you. And then all of a sudden you go in the second round is that never leaves you. You've got a little bit of that. You've got as a broadcaster, you get that chip and it doesn't matter how much you make. You always got that load. Aaron Rogers still has a chip on your shoulder.

He's the highest paid guy in the NFL. Well, of course, but you can pull from that in a healthy space as well. You should have a little, you know, a healthy level of fear about doing a good job and keeping your job. But I also think a big part of going to those smaller programs is that you get a lot more reps. You get more time. Like there are a lot of big time prospects that want to go to the biggest schools. But when you consider, and this is also, you know, becomes an IL and transfer portal conversation as well, if people don't pay attention to it. When you consider where you're going to go to school as a student athlete,

you can't just consider the program and the coach. Who else is on that roster already that plays your position? Yeah. If they've got a great junior point guard, you're not playing for two years if they decide to stay. So you have to consider where it is you're going, what position you play. Do they develop your position well historically, not necessarily for the NBA, but just like in general for winning purposes. Do they have a good strength program?

Well, you know, there's things to consider outside of just going to Duke. Yeah, you know, it's funny. about nobody has patience today, right? But in the NBA, I'm watching the Celtics last night, and I'm just sitting there, you know, going through their players. And like Robert Williams, he averaged two points, and then five, and then eight, and now

I forget it was 11 or 12. And he, you know, now he's a nice little player for them. This is the fourth year. This is the end of the fourth year. And after two years, people thought he was a bus. What can you do with this guy? Boston's been a great example. They have big major market revenue, but in the end, they've

really done a draft and developing. Whereas the Lakers, now the Lakers don't do that. No. But they've got eight championships in 35 years and they're a much more dynamic free agent destination. So you can do it different ways. Yeah, there's not one way to do. We're not saying you're not going to be successful if you don't go to Duke

Kentucky. There's just multiple ways of doing things. And everybody doesn't develop at the same rate either. Green Bay. You really look at the NBA. You know, we always talk about the NBA as being a young man's game. It's really just a grown man's game. It's not an older man's game. it's not actually a younger man's game either.

It's a grown man's game. When you develop your body completely, like you get your man muscles and your man bones and you're out there and you're able to bang around. That's why young guys get tossed around in the league. They don't have that. They don't have those calluses. They don't know the game as well yet.

They haven't adjusted to the speed. Well, yeah, even emotionally, like Tyler Hero comes in from Kentucky, and then by the second, he has great first year. And then the nightlife of Miami, he disappears. Now he's back when six man of the year. you're not only developing cases because you get him out of college now. I was thinking about this.

I'll talk about this next about what the NBA draft is. It's kind of fascinating. They had the NBA lottery last night. I love the NBA lottery last night. I know it's ping pong balls and stuff, but I love the suspense of who's going to go. Everyone's reaction. I love it.

I sat there for 15 minutes and I just bought into it totally. One more herd? The herd streams 24 hours a day, seven days a week within the IHeard Radio app. Search Herd to listen live or on demand whenever you'd like. 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, the reactions, my journey from basketball to college football, or my career in sports media. Well, somewhere along the way, this platform became bigger than I ever imagined.

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

The Clifford Show isn't just a podcast. It's a space for honest conversations, stories that don't always get told, and for people who are chasing something bigger. So if you've ever supported me or you're just chasing down a dream, this is right where you need to be. Listen to the Clifford Show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok

Podcast Network on TikTok. Do you remember when Diana Ross double-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 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 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. Welcome to my new podcast, Learn the Hard Way with me, your host, and your favorite therapist,

Keer Games. And in recognition of Mental Health Awareness Month, I'm bringing over a decade of my own experience in the mental health field and conversations with so many incredible guests. I'm talking. Tripp Fontaine, Ryan Clark. Sometimes when we're in the pursuit of the thing, we get so wrapped up in the chase that we don't realize that we are in possession of the thing. and we're still chasing it

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

Absolutely. And that's two different levels of trust. I want you to just really be a good person. Join me, Kear Gaines, is we have real conversations about healing, growth, fatherhood, pressure, and purpose on my new podcast. Learn the hard way.

