The Herd with Colin Cowherd - Lakers Tonight with Jason Timpf - How Frank Vogel let down the Lakers again

Episode Date: March 9, 2022

Jason goes in on Vogel's obvious shortcomings, looks into the trouble LeBron's injury spells for the Lakers and reveals his top ten teams in the NBA right now. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The volume. 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.

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Either way, the podcast's superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the IHard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what you're saying. Yep, that's me, 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 Clifers 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. From 1979, that was a big moment for me. 84's big to me. I'm Sam Jay. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick a here, unpack what went down and try to make sense of how we survived it with our friends, fellow comedians, and favorite authors. Like Mark Lamont Hill on the 80s. 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. Geico asks, how would you love a chance to save some money on insurance? Of course you would.

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Visit www.1-800-gambler.net in West Virginia. All right, welcome to Lakers Tonight, presented by Fanduel here on the volume. Happy Monday, everybody. I hope you all had a great weekend. Lots and lots and lots of Laker basketball over the course of the next couple of weeks, which could be a good thing or a bad thing, depending on what kind of effort we see out of them. but over the course of the last three halves, the players on the floor have shown a lot of fight.

And, you know, I'm going to try to go mostly positive tonight because I know it can be extremely frustrating after a season like this to see another game that is seemingly in the grasp of this Laker team slip away. But with LeBron being out tonight, we have to be realists about just the group of players that the Lakers were able to put on the floor tonight. I talked a lot after that Warriors game about how well the starters played and how when they went to the bench, when they had to play Talen Horton Tucker and Avery Bradley, and they had to play Carmelo Anthony at Center and DJ Augustine alongside Russ that they were going to struggle against any team because of the fact that there's just nobody on the team that's a big athletic player. So when you take LeBron James out of that picture, it just becomes even more complicated. that front. We are going to break down everything from the Lakers Spurs game. I'm going to share my thoughts on Frank Vogel and his unwillingness to allow his young players, which also happen to be his best players, to play as much as they should. We're going to talk about LeBron's injury and what's at

stake on that front. And then if you guys stick around for the end, we're going to do our latest edition of the power rankings. And I will let you know who I think is the best team in the league right now, who I think has the best chance to win the title. Stick around for that. That will be fun as well. I wanted to start with Frank. So Frank comes out. So I talked a lot in the last game about how playing the young guys big minutes was such a huge deal for that team having the good start that they had and just the general effort and focus and energy that they came out with and that they were able to parlay into a big lead early on against the Warriors. And I talked about how Austin Reeves and Malik Monk were such a huge part of that.

So then Frank Vogel comes out after the game and he says, quote, I like the combination of Malik Monk and Austin Reeves out there together. Interesting. That's something that we had seen more in second units throughout the season, but it's been a combination that our analytics team has said has really produced. Those guys have some of our best on-off plus minus. those types of things, and we decided a couple games ago to look at it in the starting lineup even though we hadn't won yet, which has got to be so incredibly frustrating for Laker

fans to see because it's not just an analytics thing, it's a basketball thing. You know, Darius Soriano from the LFR pod today was talking about how Austin Reasons Bleak Monk, even though they've been healthy all season, have only played, they've played less than 500 minutes together. That's how frustrating that is. Two of the Lakers' clear best players, obvious great off-ball threats to put alongside Russ and LeBron, simply have not been on the floor together enough to get the most out of this roster. Like I've said, so many times this season, this Laker team cannot be distilled down to one flaw.

I'm critical of Russ. It's not just Russ. I'm critical of the rush trade. It's not just the rush trade. I'm critical of Rob Polinka. I'm critical of Jeannie Bus. I've been critical of LeBron's effort a lot, but it's not any one of those things, it's all of those things. And one of the big things has been Frank Vogel and his insistence on leaning on Avery Bradley and Leaning on Trevor Reza and Deontre Jordan and Dwight Howard and all of the older players on this roster that never put in the requisite effort to actually get the most out of this team. And now, of all after all these games, Frank wants to start playing Stanley and Malik and Austin together, and we're starting to see some good results, which is great, but we continued tonight again to see a massive falloff when they went to the DJ Augustines and the Avery Bradley's.

And a huge part of that is those are not functional basketball lineups. You can't win in the NBA, even against the San Antonio Spurs, if they're walking out with big NBA athletes and you're walking out with four tiny guards in Carmelo Anthony. It's just not a functional basketball lineup. You could put five Kyrie Irvings out there in their absolute primes and they would have issues because they don't cross the boxes. Like I say, a five-man basketball lineup has a list of responsibilities and your elite offensive players can check some of those responsibilities, but they can't check all of them. A lot of those responsibilities have to be filled by athletes, by guys that play with motor and with energy.

