The Herd with Colin Cowherd - Hour 3 - Eric Musselman

Episode Date: July 18, 2024

USC head coach Eric Musselman joins the show to talk about his time working in the NBA and the current state of college basketball vs the influx of international players to the NBA draftSee 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. What's up, fam? It's Isaiah Thomas. And I'm C.J. Toledano. It's our favorite time of the year on our podcast point game, the playoffs. We're digging into the biggest surprises of the season. And I'm looking back on some of my greatest playoff moments. If we didn't talk ever again,

I was harmed. You just understood. That's how personal it got. Wow. Then after that game seven, Mark keep coming to him. He's like, you know I love you, dog. You know, it's all love. This was just playoffs. This was just basketball. Listen to Point Game on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Your husband is not who you think he is. Your body is not what you thought it was. Your identity is formed by a secret history. I'm Danny Shapiro.

And these are just a few of the stunning stories I'll be exploring on the 14th season of Family Secrets. He kind of shoved me out of the way and said, move. And he went out the front door and he jumped in a car and drove off. And that was the last time I saw him. Listen to season 14 of Family Secrets on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This season on Dear Chelsea, with me, Chelsea Handler, we have some fantastic guests like Amelia Clark. When like young people come up to me and they want to be an actor or whatever. My first thing is always, can you think of anything else that you can do?

Rather be disappointed in. Do that. David O'Yello-O. I love this podcast, whether it's there. or relationships or religion or sex or addiction or you just go straight for the guts. Dennis Leary, Gaten Moderato from Stranger Things, Tana Monsu, Camilla Morone, Carrie Kenny Silver, and more. Listen to these episodes of Dear Chelsea on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Thanks for listening to The Heard Podcast. Be sure to catch us live every weekday on Fox Sports Radio and noon to three. 9 a.m. to noon Pacific. 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 Fox Sports Radio or FSR. We're listening to Fox Sports Radio. Here we go. Hour number three, live in Los Angeles,

it's the herd. Jay Mack, you and I are Caitlin Clark fans. We both could not believe she did not get the Olympic knob. This morning, to start the show three hours ago, I said, I found it incredulous. I did give the WNBA credit for getting her on the All-Star team, back of the bench. But I found it incredible. She was not in the skills competition because she's built for that. Well, the Associated Press is reported that she was offered it but turned it down.

Well, I don't want to be a cynic. I think WNBA may be protecting themselves. I don't want to be a cynic. Let's just say that's right. So I badgered him for that little bit. If she turned it down, she's built for it. I would pay her to go perform in that. I would, you know.

But anyway, my rule is more Caitlin Clark, get her in the Olympics. Just to show you how well she's playing. She leads the WNBA in assists per game, the whole league, on a bad team. It would be the highest assists per game by any rookie in league history. She's the fastest player in league history to get to 400 points and 200 assists. She's Magic Johnson. She's Steph Curry. One of two players ever to rank top 15 in points, rebound, assists, steals, and blocks.

in July she averaged 20 and a half a game and 12 and a half points. Get her on the Olympics. Get her in the All-Star game. Get her in the skills competition. They got Michael Jordan into the dunk contest as a rookie. Get her on everything. Get her in everything. She's on pace to be the first player in NBA or WNBA history to lead the NCAA in a Siss,

then lead the league in assists. Magic didn't even do that. Magic didn't do that. She gets it. You write her a million dollar check under the table, and you get her into the skills competition. You do it. You pay her under the table. You pay her through a shoe company.

You get her in that. Can you be honest? Did you even know there was a WNBA skills competition? Yes. I did not. I was unaware. But the associate press is saying this morning, after a show story this morning, apparently they said, oh, she turned it down.

Don't let her say no. Hey, how about this stat? There's a lot of things I've said no to to bosses in my life. If you want it to get done, make it get done. So Caleb Clark has 22 blocks this season. That's weird. That's a lot. Amazing for a guard.

Angel Reese, a center has 10. How? How? Caleb Clark's hustling, trying on defense, setting up the offense, shooting three. When Dana White and the UFC was more successful than the WNBA was, but when Dana White got Connor McGregor, you just got him on every big card. You did. With Bryce Harper, like networks like Fox are like, we're putting the Phillies on television. You just make stuff work.

