The Herd with Colin Cowherd - Playing hurt, Warriors, World Cup, Raiders, & Anthony Davis

Episode Date: June 12, 2019

Colin defends athletes playing hurt and the Golden State Warriors playing F Kevin Durant. He also talks about the fake outrage over the USWNT 13-0 victory over Thailand, the Oakland Raiders being on Hard Knocks, and the free agent status of New Orleans Pelicans F Anthony Davis. Guests include Nick Wright, Ric Bucher, Bucky Brooks, and Cuttino Mobley. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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Another podcast from some SNL late night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smigel 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, guys? This is Clivert Taylor the Fourth. And on my podcast, The Cliverts Show, I'm bringing you conversations about all kinds of stuff. Like being an internet famous referee. We're in the middle of a game. This linebacker, this linebacker walks up to me. He goes, hey, ref, my mom wants you to wave at her.

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Ah, this is the herd. Wherever you may be, however you may be listening. We are live. Iheart Radio, Fox Sports Radio, not on TV this week. It's been so much fun. We are doing a radio-only week. I barely shaved and I'm not wearing pants. It's a great, great feeling this morning. Next week I'm off. Unless the NBA finals goes seven, then I'll work Monday. But I'm going to hang out, go to zoos, intertube with my son, multiple zoos, intertube with my son, hiking, biking, going to have a great next week. I take one week, big week off in the summer, and that's going to be it next week. But I have to wait, and I always take it after the finals and before free agency. There's like 10 days where you can take a vacation if you're a sportscaster.

Now, I do miss the draft, but I'll, you know, I can live with that. There's three guys in the whole draft they hear about. I want to start with this. A bunch of stories now. Warriors are terrible. Kevin Durant wasn't anywhere close to 100%. Oh, my God. Oh, look at the Warriors.

This is irresponsible. Oh, this is unbelievable. Folks, the Warriors are not overly likable to begin with, and now we're piling on. Let's be up front about this. Their head coach, Steve Kerr, is very political. The owner Joe Lacob is arrogant. Another owner pushed a player. They recruited Kevin Durant to a team that was already loaded.

And they represent Silicon Valley, which like Hollywood tends to lean way left and most sports fans don't. So the minute people can pile on the Warriors, they are not going to hesitate. And there's some piling on happening. Are we forgetting that boogie, clay, Looney, and KD, none of them are really healthy? And all of them have played hurt? Folks, pro athletes return early from injuries. Always. You're never 100% healthy.

How many times have I seen Aaron Rogers gimpy and limping around the field? We love that about Aaron Rogers. He plays hurt. Tiger Woods kept entering tournament for five years. His back was a mess. He had to withdraw. But we loved the fight. Kurt Gibson's home run does not happen.

The Dodgers. I can't believe what I just saw that does not happen if an athlete doesn't push a physical envelope. Kurt Schilling in the bloody sock. MJ's flu game. T.O. Super Bowl with a broken leg. We have a game final. Seven. Game final tonight.

Seven. Stanley Cup final game seven. Boston's best defenseman. is playing with a broken face. Damn right, he's playing. He's a hockey player. He needs to play, right? Many of the most dramatic sports moments ever. Injured players overcoming health, the flu, ligaments.

Yet one, Kevin Durant backfires. Oh, my God, this is outrageous. Folks, don't be an investor or an athlete. if you're not willing to lose big. When any time a guy brags about, yeah, I've never lost money in an investment, you don't have much hutzpah. You're not really an investor. Rupert Murdoch's an investor.

He's eaten it a couple times. And you're not really an athlete if you've never played hurt because that means you're on teams that don't matter. If you're on teams that matter, Bama football, Clemson football, Patriot football, Patriot football, Philadelphia Eagle football, Warrior Basketball, Rockets Basketball, you play hurt. It's part of the deal. Steve Kerr was upset.

Read a story this morning, disbelief. He could not believe he was told. Kevin Durant could only tweak the injury. Well, the doctors were right. He didn't retweak the calf. It's a new injury. The Achilles. Nobody loves the poker player who plays it safe.

They make movies about poker players who put all their chips in the middle of the table. The movies were called Dirty Harry, not Swell Harry. That's who we are. Sports is a go-for-it business. Some businesses you play safe. Accounting, got to get the numbers right. But KD. playing hurt was a go-for-it moment. Don't like risk being an accountant.

Like risk, tolerate risk. be an athlete or an investor. We absolutely crushed Jay Cutler years ago in the 2010 NFC championship because he wouldn't play hurt. We crushed him. We crushed Ladeney and Tomlinson because he wouldn't play hurt. And yet we said, but Philip Rivers is able to play with a ripped up shoulder. Stop being hypocrites. Stop being hypocrites.

You put your arms around the broken down athlete that returns. early risks, career-ending injuries, and plays. And now one backfires and you're freaking out. Hell, the whole warrior roster's a mess physically. Should Boogie really be playing? Clay just popped a hammy. Should he really be playing? Kvon Looney, whatever he's going through, good God, he looks like he's in pain.

Should he really be playing? No, no, no, is the answer to all of them. But when you're on teams that matter, you got to play through stuff. and you are rewarded for it financially? You are rewarded for it with your legacy? Just part of the business. Don't tell me you get goosebumps with Kurt Gibson's home run and then tell me you're outraged with Kevin Durant playing hurt.

Can't have one without the other. Let me talk about something I don't very often. Soccer. Right now we've got the World Cup going on. the United States Women's National Team beat Thailand 13-0. Oh, and people did not like it. The favored United States Women's National Team beat Thailand 13-0 and celebrated even after the 7th, 8th, 9th goal.

Here are some Canadian broadcasters, former players, A, getting after it. If you were going to blow away a team, do it with humility, and they did not. Megan Rapino has scored countless goals on the international stage. She was celebrating like she had her first. When you're Alex Morgan 2 and you're counting out your goals, it was just unacceptable. Well, I understand there's a goal differential race in this tournament. I understand they're nervous about drawing Sweden later in the tournament. But this was disgraceful from the United States.

I would have hoped they could have won with humility and grace. But celebrating goals 8, 9, 10, the way they were doing is really unnecessary. Oh, it's just terrible. By the way, Canada, congrats on the Raptors, but your fans cheered Kevin Durant's injury. not very graceful. Folks, this is the price and the burden of power. It's the price and the burden of being the United States, is scrutiny. First of all, let me defend the United States Women's National Team.

Soccer only allows three substitutions per game. You're trapped. It's not like basketball, not like football, not like baseball. You can't go to a bench. You're only allowed three subs per game. Number two is goal differential does matter. in soccer and World Cubs. Number three, how do we know Thailand was not just honored to be on the same field?

The United States women's national team is the team of the century. Jamaica, they said Jamaica was just happy to be on the field against Brazil. Remember that? And are we patronizing women like they can't handle this? By the way, a 1992 NBA dream team beat Angola by 70. There was very little sympathy for Angola. The women from Thailand are tough. They can handle it.

They got their ass kicked. You know what? It galvanizes teams. It gives your reality check of who you are. I play tennis every other day. I play a college player. He beats me six love, six love. Yesterday he beat me and apologized for a great shot.

I said, what are you apologizing for? I don't want your sympathy. You're a barometer on how bad I am. Yesterday it took him an hour five to beat me two sets. It used to be an hour five to beat me in three. I'm getting better, and I appreciate him not taking it easy on me. The women from Thailand ask yourself this. If you flip the score and Thailand beat us 13-0 and celebrated,

there would not be this outrage. people would say, how embarrassing the United States women with all that talent were humiliated. They deserved it. Well, come on, it's the biggest win in the history of Thailand's women's soccer federation. Of course they're going to celebrate. It was a little over the top, but let's put our arms around. This is the price and the burden of power and greatness. Scrutiny.

Tony Blair is the former prime minister of Great Britain. He was asked on a talk show once about the global. hate. This was like 10 years ago. Obama was the president. And he was asked about all the global hate for the United States. And he said, people are jealous of the best-looking richest guy who walks into a room. Much of it is based in jealousy, animosity, and fear. If a small country beat us 13 to nothing and danced in their 8th, 9th goal, Thailand, we would not be criticizing Thailand, we'd be ripping our women for allowing that to happen. Because our women are awesome. And they're the face of women's soccer globally.

And they're smart and well-coached. And they kick butt and they have the best players. And some of the most iconic women's soccer players ever, they're ours. Meham. Americans. This is the price of great. The downside to power. I'll live with that. I'll take that. I'll take. that downside to live in the United States, to the world's leading democracy, the world's leading women's soccer power, the world's leading economy. Yes. Where are the country people call when the fit hits the shan somewhere else, and we pick up the bills? Just flip the score, 13-0-0 Thailand over us. They celebrated. They wouldn't be getting the outrage our women are. We

would be going good for them. They came prepared. Biggest win in their country's Women's Soccer Federation kicked our butt. Our girls deserve it. They, you know what? You should be humiliated. I hope this sticks. I hope it galvanized. I hope it shows how arrogant you were for they should be. You know exactly. That's exactly what would have been happening. This isn't about classlessness. That's not what this is about. It's about power and the burden of it. The burden of being Alabama football. If you beat somebody 62-0, you're jerks. But if you lost 62-0, Bama'd still get the criticism, not prepared and arrogant. Ladies, dance all night. That wasn't just about the goals. 13-0 was about the time you have put in

over the last 10 years that enables you to dominate people. I'm not. I'm not. I'm not. I'm not. I'm not going to blame kids at my age, kids in their 20s for getting a little gassed up for having the greatest day historically in the history of United States women's national soccer goals-wise. It's the price of being powerful scrutiny, criticism. So Woj is just dropping more bombs. This one about AD, LeBron and the Lakers, and that's around the corner. Be sure to catch live editions of The Herd, Weekdays, and New New Eastern, 9 a.m. Pacific on Fox Sports Radio, FS1, and the I-Hard radio app. Last night, a blown call changed a game. This morning, the internet lost its mind.

Highlights are trending, opinions are flying, and nobody's telling you exactly what happened. That's where Sports Slice comes in. I'm Timbo. Every episode, we're cutting through the noise, breaking down the plays, the controversies, and the stories behind the headlines. We go straight to the source, the athlete themselves, their locker room stories, their reactions, the stuff nobody gets to hear. The laughs, the drama, the triumphs, the moments that never make the highlight real. From viral moments to historic games, from buzzer beaters to controversial calls, we break it down, give you context, and ask the questions everybody wants answered.

SportsClyce brings you closer to the action with stories told by the people who live them. Listen to SportsClyce on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Slices Life 12 in the TikTok podcast network on TikTok. 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, as we have real conversations about healing, growth, fatherhood, pressure, and purpose on my new podcast, Learn the Hardway.

Open your free, Our Heart Radio app. Search Learn the Hardway and listen now. What's up, guys? This is Clever Taylor the 4th. And on my podcast, The Cliverts Show, I'm bringing you conversations about all kinds of stuff, like being an internet famous referee. We're in the middle of a game.

This linebacker, this linebacker walks up to me. He goes, hey, ref, my mom wants you to wave at her. What? Time out. Quarterback on office blue with 42. Hey, ref, my mom will want you to wave at her. What? Where's she at?

Hey, Ms. Parker. Listen to the Cliverts show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. 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 him. 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 Nash would 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.

Good to have you in. Summer sizzles. Feel like you're cooking in your clothes? Get Tommy John's new cool cotton fabric. It's like your own on-body air conditioner. Code Hurd for 20% off your first order, Tommyjohn.com. I'm wearing it today. So Adrian Ward Janowski, Woj is a very good NBA reporter.

This is one of those Colin Wrights, Colin Wrong situations. His headline, Lakers need second star via trade, top free agents unlikely to join. Where Colin was right? Yeah. The Knicks and the Lakers are struggling to land free agents because they're both poorly run. And both with this fake false notion, their logo matters. Lakers. You got to land Anthony Davis

and it's eight days until the draft and you have the number four pick. Use it now. That pick's not as valuable after the draft because you may draft a guy the Pelicans don't like. The Lakers and the Knicks right now, one's an utter

disaster for two decades. The Knicks one's been bad about to be a disaster if they don't land AD. Both of their selling points to free agents are on basketball. The Knicks are saying, hey, you'll play at the garden. The Lakers are saying, it's sunny here, and we've won 17 titles most a long time ago. But their rosters, owners, recent teams, records, front offices, not great. An agent's job is to protect his client. I have one.

He's not going to send me into a team or a business with bad ownership. It's why I chose the Murdox Fox. They get broadcasting. My agent would never send me to a company with bad management. And the Lakers right now, it's a jigsaw puzzle of owners, former agents acting as GM's magic quit. The Rambas is involved. I'm told nobody likes Rob Polinka. I can't confirm it, but he's Kobe's friend to jigsaw puzzle. And the Lakers are in jeopardy of becoming. the Knicks if they don't land Anthony Davis. LeBron's going to be a year older. Lons Owen, and Brandon

Ingram talented but can't stay healthy. Next year's free agent class, not as spectacular. And it's actually all lining up to get Anthony Davis. Here's the moment, Lakers. You got about five days, six, seven maybe.

