The Herd with Colin Cowherd - The Herd - Hour 1 - The NBA All-Star game

Episode Date: February 20, 2023

Nick Wright in for Colin Cowherd   Former Los Angeles Lakers point guard Russell Westbrook planning to sign with the Los Angeles Clippers Nick responds to criticism surrounding the All-Star game. Also, Nick says we no longer enjoy the journey (and its accomplishments) in sports. Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokić once again has elite numbers this NBA season—but does he deserve to win a third consecutive MVP?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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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 SportsRourts. It is the herd. Colin Cowherd, vacationing, as he often does this time of year. Nick Wright and Alex Currie in for Colin and J. Mack.

Alex, one of my favorite people at the entire network, one of those talented people of the entire network. Wonderful to see you as always. How are you doing this morning in Los Angeles this afternoon out here in New York? I know. I love the cross-coast show we got going here. I'm doing great. But what a week to be in the Wright family, Nick, because you're going.

You guys have just been living it up. And congratulations because you got the red carpet rolled out for you when you were celebrating with Casey. You guys were at the after party. You were getting hugs from Mahomes and Kelsey. Like, I am just so happy for you and your family. Well, listen, you don't put in all those hours at OTAs, you know, practicing, pumping that iron to then win a Super Bowl and not celebrate it. So thank you so much, Alex. I greatly appreciate that.

We have a massive show, massive hour right. here. The All-Star game, everyone's killing it, and everyone who's killing it in the media needs to take their own responsibility for what's happened to the All-Star game. We will get to that momentarily. Also, Nikoliyokic is going to win his third straight MVP in his second straight year where it doesn't seem like anybody wants to draft him for the All-Star game. What does that actually mean? However, we're going to start this hour with this. Russell Westbrook has signed with Los Angeles Clippers. We're not going to spend a ton of time on this, but it is some break-up.

news from this morning and it must be addressed. Now, I understand there has been some odd recent pushback on Russell Westbrook criticism. People have reminded us that Russell Westbrook is a great father, a great husband, a great tipper. And I, you know what? I can credit for all of those things. In fact, I think I'm all those things. But I would be a disastrous point guard for a team trying to win an NBA championship. And it is beyond baffling to me that the clippers are going to step on this same rake, that they saw the Houston Rocket step on,

that they saw the Los Angeles Lakers step on. I'll leave the wizards out of it because the wizards were not actually trying to win a championship. But if you are trying to win a championship, You cannot have this version of Russell Westbrook on your team. Listen, I did for What's Right with Nick Wright, the podcast I do, last year the 50 greatest players of the last 50 years. I had Russ 35th. I had him ahead of Clyde Drexler.

I had of Steve Nash. I had of Gary Payton. He is an all-time legendary player. That can be true and this can also be true. In 2023, if you are trying to win games, he cannot help you. He has not evolved as a player. His biggest weaknesses have become more glaring. And the idea that the Clippers, who in a wide open Western Conference,

actually have the best chance, I would argue, they have ever had since Kauai and Paul George came together to get out of the West and go on a real run, potentially to a championship that this team would opt in to adding Russell Westbrook, it's beyond comprehension. And again, I know that sounds harsh

and I know there are people that are diehard Russ fans that feel like he has gotten, his entire career has gotten disrespected by the media. I agree with many that the previous iterations of Russ were underrated. The fact of, the matter is when he was at his peak, there

is real value in his relentless effort in what he gave you on all phases of offense, even if it was inefficient, because he ate up so many possessions, because he pushed the pace, because he put constant pressure on the defense.

That can be true, that he once upon a time was a great player, and once upon a time he could have, he wasn't, but he could have been a part of a championship team. But that ship has sailed. That player no longer exists,

and the Clippers opting into this is, they have made many mistakes with the Clippers in letting Kauai and Paul George run everything. This is the latest it would appear, as Paul George seemed to be the loudest and strongest advocate for this move. I don't understand why they did it. Now to the All-Star game.