Open your free iHeartRadio app. Search Learn the hard way and listen now. Sunday, a big time USFL double header kicks off at noon eastern on FS1 with the Pittsburgh Mallors and the New Orleans Breakers. Then at 4 Eastern, the Houston Gamblers take on the New Jersey Generals on Fox, and it's all streaming on the Fox Sports app. So last night was the NBA lottery. The Orlando Magic got the number one overall selection.

Oklahoma City Rockets, Kings, Pistons Pacers. It's just bad teams getting talent. 19-year-olds. There's a reason I spend one segment on the NBA draft and one or two months on the NFL draft. In the NFL, you're getting 22 and 23-year-old grown men. In the NBA, you're getting teenagers who are not even emotionally developed and can't drink at the team hotel when they get there. Also, football players at all levels are generally coached harder than basketball players, so it's an easier transition to a dominant NFL coach over a dominant NBA coach. The NFL drafts are really pretty consistent. I mean, some have better

quarterbacks, but there's good players everywhere. Good players undrafted. NBA drafts are not consistent. They are wildly speculative. Some are terrible. There have been terrible drafts that have three good players, no stars. Then there's been drafts that have seven or eight all-star level players. But it's basically 19-year-olds, not emotionally developed. going to bad teams. Most disappear into the ether. Chet Holmgren's a great example. He was the number one high schooler. He goes to Gonzaga. I don't know what he's going to be. Skinny and tall. He's very skilled. He doesn't really look like any player in the league. He will score in the NBA because he's just really tall, can put the ball in the deck and score.

I have no doubt he'll be in the NBA and score a bunch of points. He can block shots, not terribly quick. Is he twitchy? I don't know what he is. He is, though, the NBA draft. You're just going to draft him because you see the skill and you see something, but you're not really sure how he can defend. Is he physical enough? Will he be able to handle doubles? I don't know what he is. I just know he's really skilled and really skinny and really tall. But that is the NBA draft. There is no Shaq in this draft. There is no LeBron James in this draft. There's no John Morant, although there's a kid at Purdue named Jaden Ivy, who's a little better

shooter, potentially, his job, but he's not quite the floor leader or the distributor of John Moran. He's not John Moran, but he's got a nice shot. He'll probably play the two, and he'll score a lot of points. He's hyperathletic, and people will like him. I feel like I'd take him number one, but he'll probably

go five or six. So I don't spend a ton of time on it. I love the draft lottery, but it's mostly 19-year-olds going to egregiously bad organizations. Joy, With the news. No, no, no, no, no. Turn on the news.

This is the herd line news. Heat is on, Colin. Yeah, whatever. Miami Heat took game one at the Eastern Conference finals last night with a 118-107 win. Although a great game, though, because I was a little nervous in the first half. The Heat had a ton of turnovers to start the game. But you know, I saw this number. I don't want to bog you down.

Boston had 42 points in the first half in the paint. it is the most points by the Celtics in 25 years in the paint in one half. Now, that's a lot to digest. But if you watch the first half, Boston was getting layups and dunks like every other time down the floor. In the modern game to get 42 paint points without a shack or without like an M-Bed, it doesn't even make any sense. So as I was watching that, I'm like, okay, they're not doing that again in the second half.

There's no way they're getting that many easy baskets on the road against Miami in the second half. No, and Miami was just turning the ball over, just lazy, uncharacteristic passes, really not getting back on defense. It was a rough first half for Miami. But as Nick Wright said earlier, they played a stretch of perfect defense. They completely turned the game around, which I'm sure was the conversation at halftime. Forget trying to score and keep up. Just play defense. Don't turn the ball over and you'll get right back in the game, which they did.