They have to be played by guys with physical tools. Those are the things that are going to fill those other boxes so that your elite offensive players can impact the game, which takes me to Wenian Gabriel. You look out in the open market and you're able to find a discounted athletic forward, who six foot nine can jump out of the gym, has shown flashes of defensive people. potential and can shoot the three, and he's sitting on the sideline completely unused. That's frustrating. That's the same thing as early in the season when we were watching the Lakers lose to the Oklahoma City Thunder while Austin Reeves was playing 12 minutes.

That's the same situation at this point in the season dealing with Wenian Gabriel, and that's frustrating. Because at the end of the day, even though this team doesn't have as much talent as they need to really make a run in the West, they definitely are better than the product that we've seen on the floor. And the reason why we haven't been able to see that product materialize has a lot to do with the fact that the Lakers' best players haven't been on the floor too much this season. And that's frustrating. That's on Frank. That's something, you know, I saw a lot of Warriors fans talking after or during the first half of that game the other night on Saturday, especially when LeBron was kind of dogging it defensively. And I saw Warrior fans saying things like,

I feel bad for Frank, that he has to try to make it work with this group. No, no, no, no, don't feel bad for Frank. He signs up for this. Frank has options. Frank has had opportunity to be better than he has been, and he has willingly and purposefully decided not to be in the face of his analytics team. Imagine that every single day. He's watching the tape, the same tape that we're watching,

seeing the same things that we're seeing, seeing the young guys succeed, while his analytics team is throwing numbers in his face. Austin Reeves and Malik Monk, when they've played together this season, are more than 10 points positive per 100 possessions. They are really good with those guys on the floor, and they always have been. And they haven't been utilized properly until this last recent stretch of games. That's frustrating.

The Lakers have to figure out that they have to at some point down the stretch. If they're going to be able to make any sort of noise, they have to be able to get those guys in the lineup. They have to get Wenian Gabriel in the lineup. There has to be less of those older guys that are limited at this point in their career. For those of you who are just joining us, this is Lakers tonight, presented by Fanduel here on the volume.

We were just talking about Frank and his unwillingness to play the young players. I wanted to talk about LeBron's injury for a minute. Fanduel Sportsbook is an official sports betting partner of the NBA. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged. It's the enhanced game. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential.

Either way, the podcast's Superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the 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. 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 tauntons and wampas on the ice planet hot, or the practicality and corporate business sense of the Sith rule of two.

Listen to Stuff to Blow Your Mind on the iHeart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your plan. podcast. Do you remember when Diana Ross double-tapped Little Kim's boobs at the VMAs? Or when Kanye said that George Bush didn't like black people. I know what you're thinking. What the hell does George Bush got to do with Little Kim? Well, you can find out on the Look Back at it podcast. I'm Sam 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 on day, but just so y'all know. I mean, at this point, Mark, this is the second episode where we've discussed crack. So I'm starting to see that there's a through line. We also have AIDS on the table right now. Then you're 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. And with Fanduel's same game parlays, you can turn little bets into big paydays. Fandual is my favorite sports betting app

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Visit www.w.1-800 gambler.net in West Virginia. The more we learn about COVID-19, the more questions we have. The biggest question now? What's next? What will COVID bring in six months? A year. If you're feeling anxious about the future, you're not alone. Cal Hope offers free COVID-19 emotional support.

Call 833-3-317-4673 or live chat at calhope.org today. Support for this podcast and the following message come from Supercuts. Let's face it, life is busy. Between work and family and more. work, our to-do lists have a way of getting longer instead of shorter. Luckily, Supercuts is here to make at least the haircut part of life easy. Supercuts is perfect for people who need a haircut, but don't have a ton of time for a haircut. No more scouring the web for salons with availability. You can use the Supercuts app to find the location nearest to you and check in, or just walk in.

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And as for the cut itself, it's always super solid, thanks to Supercutts highly trained stylists. Get in, get out, and get to that thing you needed a haircut for. Whether you've got a first date or a vacation coming up, or you just want to look good. Supercuts makes getting a haircut effortless. It's not just any haircut, it's Supercuts. Check in now on the Supercuts app or on Supercuts.com. So after the game on Saturday, I talked about how LeBron was obviously still injured because I could tell he didn't have that separation ability.

