The Herd with Colin Cowherd - The Herd-HOUR 1-NCAAFB, Damian Lillard, Lakers, Raiders

Episode Date: August 12, 2020

Colin talks about college football falling apart, the greatness of Damian Lillard, the Lakers in the first round of the playoffs, and why the Raiders will have a bad season.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. 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. 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. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what I'm saying. Yep, that's me, Clifford Taylor the 4th.

You might have seen the skits, my basketball and college football journey, or my career in sports media. Well, now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifers Show. This is a place for raw, 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 Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes,

follow at Clifford and at TikTok podcast network on TikTok. 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 Heard. You're listening to Fox Sports Radio. Ah, here we go. It is a Wednesday, a strange, strange Wednesday live in Los Angeles.

This is The Hurt. Wherever you may be, and however you may be listening, we are live on Fox Sports Radio, and we are live on FS1, and college football is shrinking. Very, very fast. Joy Taylor is joining me. The Pac-12, the Big Ten are out. The Big 12th of the moment says they're in. My prediction is the entire sport will shut down within the next two weeks.

Joey, how are you? Well, I'm good other than all of that. The rest of the sports is great. It's very disappointing, to say the least. So I am more of a solution person than a complain about stuff person. I'm not really into victimhood. None of us get a fair shake, right? Some parents are rich.

Some are poor. the rich ones are weird, distant. The poor ones are there and caring, but they don't have the resources. I don't want to hear about it. I'm a solution guy, not a complaint about it, guy. So how do you solve stuff? The first way to solve anything, solutions is honesty. Got to be honest about yourself.

Got to look in the mirror about yourself. You got to look in the mirror and say, yeah, some of this is me. Maybe it's not my boss, my wife. the government. My tax says, nah, some of it's me. College football. College sports.

Time to look in the mirror. College football is a business. It begins and ends with that. Fencing is a hobby. Volleyball is a hobby. That is mean. How many pro volleyball leagues you got out there? Yeah.

It's a hobby. Some are really good at that hobby. College sports is overwhelmingly hobbies. Football is a business. It makes hundreds of millions of dollars, sometimes at one school. The TV contracts are over $2 billion a year. Then there's the digital money. It's a business. It's not a hobby. It carries everything. It pays for everything. College sports has been a house of cards, a runaway money-eating house of cards. I'm not saying college athletics is just about making money, but it sure as hell not about

hemorrhaging it. Fencing teams, indoor and outdoor track. Really? If friends and family, boyfriends and girlfriends are the only ones that show up, shrink the athletic department. Something's got to make money besides football. They're the one guy in the family paying almost all the bills. This is why I have offered a solution for, I don't know, Joy, a couple of years we've been together.

It's time to privatize college football. Let everything else figure out their own problems. College football would like to have a bubble. They can't because the profits get eaten up by everything else. Now, I do think holding a bubble in college is really. difficult because kids are part of an entire campus environment. Some have said this is all about liability and legal issues, but is it really, I mean, it would be kind of hard to sue my school if I got COVID because are we sure you got it at

school? Could you prove that? And by the way, they got kids on campus that aren't athletes, kids on campus that are athletes. Can everybody that gets COVID sue athlete, non-athlete? I don't think so. and I'm not a lawyer, but that sounds difficult. But we've got to be honest about this.

There is one sport among all, I mean, the Big Ten alone has 325 athletic programs. How many make money? I'd say the 14 college football programs do, and then there's probably about six basketball programs that make pretty good money. Not great, but okay. But, I mean, let's be honest about this. We can just complain about it over and over and over. or we can have solutions.

Let's be honest. Football's paying all the bills. It's the one sport that America watches, America bets on, and it's also got all sorts of professional athletes on their teams. When you watch an Alabama LSU game, they're 45 pros. They're just not allowed to be pros yet, because in college football, you have three years minimum on a campus before you're allowed to the professional league, the NFL.

Basketball doesn't have those rules. And a lot of kids now are just going to go overseas or go to the G League. But college sports, especially in the top programs, is just a bunch of pro athletes who are a year away from body development, from getting paid a lot and being pros and having all sorts of options. And we treat it like it's amateurism. It's a business. Your coaches are making $10 million.

