The Herd with Colin Cowherd - The Herd - HOUR 1 - Giannis, Warriors, NIL

Episode Date: May 12, 2022

Doug Gottlieb in for Colin   We are underestimating Giannis' dominance The Warriors were embarrassed last night The problems with NIL rules   Guest: Frank Isoa   #douggottliebshowSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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

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Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's Superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. On the Look Back at it podcast. From 1979, that was a big moment for me.

84 was big to me. I'm Sam J. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick a year, unpack what went down, and try to make sense of how we survived it. With our friends, fellow comedians, and favorite authors. Like Mark Lamont Hill on the 80s. 84 was a wild year. It was a wild year.

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Be sure to catch us live every weekday from 12 to 3 Eastern, 9 to noon Pacific on Fox Sports Radio and FS1. Find your local station for the herd at Fox Sports Radio.com or stream us live every day on the iHeartRadio app by searching Heard. You're listening to Foxxport's. Sports Radio. Welcome in. This is The Herd, wherever you may be, and however you may be making this part of your day.

Thanks so much. I'm Doug Gottlieb. In for Colin Cowherd. We've got a great Thursday show for you. Collins over in Italy. Basking in the pasta and the sunshine. And here we are grinding and out in the states. Frank Isola is going to try.

Join us from Sirius XM NBA Radio. We'll talk a little bit about last night a tale of two very, very different games. Our guy, John Middlecough, in the second hour of the show, of course, former NFL scout, you hear him on the three now podcast. We'll discuss all things quarterback. And John Palmeros is going to join us third hour of the show. Baseball is being played. And, you know, every 20 years or so, the Angels are actually good.

But how about the Yankees and the Star Wars? and the start of the season for for the savages in the Bronx. We got a lot to get to. I got some thoughts for you on the NIL and transfer portal, plus Nick Sabin with a curious, I don't know, nothing about nothing about nothing. And even Dionne Sanders hopping in on the name, image, and likeness and the idea of paying college athletes.

So we've got a lot to get to today. Let's start with last. Last night, there were, like we said, two very different games. I mean, at some point, we're going to have to get to what the? What? I mean, if you would have said, hey, last night, 134.95 in the Warriors Grizzlies game, you would have said, the Warriors, they put the Grizzlies out of their misery, right? No John Morant.

Yeah, not so much. Not so much. I mean, the crazy part about it is they scored 134, and they only scored 15 in the fourth quarter. They took, I mean, they didn't take their foot off the gas pedal. They just glided on the way in. It could have been worse. But let's start with the Bucks and the Celtics. If you watch the game, I believe you know this to be true,

that it felt like the Celtics had it, didn't it? To anybody else, you watch that game, you're like, man, the Celtics got this game, you know? Here they are leading throughout, leading throughout the fourth quarter. You're at home. Al Horford gets a dunk with 212 to go. Right?

you make an offense to defense substitution. Bobby Portis, you know, misses a shot. You're up six. You get a rebound. And that, you know, look, no NBA lead is safe. But that feels like that. And what happened? And then what happened?

Yonis puts up a three and it goes in. So I think one of the things that we've done here is I understand he plays in Milwaukee but when they won an NBA championship last year, right, that did happen. And the best player in the playoffs, the best player in the game, the best player in the finals was Janice.

Remember last year was the year in which he struggled so mightily at the free throw line. And then when he finally kind of worked it out, Janice has 50 in the last basketball game of the NBA season last year. Janice Antenacumpo, the two-time MVP who did not win it last year, did not win it this year. He had 50 and 14. 50 and 14. 50 and 14.

No, there's no skip of a record here. I think the point is that you have a guy who's won back-to-back MVP. a guy who finally found a way to the top of the mountain last year. And look, I'm fully well aware. They lost to the Nets. I mean, they beat the Nets, but they lost the first two games. And it felt like a mismatch. It felt like the Nets were far better.

Then Kairie gets hurt and James Hardin is not right. And in game seven, Kevin Durant has his toe on the line. Otherwise, there is no next round for the Milwaukee Bucks. Like, that did happen. you do on some level need to survive. But there's this weird thing that once you become kind of a champion, you have this champion's confidence. And it goes hand in hand.

Like you're not going to win unless you have that confidence and belief, but the confidence in belief generally comes from winning. But whatever it is, last night was the perfect embodiment of two teams. One has been there and found a way to do it. the other one may ultimately get there, but has not and couldn't find a way to close the door. It really is that simple. When Janice Antenacumpo, and the weakest part of his game is his perimeter, especially his three-point shooting, and down six, he lines up and knocks in a three to cut it from six to three.