Mike Malone, in fact, we can just play you the Mike Malone sound. What did Nuggets head coach Mike Malone think of the All-Star game? Spoiler alert, he wasn't a fan. It's an honor to be here. It's an honor to be a part of a great weekend, great players, but that is the worst basketball game ever played. How do you fix it? I don't know if you can't fix it.

I mean, I give Juell and B, Kyrie Irving. Those guys were, like, competing. Dorel was imploring some of the guys to play harder, to try to get some defense in, but no one got hurt. They put on a show for the fans, but that is a tough game to sit through. I'm not going to lie. Okay, so the media is going to spend all day echoing those sentiments and crushing the players while taking no personal responsibility for where we are at across sports in all exhibition games

And in the NBA in particular, where the dunk contest, no one wants to participate in, the All-Star game, no one wants to try. Hell, regular season games, you don't know who's going to play and who's not going to play. And when I tell you, the players are a symptom, not the cause, let's zoom out so I can explain it to you. And we'll circle back to the All-Star game, which obviously was not a real basketball. ball game. And I think you'll understand why this is actually on us in the media and how we talk about sports over the last 10 to 15 years because the All-Star game used to be competitive. And I'm not talking about the 80s and the 90s. Yes, it was competitive then, but I'm talking about 2010, 2012, up until about a decade ago, this was a competitive game people cared about.

So what happened? So let's zoom out for a moment. this week, this past week on television, I made the case that Patrick Mahomes just completed the best five-year start to a career in NFL history. And I was, to me, it's an obvious case. It is not a hot take. In fact, it is such a clear-cut answer that I didn't think would be controversial at all.

But of course, the pushback that I got was, what about Brady? And so we can show you Mahomes versus Brady's first five years and I promise you this actually relates to what we saw in the All-Star game. So, they have the same number of Super Bowl appearances.

Mahomes has more conference championship appearances. Mahomes has more MVPs. Moans has 10,000 more yards, 100 more touchdowns, and the greatest passer rating ever while Brady's was around league average. So why is it not only a debate, but why is it that the majority of people

would say, no, no, no. The best first five years was Tom. Because that first line, Super Bowl wins, count the rings, championship or bust. It's all that matters. The entirety of our profession

has turned into, you guys remember that movie, I think it was called Bad Teacher, Jason Seagall was in it, and they're in the trailer for it. He's arguing with a little kid about who the greatest basketball player of all time is, and the little kid says to him,

because the little kid's arguing, I think, for LeBron, says to him in regards to Michael Jordan, your only argument is six rings. And Jason Segal screams at him, it's the only argument I need. That's what all of sports commentary has become, and then we act shocked when the players act accordingly. All we give you credit for is championship.

All we give you credit for is the destination. Nothing for the journey. It does not matter what you do in the regular season. It does not matter what your full body of work is. You either win the title or you're considered some different level of disappointment or failure. And the players understand it did not use to be like that, but it is now. And then we act shocked when the players do make every decision accordingly. Why would I participate in the slam dunk contest?

I get no credit. I get no flowers. Everyone obsessed with giving people flowers for anything I do that isn't about winning a title. Why would I play a back-to-back? I get no credit. I get no kudos for putting on a show for the fans and fans. February, all people are concerned about is, am I at my peak come the postseason? So, of course, guys are going to take nights off.

Of course, anything that is not directly related to a championship pursuit is going to not just become secondary or even tertiary. It's going to become forgotten. And then we in the media act like we have nothing to do with it. We all just watched LeBron James break the all-time scoring record, a record that had been held for longer than LeBron had been alive, something that we thought of as unbreakable as recently as five years ago. And it wasn't, it didn't take 12 hours for that discussion to immediately pivot to, well, how much is it tarnished if, the Lakers miss the playoffs? How much does it really matter when the team this year's not going to win a championship? We can't, in the media, preach to the athletes that we cover who follow

these shows and who are acutely aware of what is said about them, that the only thing that matters is championships and then be shocked when guys act in their best interest accordingly. Why would I go all out for the All-Star game? Why would I risk, even if it's 1% injury? Why would I fight through fatigue and, you know, nicks and bruises to play three games and four nights? Why would I do that when you guys are telling me if I don't win a title, you're going to crush me? You're not going to care about any regular season accomplishments. You're certainly not going to care about any all-star game moments. So if you're not going to, why should I?