And the South, your coordinators are making a million and a half dollars. That ain't a hobby. That's a profession. You got 40 NFL players in these games, these Ohio states. against Clemson. You got 15 to 20 NFL players within a month, within an hour after the game, they go to training facilities and work out.

But, you know, the bubble, the liability, all I know is give me a solution, hire a CEO. It's 2020. How does college football not have a president? How is that possible? It's a billion-dollar business. How does it not have a CEO?

The lack of leadership is disappointing. But if you had a leader, You had schedules evened out. This isn't about paying the players. It's just about understanding what this is all about. Image, likeness. These kids are driving ticket sales. They're miniature economies, micro economies.

And until college sports can be brutally honest, that college football is a business and should be privatized, we're just going to keep going in circles. I mean, there's a reason. COVID has been very difficult, but strong businesses are surviving. poorly run, flawed, weak businesses are not. And college athletic departments are falling apart because they've been a house of cards for decades.

All right, Damian Lillard scored 61 last night. He's pretty amazing. He's getting into the Wilk Chamberlain category of multiple 50, 60-point games in a season. You know, it's interesting. It's amazing how important branding is. And I want to give you a player, Alan Iverson, that is culturally. relevant and really a superstar, right? Still very well known. Damian Lillard, to me, offensively, is every bit Alan Iverson. But Alan Iverson had controversy in high school,

so you knew him, and then he went to a national power, Georgetown, and then he went to big market Philadelphia, and he had a different game and a different style, and then he had a big shoe deal. Then there's Damian Lillard who went to high school and nobody knew who he was, except Weber State who offered him a scholarship there for a couple years. Then he goes to Small Market Portland so small that it's the only NBA franchise that wouldn't be allowed to host an All-Star game. Do you know that? They've been around since the 70s.

Why have they never hosted an All-Star game? They don't have a hotel big enough in the city. I'm not joking. How does Portland never host an All-Star Games? It's great NBA City. It's too small. And then Damien doesn't have a massive shoe deal. I mean, it's massive compared to what I get paid to wear my shoes, you know.

but compared to like an Iverson. If you look at these two players, and remember, Damien's got minimum three to five years left in his prime. If you look at their stats, Iverson and Damien Lillard, they're incredibly similar. Points per game. Iverson has about two more a game. That will change, by the way, over the next two to three years because Damien's in his prime and several prime years left. Assists, field goal percentage, three point percentage. Damien's better playoff record, neither great.

They had to carry kind of average rosters. If there's one player right now in the entire sport, you need a three-pointer. There's only two people on the planet you think of. Steph and Damian Lillard. And Damien doesn't get hurt as much. But the remote Portland Trailblazers, unheard of, Weber State, no real controversy. He's not really a talkative guy, lets his game do the talking.

And this is the downside to loyalty. He doesn't want to move. He likes Portland. The downside to loyalty. And this doesn't matter to everybody. And it may never matter to Janus, which would be good news for Milwaukee Bucks fans. But the downside to loyalty is sometimes you're not as relevant. What you're looking at right now with Dame Lillard is one of the greatest NBA players of all time.

Perhaps the greatest score. They list him at 6-2. He's about 6 feet. I once stood around him. He's about six feet. I've never seen a player this offensively gifted. The other night, I was watching a tape of Dame in his first year out of college, and they played the Lakers in Kobe.

Dane was just insane. And Kobe Bryant, they asked him about it after the game. And he didn't even refer to him by his name. Kobe Bryant said, man, that kid, that kid's got it all. long range, mid-range. He's scared on nothing, man, scoring at the basket. But he's loyal. And he's not controversial.

And he's kind of done his own thing. And he's in a city that can't even host an All-Star game because it doesn't have a big enough hotel. And he's super loyal. And when you look at it, you're looking at one of the greatest scores, perhaps the greatest score in the history of the league at his height. This is the downside to being kind of quiet, to letting your game do the talking,

to staying in a smaller city, to not seeking attention. Not that Iverson did. Iverson was just the look, the sound, the field, the game. But you start looking at him at Iverson, and Dames got four more prime years. Think about how the stature we hold Alan Iverson in. and the national stature of Dame is growing,

and Dame's got four years left. Coming up next, the Lakers are going to face in round one. Either the best point guard in the bubble, Damian Lillard, or the best shooting guard in the bubble, Devin Booker. That wouldn't have been a problem a month ago when you had Avery Bradley, but he opted out.