A lot of what he was doing was bully ball under the basket, just using his strength, using his jump shot. A lot of savvy. It was a classic, it was an old man 56, which is what you would expect from an old man scoring 56. But it was very much an old man 56 from a player like LeBron who's been a really good athlete this year. He was shown that he has not experienced that much of a decline up until this knee injury. But he showed some vertical pop in that game. He had that crazy reverse dunk where he went through the lane in the half court.

Then he had on that Malik Monk Steel. He had that awesome Alleyoop. There was some weird vertical pop there. And I said that I thought it had something to do with him just getting caught up in the energy in the arena and the energy of the moment in that game against Golden State. and that appears to be true because whatever he put his knee through in that game led to him waking up this morning with according to Dave McManamanman, significant soreness,

so much so that this game, which was a winnable game that the Lakers needed for the sake of their attempt to stay in the play in, he wasn't willing to play tonight. And so what that tells us is that this knee thing is significant, that he very much is hurt, which is something that I've been pointing out for a couple weeks now. And that is concerning on so many different levels because even if LeBron has had a conversation with his trainer, Mike Manzias, with the trainer for the Lakers, and they've done scans, and even if they come in and they say, hey, you're not going to be able to make it any worse.

So you can play on it if you want. It still is a risk because of what it does to the rest of your body. When you have pain in your knee and you're playing through it, you compensate in every other part of your body absorbing shock, which can lead to things like, you know, any sort of non-contact injury. Anytime you're absorbing a lot more shock than you're used to on a different part of your body, the risk is concerning to me. Especially when you factor in that this significant soreness that took him out of the game tonight was directly tied to his best effort in the last couple of weeks.

In a playoff run, what LeBron did last night or two nights ago against Golden State is exactly what he's going to have to do every night. in the postseason for this team to have a chance. So if that type of exertion is going to lead to swelling and pain to the point where he can't play, then he's not going to be available for a playoff run anyway. So this brings us back to what I've been saying since the beginning. At a certain point, read the writing on the wall,

understand the circumstance, understand the situation, and know that you are dealing with an injury here, And that it's probably going to be something that hampers you from achieving your goals for this season anyway. And you have to factor in the risk that you're taking by pushing it on this front. This is not a complete waste of a season. You can always live to fight another day. After 2019, LeBron was dragged through the mud. He famously had that play.

I can't even remember who it was, that small forward, the European small forward from the Knicks who blocked him on his game-winning shot. You know, he looked really bad. He was bringing a glass of wine court side. He looked like it was very much nearing the end in 2019. But he lived to fight another day. And the next season, he was, in my opinion, the MVP. I thought he got robbed. I don't think Janus deserved it.

I thought LeBron deserved the 2019 MVP. He also won, or excuse me, the 2020 MVP. He also won a finals MVP that year. He lived to fight another day. And the same thing can take place here. Yes, you're going to be older, but hopefully if you play your cards right this summer and you actually build the roster to your strengths and weaknesses, and if Anthony Davis can stay healthy, maybe it will be an easier season for you on a workload front.

You can next season capitalize on the little victories from this season, finding Austin Reeves, finding Stanley Johnson. In a weird way, Rob Polinka not cashing in the chips is an act. accidentally smart move because of the fact that this season is a lost cause, you still have those assets. Rebuild this summer, live to fight another day, LeBron. It's not worth risking this season when there's not a real achievable goal, in my opinion. That's something that I hope that he pays attention to. A couple other quick Laker notes. Tailin's going through a little bit of a slump here, and I think it has to do a lot with him

just having that classic young person conundrum of forcing it when he's struggling. I talked about in our YouTube video, the special we did on the young players, I talked about how he had been making progress as a playmaker. Well, he's kind of slumped a little bit since then, and like all young players do, he's reacted to that by forcing things. And there were a lot of moments tonight where I thought he had easy reads available to his teammates

and where he could have kept the ball moving to generate higher quality shots, but he just kept trying to pound his head through that wall to try to break out of his little offensive slump that he's been. And he made a lot of shots tonight, but it reflected negatively in the plus minus, and I think it was a big product of the fact that the ball was sticking with him, and it was causing some problems with the overall flow of their offense. Malik Munk is also experiencing a little bit of a slump.

Coming into tonight, he was averaging 13 points on 12 shots in his last 12 games, shooting about 41% from the field and about 33% from 3. He's missing a lot of stuff right at the rim. He's getting a little too creative and too crazy with some of his scoop shots and double pump hang time type of shots. He's actually having a lot more success when he just elevates and tries to finish as high as he possibly can.