And we want players to take these games more seriously than we do. That's not how this goes. So if we in the media want load management to stop, want the slam dunk

contest to mean something again, want the All-Star game to be competitive again, then stop turning every sports discussion into a count the ring, binary conversation, have some more nuance to it, give some more credit

for accomplishments on the way, even if they ultimately fall short, and then maybe our athletes will react accordingly. One more major piece of news out of the All-Star game, which is a guy who, all the NBA

MVP voters, you know, swear is the best player in the league, or at least even if they don't think it, they vote as if he is. For the second straight year, was the seventh player taken in the All-Star draft, which really means for the second straight year he was the ninth or 10th player taken, because the captains can't draft themselves, and this year Durant was out and Steph was out, but so be it. Nikoliyokic, and Yokic to his credit, had a good disposition about it. He said my game's not suited for the All-Star game and it's not. That's fine. But Nikola Yokic

is right now a massive favorite to win his third straight NBA MVP. And this is not what I'm about to do here really a criticism of Yokic. It is

kind of in line with the previous conversation, a criticism of the overwhelming arrogance of the current crop of NBA MVP voters. And I understand this is not going to make me very popular with many of my colleagues.

I'm friends with a, well, friendly with a lot of these people. I'm not sure how much they like me. But the way the last few years, the voters have treated the history of this award as if it does not matter at all. And as if this current crop of voters

has cracked a code that otherwise was lost to 60 years of NBA MVP history, I find absolutely galling. So let's give a little context, because if you're watching right now, you're not familiar with where I've been on Yokic. I know a lot of people say, ah, Nick's a Yokic hater. It's not how I see it. Two years ago, I said I thought Nika Likic should finish second in MVP. voting to Chris Paul.

And then they did end up playing in the playoffs and Chris Paul's team swept out Yokic's team, but to regular season award, so be it. Last year, I thought the fact that Yokic's team had the 10th best record in the league, the sixth best record in the West, all

of MVP voting history tells us those guys can't win the award except for Russ when he averaged the triple double and people now look back on that and say that was a mistake. I said Luca should have been the MVP and I think I said Yokic would have been third. I think I said Luca Janice Yokic.

And then, of course, Yokic wins it and his team loses in round one. Ah, Nick, but they played the Warriors. It's not his fault. Well, yeah, because Luke also lost the Warriors. But the reason that how well you do in the regular season matters to a degree is because you do well in the regular season, you don't play the Warriors in round one. But set that aside. So just for whatever it's worth, if the two previous MVPs had been Chris Paul and

Luca Donchich, I would vote. for Yokic this year. Well then Nick you've got to vote for him and I don't have a vote. If you would vote it's not about other years. It's not about the history. It's just about this season. It's not about how you've done in the playoffs. And this is where the arrogance comes in.

Because for all of NBA history, it has been about all of those things. We absolutely have not given out multiple, much less back to back, much less back to back MVP's.

To anyone that doesn't have deep postseason runs and that isn't at the top of mind for best player in the league. And even the folks who vote for Yokin's would tell you, well, he's not better than Janus. And they might tell you he's not better than Luca. And gun to their head, maybe Steph. Like, forget is he an all-stri-does his game fit the All-Star game? If you have to get a bucket, is he your number one pick in the league? Is he your number two pick in the league? Is he number three pick in the league?

No, no, no. If you have to stop the other team from getting a bucket, is he one of your top ten picks in the league? No. So get a bucket, stop a bucket, not it. So why is he the MVP? Well, Nick, look at the numbers. Well, let's look at the numbers

and we'll go through these quickly because these numbers don't prove what you think they prove. So Box Plus Minus says that two of the best three years in NBA history, Three of the best five or Yokic's last three years. Does anyone actually believe that? Or do we think maybe box plus minus incorrectly values a touch too much overall efficiency and rebounding would appear to me?