And this is why I think the Lakers are in trouble. That's coming up, Nick Wright, too. 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, 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, Clifford 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 Clivert 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. Each episode, we pick a here. unpack what went down and try to make sense of how we survived it. Including a recent episode with Mark Lamont Hill, waxing all about crack in the 80s. To be clear, 84 is big to me, not just because of crack. I'm down to talk about crack on day, but just so y'all know.

I mean, at this point, Mark, this is the second episode where we've discussed crack, so I'm starting to see that there's a through line. We also have AIDS on the table right now, 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 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, Keir 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.

One of the things I am always amazed when the media thinks social media is real, you know, you watch the Instagram models and everybody looks perfect, and that's not really what people look like, but you can make yourself, believe me, I've seen people do it, they make their pictures. And people say a lot of things on social media to gain attention, to gain what I would call out of boys, to be popular. But that's not what they say privately. There's a huge gap between public social media commentary and like how people really talk and how people really feel. That's why I don't do. I mean, to me, Twitter is kind of a roll your eyes, make jokes, crack jokes. I don't take any of it really seriously. So when Avery Bradley opted out, everybody was like, oh,

totally support him. Privately. He's got a year left in his contract. LeBron James doesn't have many championships left for his legacy. I don't think he's probably the happiest guy in the world. But I understand, you know, very happy, very supportive. It should be mentioned that the NBA bubble and the NHL bubble, the NHL has now done 7,000 tests.

Zero positives. NBA, no positive tests. These are the safest places in America. the safest places in America. The whole country are in these professional sports bubbles. And it's going to be very interesting. The Lakers in the first round are either going to face Devin Booker or Damian Lillard. They don't have anybody to guard those guys.

They've run out of guards. I mean, I guess we can once again ask LeBron to carry a franchise. This is what we do. LeBron just make it work. The Lakers are last offensively in the bubble in everything. That's with LeBron. At some point in his 17th year, we can't ask LeBron to do everything all the time.

Yes, he's great. So was Jordan, but Jordan went eight years between James Worthy in college and Scotty Pippen with a title. He couldn't do everything. New staff, new position, old roster. The reality is this was a big year for LeBron. Denver and Dallas are very good. But they're babies, they're kids.

They're fun to watch, though. Utah's really, really explosive, but small and flawed. Milwaukee doesn't have a number two star. The Clippers chemistry is at this point, a gigantic question mark. Boston has no size, Golden State's tanking,

and Utah lost a 20-pointed game score to an injury. This was really an opportunity for LeBron. I've said before, I think this was the best one. Anthony Davis is healthy. Anthony Davis, who's had injury issues. LeBron's in his 17th year. They got a four-month body break. was just perfect for them.

And the Clippers chemistry, which was a little odd, I didn't play for four months. So that makes it even weirder. It's just going to be very interesting. Avery Bradley was a real loss. And I'm not blaming people for opting out. But it's interesting. I don't think we can just keep asking LeBron to put on the cape and save the day. That's not, look at his record in the finals.

I mean, as great as LeBron is, it's like I always say about Tom Brady. as great as he is. Tom Brady is about six plays from being 0 and 9 in Super Bowls. That's with Belichick. He could also be eight plays from being 9 and 0. But this is an Inches League, not feet, not yards, not miles. And I just look at the West, the guards, the shooting. And once again, LeBron James has to save everybody.

Man, that is asking a lot in year 17. They could really use Rondo and really use everybrose. Bradley, regardless of what everybody says on Twitter. Joy with the news. No, no, no, no, no. Turn on the news. This is the herd line news. Well, speaking of the bubble, the Cowboys have created a bubble-like environment to try and keep the team safe during training camp.

They have a block of rooms at the Omni Hotel, which is attached to the Cowboys Indoor Practice facility. So this will allow players, coaches, and staff to have a safe place to stay for the the duration of camp. The hotel stay is not mandated by the Cowboys, but it has been strongly suggested that all players stay there. And mostly, most of them are reportedly to use it. Yes, for camp. Okay.