That's the ultimate in champion's confidence, right? I mean, look, the reality of basketball, the reality of sport similarly is the three Cs, right? Confidence, culture, and conditioning. And people freak out all the time over Mike Boodenholzer and how much he plays Janus. But it's pretty obvious that he believes, and I'm sure that he has statistical data to back him up, that there's a limited amount of time that he can be himself. Play at that level, play both ends of the floor, and be ultimately effective, especially at the end of games. That's the conditioning.

The confidence comes from not just the years of work, but the success of last year. And the culture that they have built in that building. Culture is a word we throw around, not just with every sports team. I'm sure in your place of work, it's the exact same thing. but the Milwaukee Bucks, they don't break under that pressure. They don't wave the white flag. And if you look at it, as good as the Celtics are, as good as the Celtics are, take a look at this series in particular, right?

Because I think the Celtics, if anything, are actually built to stop Janus. That's the truth. They're built to stop Janus. But if you're built to stop Janus and you have Jason Tatum and Jalen Brown and Grant Williams and, I mean, just kind of go through the list of guys that you have. Their roster is, you remember when Michael Jordan used to play and every year they feel like there'd be a new Jordan stopper? That was Gerald Wilkins. Dominique's brother, Gerald Wilkins, once was pronounced to be the Jordan Stopper, right?

similar size, similar athletic ability, great defender, great toughness, right? And what would happen every time there'd be a Jordan stopper, Jordan would take it personally and destroy that human being. This is a team that is built to stop the likes of a Janus. Maybe not Janus individually, because though their games are dissimilar, the ability to be 6-7 to 6-10 and handle the basketball, shoot, score, dominate the game. Ron James, Kevin Durant, Janice and Tenacompo,

right? Luca Donchick. Like all of those guys dissimilar, maybe body types, different way of doing the same thing, but similar in their overall dominance and how you play through them and they have the ball and you put a little guy on and they either shoot over you or dominate you physically, you put a big guy on them and they go around you, right? It's all kind of similar in that sense.

It's one thing to have 50 in the final NBA finals game. It's one thing to have 40, to have 11, 3 assists. Did have 7 turnovers. He is not in any way perfect. But to have the competitive greatness of stepping up and making a big three when you're down 6, to making all those plays defensively, to breeding the type of confidence that makes a team believe, down six on the road, we got it.

I almost feel like maybe it's because he's Greek, maybe it's because it's Milwaukee, maybe it's because when he won the MVP's, they didn't win the NBA finals. Maybe it's because he hasn't gone head-up with LeBron or when he went head-up with Durant, it wasn't in a game seven of a conference finals, right?

There's a lot of maybes. Hey, maybe, maybe, maybe, maybe. I can't tell you. Maybe it's because his jump shot does, it ain't pretty. You know? I think a good portion of it is his size, his length, the fact that he just kind of plays downhill and almost Will Chamberlain style physically dominates the game.

I get the sense that we underestimate his greatness. I'm guilty of it just like anybody else. You know, I'm guilty of it just like anybody else. But if you stopped and took a breath and realized that a team that started Brooke Lopez, West Matthews, and Grayson Allen, and even Drew Holliday, who made a couple of incredible plays, big three, a couple big steals down the stretch. There has never been a bigger Drew Holiday fan than me. When he played in high school basketball, Campbell Hall High School, I watched him with Ben Howland,

play at Ocean View High School in a tournament called Tournament of Champions, and I was like, you got yourself one hell of a player. And obviously didn't go great with him and him and Ben when he was at UCLA. But there's never been a bigger Drew Holiday fan. But if we're honest, they don't have Chris Middleton, who's their second best player, their go-to score in the fourth quarter. Like, that's what he does. And as good as Drew is, like we're talking about Drew Holiday like he's a Hall of Fameer now.

It's almost like what Kobe did for Pal Gasol. Drew Holiday, remember, played with Anthony Davis when he's in New Orleans. Some of it was health, but they couldn't win there. He's been all over this league. Hadn't been able to win. Now on this type of stage, he's the ultimate winner, and he's, because of injury, the number two, and making those number two-like plays down the strike.

I think that if we give credit to guys like LeBron, guys like magic, guys like Jordan for being the rising tide that lifts all ships, you're going against a team designed to stop you as the type of player without your second best weapon, with a room full of mooks of guys that feel like they're imminently replaceable anywhere else. and down six you make a big three and make a couple of plays and you win a game, I feel like we're underestimating the Greek freak Janice and Tenacupo's dominance. We'll get Frank Isola's thoughts upcoming next, in addition to which upcoming this hour, wait to you what Nick Saban had to say about tampering with guys in the transfer portal,

and Dion Sanders, and what he had to say about name, image, and likeness. But coming up next, Janus, what the hell happened to the Warriors? And how do you fix the Lakers? Did you hear what Sean Mark said about Kyrie Irving? That's next in the herd. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern, 9 a.m. Pacific on Fox Sports Radio, FS1, and the IHeart Radio app.

Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal, but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's Superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth.

Listen to Superhuman on the I-Hard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what you're saying. Yep, that's me, Clifford Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits,

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This is The Herd. All right, so last night we had one really competitive game and another one that was alarmingly non-competitive. The Grizzlies without John Morant, completely and utterly, eviscerated the Golden State Warriors. That plus, man, wait to hear what Sean Marks had to say when he was asked. I thought a very reasonable question in regards to Kyrie Irving's future with the Brooklyn Nets. More on that, let's welcome in Frank Isola. He's written about the league.

He's covered the league. You can hear him on Sirius XMNBA radio talking about the league. Okay, we'll get him back in a second. I have a little communication problem. But, I mean, this, I don't know what's. The Celtics collapse and the Bucks winning, honestly, is probably the least surprising of what took place, you know, of what took place yesterday. Or maybe it's Sean Mark's feeling like he said enough is enough. There did feel like there was a lie in the sand, but the Warriors being non-competitive against the Grizzlies without John Morand.

And I understand, hey, regular season, the Grizzlies were actually better in terms of wins and losses. Some of that's who they played. Some of that it's just the regular season. Frank Isola joints. Frank, how do the Grizzlies run the Warriors out of Memphis without John Moran? It's one thing to be winning. It's another thing to be up by as many points as they were up. I mean, they did go 20 and 5 without him during the regular season.

And I think, you know, Desmond Bain playing a lot better has something to do. with it. Remember, if you go back to game four without Jamerant, they were up eight in that fourth quarter of the game, so I think Memphis is going to feel like yeah, we're not 55 points better than the Warriors, but we're also, we shouldn't have blown that game like we did

in the fourth quarter of the other night. Give him a lot of credit. Taylor Jenkins is still a guy that most, you know, casual NBA fans, they wouldn't know him if they tripped over him, but he's done a really good job. And as you know, they got guys to compete, man. Desmond Bain, Brandon Clark, Dylan Brooks. Those guys get after it.

have an edge to them and have an attitude that plays really well. Not a lot of teams could go 20 and 5 without their best player in the lineup, that's the sure. What does it say about the Warriors? I mean, they just, I know you don't have Steve Curry, you have Mike Brown, but it feels like a fairly free-flowing team, and you mentioned it. Like, let's not act like, let's not act like the last game in the game five was some sort of rap for the Warriors.

They didn't shoot the ball well, and they just survived at. home, a couple of, I thought, ill-time Dylan Brooks shots and plays. What does it say about where the Warriors are? It's funny. My radio partner in the morning, Brian Scaliborian, he's been saying for a month now, he still thinks the Warriors are going to the finals. First of all, they have to get out of this round for me. But I watch them play, and I think, you know, not having like an athletic player

at the rim, like they can actually use it. Listen, a high-end type would be a healthy Anthony Davis at the very least. Even a guy like Javille McGee would help them. I just, to me, like Clay Thompson has good moments. He still looks like next year he'll be better than he is this year. He's just a little too up and down. I mean, think about this, Doug. He was a minus 45 in the 30-plus minutes he played.

That meant his team was out scored by 45 with him on the court in a playoff game. That's kind of hard to do. I get it. There's small lineup. Everyone calls it the death lineup, yada, yada, yada. But if I don't know, I think if they were to play Phoenix in the conference files, obviously still a distinct possibility. I just think Phoenix is just a little too tough for them.

I like Golden State, but how is the last two games not somewhat eye-opening? Down eight without John Moran at home, and that was a nipp and tuck game right down to the wire. And then last night, you're not even competitive. You got blown out of the gym. I don't know, but it is, it was, it's crazy to watch. Let's get to, let's get to Celtics Bucks. I guess the classic cliche sports radio, did the Bucs win? or did the Celtics lose it, but what jumps out to you most in terms of up, six, down six,

what took place over the last minute and a half of that game? Yeah, and I think, you know, with a guy like Janus, he's not a great three-point shooter, but he did knock down two of them in the fourth quarter, especially that one after, you know, off of a broken play. And how many times we've seen it, you know, the most memorable one would be the Ray Allen three when he's with Miami off of a broken play, you know, offensive rebound, and you get it. you know, having been to a lot of these games in the 90s with the Knicks, it kind of reminded me of that.

