The Herd with Colin Cowherd - HOUR 3 - Celtics-Nets, NBA bracket

Episode Date: April 18, 2022

More on the Celtics-Nets series Colin does he NBA face bracketGuest: Ethan StraussSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an I-Heart podcast. Guaranteed Human. Another podcast from some SNL, late-night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smygel and friends. Me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman help make you funnier. This week, my guest, SNL's Mikey Day and head writer, Streeter Seidel, help an a cappella band with their between songs banter.

Where does your group perform? We do some retirement homes. Those people are starving for banter. Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and friends on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal, but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year.

Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the I-Hard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, this is Robert from the Stuff to Blow Your Mind podcast. Joe and I are both lifelong Star Wars fans, so we're celebrating May the 4th with a brand new week of fun, thought-provoking Star Wars-related episodes. Join us as we tackle science and culture topics from a galaxy far, far away, such as the biology of tauntons and wampas on the ice planet hot, or the practicality and corporate business sense of the Sith rule. of two.

Listen to Stuff to Bole Your Mind on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what I'm saying. Yep, that's me, Cliver Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, my basketball and college football journey, or my career in sports media.

Well, now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Cliver Show. This is a place for raw, unfills of conversations with athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. So let's get to it. Listen to the Clifford show on the IHeard 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. Thanks for listening to The Heard podcast.

Be sure to catch us live every weekday from 12 to 3 Eastern, 9 to noon Pacific on Fox Sports Radio and FS1. Find your local station for the herd at Fox Sports Radio.com or stream us live every day on the iHeart Radio app by searching Hurd. Now let's get this party started. You're listening to Fox Sports Radio. Protecting against floods. One of the reasons more than 4 million people trust the home protection of Simpleas safe.

Get 20% off. Go to simply safe, colin.com. He hosts an NBA podcast, cover the Warriors for years called House of Strauss, author of a great book, The Victory Machine, the making and unmaking of the Warriors dynasty, Ethan Strauss, on Substack as well. Huge fan. Let's start with the Warriors because you know them very, very well. You live up near the Bay Area.

There's a really interesting story here where, like the L.A. Rams, everything works there. Andrew Wiggins was kind of a drift. He works. Jordan Poole, end of the first round. You know, forgotten player emerging as a star. Draymon, is he done? No, he comes back. He's never been more valuable.

Outside of James Wiseman's injury, almost everything works. it is interesting though as Poole on many nights feels like the best player and Clay Thompson's older and Dre is older how is this going to work over the next two years with the next Steph Curry that I mean Jordan Poole on Knights is their best player how's it all going to work that's a great question um I mean it just has to happen if he keeps improving what I love about the Jordan Poole story we say end of the first round, we say lower draft pick, that doesn't even do it justice. He was conceivably the worst NBA

player as a rookie. But what you hear about him and what I love about his trajectory, sometimes the old wisdom is true. You know, sometimes hard work is important. You would hear that. You'd hear that from Chris DeMarco, the assistant coach who worked with Poole, that this guy just works

hard. You hear it from Draymond on your network when he talks about Jordan Poole, that this guy works like crazy. So what he's done is not only improved, but give people a sense that this might not be the end of it. He's got that Kobe mentality. He's got something. So it's tough because Steve Kerr like size.

Bob Myers, like size. They don't want to have two smallish guards. They want a big guard for defensive purposes. But Jordan Poole is making them change the plans because he is that good. He's going to be that expensive. And we're not sure where the ceiling is. And right now in the Warriors, I mean, you've got the old standbys. I think he's my favorite guy to watch.

just because we don't know what's next. You know, you just played that highlight of him, throwing the ball, no look while he's getting fouled, kind of reverse layup, not facing the basket. I mean, it's something new every time with this guy. Question becomes, generally in the NBA, the best team in the NBA, if they're seven, eight, nine games better than the league,

they flourish in the playoffs. Can Golden State beat Phoenix? Chris Paul? I mean, Chris Paul at 37 is still a bucket. His story's remarkable. Do they feel like the best team in the West of you? I mean, this is like a Horatio Alger kind of thing because I'm just touting hard work on your program. But Chris Paul is that guy. Look, I'm going to do a detour to answer your question. Yes, they can beat the Sons. I don't think they're afraid of the Sons. They've beaten Chris Paul before, even though the Sons are the most complete story. But I do want to do a detour into Chris Paulville and just give your viewers a suggestion. go on to YouTube and watch Chris Paul at these summer training camps he does for younger players. If you've got a son, you've got a daughter, you want them to watch something that will make them inspired to get good at basketball, watch some of these clips. You'll see the story of his career play out in the advice he's giving these kids and the advice he's giving these other people.