That wasn't a season thing. No, no, no, no. I don't think that would work for the season. But for camp, they're strongly suggesting that everyone stay in the hotel. It was attached to the practice facility. So it's essentially a mini bubble. The Saints have also set up something similar running out floors of a hotel for players to try and keep everybody in the same space.

I mean, all the camps are local at the local practice facilities this year. Normally the Cowboys would be out here in Oxnard, California. A lot of different camps are held of different facilities for training camp. But for the most part, the NFL's been successful. Like, there have been some positive tests throughout camp, but they've managed to quarantine those players who are watching hard knocks last night, all the procedures that they're doing to keep the camp. It's like extreme.

Well, they had a safety protocol set before camps came back. So there was something that was set mandated by the NFL agreed on with the players for how camps were going to be set up and what the protocol was going to be in testing every day and testing for antibodies. But it should, let's just say this. We're going to have a lot of people test positive because during the season they're going to go home. So we have to build this in. Unlike baseball that has a lot of travel, football doesn't.

But these people, kids will be over, you know, their kids will be with other kids. I do think that a lot of players are being very, well, it seems at least, that most of the players and staff are being very responsible, especially about stuff like that. Like, whereas right now before, you know, we've gotten back to camp and, you know, it's summer and it's, you know, kids are getting restless, things like that might have, you might have looked the other way. Now, the season's back, I don't know that how much of that stuff is really going to be going on. Like, the players know what the risk of that is. Like, just because kids are not getting as sick as older people doesn't mean that they can't. carry the virus. So I don't know how much of that type of stuff players are going to be encouraged

to do. I don't know, but I think I think we don't know exactly when and where and how you get this. Like airlines, you can fly on them but restaurants you can't go in them. So I think you could be really responsible. I think there's lots of Americans who have been responsible and have contracted COVID. Oh, yeah,

of course, because you can get it from the grocery store. But what I'm saying is I do think that players are going to take extra precautions that may not necessarily have been taking before camp started. And, and And that's going to be important. We saw it with baseball. And despite the fact that there were some positive tests in baseball,

which I don't know why that's surprising to anyone. 13,000 tests. Point one positive. Baseball's been mostly unbelievable. Really? Seriously. For not having a bubble. With young men on the road.

Because I think that they're taking it seriously. They want the season to not get canceled. They want to be able to play the duration and play for a championship. And there's also when you're on a team, there is peer pressure. Like, hey, dude, don't scro. You don't want to be that guy. You don't want to be that guy. So I think like the athletic bubbles on the college campus,

I actually think you could do kind of a semi-bubble. And I think the peer pressure from your roommate in college would mostly keep you on the straight and narrow. Well, yeah, there is an added responsibility. You've been on teams. You were a college athlete. I mean, you can't screw it up for everybody. It's not even just so much about being a responsible human,

which you're learning at that age. But, you know, there's a little bit of shame attached to it, too. Like, if you're the one that everyone, nose went out or you messed up. And even if that's not where you got it, you just got it from, you know, touching a family member. Yeah. It doesn't matter. You're going to be held responsible. So Kyler Murray was sacked 48 times last season. That's a lot for a five, nine guy. I'll just say that. He was, it was tied for most in the league. And he has transformed his body to better prepare for his sophomore season. I know. Oh, Lord. Colin loves workout videos. Oh, my God. He is

stacked. You got a great chance of making the show if you post a workout video. Look at that. He does look very different. He does. Oh, yeah. He's put on a lot of muscle. Look at his shoulders. Yeah.

Yes, it's very noticeable. Cliff Kingsbury and Kyler said that Kyler is noticeably bigger and thicker after adding some muscle mass during the off season. That isn't even arguable. I mean, first of all, he looks like a running back. He does. If you didn't know he was Kyler Murray and I just said, who is this, that was like a running back. Chandler Jones also thinks he'll be good for Kyler saying that he'll be able to take more hits with a little more meat on his bones.