Make a deal. LeBron's agent is Anthony Davis's agent. That's perfect. LeBron's former GM is the Pelicans GM. So this is a friendly deal. Anthony Davis chose the Lakers initially and says they're one of two teams he'll play for now. The Lakers actually have, they've drafted fairly well, they haven't had a bust.

They've got the most tradable assets. Far more than the Knicks or Brooklyn. This is the moment. Okay, if the Lakers don't win AD, this franchise is going to be in a free fall. a long time. This is the New York Giants passing on Sam Darnold. You end up the following year reaching on quarterbacks, overpaying for people, being in utter disarray, and being mocked even by your local. Forget the national media. Like, what was just saying? Free agents are not choosing the Lakers. This is something we have been on all since the trading deadline. I keep saying

this. Where Colin was very right. Yes. This is not where in agent, an agent has a responsibility to send his client to a well-run organization. That doesn't mean my agent would send me to a perfect company. My agent sent me to a Fox Sports One, which was a fledgling network, but it was owned by the Murdox who had a history of Fox News, Fox Business Channel, the NFL, the Simpsons, 20th century, the movies. You know, they had a history of working and winning and being successful. Wall Street Journal.

Like, right? FS1 was young. It was fledgling. It wasn't complete. It's still building. But agents don't send players to James Dolan and the current Laker front office. They just don't. That's being, I mean, that's really, frankly, how an agent gets fired.

That a client ends up and goes, God, it's worse than I thought, and I thought it was bad. So you got to make a trade on this. It's right in front of you. Where Colin was so right, it's getting annoyed. I didn't know you had that one. Veteran newsman John Gouley. No, no, no, no, no. Turn on the news.

This is the herd line news. So, sticking with Rich Ball, Colin, we can officially put to bed any chance that the Celtics trade for Anthony Davis. This is what Rich Paul told Sports illustrated, quote, they can trade for him, but it'll be for one year. I mean, if the Celtics traded for Anthony Davis, we would go there and we would abide by our contractual obligations and we would go into free agency in 2020. I've stated that to them, but in the event that he decides to walk away and you give away assets, don't blame Rich Paul. Well, he's right. This is a conversation I think that happens a lot behind the scenes.

Any issue with him making that public? No, listen, here's the thing. Because Rich Paul's LeBron's friend, we're very critical of Rich Paul. Correct me if I'm wrong. David Fulke was the most powerful agent in America. And I'm counting Hollywood 25 years ago. He ran the NBA with David Stern. I mean, he ran, he had Michael Jordan.

He ran the league. We didn't have a problem with it. He was kind of worshipped. And he was imperfect. I mean, he's a super smart guy. but why are we so bothered that Rich Paul's like, hey, I got LeBron and A.D., I'd like him to play together. And by the way, Rich Paul's primary job right now is not making LeBron happy. It's actually making Anthony Davis happy.

And Anthony Davis has said, I want to play in New York or L.A., primarily L.A. Well, I'm better, at least they told, the worst situation would be for the Celtics, you trade for him, and then he tells you after the fact, oh, by the way, I'm not going to stay here. Here's the other thing. Rich Paul and Anthony Davis have all the leverage here. Yeah. Now, they didn't, they got crushed. Well, they've eliminated all the other teams. That's right.

There's only the Lakers and Nick. So if I'm the Lakers, you're negotiating against yourself here. Do not give up Lanzo, Kuzma, Brandon Ingram, Josh Hart. I would give you one of the two forwards, the number four pick, the number one pick. And then I'd say, I want to keep either Kuzma, Ingram, or Lanzo. I don't like the idea of giving up Lanzo. I really don't. He played very well with LeBron last year in limited action.

And by the way, one Celtics note, Kyrie officially opted. out of his contract. Celtics were not surprised by that. I've been told, I was told last week by an NBA player that knows Kyrie, 70%, 75% Brooklyn. It's pretty solid. He's going to Brooklyn.

Speaking of a free agency, while we haven't gotten any updates in the last couple days regarding Kauai Leonard and the Toronto real estate market. One of our very own analysts is saying Kauai is still a one in done in Toronto. This is what Rick Buecker told

Doug Gottlieb, yesterday. The latest that I've heard is that he's going to be elsewhere. We'd like to win a championship. We'll give that to the Toronto Raptors as a parting gift. But ultimately, this wasn't his decision to go there, appreciates what they've done to get him through this season. But as long as he can be assured that he is going to be treated the same way the next place that he goes, as far as the proverbial load management and how they handle him physically, then he'll be playing outside.

square next year. Now this comes after, remember, a couple days ago, Kauai maybe made a mistake saying he hadn't bought a house in Toronto yet, implying that he would in the future. Do you believe Bueger that he's still a one and done? Yeah, I mean, I do think the Raptors are the Canadian version of the Clippers, some good veteran players, excellent chemistry, well coached, great front office, and if it's a coin flip, I think he'd probably go to Los Angeles. I will tell you, though, watching the Toronto fans and watching that fan base, I've grown fond of the organization, and it kind of stinks that if he does leave,

they're going to be in a rebuild mold. I mean, if they went a title. I don't think they would even care. I know. You're right. It's like when the, remember the Royals went all in and won a title, and then they've been terrible sense. I think they're kind of just like, yeah, whatever.

But you know what? I've always believed I root for people who deeply care. Like in the South, they love college football. So I like to see the SEC teams win because it really does mean a lot more to them than it does to a UCLA football fan. They got the mountains, the beach, the sports, the Lakers. But in the SEC, it means more. That Toronto fan base, this team is everything to them. And it's special.

By the way, Rick will be on with us in about 45 minutes so we can ask him about that. And finally, NFL fans got their wish. Yesterday, it was announced officially that the Oakland Raiders will be on HBO's Hard Knocks this summer. No shortage of storylines. Their head coach is a TV star. Their GM is a former TV analyst. They're going to Vegas. They have Antonio Brown.

They have Richie Incognito. When you compare that to the storylines of the other teams that were technically eligible for Hard Knocks, the Lions. Oh, God. The Redskins. Boring. The 49ers. I would have... Maybe interesting.

I bet Kyle Shanhand doesn't talk. much. Well, yeah, and also, I don't want the 49ers on Hard Knocks because I think they can win the Super Bowl. I don't want it to, the Raiders can't. Put somebody on there that's got no chance to be great. Right, and then the Giants, those were the other four teams. Pat Shermer and Eli Manning? Right.

That would be like, those are two of the three most boring people in the league. Right. So I'm fair to assume you are excited for this year's Hardnics. Yeah, no, I mean, I think it's marketing. I think at this point the Raiders are like, we'd do it. I mean, I think Antonio Brown goes against everything they showed you in the first year.

They didn't want stars. They wanted to draft college kids that were good chemistry guys. They get Antonio Brown. They're trying to sell tickets. That's what Antonio Brown is. They're trying to sell tickets not only in Oakland, but in Las Vegas. So they come in with 35,000 season ticket holders. Yep.

Veteran News, man, Jean Goulet. Well, that's the news. And thanks for stopping by. The Heard Lye News. All right, let's bring in my buddy Nick Wright. First thing's first co-host. He's on a phone in New York, and because we're on radio this week. So, Nick, I said to start my show, you can't tell me you get goosebumps watching Kurt Gibson's home run and then you're outraged by Kevin Durant.

Many of the great idyllic sports moments in American history, T.O. Super Bowl broken leg, M.J. Flew game. I mean, Kurt Gibson. Tiger Woods came back five, six straight years having to withdraw from tournaments. Nobody likes a poker player who plays it safe. We like a guy with a cowboy hat that pushes the chips to the middle of the table. is that the entire, this is who we are. Don't be an investor or an athlete if you're not willing to deal with risk. And I feel everybody's beating up on the Warriors because they're not very likable. But I mean, are you mad at the Warriors? Well, I'm not mad at the Warriors.

And I do feel for Kevin Durant enormously because he was in the ultimate no-win situation. If he doesn't play in the final and win a championship. You got guys such as myself who would get on TV and say, I told you he's a luxury, not a necessity. And while you would hope the athlete doesn't care what people like me say, we know Kevin Durant cares deeply. Where I do think he got boxed in was with the reports over the last 96 hours preceding his injury that coaches and or players on the team were questioned. questioning how hard he was trying to come back. We're questioning that if this injury would have kept Clay Thompson or Andre

Guadala out as long as it kept Durant out. So now on one side he's got the media, if they win without him, are going to say, see, they didn't need you. On the other side, he's got anonymous people within the organization that if they lose, they're going to say, it's your fault you didn't come back. He had one solution here, which was come back, be awesome, either lead him to a champion, or just clearly show how much of a difference maker you are, and it ended sports-wise, tragically.

I will say this, though. You guys were just talking about Rich Paul. It is the job of good representation to grab the guy and say, Katie, we're 20 days away from hundreds of millions of dollars on and off the court. Your body is not ready. do not succumb to the pressure. And that didn't happen. Katie forced his way out there.

And it wasn't just supposed to be for a game five. The idea was play in the game five, two days later, play in the game six, two days later play in the game seven. Yeah. Now none of that seems practical. Yeah. You know, all the years of moving around the country, I've had to buy some homes and sell some homes because I moved to new cities.

And one of the rules of real estate is your first. offer is generally your best offer. And the Pelicans' first offer from the Lakers was glorious. I believe this morning that Chris Paul and Anthony Davis have all the leverage. I don't think they have to give up the farm to get Anthony Davis. What do you think about that? Well, I think that that would be a very dangerous game of poker in that. And keep in mind, I think one of the reasons the Pelicans didn't take that initial offer

was the draft pick, which ended up being the fourth overall pick, obviously becomes somewhere in the 20s if you have LeBron and Anthony Davis for half a season together. But yeah, the Lakers could say, who are we bidding against? We're not going to bid against ourselves. And the Pelicans could say, okay, we'll strike out in free agency and then see your level of desperation. I think this lands pretty simply on Lonzo, Ingram, the number four pick, and filler. know you think that's a price a little bit too much.

But as you guys were discussing right before I came on, if you win a title, nothing is too much. Right. And if you have LeBron for the next four years and Anthony Davis for the next 10, you'll be competing for titles for the next decade. I wouldn't, you, to use your house analogy, if you have a house you love and you make, do you make an offer 5% under ask just because you think you'll probably get it,

or do you say screw it, I'll offer the full boat because I don't want to lose it and maybe overpay a little bit. Yeah, no, that's when Steve Balmer bought the clippers, everybody said you overpaid and he said, A, I bought it cash and B, I'm not selling it. What do I care what the price is? In the end, it's going to be worth $10 billion in 20 years,

and I just wanted the clippers. So that's a very good point. If you want something, go get something. Jerry Jones said that once. He goes, if I look back at my life, he goes, I've only been burned when I tried to go cheap. If you overspend for something great, you almost always go, you know, it was expensive. It hurt for a couple years. Like Carson Wentz's contract, it'll hurt for a year.

But it's the right, to your point, it's a very good point. It's the right way to go. I want to ask you this, is that, and I would never generally ask about this topic. But I defended the United States women's national team yesterday for this reason. that with great power comes great scrutiny. Twitter's a great example. You could be an overnight DJ, overnight sports talk show host, and any network say something, nobody cares.

If, you know, a Dan Patrick or a me or a Bob Costas or somebody that's known says something, we can get attacked for it, the more powerful, the more scrutiny, the more heat. So the United States women's national team, had they lost 13-0? And Thailand would have celebrated it. The USA would still be getting crushed this morning because they were arrogant, they overlooked Thailand,

and we're going to support Thailand acting outrageously because it's the biggest win in the history of their country's federation and good for them for not being arrogant or fearful and dancing on our women's soccer graves. Is that the reality is the Americans, we want them to win, but we don't like them to win too much, and we don't like them to celebrate, and soccer doesn't have liberal substitutions.

It was a complete utter misperiment. match. That's how I fell on it. That's how I land on it. How do you land on it? I land that the faux outrage over our women's national team running up the score in an event where goal differential is the first tiebreaker, so it matters. And then the faux outrage over act like you've been there before when it's an event that takes place two and a half times a decade is one of the most ridiculous things I've ever seen. It is just a perfect quintessential example of people who aren't actually mad, but want to pretend to be mad,

and on Twitter think the best way to show how classy you are is to show outrage at someone else's lack of class. No one is actually bothered by this. This is the type of thing where what you're going to hear is, well, it doesn't bother me, but for those that it does, Oh, for the kids watching. Zip it. Tell your kids when they play in a World Cup, they can do whatever they want.

But until then, don't taunt Johnny at 9 a.m. on the soccer fields at the park. This is so stupid. I can't believe people are actually mad at these men or women. It's the World Cup. You score a goal. It is the greatest moment of your entire life. And, oh, guys, guys, come on. shows them dignity.

By the way, thanks to the internet, I was brought to my attention that evidently Indonesia must have a really poor women's soccer team because Thailand beat them 13-0-0 into the run-up into the tournament. So get up the match against Indonesia. We'll beat them. We'll do transitive property, 169 Zip, and you'll see actual celebrations.

But until then, everyone needs to calm down. Only got a minute left. I got to go back to Kevin Duran. I just thought of something. Are the Knicks still viable? Because with this injury, is Kevin Durant want to go there hurt? He's already not going to get Zion.

