The Herd with Colin Cowherd - The Herd - Hour 1 - Nuggets vs Heat

Episode Date: May 31, 2023

Doug Gottlieb in for Colin Thoughts on Nuggets HC Michael Malone's recent comments Details on the Packers breakup with Aaron Rodgers   Guest: Mark Medina   #DouggottliebshowSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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This is the herd, wherever you may be. And however you may be making as part of your day, thanks so much. I'm Doug Gottlieb, in for Colin Cowherd. And for the next three hours, we'll be talking sports and some other stuff. Right? We're in this weird kind of waiting game. You know, weird kind of waiting game in terms of there's no NBA finals yet although it's set there's nothing really NFL

baseball it just feels like we're making it up to try and talk about it this is just like like look howlin smart man you're gonna take a week off and go see Reykavik uh do it in these next couple days by the way see man will be back on Friday getting you ready for or reacting to NBA finals game one. So look, I'm fascinated by the psychology backflips that Mike Malone is trying to pull off, right? Because up until this point, he was the nobody pays attention to us guy, right? Nobody, nobody pays attention to us.

And it got to the point where you're like, dude, we hear you already. and I think the greatest support story you have for the media not paying attention to the Nuggets is there's nothing else going on. There's nothing else going on at all. Okay. And now there's nothing else going on, but the NBA finals are set. The Denver Nuggets are in the NBA Finals. They've been nothing short of incredibly impressive. They have been the best team in the playoffs.

It's not really close. And yet, I mean, what are we talking about here? And I understand it's hard to make up storylines when they don't yet exist. We don't yet see the matchups. Tyler Hero is going to come back and play. Does that help her screw up the Miami Heat? You know, I don't know. But I found the backflips that Mike Malone did yesterday to be really interesting.

Here's the Nuggets Head Coach talking about the heat. being an eight seed in this series. Forget the eight seed stuff. They beat Milwaukee 4 to 1. Team that had the most wins in the NBA this year. They beat Boston, 4 to 3 and they're up 3-0. Team with, I think,

the second most wins in the NBA this year. So you get to the NBA finals. It's not about seating anymore. You're trying to win the first NBA championship and franchise history. It's going to be the hardest thing that we've ever done, which is the way it should be.

I mean, look, and I understand what he's saying, which is like it doesn't matter. And this is back when you, you go to the NCAA tournament. It's like, look, seed number doesn't matter. Team starts winning a game. They're playing above their level. And if we're really honest about it, what does the seed mean in the NBA playoffs anyway, since the regular season doesn't matter. It does. And is it really a determinant into who's really the best team? Not really. Just like the MVP is a regular season award, the regular season, the best record in the regular season is a, it's a, it's a, it's

completely different sport. I do think home court advantage now he matters, but especially matters in Denver with the altitude and matters with a team that has a couple of, as one player that's been there before, albeit in the bubble with KCP, but for the most part, inexperience at this point of the playoffs.

But what Mike Ballone is doing is he played the underdog card as much as he could. And now he looks down and he's just got a handful of aces. And now he's like, well, you guys think it's easy to play with, you know, AIS. Yeah, yeah, sure, we're the best team, but seeds don't matter here. I mean, look, it's brilliant. It's not diabolical, right? He's not doing anything sinister here, but it's painfully obvious.

We're out of underdog cards now that we're the favorite, and it's obvious that everyone expects us to win and to wrap this thing up pretty quickly, despite all. all of that, I can't allow my guys to be complacent, which only shows that all the other stuff he said was clearly psychological nonsense to begin with. It's like when you have an argument, and I don't know if you guys do this when you're, it's like whenever I've been on debate shows, did you know I was on the debate team in high school, Jason Stewart? I was actually in high school. We had a model UN debate team. And I was on. on the debate team.

You've mentioned that before. I was. I could see you. Oh, yeah. Totally. But it was, you know, it's like to lose, Doug. And you like to talk over people. So that sounds like a debate tactic.

What did you say? I couldn't hear you. You was, I was thinking about what I was. Actually, actually, in debates, I don't like to talk over people.

What I, I struggle to do is I find, and the way in which I feel like you can win debates, is when you find the one falsehood, in something someone's saying. Like, they can list 10 things. You find the one thing that isn't correct and that's definably incorrect

and it can bring down all the other arguments even if they are correct. The other way is to use their argument against them. Use the exact argument and go, okay, it works for you there. How about here? Those are the two ways in which I like to find ways to win arguments.