It's like a game, you're at home, you're up 14, 10 minutes to go, and it feels like you're going to win that game, and then somehow you wake up the next morning and your team lost. I mean, that to me is a devastating loss for the Boston Celtics. And just even in the last, you know, if you look at the last three plays of the game, you know, Bobby Porter grabs the rebound. And Marcus Scott, I love the guy. I'd have it on my team any day of the week.

He's so aggressive. He knocks into Jalen Brown, and that's why Bobby Portis was able to get the rebound, and then he gets his shot. Then Marcus Smart gets his shot blocked by Drew Holiday. Then, of course, he has the turnover at the end. But I also thought on the play, you know, when they're down one, they're running that play for Jason Tatum. And Tatum's got to find a way to get open.

You know, it's like you got to walk the ball in that situation. They're out of timeout. So, you know, Derek White has got to throw the inbound pass. He throws into Marcus' smart. I thought it's smart and made the right play going to the basket. Drew Holiday just made a better play. But that is a brutal, brutal loss. And if you go back to game three, Doug, they were in Milwaukee.

They were up one with 65 seconds to go. Jalen Brown misses a wide open three. Then Marcus Smart misses a wide open three. Then Milwaukee ends up coming down. They score the next four points of the game, and they win it. That's how close they were to winning that game. All they had to do last night was grab the darn rebound after Janus missed a free throw, and chances are they're going to win the game there.

So just a couple, like a miss shot here, being able to snare a rebound off on this free throw by Janice. And I give the bucks a lot of credit. How symbolic was it with Janice there with the cut over his eyelid looking like a box with the blood is dripping down the right side of his face? He just finds a way. He just never stops competing. And I give him credit because it's tough, you know, they need Holiday to have big scoring games.

Because without Chris Middleton, Doug, go look at what Chris Millington did last year in the playoffs. You know, against Miami, against Brooklyn, the first game that they won against Brooklyn. I think he had 38 points. He had a 40-point game in the finals. They need Chris Millington. And if he's not going to be there, Holliday has to play big. And he did both in game three and in game five.

And those are the two games, Go Walkie won. Frank Guy Sola, join a serious X-M NBA radio course has written about the league, covered the league for years, not just on radio. I want to get your thoughts on what Sean Marks said yesterday. So let me play this for you. for Sean Marks had a press conference. He's the general manager of the Brooklyn Nets.

Of course, he's, he's an Aussie, and he's a guy who's from, really, that San Antonio Spurs organization, right? That's when he came in. That was kind of his thought process. Here's what he said about when he was asked specifically about the organization and their desire to keep Kyrie long term. I think we know what we're looking for. We're looking for guys that want to come in here, be part of something bigger than themselves, play selfless, play team basketball, and be available. And that goes not only for Kyrie, but for everybody here.

But by the way, just quick correction, I forgot. He's from New Zealand, not Australia. He's a Kiwi. That's my mistake. But the point is that when he says, he gives a non-answer, a yes or no, hey, do you want him back, a non-answer. And then at the end, he says we want guys that are available. one guys that play for each other. Right?

He's kind of going through all these things that anyone who's mildly critical of Kyrie Irving would use those words. What do you take from what Sean Mark said? So when the Nets lost their final game of the season when they were swept by Boston, Kyrie at his press conference right after the game said, yeah, you know, me and Kev, we got to get in a room with Joe and with Sean and figure this out. There's not delusional things at times. He doesn't realize that he's part of the game.

the problem. You know, he's played since joining the Nets, he's played in 103 games, and he's missed to 123, which is exactly a season and a half worth of games. The fact that he doesn't realize that the problem is that he doesn't play in us. We can all sit here and talk about his skill, and he dribbles the ball,

how talent it is, this or that, he just doesn't play enough. And that is a major, major issue. You know, it's funny, you know, 20 years ago with Iverson, they were calling him out because he wasn't practicing enough, and he said, you know, practice, talk about practice. Now we're actually talking about playing in games. That's where the net's all with

Kyrie, you tell me, Doug, did they have to have a press conference ever calling out Michael Jordan for not being available enough or for Kobe Bryant or did they do that for Devin Booker? Does Bob Myers ever talk about Steph Curry, how we have to, you know, he needs to be available more? Pat Riley ever do that for any of the players in Miami? So at some point, Kyrie Irving has to look at himself and say, you know, it's not just that people want to criticize me and the media comes after me and fans up in Boston are critical of me. I just don't play enough. And with Kyrie, doesn't play enough, and it's always something.