Chances are he doesn't get Kyrie. Are the Knicks going to swing and miss on all free agents? I'd be shocked if Katie doesn't go to the Knicks. The idea that he's going to opt in and spend a year rehabbing around an organization when there were whispers, he wasn't trying hard enough to get back, I find that to be ridiculous. I think Katie is going to say, hey, it's the Eastern Conference. They'll sign, call it Kimball Walker to go along with him.

Hopefully he gets back in eight to nine months. They are at the time 30 and 35. He can push him into the playoffs and see what happens. But either way, much like LeBron with the Lakers, it was a lifetime. It was not a decision just for the contract, but for the rest of his life. This would be a decision for Katie to spend the next decade in New York. So I still think the Knicks are the leading contender. Real quick before I go, I do want to.

let you know the last the first time and i think the last time i was on the radio with you where you hosting and me being on a phone call was in 2007 when i was a caller and you were arguing with john gulay i believe it was about what television rating dice k matusakas first start with the red sox would get i stayed on hold 48 minutes so i could tell you i disagreed with you i agreed with gulay and ended up being proven outright month later. This is an amazing sense of deja vu, and what a difference 12 years makes. Thanks for having me on as an actual guest instead of someone that has to be on hold this time, Colin. God, I got to love – was I ruddy or nice?

You offered me an internship if I won the bet. If I was right, I did win the bet. I called back to try to get the internship and never got through. Such is my life. I love you. You too, bro. All right, Nick Wright. Say hi to your family for me.

Isn't that amazing? I was too scared as a kid to call talk show host. I always hear stories like that where people like call a talk show host and I was just like, it is no way. I can't imagine today you could go on Twitter and talk to Jay-Z. I can't imagine in my day going on Twitter and taking a shot at Johnny Carson. I'd be like, it's Johnny Carson. My dad would have grabbed my phone and thrown it into the ocean.

Don't be disrespectful to Johnny Carson. I mean, you can literally make fun of the president on. Twitter. If my parents saw me grab a phone and mock the president, I would be grounded for a summer. I already got grounded for one summer. I started a fire in the garage. It was small, but whatever. Never play with oil and matches. Anywho, we'll take a break. Coming up next, why is Boston so damn good in all their sports? They could win their 13th title in 19 years tonight. That's next. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern 9 a.m. Pacific. Last night, a blown call changed a game. This morning, the internet lost its mind. Highlights are

trending, opinions are flying, and nobody's telling you exactly what happened. That's where Sports Slice comes in. I'm Timbo. Every episode, we're cutting through the noise, breaking down the plays, the controversies, and the stories behind the headlines. We go straight to the source, the athlete themselves, their locker room stories, their reactions, the stuff nobody gets to hear. The laughs, the drama, the triumphs, the moments that never make the highlight real. From viral moments, to historic games, from buzzer beaters to controversial calls, we break it down, give you context, and ask the questions everybody wants answered.

SportsSlice brings you closer to the action with stories told by the people who live them. Listen to SportsClice on the IHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Sliced Life 12 and the TikTok podcast network on TikTok. Welcome to my new podcast, Learn the Hardway 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 middle 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. 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, Keer Gaines, is we have real conversations about healing, growth, fatherhood, pressure, and purpose on my new podcast, learn the hard way.

Open your free, I Heart Radio app. Search Learn the Hardway and listen now. What's up, guys? This is Clever Taylor the Fourth. And on my podcast, The Cliverts Show, I'm bringing you conversations about all kinds of stuff. like being an internet famous referee. We're in the middle of a game. This linebacker walks up to me, he goes,

hey, ref, my mom wants you to wave at her. What? Quarterback on office blue with 42. Hey, rep, my mama want you to wave at her. What? Where's she at? Hey, Miss Parker. Listen to the Clifford show on the Iheart radio app,

Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. 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 line, 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 Nash 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. Tonight is Game 7, NHL Stanley Cup Finals. I will be watching tonight. And if Boston wins, it will be like their 12 titles since 2001, 13th for the city of Boston.

And they'll have three reigning champs if the Bruins win tonight. NFL has the Patriots. Hockey would have the Bruins and baseball has the Red Sox. And the Celtics, it should be noted, are very, very good and well run. And I think the reason for all this is actually very explainable. The New England Patriots have forced Boston teams to be smarter, more dedicated, and better run. And when you get into one of these cities like Boston that loves it sports, that it used to be a Red Sox town. And then the Red Sox stumbled and were inconsistent.

They were good, not good, average, good, great, not good. And New England was great every year. If you listen to Boston Sports Radio, it is a 60-40 Red Sox disadvantage. It used to be a 90-10. You turned on sports radio, opened a sports page. It was 90-10 Red Sox. It's now a 50-50 split or a 60-40 Patriots Town. And don't kid yourself.

I'll give you an example. I get, last year I had 331 million views on Facebook, almost all NFL and NBA. You don't think baseball like some of that free publicity? When an NFL team comes into a passionate sports market or any major sports market, if they're good, they own the media. The L.A. Rams come to L.A., USC football, and UCLA basketball have disappeared. College football in L.A. has disappeared since the Rams showed up. The Lakers feel smaller. The angels have disappeared with Mike Trout. A dominant NFL team will dominate sports radio,

will dominate the sports section, and will dominate sports bar viewing. Why do you think the Phillies went out and spent for Bryce Harper? Why? Because the Eagles now are so well-run and so captivating, it used to be you'd turn on Philadelphia Sports Radio and the Phillies would get 50% of the love. Now it's 75% Eagles talk.

And don't kid yourself. The owners and the GMs of those other teams, they pay attention to that. stuff. The Dallas Cowboys cast a shadow over every other Dallas pro sports franchise. If the Chicago Bears start winning divisions, that becomes a massive Bears town and the Bulls and the Blackhawks could disappear. I grew up in Seattle. Once the Seahawks and Russell Wilson got big, the Huskies shrink. The Mariners disappear. The Sonics left. A dominating NFL franchise, you get a Hall of Fame quarterback and you, when

division, seven out of 10 years, it shrinks everybody else in the market. And Rams coming to Los Angeles and being good has made USC and UCLA football much less discussed. When's the last time I talked USC football? I used to talk about it all the time. Rams just cast a shadow over it. So I think by the Patriots coming in for 20 years in being dominant, the owners of those other teams realize we got to be good.

We got to spend money. We've got to be all in. We've got to hire the best GMs. we got to pay for prayers and free agents. Or it's all Patriot talk. And don't kid yourself. That's just free publicity. You know how many t-shirts and owner and a GM can sell and a marketing department sell when you're on sports radio and in the newspaper and on the blogs and in the bars and on the televisions.

It's a big, big deal. I remember I was in a, I work out every day a little club, you know. And about February, mid-February, I go in and LeBron and the Lakers, he, he had come back and he was playing, and I don't remember when it was. It was sometime he got, did he come back from the injury at all? He came back. He was injured. He came back a couple games.

Yeah, he came back. And it was one of the games. He came back and it was on television and nobody in the sports bar was watching. And the very next day, I walked into my staff meeting and I said, guys, Lakers are no longer in the regular season, a viable topic. People in L.A. don't care. If people in L.A. don't care and I'm doing a national show, nobody cares. So you get an NFL team like the Rams in Los Angeles or the Eagles in Philadelphia or what's happening with the Bears or now San Francisco with the 49ers.

If Garoppolo and Kyle Shanahan start winning 9, 10, 11 games every year, the San Francisco Giants will disappear quickly. And if the Warriors don't keep KD and Steph gets hurt, that's just the reality of the NFL. The Patriots have completely, it used to be thought of Boston was impenetrable. It was a baseball town. I mean, that was just, it was, John, you grew up near there. It was a baseball town, period. Patriots were irrelevant. Patriots were, and then the Patriots got Kraft, Belichick Brady.

It is now a Patriots town more than 50%. You listen to Sports Talk Radio. The leading morning shows, it's a lot of hockey, it's a lot of basketball, it's not as much Red Sox as it used to be, and it's a lot of Patriots. Hour 2 next. One more herd? The herd streams 24 hours a day, seven days a week, within the iHeart radio app.

Search heard to listen live or on demand whenever you'd like. Last night, a blown call changed a game. This morning, the internet lost its mind. Highlights are trending, opinions are flying, and nobody's telling you exactly what happened. That's where Sports Slice comes in. I'm Timbo. Every episode

we're cutting through the noise. Breaking down the plays, the controversies, and the stories behind the headlines. We go straight to the source, the athlete themselves, their locker room stories, their reactions, the stuff nobody gets to hear. The laughs, the drama, the triumphs, the moments that never make the highlight real. From viral moments to historic games, from buzzer beaters to controversial calls, we break it down,

give you context, and ask the questions everybody wants answered. Sports Slice brings you closer to the action with stories told by the people who live them. Listen to Sports Slice on the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Slic Life 12 in the TikTok podcast network on TikTok. Welcome to my new podcast. Learn the Hardway 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? 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 Hardway. Open your free iHeartRadio app. Search Learn the Hardway and listen now. What's up, guys? This is Clever Taylor the 4th. And on my podcast, The Cliverts Show,

I'm bringing you conversations about all kinds of stuff. Like being an internet famous referee. We're in the middle of a game. This linebacker, this guy walks up to me. He goes, hey, ref, my mom wants you to wave at her. What? Time out. Quarterback on office blue 42.

Hey, rep, my mama want you to wave at her. What? Hey, Miss Parker. Listen to the Clippers show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. 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 game. 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 Nash would get that thing. That man, hell get the flying. He running up the court licking his fingers while he got the ball. Like, you go through a training camp with that Isaiah, you figure you figure. it out real quick. Oh, yeah.

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. Ah, this is The Herd. Hour 2 in L.A., wherever you may be, and however you may be listening. IHeart Radio, Fox Sports Radio, have our podcast today. Are we doing anything on Twitter or anything like that today? Do we have any video at all today?

I'm sitting on Twitter. Now tomorrow... I believe these cameras around you are recording you, so... Hey, so tomorrow, we're in Sherman Oaks, right? Next two days, so I'll be driving to Sherman Oaks tomorrow. You guys got to give me directions on that. I don't want to end up in the boonies. I was wandering around in Sherman Oaks.

I mean, the building is right where two major highways intersect. So if you're in the boonies, you really missed. Hey, you've ever been driving with me? I've been lost a lot. I have no sense of direction. It's really a huge... I think it's... We're really even Perbank,

one day and you ended up in like Pasadena or something. I have no sense of direction. Listen, whatever Christopher Columbus was, I'm the opposite. I would have not hit Plymouth Rock. I would have just, I would be down into the keys. And I would be like, oh, I hit America. To be fair, he was going the other direction too. Oh, he was?

Yeah, he went the wrong way for a few thousand miles. When I go in, when I go in to a hotel room and, you know, ten times a year I'm in a hotel room. I come down the hallway, I go in, I put my luggage away, brush your teeth, whatever, and then you leave. Nine out of ten times, I will go the opposite way of where the elevator is. And I'll be like, oh, I'm staring at a staircase. I have no sense of direction. You put me in a city, say, go west. No idea.

I am just can't do it. By the way, the Kevin Durant injury, he's probably not going to play next year. And, you know, when I look at leagues, I tend to look at them as a business, right? That's how I look at sports. I try to be unemotional. I try to look at it like a business. The NFL is the best business in the country, and it's not really close. The downside to building around star players like the NBA is Kevin Durant's going to be out next year.

Or that LeBron James is not in the playoffs and the ratings go down 20%. The NFL is a next man-up league. and it's not beholden to a handful of star players. The NFL's also got three things really, really working for it. Number one, legalized gambling. Football's the sport in America, we bet, and legalized gambling is growing state by state faster than anybody thought. Number two is, and this is a huge bonus for the NFL going forward,

and it's the opposite problem in the NBA. by adapting all these college football offenses in the NFL, college quarterbacks can now come into the NFL like Baker Mayfield, and they're good day one. They can play day one. Whereas in the NBA, a guy comes into the NBA unless he's like Zion, they disappear for like four years. I mean, Anthony Davis, one playoff went in six years,

and he was the next great thing. The other thing the NFL's got going forward is that star quarterbacks now, because of diets and nutrition, they're just lasting longer. I mean, Tom Brady, Aaron Rogers, Russell Wilson, Big Ben, these guys are going to play into their 40s. Whereas the NBA has got two or three things working against it. Number one is three of your top brands, the Bulls, the Knicks, and the Lakers are not well run. LeBron, Katie, and Steph are getting older, all had injuries.

And 80% of the stars are on the West. It's kind of an uneven conference where the West is way interesting and the East is sort of interesting. I do think the good news is Jimmy Butler will stay in Philly, but Kauai is another star who's going to head West. And I think that's a problem. Whereas the NFC and the AFC feel more even. There's a ton of interesting teams in the NFC, the Packers, the Cowboys, the Eagles, and there's a ton of interesting teams out in the AFC, which is the Patriots and the Steelers, how the Browns are interesting,

Kansas City. So, you know, it's landscape of the NBA next year is going to be fuzzy. The best player could be in Milwaukee. Kyrie is going to go to Brooklyn and disappear. Zion ends up going not to New York but New Orleans. Katie will miss the season. The Warriors won't be nearly as dominant or as interesting without him. And what if LeBron doesn't land a number two?