What about career box plus minus? Oh, Yokic is the best player ever. That's career, best player ever. Does that prove he's the MVP or does that prove there's a problem with the stat? What about player efficiency rating? How does Yokic measure up? Oh, okay. So last year, he had the best season ever, and this year it's the sixth best season ever.

What about career player efficiency rating? Oh, he's in the conversation for best player ever. And then I just saw Raptor for one of the first times recently. Oh, okay. the best seasons ever of the last two. So unless you want to make the argument that Yokic is one of the three or four best players ever that he's in the midst of

the greatest stretch of three seasons ever, then don't bring me those stats. And this is where the history of it matters. Guys, when they win back-to-back MVPs, the standard for them to win a third well so Russell did it Wilk did it and Bird did it that's the list what about the other guys who could have

Michael Jordan won back to back in the midst of that he won a title and despite that and despite the fact that the next year he averaged 33 7 6 and 3 the voters said nah you're not one in three in a row we finished third LeBron won back to back

had been to multiple finals had an unbelievable year and he finished third Janus won back to back had not been to the finals and the voters punished him and he finished fourth and got one vote. Every single guy

with three plus MVPs by the time they got their third was either a champion or multiple finals trips. But today's voters are going to tell us we got that wrong that this is the way we need to do it. That it's that all

of NBA history how they had done it was wrong, and this is right. Yokic is an unbelievable player. He is not unbelievable enough when his colleagues don't think it, when the media deep down doesn't think it, when the eyewtests doesn't think it, that we should rewrite the entire record book for him.

Flatly shouldn't. Speaking of guys who shouldn't won back-to-back MVP, sounds like the Packers are out on Aaron Rogers. We'll discuss that next. Nick right in for Colin the Heard. Be sure to catch live editions of The Herd weekdays in noon Eastern 9 a.m. Pacific. Fox Sports Radio, FS1, and the IHard 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 IHard Radio app.

Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what I'm saying. Yep, that's me, Cliver Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, 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 Cliverts show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or we're at you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. 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 Tontons 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. Oh, there's Colin Coward talking my love language. A little ode to Patrick Mahomes. We'll get to this Rogers thing in just a moment. Just to put a button on, by the way, the Yokech thing. Just so everybody understand, the guys who have won three or more MVP's, forget three in a row. You have Bill Russell, the greatest defensive player ever,

you have Will to one season average 50 a game, the second highest career points per game ever. You have Kareem who, by his second year in the league, MVP, scoring champion finals MVP, one of the three greatest players ever. And by the way, when Kareem was going for his third straight MVP 50 years ago, 48 years ago, he averaged 30, 16, and 5 for his 60-win team.

And the voters even back then were like, do we want to give a guy three in a row? Probably not. So even though Kareem averaged 30, 16, and 5, they gave it to Dave Cowens, who averaged 2016 and 5. Moses won three in a row. He had been to the finals four and was the best player on the greatest team ever. Bird's Larry Bird. He mostly won three in a row, won three overall. Bird won three in a row. Magic's Magic Johnson. He won three, at least three, I should say. Michael Jordan, LeBron James. That's the list of guys. with at least three. We didn't let Duncan win three in a row. We didn't let Steph win three in a row.

Yonis got one vote when he was going for three in a row. We're going to break the rules for Yokic. Okay. That's fine. Listen, I just like history. Whether it's United States history from reconstruction until the Civil Rights Act was kind of my area of passion or sports history. You go to the Twitter page for the What's Right Show, my podcast. You have me from memory going backwards in time listing every MVP there ever was, about a nine minute video showing you, you know, evidence of a misspent youth. It matters. It's the most prestigious, professional

award we have in sports. And we already tarnished a bit by giving Nash back to back. But at least they had the good sense, even though his third year was better than the first dude. And I'd be like, we're not going to keep giving this guy MVP's till he shows us he's actually the best player in the league. We're going to make that mistake

with Yokic. It's unbelievable. Now to Aaron Rogers. All right. There is some unbelievable sound. Tyler Dunn, who has a great substack that I actually subscribe to. It's not that expensive. He had Bob McGinn on his podcast. Bob McGinn has literally covered the Packers longer than I've been alive.