I think about stuff all the time. I apply it to my life. He's like a basketball philosopher. One of the things he says to one of the kids is defenders are going to come at you all crazy. with this frenetic energy, practice your dribble, stay at your pace. Do not let your opponent speed you up. And you notice that from him. He's always at his own pace. High pressure, postseason. He's got his same dribble. He knows it because he practiced it, because he put work into it. He's got the confidence with it. It's like a metronome. And he doesn't let that outside noise get to him.

And I think that's a huge part of why he's still incredible at this age. And it's just one of those things, I'm telling you, go down that YouTube rabbit hole, you will find lessons as to why the Phoenix Suns might be over the top and why even the Warriors, if the Warriors are confident against them, I think the Sons are confident against the Warriors as well. You know, Kyrie's reaction to the fans, by and large players today, you know, they get heckled all the time. They don't care. I grew up in a time when you had, I think it was Vernon Maxwell running into the crowd and he had malice in the Palace and so I don't you know international soccer referees running for their life I don't make much of you know what he did um it is interesting though you covered Kevin Durant you had skirmishes

verbal skirmishes with Kevin Durant and if this thing if they don't get through the first round Kevin's got a healthy enough ego he's going to look at this thing hard and quitting him you know Katie couldn't help um what do you make of Durant's journey what if they get bounced in the first round in the east, he could have stayed with that Golden State Warrior dynasty? You know him well enough. Do you think it affects him? Do you think he cares? I mean, he really does care. And I don't think that speaks poorly of him that he cares. I think it's part and parcel of why he became great. I mean, insecurity can be indivisible from greatness. You want to prove everybody wrong. And when you ultimately win the championships like Michael Jordan,

make it into a story that's positive. You know, this guy's a competitive maniac. You'll cheat against your grandmother at cards. You make it a positive story. With Kevin Durant, until he wins enough, I'm not sure we're going to make that sort of care, that sort of perhaps insecurity into a positive story. And I think he knows that and he's chasing it. He's always chased that particular status.

We've always known that it's been combustible out in Brooklyn. We've already seen it with James Hardin getting out of that situation. It wouldn't take a lot for this thing to fall apart. And at the same time, it's probably the most talented team in the NBA right now. So you can't count them out. I think that makes them fascinating. What I don't like, though, Colin, is how tiresome it gets, right? I mean, so many things in the NBA, so many entertainment products.

The stuff I say, it's on a scale of entertaining versus tiresome, right? And you want to be more on the entertaining side of things. Trey Young going back and forth with the Knicks fans in that series last time. entertaining all the way through. They're going at him. He's going at them. He has a flare for the moment. He's rubbing their nose in it.

It almost felt like that a little bit with Kyrie and the Boston fans, but then it reroutes right back to Tyrosum in the press conferences, where he's, you know, whining and he's just perturbed. And, you know, that's what's frustrated about the Brooklyn team. They'd be excellent villains, but they don't even want to really play the role. Because part of what being a great villain is, part of why we watch The Joker with Keith Ledger, is he's having a great time being the villain.

They're not even having a great time being villains. Yeah, that's a really great point. If you're going to be a villain, if you're going to be rowdy, Roddy Piper, the late wrestler, you've got to lean in to being a villain. You've been critical to Dallas Mavericks organization. The Luca situation's interesting. So he's a remarking, I mean,

a lot of people say they would start their franchise with him. Now he's hurt and he's not available. And stars get hurt. It is, where are we on Luca? You know, Joy brought this up earlier. He came into a camp out of shape. There are times, you know, we know he's brilliant. Is he the tortured genius?