I think he will, but what if he doesn't? So, you know, it has always been a little bit of the downside of the NBA business. And the NBA privately will tell you is that free agency is bigger than their regular season. It's a soap opera. And I like it. I think it's fun. And it does my radio and TV business very well. I do a lot of NBA.

But next year, you know, we thought a bunch of stuff was going to happen. KD. is going to win a title, going to go to the next. Zion's going to go to the next. Kyrie is going to work in Boston. LeBron's going to land Jimmy Butler. And no, no, no, no, no, no, no. Interesting next year. I want to throw this out.

I got to just, you know, when I'm on radio, I can, you know, kind of fish around and have some fun on some topics. I wouldn't necessarily do if I was simulcasting. The U.S. Open starts tomorrow. And it's going to be a really good U.S. Open. Tigers playing well, Brooks Kepka's dominant, Dustin Johnson, Phil Mickelson, Rory just won a tournament. It's going to be a good U.S. Open. It's a really good weekend on Fox, but it's a really good weekend for golf.

Just think about this. Sometimes you become a victim of your own success. Tiger Woods' last U.S. Open win was 11 years ago. So let's take the last 11 years since the U.S. Open title. We won't count that. So the minute he won the U.S. open, from that day forward, those are Tigers' down years. Those are Tigers reboot years. In his down period, in his slump period, Tiger has been named Player of the Year twice,

he's won a major, and then 14 other PGA wins for 15 total. That's Fred Cupple's career. and Fred's a Hall of Famer. Tiger was so good. It's like LeBron goes 28, 8, and 8, and we're banging on him. That's a great year for virtually every single player in the NBA, including Kauai. 28, 8, and 8. That Mark O'Meara has two majors, Colin Montgomery has none, Davis-Love has won, Fred Couples

has won, four-for-four. They're all in the Golf Hall of Fame. Tigers down decade. 15 total wins, one major, two-time player of the year. Those are his down years. That's a hall of fan.

That's Mark O'Meara's career. That's Fred Couples' career. In the rebuilding, rebooting, emotionally distressed, back-fused Tiger era that he was kind of off. That just shows you how great he is. That's LeBron last year.

28, 8 and 8, man, he is no good. LeBron is at worst, still the second best player in the NBA. For one year, Janice or LeBron, who would you take? I'd take LeBron. For one year, LeBron Kauai, who would you take? LeBron. The only guy in the league I'd take over him was KD, and now I wouldn't, because he's out next year. LeBron would still be for a year to two years, the player you would take if you had two years and you had to win.

And you're starting a franchise. You're not taking Joel Embed. You're not taking Anthony Davis. You're not taking KD. You're not taking K.D. You're not taking Kauai. You're taking LeBron. 28, 8, and 8, his bad year. Good to have you.

And Rick Buecker, Bucky Brooks, joining us today. Man, I was so bummed out yesterday when Rashad Phillips came on the show and told me John Morant should go number one and not Zion. I almost pouted all day yesterday. It was just, I didn't even know what to. to make of it. I was just beside myself yesterday. This is Rashad Phillips. By the way, a friend of Kobe Barron, great basketball player. Best player never drafted, Kobe Bryant calls him, saying he's taking John Morant over Zion if he could.

John Morant, Murray State. He's dynamic. Fantastic. As a point guard, let's look at it like football. Point guards are like superstar quarterbacks, okay? The Trey Youngs, the John's, the Jiam Those guys are like Patrick Mahomes. When you take the bigs like Zion Williamson and DeAndre Aiton, they're like defensive end. So do you want a guy that can throw 50 touchdown passes or a guy that maybe can get you 15 sacks? Here's where I'd push back on that. I almost always believe if I love two players, take the bigger, stronger one. They just last longer.

The NBA draft is eight days away. I would take Zion number one. and he's just bigger and stronger, and point guards do have the ball more. The usage rate is higher. I would not deny that. But I don't think you can compare point guards to quarterbacks, because in the NFL, the quarterback always handles the ball. But in the NBA, your point guard's not always your primary ball handler.

I mean, Kobe Bryant, big games, he'd get the ball, and it was his ball in the half-court set. And LeBron is handling the ball in the half-court set for the Lakers if they need a back- basket, whereas the quarterback always handles the ball. So I got nothing against John Morant, but he's 6-3 and 185. Zion 6-7-285. And if you look at men who have dominated the NBA, MJ, Magic, Duncan, Shack, Bird, Kobe, Dr. J.

Wilt, Kareem, Akeem, Bill Russell, KD, right now, Kauai, Yonis, MVP, they're large men. And I think Zion over 82 games is going to going to get a lot of easy points. He's going to bulldoze his way to a lot of easy points. And I think when you're six, two and a half, 175 pounds, you don't get easy points. They're flashy. They're fun. They're brilliant. But I mean, Toronto's winning the championship right now on length and size and health. They just got a bunch of big dudes. And the NBA season's 82 games plus 20 playoff games, I'm always going to err on the side of bigger, stronger guy if

everything else is even. I mean, Bill Parcells used to talk about that in his rebuild. shoulders, ankles, hips, but I want big dudes. College football coaches. I've talked to virtually every major college football coach about this. They're looking at ankles, hips, thighs. What's dad look like? Like they want big people. Because over the course of four years of college football, you'll be more durable.

You'll last longer and be able to take the hits. So, I mean, I'm not saying John Morant's not great, but if you look at NBA history, we do love flashy small guys. They sell a ton of shoes. Little guys have always sold more shoes than big guys. Because a kid can see himself being D. Rose or Ivers and her staff. A little kid doesn't think he's ever going to be Shaq or Yao Ming. He's not going to be seven feet tall. But they don't, point guards aren't really quarterbacks. There are some similarities. But in the NBA now, everybody outside of a back to the basket center, there's about three

of those. I mean, in Denver, Jokic, the Joker handles a wall. he's handling the ball. LeBron handles the ball. So Ben Simmons handles the ball. They don't even like him as a point. People think he should be a point forward. So I think Zion has a magnetism. Now, I do think David Griffin, who runs the Pelicans, is a smart guy,

and I think he wants Lonzo ball in that trade with the Lakers. And I think that's the rub. I think you'd have a deal done today if he said, give me the four-pick, two first-rounders, and Brandon Ingram, deal's done. I think Lonzo is the rub. Because I think the Lakers know how well LeBron and Lanzo played together plus-minus, and I think they put a lot of time into Lanzo, and they think he's marketable, and they think he's really good in getting better.

And I think the Pelicans know, David Griffin, knows Zion's going to be a better player if Lanzo ball's feeding in the ball. And Lonso in a football market like New Orleans is a pretty marketable kid. So my gut feeling on that whole Laker AD thing is it comes down to can they get somebody like Lonzo to feed Zion the ball? But I like Zion a lot. I like him a lot. I think he's got, he's part magic, part Berkeley, part Blake Griffin. John Morant's great, but you're giving me six two and a half, six three one, eighty four, and six seven, two, seventy-five.

I'm going to generally take the big guy. Size matters. One more herd? The herd streams 24 hours a day, seven days a week within the IHeart radio app. Search Herd to listen live or on demand whenever you'd like. Last night, a blown call changed a game. This morning, the internet lost its mind. Highlights are trending, opinions are flying, and nobody's telling you exactly what happened.

That's where Sports Slice comes in. I'm Timbo. Every episode, we're cutting through the noise, breaking down the plays, the controversies, and the stories behind the headlines. We go straight to the source, the athlete themselves. Their locker room stories, their reactions, the stuff nobody gets to hear. The laughs, the drama, the triumphs, the moments that never make the highlight real. From viral moments to historic games, from buzzer beaters to controversial calls, we break it down,

give you context, and ask the questions everybody wants answered. Sportslice brings you closer to the action with stories told by the people who live them. Listen to Sports Slice on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Slicelife-12 in the TikTok podcast. network on TikTok. Welcome to my new podcast, Learn the Hardway 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, as 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. What's up, guys? This is Clever Taylor the 4th. And on my podcast, The Cliverts Show, I'm bringing you conversations about all kinds of stuff, like being an internet famous referee. We're in the middle of a game.

This linebacker walks up to me, he goes, Hey, ref, my mom wants you to wave at her. What? Time out. Quarterback on office, Blue, 42. A rep, my mama want you to wave at her. What? Where's he at?

Hey, Miss Parker. Listen to the Cliverts show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. 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 Nasree. He has to guard Julius Randall.

And then he has to give us everything he gives us on the night-to-night bases on offense. And when IT's friends stop by, like Quentin Richardson, we dive into some playoff history too. Steve Nash would 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. One of my favorite guys, Rick Buechers in studio, Bucky Brooks later this hour. All right, let me talk about this because I think it's a pile-on culture. The Warriors are not likable. Steve Kerr's political. The owner's arrogant.

Another owner pushed a player. Katie joined a super team. they represent Silicon Valley, which is financially above all of us. They're not likable. And therefore now it's pile on time. It's like when America gets beat on a global stage, we don't get beat much. People like to pile on. So here's Golden State.

Now everybody's saying, KD, they knew more. Let me ask this. Yeah. Didn't we all get goosebumps on Kurt Gibson's home run? Yes. Didn't we brag about the courage of T.O. playing with a broken leg in the Super Bowl? Don't we love when Aaron Rogers plays hurt?

and we're pissed when Jay Cutler sat there and wouldn't go in. This is sports. We like poker players who get the chips and go all in. We don't like poker players who play it safe. Bloody Sock, MJ Flu Game, T.O. Super Bowl. Listen, the whole Warriors team's at 60%. Yes, all that said. And by the way, I don't, I can't go so far.

We always hate whoever's on top, especially if they show a certain amount of dominance, and then they show arrogance. The ownership has showed arrogance. Yes. One of the secret sauces for the Warriors is that the players themselves have shown a tremendous amount of humility. Yeah.

All along the way, which I think makes them more likable than most teams that have gone to the finals five years in a row. We didn't like the Cavs. We don't like LeBron because there's just a little too much, don't you know who I am? Right. I've never gotten that sense with the Warriors. All that said,

we also like when guys compete and they finish. Yeah. Like the bloody sock, Terrell Owens, but they got to play. It hurts a little bit more when the guy rolls out there and I'm going to make the valiant effort, and then he breaks down before you ever get to the finish line. It hurts, but anywhere close. It hurts, but we would have banged on KD

if we would have seen him a week after losing the finals at a restaurant. No doubt. With an arm around a girl having fun and laugh. And we're like, go how come you weren't playing the game? I get that. I get that. And so for the story, for the Warriors, for the Warriors fans, I probably shouldn't share this,

but it's like a truth serum when I come on this show. No kidding. I got a text from somebody who shared something that the own, one of the owners, one of the part owners of the Warriors. And he was waxing eloquent about this show by the Warriors and by KD. And I still, it makes me feel, it's a little off for me to hear Joe Lekob, and he wasn't the owner that I got this soliloquy from. But it bothers me a little bit where we really respect that KD. went out there and did what he did.

And, you know, he fell on the sword. He dove on the grenade. And he got us at game six. Because I think everybody would say, even though he only got to the second quarter, that start and the way he made him feel, he got him there. it's still a tragedy for KD because the price, we're not paying it now, we're going to pay it next year

because whether KD re-ups with the Warriors or not, he's not going to be in the league. And the fact that he's not going to be with the Warriors means that the Warriors are just another team now. And the Knicks won't have it. It's interesting. I said this right before you came on. Zion going to the Knicks in New Orleans.

And Jimmy Butler's going to move and he probably won't. And Kyrie will disappear in Brooklyn by himself and Katie won't play and the Warriors won't be as fascinating. There's a possibility it won't be a great year next year for the league, right? No, because parity does not work in the NBA. Never has. It works in the NFL. Awesome. It's great.

But in the NBA, you need to have that stalking horse. You need to have that great team that everybody is gunning for. Who's that going to be next year? We're looking at the prospect of a Milwaukee Clippers finals. Does that get you excited? Well, and not knowing until we get there that we've got Milwaukee and the Clippers. I'll ask you, Colin, all things equal. So Katie's out.

Kauai leaves Toronto. Who's the team to beat? Who's at the top of the... Golden State by an inch. But again, Steph's had multiple injuries. Sean Livingston's going to retire. I mean, they're not the same. They're not key.

No, I mean, listen, they'll have no size because Katie's gone. Bo gets done and Bogey's leaving. So they'll have, once again, something that's never talked about by fans, but is by every executive, is length. We love the Hamptons five. They look small without KD.

Length and depth. This is what's kind of shifted. We're still in love with the idea that you have superstars, that you need to have that nucleus and then you just fill in around them. Well, look at the Toronto Raptors. Is that the model?

for them? No. Their model is depth. The warriors in the way they dominated over the last couple years, it was depth. It's not now, which is why they're coming to the end of their run. And the depth they do have is all hurt. Exactly. Because here's the thing. Again, and we got into this with load management and people say that like it's a dirty word. Oh, it's load management. Basically, like guys are just taking time off. They just don't want to play 82 games. They don't want to have to work that hard. It's not that. The game is played at a speed with a number of possessions at a level of athleticism. Never been played like this. Never been played like this. The bodies are still catching up with the speed of the game. So you're going to have guys break down unless you look at it and say, you know what,

we can't play at this crazy, we can't ask somebody to play at this crazy speed two nights in a row. just doesn't make sense. You're going to break down. Yeah. Rick Buecker joining us. So Woj says Lakers are not a top free agent destination. My feeling is the draft is eight days away next Thursday. And I think they have to make a deal within that time the Lakers because I don't think they're getting free agents. And I do think you lose leverage once you draft a player

because the Pelicans may not like the player you draft. So I think the Lakers are going to make a move in a week. Your thoughts. I would expect that. And I would expect everything that I'm hearing is that, Anthony Davis is the move that they will make. They'll wind up getting Anthony Davis with the Lakers. And at least in part, because the market for Anthony Davis is not what everybody makes it out to be.