Here is Bob McGinn on Tyler Dunn's podcast on Aaron Rogers and the team. Discussions with someone who just firsthand knowledge of this organization, of the Packers' internal debates, that they are done with Rogers. That that's the way it is right now, that he's not coming back. I mean, they're disgusted with him, and they're done with them,

and they're moving on. Okay, so that is some jarring sound from a guy who's not exactly a hot take artist. Again, he's covered the Packers for 38 years. So there's two levels to this, before we get to the wonderful and talented allegations. Hurry with Herdline News that I want to get to just quickly here. One is, and the most interesting one for me is, when Aaron Rogers emerges from darkness,

literally, how is this going to land on his desk? I can't wait for my guy Pat McAfee, likely wearing a tank top and holding a baseball bat or a pickleball racket or something, saying, Aaron, I'm not going to do a Pat McAfee impersonation. I'm bad in impersonations. I'm saying, Aaron, do you see what they said? They're done and disgusted with you. What do you say, Aaron?

So I'm very interested in that because Aaron oddly has some leverage here in that he's definitely coming back. He's never retiring. It's such a charade that he's even acting like he might retire. He would be forfeiting 60 million. dollars in cold hard cash by retiring.

He's not retiring. But if he delays announcing if he is or isn't coming back, he becomes almost impossible to trade. And he can really put the Packers in a rough spot. So I'm very interested in how all of this speculation and now call it informed reporting lands with him.

The other part of this that I can't get past and Packer fans, they took a way premature victory lap when, I think I was hosting the herd actually, when there was thoughts on, wait, are they going to make the playoffs going into that Lions game final week of the year? And I had said four weeks prior, this team can't win a championship, this team almost assuredly is not making the playoffs,

you should bench Aaron, play Jordan, and see what you got. And then they reeled off the most meaningless four-game little winning streak ever. And it was like, oh, you still think it? You still think we should have played Jordan? Yes.

And this right here is your evidence of it. Because now you are flying blind. If they had taken their medicine and acknowledged what the problem was and acknowledged that they were not going to achieve any of their goals in 2020, They could have taken the only silver lining of that, which is getting increased knowledge about Jordan. So let's just walk through each possible door.

Jordan Love plays and he's awesome. Well, then you don't have to deal with any of this nonsense from Rogers. You wait for him to announce he's coming back, which he is, and you trade him. Let's say Jordan plays and he is good, but puts out good film, but internally you're like, we don't actually, we think that's an aberration. you can trade Jordan to help your team for this year with Aaron. And let's say Jordan Love plays and he's awful.

Then you just got to take your medicine and be like, all right, we got to deal with all of the nonsense that comes with Aaron Rogers, but we got no alternatives. But now you're going to end up, I believe, trading Aaron Rogers and flying blind with Jordan Love. You didn't have to do that. But I think Jordan Love starts week one for the Packers.

I think Aaron has played his last game with the Packers, and I think somehow this is ending more bizarrely than Brett Farve did. Not quite as much drama year after year, but a little bit of drama each year, and some of the most bizarre. And, like, I did not have on my bingo chart, I don't have a lot of bingo charts, my apologies. I'm bored. My bingo card?

I think it's a card. I'm a gambler, but not a bingo player. So, you know, I'm a little too young for that still. That Aaron Rogers potentially traded shortly after emerging from a, what, 96-hour darkness retreat. But I think that's what's happening. Here is the great Alex Curry with the news. No, no, no, no. Turn on the news.