And the easy way to pick apart this argument, that he's making is to simply say that, okay, then if regular season and seeding don't matter, why did you complain so much about the lack of attention that you got based upon the success of your regular season previously? It dismantles every part of his argument. So, look, I think Malone has done, first of all, they're a beautifully coached team. They're a really well coached team. And there is something real to the, hey, they haven't played, they won't have played in a week when they played. And as much as the heat were pushed to seven games, they've had a good recovery time. I think some of it balances out with playing an altitude and being an altitude, and that doesn't make it easier. And the heat will have a different look and a different rotation. However, they choose to use

Tyler Hero. But I just think like this whole thing is brilliant and yet very easy to see what he's doing. He's been the perceived underdog or tried to build up that they're the underdog the entire time in the playoffs. Nobody believes in us. Nobody watches us. Nobody respects us despite all of our successes. You didn't realize Yokic was that good? Of course not.

Nobody watches. He's right. But it's not because we don't think you're good. It's because it's regular season NBA. You're in Denver. You haven't won anything. It just doesn't necessarily fit on our radar with all this other stuff going on. But all of a sudden you do the flip to the, no, no, no, we're not the favorite now because seeds don't matter.

Wait, huh? It mattered when you were the underdog. It doesn't matter when you're the favorite. And yes, they were the underdog going into the Lakers series. The Lakers had the best odds after, I think, the midway point of the Warriors series, the Lakers had the best odds to get to the NBA finals. That, of course, makes them a favorite. They were a favorite to beat the Denver Nuggets.

So regardless of Seed, they were favored. Now the Nuggets are a hefty favorite to win the championship. It's like, ah, seed don't matter. It's brilliant, but it's so right there in front of you. And I guess the question is, does anybody buy that? Does I go like, you know, he's right? They don't matter. Because again, this is where you use his argument against him.

Wait, you just said that, you know, they were an underdog. Now can't you create the same energy underdog for the Miami Heat? Nobody believes in them, eight seed, not the favorite, et cetera, et cetera. I'm fascinated by the psychology of a coach. And it's been relayed to me by other people because I've, asked people in basketball, like, why is he, why is he saying these things? Like when they were clearly better than the Lakers, you know, he, he was still saying and making these statements as if they were massive underdogs and they were feeling slighted and nobody

pays attention to us. And, and the response I got was like, hey, you're still got to find ways to motivate your team. You need that? That feels like high school stuff, little kid stuff. but it's true. Like, the, it's like they say about comedians, right? The saddest people you'll meet are the funniest people you'll meet. Because comedians are, they're not necessarily hiding. They're trying to work through some, all the other pain in their life. And they do so with humor.

Well, I mean, I think the same can be true for confident people or people who you perceive as super confident. Successful, super, the guys that have this, I mean, like a professional athlete. These guys talk and walk as if, I mean, Jamal Murray, I think I'm one of the best players in the NBA. I don't disagree, but you having to say it and then you having to have your coach

basically make you out to be an underdog when you are not, tells me that there's some either perceived lack of motivation. I don't think that's what it is, or that the ability to motivate is that you have naysayers. And yeah, we're all competitors. That gets anybody going. but I think even more so at this level, it's the NBA finals.

Why do you need anybody to say anything to you to get you motivated? Because you have some sort of maybe insecurity. And it triggers it and gets you to lock in. The psychology of coaching is really, really interesting. And you would think that at this level, there isn't some psychological warfare you have to play on your own players to make the narrative some sort of negative. But I think apparently,

that's what Mike Malone and many others feel as needed. I'm Doug Gottlieb in for Colin Cowherd. The big news in the NBA yesterday was that Bob Myers, Bob Myers, is out in Golden State. Is this the first break in the Warriors Dynasty? Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern, 9 a.m. Pacific on Fox Sports Radio, FS1, and the IHeart Radio app. Imagine an Olympics where you.

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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, 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 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. Doug Gottlieb in for Colin.

This is The Hurt on Fox Sports Radio, the IHeart Radio app. It's a good jam back in the day. There's a couple of college basketball stories, believe or not, which are fascinating. It goes hand in hand with what Nick Sabin's been talking about at the SEC meetings. So there's a lot to this. The NIL, the state of college athletics.