You know, he goes through these technical runs where he's barking. Is he a good teammate? Where are we at on Luca? Yeah, I thought it was really smart of joy to bring that up. And that we don't know for sure that the injury is connected to it, but it didn't help, I would think, right? Coming into shape out of, coming to camp out of shape. I think the dynamics. Every organization has its dynamics. And Mark Cuban seems like a lot of fun to play for as an owner. He'll party with you. He was in the nightclub with Chandler Parsons. It seems

like a lot of fun. But it does seem like it's maybe a little indulgent. And you wonder, is there anybody in that organization who can say to this guy who has exceeded expectations, who's this incredible talent, who, you know, by many accounts is a nice guy, can somebody say, hey, there are expectations of you. Hey, you have to come in in shape. Hey, you're the leader of the organization. I'm not sure if the Mavericks have proven that they're that kind of organization that has rules. They're Lucy Goosey. They've had some scandals.

They seem a little bit more like a frat party than an NBA franchise at times. And maybe to get the most out of Luca, they've got to actually become something closer to a business than just a good time. You know, we were saying this earlier. The Sons feel old school and the Bucks feel old school. Warriors do, although with the, you know, an analytic dive 10 years ago on the three-point shot. But a lot of times NBA critics, they're divas, you know, they're about the money, they don't care about China. And my takeaway is, what is flourishing in the NBA now is old school. Phoenix's construct is old school. Milwaukee's temperament is old school.

And I'm like, is it sending a message, you know, Kyrie and, and, and, can't Kevin Durant, that's new school. That's mobility. I said if they were a movie, they'd be boiler room. Let's make money and leave somebody else with a, you know, the shrapnel. It does feel like Milwaukee Phoenix are kind of going back in time and it works. What does it say? Yeah, that's the path to happiness. It's connection. I don't want to get too deep philosophical with you here, Colin, but being connected to people, investing in a situation, not just thinking about yourself. This is typically the road to fulfillment, maybe not happiness, because maybe happiness is illusory, but fulfillment. And players are looking around, I think, and they're noticing that it works better

when you have a degree of commitment when you're a star to these places. And I think other forms of old school mentality might be taking over. We mentioned Jordan Poole, lunch pail, hard work. I've noticed just some of the stuff that Carl Anthony Towns is saying in his press conferences. He seems like a different guy where he's saying, we're not just satisfied with this. You know, maybe I would have been satisfied with a win, but we're not just satisfied with this. We know that we have to have bigger goals and bigger aims. It almost seems like we're watching the Gen Z MBA generation grow up a little bit. And you're hearing all the right things, whether it's Kat, whether it's Anthony Edwards, whether it's Jordan Poole. And I couldn't have expected that, but I'm totally right there with you.

It seems like the new school is more old school these days. Yeah, you know, what it is, Ethan Strauss joining us. It's a little cyclical. So, I mean, this just happens is that mobility with LeBron for about eight to ten years, everybody had this franchise insecurity. Like, our star is going to leave. And then Janice is like, I don't want to leave. And Dane's like, I don't want to leave. And the sons are like, we don't want to leave.

And it is funny about how it works. It feels like we've moved into a cycle where the old teams are rewarding the players they like. You work hard. We'll pay you a fortune. The way the contracts are set up, you can pay guys on your own team more. I, by the way, I like the way we're moving. I think Phoenix beats Milwaukee.

Your takeaway on what Milwaukee is, do you like them to win? I think if I had to choose one team, I would probably go with Phoenix. I'm with you on it, but I'm not an expert, Colin. I just write my newsletters about the industry. I watch the games on the exercise bike. I'm no prognosticators. Don't put any money down based on what I'm saying, but I'm with you on that. I'm with you on the idea that Milwaukee is built for the postseason.

And I think that, again, these situations where guys are committed, it's not just, I think people used to be very cynical, right? We had a cycle in sports media where there was a reaction against the old school sports writers who touted these aspects of character and unselfishness. And they were mocked when Deadspin came about. And it's just about talent and none of these virtues are true. The virtues are true. They're true. Unselfishness actually helps you win. It helps when Draymond and Clay, and you made the point that Jordan Poole might be cutting into Clay's role, that it'd be very easy for Clay Thompson to feel threatened by Jordan Poole. But what is he doing? He's lavishing pool and compliments. He's saying he should be most improved player. That actually does help team cohesion. That actually helps success happen. So, you know, I'm just getting on this drag right now that maybe the old wisdom is true. We're seeing it play out. We're seeing that the teams, that have committed to a sense of continuity, a sense of unselfishness, guys forming the roles over time. That seems to be what's working. And maybe we'll see it all undone by the ultra-talented Brooklyn Nets. But for now, I'm betting on old school.