Because what I've heard is no matter where he goes, he's not re-upping right now. He wants to get to whether it's the Lakers, whether it's New York, wherever he might go, I want to look down the barrel of free agency. I want to see what the options are. The Knicks, for example, aren't going to break the bank to try to get AD at this point because they're looking at it saying, you know what? It was a good chance. He goes to the Lakers, and it's a mess.

And he gets the next summer and he says, let me take a look at the Knicks. And the Knicks could get him for free. And meanwhile, they've in their plan, gotten KD. They can retain all of the pieces that they have. RJ Barrett gets a year. Mitchell Robinson, Kevin Knox. You can go down the line. and then we don't have to trade for AD.

We can get him for free. Indeed, if we look better. He's looking at the prospect of KD and the whole package could look infinitely better than the Lakers right now. Yeah. You know, you got to be careful on that move because if AD gives you 26 and LeBron gives you 28,

that's 54 points. You need another 63. Because the NBA right now, Milwaukee average 118, Toronto 115, Golden State 118, three best teams. Again, it's all about depth. You got it.

And this is the great loss for the Lakers. They're not going to get 80 for free. That was the whole idea. Oh, we got all these nice little pieces. I'd play a little, I mean, listen, I think Lakers have leverage. I think Lanzo is the piece because I think the Lakers are saying, take our four, we'll give you a one, and take one of the forwards. And the phone hangs up. And I think Pelicans are saying, add Lonzo.

Because Lonso plus Zion, that sells tickets. Lonzo Ball's got some marketing to him. And you can play Drew Hollis. and Lonzo together. And the length and defensive ability that you would have in the back court, the whole problem with Lonzo Ball is that LeVar and Magic oversold him right out of the gate. He was supposed to have his jersey retired as a Laker. He's a fine player.

He's, if you had, if they had been reasonable in their expectations, you would appreciate that Lonzo's shot has improved. He's a, he's, I mean, the injuries have been an issue, but defensively, he's, he's, he's, I mean, the Injuries have been an issue, but defensively, he's a plus. A little better defender than I thought. Also, great vision. Also started finishing at the rim. He got more aggressive in his last 12 games with LeBron.

Yeah. You would appreciate the pluses rather than just comparing him to what he was supposed to be and saying, well, he's not that. Okay. I am deeply disappointed with what you're about to say. I love Zion Williamson. I know you do. And you don't like him. It's not what's not to love?

I just, this is Lanzo ball too. We've already made him a Hall of Famer. He is going to be 26 a game fast. Okay, on what? So you don't think he's, 26 a game. Well, no, no, no, he'll be 21 and a half a game after the All-Star break. So he may average 17 for the year because he starts slow.

I think he's going to be, I think it's going to, I mean, listen, the NBA is fast. It takes college kids 30 games to cash up to the speed of it. They all tell you that. It's like the NFL. You corners say like everybody runs, fast, even the tight ends run fast. Is he taking the Pelicans to the playoffs? Well, that's a whole different argument.

No, it's not because we're talking about him as if he is a generational player. Yes. But LeBron- generational player. LeBron didn't the first year? Carmelo Anthony did. Carmelo Anthony came out of school, out of Syracuse, as a better player than LeBron James, a more complete player than LeBron James.

That's my issue with Zion. He is a phenomenal athletic talent. But as we know in the NBA, look, people are way more excited about Zion Williamson than they are about Luca Donsich. Is that fair? No question. Luca Donsich was far more prepared to play in the NBA than Zion Williamson. Not because of the athleticism, because of the ability, because of the skills. Zion doesn't show me the requisite toolbox to say he can come in and do everything.

The athleticism, this is why I generally don't, I'm, I generally don't try to make up my mind about guys as pros based on watching them in college until I see them in Summer League. And even Summer League is, you're, a lot of guys that are marginal. But the athleticism there, and you're not in your collegiate system that was built for you. And if you are a player at Duke or one of these great schools, you've got not only are you probably better than 98% of the guys that you play against, the guys around you are better than 98% of the guys that they're matched up. So you have a built-in advantage that is taken away in Summer League. Now it's a wide open game.

Now the athleticism is right. Now you're playing against pros. You guys who have the physical ability to play in the NBA. now I need to see your game. Because Zion can just beast guys. He doesn't have to do anything other than jump over them. And he can. It's not going to be so easy in the NBA.

It's hurtful. I don't like crushing dreams. I really don't. I love him so much. I find him so. I think he's like he's magic. He's joyful. He's Barclay.

He's Blake Griffin. He's just, I can't. I sat and watched. Okay. 20 Duke games this year. Great example. Blake Griffin, who I think the world of as well, comes in as a phenomenal athlete, personality, everything.

It took him a while. Until he developed a jump shot. I don't think he has, I don't think Blake runs, I don't think he's the passer. He has a broken shot. I think Blake is, Zion's a passer. Blake's handle and his court vision, very underrated. It's going to be very sad when you're totally wrong on this.

You shall see. I am so excited for him. He's saying he's such a great kid. I love when he said, I broke my show. I'm coming back. I may come back for another year. I just love that about him. No, his person, I love everything.

I wish him great success. And in some ways, it's good that he went to New Orleans. It may not be bad for the NBA because you'd like to have him. in a big market. It's good for him because the pressure won't be the same there. There are no expectations for the Pelicans, even with Zion and Drew and all that. If he's in New York, he would have had to carry them to the playoffs. That roster's bad.

They'd need 24 a night like day one. That's a bad roster. That's not a horrific. Dennis Smith, Jr., nobody wants to play with him. He's our most talented guy. Yeah. And these guys want to play with. Lanzo.

Guys want to play with Inger and Kuzma. They like them. You got R.J. Barrett coming in. You got Mitchell Robinson there, who is going to be the next Pascals, Seacum. Oh, let's slow down on that. All right, we got to go, Bukes. Rick Buker. Let's go to veteran newsman, John Goulet.

No, no, no, no. Turn on the news. This is the herd line news. Colony, NBA said that Toronto Raptors Mark Gassal should have been given two free throws with 49 seconds left in game five. Gasol was fouled by DeMarcus Cousins on the drive. You know what said this, your favorite thing about the NBA, the last two-minute report, would you like to take this time to hate on the two-minute report? Why in the world?

You know, in our business, it's well-known. If I'm on the air and radio and make a mistake, don't go back and draw attention to it. You screwed up. It's an imperfect business. It's a volume business, not a precision business. The NBA officiating is not a precision business. You'd like it to be. It's a volume business.

You've got a zillion calls. It's not like the NFL where you're in the wrong zone and you're off sides and you're in most. Every single NBA call is past interference. If every NFL call was past interference, you're not in the precision business. Slame Mark Cuban for this. He tried to make refereeing an analytics job. It's not. It's a management job.

If you're hitting 75% as an official, God, you're doing a hell of a job. Well, and also the most egregious call most people thought was that travel by Kauai that didn't get called, but it's not in the last two minutes, so therefore, what, it didn't matter? It didn't happen. It's a weird thing. It's a good point. According to Adrian Wojanovski of ESPN, there are three teams, quote, very interested in Kemba Walker. Those teams would be the Knicks, the Mavs, and the Los Angeles Lakers.

Boy, if he goes to the Mabs. Porzengis, I got Luca, and I got Kemba, that's 117 a game. You're walking to the arena every night. You're getting points. That is a fun team to watch. Well, now, the Hornets, still offer him a max deal. And because he made third team all NBA, that can be five years,

221 million. Michael Jordan's not going to pay him that. Right. The most, the other teams could offer him would be four years 140. Is he the consolation prize? Or do you actually think the Lakers would want a Kemba Walker? No, I think they're going to get Anthony Davis and then keep

as much as they can and let that grow for a year. Kemba's fine. I think he plays in New York, played at Yukon. I think he's more on New York. He's from New York. Yeah, he feels Like, I mean, people out West don't know who Campbell Walker is. No. But out in the East, you can put him on the Celtics or you could, they won't, but you could put him on the Knicks. And he plays.

A lot of UConn people in New York. The question would be, would he be insulted if you gave him more than $160, but less than the super matters? He doesn't have that kind of ego. Well, then Charlotte might still be able to keep him. But that's, to your point, he's irrelevant out West because he plays in Charlotte. So it seems like if you're, why not go and try to. Nick's and Charlotte are the best places for him, so he should pick one of those two.

And finally, Forbes put out the 2019 rankings for the 100 highest paid athletes. It's a compilation of prize money, salaries, and bonuses. It's between June 1st of last year and June 1st of this year. And Tom Brady is the fifth highest paid athlete that plays in Boston. Can you guess the four Boston athletes that make more money than the six times? Super Bowl champion. J.D. Martinez. Nope. David Price. David Price, yes. Keep in mind. David Price

also at least won a title. Gordon Hayward. Correct. Kyrie Irving. Correct. Is there another Red Sock? There's not another Red Sock. What about a Patriot? Is there another Patriot? No. No other Patriot makes more money than Tom Brady. Who is the other one? Al Horford.

Oh, God. He does? Yeah. Yeah. So I'd like to point out that three of the four higher than him are on the one team in Boston that's not going to be champions. Well, you know, it's timing. Timing was very good for Gordon. Very good for him. Veteran newsman, John Goulet.

Well, that's the news. And thanks for stopping by. The Herd Lie News. Former NFL Scout, NFL Network, NFL.com. Bucky Brooks. Next, 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 IHeard Radio app. Last night, a blown call changed a game.

This morning, the internet lost its mind. Highlights are trending, opinions are flying, and nobody's telling you exactly what happened. That's where Sports Slice comes in. I'm Timbo. Every episode, we're cutting through the noise, breaking down the plays, the controversies, and the stories behind the headlines. We go straight to the source, the athlete themselves, their locker room stories, their reactions, the stuff nobody gets to hear.

The laughs, the drama, the triumphs, the moments that never make the highlight real. From viral moments to historic games, from buzzer beaters to controversial calls, we break it down, give you context, and ask the questions everybody wants answered. SportsSlice brings you closer to the action with stories told by the people who live them. Listen to SportsClyce on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Slic Life 12 and the TikTok podcast network on TikTok. Welcome to my new podcast, Learn the Hardway 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, you find it important to be a good person while you hear on earth? 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 Hardway. Open your free iHeartRadio app. Search Learn the Hardway and listen now.

What's up, guys? This is Clever Taylor the Fourth. And on my podcast, The Cliverts Show, I'm bringing you conversations about all kinds of stuff. Like being an internet famous referee. We're in the middle of a game. This linebacker, this linebacker walks up to me. He goes, hey, ref, my mom wants you to wave at her.

What? Quarterback on office blue of 42. Hey, rep, my mama want you to wave at her. What? Hey, Miss Parker. Listen to the Clippers show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. 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 running up the court, licking his fingers why he got the bar 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. Key Brooks, NFL defensive back for years. Former NFL Scout, Panthers, and Seahawks. Let's start with this. Raiders, hard knocks. It doesn't bother me because, A, they are entertaining. And B, I don't think they're a championship level team. So I don't think this is getting in the way of wins.

I think they're trying to sell tickets in Vegas. That's why they want to play in Canada, London, hard knocks. It's why they acquired Antonio Brown. I can sell tickets. Oh, they certainly have a brand, and I think it only strengthens the brand. You talk about them playing in Winnipeg in the preseason going to Vegas in a year or so. This gives them an opportunity to kind of let people see behind the curtains. And also, you have John Gruden who's very comfortable on TV.

He kind of understands how to play up for the cameras. The general manager, Mike Mayotte, comes from a TV background. So the TV cameras shouldn't be a major deal because they kind of know how to play to that. The thing that you have to worry about, and we saw this last year with Cleveland, when the cameras were rolling and some of that footage kind of makes it to the show, if it's unbecoming, it creates a narrative that is really, really hard for the team and the players to shake. Yeah, no, it does. I think they're in a tough division now. And I do think, I mean, I went to Vegas not long ago, and I saw that stadium, and I thought, they got to sell tickets. And John's assured a job for a decade.

So Mark Davis said, listen, just these first two years, let's sell some tickets because I've been owning this team in Oakland. We can't sell the upper deck. I don't want to go to Vegas and have an empty upper deck. So I kind of get what the Raiders are doing. Let me ask you. So Carson went signs early with the Eagles. That's a good smart move. It'll hurt for a year.

But in two years when Mahom signs for $200 million, you'll feel pretty good. I think they also made the move to force the Cowboys and say, hey, we set the market. Because DAC on paper has beaten Wents three out of four games. Yeah. It's going to force Dallas to pay Dak $32 million. The Dallas Cowboys have kind of mismanaged this by waiting. And I know on the outside we all, oh, you can't pay him 22 or 20. I think during the fall when I came, we talked about $22 million, $23 million. Well, now the price is $32 million. That they have to pay him annually. No matter how you slice it, love him or hate him, that's where the market is. that. Carson Wentz comes in at that number.

