The Herd with Colin Cowherd - The Herd-HOUR-1-NBA playoffs, Bill Belichick

Episode Date: August 19, 2020

Colin talks about the Lakers losing to the Blazers, the Bucks losing to the Magic, and why he believes Bill Belichick has the sports media fooled.Guest: Nick Wright Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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

We do some retirement homes. Those people are starving for banter. Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and friends on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal, but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth.

Listen to Superhuman on the IHard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what I'm saying. Yep, that's me, Cliver Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, my basketball and college football journey, or my career in sports media. Well, now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifers Show. This is a place for raw, unfilled conversations with athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard,

but celebrated. So let's get to it. Listen to the Clifford show on the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok's 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 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. 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. Thanks for listening to The Heard podcast. Be sure to catch us live every weekday from 12 to 3 Eastern, 9 to noon Pacific on Fox Sports Radio and FS1. Find your local station for the herd at Fox Sports Radio.com or stream us live every day on the iHeartRadio app by searching Herd. Fox Sports Radio. Ah, here we go on a Wednesday full of sports live in Los Angeles. This is The Hurt, wherever you may be and however you may be listening.

Fox Sports Radio FS1. Great to have you in today. Joy Taylor's joining. Nick Wright in 25, 30 minutes. Joy, how are you? What a day yesterday was. Yeah, Nick's going to be fired up. I had a great day.

Heat won, basketball all day. He's good. Love having sports on again. So high. Such a great life. Remember how easy my job is. Come in and talk sports. So Portland beats the Lakers last night.

Neither team played well. Both teams had a bunch of open looks. It wasn't a very complicated game. The Lakers didn't hit their open looks. They were five for 32 on threes, second worst in playoff history. And Portland didn't hit all of them either, but they hit more of them.

It was not a hard one to figure out. Neither team played really well. Dame disappeared for a couple of quarters. LeBron, you know, AD disappeared. But when I watched that game last night, we always talk about situational football, like Red Zone football. Last night was situational basketball, but the situation was Dame hit two big threes late and Mellow hit one.

That was the game. That was really the game. There are three problems with the Lakers I saw last night. Now, two of them will not get in the way of the Lakers potentially winning. this series. Two of them won't. One will. So let's talk about the first thing I saw. Once again, Anthony Davis disappears in the fourth. This is who he is. He got no dog. He's great in the first two, three quarters, but his fourth quarter last night, minus 11. The graphic for our Fox Sports FS1 audience, he just, he just disappears. Some of it's, I think a lot of it's psychology. Maybe he

runs out of gas. But, I mean, now, this, the Lakers can still beat Portland with this, because they beat the Clippers twice this year and AD disappeared in those games. The Lakers were the number one seed in the West and Anthony Davis disappeared in a lot of fourth quarter games this year. So the first problem, and it happened again last night, is not going to get in the way of L.A. beating Portland this series. The second problem, Lakers do not have a trustable and dependable third score. Again, they ended up number one in the West, not having one. Danny Green was awful, minus 20, couldn't hit shots. Cusma. LeBron didn't trust Coosma. You can see his body language.

Again, this doesn't necessarily mean that the Lakers can't beat Portland. Okay. The third problem, and it's very rare. I see this every few years with LeBron. It's very infrequent. But I've seen it happen before. And this one, if you're a Laker fan, is a problem. It's very subtle.

LeBron began overpassing last night. Everybody's saying, oh, his passing was great. This team does not have a dependable third score. LeBron needs the drop 34, not end up with 15 assists. Why is he overpassing? Because of Whiteside, Hassan Whiteside, had five blocks played very well. This is what Roy Hibbert did. Remember years ago when LeBron and that Miami team would face Indiana,

and the games were way closer than they should have been? You're always like, how is it? D-Waid and LeBron and Bosch struggling with Indiana. Now, they would win the series, but they were difficult because Roy Hibbert would get in LeBron's head, and LeBron would start overpassing. This is a LeBron thing, and it doesn't happen very often. But this is why LeBron, when he plays with Kevin Love or Chris Bosch or Anthony Davis, would prefer those guys are out of the lane so the guy guarding them, the big, doesn't

block the rim. It doesn't happen a lot. and everybody last night was doing a victory lap on LeBron's passing. This team is not gifted offensively enough to win with LeBron being the best passer on the floor. They're going to win if he scores in this series because you can't trust Annie Green. You can't trust Kuzma. Rondo's coming back. He's not a shooter.