I think that's fascinating. Wait to you hear who was at Saints, practice. Saints practice. But let's welcome in Mark Bedini. He's our Fox Sports Radio NBA insider for, you name it forever. This guy has covered and knows the league so, so well. Let's start with the Bob Myers departure in Golden State. Didn't strike me as a surprise to anyone who covers the NBA. There's Tim Kawakami, who of course has worked in Northern California, San Jose Mercury News forever. Now he's with. athletic. He did a column today kind of detailing

what led to some of the breakdown between Joe Lekub and Bob Myers. But what's your sense? Why would they break up a team in terms of a management team that had at least on the court seen the most success in franchise history?

Yeah, Doug, it's the ultimate question. And as much as Bob Myers was very transparent during his press conference about just being burned out by the job, you do wonder about this. I mean, on one hand, he was adamant that, you know, money wasn't an issue. The Warriors gave him generous offers to keep them,

because that's what the Warriors have been all about. But he decided to walk away because he just felt like the demands of it were too much. And, you know, with that, I couldn't help but wonder, well, was this as much about getting away from Joe Lake up as it was from getting away from the Warriors? I think the clear distinction here is he was very grateful for Joe Lakeups' ownership and leadership role with, you know, giving him a big budget to spend and being obsessed with winning. You know, not every NBA owner has that kind of passion, but there's no doubt with his expectations and just the Warriors' expectations as a whole. It becomes a very heavy task, but at the same time, this is what Bob Myers had signed up for from,

the very beginning. So I think with all that, you do wonder, did it finally get to the point where enough was enough? And you also wonder, did it get to the point where, you know, the warriors are entering what potentially could be some significant pivot points and was Bob Myers comfortable with dealing with that when it comes to, you know, trying to see what they can do with Raymond Green and Clay Thompson and, you know, course correct from this second round exit it after seeing some mixed progress with their young players. So a lot of things unpack, and you do wonder, is this the first shoot-a-drop, or is this just a way for the Warriors to navigate

another challenge? Okay, so how do they restructure the front office? Well, I think the low-hanging fruit is, I've been told, don't expect any sort of like exhaustive search while there's no timeline. The timeline takes care of itself of free agency and the draft. But, yeah, it seems like Mike Dunley v. is a... a heavy favor. Now, they had given him, you know, roles in the last few years and be in the front office where he would be prepared for this position. Same thing with Kirk Lakeup.

And I think that the very important thing about Bob Myers, I mean, we can look at his draft history, good and bad, his free agent acquisitions, but really the most valuable part that Bob Myers showed was his relationship capital with being a bridge with the players and coaching staff with ownership. And I do wonder if, whether it's Mike or Kirk or any combination, how do they fill that void? I think on one respect, you can't replace what Bob Myers did over a decade with building those relationships. But at least to their credit in recent years, not only have they put in the work, but they've

had a presence around the team where they can't have relationships with players. But the reality is you can't replace a valuable commodity overnight. And you do wonder how much will that factor into what will happen, assuming Draymond Green opt out of his player option. What would a possible extension look like? How would difficult conversations play out with Draymond if it was Bob as opposed to Mike or Kirk? Same thing with Clay Thompson. He hopes he can get an extension this summer,

but the reality is he has one year left on his contract, and he had some, you know, struggling performances. as you know, during the playoffs. So it seems like that Bob would obviously have much more of the history and the personality and capital to be able to handle those potentially tough waters as opposed to any new fit. But I think the Warriors are bullish that at least they've prepared them to get to this point and be that bridge and that they've put in the work and they've shown they're capable of doing it. Okay, let's peruse around the NBA.

the Knicks fell flat in the playoffs both the past two years, but Jalen Brunson was a godsend, right? I mean, he's been outstanding. Why'd they fire their general manager? Well, I think that clearly there was some, you know, contract extension worries and with James Dolan, even though they're, you know, obviously worth a pretty hefty sum, there's always money that gets involved there, but I think it could be also a few things here.