Dak Prescott has a solid argument to say, I at least deserve what he makes based on what we've done. Kirk Cousins is making 29. Yes. There is no argument, Daxworth more than that. That's not even a debate. No, it's not. And so the longer the Cowboys wait, the higher the price tag.

It would have been in their best interest to try to get this deal done. About a year ago. Yes. Try and get it done early because he was not drafted, in the first round. He's a fourth round pick. And look, I know the thought of Dak Prescott getting the amount of money

that is going to put him into Aaron Rogers category is going to make some people nauseous. However, they got him on the cheap for four years. So during that... The cheap, free. Yeah. During that time, that is when you build up the rest of your roster because you have him on a super discount.

You can't expect him to now give you another hometown discount when he's won games. It doesn't happen. And so the Dallas Cowboys have to get this figured out. But he's in the cat birth seat because if he doesn't sign a deal, he signs the franchise tag. And then when the CBA expires, who knows what quarterbacks are going to make. So it's in the best interest of the Cowboys to hurry up and get this deal done before

the price tag continues to kick up. So I'm watching the Todd Gurley story. Now, I never understood when they signed him because they signed him a year early. But I know less need. I gave the Rams this. They just moved to L.A. They wanted to make sure, star running back, let's get them under contract.

Aaron Donald, they signed Brandon Cooks. They were trying to sell PSLs. They wanted to get guys locked in. So they signed Todd Gurley a year before they had to. Now there's arthritis of the knee. And they just drafted a running back out of college. Do you think the Rams wake up this morning and think, we should have waited?

No, no, I don't think so. I think the reason you paid time. is when you look at the ramps, and I think it was very evident in the Super Bowl, Todd Gurley is the straw to make the stirs to drink. As much as we love Jerry Golf, and I think Jerry Golf is going to be a really, really good quarterback. But Todd Gurley is the guy that kind of sets the table for that offense. And so they were trying to reward Tar Gurley for doing all the things. And at the time that they signed them, you didn't know what Levy and Bill was going to get.

You still didn't know what Ezekiel Elliott was going to do it. So you're trying to get ahead of the market if the market got crazy for Levy and Bill. I get that. Now, the thing that we have to do is not overreact to what has come out in the off season because this really is in basketball a load management deal. When we're doing the OTA practices and training camp, the Rams are going to try and be a little smarter when it comes to a, let's not waste the reps on the practice field. Let's make sure that we get them in December and January at the highest level in terms of

being healthy, being ready to go. We saw at the end of the year his usage rate, how much they had put on him, he wore down. And because he wore down, he wasn't available to give them the juice that they needed in the postseason. This is a move to try and make sure that when we get into the stretch run, when you really need your running backs, December, January, he's available. Look at what the Patriots were able to get with Sony Michelle. Sony Michelle in December and January was the best offensive player. They're trying to do the same thing for the Rams. Patriots have been masters at this.

They'll just take James White out for two weeks. He'll have 12 catches. Two weeks later, he's not in the field. That's what they do. They make sure that, look. They were very healthy by the Super Bowl. They understand the long play. So people overreact to the Patriots losing games,

and they know they're going to get it to the tournament. They really don't matter. It doesn't matter what seed they are. They know they can win it either way, but they're going to have their guys ready when it's time to have ready. Did you see who the Patriots drafted? They didn't need another running back. They got one.

They didn't need another corner and they got one. They're looking around at the Mahomes and the locks and they're like, I mean, New England right now has got five corners that can play. And four running backs that can play because what's that telling you, Tom's getting older. We can't be in shootouts. We got to keep the score down. We need great corners and a lot of help in the backfield. The New England Patriots is always one step ahead of the posse. So everyone is talking about the passing game and throwing it and whatever.

Bill Belichick is already looking and saying everything is cyclical. In the 80s, it was about the ground game. and the running backs. The Patriots won the Super Bowl last year because they ran the ball. They can control the clock. They can manage the game. And also, as your quarterback gets older, you need a supporting cast to be able to do more. Well, they can do that by running the ball with a variety of running backs.

They are setting the table to be the old school Patriots team. So the team that won it in 2001, 2003, 2004, that ran the ball with Antoine Smith and Corey Dillon, we're going to see that version of the Patriots this year, not the version that was high flying with Randy Moss and West Walker. What did you make about Durant playing hurt? You know, it's tough because I think this is the toughest time to be an athlete because you have so many outside voices that can get to you. Twitter speaks loud.

You have people questioning your toughness and you have to do this because we've created this thing. Kevin Durant has to do this if he wants to be on the level of LeBron James. I think what's tough about it is every athlete wants to be a part of. of a championship team. And so when you're in this and you're looking at your players and you know how good you are, you know how good the team is when you play, man, if I can go and take some of the pressure off Steph and Clay, I can help them go to the next level.

This is very similar to what T.O. did in the Super Bowl in 2004 when, look, he had broken his leg. He comes back, plays, and is the best offensive player for the Eagles. It's something that you're trying to guard players against themselves, but you want to win. And so in the team, you're kind of in a lurch because this is my guy. We're a much better player when we have him. Do I sacrifice long term for the short term? They tried to roll the dice.

It just didn't work out for him. By the way, Daniel Jeremiah, your podcast buddy, I just love him. And his name's getting thrown out there for front office jobs. You could absolutely go off TV. You probably get offered a job every year somewhere. Oh, I don't get off the job. I get some sniffs every night. I have no problem.

I think there's people on TV that, talk football that could get a job in the front office. I'm not bothered by the McShay, Daniel Jeremiah, or Bucky Brooks if you came on. No, here's what I would say. 20 seconds, go for it. Here's what I say, the advantage of coming from the TV world to going in. You now get an opportunity to go to other teams and see how other teams do it. So now you have a broadened perspective.

Rather than just sitting in your one room, this is the way that you do it. You go other places and you can take bits and pieces to make your better play. Good seeing you, buddy. Hour three next. One more herd? The herd streams 24 hours a day. days a week within the IHeart radio app. Search Herd to listen live or on demand whenever you'd like. Ah, this is The Heard.

Hour 3 in L.A. wherever you may be in, however you may be listening. We're on IHeart Radio and Fox Sports Radio. You know, I'm just looking at Bill Gates, Microsoft, his Twitter account, And he's talking about how disappointed he is that the disconnect between what we see in the news and the reality of the world around us, how the media spends so much time talking about terrorism. And in reality, cancer, heart disease, and automobile accidents are the leading causes of death in America. And I've talked about this many times how our media has become very fear-based. and I don't talk a ton, but I'll talk once or twice a year to college students, once or twice a year to high school students.

It's always fun. I love doing that. And I say all the time, don't, don't produce your show through Twitter. Twitter is not real life. 20% of Americans are on Twitter. Six percent are super users, mostly Hollywood in the media. Twitter's a bunch of nonsense. Just don't even look at it when you produce a show. It's not reality. and yesterday it was so laughable to watch people freaking out because the United States women's national team beat Thailand 13 and nothing and everybody was freaked out because our women celebrated a little after they scored goal 8 goal 9 nobody was upset with that it had no impact in the world

nobody in my you know how many doors I would have had to knock on in my neighborhood to find somebody it was mad about that nobody cared it just played big on Twitter and Nick Wright came on earlier and I was glad to hear, he thought it was the outrage over we celebrated too much, was laughable. The faux or women's national team running up the score in an event where goal differential is the first tiebreaker, so it matters, act like you've been there before when it's an event that takes place two and a half times a decade is one of the most ridiculous things I've ever seen. It is just a perfect quintessential example of people who aren't actually mad,

but want to pretend to be mad. No one is actually bothered by this. It's the World Cup. You score a goal. It is the greatest moment of your entire life. By the way, Indonesia must have a really poor women's soccer team because Thailand beat them 13-0. into the run-up into the tournament.

So get up the match against Indonesia. We'll beat them. We'll do transitive property, 169 Zip, and you'll see actual celebrations. Until then, everyone needs to calm down. The other thing is, it's not that they won. It's how they celebrated. So what?

If Brazil or Germany, the men's team beat the United States 13-0 and celebrated, would we take them to task? I think some of it's patronizing women, like the Thailand team, the women can't handle the humiliation. Yeah, they can. Women athletes that make the Olympics, World Cup, they are tough. You don't make the LPGA. You don't make the women's tennis tour.

You don't make the World Cup. You don't make the Olympics. Regardless of gender, you are tough. You put your life on hold to be a professional athlete. So stop patronizing. A woman's team can't take thrashing. A butt kicking once in a while is not a bad thing for a boxer. a soccer team, a baseball team, or a football team.

And if you're going to go compete in the World Cup, you know, don't make the scoreboard your God. How do you know Thailand wasn't honored to be on the same pitch? We don't know that. I mean, good God, the United States men's national team can't even make the World Cup. Thailand made the women's World Cup. Maybe that was, they were honored. We don't know. So I just, it's the classic example.

You know, listen, the place I used to work at, their management a couple years ago was running their management through Twitter. And it's like, mistake. Don't run your business through Twitter. What Twitter likes is not what Middle America likes. And they've since corrected. But, you know, nobody's upset about this. And again, if you flip the score and the United States women lost 13-0, who would we be ripping?

Still, the United States women. We'd be calling them arrogant. They overlooked Thailand. They deserve to get drilled. mocked. So listen, the downside to greatness, dominance, and power is scrutiny. Popular people get criticized. A great president gets criticized more than a lousy senator. The downside to power, dominance, success is scrutiny. And the United States women's national team is incredible. It is the face of the sport. They're the dream team. They're the face of the

sport. And because they celebrated, you know, scoring goals in the World Cup, we're taking them to task. And if Thailand would have won 13-0-0, you and I know here's exactly what we'd be talking about. Though U.S. women deserve to be mocked. That kind of talent, that kind of arrogance to lose 13-0. You can't win if you're dominant. We've had very effective presidents. But they're presidents. They get whacked. That's the burden. of power, scrutiny. By the way, so the Raiders are going to be on hard knocks, and they should be. It's the most interesting team, and I think they're just doing it for sales.

I think they brought in Antonio Brown for sales in Vegas. I don't think it's, I think they're playing in Canada. They'll tell NFL will play in London. They're just trying to build their brand. It's been down for 10 years. And John Gruden is safe for a decade. He's going into year two of a 10-year contract. So Gruden's got nothing to worry about.

The bottom line, he and the owner run the franchise, and the owners told him, Hey, listen, don't worry about this year. We're going to bring in Antonio Brown. We're going to go play in Canada. We'll play in London. We'll do hard knocks. We got to sell 8,000, 12,000, 22,000 season tickets in Vegas. And that's what they're doing this for.

But it's funny, the three teams, they're getting all the attention in the NFC, in the NFL this offseason for free agent moves are Oakland, Cleveland, and the Jets. All three are in the AFC. And would it shock anybody if Oakland, Cleveland, and the Jets all become dumpster fires by the end of the year. Oakland's got drama everywhere on the toughest schedule in the league. Cleveland's got a rookie head coach and a combustible

superstar receiver. The Jets have a bad old line, a young quarterback, and a new coach and a GM. And the top of the AFC is crowded. Belichick and Brady, Andy Reid Mahomes, Andrew Luck, a great GM, the best offensive line in football, Frank Reich. So New England,

Kansas City, and India are loaded, and the Chargers, Steelers, Ravens, and Texas are all really talented. And I'm supposed to believe Oakland, Cleveland, and the Jets and the AFC are going to make waves. By the way, Oakland, Cleveland, and the Jets last year were 15, 32, and 1. Do you know what they were against winning teams? The Raiders, the Jets, and the Browns against winning teams last year were 3 and 20 with a tie. 3 and 20.

And you think they're going to take over? Oakland's head coach and GM were TV stars. Yes, they're interesting. Cleveland, OB, J, and Baker, yes, they're interesting. Lavian Bell to the Jets. Yes, they're interesting. I don't think any of them are making the playoffs. Cleveland's got the most talent.

I don't think to make the playoffs. I think they'll be in the fight for it, week 14, 15, 16. But, you know, it's tell me the teams that get the most publicity in the off season in the NFL. Are they ever good? Ever? Seriously. Oakland, Cleveland, the Jets, it's all anybody's talking about. Rams playing in Los Angeles. You can't find the players. They run the Super Bowl. You can't find them.

They hide. I've never seen an NFL franchise in a city. You can't find Ram players. You can't find Charger players. Those two organizations made the playoffs. They're hiding. They don't want anything. They don't want to be near a television camera. Cleveland, Jets. Oakland, you know, they're like reality shows. Good to have you in.

Cotino Mobley's around today. I got an interesting story. I really feel proud to be an American after that 13-0 thrashing. I know I'm going to get a lot of heat for that, but I am so proud of our United States women's national team. You girls dance all night. It wasn't just about the goals. It was about putting in the time enabling you to score 13 goals.

Celebrate. You know, we want our teams to win, but not too much, and we want them to celebrate, but not too much. And I'm like, it's the Olympics. You qualified. Your ineptitude is not my problem. Continue on Mobley around the corner. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd.