Lamar Jackson did this year ago. He did. He had 18 pounds of laps. Now, Lamar and Kyler are obviously built differently. This is interesting, though, that, well, for Lamar, he was more slim. Kyler, it's interesting because, you know, Tom Brady took the

complete opposite approach of this. He stopped bulking up and went with flexibility. Long muscles, flexibility, yoga, Pilates. So it's interesting, you know, which body type, whether bulking up works for you. But they're also younger, too. So maybe as he gets old as he gets older it might make more sense to do the pliability approach.

Kyler Murray looks a little in that video like Russell Wilson. They're both baseball guys. Russell Wilson is stacked like he's thick. They have similar body sets for sure. So I mean, I think Kyler, you know, the prototype, Russell to Kyler, to me makes, when I look at that video, it's like more Russell Wilson than less. Hopefully he won't have to get sacked as much this year. But just in preparation, he's bulked up.

Matt Ryan and Russell Wilson were also sacked 48 times. in 2019. Finally, the Rockets are hoping the superstar duo of Westbrook and Hardin can bring the team its first NBA title since 1995. And Russell Westbrook doesn't see any reason why this couldn't be the Rocketeer. You're getting right. You're doing right. I don't see why.

Like I said, I don't see why not. It's very, very simple in our mind, especially in mine. And I know the guys at a locker, we know that we can win it all. And we'll take one game at a time and close games out and find a way to take, You know, the championship back to Houston. Well, even his mask is stylish. Russ is not going to be out here looking basic. That's not his, that's not his thing.

They're currently fourth in the West. They would play the Thunder in the first round, which would be a great first round matchup. Really interesting. And again, Chris Paul, against his former team, by the way. And they're playing great. And their house money.

Oklahoma City's huge underdog. I don't know. I don't know. Oklahoma City's young and athletic, so I'm sure that if I don't know what the numbers are analytically if they defend the three. You have to be able to defend the three to beat Houston because they're going to jack 55 up.

Well, Chris Paul's the factor there, obviously, but Westbrook and Harden have a lot of playoff experience. I don't know. I still think that Houston is the team to be afraid of in this bubble situation. Yeah. He's averaged 24.3 points for game, 6.3 rebounds per game and 7.8 assists per game.

And like you said, they've been playing a little more defense than usual. It's just a different situation. It's a new game for Westbrook and Hardin because they're normally amazing during the regular season and exhausted by the time they get to the playoffs and they always lose steam. That's not the situation right now. It's kind of scary. Now, Joy with the News.

Well, that's the news. And thanks for stopping by. The Hurd Lie News. Sirius XM, first things first. He's my friend, Nick Wright, joins me every Wednesday. Choose Me Up, Spits Me Out. Brought to you by Mercedes-Benz, the best or nothing. You know, I was saying earlier how crucial branding is. And Alan Iverson is a remarkable cultural icon in the NBA, but he was controversial in high school, went to a national power of Georgetown, which was really

the most talked about program in college basketball when he was there, not Duke or Carolina. He goes to Big Market, Philadelphia, gets a shoe deal, and he's just a unique, a unique individual. Damien Lillard, high school, doesn't talk much, no controversy, Weaver State, small market Portland, doesn't get a huge shoe deal. But I watched the two players, and not. I'm like, do we realize that dame's got four more prime years left? I mean, I know it's sacrilegious to say that Damien could be better than Iverson, perhaps not. But I'm watching last night and I'm like, I've not seen a lot of six feet guys in the NBA. Literally control an entire floor.

Your thoughts? I think it's really important and smart to compare him to guys of his stature. I've had this discussion in person with the originalized. Isaiah Thomas, the real Isaiah Thomas, Detroit Piston, Isaiah Thomas, who basically, you know, I think he believes, I don't know if he'll say it, but I think he believes pound for pound, inch for inch, he's the greatest player of all time. The problem is he's nine inches shorter than the actual greatest player of all time, seven inches shorter than Jordan. Yeah. And so he just, he was at such a deficit there. So when we're talking about the best small people, the best people

under six foot three in modern NBA history. Isaiah Thomas is on that list. Chris Paul is on that list. Obviously, Alan Iverson's on that list. And Damian Lillard is putting himself on that list as well. He does need to do more. One thing that AI has that is really important is that league MVP season, some scoring titles.