I'm betting on continuity. His name is Ethan Strauss. He's got House of Strauss. Look it up on social media. It's good stuff. Very thought-provoking. It is a pleasure to see you. And I always appreciate the chat, my man.

Hey, feelings mutual. Anytime, Colin. All right. Ethan Strauss. No, I do think it's cyclical. Mobility had like a 10-year run, and it didn't show you the fulfillment you thought. The Clippers were mobile. Lakers are mobile.

And all of a sudden, you're like, a lot of these old-school guys that are like, yeah, I just, I just, you know, some of it's, it's interesting, the international aspect. So this will be our third or fourth straight MVP, an international MVP, an international players, historically have been more loyal. They come to the states, and their takeaway is, I'm going to be loyal to the team that took a chance on me. Now, that may change. Cycically, that may change. But the domestic player feels like this is my league.

I grew up with it. I'm going to do what I can do for me. We're the international player. It's almost like when we travel abroad. We're visitors. We feel like visitors. Even if you're staying in Europe for two weeks, you know, you want to be respectful to their culture.

And I do think there is. like an old school thing happening here where guys like they get drafted, they want to stay in their town, they're going to recruit guys to their place. And not that mobility doesn't have a foothold and all of our lives. I saw this the other day. I saw a story that workers in America are way less mobile than 10 years ago. They're not moving as much. People, they did the mobile thing. They're like, okay, I want roots. I want to home. I want to have friends. I don't want to move away for my friends for 18% raise in pay. And so I think everything's cyclical.

Everything corrects itself. There are big swings and then it kind of just settles in a pace, in a space where things are available to everyone. The Bucks are traditionally built team. They want a championship. Who won the year before that? That'd be the Los Angeles Lakers. Not a very traditionally built team.

Bront James and Anthony Davis. Who won the year before that? The Raptors, who were built traditionally, but only one because they brought in somebody else. in Kauai Leonard. So what happens is with anything in life, there's big swings in one direction, everyone freaks out like the world is ending,

and then it comes back, and it settles in a space where now you have options because we've seen there's different ways of doing things. 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. Within probably 10 days, I 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. Yep, that's me. Clifford Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skis. kids, 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 mute. 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-tap Little Kim's boobs at the VMAs? Or when Kai He 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 count? Well, you can find out on the Look Back at it podcast. I'm Sam Jett. And I'm Alex English.

Each episode, we pick it here, unpack what went down, and try to make sense of how we survived it. Including a recent episode with Mark Lamont Hill, waxing all about crack in the 80s. To be clear, 84 is big to me, not just because of crack. I'm down to talk about crack 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 Hardway with me, your host, and your favorite things. Careers, Care 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 Hardway and listen now.

Joy Taylor with the news. Turn on the news. This is the herd line news. So the finalists for the NBA Awards have been announced. As expected, Janice, Embed, and Yokic are the three finalists for the MVP. Scotty Barnes, Cade Cunningham, and Evan Mobley are up for a rookie of the year. Most improved finalists are Darius Garland, Jaw Morant, and DeJante Murray. That's a little curious that Jaws in there because he was rookie of the year.

Yeah, I don't really get that. But Rudy Gober has a chance to win his fourth defensive play. player of the year in the last five seasons going up against McAll Bridges and Marcus Smart. Heat fans are very upset about Bam out of bio, not being in that group. Bam also said he feels like he was disrespected. He missed 26 games this season, which doesn't really matter because Rudy Goberra missed a bunch of games years ago when he won. But for the sixth man of the year, it'll be Tyler Hero, who I think will win it.

Cam Johnson or Kevin Love. Kevin Love with those young kids has really done a nice job for them. He has. And then Coach of the Year finalists are Taylor Jenkins. Eric Spolstra and Monty Williams, obviously all very deserving finalists. I think that Taylor Jenkins should win coach of the year. I mean, Monty's done obviously an incredible job, and so is Spow. But the Grizzlies won 18 more games this season than last season.

They have the fourth youngest team behind OKC Orlando and Detroit, and they're the two seed in the West. So I think it should go to Taylor Jenkins, but we will find out about those awards later. All very deserving. but, you know, people have their snubs that they feel strongly about. And, you know, sometimes it's motivation. Well, I like Janus for MVP because I think on both ends of the floor, he is so impactful. But I, again, I don't, none of these, Tyler Hero is probably my sixth man of the year, Memphis coach, coach of the year. Well, generally none of these are outrageous.