You just more Caitlin. She is the Taylor Swift in sneakers for a sport that's never made a profit. Give the people what they want, right? It's basketball. We're not asking her to lift heavy things. Not yet. So anyway, so, so, so she is, she isn't in the Olympic team. She's not in the skills.

they have at least, we got to give the WMBA credit, they got her in the All-Star game. But is that voted on? That's voted on. She was the number one vote, get her by a mile. Okay. So they didn't even have a choice there. Popularity contest.

Basically, the fans, so we can't give the WNBA credit for that. The fans did that. Just remember, last 16 years, zero games with one million TV viewers. Every game for Clark this season, except one, over a million viewers. Every game. Eric Musselman, interesting guests going to be joining us in about 20 minutes. Anthony Davis and Joel Embed, both good players, obviously. They're vying for a starting spot in the U.S. Olympic team

after seeing yesterday's game versus Serbia. It kind of proves my point here. I think AD simply a better player than Joel Embed. 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'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. Clipper Taylor, the podcast. forth. 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. What's up, fam? It's Isaiah Thomas. And I'm C.J. Toledano and our podcast Point Game is about defying the odds. Like LeBron heading into the playoffs without Luca and Austin Reed. And finding ways to win no matter what.

He's the smartest player to ever play the game. His IQ is at a level that we've never seen before. And he knows without Luca and Austin Reeves, I got to manipulate the game. We get a player's perspective on the challenges of the playoffs. I think Joker's going to be exhausted this series because when they don't have Rudy in the lineup, he has to really guard guys like Nas Reid. He has to guard Julius Randall.

And then he has to give us everything he gives us on the night-to-night basis on offense. And when IT's friends stop by, like Quentin Richardson, we dive into some playoff history too. Steve Nass would get that thing. That man, hell get the flying. He run up the court, licking his fingers while he got the ball.

After you go through a training camp with that, Isaiah, you figure it out real quick. Get your ass up and down the court, and you're going to get the ball. So listen to Point Game on the, iHeart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, it's Edwin Castro, also known as Castro 1021. And I'm Kunky, his best friend and business manager.

And we've got a new show called The 1021 Podcast. I'm taking you behind the scenes on how I became one of Twitch's most popular streamers. We also love sports. And with the World Cup right around the corner, we'll be breaking down the biggest storylines ahead of the big tournament here in the USA. Listen to the 1021 podcast on the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Well, I really think you're going to like our next guest. If you're a basketball fan pro or college, you know who Eric Musselman is.

He's the new coach at USC. He coached in the NBA as a head coach for the Warriors and Kings. He was an assistant, Magic Hawks, Grizzlies, T-Wolves. He's coached under Chuck Daly, worked under Jerry West. Now he's dealing Doc Rivers, Mike. for Tello. You've got such a labyrinth of college and pro basketball stories. One of the things

I want to start with is Jerry West recently passed away. I can remember the Pau Gassal trade. When Kobe got Pau Gassal and Jerry West was engineering this whole thing. I remember being on a plane on a tarmac and I called a friend

and I said did you see the Pau Gassal trade? Who engineered that? My buddy's like, I think it's Jerry West. Um, Jerry was the guy that told the Warriors, move off Monta. He's great. Go, Steph. What was the secret sauce?

Because you're a basketball savant. I mean, that's your reputation. Intense, you know the sport. When you're around Jerry, to you, um, what was the secret sauce with Jerry? What, what made him so, I mean, he obviously had great experience, Eric? Yep. But what was it like to be around him and pick his brain? Well, he was so competitive.

Will to win was beyond belief. Everybody in pro sports is pretty competitive, but he took it to another level. In the draft room, he was the most competitive person. I remember being a part of two drafts with him, and the intensity in the draft room was incredible. And then you look back at his time in Memphis, which is when I had the opportunity to work with him, look at who he hired as a coach. It's Hughie Brown, and Hughie Brown had been out of coaching for, I think, 14 or 15 years. So he brought Hubey Brown out of retirement basically to coach.