Weekdays in noon Eastern, 9 a.m. Pacific. Good to have you in. Go further than ever. Discover at Miles card. They match the miles you earn end of the first year. 35,000 become 70,000. Limitations apply. go to discover.com

slash travel catino mobly over a decade in the NBA. So you're watching all these injuries and my takeaway was this is why we love Kurt Gibson. This is why we like Michael Jordan in the flu game. This is why we criticize Jay Cutler for not going into a game. Like it's the heroism, the alpha of being a pro athlete, and you guys are just different. I mean, you were hurt?

How many times were you healthy by June? I mean, seriously, in the NBA? It's normal. It's definitely not. normal. I mean, you look at Kobe Bryant. Kobe dislocated his finger. You know, the trainer popped it back in. He went back out there. He walked off the

core from Maturors and Killies. Shot his free throws. I mean, it's just what we do. I've dislocated my fingers. I've pulled my groin and still played in the Big Three championship. I pulled my groin on in the semifinals. Still played, we won.

Got treatment the whole week and literally played in the championship and we won the championship. Kendrick Perkins told me he ripped a groin ligament and played the entire playoffs in OKC. Yeah. They just numbed it. Yeah. That's just what we do.

It's just what we do. Like I said, you know, during a break, like you're a professional. That's what separates you from everyone else, right? You're just as immortal as we are because you fight through it. That's the reason why you're successful. And I think when you're at a younger age and you're fighting through things, adversity, different things like that, it becomes a norm to you. Right.

So you don't get sick. A lot of stuff is mental. You don't get sick. You don't feel the pain. You don't do this. You don't do that. Now, when things get drastic like the Michael Jordan flu or torn Achilles like Kobe or a dislocated finger, mother myself, Colb, or growing or whatever it is, yeah, okay.

But we still fight through so much pain. Well, the whole roster of the Warriors, boogies 60%. Right. Looney. Looney looks like he's in pain. I mean, it's unbelievable, huh? His ribs. Clay Thompson pops a hammy.

He's four days later he's playing. I think there's just an overreaction. Kevin Durant, I'm told, just tuned out people that didn't tell him what he wanted to hear, which is you could re-injure stuff. And he's like, I feel good. And he had a, by the way, had a workout before the game look good. He was very good.

The 12-minute team was in the game. Very good. In fact, it was like, dude, scale it back, slow down. Yeah. So I don't know. But that's how you feel. Like, I pop my calf three different times. In a game?

In game. I popped my calf and it cost us the clippers my second year with the clippers it cost us the playoffs. We were going to be the eighth seed and I think Golden State got in as eighth seed and that's when they did that miraculous kind of

you know beat Dallas or Utah or whatever it was I'm not really sure exactly what team but they were Stephen Jackson and Baron Davis it was Dallas and Stephen Jackson and Baron Davis they looked amazing and I best year I popped my calf and I was out five games we only needed one game to win and we could

We didn't win that one game, but, you know, it coming back from it, it took me about a month and a half, two months, because the scar tissue inside the calf is so sensitive. And I was kind of puzzled when I saw KD. Duncan and it's all the 30-something days, you know, post the injury. I'm like, wow, that's great. Like, I can't believe that. I mean, I wouldn't play because I know you'll feel good for 20 minutes, 25 minutes,

30 minutes. I didn't, before you know it, the muscles, it fatigues, and then, boom, it's gone. Just like that. But, you know, I just hope he recovers fast and, you know. It's funny. I'm looking at all these free agents. If I represented you, I'm your agent, there's absolutely no way I could tell you,

you know that max money? Nah, don't worry about it. And by the way, I'm going to send you to the Knicks who have a historically bad owner. Right. My job is to protect Catino Mobley. I'm your agent. How does Kevin Durant's agent say go from the best ownership group to maybe the worst? I got to be honest with you.

I'm Kauai Leonard. I've been beat up my whole career. I'm not giving up 35 large. Kauai Lennard is brilliant, right? He just showed it. First of all, I'm getting a second opinion. I'm not going to play. You know, Kaui Lerner, and it's kind of a different injury,

but it kind of reminds me of one of my teammates back when I was a rookie, Michael Dickerson. He played for Arizona. I remember that. He was an amazing athlete. He was going to be a great shooting guard. He tore is growing. And back then, you couldn't have two, three, four opinions. So when he tore it, Mike was done after that.

I think he was playing for Vancouver at the time. He was done after that. He was done after that. It's like Kauai. Whether it was a thigh, whether it's growing, whatever it was, you had a second opinion. You didn't feel good after those eight games in San Antonio. You sat yourself down. If I'm Kevin, I'm my own brand. I'm saying to

myself. Like, no, I don't, yeah, I want to play because he's a hooper. You know, he's from, he's from Maryland. He's, you know, he's D.C. He's all at East Coast. It's in him. And I understand that. But, you know, the situations happen. You never know. He could have came and had 40, you know, the other day, nobody would have said anything. But I just feel bad for him because I know how bad he wanted to play and help his team. Length is something that scouts talk about and fans in the media don't. Toronto looks just too big and with Bogie, KD's length out, Looney out, Boogie 60%.

I think the series is over. Yeah, you know what? I don't think that... The thing is what Toronto is what I've been looking at is Toronto has seven guys who can defend, literally can defend. You know, Van Vleek, something off the bench defending. Powell gives you energy defending. Then you have the starters from Kauai Leonard to Danny Green

to Sey Akam. Seyakum. to a player of defensive player a year. Defensive player a year was Danny Green. Markisaw. Oh, he was. And Danny Green made an all-N-B-A defensive team one year.

People think he's a shooter. He made all-N-A defense one year. And then Kauai Leonard, defensive player to year. So you have so many defensive player to year that can play one-on-one defense that can switch and play anybody defensively. That's what gives Golden State a problem. And you're not healthy.

But when Kevin Durant's there, you can start him at the five. So now, Markisaw, you're in trouble. So the series changed then. Yeah, I mean, I keep saying to people, this is nothing against Toronto. But if Michael Jordan was out of a finals, it's a different finals. Kevin Durant's emergence. Kevin Durant came back for a quarter. It was the best quarter of the Warriors played in the series.

I mean, he changes all the matchups. Right, right. He definitely changes. He forces Mark Gassal to run out and guard a significantly better athlete. Exactly. So now you have a massive defensive hole instead of a strength against Andrew Bogot or boogie that can't move. Exactly. It's a game changer.

Yeah. Catino Mobley's joining us. All right. So yesterday I had Rashad Phillips on. Rashad's an interesting dude. Kobe Bryant calls him the best player never drafted. He was a two-time Horizon player, went over to like Latvia, Italy dominant scoring record player.

And now Rashad does some scouting. He has his own YouTube stuff, his own podcast. And last year, so I bring him on for the draft. And last year, he was just like Colin, Tray Young's going to light this league up. Luke Adonche is going to be really good. And I'm like, yeah, we'll see. He was right. So yesterday, he's not on Zion like me.

He likes John Morant. Here's what he said. Jah Morant, Murray State. He's dynamic. Fantastic. As a point guard, let's look at it like football. Point guards are like superstar quarterbacks, okay? The Trey Youngs, the Jaya Marant's.

Those guys are like Patrick Mahomes. When you take the bigs like Zion Williamson and DeAndre Aiton, they're like defensive ends. So do you want a guy that can throw 50 touchdown passes or a guy that maybe can get you 15 sats? I don't know if I make the point guard quarterback correlation. perfectly. My rule is always. I love that.

I like bigger athletes. Zion's 280. 82 games, eight preseason, 22 playoffs. 6-390-pound guy or 6-7-and-a-half 280-pound guy.

Stephen Curry's been doing pretty well doing it. I know, but Curry's been hurt a lot too. This league's been dominated by big men. KD. Not yet. Magic.

Dr. J. Michael, Will. The prototype now is more so that 6. 7, 6, 6, 8. The wing guy. Right, right. But Trey Young is special. Like, Luca Donch's a 6-8 point card special, right?

And that job, Moran kid, super special. He's a pro before he came to the pros. He's amazing at the pick and roll. He's a lockdown defender. He's long. He's athletic. I mean, he has a pro game. And I think with him being 6-4, 6-5, like, he's pretty good.

No, no, I think he's smart. I think he's a all-star year two. No, I think he's really good. I think he's actually, you know, we talked about this. Westbrook was a great athlete, but was not a five-star recruit, was not, I've never felt like he's a perfectly refined basketball player. He may be the best athlete in the game. John Morant's a better basketball talent than Westbrook.

That is true. Much more refined passer. I think he's actually, he's a better shooter today. So it's weird. Like, to say that John Morant's better than Westbrook, you get pushback. I think a year in a John Morant, you're going to go, he's the next thing. Well, I'm going to say this to you. And the reason why I agree with Phillips is this.

When you're playing basketball, if I have even a smaller guard, I can dictate the game if I have an OK big. If I have a really good big and I have an OK guard, it's hard. That's Memphis. It's hard. It's very hard. Right? Because that big is as good as you are.

Anthony Davis, right? You need somebody to bring that ball up. You need someone to really dominate. You're not controlling tempo. You're not controlling the game. And that's what the... You look at the really great teams. The guards control the game.

Not the bigs. You know, Coutino, it's funny. Everybody romanticizes the old NBA. And I'm always like, listen, those Nick teams, four guys couldn't shoot a jumper. Right. I mean, I love Charles. That was terrible.

Anthony May. John Starks couldn't shoot. And I'm like... He was so streaky. tonight, if you look in the NBA tomorrow night, almost Marcus Saul can hit a three. Outside of Bogot, everybody that will play can hit a three. So you force me, I got to go out and guard you. I used to be able to, bow outlaw, you wouldn't even look at him today.

Chris Dudley. I mean, we romanticized the past. It is a guard wing shooters league. Do you think Zion will be able to shoot? I think he'll be able to shoot, but to me he's like, He's like Blake Griffin to me right now. And that's not disrespectful because Blake Griffin is amazing. I love Blake.

But he came in Raw. He came in Raw. And I think Zion is the same to me as Blake because the evolution of basketball, right? When you start getting 6-7, 6-8 coaches, they're not telling you work on your post-up game. They say work on your jump shot, work on your ball handling, right? That's what they're telling you now. Back in the day, it was totally different. This Blake came in, he already knew how to dribble really well with three balls.

boom, boom, boom, boom, throwing three ball dribbles. He was just self-conscious with his jump shot. When Zion gets that, he'll be even better. But I don't think he'll have that impact like a Jean-Morant or a Tray Young because they're guards. They control the whole game. I think the Pelicans, I think they want Lonzo Ball in that trade with the Lakers. Oh, that'd be beautiful.

Lonzo, Zion. That'd be beautiful. That's where I think Zion, whereas John Morant may not have a finisher for his great passes. in Memphis, Zion will have a great distributor for his eye. So to me, I think that's the rub and that deal. I think it would be done today.

Yeah. But the Pelicans want Lonzo. Lakers are like, you can take one of our forwards, take our number four pick, have the, Lakers don't want to give up Lanzo. Lanzo special. Well, Colin, I promise you, I'm telling you, this kid to me is like a J-Sink, he's so good, and he's tall. He's big.

Oh, no, he's smart. Lanzo, I stood next to him one time. He's six, five and a half. He's big. Long. A long, six, five, and a half. And his little brother is even taller. Yeah. It's ridiculous. Good seeing you continue. Thanks for having. Don't skip meals. Drink Soylent. Complete meal in a bottle. Plant protein, essential nutrients, 20% off your first case. If you go to Soylent.com and put in the code Herd 2-0, Heard 20. Veteran newsman John Goulet.

No. No. Turn on the news. This is the Herdline News. Colin Rams running back Todd Gurley's knee was one of the major storylines of last year's playoffs in Super Bowl. He kept suiting up to play, but he was basically ineffective and they were just given the ball to C.J. Anderson more than him. Many people, including you, thought it's a pretty big issue. Todd Gurley does not see it

that way. He said, quote, I had bigger problems to worry about coming out of college. This is small. Is he downplaying the potential issue here? You got a running back with knee problems at his age? Well, they did draft in the third round a really, really good running back. And I think

what Bucky Brooks said, I think you go into a season say, we're not going to have him in the OTAs, not going to do much camp, not going to play preseason. And you say, listen, we'd like to give him 12 carries and two catches, 16 touches instead of 24. And if he has to take, like the Patriots do, you know, second week of October, third week in November, you sit him. So I think they drafted a running back to take off about 30% of his workload. This is what New England's been doing for years.

James White will have 12 catches. The next two weeks, he's not on the roster. I mean, they just decide not to play them. So I think in the NFL now, Zeke is a rarity. I think you need two running backs. I think that's what the league's becoming. It was funny. It felt like it was trending that way in the NFL for a while to go back to two.