Leon Rose has had a pretty big role in the front office, and maybe that they just put his responsibilities even more on his plate. But I think it's also an acknowledgement that, you know, look, the Knicks, they're glad that they finally got to the playoffs and they're respectable, but they're trying to get to the next level. But I think that, objectively speaking, when you're looking at their roster, I think they maxed out with what they could get. I mean, Jalen Brunson obviously overachieved and defied everyone's expectations. Maybe not yours, Doug, because you were one of the very few to call this from the beginning. And the rest of the roster, it was a good mix of, you know, Julius Randall and good role players

that, you know, really just try to get by with hustle plays and Tom Cibodeau, you know, had that grinded out mentality. And so I think that clearly they felt like this was the best that this team could. accomplished. So how did they get to that next level with improving the roster? So it'll be interesting off season, as it always is with New York. It is. It's fair to say, though, that it feels like, I mean, look, Scott Perry did a nice job in drafting. Obviously, Mitchell Robinson's been a good addition, and maybe he hasn't lived up to expectations. But, you know, R.J. Barrett's a good player. Quentin Grimes has been, it was a great find.

But, I mean, if we all say, hey, look, you brought in a guy and he had nothing to do with it, right? Yeah. I mean, his dad's on staff. Leon Rose's former agent, like all of that stuff really didn't have to do with Scott Perry. And if that's what changed the organization, his services aren't totally needed. Let's get to the finals. Let's get the finals. Tyler Hero is going to play.

How does he fit in when they've been playing with? the playoffs without him. Yeah, well, I think it's interesting. I think that in some respect, he's a plug-and-play player from what he can be on the court, especially in the heat system. But I wouldn't be surprised if they slowly integrate him just because he's been out for a little bit. And the heat of all organizations really value conditioning.

And so I anticipate that there'll be some rust. But I expect, you know, game two or worst case, game three, he'll be back doing what he normally was doing. But I think one of the, you know, one of the really good qualities with the heat, as they've shown throughout the regular season this postseason, they really knew how to wait a just navigate, you know, all the ugliness and the good, bad, the ugly of overlapping injuries and consistent performances, et cetera, because of that great combination of Jimmy Butler in the way he's wired,

as well as a bunch of undrafted players that have really, you know, bolstered their three-point shooting and different position. needs. And so, you know, clearly they're able to hold the fort without them, but, you know, this Juggott's team is obviously the real deal. I'm not going to get on your bad side, say, oh, they don't get enough attention here, but clearly they are the favorite team, I think, to win the NBA finals. So the heat need to have every single player play up to their capabilities. No, you're not getting them. I mean, they don't get what would be equal attention to the Warriors, the Lakers, but it's a direct

reflection of what people, at least to this point, have said they care about. Oh, yeah, without doubt. I mean, it's not like there's anything sinister and nefarious about people going like, you know, I mean, I honestly believe that game one of the Lakers series was the first time about 95% of the people watching watched Yokic play an entire NBA game.

Yeah. And they're like, man, this guy is good. Like, yeah, he's been awesome for a couple years now. Yeah, no, clearly being facetious here, and I've been with you ever since this non-story came out. I mean, look, you'd like that, you know, good teams get attention and people know about them, but the reality is they're in a small market, and I think it's about proportion. It's not about, oh, no one knows who they are, but when you're looking at so many different storylines throughout this NBA with big market teams that have a lot of big implications

with the Lakers and the clippers and the Sons, the Warriors, you go down the line, there's just inevitably going to be more attention. That's not to say that the nuggets, you know, don't deserve their due, and there's a lot of feel-good stories about them with how well they've played and, you know, some of the comeback efforts that Jamal Murray and Michael Porter had

with their injuries and, you know, Nicole Yokic having another dominant season, Michael Malone have another great coaching stint and just the continuity with everyone in, but it's just the reality here so yeah it's i've rolled my eyes along with you over this whole non-story um the lakers what's their plans well i think given the lakers it's always fluid and subject to change but that being said i think that philosophically you know what rob polica said ex-interviews is likely what's going to happen they're going to lean more toward trying to retain as

much of their roster as they have as opposed to going big game free agent hunting. And so what that looks like, there's obviously an unknown, as you know, Doug, with the free agent and the cap implications. But I had to guess, I think for sure Austin Reeves really had to more are back because of what they were with growing as role players, the fact that they're restricted free agents, so there's more flexibility for the Lakers, not only to obviously match offers, but to spend. DeAngelo Russell, I think it really just depends on. on what the market value is for him from other teams.

But I think that they're mindful that as much as he had some struggles, most notably in the Western Conference finals, he was a key piece to make the offense work a lot much more efficiently than it was when Russell Westbrook was there. And so with that, regardless of the unknown of exactly how many of the Lakers' free agents are retained this upcoming offseason, I think it's safe to say we're not seeing Kyrie Irving in a Lakers uniform. We're not seeing Trey Young in a Lakers uniform.