And it wasn't like they pulled away immediately. It went back and forth for a while. But they did end up getting the 118-107 win. And they outscored the Celtics in the third quarter, which was really the key, 39, 14. But Jimmy Butler is the story once again, leading the way with 41 points, 17 of which came in that third quarter. And here is Spolstra on what Jimmy brings to the team. Jimmy Butler is an elite competitor. You know, there's a lot of guys in this league that are playing basketball.

He's competing to win. That's a totally different thing. And he does that as well as anybody in this league. every time and pocket in the game when we needed to control, you know, the game or get the right shot or make the right decision, Jimmy had his fingerprints on that. Yeah, we don't talk about the intangibles too much when it comes to basketball. Basketball. But it really does matter.

And especially when you get into the postseason. And I know everyone jokes about heat culture and, you know, the heat don't have that stand-alone star. But their culture is real, though. It is, but I think all the teams that are left in the postseason right now have a culture. They're not teams that are dysfunctional. They're not noisy. They don't have nonsense going on. They don't have players who are not showing up to play.

You brought something up earlier. That's a good point. Sports has always been cyclical and everybody overreacts to the moment. Yes. But if you start looking around, the Kevin Durant moved to Brooklyn hasn't worked. Nope. LeBron to L.A. work briefly, but it hasn't worked. Yonis stayed.

Boston guys stay. Butler found. Remember, Butler's whole thing was, can I get the right culture that demands work ethic? So if you start Golden State's culture, guys mostly stay. If you look at what's happening, Joy, in this cyclical NBA, the, hey, let's get a bunch of stars

together. It's not working right now. And the, let's draft and develop, take care of our players, treat them well, pay them as much as the market allows. That's a, you know, everybody freaked out when Durant went to Golden State. And it was, even the commissioner didn't like it. And it was, and it was,

for a couple years, like it competitively almost unfair. But nothing lasts forever. Correct. The mobility stuff, players are still mobile, but the Clippers thing hasn't worked. The Nets thing didn't work. The Lakers are a mess. Ultimately, players want to stay with the team that drafts. LeBron would have stayed in Cleveland if they got a got him, if they would have drafted, you know,

a Chris Bosch next door. I just, I also think that you have to draft or bring in people to the building that fit what you do. Yeah. And I think the NFL, the well-run NFL teams do this very well. You need to study players, study their personality, sit down with them, get to know them. Don't fall in love with the tape. Don't fall in love with the stats.

Is this player going to fit what we do? Is this a player that likes to practice? The heat of notoriously hard practices. They're very demanding. They want you to play defense. Don't bring in somebody who's a defensive liability. That's why they don't have Duncan Robinson in the lineup for most of the playoffs. he's a defensive liability.

Yes, they might put him in to get some shots, but they're going to need defense in these series, so it doesn't fit. And don't be afraid to back off of that. And the other thing is to pitch your fan base on reality. Don't go out there making obscene promises and all this flashy stuff that doesn't have any substance because that's when they start to get upset, rightfully so,

because they want results that you can't promise because you haven't been consistent with anything. But Jimmy fits that culture perfectly, and he's doing an amazing job. So the Bengals are coming off of their best season in three decades, but obviously it ended in heartbreak in the Super Bowl. Yeah. But now Cincinnati enters the season with a little more experience and also expectations. And here's Joe Burrow on the Bengals' confidence in making another Super Bowl run.

Going into it last year, we knew we were good, but I think going into the playoffs, we knew we could win, but we weren't really sure what it took. We just kind of went out there and played really hard. and together as a team and, you know, it worked out. Now we know what it takes. We have that experience in our back pockets going forward. I love him so much. I'm so glad you come around.

I mean, he's really, I know, I did. And the Burrell family now accepts me. The mother spoke highly of me to my daughter. I just, there is something about, you know you're really great when you go into a losing culture and year two, you're in the Super Bowl. Like, does everybody understand? Like, as good as Kyler, Murray is. He got him into the playoffs and then that's it. You know how good you have to be

to go into a place that doesn't win and win immediately? It's very Andrew Luck. Now, now, now, the cults had a much stronger culture. But what Joe Burrow did last year, it's without a lot of precedent. There's not a lot of examples of what Joe Burrell did last year. No, it's remarkable. It really is. And without a core piece of the team that most would argue, is one of the most essential units that you have to have in place to get to the Super Bowl, which is the offensive line.