And then when Hubey retired, he brings Mike Firtella, who had been out of coaching for seven years. And the reason I thought that's so unique is Jerry West really pro player. But he went out and got true coaches that were not former players necessarily. And I always thought that was really unique, but it's because he thought those two guys were the best coaches at that time for the organization. his long-term vision, unbelievable. But I do remember the first time I talked to him, I was coaching the Warriors, and there was a trade made. And all of a sudden, a couple days later, the secretary for the warrior said,

hey, Jerry West is on the line. I'm like, man, the logo, you know, so I pick up the phone and he goes, hey, so-and-so just got traded to you as a young coach, I just want you to know you'll never make it, you'll get fired, he'll get you fired. Click. I'm like, oh wow, I'm 30-some years old head coach in the NBA, and the logo just called me and told me the guy we traded for is going to get me fired.

And I hadn't coached the game. But he was pretty close to being right. Let's talk. I asked you during the break, this is fascinating. I said, you coached in the NBA as an assistant and a head coach. You were young. I said, and you're known as a strategist. You are a guy that is working, you're working the chalk, both sides.

You're working the refs, you're working your team, you're working your assistance. Was there ever a guy I asked you that was intimidatingly good at strategy, and the name you gave was... Hughie Brown. I remember the first time we played Memphis when I was with the Warriors, I told our staff, we got to be up at least nine or ten heading into the two-minute timeout, because if not, we got no chance. because he was coach brown was so great late game and i had worked for him several years before that

and saw what he did uh in timeouts uh the preparation and how he could take a play pattern and alter it on the fly and make it simple through his instructions in the timeouts never seen anything like it in my life and so i knew then going against him like hey i cannot outcoach this guy in the last two minutes um and so I alerted our staff like, hey, man, we got to have double Jesus leader what's over.

You also coached under Chuck Daly, the legendary. I mean, he was, he and Pat Riley, they looked like CEOs, the suits, the hair. And Coach Daly would let you know it too. He would tell you, get out of the mirror. I need the mirror space pregame. Like you'd assistant coach be, you know, getting his tie done right. And Coach Daly'd walk right up. I need the mirror now, move, please.

Now, he had that ego and the vanity in the garage. but yet it worked. And a lot of times players would be turned off by that. What was something about Coach Daly that was a marvel to you? Well, he could always predict the future. It was absolutely unbelievable. He would say, hey, in 10 games, we're going to be super tired. And then 10 games would go by and we'd be super tired.

Like he could always figure out the nuances of his team. The most amazing thing is he had this presence, this air about him, but he really had no ego. It was unbelievable. He looked at himself like an average guy. Now, the dressing part was super important to him. Every road trip, he wanted to go shopping. Every road trip. Just like McIntyre.

But in all reality, he was a true players coach. Like he, in practice, he really believed in giving the assistant coach. is a voice. He said that when he spoke in a huddle, he wanted to be like E. F. Hutton. He wanted everybody to listen, all ears towards him. So he felt like they didn't need to hear his voice all the time. That is really smart. That is really smart. So he wanted, he was a word efficiency guy. No question. The assistants can bark at practice. When I talk, it's game meaningful. No doubt. And he talked about how he broke down how many meetings you truly have in a 24-hour game day. You think about all the timeouts.

You think about pre-practice. Think about shoot-around. You think about your 40-minute meeting. You think about your meeting at 20-minute. So he said all these meetings, think about how tired the player's ears are, of listening to the same voice or the same message over and over. So he was really careful not to use a lot of words in front of his players. God, that's so smart.

You know, Dan Hurley is the coach of the moment in college basketball. I didn't think the Lakers was a good fit. I said, listen, when I saw him at a Billy Joel concert a day later with his wife, I'm like, he's a New Yorker. He's not coming out to L.A. La, La Land. But I said, I didn't know, and I think he's great. I said, I don't think Bill Belichick would have been a good college coach, but yet I think John Gruden would have been stylistically.

You worked in both. I said, I don't know if Dan has the patience or the league has the patience for him as an NBA coach. If you go look at Rhode Island, if you go look at his jobs, he deconstructs. Lakers don't like deconstruct job, right? They got LeBron and AD.

Tell me what you think Hurley would have worked, and I think he's the best college coach now. Yep. You think it would have worked in the NBA? Did he make the right choice staying at Yukon? You know, I think that's, you know, his choice is his choice, but I do think that any great coach

would come to find out really quickly that professional sports is a players league and it's way more of a partnership and if you don't turn into a partnership you just cannot last in that league at all and I think coach Hurley is so smart and so brilliant that he would have figured that out really really quickly if he wouldn't already know it

you know I think that a lot of college coaches that are thinking about the NBA level I think if you talk to a enough NBA coaches, head coaches, or assistant coaches. I think you understand really quickly that you have got to partner, especially with your star players. And if you don't, you're just not going to make it. You know, I mean, the players are going to control so much in that league.