Dane doesn't have those. But you're right that we are only halfway through the story of Damien. Lillard. And Colin, since Dane missed those two free throws against the Clippers, every game's been an elimination game. The game against the Sixers, the game last night against the Mavs, and by the way, I know everyone's putting Portland in the playoffs, they've got another de facto elimination game against the Nets before they will play real elimination games if they get there in the play-in. And in those elimination games, to go 33 of 34 from the free throw line after missing two free throws, to score 51 and then 61,

in very close games where your team was trailing in the fourth quarter, it is all-time clutch stuff from a player who has, there's only been counting them, six playoff series ended on a buzzer-beater in NBA history. Dame did it twice. He did it to the Rockets, he did it to the Thunder last year. So his clutch resume is you can put it up against almost any other active player, and you mentioned the Kobe quote,

last thing I'll say on dame I what he is doing right now reminds me of Kobe in the year he tore his achilles where with like eight games left the lakers basically had to run the table and coby kept showing up night in night out you knew he was going to take the most shots you knew he was going to the focal point of the offense and he delivered until his achilles snapped it's been a little mamba what we've seen from Dame over the last couple games. So most people like the Lakers over Portland. What is disturbing for even somebody who... Portland.

Yes, I think Portland's going to run right through him with Gary. First round. Oh, we got the Lakers going out in round one. Yeah. This is exciting. Go ahead. Let me shut up. Sorry, let me hear it. But aren't you at least concerned with this? I'm worried about them on the defensive end without Avery Bradley. But let's talk offensive end.

With LeBron James, the Great League lubricator. for over a decade. He literally makes everybody better. He took Matthew Delavadova in a finals. With LeBron and AD, they are last in everything offensively, which tells you how odd-fitting and bad the rest of the parts are. Forget the defense for a second. Aren't you concerned that once again we are demanding that LeBron swoop in, put a cape on,

and elevate everybody. They're awful offensively. with LeBron and AD. Isn't that concerning at all? Here's why it's not concerning. A couple points. One is, you are right, we are demanding LeBron be the panacea, be the cure all. Luckily he is. Luckily, he has been in every single postseason post-2011. Second of all, the NBA called these eight games in the bubble a specific thing. They called them the seeding games. So color me less than shocked that once the late

Lakers locked up the best seed you can get, they took their foot off the gas measure, and you could see it happen. And if you are worried about the Lakers offense, there is no better antidote for a struggling offense than playing the Blazers, especially if your best player is LeBron James. Because with Trevor a reason not in the bubble, I really think they're going to have to ask Mario Hizonia or Carmelo Anthony to guard LeBron James. games. That ain't going to work. Obviously, the Lakers' easiest path to the finals is one where the Rockets move up to the three line, the Rockets and Clippers play each other in round two, and you don't have to play the Blazers in round one. But if the Rockets are going to be

your second round opponent, and right now it looks like they are, I would argue that because the Lakers have been kind of sleepwalking during the seating games, what could prepare you best for the Rockets is a tough first round opponent with a potent backcourt that demands your full attention and where you will get on track offensively. So if it were up to me, the Suns would be the 8 seed, the Rockets would move up to the three, and the Lakers path would be as easy as possible. But if the Rockets are going to stay at the 4-5 line, then I think what might best prepare the Lakers is playing the Blazers in round one, and it will certainly get LeBron's offense on track, because they might be the single least equipped team in the league to throw a body at LeBron Jen.

So yesterday I made my NFL predictions, the coaching hires, the combine, the draft, the opt-outs. I am allowed an amendment. The Constitution has 27. I get one or two. So most people in the industry called America see my predictions as really like the teacher's key in high school. This is all the answers. I have heard you have three big pushbacks on my amazing NFL. standing predictions. What are they?

All right. Well, first of all, I, listen, maybe it was a misprint on your IG page. I will admit, I didn't see this segment live. My apologies. Do you have the Ravens going 16 and oh? Yeah, I do. Yeah. Uh-huh. Yeah. Easiest schedule. Okay. Well, listen, I, you're in LA. You're close to the brain trust of the Fox NFL side of things. You're on that Sunday show. so maybe you got some info that I haven't had yet. With everything going on in the world, did they take the chiefs off the Ravens schedule? Did they rework that?