I mean, he overcame, the Titans sacked him nine times in one game, and they won. Now, obviously, that ended up biting them in the Super Bowl when they got up against a more complete, you know, experienced Rams team. But, yeah, it's incredible what he's done. To your point, it's unprecedented.

And I think people are recognizing that now. Yeah. But, you know, this is why, the draft, I was like Miami should offer Cincinnati 10 first round picks. 10. No, we have said this. You gave five for Tyreek Hill. No, we've said this before.

It's not ridiculous. If Seattle says to Denver, we get your number one pick for as long as Russell Wilson starts for you and you think that's 10 first round picks. But my takeaway is you're going to be paying Russell Wilson so much. You don't necessarily need first round picks. What you need is second third and fourth. Yeah, you're essentially getting a second round pick anyway. but by where are you going to pick in the draft?

Then you're picking at the end of the first round anyway. That's a great point. So what, you know, you and I really should run these. I was supposed to say, I was just about to say that. We should be running teams. I own the team and I will hire you as the GM. I think that's a good move. So Carson Wentz is now, this is something we might disagree on.

Carson Wentz is now with his third team of his career after being traded to the commanders this offseason. Last time we saw once, he and the Colts lost of the Jags in week 18 and missed the playoffs. Now, Troy Aikman believes that this is Wenz's last chance to prove himself as a franchise quarterback. I think that right now, you know, Carson had an opportunity. It didn't end well in Philadelphia, of course. He then got traded to Indianapolis.

Didn't go great for him there. They decided to make another change at that position, and now he's landed in Washington. And this is probably his last opportunity. you know, just being blunt about it to prove that he can be a franchise quarterback in the NFL. I don't even know that he is the franchise guy. I don't think that this is even that opportunity. I think he's already lost that. He's a bridge guy, you're saying.

I talked to Carson yesterday, and I asked him about that. I said, I think it's fair that Troy Aikman said it's your last chance. How do you respond? And, you know, his takeaway was, yeah, it's not unfair. he didn't you know I mean he was an interesting guy you know Carson Wentz's reputation we always hear this stuff

I don't know if he gets along with players so I interviewed him for 25 minutes yesterday I thought he was incredibly likable everything I said I said hey Jim Ursay said you were a mistake he just laughed he's like well he owns the team he can say whatever he wants about me he was really good natured about it no I don't think he is a

I don't think he's a bad guy I just think when it's when you're now on your third place and we've heard things about the locker room in two places places. And now you're going into a situation where they're still in kind of a culture rebuild. Yeah. My thing with Carson has always been, what do you do in the big moments? Because he's always, him and Dak have always been compared to each other and rightfully so. And for the longest time, everyone was like, Carson is more talented. If you had to choose between Carson or Dak, you would

always go with Carson, you would go with Carson. And Dak obviously hasn't had the postseason success either. But I don't get the ups and downs with Dak. Right. Like I know what I'm going to get from Dak. I know that Dak needs pieces around him. I know. I know. that. But I'm not going to get the collapse. Like even the way that the Cowboys season ended this year, I put that on Mike McCarthy. Yeah. No, these are all, these are all things I addressed with him about the Jacksonville game and about, you know, I said, listen, you remind me a Sam Darnold, but taller and stronger, you're reckless. He addressed that. He was in a really good mood about it. I mean, he never got defensive. He was like, hey, that stuff's out there. People, I don't hear all of it,

but I, but friends tell me that people say it. And he's like, this is, I mean, in the end, you are what your record is. And at the end of the year, he had a bad game in a crucial time. That's what he is now. Right. And if you're the Colts, you know what it takes to win championships. So you've got to hold yourself to that standard. Now, I don't know if they're in a much better position this year. We'll find out. But I do think, obviously, I do think the commanders are better with him. Did you see what the hate? I will say that. I could be wrong on this. James Bradbury, the Eagles picked up another corner today. Did you see that? Yeah. Good. I think it's, I think it's Division. So do I. Joy with the news.