This is a bunch of odd parts. It's a reality show in sneakers. So the first two will not get in the way of beating Portland. AD disappears in the fourth. He does all the time. And they don't have a trustable third score. I mean, they beat Portland earlier. this year with those things. But LeBron, and it's subtle, and it doesn't happen very often.

But a couple of things have happened throughout LeBron's career multiple times. He loses occasionally confidence in his jumper. Now, it doesn't happen much anymore. It did a lot in his first 10 years. So what would he do when that happened? He would score at the rim. It happens very infrequently now that he loses confidence in his jumper. But he's always liked the basket clear. he's always liked it clear. So if he loses confidence in his jumper, he can take the smaller defender, the slower defender,

and score the basket where he's all-time remarkable. But just keep your eye on this. If Hassan Whiteside, who's a lot better than Roy Hibbert, if he gets into LeBron's head in this series and LeBron becomes Uber passer, super passer, best teammate ever, that's a problem

because the Lakers are not deep enough or talented enough for LeBron to dominate and get 17 assists a night. He's got to drop 34 in this series at some point to clinch it because Portland's real. Milwaukee lost last night and for the record, Chris Middleton was awful, but let's save that for later. You know, one of the reasons that Patrick Mahomes is great. Russell Wilson's great. To me, those are the best two quarterbacks in the league.

Lamar's not in that class yet. play with a lead, play from behind. It doesn't matter. Tom Brady, play with a lead, play from behind, doesn't matter. Lamar Jackson's a way better quarterback with a lead than from behind at this point in his career. This goes for Janus as a basketball player. Janus with a lead is great. He's physically imposing.

You don't get any cheap baskets. He plays his game. Janus trailing is not the same player. He doesn't shoot threes. You need quick points. He doesn't get him for you. Last night, Janus, no field goals, final 11 minutes. Mr. MVP, fourth quarter trailing, three points.

Yonis trailing late in a game is not as dominant, imposing, or important as Janus leading. And this is the Lamar Jackson thing. Now, nobody said Janus in the fourth quarter was terrible player. Nobody thinks Lamar's awful trailing. But when you watch Baltimore trailing, and suddenly Lamar Jackson's running ability and run fakes, who cares? You've got to throw the ball. You're down by 14.

There's seven minutes left. They're not as important. The bucks this year were 9 and 16 when they trailed by double digits at any point in the game. They're not a comeback team, especially late. Can't trust Chris Middleton. Yannis doesn't shoot threes. And Malcolm Brogden, oh, he's gone. And that's with Lamar in Baltimore.

When you watched Patrick Mahomes this year trail in the playoffs, Houston 24-0, I watched that game. My only thing was, all right, let's just let this little run by Houston wear out, give Patrick the ball. It's going to be fine. You didn't think that Super Bowl was over mid-fourth quarter, San Francisco controlling it. You don't think about leader trailing with Patrick Mahomes. It's not a thing.

You don't think about that, by the way. Dame. actually I could make an argument that Patrick Mahomes and Damian Lillard are more dangerous trailing because when Dame's trailing, it's like, oh, he'll take any shot. Like even the slight restrictions, you know, Terry Stott's, let's move the ball around. When you're just like, no, Dame hit threes and he takes the brackets off. Like there's no restrictions. Dame's scarier.

Steph Curry is scarier. Patrick Mahomes, you know, he's playing within the guidelines. Oh, oh, now Patrick Mahomes trails 24-0-N-N-N-A-N-D his completion percentage was almost in the 50s. It's not quite the same. That's why to me, Russell and Patrick are different level. Lamar may get there this year. But when I'm watching them, the bucks trailing last night,

and it's funny about this. For years and years, I said this with Mike Tyson, the fighter. Mike was great when he was landing punches and he was leading a fight. But I watched Mike Tyson twice against Holyfield and once against Lennox Lewis when he was trailing. By the fifth round, you're like, it's not working. And Mike wasn't the baddest man on the planet. He wasn't even the baddest man in the ring that night.

Certain fighters, certain football quarterback, certain NBA players. They are downhill stars. They get a lead on you and watch out. Then there's Dame. Then there's Mahalms. Then there's Russell Wilson. Then there's Steph Curry. You can argue they're more dangerous trailing.

That's not Janus. and that's what I saw last night. Milwaukee got down. I mean, Yonis' shot chart, it's all around the rim, man. Not a lot of stuff in the perimeter. I mean, he can occasionally hit a three, but that shot chart is around the rim and above the rim. All right, good stuff.