This is the herd line news. But Nick, did you have the darkness retreat on the bingo card? You know, once a guy's big, and I'm not a prude when it comes to mind-altering substances, I'm not big on them these days, but, you know, we were all in college once and in our 20s, and maybe in my case, early 30s once, so I don't judge people, but once you publicly are like, hey, Aaron, how did you spend your off-season? We know Patrick Mahomes was like down in Texas working with, you know, young receivers stuff. We know Tom Brady was doing, you know, TB12 method. What were you doing? He's like, ah, he's in a tent in Peru, tripping my, I almost cursed, just tripping like crazy, having to be hallucinating.

Once that happened, I feel like anything's on the board. I'd never heard of this darkness therapy. Maybe it'll be good, but go ahead. It's going to be some hot content getting his reaction once he comes out of that, though. But let's get to the dunk contest because Matt McClung has only played in two games in his NBA career, but he dominated the slam duck contest on Saturday night. Three of his four dunks earned perfect scores of 50 by the panel of judges, and he completed all of his dunks on the first attempt. Mack, McClung, has entered the chat.

I believe a star was born on Saturday night, and it was one of those things you kind of had to see it to believe it. And you kind of saw that in all the other all-star players' faces that were standing there, watching it. I think Janice's mouth was open the entire time anytime he was going up to dunk. But you kind of had that feeling he was going to win. the whole thing after that perfect 50 score, first dunk. Now, we know how you feel about the NBA All-Star game,

but do you believe that Mack save the dunk contest here? Well, I don't know that he saved it, but he should have maybe opened the NBA's eyes that Chris Broussard says this all the time on our show. The best dunkers in the world typically are not in the NBA. And Mack McClung, for those of us that care about high school basketball, He and Zion Williamson, when they were both in high school, I think they were the same graduating class,

but I know they're same in high school at the same time. They each had these unbelievable high school mixtapes. And you wondered like, all right, how much is Mack getting graded on a curve because he's white and because he looks like he's 10? Like race notwithstanding, he is such a baby face. But then you see him in this dunk contest. It's like, oh, no, no, no.

He's just flatly one of the five. best dunkers alive. If they wanted to, truly, you know, this is something we've talked about a lot over the years on first things first, save the dunk contest. Yeah. You need to have two brackets, three guys who are not in the NBA, three guys who are in the NBA, and a million dollars cash at center court. And then you have a dunk off and the winner gets the cash.

Mack McClunk might win that. I also think the Sixers are obligated to keep them on the air. active roster now. I mean, Mac McLung, they are obligated to let him actually be a part of the team now that he won the dunk contest. Go ahead. I think you have to. The sports world was put on notice and everybody knows his name now. So congratulations. No doubt. That was one of my favorite parts of the weekend. All right, let's move on and talk about some load management because it continues to be a big topic of conversation in the NBA. And it came up again during the All-Star weekend. Commissioner Adam Silver doesn't think it's an issue right now. But Timberwolf's star,

Anthony Edwards has a very different opinion and here's what both of them had to say. The world we may that we used to have where it was just get out there and play through injuries for example. I don't think that's appropriate. Clearly I mean at the end of the day these are human beings who play through all kinds of you know I hesitate to label them injuries but but play through all kinds of aches and pains on a regular basis. And the suggestion I think that these men, in the case in the NBA, somehow should just be out there more for its own sake I don't buy into. There's all the guys sit and resting. That's the only thing I probably don't like. Just play, man.

If you, if you, 80% you, you got to play. I don't like all the sitting, missing games and stuff. Like these people, these people might have enough money to come to one game, you know what I'm saying? and that might be the game they come to and then you're sitting out. I'm with Anthony Edwards here. I mean, this is your job. Everybody is. Okay?

This is what you are paid to do. And if you are the best of the best, getting paid the big bucks, people are coming to watch you every single day. People are turning on their TV to watch you play every single day. And if you're not physically injured, obviously, and you can't be on the court, that's a different story. But if you're just taking rest days, then it's. something really needs to change, whether it's the NBA coming together and figuring out, do we change the schedule somehow, give players more rest in between games, maybe we add

less games in the season, or actually have consequences. If you mix X amount of games, you're not eligible for these big awards, which is now in the conversation. Right. And that's, Collins talked about that. I think Collins standard, I think is it like 90% or 85%. That feels a touch high because you get, you know, have a real injury, not. you out for a couple weeks and all of a sudden you got to play every other game.