I think that even though the circumstances are different, the Russell Westbrook experience, I think, really reinforce the Lakers the cons of not having enough roster balance when you're putting so much investment into another star, you know, along with LeBron and they do. Celtics obviously had a disappointing finish to a great regular season and ups and downs in the playoffs, right? Down three games to two, they come back, beat the Sixers twice, and Jason Tatum is awesome. Down three games to none, they come back, forced a game seven, Tatum rolls his ankle, and a no-show offensively. What do they do in this off-season? Yeah, it's really interesting, Doug, because I think that I'm with you.

They collapsed. They underachieved, et cetera, and I certainly had criticisms. of, you know, Joe Mizzula as well as, you know, just how they played as a unit. But I think that, practically speaking, it's a lot easier if they retain what they have now and deal with everything later because I think that that's really the best case scenario. I mean, the reality is, you know, Joe Mizzola might deserve scrutiny. That certainly deserves scrutiny for some of his shortcomings during the playoffs. But he also deserves praise for growing to get them back to a three-three, you know,

series tie. You know, Jalen Brown, Jason Tatum, they showed growth in the last year with coexisting. I think it was revealing, though, that Jason Tatum has an injury, and this is a time for Jaylen Brown to take over and he didn't. But I think with that, they have shown that they can have some success, gain in the finals, and then just improving from within from last season. And so even though there are question marks, I think that it's easier to just keep everything you have, and if you have to make changes, do that next season, whether it's trades or

coaching changes then. I think that if nothing else, even though that no doubt they're expected to contend for a title, and this is disappointing, they're much better off, at least in the short term, you know, going with what they have now. Mark, awesome stuff. Let's talk some more as the finals get started. Appreciate your time and joining us on Fox Sports Radio. I appreciate you, as always.

All right. That's my guy, Mark Medina, Fox Sports Radio. NBA insider. Let's get to Jason Stewart with the news. No. No. No. No. Turn on the news. This is the herd line news. Doug, as people try to find storylines here to pass the time before the NBA finals, Denver's altitude has become a narrative. Now, I didn't know if, I don't know if you knew this, but Denver is a mile high off the, from sea level. Yep. Is it? And players have struggled up there fleets have struggled. Now, this was an interesting angle, and Kevin Garnett on his certified, KG certified on Showtime, said this, told a story about what the nuggets pulled on him once.

Bones, I got to ask you, man. What was that elevation light, bro? Bro, it's insane. Is it real? Is it real? It's real. It's real. It's real. You know what they do before games? Just to with your mental? Welcome to Denver. start feeling fake is because you are above $2,000. And you like, in the layup line, like, yo, did you hear that? Yo, hold on, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. You start having a panic attack. Like, dude, I think I feel it.

Doug, you said that the altitude becomes a major factor, not necessarily in the first 24 hours, but in the first 48 hours, correct? Well, okay, so here's what it's like. When I played in college, we played Colorado. My brother's been assistant coaching college for 28 years. And let's see here. He was eight at San Diego State, six at Cal, six Oregon State. San Diego State was in the Mountain West, which, when he was first in it,

them and TCU were the only schools that were sea level. and then of course when you're in the pack 10 then pack 12 you play Utah and Colorado every year and so a couple things one it's it's it's a real thing right I mean it's it's actually like physics and in your first game yeah it'll hit you in the usually in the fourth quarter but everybody is different like some people adjust do it better than others and you can't really plan for that but what they always say in the pack 12 is like hey careful about that second game because you're in Utah, you go to Colorado or vice versa, and you become oxygen deprived.

Your body has, it takes a couple weeks for your body to adjust to it. And so, like NFL teams, oftentimes they'll fly in the night before they're going to play the Broncos. In college football, you fly in as quickly as possible so your body doesn't become oxygen-deprived. The Celtics, that was a real thing that they were flying out the day after or the night of. the heat when they beat the Celtics. And so they're in Denver. I don't love the idea of being there this long, even though the NBA mandates that they have to be there

a couple days before for the interviews. And it's a real thing. It affects different guys differently. The heat are widely considered the best conditioned team in the NBA, but the nuggets play to it. They play fast. They push with great tempo and pace. And I think end of game one and all of game two, it will likely be an issue.