This year it was a vaccine status. In regards to where you fall on that politically, he just didn't play a game himself. So it's always something with him. And the Brooklyn Nets, this was this press conference did not take place the day after the season. They waited a couple of weeks. And Sean Martin was just waking up in the morning saying, you don't what to do today? I'm not going to kind of indirectly call out Kyrie Irving. He didn't do that.

So clearly everyone is on board with that, and I would think Kevin Durant as well, because guess what? this is Kevin Durant's legacy, him coming to Brooklyn. And getting swept in the first round by Boston is not a good look. The Nets, I said it all year long. They treated the season like a bit of an inconvenience, like they were just magically going to get everything together during the playoffs. They were a part-time team, and Kyrie was a part-time player all year long. And guess what?

You got swept by a team in Boston, which was a full-time team all season long. No question. He did say that he hadn't talked to Kevin Durant. I don't know if that's real or if he went. through, you know, Katie's representation to make sure he told him, but, you know, Katie's been overseas traveling, following his guy, Mike James around and watching him play in Euro League. But I wonder what it means, right? Does it, does it mean they, I mean, look, this is in regards it feels like to the contract extension, do they let him play out this last year and have him

earn it? Do they try and move him? What do you think it means for Kyrie and for the team? And that's the thing. So he has the player option where he can opt into his contract. if he opts out, and I think the nets are kind of in a position where, you know, if he's an asset, there's no question about it, I'm sure that they're thinking, well, we've got to get the guy in a short-term deal. How can you sign him long-term? Just look at his history. He doesn't play enough.

You're going to lock yourself into four or five years with him, but you'd be crazy. Maybe it's going to, maybe they're trying to do a one-plus-one or something to that effect. That's the biggest issue. You know this, Doug. It's Kevin Durant who's not a question mark. As long as Kevin Durant is healthy, you know, will be fine, even though he didn't have a great series against boss. But we know what Kevin Durant is all about.

He's all about basketball, all about winning. But now you have two guys, and Ben Simmons is going to be coming back from a back injury, a surgery, that is. And the last time we saw him play, he didn't want to shoot the ball and couldn't shoot the ball. So, Ben Simmons is a bit of a question mark. And then Kyrie Irving's a question mark.

If they're, you know, available, and if they're playing at the top of their games, they'll absolutely be effective. And the Nets will be a legitimate team. But those are two huge question marks. And for Kevin Durant, you know, this is, you know, you're entering that stage where you're going to be playing at a high level of four more years. You've got to try to figure this out. And I hope that he's on board with it because he's the one that's going to get a lot of criticism because he's the one that left Golden State to come to Brooklyn to try to make this work with Kyrie.

And thus far, they've only won one playoff series, one playoff series so far. Bill Plasky sat down with Jeannie Bus and one of his takeaways was, you know, Phil Jackson's going to have some say here. who are going to have some pull. There's a report that Phil Jackson favors the idea of trading LeBron. There is a feeling that maybe they hang on to Russell Westbrook. What do you think the Lakers should do? Yeah, and Bill Plasky, as you know, been there forever, knows people inside that organization, so he's getting that on good authority.

It's interesting with Phil Jackson because I was covering the Knicks when Phil made that comment about, you know, which is kind of just like an old guy saying, when he said, like, LeBron's posse, and LeBron took offense to it. And I also think that LeBron didn't appreciate the way that Phil was kind of treating Carmelo Anthony. So I always thought, even before this kind of became publicly, the idea that Phil was involved, you had to think that Jeannie Buss was using him as a sounding board the last couple of years when he's available.

I mean, they've been friends, they were boyfriend, girlfriend, girlfriend, and they were engaged to be married. So you had to figure that he was going to have some say. And, you know, Kurt Rambis is heavily involved. You know that when the Knicks, before they hired Jeff Hornacek as a coach before Phil did, one of the guys they interviewed who was a finalist was Frank Vogel. And lo and behold, Frank Vogel has to become the coach of the Lakers. So you know that Phil has been involved.

I actually don't think it's the craziest thing to trade LeBron because right now you have no assets if you're the Lakers and it looks like you're going to be in for a long rebuild. I don't know what you could get them. So you either have to make a decision. You know this, Doug. You either have to decide we're going to go all in with LeBron and try. to go for it because of the age that he's at. Or we're just going to say, you know what, we want a championship with him.

Let's move on and, you know, let's try to recoup some of these draft picks that we lost in the trade for Anthony Davis. It's a tough call. They're in a really, really rough spot. You know, I can't imagine how much better they're going to be next year. LeBron's going to be a year older. A bunch of these injuries end up catching up to you. But it's a, that's a fascinating story.