But so I'll try to be very quick here, but a couple things. One is when people say, ah, shorten the schedule 72 games, that will not fix this. Because the reason guys are saying that they are load managing is so they are at peak performance come to postseason. So if in a set 82 game schedule, guys miss 12 to 15 games, so they play 67 to 70. In a 72 game schedule, they're still going to miss those 12 to 13. 15 games for the same logical reason. There will just be fewer games.

So that's first thing. Second thing is this. And I understand this is not very popular in, you know, like amongst kind of the younger, you know, our generation of media. But I think you agree with me on this. Part of being a pro athlete, part of what makes you great is the ability to play through pain, to not be perfectly rested in perfect condition. and still be able to perform.

That is for as long as sports have existed. That is what has separated some of the good to very good and very good to great. Now, like a lot of the load management stuff started with the spurs, most notably Tim Duncan. But Tim Duncan was not load managing when he was 25. His Tim Duncan played an incredibly long career and it was not until very deep into his career.

So if LeBron and even Durant and Steph, our three oldest stars, need the long. load managed to elongate their careers, so be it. And this is where I will give Yokic a ton of credit. Yokic is the ones, and Yonis, Yonis has been dealt with some injuries, those two guys don't load manage, and I give them massive credit for it. And the last one I would say is this, Alex, if I were Adam Silver, I would implore the teams, if they are going to rest their guys, I know it sounds counterintuitive.

Do it at home games, because home fans are going to have so many more opportunities to see those guys. So I'm a net season ticket holder, which, by the way, those tickets are not as valuable as they once were. But it is so, every time a star comes to town and they're not playing, and I know it's cliche, but it is true.

You see little kids there that were there just to see that player the one night a year they're in that city. In New York, I guess it's different because they have the Knicks too, and they miss out on it. I feel like it's a little less punitive to the fans if it's the home guy sitting out who you have other

opportunities to see. I also have a hard time wrapping my head around the fact that you are getting paid millions of dollars to play a game that you are the best at, which is why you are at the top of your game and the All-Star that you are. And if you're healthy, play the game. It's what you're getting paid to do. I'll just add one other piece of that because I think what some people would say is, yeah, but we now have more information, more data, and we want guys healthy at the end of the season.

whether it's pitchers in baseball or load managing in the NBA, we have no information that this has helped injuries. Like there's the guys, it's not as if guys now are less injured than they were in the 80s and 90s when they were all playing 70 plus games. In fact, it appears to kind of be the opposite. So I don't know if the science is, I hate to say this, I don't know if the science is settled on it,

but it's not as simple as people make out to be. All right, I've talked to them. No, not at all right. Add, you also have top of the line athletic training staff that's taking care of you. So just take care of your body, too, outside of when you're actually playing the game. All right, we're heated on this. But let's move on. Let's talk some football because the Chief's offensive coordinator job is open with Eric B.

enemy heading to Washington. Now, the front runner is reportedly Matt Nagy, who held the position in 2016 and 2017 before taking the head coaching job with the Bears. Now, Nagy return to the Chiefs' past season as a senior assistant and quarterback coach. Nick, this is your team. Is this the right fit? Is this the right fit? And is this a step to eventually have Matt Nagy take over when Andy Reid eventually steps away? Oh, well, let's not go that far.

And let's not all talk about Andy Reid stepping away. Andy's got another solid 10 years of coaching in him. What else he going to do? He loves Patrick Mahomes. Listen, I do find it interesting. So Matt Nagy, much like Doug Peterson, who was a Chiefs Offensive Coordinator under Andy Reeves. and then parlayed it to head coaching job.

But of course, when it's Eric B. Enemy, who's had the most success of any of them, it's an impossibility. And we'll talk more about that later. I'm fine with this. I think Matt Nagy will be fine in this position. I do think the loss of Bienemy will hurt the chiefs slightly. But I'm fine with this.