Yeah, they're all the, John Moran. Good argument for all of them. Most improved is a weird one. Only because we saw how great he was. Yeah. Like, we knew he was great and he got greater. Yeah. So the dolphins are expecting to take a step forward in 2022,

following some big additions to the offense this off season. Tua will have some pressure, show what he can do with all these new weapons. And he said he is looking forward to that opportunity. I guess the only word that can describe that is exciting. It's exciting times for all of us. We know that aside from the guys that we've acquired, it's going to take work for all of us.

We've got to do the most important thing as to why we're here, and that's win games. I think pressure is everywhere, especially in our industry. Or any professional industry. Pressure is just there. But it's one of those things where you're either going to make use of this opportunity, you know, with the guys that we have or you're not. It's what it is.

And so for me, I'm looking forward to making use of this opportunity. They did make a lot of moves this offseason. Out of Teddy Bridgewater is a backup. Tyree Kills, Cedric Wilson, Trent Sherfield, Chase Edmonds, Rahim Moster. I like the moves that they made on the offensive line. Obviously, that has been a huge problem for them as well. But, you know, I was thinking last week of all the sort of bubble guys, you know, Daniel Jones, Mitchell Trubisky to Jalen Hertz, who has the most pressure this season to take a big step up. I think it probably is to it because of all the moves that they've made.

When you shore things up, which is what the questions were about, the dolphins, they don't have enough weapons, offensive line is struggling. They didn't have an offensive head coach. Well, now you have the opportunity to step up and see what you can do. Another quick NFL note, the Browns are signing Denzel Ward, cornerback Denzel Ward, to a five-year, $100.5 million contract extension. He's good, but he's small. He gets beat up, but he's good. He's 24, it includes a $71.25 million guarantee.

So he is the highest paid cornerback in NFL history. Shefter just tweeted that, so a little bit of them for you in Cleveland. So the match will return this summer. I was talking about this the other day. Remember when this was going on when we, like, didn't have sports back yet? Yeah. And we were glued to the match. Well, this year is going to feature four-star quarterbacks facing off against each other.

Tom Brady and Aaron Rogers will take on Josh Allen and Patrick Mahomes in the event. Brady posted this announcement on Twitter saying we tried to make this a tag team cage match, but the lawyers said our contracts wouldn't allow it matches back June 1st. So he is very excited. He also posted a little meme. Brady's like completely leaned into social media. Oh yeah, like he's totally different. I think this is who he naturally is.

I think he played a good patriot in New England. Yeah, he fit the role that was assigned to him. But I also had to earn that. You know, I think that's a big part of Brady's whole journey and story. I mean, he was a sixth round pick. Like he, I think he leaned into that underdog, you know, villain thing with the dynasty. And now he's enjoying himself in the twilight years of his career. Now, where are they playing this at?

So it'll be a 12-hole event. at the Win Golf Club in Las Vegas. Oh, that's a nice course. It's pretty private, yeah. It's the sixth match, the match, but it's not going to feature a PGA golfer this time, obviously. But they're already talking trash. This is really, I love this cam that they have for the match.

I love that we're trying all these new elements when it comes to the broadcasting side of things, because you get the, you get a little bit of the trash talking. Remember that's where Aaron kind of dropped a little line that we used. Yeah, Aaron was. What did he say? He was like, he had gone into this. That wasn't that the beautiful mystery?

Is that where we got that line? Yes. Yes. That was the beginning of his. I'm going to just... Torture the Packers. And the public. Joy with the news.

Well, that's the news. And thanks for stopping by. The Heard Lye News. It's probably one and done. It'll be just absolutely catastrophic. But I'm going to do my NBA playoff face bracket next. We just picked the team based on the best player.

Nothing else matters. Does the best player win? the NFL and it's regrettable. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern 9 a.m. Pacific. Hey, what's up everybody? It's me, three-time Pro Bowl of LaVar Arrington, and I couldn't be more excited to announce a new podcast called Up on Game. What is Up on Game, you ask? Along with my fellow Pro Bowler, T.J. Hushman Zada and Super Bowl champion.