So I got, I'm not going to talk about this next, but Nick Wright's coming up. There is a, you know, I've said this before. The media, sometimes the sports media, they're just not evil enough. They're not manipulative enough. If you think Bill Belichick does not have a plan, if you think Bill Belichick is not manipulating this season,

I can't help you. Because, see, I can be evil. I can be manipulative. I tell my wife, sometimes I'm manipulative. That's not a good quality. It's a bad quality. But if you are occasionally manipulative, then you spot manipulation.

The rest of the media is just a bunch of soft, nice guys from the, you know, the burbs. Most of the media, I come from the rough streets. So I am manipulative, and I can spot manipulative. In fact, I am going to talk about that next. You media people that don't get what Belichick's doing, you're just too nice. You probably went to a prep school. You know, mom was there for you all the time.

Not me. Out in the streets every night, working it. So, because it is so obvious. What Belichick said something yesterday, I mean, I'm sitting here laughing as everybody buys into it. Ooh, really, Bill, is that what you plan for this year? It's just random. Suddenly stuff's happening that never happened in your career.

Wait till you hear this. That's coming up. 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. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal, 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. A win is a win. I don't care what you'll say. Yep, that's me, Cliver Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, the reactions, my journey from basketball to college football, or my career in sports media. Well, somewhere along the way, this platform became bigger than I ever imagined. And now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfiltered conversations with some of your favorite athletes,

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

Listen to the Clifford show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, 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-tapped Little Kim's boobs at the VMAs? Or when Kanye said that George Bush didn't like black people. I know what you're thinking. What the hell does George Bush got to do with Little Kim? Well, you can find out on the Look Back at it podcast.

I'm Sam J. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick a here, unpack what went down, and try to make sense of how we survived it. Including a recent episode with Mark Lamont Hill, waxing all about crack in the 80s. To be clear, 84 is big to me, not just because of it. 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. 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 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, 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. Hanging out at home, get inspired, do it for yourself at Lowe's.com. Bar cart project done. Go to my Twitter account and check it out, Lowe's.com. It is amazing media people. You're just too nice. You're too swell. So Bill Belichick is short with everybody at press conferences.

You can ask legitimate questions to Belichick. He'll eat you apart. On to Cincinnati. I mean, Belichick doesn't give anybody the time of day. people who ask legitimate questions. But have you noticed Belichick in the last couple of months? He's like your friendly local junior varsity football coach. You've got time for the media.

It gives long answers. Somebody yesterday asked him about quarterback position platooning it. And his entire career, Belichick would have literally rolled his eyes. Belichick yesterday, when asked about platooning quarterback, said, oh, I would certainly consider it. It may give us the best chance to win the big game. game Sunday. Oh, come on. Don't pee on my leg and tell me it's raining. Belichick is a historian. He is an unbelievable football historian. When the NFL 100 list came out, it was Belichick who fought

for 188 pound defensive end named Bill Hewitt. Bill Hewitt, because Bill Belichick fought for him in newest history. He was called the off-sized kid. Belichick informed us. The 30s, they smoked on the sidelines. People didn't wear helmets. Bill knew schematically how his team used Bill Hewitt. Schematically wasn't a word in the 30s. And Bill fought for Bill Hewitt to be a top 100 player because Bill knows history, loves history. His mom spoke seven languages.

His dad helped create scouting. Bill is a football historian. and he knows platooning quarterbacks. Do not work in this league. Come on, bruh. Media people, figure it out. You think, A, you don't think Belichick has a plan with three A plus college prospect quarterbacks

a position he needs to fill, and B, Belichick is suddenly doing the opposite of what he's done the last 20 years. He answers stupid questions with kindness. we'll certainly think about platooning them their quarterback. Golly, if it helps us win the big game. He let smart, high IQ veteran, mostly affordable players go. He didn't address in free agency key holes.

Like they don't have a tight end who's ever taken a snap in the league that can play. These are all things that are the opposite of Belichick. He doesn't have time for dumb questions. He's not going to talk about platooning quarterbacks. I mean, can you imagine if somebody would have asked, him. Brady and Garoppolo is a platoon. He would not have answered the question. Now he's got

Cam Newton and Brian Hoyer who could walk through a mall in New England and nobody would know who he is. Suddenly Bill sounds like the junior varsity coach that everybody in high school likes because the head coach is mean and the junior varsity coach is like we'll play six kids at quarterback. Kids just should

have a right to play the game. That's not who Bill is. Bill's the most manipulative coach. and as a manipulator myself, I can spot it. He's the most manipulative coach in league history. There isn't even a second. I don't even think. Pete Carroll's a little.