And for good reason, they are the star of the show. I am a fan of college basketball. I do think, in just my opinion, the NBA kind of with Adam Silver, demonized it. and I always think college football is the best microwave. So by the time a kid, Tim Tebow goes to the NFL, he's a household name. I know Zion because of Nike and Duke. I have a feeling that the NIL will keep a few players around maybe like a Zach Ead for one more year and will actually, you'll be able to get a kid that may have been a G-leager,

and it's like Kansas is going to pay me $4.50, I'm going to go to Kansas. I'm on the outside. I think the NIL could actually fortify college basketball. It's still a revolving door of talent. What do you think, can the NIL, because everybody laments the NIL, but I think to myself, could it actually help the sport? I think it can help the sport with certain players. But I think, you know, a year ago we had Anthony Black, who was a lottery pick.

And there was never a discussion with Anthony or his mother, Jennifer. There was never a discussion about, hey, let's have Anthony come back and he can make name, image, and likeness, because he's a lottery pick after one year. You're a one and done. You've got to go. But I do think for certain players that are maybe marginal guys, because if you're talking about a player who's a late second round draft pick, he's a star in college. So I do think some guys that are borderline, maybe 45 to 60 picks, maybe those guys can participate in college for one more year. have a little bit more patience. And then when they're ready to go pro, maybe they go from 60 to now 38 in the following draft. And so if you can have those conversations that make sense and a player can make more money over time based on his draft value. And then it also

elevates a player when you look at marketing opportunities once he does get to the NBA. Because let's face the facts, somebody like Carmelo Anthony, when he plays the one year at Syracuse, that elevates his marketing as well. Oh, no question. Same thing with Kevin Durant at Texas. So I think college can be really, really good from a marketing standpoint. Oh, I totally agree. So I think there's some great things with it.

Yeah, plus the programs all have deals with Nike or Adidas. I mean, so you're going to get those companies behind you as well. The, you know, it's really interesting when you, it does appear to me. The AAU system is a bit broken. I tend to think America has the most good basketball players, but the top five or six guys in this league are increasingly international players. And I don't think it's because our kids don't work hard or they're not good people or good. I think what happens is the European system, whereas it's an academy, you play fewer games,

the games mean more, you play against older players. AAU is a million games on the weekend. It's all about getting the bag. I think the system right now is better in Europe than here. you can't bad mouth AAU because you're recruiting it all the time but is there an argument to be made that the European system if we could tweak ours that they do some things better at a fundamental level early than we do there's no question right now when you look at the draft and if you go back crazy yeah it's crazy I mean I you think about you know 30 years ago you know the Atlanta Hawks and Stan Kasten were way ahead of the game when it when it was came to evaluating overseas and And I remember the draft with Dirk Nowitzke. I was in Orlando at the time.

And three weeks before the draft, we did not know who Dirk was. That's how far scouting and everything has come too. That wasn't that long ago. But now the coaching overseas, absolutely phenomenal. Some of the best coaches in the world are not coaching in the United States. And for so many years, great American coaches went over their coach, did clinics. caught the game the way that the Americans played. Now the coaching, we're stealing ideas and schemes from them.

From them. It's amazing. Even NBA teams, there's a lot of NBA teams. Hey, let's go get so-and-so to be an assistant coach because he's so creative, offensive-minded, and he's been coaching in Italy or Spain or Serbia or wherever. And then you think about the player and the level of talent. Right now, if you could project another 10 to 15 years,

what the NBA draft's going to look like, it might look a lot like baseball, where you're talking about a lot of Dominican Republic players, and they're talking about a lot of Venezuelan players dominating the draft. It might turn that quickly with basketball as well, because it's trending in that direction right now, unless we can fix some of the grassroots stuff

that's going on here in the U.S. I used to cover TARC. So I need you to be vulnerable here, because I ask all of them. I roomed with Tark's son at the University of Cesar. San Diego, George Tarkhanian.