That's been something that's been part of the reason why the Lakers have struggled so much. They need, under their current situation with their limited talent, they desperately need Malik Munk to be a really good offensive player and he hasn't been. Now, silver lining there,

if he finishes the season this way, the Lakers might be able to retain him at a discount. And I still really like Malik Munk, especially if you can, surround him with good basketball players. He's someone that would be great to have back in a Laker jersey next year, and this slump kind of helps him on that front. I also wanted to give a last little Laker nut.

I wanted to give a little bit of a shout out to Russell Westbrook. He was really, really bad right after the All-Star break, but the last couple of games, he's starting to round back into that being a role-player guard, not forcing things too much. He's generating high quality. There in that third quarter, he had a stretch at the start of the third quarter where he was getting into the paint and spraying out to shooters. that's when he's at his best. Again, it's all up and down with Russ. I mean, it's just like the Warriors game.

He was really good for the most part, but then it's crunch time and he throws the ball away twice and takes a one-legged fade away early in the shot clock, and you're like, come on, man. Like you've got to stay on target here, stay on task. But I want to shout him out. He's been playing a little bit better as of late, which at least is something that the Lakers can attempt to bottle up and try to package into some good basketball the rest of the season. All right, that's all I had on the Lakers. Let's talk about our power rankings. So if you guys remember last, I think it was two or three weeks ago,

we had the Sons at number one. We're going to start at number 10. Just so you guys know all the stats that I quote are before tonight because NBA.com does not update their numbers fast enough. I'm going to go through this quickly. Let's go. Number 10, the New Orleans Pelicans. This is our big surprise appearance.

They have the second best net rating in basketball over the last 15 games. A lot of this has to do with their defense taking massive leaps. Brandon Ingram's playing the best defense he's played since he was with the Lakers. And C.J. McCollum just gives that extra offensive creation piece that they needed. Him and Brandon Ingram actually have a really nice give and take. They just beat the nuggets, the Raptors, and the Suns. Those are all really quality wins. And then they utterly demolished the Utah Jazz after they had just one nine out of ten.

Some really quality wins in there. and then the prospect of Zion potentially returning before the end of the season gives them that extra little bit of matchup flexibility that makes them at least a puncher's chance to win a playoff series. When you're lining up to guard the pelicans and you've got to put a big wing on Brandon Ingram and you've got to put a strong wing on Zion, chances are C.J. McCollum is going to end up with some undersized underathletic guard and he's going to have guys that he can attack. that is all of a sudden out of nowhere become a very interesting basketball team. Number nine, the Golden State Warriors, precipitous drop off. They've lost four straight, eight out of ten. Their defense has completely fallen apart. We talked about this the other day.

Since Draymond dropped off, since Draymond went down, they had a stretch where they defended okay, but all of that perimeter defense that was carrying them over that stretch has fallen off, and as a result, their defense has fallen off. Steph's decline has utterly chopped the legs out of their offense, And to me, like the Warriors went from a team that I thought of as a bona fide top-tier title contender to a team that very easily could lose in the first round. I'm deeply concerned about them.

Steph doesn't look like a top five player anymore. They're a team that I'd be really worried about if I was a fan of. Number eight, the Denver Nuggets. They are 20 and 8 since January 7th. They have the second best offense in the league during that span, including ninth in defense. For them to be 20 and 8 with Yokic and the group of guys that they have is absolutely insane. Yokich is the runaway MVP, in my opinion. I just think he's been better than Embed. I think his team has more talent. Ambid has had much more defensive talent to work with

as much as I like Embed, and I thought he was close to him at one point. I think Yokic is pulling away. I think he deserves to win the MVP. Got to give him a round applause. I don't know if they can win a playoff series because they don't have enough offensive creation outside of Yokic, but I have them at number eight right now. Number seven, the Milwaukee Bucks. This team is, there's something going on with these guys, and I don't know what it is. They're 15 and 12 since January 3rd. They're 18th in defense during that span. They're 12th in defense overall for the season.

As you guys know, longstanding philosophy with basketball and the NBA, you don't win a title unless you have unbelievable talent advantage or a top 10 defense. The Bucks have neither. Maybe they're just an example of a team that's going through some malaise and maybe they'll kick it into high gear in the postseason. but every little hallmark and indicator that we look at as basketball fans tells us that this team can't win the title.

I'm really concerned. I still think they're a title threat, but we can't not be concerned at this point. Number six, Miami Heat, they are 12 and 2 in their last 14 games. Now Kyle Lowry's out. They've had massive health issues all season long. They deserve a ton of credit for how consistent they've been, despite having guys in and out of the lineup all season.