Is there a second? Most coaches are like Mike Tomlin. They love football. They're earnest. They lay it right out there. They're not sneaking around. They're like, this is my emotion. I'm mad.

I'm mad. When I'm pissed, I'm pissed. When I'm happy, I'm happy. When I'm funny, I'm funny. Bill's always got an angle. But this year with three A plus quarterbacks, and he's got, you know, older beat up cam and two other guys. This year, he's, you know, it's platooning quarterbacks. He's got no plan.

He's making it up. Let's not addressing free agency. Folks, come on. You know, this is a hill I'm going to die on. But when the Patriots go five and 11 or six and 10 and they have the eighth pick and they've got like 11 picks and nobody except Jacksonville needs a quarterback, they're ensuring. This whole thing about tanking. It's not called tanking. Get over it.

Salespeople are no longer called salespeople. They're called account executives. She's an executive. He's an executive. I thought he was a sales guy. He is an accountant. He is an executive for accounts. Bob's an executive.

It's not called tanking in the NFL. Peyton Manning can play. Andrew Lux's available. It's not called tanking. It's restructuring, it's moving the furniture around a little bit. Joy with the news. No, no, no, no, turn on the news. This is the herd line news.

Well, Jimmy Butler came up big at the end of game one against the Pacers yesterday. It's a very stressful game for me. I know, I saw that for you. You were really. I was really stressed out. You know what, it's not that I didn't expect this to be a close series, but I just really did not want the heat. I didn't want the heat to lose game one, right?

Like I think this is going to be a long series. I just wanted them to get game one. I don't know if it is because T.J. Warren gets shut down by my. Spolster's a very good defensive coach. Well, he had 22 yesterday. So he was he was a factor there in the fourth quarter. The issue with this game was Victor Oladipo went out very early. He went out in the first quarter with an eye injury.

The team announced there's no immediate concerns after initial tests and he's day to day. But he went out early and that was a big factor for the Pacers. Jimmy Butler only shot 24.4% from three during the season. So not a great three-point shooter. But late in the fourth quarter, he made two big ones to help them pull away. Gorin Dragash also got hot late. He scored 14 of his 24 points in the fourth quarter. And Miami's defense was strong, limiting the pacer's to just 14 points in the final nine and a half minutes.

Butler's got a beautiful looking three-point shot. It doesn't go in a ton, but it's not like Lonzo ball where you wince. Like when Jimmy hit those threes, it looked he is. Yeah, it looked like he's been. shooting those. Yeah, I mean, he's got a great, great jump shot optically. It looks, it's not broken at all. He just doesn't hit a lot of them. No. And he doesn't take a lot of them because he doesn't hit a lot of them. But they were encouraging him to shoot the three-pointer yesterday. So the heat looked good. I still, I think they're going to get the past spacers. I don't

know how they're going to do against the bucks, but the bucks have other problems right now. They may play the Orlando magic. He might be up against the magic, which I'll feel good about. So the rockets were missing Russell Westbrook, but that did not slow them down in game one against the Thunder. James Harden led the team with 37 points and 11 rebounds and made six of the teams, 23-pointers, five players, including Hardin, scored double digits. And the bench stepped up, 42 points against the Thunders, 27 from their bench. So the Rockets won 123, 108. And they play defense. Yeah, I don't, I wasn't getting aboard the hype train for OKC in this series. I think that Houston's going to win this series easily. I like everything that OKC's done. I think they've

been very impressive and more impressive in the regular season. But let's not. forget that, you know, despite Houston's setbacks and obviously not having Russell Westbrook is for a few games, is kind of scary. They have a lot of playoff experience. And James Hardin is still top five or top 10, depending on what your preference is, player in the league. So, you know, for everything of the Thunder is done, which has been great this season, they're still a very young team. So Houston's not going to go out there and mess around. Like, the outcome of this game did not surprise me. It's only one game. If you watch the body language of this game in the first quarter. Like you can just tell. Like the other night, the Clippers against Dallas, about five minutes

left, the Clippers started playing so much harder defensively. They just turned it on. You could just, they were just getting handsy. They were pushing Dallas. It's like, okay, this is a veteran team. You watch Houston in this game, and it was very obvious from the very beginning. It's like, let's not let these kids think they can play with us. Houston played with like grown up man physicality, man defense. Like Houston heard everybody calling the upset. that Houston's now the underdog. First six, seven minutes that game, you're like, oh, Houston, Houston came to play.