Shifting to the NFL, Doug, Dennis Allen has been asked to answer for this this week. He brought in former Raiders head coach, John Gruden. In a lot of circles, you think that he's been kind of ostracized from the NFL. But Dennis Allen said this about bringing in his new quarterback, Derek Carr's former coach. Number one, we've had several coaches come in visit. But obviously, John's a guy that has a lot of experience with Derek. And Derek's had his most success under John Gruden. And so we felt like bringing him in, having a chance to sit down and visit with him as an offensive staff, with the quarterbacks,

and just get some new thoughts and ideas, things that we might be able to implement. You know, I would say this. I would say, you know, offensively for a long time, that I've been here, we've been pretty effective offensively. And so I don't see us putting in a whole new offense or doing something dramatic. But if there's a few ideas that we could take from that, we felt like that would be beneficial. So who's giving him grief over it? Well, reporters were asking him why.

And I think the reporter's kind of the angle on this was, John Gruden hasn't surfaced since he was let go. Why John Gruden? We get the connection here. But given his, I guess, reputation and how things ended with the Raiders, I think that it's odd to say the least, I think. It's not odd. It's not odd.

I mean, just be totally candid with you. Reporters and people who question this, honestly, they're either being disingenuous or they're just completely. complete idiots. This is all of sport, all of business. Will you bring in a consultant who has been successful in the field?

There are like, look, there are dudes that got me-toed. And you don't want them running your company anymore. You don't want them around females. But if they have some knowledge on how to be successful, meanwhile, they're going through their own kind of personal professional rehab.

If you're like, hey, how do I make a movie and you have a really successful filmmaker? There are some people that it's just too far gone. The Gruden stuff, he's incredibly well respected for his attention to detail. And, oh, by the way, he has his former quarterback. This happens everywhere. Coaches who get fired in college, they come in and consult, take notes, watch practice,

give a couple ideas in the NFL. Happens in the business world. Happens all the time. It doesn't mean you're hiring him to run your franchise or to be your offensive coordinator. But if you have the chance to have John Gruden, hey, why don't you take a look at this and tell us what you think? Why wouldn't you? Why wouldn't you?

The guy is a football savant. The stuff that got him in trouble was all the other stuff. But in terms of football, especially in building a relationship with Derek Carr and things that might work, I don't know if there's a better human being alive to do that. That's Jason Stewart in the news. Well, that's the news. And thanks for stopping by. The herd lie news.

Who's to blame the Packers break up with Aaron Rogers? A new article details the off-seasons of the past three years. You'll hear about it next in The Hurt. Be sure to catch live editions of The HARD weekdays in noon Eastern 9 a.m. Pacific. Hey, gang, this is Jay Glazer, host of Unbreakable, a mental health podcast. And each week we try to help turn our mental health issues into mental wealth. And we dive in with everyone from the world of sports and entertainment like Sean McVe, Lindsey Vaughn, Michael Phelps, David Spade, Guy Frierey,

and also those who can help us in between the ears, anyone from a therapist to someone like Ed Milet or John Gordon. So each week, listen to Unbreakable with Jay Glazer, a mental health podcast, an iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get 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, 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-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 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 just so y'all know. I mean, at this point, Mark, this is the second episode where we've discussed crack. 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. Doug Gottlievin for Colin. It's the heard. Fox Sports Radio, IHeart Radio app. Oh, this is a good one.

This is a good one. good one, good one. All right. Don't you love the juicy details of a breakup? What he say? And then what she say. And then what he say? And then what she say.

Right? Well, that's what we have in the athletic. Match Schneidman covers the Packers for the Athletic. And he detailed the breakup and breakdown of the relationship between Aaron Rogers and Brian Gunnickens, essentially Aaron Rogers and the Green Bay Packers. he talked to Aaron Rogers. Like Aaron Rogers kind of took him through what happened after Jordan Love was drafted, for example. Did I want to, Roger said, years down the line go, well, if we had just taken somebody who could impact our team because we had just gone to the NFC championship game, yeah, of course, Rogers said the Packers system to draft Love.

I don't think any competitor would say anything different. So Rogers is trying to make it out that it wasn't that they drafted Jordan Love. It's that, hey, they just went to the NCAA championship game. And everyone knows that if you draft a quarterback, in order for him to play, Aaron has to sit. And that wasn't happening. And it was a future selection. So he wouldn't, like, you know, he wouldn't. T. Higgins, for example, was available, taking the second round.