Because the schedule I have has the chiefs and Ravens playing each other in week three. And Lamar, for as brilliant as he's been against everyone else, he's 0 and 2 against the guy sitting over my left shoulder who was on undisputed earlier today. So 16 and 0 for the Ravens, when we know they're going to lose to Kansas City strikes, me as a little odd. That's beef number. And by the way, the Ravens are awesome. And I think the Calais Campbell edition is one of the most underrated additions this offseason. I think they're the only team in the AFC that could challenge the chiefs. But 16 and O strikes me as about four wins too many. I was surprised. The two other things that surprised me was you're further down on the

Cowboys than I thought you would be. They lost all their close games last year. They ostensibly added more talent, the only real loss, Travis Frederick and Byron Jones, and they clearly upgraded it coach. And the Patriots going 5 and 11, I got to go back and look, what was your Patriot record prediction before Cam? Because I feel like you downgraded them. It's like, well, if they're going Stidham or Hoyer, maybe they're a seven-win team. But with Cam, you got to, like, what the hell happened there? Okay. How did they get worse when they added Cam? Nine or eight or nine opt-outs. And the other thing is, Cam's not even going to get, first of all, when I first said that, we had a pre-season, canceled. We didn't have eight opt-outs. And now Belichick says,

Cam doesn't even get all the snaps. He's got to share them. This is part of my restructuring thing. They know neither one of these quarterbacks is going to have the kind of snaps they need until mid-October. And so I just, I think this is a, this is like the process in Philly with a different name. It's called the reboot, the restructure. And I have said with Cam Newton, we've got to lower our expectations. It is absolutely ridiculous if we think he can throw for 3,500 yards. This is a bad roster with no functional tight ends, no deep threat, and they lost the best offensive line coach in 25 years.

All right, well, a couple things. One is for you to lower your expectations on Cam, you're going to need public works and a drill because they're already on the floor. That's first of all. Second of all, I apologize for not having it right in front of me. But when I was doing the Patriots prediction, if you look at their final six games of the year, they credibly could start four and six and finish 10 and six. Their final six games of the year, they have a real chance of running the table.

So I think that is something you've got to look at if you do expect a slow start that they could still rebound from it. But the other thing you mentioned, we're going to find out how good or bad. that receiving core really is. Because, listen, Nikiel Harry was good enough to be a first round pick. Then he got dinged and somehow he and Brady never got on the same page. Muhammad Sunu had always been this level of player even up during the season last year before. He got traded to New England. And then once he goes to New England, he becomes this level player.

I think some of those guys might benefit from an upgrade in quarterback play, which is what they will get going from 42-year-old Tom Brady to 3,000. 31-year-old Cam Newton as much as that hurts Julian Edelman and your hearts. Well, I'll tell you this. Your hair looks great. You're very stylish this morning. I don't know what's going on in your personal life, but you look like a million dollars. Nick Wright, first things first, XM, Sirius, or Joy, call that Sirius XM. Good stuff, buddy. Good talking to you. Whatever.

Talk to you later. See you, man. Okay. Coming up next, I made my NFL predictions. Raider fans were upset. I'll just use that word. They were upset. I'll explain why I think the writers are going to get worse. Like, maybe significantly worse. 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 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 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 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.

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'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. Thank you for finishing this. 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, Keer Games. And in recognition of Mental Health Awareness Month, I'm bringing over a decade of my own experience in the mental health field and conversations with so many incredible guests.

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

Life becomes about wins and losses. Steve Burns, Dustin Ross, because you find it important to be a good person while you hear on earth, or are you a good person because you're afraid? Because that's two different intentions, bro. Absolutely. And that's two different levels of trust.

I want you to just really be a good person. Join me, Kear Gaines, is 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 Hardway and listen now. Good to have you back.

Lowe's. Go to my Twitter account. The Lowe's bar card I've been building is finished. Go to my Twitter account, Lowe's.com. Summer projects, do-it-yourself projects. So I do my NFL predictions every year about this time mid-August. I do get one amendment. If there's major injuries in the sport, I'll do that in about two weeks. But the Raiders were the one team that I got the most feedback on.

I'm a West Coast guy. I should love the Raiders, right? Live in Los Angeles. And I have them going 5 and 11 last place. They were 7 and 9 last year. And people go, whoa, they got more good players. I've said this a lot. Not every first place team or not every record is real.