They're not, they're not messing around here. This is guys who have been in the league a while, not a bunch of kids, and they just took control. Yeah, and we get, we are very critical of Houston, which is fair in a lot of cases. But yeah, this is a veteran team. They know what they're doing. They have a lot of playoff experience.

And Chris Paul does too, obviously, but Chris Paul being a leader of a team that's mostly young. Kids. And Hardin being a leader of a team that's veterans and experience is a different situation. So O'Dowell played through a core injury last season that required surgery in January, but he seems to be feeling good and is ready for the 2020 season. And according to Josina Anderson, one brown source said OBJ looks healthy and explosive at camp and that he is about to bleep some bleep up this year.

All right. Well, that's not the kind of language I like on this show, but I think he'll be fine. I'm very excited to see O'Dell this year. It's not surprising that he was injured all last year because obviously all the Browns had some struggles last year, but I refuse to get aboard the Brown's hype train, however. You're not going to get on them this year? Nope. I sold on my stock.

So now I'm just going to watch from afar. All right. You know, if the stock skyrockets, okay, oh, well, I, you know, cut my losses. Because last year, for whatever reason, all this talk got me, you know, I'm like, you know, what, maybe they can get a wild card. No, it was a disaster. And I knew better. And we both knew better.

And we talked about it all year. So you're not, you don't think they're going to be good this year. No, it's not that I don't. think they're going to be good i just want to watch and see what they do i do like everything that i'm seeing and hearing from them like the mantra the everything that they've been doing has been has been positive and that's what the brown should be all along the match to city right you're the browns should represent hard work hustle you know walk not tough tough tough just go out there and show everyone what you can do yes that's that should be what the cleveland browns culture

is they never had a culture which is why they haven't had any winning so i like this the fansky is setting this tone but i just want to watch and see OBJ, let's clean up the language. He didn't say it. A source said it. Oh, source. Okay. Joy with the news.

Well, that's the news. And thanks for stopping by. I still think Jarvis Landry is one of the most underwood players in the league. Jarvis Landry gives you like 90 catches a year. Yeah, he absolutely is. Nobody ever talks about Jarvis Landry. Like 90 catches a year. Like, who does that in the league?

Always healthy 90 catches. All right. Let's bring in Nick Wright. Brought to you by Mercedes-Benz. The best or nothing. Just like Nick, the best or nothing. Well, quite an interesting. night at the Nick Wright household last night.

Quickly, hold on, real quick. Colin, Colin, I'm sorry, I have to congratulate you. What? Can I tell the audience, big night for you last night. Because best I can tell, you picked the Blazers and the Lakers to win the series. So congrats. I mean, so he couldn't lose. You were watching it, probably a drink in both hands.

So I was happy for you, but go ahead. I still think the Lakers will win the series, but let's be honest about this. players don't change. AD was not a great late game player in New Orleans. He's not a great late game player for the Lakers. You have to acknowledge this. LeBron has to carry this team in the fourth. AD's disappearing act now is a trend, Nick.

Like, this is what he is, right? Well, contrary to what some people would have you believe, LeBron's arguably the greatest closer in league history. So it should be his job. But, yeah, I mean, listen, Anthony Davis is going to have to be better in the fourth quarter of the games once you get to the conference finals and the NBA finals. But there is this narrative today from folks across every, wherever you are on the LeBron spectrum, from Skip Bayless to Shannon Sharp, the one thing everyone seems to agree on is, well, listen, LeBron's got to be more aggressive.

The 17 assists were nice, but he's got to be more aggressive. I say to all of those people, you are wrong. LeBron James is not playing to beat the Blazers. He is playing to win a title. And the only way the Lakers win a title is if by the time they face their toughest opponents, Kuzma and KCP and Danny Green and Anthony Davis are all feeling good about their games, hitting shots and in rhythm. LeBron knows the three highest scoring finals of his career.

You know what they all have in common? They're all losses because his teammates let him down. So this idea that LeBron, I heard you talking, Ah, Hassan White's side scared him off. I think it's more he understood what he understands, I should say, what the Lakers need not to win four games against Portland, but to win 16 games over the next eight weeks. And that is guys who right now are not in rhythm, get in rhythm.

Now, if they're down 3-1 in the series, then I think his approach would change because it becomes break glass in case of emergency. But at 0-0 or even down 1-0, I think LeBron's approach is going to be the exact same. Distribute, get other guys going. Well, it doesn't matter to me because I pick both teams, so I feel great about the whole series.