He would have helped the Green Bay Packers. according to a source associate with the team who was granted anonymity to candidly discuss the sensitive dynamics between the front office and the star quarterback early in the 2021 offseason. Dunn, Rogers agent, called Mark Murphy to request one of two things, trade Rogers or fire Brian Gunnkins. Murphy did neither. Months later, news broke that Rogers wanted out of Green Bay, but the Packers held firm. it goes to the 2021 off season. Okay, so this is obviously not last year. It's the previous year.

Okay, so in the previous year, remember that's when he was holding out. I was when he didn't know if he wanted to come back, what was going on. After the first practice of camp, Rogers aired his grievances saying he wanted changes to the organization's communication and culture. According to Rogers, the communication between he and good and const improved,

but quote, It still wasn't anywhere near what I've already enjoyed here with the Jets in just a few short weeks. So the Jets in a new relationship, they want to be open, honest, full lines of communication. According to the source, the next off season, this is last year's last off season, the Packers weren't satisfied with Rogers' commitment and effort. Not only during voluntary OTAs, but day-to-day basis afterwards, Rogers takes exception to the thought, that the team wanted more from him in the months after giving him the richest contract in NFL history. When I'm in, I'm all in.

You just want to ride or die with offseason workouts. I won the MVP without doing offseason workouts like my commitment level was any less than. I'd say not at all. The way I came back to work, not just physically in good shape, but mentally refreshed is the thing that for me was the reason I was able to have the season I wanted to. in Green Bay. You fast forward to this offseason, and Gunnick-Cunce and Rogers agreed to meet in person in Southern California, where Rogers lives in the off-season.

Gunn-Cuns was traveling in January to the NFLPA Collegiate Bowl. They never connected, and this is that story that many people have talked about, that there was a disconnect because the Packers wouldn't FaceTime him. Quote, I have zero or one bar at the house. This is Aaron Rogers. so you call me sometimes it goes through most times it doesn't go through everybody who knows me knows when i'm out west they know how to get a hold of me so you can say whatever you want but that's the effing truth before i went into darkness i hit him up and said here's some stuff

swirling around here we should get together you me and matt did brian text me more than i text him yeah but did i ghost him no i text him back and there was back and forths that we had and so this is the story that you want to go with. You're going to stand on this hill of austerity and say arguably in the conversation, the best player in your franchise history, you're going to say I couldn't get a hold of him and that's why we had to move on. Like, come on, just tell the truth. You wanted to move on.

You didn't like the fact that we didn't communicate all the time. Listen, I talk to the people that I like. I mean, Aaron Rogers contradicts himself and tells you who he really is in a all of these statements. Like first, he's like, look, man, I want open lines of communication. They try to communicate with you. You didn't want to communicate back with them. And your defense is, I communicate all the time with the people I like.

I didn't like Brian Gunnickens. I didn't like him. And so there was, this thing was over two years ago, three years ago when they drafted Jordan Love. There's no way you can read this article in which Aaron Rogers defends, they want me to show up for OTAs, I need to be refreshed. Like, it's not all about you. Rogers is probably right. It probably is refreshing to get away, to go on a trip, to go hiking, to go find yourself. But when you're trying to involve new wide receivers and have a new

connection and be one with the team and be connected, you got to be there. You got to be there. It's like they say about parenting. Most important thing about parenting, is just showing up. Most important thing about relationships is open lines of communication. And Roger is saying, I want to communicate, but I communicate plenty with the people I like. It tells you he didn't like Brian Gunnickens. So he communicated as much as was needed in order to keep the, in order to keep some form of relationship going.

All right, coming up next, I'm Doug Gottlieb in for Colin Cowherd. Today is Decision Day. For what? Are you in or you out? For what? I'll explain next. I'm Doug Gottlie. This is The Hurt. 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 home. 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. Hey, this is Robert from the Stuff to Blow Your Mind podcast. Joe and I are both lifelong Star Wars fan, so we're celebrating May the 4th with a brand new week of fun, thought-provoking Star Wars-related episodes. Join us as we tackle science and culture topics from a galaxy far, far away,

such as the biology of tauntons and wampas on the ice planet hot, or the practicality and, corporate business sense of the Sith rule of two. Listen to stuff to blow your mind on the IHeart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This is an IHeart podcast. Guaranteed human.