Well, that's the news. And thanks for stopping by. The Herd Lie News. There's a really fascinating article on Lincoln Riley when he left Oklahoma and came to USC and how it all unfolded the phone call, the airport being picked up, the things he had to do. I want to address that coming up next. It's the Herd. 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.

Do you want exclusive insight from the biggest names in the sports game? What's good? This is national champion and former pro baller Chris Johnson. Let me tell you a little bit about my new series, KJ Live. KJ Live is the only show featuring me going one-on-one with the brightest basketball minds on the planet to get the real. And when I say real, I mean that real. I got legendary Hall of Famers, elite coaches, and the top. top basketball insiders bringing you a unique perspective on all things hoops culture

that you will not find anywhere else. To make your next move, your best move. And tap in with me on KJ Live, wherever you get your podcast from. 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 at all.

embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the I-Hard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what you're saying. Yep, that's me, Cliver Taylor the 4th.

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

It's a space for honest conversations, stories that don't always get told, and for people who are chasing something bigger. So, if you've ever supported me or you're just chasing down a dream, this is right where you need to be. Listen to The Clifford Show on the IHeart radio app, Apple 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-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 a little kill. Well, you can find out on the Look Back at it podcast. I'm Sam Jay. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick 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 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. Welcome to my new podcast, Learn the Hard Way with me, your host, and your favorite therapist, Kear Games.

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Absolutely. And that's two different levels of trust. I want you to just really be a good person. Join me, Kear Gaines, as we have real conversations about healing, growth, fatherhood, pressure, and purpose on my new podcast, Learn the Hardway. Open your free, Our Heart Radio app. Search Learn the Hardway and listen now.

Really, really interesting article in the athletic about the Lincoln Riley pivot from Oklahoma. to USC and what went down, despite what people at Oklahoma think. And people in Southern California really don't care about Oklahoma football. They really don't. I'm sure they respect it to people who love college football. But Oklahoma football is now kind of obsessed because of the way Lincoln Riley left, departed. They think USC had their clutches on him weeks before.

They didn't. I know I had talked to the athletic director for three months during the process. And one of the top trustees, they didn't know a week out. They had it down to seven different coaches. They knew they were going to land one of them. This article points that out. But it's funny about college football. Bobby Bowden felt like Florida State.

Religious straw hat, family man. Aw, shucks. He sounded like Tallahassee, Florida. Bear Bryant felt like Alabama. Tough, old school, southern. Barry Switzer felt like Oklahoma. Combative, Alpha male. Fighter.

Go with your gut more than details. Yeah, those guys felt like those. schools. Lincoln Riley never felt like Oklahoma. He felt, to be honest, like the NFL, which USC is the closest thing in college football to the NFL. Coliseums had the Olympics. They've played baseball, NFL games there.

Lincoln Riley, just like Austin, Texas is in Texas. It's not of Texas, but it's in Texas. Park City, Utah is in Utah. It's not really of Utah. Lincoln Riley can succeed at Oklahoma and USC. And he may leave USC to the NFL, and that'll be okay because at USC, that's how it works. John McKay was their first legendary coach. He won national titles, left for the NFL.

John Robinson came in, won a national title, left for the NFL. Pete Carroll came in, won a couple national titles, left for the NFL. Nobody was outraged. It's how the game works on the coasts. We're not into the loyalty thing. We're into the upgrading thing. And my guess is, Lincoln Riley will spend five, six or seven years here, win a couple of national titles. Oh, he will.