It's a really underrated big story. The idea that Phil might be, you know, if it was. up the fill, maybe he would trade LeBron James. I think this thing's going to become even bigger as the weeks and months go on. I tend to completely agree with you. Last thing,

you know, look, nobody wants, and I've talked to, as have you, plenty of kind of star players out there who will tell you, like one of the uncomfortable things when they're out in public is people wanting to touch them, but they're hugged them with their hands. I understand

that. That's Chris Paul's mom. It's a weird story, and she felt uncomfortable. I don't know if the guy knew it was Chris Paul's mom. There's a lot to that story I don't understand. I do know that there's this new feeling in the NBA with the players where Kevin Durant's done it, Devin Booker's done it, Chris Paul's done it, Russell Westbrook's done it, where players are either yelling back, talking back, or reacting. Luca did it.

I think it was game four when he was terrible defensively. He's walking off the court in Phoenix. It's not just a bad look, and I understand that people shouldn't be allowed. They shouldn't say anything they want to say to a player. But those also are your paying customers and, you know, cursing back at a dude when everybody can hear you. I don't know how that looks and how that feels. What do you think? Yeah, I don't think it's good either.

I also think now that everyone has a cell phone to play. so when people are kind of harassing the players, and if a player turns around in response to it, it's going to get recorded. So the players have to be aware of that. So I think back in the day, it probably happened a lot more than we thought. It's just that it wasn't being really recorded by anybody.

You know, when I first started covering the league, we used to sit court side all the time. And you know this, Doug. People who sit within five rows of the court, they almost feel like, well, part of the experience now is I'm supposed to start heckling the players. I'm not talking about everybody. but there are people that are like that.

Let's face it, the NBA kind of markets that with Spike Lee and Drake up in Toronto. They used to be the famous guy in Washington, Robert Thicker. Yeah, yeah. And the heckle. So I think there's this sense of the fans like, I'm kind of supposed to do it. It's all in good fun, but I do think certain times people obviously crossed the line. And I think what Chris Paul, what he tweeted, I think was wrong when he said, well, so fans could do whatever they want to us, but they could put their hands on us

and we can't do anything about it. Well, no. No fans are allowed to put their hands on. anybody. Not to put their hands on any fan, much less the, you know, a family member of one of the players, and they did kick these people out. So I do think, you know, fan decorum needs to be addressed, but also the players, too. Remember, there's something that happened in the playoffs, which I thought kind of got swept under the rug real quickly. Miles Bridges got ejected from that game against Atlanta, and some knucklehead, you know, was harassing him. He took his mouthpiece out

and threw it at the guy and hit some girl. And his explanation was letting me to hit her. meant to hit the guy. Well, either way, it's wrong. And I thought for sure he would be suspended. He only got fine. He threw his mouth. In the age of COVID, wherever or everything's about COVID, this, COVID, that. He threw his mouth.

He'd some 14-year-old girl in the head with it. How crazy is that? So you can't do something like that. I think the league kind of dropped the ball on that. And I think they try, you know, Kevin Durant crushed somebody out. He got fine for it at a game. Kyrie, obviously, up in Boston what he did. He ended up getting fine.

I think the players probably have rabid ears more than they used to. and maybe they feel a little more empowered or more freedom to go back at the fans. But I think on both sides, the behavior needs to improve a little bit. Frank, you're the best. We appreciate to join us. Thanks, Doug. All right, Doug Gottlieb in for calling this to Hurd. Let's get to Ryan Music with the news. No, no, no, no.

Turn on the news. This is the Hurdline News. What do you got, right? All right. Well, it was a potential close-out game for the Warriors last night. and, well, they actually didn't close much out of anything, themselves, the ones who ended up getting absolutely crushed by the Memphis Grizzlies by 39, even without their star point guard, John Morant.

I think Clay Thompson summed it up quite well. Let's take a listen to what Clay Thompson had to say about their performance. It was awful. It was embarrassing. From the opening tip, I mean, we didn't have great flow, and, you know, they were more aggressive than us, reflecting in the 30 free throws to our 13. We all had the mindset we were going to close it out tonight, but sometimes basketball is an exact science, and we play like a shell of ourselves. So like I said before, we'll watch film, like necessary adjustments, and you'll see a totally different effort on Friday.

Yeah, I mean, this game sort of felt like early on, the Warriors went down big early, and they just packed it in and we're like, hey, you know what, I guess we'll just take game six at home. You know, they even, Steph Curry only played 25 minutes. Clay played 25, Drayman 22, Jordan Pool 20. They knew that this one was over early and just sort of packed it in and said, all right, we're done here. Yeah, but it was, I mean, it's really alarming.