Yep, that's right. Plexico Burris. You can only name a show with that type of talent on it. Up on Game. We're going to be sharing our real-life experiences loaded with teachable moments. Listen to Up On Game with me, LaVar Arington, T.J. Hushmanzada, and Plexico Burris on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or 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 Superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the IHard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what I'm saying.

Yep, that's me, Cliver Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, the reactions, my journey from Bats, 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-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 cracks. 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. 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, our heart radio app. Search, learn the hard way, and listen now. Tired of waiting around for hot water, choose Navian,

instant hot water, go to tankletsmade symbol.com. All right, so I call it a face bracket. I do it in the NFL NBA. So I just choose the best player in the series, and they're going to win the series. And, you know, historically when Michael was the best player, he won, when Magic was the best player, he won, when Duncan was the best player,

when LeBron's been the best player. It doesn't guarantee it, but you ready to go? Here we go. Let's go. Let's go. Okay, first round. sons, Pelicans. So that's Chris Paul against C.J. McCollum.

That's going to be an easy one, Chris Paul. He's the only player with 130 plus assists to three different teammates this season. So Chris Paul would be the better player there. Utah, Dallas. Well, Luke is not available. So I would go with Donovan Mitchell. He scored 30 plus points in half his career playoff games. And he's also a good defender.

Warriors Denver, Curry against Nicola Yokic. Now, Yokic may be more valuable. That's not the game here. Who's the best player? I think Steph Curry is. It's a three-point world. He has a history of great dominant playoff performances, led the NBA in three-pointers this year,

and he missed 18 games. So it's Steph Curry. John Moran against Anthony Edwards. Not as easy as you think. I'll take John Morant because I got more of a track record here. He is one of seven players in the league to go 25 points, five assists, five rebounds. So Jaws putting up for his size, Jaws putting up just insane numbers. Okay, so then we go to Chris Paul against Donovan Mitchell.

I'm going to go Chris Paul because his ability to elevate others. He's also a very good defensive player. He had the best clutch time plus minus of any player in the league this year, Chris Paul. Curry against John Morant. Again, not saying most valuable or most electric. You're asking me who the best player is. I'm going to take Curry in a big spot with five minutes to go. He scored 25 plus points in half his games this year before suffering a foot injury.

And then it's Chris Paul against Steph Curry. And this is really, really hard. But I would take Steph Curry because his combination of three-point shooting and ball handling, he's not as good a defensive player as Chris Paul. So my face bracket has Steph Curry coming out of the. the West. I'm not saying I love all this stuff. I'm just telling how the face bragging works. So then we go to the east, Jimmy Butler against Trey Young. So I would say the best player is Trey Young because he's the only player with 100 plus assists to four different players this year. And he's also

a better shooter and that matters in the postseason than Jimmy Butler. Yonis against, oh, Embed against Pascal Seaccom. That's an easy one. Mbide, probably going to win the MVP, lead the NBA in scoring. And then Janice against DeMar DeRosen. Listen, length, versatility, offensive end, closing. Derosen is a really good player, but he had kind of a breakout year. But Janice averages over 28 points every year. So I'm going to take Janice there.

And then Jason Tatum, Kevin Durant. I'm going to take Durant. He led the NBA with 50-point games three this year. And by the way, this is not a knock on Tatum. But Durant's also, I think, an underrated. defensive player. I really think Kevin is. Okay, so now we get to Embed against Trey Young. I'm going to take M.B. Again, size rebounding, both ends of the floor. I'm going to take M. Bid. I do like Trey Young a lot, though. M. B. led the NBA in clutch time scoring this year. Yonnis against Kevin Durant.

Okay, now this is the hardest decision in the whole stupid face bracket. But I believe I would take Yonis. A, he's always available. B, he's a better defensive player. C. Offensively, Kevin's a better shooter. But I kind of feel like Yonis can elevate the fast break, elevates the glass. He just elevates more around him where Kevin's just the better score. But you're telling me best player, I would take Yonis. Now this is tough again. Now we get to Yonis and Joel M. Bede. And we're talking inches, not feet here. I'm a Janus guy. I think he's a better defensive player.