Oh, George Tarkhani. Yes. So I've said this before. I, we love this game. I wish I was an NFL GM. I thought Juan Dixon out of Maryland

was going to roll in the league. I loved him. And I later found out he was a tweener. So, Don McLean, I was sitting with Tark, and he would play at Seamy Valley or something. Great,

legendary basketball player, now a clipper announcer. I'm like, Tark. I was watching them at a tournament in Vegas. I'm like, I don't get it. He doesn't jump.

He scores. I don't, in Tark's like, he's going to be all NBA. So Tark knew his stuff. So I love, I remember telling Mike Dunleby, Yeh, Ming's just another tall guy. He's like, he's going to be unbelievable. So I whiffed on a million guys. Give me a guy, two of them, that you spotted early and wasn't a big recruit,

but you really, you feel like you nailed him. And has there ever been a great player that you didn't buy? And you looked out five years later and went, wow, that kid had a lot of heart and really made himself into something. I would say if I had to look back and think about a player that maybe I didn't think was going to be an unbelievable player. I went, Orlando Magic General Manager, John Gabriel, asked me to go watch Vince Carter play against Pthoon Cookman in Daytona Beach.

He could jump. And I went over there and I watched him and he was always grabbing a body part. You know, and his athleticism was awesome, but I was like, I told Gabe, I said, I don't know if he can really be an NBA All-Star. And that's the one guy. That's why you can't go watch a guy one time because obviously Vince Carter was unbelievable. But it was a 40-minute game. I watched him play probably 20-some minutes because it was a blowout game. And I came away and was like, I'm not sure.

And I look back and said, boy, are you stupid? which is also why you've got to constantly call people that are either coaching them in a training. That's the Jerry West secret. You have to. Now, give me a guy that you found. You guys all have somebody that you loved early. Yep. I say a guy that Darren Fox, as a young player.

You love him. You love him. I watched him for about 30 seconds. And I don't know where he was ranked at the time because I had just entered college. basketball, but I remember watching it took like two or three minutes to say, this guy is just different. He's on a whole other level. And I think that the more you do this college recruiting stuff, the stars that are just guys that are going to be lottery picks, they're easy. You don't have to convince yourself that they're good. You automatically can say that guy's going to be a lottery

pick. And there's not many, but when you see it, you kind of know it and feel it. You've coached at Nevada, Arkansas, and now USC. It is a big city, big city media, big city restaurants. Are L.A. kids just naturally little softer, a little more entitled. I heard years ago

a college football coach said, you come out here, they all got two iPhones in L.A. And they got cool shoes, and they're all stylish. And I'm like, that's not like what they're like in, you know, Wichita State. Is recruiting an L.A. kid different at USC? I don't really think so.

I mean, I look at, you know, when we first got started at Nevada, the first place I went to was L.A. And we ended up getting Lindsey Drew, who was a starting point guard for us for four years. And he was an L.A. kid. And yeah, he has a cool factor to him for sure. But his dad was an NBA head coach. And we felt like the L.A. market because of who you're playing against as a high school player and local AAU events as a really young player, meaning second, third, fourth grade, they're exposed to so many great players at a young age that we actually felt like

it's an unbelievable market. And now, obviously, being at USC now, it's got to be a great market for us. Yeah. Eric Musselman joining us. You've coached in the D-League, the Mountain West, the NBA. You've coached Chuck Daly, Doc Rivers, Mike Fratello. You've coached Penny Hardaway, Rashid Wallace, Scottie Pippen, Powell Gassal. Gassal was a first. fascinating player. Unbelievable offensive player. And a unbelievable IQ, he was an underrated passer. And when you can find a player that makes him...

Kobe loved him. Oh, for good reason, because everyone loved playing with him. He was unselfish. He was a great locker room guy, super egoless, and was fun to be around. Like, he had energy that you were like, hey, I want to go hang out with Paul Gasol. Yeah. You know, somebody told me that Penny Hardaway had the best... NBA workout.

Kobe and Penny Hardaway had the two best. Now, when were you and Penny together? Yes, so it would have been pennies, I think, maybe third year, because he played for Brian Hill. With Nick Anderson, Shaq. Yes. Dennis Scott? No, maybe not.

I think Dennis was with him, yes. And then I joined the Magic with Chuck Daly, so that was Chuck's year. And then I was also with the Magic when Doc came his first year. But Penny was part of the year with Coach Daly. It was Nick Anderson, Horace Grant. Somebody told me he did things in practice that were insane. Because he was, now we talk about positionless players. Yes.