True, correct. You're in a win-win. You can't lose. So I said this, the difference between Patrick Mahomes and Lamar Jackson, they're both talented. But I never feel if Mahomes is down 24-0, I'm like, oh, he's more dangerous. Because now Andy reads like, all right, kid, save us. With Lamar, I don't feel that way. He got down by Tennessee in the playoffs third quarter, and I'm like, okay, this doesn't

feel the same. Janus has a little bit of that, is that from behind, he's marginalized. And I watched yesterday, Nick, the Buck's defense, and I don't know the answer to it. It's not as suffocating. And they're going to play from behind in games. Do you think it's a problem? It's, no, this one, this I think you absolutely nailed. It's the final piece to the puzzle for Yannis.

It's why, despite the fact that he's about to win his second straight league MVP, you rarely hear. him called just universally the best player in the world because as great as he is as dominant as he is there is a bit of a oh gosh this is embarrassing what was the thing that hurt Superman that made

him I don't know the word Cryptonite thank you there is a bit of a kryptonite and it's one NBA guys have to do it with all the time which is we're losing and got to come back and I think the Lamarca comparison is a very apt one

There is, as great as Mahomes is, you could argue there is no quarterback in the league you would rather have with a six point lead than Lamar Jackson. Right. Because he can do everything. And as great as LeBron is, as great as James Harden, Kevin Durant are, you could argue that if you're up eight midway through the fourth quarter, there's nobody better to have than that guy right there. But the flip side to that question is, what if you're down eight? and it is the question or Janus needs to answer this postseason because it is the hole in his game

and it is why him not having even though he had three threes yesterday not having a reliable jump shot that's the last piece for him and maybe he'll answer it here and your point about the Bucks who had a historically great defense in the regular season,

that defense has to show up. So on this one I agree with you 1,000% and because I agree with you thousand percent. I have to take a shot on the front end, which is, my oh my, how far Patrick Mahomes is gone, because when he was down 24-0 to the Texans, according to Colin Coward, he had never won a big game in his life, and yet you were totally confident he was going to come back in that one. So good, good for Patrick. That's quite a journey for him.

Speaking of journey, Westbrook's been around a while. I don't know if you noticed this last night, but this was the best Houston looked in the bubble. They actually were great. on threes because the world's worst three-point shooter wasn't playing. And it is funny how, it is funny how certain players leave a team or miss a game and the team's not the same. Westbrook leaves Houston and last night, there is no question. They were virtually flawless. They hit threes. They played defense. They were intense. You didn't notice that at all? No, listen, I think you, I think you raise a really good point that if a guy, Leaves a team and you look at the team's record the year before he got there and it's better than the year he was there and then you look at the team's record the year after he left and it's better than he was there you start to question his impact now that player I'm describing is your future goat Kauai Leonard not Russell Westbrook but for the sake of the discussion I'll bring it back to Russell Westbro.

Listen Harden this is not about what Russ does or doesn't do this was about James Harden. once again reminding people. You can argue about his playoff chops. You can argue about his clutch gene. You can argue about his watchability. He is one of the five greatest scores of the last 50 years. And if you think differently, you're wrong.

Like, that's what last night was about. Also, here's something we're not hearing this morning or this afternoon about the rockets. And I'm shocked. They got out rebounded by double digits. So like, I think that counts as half a loss or something. because every time the Rockets lose, we talk about rebounding margin. But they won, so it's like, oh, who cares? Hardin's awesome.

Like, listen, they can beat Oklahoma City without Russ, because Hardin is that great. They can't beat the Lakers without Russ. And I do think that even though Russ obviously is not a good three-point shooter, Russ's penetration makes the defense collapse and allows guys to get open threes, as great as they were last night. I don't know if you can expect that type of performance from Jeff Green and the like once again. So I said this before is maybe it's because I'm manipulative that I can spot manipulative. But I am supposed to- Very manipulative, by the way.

Very. America. A professional manipulator, if you really think about it. So I'm supposed to believe the NFL's most manipulative coach. When asked if, would you think about rotating quarterbacks? He's like, golly, good question. You bet super duper. I'm on it.

Really? Cam Newton and Brian Hoyer and they're going to go back and forth. Are we not watching what's happening? Belichick is now answering patiently ridiculous questions. He's a historian to the league but knows suddenly now platooning quarterbacks is a good idea. Is it because I'm manipulative? He clearly has a plan to get one of the three great quarterbacks next year. And platooning quarterbacks is a way to ensure you're not going to have a great. great record. Nobody says tanking. We don't tank in football. You don't tank in hockey.