I'm sorry to inform you. I'll probably pivot to the Dallas Cowboys or something. And nobody here will be bothered. Parts of the country, loyalty is a big deal. It's not like people in Los Angeles don't want you to be loyal to them, but the coasts are different. We upgrade all the time. Lincoln Riley is not anti-Oklahoma, and he has succeeded. at Oklahoma.

But when I would interview him for years while he was at Oklahoma, I never once thought that's where it's going to end. I never once, when I was at the other company and at this company, you'd hear about Lincoln Riley under Bob Stoops. And then he got the job and I kept putting him on the air a couple of times a year when I came to Fox. And I think Bob Stoops deep down, he also knew he wouldn't stay at Oklahoma. There were rumors for years.

He was going to go to the NFL after two years coaching. So Oklahoma keeps saying it's the way he left. No, it's not. It's that he left because people generally don't leave Oklahoma unless they're fired. Oklahoma mostly controls them. Barry Switzer left and was a weird, clunky, toxic fit in the NFL. Because Barry's Oklahoma. He moved back, had a restaurant.

Barry is Oklahoma. And Bobby Bowden is Florida State. And Joe Paterno felt like Penn State. And Davo Sweeney feels like Clemson. Nick Saban actually has made it feel like he is Alabama. Pete Carroll worked here, but nobody thought he would stay forever. And nobody really thinks Lincoln Riley is going to stay forever. It'd be great if he did, but he's big picture, offensive, aspirational.

I talked to an NFL general manager when he got hired, and he said he was one of only two coaches. Harbaugh was the other that he would hire in the National Football League. He's never been just Oklahoma. He succeeds there. A lot of people can see. succeed at a place. They succeed, but that doesn't mean they feel like they're going to be there forever. And you can keep saying it's the way he left. No, it's not. We've watched this time and

time again. Carmelo left one way. LeBron left another. Shaq left another. Dwight Howard left another. All these guys that leave in the NBA, Kevin Durant left one way, then another way, and the fans burn jerseys every time. It doesn't matter how you leave. It's that you leave. If your wife tells you she's going to divorce you, she could tell you before. for dinner, during dinner, after dinner, before a vacation, in the middle of a vacation, or after the vacation. Would it sit well if you had three kids together? Yeah, it'd hurt. And when it hurts, people lash out and they get emotional. There's different stages of it, like death. Lincoln Riley is a better fit in Los Angeles. He's simply a better fit. He feels more L.A. than

he does Oklahoma football. He feels about quarterbacks and wide receivers and clever offensive schemes. I had another NFL executive tell me he feels like the college version of Sean McVeigh. Culture, offense, growing, progressive, holistic thinker. That's not anti-Oklahoma, but it feels very right in Los Angeles at USC. I wasn't clobbered Oklahoma. I thought it was very appropriate. I didn't really take any shots at all. No shots.

Norman Oklahoma is a fine university. I've never been there before, but it's a fine place. I don't know if you're welcome there anymore, but you know what? It might be off. I have turned down many opportunities to be the Grand Marshal of many parades in Norman, Oklahoma, several times. Protecting against floods is one of the reasons more than 4 million people trust their home protection to SimplySafe. You always have somebody looking out for you. Claim a free indoor security camera, 20% off 2.

go to simplysafecollan.com. Simplysafecollan.com. See, I go to Europe. I come back. I'm very giving. I'm not as uptight. I'm here. Travel is the best education.

Yeah. And wine is the best thing to drink as you're traveling to get an education. Hour three on a Wednesday is 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 Acapella 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 which 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 of that excitement to my brand new podcast. The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfilled conversations with athletes, creators,

and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. So let's get to it. Listen to The Clifford show on the IHeard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. On the Look Back at it podcast.

For 1979, that was a big moment for me. 84's big to me. I'm Sam J. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick you here, unpack what went down. and try to make sense of how we survived it with our friends, fellow comedians, and favorite authors.

Like Mark Lamont Hill on the 80s. It was a wild year. It was a wild year. I don't think there's a more important year for black people. Listen to look back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. 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, 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-Hart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

This is an I-Hart podcast. Guaranteed Human.