He was the guy that was the positionless player that could play the point that he could guard a foreman. He had unbelievable vision. You know, like, when you're an NBA assistant, you're like, I can't wait for the tip off to see what this guy does. Penny was one of those guys. So was Jason Williams. White Chocolate was, like, when I was with him, I couldn't wait for the game to start because it was like, this man's going to put on a show tonight.

And you never knew what he was going to do. And there's these certain guys that just have incredible flair, and Penny was certainly one of them. Juju Watkins, USC basketball star, women's basketball star, if I'd never seen the play. Tell me, tell me about the game, her game. I mean, she's, well, first of all, she's the biggest star on campus. I can tell you that.

And that's super cool when you think about women's athletics that Juju is a national brand right now. So you're the scout. I'm your GM. I want you to go scout, Juju. Eric, what, tell me about her. She can do everything. I mean, she can draw free throws attempted. She can make threes.

you talk about a player on a big stage as a freshman that could take her team as far as she did. How she uses her body. She's got unbelievable body control. She can finish through contact. She can seek contact for free throws attempted. Stretch the defense out with three-point shooting. Just had a phenomenal, phenomenal freshman year. And the shirt I got on, this is actually a Ju-Ju Watkins shirt from the bookstom.

store. I went in and I'm like, man, that's a great logo. You know, I'm in the bookstore looking for stuff. I looked at the price tag. I'm like, wow, like it's a hundred dollar t-shirt. And then I looked at, hey, it's juju-Walkins shirt. Let's get this thing. By the way, you're 59 and look great. You've got incredible energy. I think a lot of that from what I've heard. I talk to people, told them you were coming on the show. You really love what you do. You have a great energy. Now, I know you have to get on a plane and recruit. Is recruiting easier or harder today? Well, I've only been doing it for 10 years, you know, collegiately.

So I would say that it's become harder each year that I've been a part of it. You know, when I was at Nevada, you had to sit out when you transferred. So we had a great formula. We felt like, hey, we always want four sit-out guys that we can develop and have patience with. And then we also, that means you only got eight or nine guys on your active roster, so they're all happy. So your locker room is easier. One thing that I don't think people are talking enough about with this, you don't have to sit-out. transfer-wise now you have 13 guys on scholarship there's always going to be

three or four guys that are unhappy so what is your locker room like and it it also there's more guys now not playing and and they're losing eligibility while they're not on the floor when you had the sit-out thing and you and you sat for a year then you got the you know more guys were playing minutes then and so I think that's a little bit of development piece because really the only way to get better truly is to get significant minutes that's how you improve as a player, where you can learn on the fly and you can learn through mistakes and you can play through mistakes. And with 13 active players on a roster, it becomes more challenging to

let guys play through their mistakes. But when you have four guys sitting out, you have no choice. You're rolling with a core group of seven or eight guys, and I think guys got better that way. Jay Wright would get three-star guys from the DMV build them. They'd stay in college. It was great chemistry. John Calipari went one and done. That's a way to do it. If you were at a Kentucky, like where you can do either way, what would you prefer? I think you've got to have a blend. I think that, you know, when I look back at the group that I had a year ago at Arkansas, a team that got us to the Sweet 16, we had three freshmen that were won and Duns. And I love that formula. I think if you get a freshman who's really, really

talented and is going to be able to play in the NBA in eight months, what a challenge as a coach to say, man, I owe, there's an obligation to make sure this player gets drafted higher than what's anticipated. That's a great challenge. It's also an incredible responsibility for a coaching staff when a parent, you know, says, hey, we want this young man to be developed to get him ready for the next level, and you've got eight months to do it. And I look back a couple years ago with Moses Moody, who was a lot of we picked. He led us to an elite eight. And the thing that I've learned is you've got to let those guys play early on, and then when you get to March, then you'll get the payback. And it might not happen right away in non-conference.

You might see a team slip up a little bit if they're playing a young guy that's going to be a one and done. But you certainly hope come March madness that those players can lead you because in all reality, you can't win without star players and without players that are, you've got to win in college with NBA prospects or you're just marginal team. burned a few years ago. I watched Kansas in December and they had some one and doneers and I'm like, they're terrible. And then three months later they're smoking people. To your point,

these kids got to grow. I just felt like I went a graduate seminar of basketball. Eric Musselman USC basketball coach. What a pleasure to finally meet you. You've had a remarkable career fascinating. Kick butt at USC man. Thanks, Colin. Appreciate you having me on. It's awesome. You bet. Take a break back in a second.