And then all of a sudden, Gurley and Zeke made it, oh, no, you don't. And I think that was maybe a mistake. Because I'm sure the Cowboys would like to give some carries to other running backs, too. So with the success of the Raptors in the playoffs, a lot of people started thinking Kauai Leonard would stay in Toronto after this season. But FS1 NBA analyst Rick Buecker said with Doug Gottlieb yesterday, that probably is not

going to happen. The latest that I've heard is that he's going to be elsewhere. We'd like to win a championship. We'll give that to the Toronto Raptors as a parting gift. But ultimately, this wasn't his decision to go there. Appreciates what they've done to get him through

this season. But as long as he can be assured that he is going to be treated the same way. the next place that he goes as far as the proverbial load management and how they handle him physically, then he'll be playing elsewhere next year. It's an interesting point that Buecker brings up that he didn't choose to go to Toronto. So as much as he might be enjoying it, he might have thought in his head like there's nothing that could happen that would make you want to stay here. I mean, you can't get a read on the guy.

He doesn't have any emotions. He's not human. I mean, do you think, do you think, let me ask you this. Do you think the outcome of the series changes his mind and either direction? Kawhi Leonard. I think he, I think Kauai has, has made his mind up. I think he knows. So you don't think it matters if they win.

I don't, I never bought into that narrative. I think if you make your mind that, listen, the fact he got him to the championship, the people that want to criticize him for leaving will regardless of the outcome, how could you leave an NBA champ? How could you leave us this close? and the people that defend the player over the system, which is more me in the NBA. It's a players-driven league, so I support player mobility.

So whatever he decides to do, I support the player in this because I've seen GMs and owners move off players. Why can't players move off teams? I think the only hiccup, you could see, might be, because we all think the Clippers are a major suitor for him, are they cool with the load management? I think because that's not the way their team was this year they wouldn't be but do you make an exception for a guy

well to take Kauai you'll just deal with whatever he offers sure I think the Klippers you know beggars choosers whatever they say how does that sit with a Patrick Beverly a guy that well I think because they got to the finals and load management worked I think it's an easy sell to the locker room guys this is the way he does it and it works listen if you get Kauai 63 games you're happy The Clippers are very happy with that.

Sure. And finally, yesterday your prediction for game six of the NBA finals was Raptors Big. Yes. I believe it was what you said. Now, I don't know if you saw this. The initial line came out at what the Warriors has four and a half point favorites. Right. It has since been bet down to three point favorites, so some people might be agreeing with you.

Now, keep in mind, the Warriors were favored roughly the same amount in games three and four in Oakland and lost both of them. I think the Raptors lead by eight to ten at half and win by them. By 20. Win by 20. Well, that leads me to my question then. You think the Raptors are going to win by 20. They're getting three. I've already made the bet.

Mortgage payment. Already made the bet. You go in mortgage payment? No. No. I'm betting Raptors. Really? I think emotionally.

Money line? You're taking them straight up? I am taking them straight up to win comfortably. I think it's one of my safer bets. That's a pretty big downer for the end of. Yeah, it's a clunky. I think the emotion of Durant leaving has taken the wind out of

Golden State sales. I mean, you read all the quotes. It's all about Durant's, not about the game. Like it feels like the season ended for Golden State. Nice win, season over. And Toronto's one of those teams. When they have a really bad fourth quarter, they'll come back and play really well in the first half. It feels like the Warriors can't build a lead on them.

Every time they start to build a lead, the Raptors hit a couple buckets and keep it close. I agree. Veteran newsman, John Gulley. Well, that's the news. And thanks for stopping by. The herd lie news.

By the way, I get asked this occasionally. Calling it's June. Calling it's July. How come you don't talk baseball? And I always say, I wait until October. I saw this yesterday. Mike Trout is on pace to finish the season. I'm reading Buster Olney's Twitter with 150 hits, 147 walks,

123 runs, 44 homers, 17 steals, and an OPS of whatever. He is absolutely amazing, and the Angels have the third worst road attendance in baseball. He has no drawing power. The Astros just won a World Series, last in road attendance. Cleveland in a World Series three years ago, second last road attendance. It's not, don't blame Cleveland for that because last year the Cavaliers led the NBA and road attendance because of LeBron. The NBA has star power, baseball just doesn't.

Mike Trout is easily the best player. And nobody goes and watches Mike Trout when he comes to their town. And this is not a knock on baseball. I talk about baseball in the postseason. It is become, it's a very lucrative sport. The sports never made more money. It is a local sport. So if I was a local host or doing local TV and radio, I would talk about it all the time.

If I lived in St. Louis, Detroit. If I lived in Philadelphia with Bryce Harper, it's not a national business because they don't have breakthrough national names. Mike Trout's the best player. Comes into your town? Crickets. Westbrook comes into your town. LeBron, Anthony Davis, Ben Simmons, Joel M. Bid, Kevin Durant, Steph Curry, Damien Lillard, drawing power. So there are certain sports that are very good national topics, NFL and NBA, athletes that cut through.

There are certain topics that are great local sports, baseball and college basketball, that don't have the name power, the drawing power. But baseball's not going away. Baseball is incredibly lucrative. It's never made more money. It just tends to be until October very much a local business. but Mike Trout's on pace to have one of the great seasons in the history of baseball. He's an unbelievable kid and a great talent.

Angels, third worst road attendance in baseball. Astros World Series, worst road attendance in baseball. Got to have drawing power for us. I mean, when I talk golf, who do I talk? Tiger Woods. I mean, pretty simple, right? When I talk NFL, it's usually seven teams, Eagles, Patriots, Steelers. Now the Browns are noteworthy.

Oakland's a mess. You know, I go to Aaron Rogers, Drew Brees, and New Orleans. That's so when people say it's just the way the business works, baseball is national come October. And this year, the Yankees, everybody's hurt. They're still playing great. The Dodgers are the best team in baseball. So if you get a Dodger Yankee World Series,

that is a noteworthy national discussion. Coming up on best for last, ASBO just announced a Raiders. be this year's Hard Knocks TV show on HBO. And they have released their first promos, and they're a little odd. Decide for yourself, that's coming up next. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern, 9 a.m. Pacific on Fox Sports Radio, FS1, and the IHard Radio app.

It's amazing. The Women's World Cup is up 6% off the last Women's World Cup, and that's with the worst time zone. That was the Vancouver one, which perfectly worked for our time zone. Europe doesn't. it's up 53% over 2011 where it wasn't a European time zone. So it's basically doubled the ratings in eight years of women's World Cup soccer ratings. The soccer doubters, I've just never understood. There's just certain people that's almost like in America, if you like soccer, you're weak.

Well, what about our football? Our football's never been stronger. Why would you be threatened by that? Like soccer? I've told you this, John. If I lined up sports that are my favorite to watch, like the biggest game in each sport, number one, NFL, a big NFL game, a Super Bowl is number one. Number two, a great NBA finals game.

Number three, United States World Cup matches. And number four, a huge college football game. And then number five would be, you know, be kind of like a great baseball playoff game in October or a great March Madness game in March. And then also I've watched every big U.S. Open Masters. Those are big. And that's my seven kind of. But like U.S. men's and women's World Cup, I love watching those games.

Well, it's only once every four years. Yes. There's more a special feel to it. I used to be an Olympic fan. But the Olympics, over time, have been replaced as the marquee four-year event by the World Cup because I'm a season ticket holder to L.A.F.C. So I watch soccer during the course of a year. So segueing into a international World Cup is easy.

I don't watch luge ever. So I find you have these disparate sports in the Olympics. I just don't watch. So I've got to get kind of emotionally, viscerally connected to the Olympics when I don't watch these sports. I do to some degree. But it's much easier for me to segue as my interest in soccer has increased over the last decade with my stepson's watching it. and, you know, the networks I work at have more of it. It's on more.

I watch more and being a season ticket holder. Well, the best for last today, the Raiders were selected for the upcoming season of HBO's Hard Knocks. That is sort of the go-to NFL reality show, HBO's Hard Knocks. Lions were eligible, Giants were eligible, 49ers were eligible, Redskins were eligible, just not that interesting. This team is built for the season. show. Gruden, Antonio Brown, Vantes Burfec, Ritchie Incognito,

legendary franchise, final year in Oakland. This will be the best Hard Knocks ever. Gruden's great on TV. Antonio Brown's going to be great on TV. So HBO has just released their first promo. We got our hands on it for HBO's Hard Knocks, and here it is.

Coming soon, from the network that brought you the five-part series Chernobyl comes another epic disaster. Hard Knocks, featuring Oakland Raiders only on HBO. Just Chernobyl, by the way, is unbelievable. Yeah, that's

a little harsh, but now HBO does have, I'm told, does have a backup promo. Coming soon, the legendary Oakland Raiders begin their chase for football's ultimate title in a series that critics are saying is like

Game of Thrones with an even sloppier ending, Hard Knocks, only on HBO. People got, so Whitlock, he thought he was beating me watching Game of Thrones. And I've been telling him now for years, Billions is better. Whitlock came around on that and finally the other day text me and said, Billions actually knows how to finish strong.

You can't have a weak ending to a movie and say, oh, that's a great. When's the last time you watched a movie and said, that's a terrible ending, but you love the movie? I don't think I've ever seen that. Like Game of Thrones was so bad at the end, I thought it took a little of the shine off it, right? a little? No, how would you know?

You haven't watched one second of Game of Thrones. I know I didn't watch a second, but I just theoretically, you can't have a bad last 12 minutes of a movie. I do watch, and yes, it did take the luster off a little bit. Billions has gotten greater. Billions has been unbelievable. To be fair, billions doesn't have a series finale yet. It's been very good.

Oh, we have another HBO promo on the Raiders. Oh, here it is. Coming soon. John Gruden, Antonio Brown, Vantes Perfect and Ritchie Incognito, all-star in a show that critics are saying is like entourage, but with more jerks. Hard Knocks, Raiders, only on HBO. Speaking of billions, Brian Koppelman is scheduled to be on our Saturday morning podcast. He's the executive producer.

He's the executive producer. So our Saturday morning podcast, we do it about 40 weeks a year, and it's this week. we have one, so it will be, and I think if the Warriors win tomorrow, I think I'm going to work Monday. And if the Warriors don't win, I'm just going to take the week off. It's weird because, you know, I'm kind of bummed out because I have to schedule vacations in advance. I can't just tell, you know, Fox I'm leaving. So I scheduled this four months ago, and I knew I was going to miss the draft, but I knew it was a two, three player draft. I don't care about that.

what if the Lakers make the AED move and I'm on vacation? And I think they are. Well, you miss the KD signing to the Warriors was on July 4th and you were off that day. That's why I'll never take 4th of July off again. You know, it's funny because you know in our business, you can't take anything off Labor Day until like February 2nd, right? A little Christmas time, but you get that you got to work. And then in the NBA, like April, starting with like April 20th, I've got the NFL draft in the NBA so I can't miss any time. April, May, June.

And then the only time you can go. And then once the season ends, you get like eight days, then all the free agents sign for two weeks. So here I am taking a time off. And the Lakers are going to make a massive deal with Anthony Davis. So I'm praying they make it tomorrow. Here's what I'm thinking. The Lakers are going to make the move.

They would prefer the champion is crowned. And then they do it the next day. So, you know, you don't want to disrupt the finals as a franchise. You want your sport to have its kind of regal, elegant final. It's good for the league. Then you come. Remember Arod got years ago, right in the middle of a World Series, was talking about trade stuff and everybody freaked out.

Sports like you to get out of the way. That's the way they, finals, draft, free agency, thanks for flying United until October. What you don't want is Lakers, the morning of game six, doing an Anthony Davis-Lebron deal and everybody freaking out. out and nobody's talking about the finals. So I think the Lakers quite possibly, and David Griffin and those guys are thinking, Adam Silver, does Adam Silver step in and say, guys, I know you're going to make a trade. Can you wait till the series is over?

I mean, if I was a commissioner, is that within your jurisdiction to do that? Well, technically it can't go through anyway. So it would only be agreed to. So why not wait? Yeah, Adam Silver calls it, guys, let's stay out of the rumor mill. You can't do it anyway. Let's just not leak this crap until the finals are over. I would feel as a commissioner, I'd be comfortable saying that.

Maybe you could call into the show from your whitewater rafting trip. I will. You know I will. But talk back maybe. I'll do a talk back. From a mountain. From a river. From a raging river.

Last night, a blown call changed a game. This morning, the internet lost its mind. And nobody's telling you exactly what happened. That's where sports slice comes in. I'm Timbo. And every episode, we're cutting through the noise, breaking down the biggest moments in sports and giving you the real story

behind the headline. And we're going straight to the source the athletes themselves. Their locker room stories, their reactions in the moment, and the stuff nobody gets to hear. Listen to Sports Slice on the Iheart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast.

And for more, follow Timbo Sliced Life 12 in the TikTok podcast network on TikTok. 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, S&L'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, guys? This is Clever Taylor the 4th. And on my podcast, The Cliverts Show, I'm bringing you conversations about all kinds of stuff. Like being an internet famous referee.

We're in the middle of a game. This linebacker walks up to me, he goes, Hey, ref, my mom wants you to wave at her. What? Quarterback on office blue with 42. Hey, rec, my mama want you to wave at her. What? Hey, Miss Parker.

Listen to the Clifford show on the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. I'm Joey Dardano. and on my new podcast, Hope From a Hypocrite, I'll be changing lives, helping people in need with 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, recommend some of the most legally dubious advice known to me. This is Help from a Hypocrite, the worst advice from the dumbest people you know.

Listen to Help from a Hypocrite Wednesdays on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This is an I-Heart podcast. Guaranteed human.