There's a lot of fools' goal based on scheduling. Last year, six of the seven Raider wins were against teams that have or will replace their quarterback. Chicago will. Okay, last year, they didn't beat a playoff team. Last year, they didn't have a win against an elite quarterback. Last year, they were 0 and 6 against playoff teams. Five were blowouts. They faced Kansas City twice and were not competitive.

They beat Denver, Indy, Chicago, Detroit, Chargers twice in Bengals. Last year, their point differential was minus 106. Only the dolphins and bingles were worse. So it was a fool's gold seven and nine. They were horrible defensively, beat no really elite teams. There you go. Chargers had major injuries, Derwin James O-Line. That's the story.

Pro football focus has their roster at 25th. It's not great, although they have drafted well. So that's last year. This year, let's look at the schedule. and I do believe the division will be significantly better. Five of their eight roadies, eastern time zone. Find me the game on their schedule. Their favorite.

Well, the Jets game. Well, good luck. It's, you know, cold weather time for a Vegas team in the desert to go to the Jets. Sam Darnold's better than Derek Carr. Find me the game their favorite. Here's the other thing is that we all know that Derek Carr and John Gruden feels, I don't just use this word, tenuous. It's not.

It's not like, you know, how they, it's not like Andy Reed and Mahomes. There's a lot of love there. You know, a lot of these quarterback relationships with the coach, Brady, Belichick, Russell Wilson, Pete Carroll, Matt LaFleur, Aaron Rogers. A little bumpy. The difference is those quarterbacks are better. So Derek Carr and John Gruden, I don't know. What would make it worse? A really bad start.

Look at their schedule. At Carolina, Saints, at New England. at Kansas City, Tom Brady, at Cleveland, at Chargers, Denver, Chiefs again. Anytime it looks like a break, they have to go on the road in face Carolina and on the road and face Cleveland and on the road. Those are the break games. So I think they're going to start out like two and six, one in five, and guess who's going to play?

Marcus Moriota. You tell me the last team in October that replaced their quarterback and ended up being just fantastic. It just doesn't happen much. So it's not like I just make this crap up. We sat down, we looked at it, we looked at their wins last year, we looked at their roster grades, pro football focus, we looked at last year's schedule and their wins. We looked at the Raiders against really good teams. They got blown out.

Their point differential was bad. Point differentials were real thing. Vegas guys watch point differential. You know, you can, like Green Bay last year was outgained. So they were 13 and 3 and they were outgained. Did you see Green Bay face Sanford? twice, they weren't even competitive. The games were over at half in both of them.

So 13 and 3 for the, the Packers were a bad, were a very average 13 and 3 team. That's why we predicted on this show that get rolled by San Francisco. Not all records equate to reality. You get scheduling breaks. I mean, this year, Baltimore is really good. Good God did they get a scheduling break. Last year, the Jets got a scheduling break. The Jets down the stretch last year where I think 7 and 2 or something like that with

Sam, Donald, and Adam Gays. but they didn't go west. The Jets had an incredibly easy travel schedule. This year, the Jets schedule is brutal. I think Donald and Gase will be better together, and I think their offensive line is mostly going to be significantly upgraded. The receiving core is going to be better, but I don't like the Jets as much because their schedule is brutal,

and the division's better. So I think the Raiders schedule's tough. It's brutal early. They don't get any breaks. A lot of Eastern time zone games. last year's wins were sugar-coated and pseudo-wins. If you can't compete with really good teams, you're not good.

25th best roster in the NFL. Also, teams that relocate, which the Raiders are going from Oakland to Vegas, teams that relocate usually struggle, ask the Rams in year one. You're asking a lot of your players and a lot of your staff. Hour two coming up, your other big complaint in yesterday's NFL predictions 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 acapella

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 Podcast, 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 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 Cliver Show. This is a place for raw, unfields 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 IHard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok podcast network on TikTok. On the Look Back at it podcast. For 1979, that was a big moment for me.

84's big to me. I'm Sam 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. I mean, it was a wild year.

I don't think there's a more important year for black people. Listen to look back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This is an IHeart podcast. Guaranteed human.