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 I Heart Radio app. Hey, gang, this is Jay Glazer, host of Unbreakable, a mental wealth podcast. And every week, we will have on leaders from sports, entertainment, like Sean McVeigh, Lindsey Vaughn, Michael Phelph, David Spade, Guy Fieri, and also those who can help us in between the ears, anyone from a therapist to someone like Ed Milet or John Gordon.

We've all been through some sort of adversity. To get to the top, we've all used different tools. Listen to Unbreakable with Jay Glazer and Mental Wealth podcast on the IHart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get podcasts. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's Superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year.

Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the I-Hard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what you're saying. Yep, that's me, 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. What's up, fam? It's Isaiah Thomas. And I'm C.J. Toledano and our podcast Point Game is about defining the odds. Like LeBron heading into the playoffs without Luca and Austin Reed. And finding ways to win no matter what. He's the smartest player to ever play the game.

His IQ is at a level that we've never seen before. And he knows without Luca and Austin Reeves, I got to manipulate the game. We get a player's perspective on the challenges of the playoffs. I think Joker's going to be exhausted this series because when they don't have Rudy in the lineup, he has to really guard guys like Nas Reid. He has to guard Julius Randall.

And then he has to give us everything he gives us on the night-to-night basis on offense. And when IT's friends stop by, like Quentin Richardson, we dive into some playoff history too. But get that thing. That man, hell get the flying. He running up the court, licking his fingers why he got the ball. Like, after you go through a training camp with that, Isaiah, you figure it out real quick.

Get your ass up and down the court, and you're going to get the ball. So listen to Point Game on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, I'm Jared Adano. You might know me as that loud guy who yells out, help on the internet. Help! Somebody! Please! But there's so much more to me than that.

actor. I'm a comedian and recently I've become quite the helper myself. And on my new podcast, Hope from a Hippocrat, I'll be changing lives, helping people in need with my sage advice and thoughtful solutions. Sike, I'm a comedian. I'm not

qualified to give good advice. Join me and my comedian friends as we riff, rant and recommend some of the most legally dubious advice known to man. If I'm calling you, even if you're on your phone, let it ring twice. ring is too scary.

Cream of chicken suit. Hey, cream and chicken suit. This is Help from a Hypocrite, the worst advice from the dumbest people you know. Listen to Help from Hypocrite as part of the Mike Cultura podcast network available on the IHartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you

get your podcasts. We'll put that on the podcast. Eric Musselman, great NBA stories. Hughie Brown, as we thought, is a genius. Jay McLean News. Turn on the news. This is the herd line news. All right, earlier this week we talked about the top 10 quarterbacks as ranked by executives, coaches, and scouts.

Well, now we've got the wide receiver list. And the guy making the biggest leap is Amar Ross St. Brown, who went from unranked honorable mention last year to now number seven. We have the full list, which I think is a little bit garbagey at the bottom. Justin Jefferson, Tyree Kil, Jamar Chase. No real debate there. C.D. Lamb, Devante Adams. Okay. A.J. Brown, sure. Amarasey Brown, fine.

But Mike Evans, Stefan Diggs at 8, 9? What? I like I-U. Where the hell's Gereil Wilson? Where's Cooper Cup? Where's Cooper Cup? Buka Nuku. I mean, they're missing some guys here.

Brandon Ayuk at 10. Okay, sure, fine. I think Iyuk's a little higher than 10. I mean, like Mike Evans has had a great career. He's not a great receiver now. He's just not. And Stefan Diggs, I don't particularly see it, but, yeah. Total snub of Garrett Wilson.

Can't wait for him to go ham with the Jets this year. All right, we got breaking news here as the next story. Russell Westbrook has been traded. The paperclips have traded Russell Westbrook to the Utah Jazz for Chris Dunn, the former Providence Guard, who was the top 10 pick. However, the Jazz are not keeping Russ. It sounds like, according to Woge, they're going to buy him out. And according to Woge, this clears a path for Russ to join the Denver Nuggets.