It's too, you know, there's violence. But you're seeing some of this, right? Like Belichick suddenly Mr. Nice JV coach that wants all four quarterbacks to play. And by the way, if guys opt out, it's all about family first. Doesn't that feel a little fishy? A little? All right. So here's the, here's the part that where I can't follow you down this path. All right. If he were honestly considering platooning quarterback, I feel like he would dismiss the question. The fact that he actually acknowledged the question makes me think if he is this king manipulator

like you're making him out to be, which he may or may not be, that if he were actually thinking about it, he would dismiss it, and if he wasn't thinking about it, he would be like, oh, let's have people have this conversation even though we're never going to do it. There's a bit of a Princess Bride situation. I know what you know, that I know what you know what I know, and so I don't know where that train ends.

What I found most interesting about the Patriots quarterback rotation yesterday, where it was Cam, Stidham, and Hoyer was not that all three are competing for the starting spot, but that I think Hoyer and Stidham are competing for the backup job. I think the reason Hoyer's getting those reps is because they don't know who their backup is, not they don't know who the starter is. Cam's going to be the starter, but the backup there is going to really matter. because of Cam's injury history the last few years. Hoyer doesn't, Hoyer's been in this system.

He's been with these coaches. He's been with these players. He doesn't need a bunch of reps. The fact that he's getting them, to me, is likely more about Stidham. And if the Patriots end up with an awesome quarterback, Colin, in two years or three years, unfortunately for the, you know, the right-thinking Americans who really don't like this franchise, I believe that quarterback is more likely to be Aaron Rogers than Trevor. Lawrence. I think if there is a master plan for Belichick, I think it's about what what Aaron

Rogers could be more so than what one of these young college quarterbacks could be. Well, that was good today. Yeah, well thought out. It was all very well thought out today. I did appreciate that. Thank you. Congrats again, man. I'm sending you your half-blaker's jersey. That's what I'm going to call it a shirzy. I'm very excited for you. Get out of here, you jerk. All you do is mock me. It's very hurtful, very painful. First things first. Good stuff. Coming up next, the Laker Blazer game to me last night. It just depends on who you like.

It's literally one game. You can see it two different ways. That's coming up. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern, 9 a.m. Pacific. 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 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 brand new podcast, The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfiltered conversations with some of your favorite athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. One week, I'll take you behind the scenes of the biggest moments in sports and entertainment, and the next we'll talk about life, mental health, purpose, and even music. The Clifford Show isn't just a podcast.

It's a space for honest conversations, stories that don't always get told, and for people who are chasing something bigger. So, if you've ever supported me or you're just chasing down a dream, this is right where you need to be. Listen to The Clifford Show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. Do you remember when Diana Ross double-tapped Little Kim's boobs at the VMAs? Or when Kanye said that George Bush didn't like black people. I know what you're thinking. What the hell does George Bush got to do you?

to do a little kill. Well, you can find out on the Look Back at it podcast. I'm Sam J. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick it here, unpack what went down, and try to make sense of how we survived it. Including a recent episode with Mark Lamont Hill, waxing all about crack in the 80s.

To be clear, 84 is big to me, not just because of crack. I'm down to talk about crack on day, but yeah, yeah, yeah. But just so y'all know. I mean, at this point, Mark, this is the second episode where we've discussed crack. So I'm starting to see that there's a through line. We also have AIDS. on the table right now. Thank you for finishing that sentence.

I don't think there's a more important year for black people. Really? Yeah. For me, it's one of the most important years for black people in American history. Listen to look back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Welcome to my new podcast, Learn the Hard Way with me, your host, and your favorite therapist, Kear Games. And in recognition of Mental Health Awareness Month, I'm bringing over a decade of my own experience in the mental health field and conversations with so many incredible guests.

I'm talking. Tripp Fontaine, Ryan Clark. Sometimes when we're in the pursuit of the thing, we get so wrapped up in the chase that we don't realize that we are in possession of the thing. And we're still chasing it. And we don't know when we've done enough. Because people scoreboard watch.

Life becomes about wins and losses. Steve Burns, Dustin Ross. Because you find it important to be a good person while you hear on earth. 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. You know what the right move is? It's Geico. Geico.com saves your money. 15% switch by October 7th. Switch by October 7th, 15% off.

Geico. 15% off. on a car, a motorcycle, RVs. You think you'll ever drive an RV? I don't know. Rock and roll bands do. I may consider it. I'm not the best driver.