I think M. Bede has more offensive layers, but Janus is also, can handle the ball, shoot at three. I mean, again, you're talking inches here. So then we get to the NBA finals, Milwaukee Golden State. And I, the Bucks outscored opponents by 400 points with Janus on the court, and they were outscored by 122 when he wasn't. a championship team. So my face bracket says

Milwaukee wins. You know, I was slow to Janus. I didn't jump all in it. You were slow to Yonis. I liked him, but my thing was, okay, you've got to be able to score late. You've got to be able to be the guy the greatest player in league. I didn't care for it. Kobe, Duncan, I never questioned

them with five minutes to go in a game. With Janus, his free throw shooting was so horrific. I was always like, I don't know if I trust him late. I loved him, but you know how it works. You get to the playoffs, these games are all 98, 98, with 450 to go. Right. Well, I mean, you are something until you're not. That's right.

Right. He was an athletic, great, fun player who hadn't had postseason success. Well, now he's a champion and multiple time MVP. So he has quieted all of those critics, or not even just critics. I think it's fair if you don't have a certain amount of postseason success for there

to be questions about your legacy and if you should be in the conversation with the top players who have. You know, it's really interesting. When you talk about, if you were going to say there's an All-NBA team. You'd have Magic at the point, Michael at the two. I'd probably put LeBron at the three, and then you argue Larry Bird, Duncan. I put, I put Kareem Abdul-Jabbar at the center. He's the best, most dominant single score in my lifetime. And then you argue about the four. What do you do with the four? Do you do Larry Bird? On the all-time first team, I'd put Bird over Duncan because

if you look at the team, Magic wasn't a three-point shooter. Jordan wasn't. Kareem wouldn't be. LeBron's okay. In the modern game, you'd need a three-point shooter. And Larry Byrd between passing and shooting, I think that Duncan's skills are duplicated a little bit by Kareemarrein, Abdul-Jabbar. So I would do Byrd in the Duncan's second team. But it is interesting, because Janus doesn't get hurt, he is at the beginning of his prime, he's probably got six years of this. My guess is he's going to become our four on the all-time team.

He's much better defender than Byrd. He's got more dexterity offensively than Tim Duncan. That's I think what you're looking at with Janus, when we do our all-time team, there'll never be a magic. Magic was a six, nine point. Jordan's the two, and LeBron's the three. Let's just get over it.

And Kareem's the greatest center of all time. The four, that forward is the one we've kind of moved up and down based on, okay, if you're talking about the 70s take Duncan, if you're talking about current basketball, you take Bird. Bird was also an unbelievable passer. But I think Janus, in about five years, because I think he's going to have multiple championships, you put him at that four,

and then everybody can dribble the ball. LeBron and Janice, you're forwards. In the 70s, you're forward. You're not putting the ball in their hands moving it up the floor. Bird is, I remember reading an article about three years ago on Larry Bird. When Larry Bird came into the league, he was a 6-9 guy, and outside of Magic, he was the best passer in the league. He was the best shooter in the league.

People forget Larry Bird was so revolutionary. And I was reading an old article. It must have been 30 years old. He was Jack McCollum. It was a great writer. And he was writing like rookie year Larry Bird stuff. And it's like we've never seen anything. It felt like you were reading a story about LeBron James Rookie Year.

I can't wait for you to watch this week's winning time. You're going to love it. Oh, my God. You have no time. Today's a bad day to watch it. But again, you're telling me that Larry Bird gets introduced into it. Yes, and it's great. It's like the dynamic between magic and everyone praising Larry and doubting magic.

And it's really good. Oh, good stuff. All right. I want to thank Rick Buecker, Olden, Paul, and East, Ethan Strassie. Joy, Ryan, for joining us here on a Monday. Good NBA stuff, USFL stuff as well. Hope you had fun. Live in Los Angeles, it's the herd.

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 IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential.

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

Hey, this is Robert from the Stuff to Blow Your Mind podcast. Joe and I are both lifelong Star Wars fan, so we're celebrating May the 4th with a brand new week of fun, thought-provoking Star Wars-related episodes. Join us as we tackle science and culture topics from a galaxy far, far away,

such as the biology of tontons and wampas on the ice planet hot, or the practicality and corporate business sense of the Sith rule of two. Listen to stuff to blow your mind on the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what you're saying.

Yep, that's me, Cliver Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, my basketball and college football journey, or my career in sports media. Well, now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfills of conversations, with athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. So let's get to it. Listen to the Clifford show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast.

And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok podcast network on TikTok. This is an IHeart podcast. Guaranteed human.