Well, they need some bench production. Okay, so I dug into this a little bit. It sounded like in the postseason Michael Malone didn't trust his young guys. Peyton Watson, who's a good young player, barely played in the postseason. He trusts veterans, you know the LeBron. So now you get a veteran in Russell Westbrook. They lose KCP. Like Russell would probably be their sixth man.

Russell give you 30 minutes of 100 miles an hour. I think he's a very, very productive bench player. Well, if his mindset is there. Well, he plays hard. In his mind, he's not a bench player. Well, but that's what he is on this team. I think he knows he's not going to start over Yokich, Murray, Gordon, or Porter. And by the way, they have a thing.

They just lost KCP. So Christian Brown or Russell Westwood. Well, he said he's not a shooter. I agree. He is 28 minutes of intensity in production, and he'll give you that every night. Coming off the bench, yes. Yeah, yeah. I think, I've said before, as a bench player, late in his career,

If I could get a guy that can give me 30 minutes of that athletic ability and intensity, I'm not relying on him. I'm not running my offense through him, but he'll give you 16 points off the bench and play 30 minutes of the hardest basketball. Now, Malone's going to make him commit to some defense. We'll see. Fox has me do a gambling for NBA futures, and I just told him I bet the Nuggets under 52 and a half wins.

I don't think Russ changed it. I don't think they're going to be amazing next year, Colin. I'll go not top four in the West next year for the Nuggets. Not top four? I don't think you realize how loaded the West is. And how deficient. The Nuggets are a little. Look at the bench, man.

It's thin. There's a long season. Remember, Yokic is now not riding horses in the off season. He's playing in the Olympics. Like, I'm a little concerned for the... When they won the title, they had the 16th best bench scoring. The bench is not going to... They were young.

That was like three years ago. They didn't have a history. Now, every year, they're in the postseason. Long runs. You don't think they're top four in the West? No. I'll bet you right now. Let's bet the 38 steak we've ever bet.

I've won 37 of them. I think OKC is going to win the West. Denver's going to be right there. In the regular season. I'm just saying they'll be the number one seat. I think Minnesota is going to be right there. Keep your eye on that Julius Randall Carl Anthony Towns trade. I don't think they're moving all towns.

Jimmy Mack with the news. Well, that's the news. for stopping by. The Herd Line News. What an enjoyable show today, and I've got to admit, we called it early. You and I brought our optimistic shirts on the show, and the show has flown. We're really an apparel show that does sports takes. Our shirts brought this positivity and this light, floral sense to the show, and the show cooked all day.

We cooked. See you tomorrow. Another podcast from some SNL, late-night comments. 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, S&L's Mikey Day and headwriter Streeter Seidel, help an a cappella band with their between songs banter. Where does your group perform? We do some retirement homes. Those people are starving for banter. Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and Friends on the I-Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

What's up, fam? Fam, it's Isaiah Thomas. And I'm C.J. J Toledano, it's our favorite time of the year on our podcast, Point Game, the playoffs. We're digging into the biggest surprises of the season, and I'm looking back on some of my greatest playoff moments. If we didn't talk ever again, I was funny. You just understood. That's how personal it got. Wow. Then after that game seven, Marquis come in to you, he's like, you know I love you, dog.

You know, it's all love. This was just playoffs. This was just basketball. So listen to Point Game on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcasts. Your husband is not who you think he is. Your body is not what you thought it was. Your identity is formed by a secret history. I'm Danny Shapiro.

And these are just a few of the stunning stories I'll be exploring on the 14th season of Family Secrets. He kind of shoved me out of the way and said, move. And he went out the front door and he jumped in a car and drove off. And that was the last time I saw him. Listen to Season 14 of Family Secrets on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This season on Dear Chelsea with me,

Chelsea Handler, we have some fantastic guests, like Amelia Clark. When, like, young people come up to me and they want to be an actor or whatever. And my first thing is always, can you think of anything else that you can do? Rather be disappointed in. Do that. David O'Yello. I love this podcast, whether it's therapy or relationships or religion or sex or addiction or you just go straight for the guts. Dennis Leary, Gaten Matarazzo from Stranger Things.

Tana Monsu, Camilla Morone, Carrie Kenny Silver, and more. Listen to these episodes of Dear Chelsea on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This is an IHeart podcast. Guaranteed human.