So I try to... I would ride in an RV. Okay. I've ridden an RV. Yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah. So Lakers Blazers. I always feel this way with politics. Like your political affiliation,

if you're a conservative or you're a liberal, you see the same story different ways based on what side you're on. And I've always thought I'm kind of right in the middle. And so I try to offer clarity on stuff in sports. And I'm not a fan anymore. Although there are certain athletes I like. But the Blazers, Lakers, you can really, you saw two different games last night.

I went to Twitter last night. One game, it was amazing to listen to the fan base. Lakers fans last night were saying, hey, we shot five for 32 on threes. and we were in it until the end. Well, that is a good point. That game, that is true. Blazer fan said, Dame disappeared for two quarters.

This is the lowest we've ever scored in a win this year, and we still won. I'll be honest with you. That is true. A Laker fan said, hey, we've been off basically a week. We're rusty. You do make a good point if you're a Laker fan.

Blazer fans are like, hey, we're exhausted. He didn't play that well we won. These are very sation points. But then all of a sudden you start making arguments and it's like, okay, now you're a fan. I heard this one last night. Laker fan. We cannot shoot this poorly again.

Oh, no, you can. You were the worst shooting team in the bubble. You were awful offensively in the bubble. Of all the playoff games, all the teams in the playoffs, You're the only one that didn't score 100, and you weren't close. And Portland's a terrible defensive team. So Laker fans, you've had a lot of nights in the bubble you shot like that. This is not something new.

Blazer fans also said this. Hey, we were really tired last night. What, you guys got a week at the Marriott down the street? Like, there's no big long stretches of rest coming for the Blazers. This is who you are now. You don't get off nights. This is the bubble. They're speeding things up.

There's no All-Star break. You had that for four months. You're going to be tired. You're not going to be an energized team every minute in the floor. I think the scary thing for Laker fans this morning is that this is kind of what you saw last night, just sort of an amplified version of what they've become in the bubble, is that AD disappears in the fourth. They don't shoot particularly well.

You never know who the number three guy is. And they're sluggish offensively. They're good defensively. They're really long, but, you know, Dwight Howard, Javelle McGee, they got a lot of size, Anthony Davis. But if I'm the Lakers, the one thing I worry about is, what the hell happened to our offense? It's been bad the entire time in the bubble. And Portland's an atrocious defensive team compared to, say, like Milwaukee or the Clippers or Toronto. I mean, I think Houston's actually played really good defense.

They were very effective yesterday. So, you know, and I will say this. When I was watching that game, I didn't think either team played particularly well. But the one thing that jumped out to me was Portland can say, Portland's got a lot of things where, like, they were better early, they were better late. And that's kind of the NBA. Like if you're better early and late, that tells me you're more focused. You got a game plan and you got better finishers. And Mello had a big shot.

Dame hit two big shots. And the Anthony Davis thing disappearing is this is what it is. Like, you know, it's funny about Anthony Davis. And the NBA is weird this way. Not even weird. It's just you can spot basketball talent really early. I've always told the story. So my daughter played some basketball in Connecticut.

And I went to an AA-AU girls tournament. and I'm in this old, old gym in Hartford, Connecticut downtown, and as in-law parents and stuff. And there's like seven courts. And I, as just a dude, walk in. And within 30 seconds, I turn to a guy next to me, introduce myself. He's like a scout, like a college scout. And I said, way over there, who's that tiny little girl with the handles?

And he's like, yeah, that's the best player. 30 seconds. Seventh grader. And I'm like, boy, she's, she's really. really got handles. She's clever for both hands dribbling. It's like you can spot basketball talent really early. Anybody can't. I mean, I remember I've told the story. A buddy of mine, Brian Berger called me when Dwight Howard was 15. He's like, the next great center, I'm at a basketball Nike camp. His name is Dwight Howard. I'm like, he's like he's going to be a junior this year. Like in football

a lot of times, I mean, it takes a long time for football players to develop. But with Anthony Davis, He was great at 12. He was great at 17. He's great now. But there is no next level. Like what you're seeing is what he is, and it's not dependable in the fourth. Hour to next.

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 what you're saying. Yep, that's me, Clifford Taylor the 4th.

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

And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. On the Look Back at it podcast. From 1979, that was a big moment for me. 84's big to me. I'm Sam J. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick a here, unpack what went down, and try to be. 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. I don't think there's a more important year for black people. Listen to look back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This is an IHeart podcast. Guaranteed human.