Jimmy misses a bunch of time, Bam misses a bunch of time, Kyle Lowry misses a bunch of time. they've had a bunch of issues on that front. Still, they are going to be the number one overall seed in all likelihood, not number one overall, number one in the east in all likelihood, which is really impressive on their part. That said, I have them at six because their offensive creation continues to concern me. In a playoff series, with the way these teams zone up now,

especially a lot of teams are using like matchup zones now too, where guys are guarding guys, but they're kind of in charge of specific spots on the floor. It makes it a little easier for teams to phone. functionally double team. And when you have Jimmy Butler on the floor, who's not a good three-point shooter, PJ Tucker on the floor, and Bam Etabio, who I laid out last week is one of the worst perimeter shooting bigs that we have in the league, it's an issue. And I worry about them against a really athletic team struggling to score. They're a team that I think could lose to somebody like

a Philadelphia, for instance. Number five, the Memphis Grizzlies. They're on a little bit of a slump right now. Their defense in particular has been slipping. They're at a 111.1 defensive rating in their last six games. They lost to Minnesota. They lost that game to Boston. And then they had an embarrassing loss to Houston the other day. They, it's their young team. Consistency is the hallmark of veterans. So it's something they have to figure out. This is just a little lull for them. I still think they're a dangerous playoff team, but they're on the downside right now. That's why I have them down at five. Number four right now I have is the Dallas Mavericks. They're 24 and 8 since December 27th, elite on both ends of the floor.

Luca is peaking. He looks fantastic. They've added another shot creator and Spencer Dinwiddie to take some of the pressure on Luca to create every shot, and now they're getting stops. That's what they weren't able to get against the clippers the last couple years. That instantly makes them so much

more dangerous than a playoff series. I have them at number four. Number three, I have the Philadelphia 76ers. They are 5 and 0 with Hardin since the trade. They've been amazing on both ends of the floor. They have some decent wins too. They beat Chicago, they beat Cleveland, they beat Minnesota in Minnesota, which is not easy to do. This formula of James Hardin and Joel Embed plus defense very much seems to

work. My only concern with them continues to be, will they get the foul calls that they need in a playoff series? I don't know. Will guys like Embed and Hardin, who can be a little bit one-dimensional? Will they struggle against game planning in a playoff series? That remains to be seen. That's why I have them at three and not higher on this list, but they very much look like a top-tier title contender at this point. Number two, I have dropped for the first time the Phoenix Suns. There are three and three since the CP3 injury. I still think they're my favorite to win the title overall, but I have to put them at number two because of our eventual number one, who you'll hear in a second, but they're just starting to show that little bit of the cracks in the armor really tied to injury, but when CP3 is

your best player, I'm going to bring up injury because that's been a story in his career. That's something that has happened in the past. It will continue to be a threat with them moving forward. Number one, absolutely deserving number one, the Boston Celtics. They're 21 and 6 since January 8th. Their net rating in that span is plus 12.8. That is 5.2 points better than the second place team during that stretch. They are utterly dominant.

They just ripped off three in a row against the Atlanta. the Memphis Grizzlies and the Brooklyn Nets. He went toe to toe, Jason Tatum went toe to toe with Kevin Durant on Sunday. I watched that game. It was unbelievable. The most interesting thing to me about that team is the way their defense and athleticism gives Tatum and Brown a chance. Again, is Kevin Durant better than Jason Tatum?

No. But if Jason Tatum gets to go down and attack Kyrie Irving and gets to go down and attack Seth Curry and gets to go down and attack Seth Curry and gets to go down in a attack limited defensive players and switches, but you are going down and you have to take your pick between Jason Tatum, Jalen Brown, Marcus Smart, Al Horford. You know, their defense in athleticism is off the charts on all five positions in these lineups. Robert Williams has been amazing in their switching scheme. They, in that game, Tatum was able to succeed because he was attacking weaker defensive

matchups nonstop while KD had to go down and pick from another big strong athlete that can move their feet. And like I said, you don't need to be better than the top guys in the league if your defense is so good that it buys you margin for error. Their defense is so good that Tatum and Brown just might be enough. They've been far and away the best team in the league over the course of the last two months. They absolutely deserve to be number one right now and they are a bona fide championship contender. That's all I got for tonight, guys. I sincerely appreciate you guys coming to hang out as always. We will be back for the Laker game on Wednesday.

I appreciate your support and we'll see you in a couple of days. The volume. 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 it. 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. 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 Clifers 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 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 Jay. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick a here, unpack what went down, and try to make sense of how we survived it. with our friends, fellow comedians, and favorite 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. This is an IHeart podcast. Guaranteed human.