And, you know, it's interesting because every time you turn on an NBA game, there's a 20-point lead, you're like, all right, that'll be like two or three in the fourth quarter. And generally they are. And this one, I was, I'm watching the game. And I was like, let me come back to this. in a second. I had a couple of other things to do. And then every time he got worse. It got worse.

Yeah. You know, and with every, the other part is with every passing game, I don't think it's terrible for Clay Thompson, honestly, to play more basketball because it may help him get up to speed. But with every passing game, you run the risk of not just an embarrassing collapse, but also with injury. But this is two kind of stinkers in a row for the warriors. Granted, they survived, you know, they really survived game four. But this is not trending the way that people would think, especially considering, you know, Stephen Adams was barely playing before.

You don't have, it's, I think that's the story is not that it's a close-out game and that they got beat. The story is a close-out game, they got beat, and Memphis was just out the guy, you know? Yeah. It's one of the great things about basketball is, you know, five guys coming together. And just playing together, playing great basketball, everybody touches it, and everybody plays kind of above their level. But that was combined with an awful effort from the Warriors. And this very much makes me at least think,

damn, I don't know what they're, what they look like the rest of the playoffs. Yeah. No, it's it. The jaw thing is interesting. You know, I think at the end of game four, as you were saying, it seemed obvious, oh, this is where they needed John Morant because he's been so exceptional down the street. I mean, throughout the entire playoffs, almost every game throughout the game,

but especially late in game, he is their absolute closer. This game, when they just absolutely crush them from the beginning, you were like, wow, that was not to be expected. We'll wrap it up with this, Doug. You touched on the state of the Lakers a little bit there with Frank Isola. The Lakers are interviewing Warriors' assistant and former Nets head coach Kenny Atkinson. They've also interviewed Terry Stott's, Adrian Griffin, a Raptor's assistant, and Mark Jackson.

How do you feel about their list of candidates so far? Or also, what do you think about those constantly swirling rumors about a Quinn Snyder or a Nick Nurse? I just, I don't know if you can get either of those two. We don't know what happens with Doc Rivers. And I think they're doing their due diligence that you talk to everybody. But I also think that, you know, there'll be some breadcrumbs in terms of what they want to do player-wise, based on what they want to do coaching-wise, right? Like you only get a Kenny Atkinson if you want to kind of change,

rebuild your culture, which would mean you're kind of feels like you're starting over. That's what he did in Brooklyn, you know. You get a Doc Rivers when you're going to keep the stars around. Because that's where Doc is seen as, you know, he's not Phil, but it's a different game if you're trying to handle these big stars. So I feel like you're going to be able to tell what they're going to do in terms of their roster based on who they hire to coach their team. That's Ryan is with news. And thanks for stopping by.

The herd line news. Been a lot of talk of name, image, and likeness. Wait to hear what Nick Sabin, Alabama's head coach, had to say about whether or not they've been trying to poach or tamper. with other team's players. That's upcoming next in The Hurt. Be sure to catch live editions of The Hurt weekdays in noon Eastern, 9 a.m. Pacific. Hey, this is Jason McIntyre.

Join me every weekday morning on my podcast, Straight Fire with Jason McIntyre. This isn't your typical sports pod pushing the same tired narratives down your throat every day. Straight Fire gives you honest opinions on all the biggest sports headlines, accurate stats to help you win big at the sports book

and all the best guests. Do yourself a favor and listen to Straight Fire with Jason McIntyre on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's superhuman documented it all,

embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put it. on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the IHard radio app, Apple Podcasts,

or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care which I'm saying. Yep, that's me. Cliver Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, the reactions,

my journey from basketball to college football, or my career in sports media. Well, somewhere along the way, this platform became bigger than I ever imagined. And now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brain. new podcast, The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfiltered conversations with some of your favorite athletes,

creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. One week, I'll take you behind the scenes of the biggest moments in sports and entertainment, and the next we'll talk about life, mental health, purpose, and even music. The Clifford Show isn't just a podcast, it's a space for honest conversations, stories that don't always get told, and for people who are chasing something bigger. So, if you've ever supported me, or you're just chasing down a dream, this is right where you need to be. Listen to the Clifford show on the IHeart Radio app,

Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. Do you remember when Diana Ross double-tap Little Kim's boobs at the VMAs? Or when Kanye said that George Bush didn't like black people. I know what you're thinking. What the hell does George Bush got to do with Little Kim? Well, you can find out on the Look Back at it podcast.