I think the bigger story is why the opening is there and why Eric Bianney had to leave. We will get to that later in the show. But there is Alex Curry with the news. Well, that's the news. And thanks for stopping by. The Herd Lye News. LeBron calls this the most important 23-game stretch of his regular season career.

That and Daniel Jones wanting about $45 million reportedly. We do it both next. Nick right in for Colin on the Hurd. Be sure to catch live editions of the Herd weekdays in noon Eastern 9 a.m. Pacific. This is Steve Kavino and Rich Davis. And together we are Kavino and Rich. Vino and Rich. Thanks, buddy.

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or wherever you get your podcasts. Covino and Rich, get me your hell, yeah. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal, but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's Superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year.

Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the IHard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what you're saying. Yep, that's me, Cliford 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. 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 taun tons 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.

Welcome back in Nick Ryan for Colin on the herd. So LeBron had the play of the All-Star game. We'll show you that later in the show if you haven't already seen it. But he also had one of the most important quotes of the All-Star game, of All-Star Week and it had none do with the game. And it was about this stretch run for the Lakers. Here it is. It's 23 of the most important games of my career for a regular season.

And the type of mindset that I have and I hope the guys will have coming back off the break. He also alluded to there that he was later in the soundbite. He was hoping to play all 23 games. Now, I don't know if that's realistic, but I would expect him to play unless he suffers an injury about 20 of them. I know he hurt his hand. in the All-Star game yesterday. It didn't seem... Judging by the scientific analysis of,

did he as ferociously dapp up his friends and family and other All-Star competitors post-injury as he was pre-injury? I'm going to say the hand's going to be fine. But I don't actually think LeBron is issuing that challenge to himself. Now, he is upping the pressure on himself. He is... There is a whole industry of LeBron James critics, even as he has the greatest age 38.

season in the greatest year, 20 season of any player in league history by a mile, and he breaks the scoring record all of that. He now, has up the pressure on if the Lakers don't make the postseason, but he was going to say LeBron, you said this was a super important stretch, why didn't you produce? But

I actually think that is more of a challenge to Anthony Davis, because something odd happened with Anthony Davis around the trade deadline. And we all saw his kind of non-reaction reaction to LeBron breaking the scoring record. And then we also saw his play in the games starting with LeBron breaking the scoring record against OKC

and then those following that four-game stretch. It was 17 points, 40% from the field, and maybe most notably fewer than four free throw attempts per game. Now, he did seem to snap out of it their final game before the break against New Orleans. He was excellent. He was super efficient. He was active defensively. He got the line.

a little bit more, he was distributing the ball. If the Lakers have any shot, in my opinion, they need to go 14 and 9 the rest of the way. That would get them to 500, that will assuredly put them in the play in, maybe

as high as the 7-8 line, which is important because then you only have to win one game as opposed to having one game to win back-to-back games, pardon me. But the question is, which version of Anthony Davis are the Lakers going to get? If they get the Anthony Davis we've saw for about a month early in the year before he got hurt, the Anthony

Davis that we saw in the final game before the break, then I would expect them, they have the sixth, the easiest schedule the rest of the way, LeBron seems locked in, the moves they've made, I would expect them to be able to make the plan, and I don't know that Denver or Memphis would be thrilled if in round one, you've got to play a Lakers team that's playing its best basketball of the year with this new supporting cast. But if AD is passive and seemingly distracted, then what LeBron does and the DeAngelo Russell edition and Jared Vanderbilt Beasley, that stuff won't matter.

We put all 32 NFL teams in the buckets next. Nick right in for Colin the herd. Another podcast from some SNL late-night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smigel and friends. Me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman help make you funnier. This week, my guest, SNL's Mikey Day and head writer Streeter Seidel helped 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 I-Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's Superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and

with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the I-Hard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what 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 Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfilled 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 IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok podcast network on TikTok.

This is an IHeart podcast. Guaranteed human.