I'm Sam J. And I'm Alex English. episode, we pick it here, unpack what went down, and try to make sense of how we survived it. Including a recent episode with Mark Lamont Hill, waxing all about crack in the 80s. To be clear, 84's big to me, not just because of crack. I'm down to talk about crack on day, but just so y'all know. I mean, at this point, Mark, this is the second episode where we've discussed crack, so I'm starting to see that there's a through line.

We also have AIDS on the table right now, so. Thank you for finishing that sentence. Yes. I don't think there's a more important year for black people. Really? Yeah. For me, it's one of the most important years for black people in American history. Listen to look back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Welcome to my new podcast, Learn the Hard Way with me, your host, and your favorite therapist, Kear Games. And in recognition of Mental Health Awareness Month, I'm bringing over a decade of my own experience in the mental health field and conversations with so many incredible guests. I'm talking, Tripp Fontaine, Ryan, Ryan, Colton, and. 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, as 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 about you? Doug Gottlie. Been for Colin? This is The Hurd. I got some thoughts for you on the nets

and a little bit of a biblical reference coming up top of the hour. Plus John Middlecoff next hour. A lot of talk about, name, image, and likeness, and, you know, it's, it's interesting to me. You'll have, you'll have people that have, uh, that have been in college and I've, I've never understood this, that lots of people that have been in college and, uh, have great experiences in college, somehow think that experience would have been made better had they gotten some money. I also

think that the, like, just the idea of name image and likeness, when it's of, you know, if it's a high school high school football recruit, okay, that paying a freshman, name, image, and likeness to come on to your, into your program when they haven't ever played at that level. And oh, yeah, by the way, most kids, when they get to be freshmen in college playing college football,

they can't play at that level. It's too big of a jump. A little bit as a freshman or registered as a freshman. And then sophomore year, they start to assimilate, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera. There are limited guys that are able to compete as true freshmen. Pretty limited number. So you're just, you're basically buying players. And Dion Sanders, who I think, common person would think, well, Dion,

I mean, here's a guy who is pros, pro, one of the all-time greats. And, I mean, what a big personality when it's at Florida State. He should be a proponent of name image and likeness. He's the head coach of Jackson State. Here's what he had to say about it. When you start paying athletes like their professionals, you get athletes acting like their professionals. And you don't have staffs large enough and equipped enough

to handle a young man that's making more money than some of the coaches on staff. That's a real thing. I think that what happens when media members discuss it and describe it is they talk about kind of fantasy things. And real things are the confluence of the transfer portal. Now when you transfer, you don't have to sit out a year on your first time you transfer. So you can go whatever you want. And you're paying players.

You're buying players just to get them to come to your school. Like all of that is a Tinder box. It's a Tinder box. Because you buy a kid. give them all this money, and we saw it happen with Spencer Rattler at Oklahoma, where the patience runs thins of the fans and of fellow teammates, and now you don't get any return on investment from anybody who came out of pocket for it. Do you cause bitterness with those boosters?

You have other players who have left schools mid-deal with this name image and likeness, where, again, the booster meets them at the team playing and says, give me the keys. You have the idea of, hey, you're making more money than a coach. which you may find to be okay, but throwing money at a 18, 19, 20, 21, 22 year old kid and having no ramifications for any of the decisions that he makes. It's just not reality. The reality is it's a mess.

And I don't hate to say, I told you so, I told you so. Now, it does feel like we've opened Pandora's box, but there's going to be regulations. And do people who think it's free market, there isn't free market even in professional sports. Like all those are regulated markets. So I'll give you some thoughts and some suggestions later on, but this utopian idea of paying guys

and all of a sudden everything's going to be okay and fair. There's always more problems when there's more money. When that a song, more money more problems? I think it was. Coming up next, all we're watching all these successful teams in the NBA, Sean Mark's the GM of the Nets, and he had some interesting things to say about their future. Why the Nets were wrong to bite the apple.

Next in the herd. Another podcast from some SNL late night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smygel and friends. Me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman help make you funnier. This week, my guest, SNL's Mikey Day and head writer Streeter Seidel

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

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

You might have seen the skits, my basketball and college football journey, or my career in sports media. Well, now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifers Show. This is a place for raw, unfills of conversations with athletes, creators and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated.

So let's get to it. Listen to the Clifford show on the IHeard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok podcast network on TikTok. On the Look Back at it podcast. From 1979, that was a big moment for me. 84's big to me. I'm Sam J. And I'm Alex English.

Each episode, we pick you here, unpack what went down, and try to make sense of how we survived it. with our friends, fellow comedians, and favorite authors. Like Mark Lamont Hill on the 80s. 84 was a wild year. It was a wild year. I don't think there's a more important year for black people. Listen to look back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This is an IHeart podcast.

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