The Herd with Colin Cowherd - The Herd - Hour 2 - Who should be the MVP?

Episode Date: February 20, 2023

Green Bay quarterback Aaron Rodgers emerges from his descent into darkness, where will he stand with the Green Bay brass? FOX Sports NBA analyst Ric Bucher joins Nick to discuss Russell Westbrook's plan to sign with the Los Angeles Clippers, the lack of relevance in the All-Star Game, and moreSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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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. 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 Heard 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. Welcome back in, Nick Wright. Colin Cowherd on the herd. Alex Curry, and for Jason McIntyre on the herd.

Alex, you got any, listen, you and Joy Taylor and some of my friends out in L.A., Emmanuel Lacho. I feel like when you guys aren't working, check your Instagram, and it's like, oh, they're in Paris. Oh, they're in Barcelona. You got any big vacation plans set up for when you finally get some time off? No, the husband's on tour, so I got to go to a festival. played last night in Long Beach and live my true Penny Lane self on stage watching Pepper.

So that was it. I had a great time. Wow. That's awesome. Alex's husband, wildly talented musician, introduced us to some of their friends in Hawaii when I was there. Oh, yeah. Wonderful family, wonderful people.

I love that. We'll check in with Rick Buecker in 20-ish minutes. We'll check in with Alex Curry again with the news in about a half hour. And by the way, whenever I host this show, those times are always, it's kind of like plain boarding times. Like, they're more a hope than an exact science. I get back to my old school radio roots of hosting a four-hour solo radio show. And I just talk until I run out of things to say. We will get back to the All-Star game.

Top of the very next hour. Everyone's blaming the players for the travesty that was the All-Star game. It is absolutely the media's fault. And the media will take no ownership of it. but when every sports conversation comes down to count the rings. How many rings does he have? Is it a championship? What is it?

Then when that happens, the players will act accordingly. We'll talk with Rick Bucher about that and also all rant about that in about an hour. Right now, however, I'm not ready to turn the page on the NFL just yet. And typically, Colin on I think Tuesdays does the herd hierarchy on Wednesdays on first things first. We do the committee's tiers. wanted to do something with the NFL is we now look forward to the 2023 season and put each team into five different buckets. So before we reveal it, let me tell you what the five buckets are. We're going to do a blow it up group, a rebuilding group, a be patient group, a one big move

group, and a go all in group. All 32 teams will be represented, however, we won't discuss all 32 teams because of those time constraints. Great producers. Alex Rosenbaum keeps insisting this can't be a six-hour show. He says it'll bleed into first things first. So let's first reveal the blow-it-up tier. So all of these teams, except the Ravens, went all in, whether they knew it or not, almost got there or in the Bucks, Rams, and Patriots case did get there,

but now the bill is due. So every one of those teams except the Ravens has made at least a conference championship game, if not multiple, if not a Super Bowl, if not won a Super Bowl in the last five years. But now they are all in no man's land. And the Saints refuse to acknowledge it. They're 60 million over the cap. They're talking about signing Derek Carr. They need to accept where they are, sell off the pieces that they can, and start the rebuild.

The bucks are in the exact same spot. The Packers. I don't know if blow it up is exactly what I'm advocating they do, even though I put them and then blow it up tier. What I'm advocating they do is trade away Aaron Rogers and move forward with Jordan Love. The Titans and Patriots must acknowledge, and the sooner that they acknowledge it,

that with their skill position guys and their quarterback, they are drawing dead in the AFC. Now, because of their coaches and quality of overall roster, they're not going to win four games, unless they end, get a, be high in the draft. They'll win seven, eight, nine games. But their championship windows are done. That then, and so in my opinion, there was a story this week, the Patriots,

don't see a big difference between Mac Jones and Bailey Zappie. Me neither. If someone wanted to give me a first rounder for Mac Jones, I would absolutely take it, and I would try to strip that down. The Titans, the sooner they acknowledge that whatever window they had with Ryan Tannihill is now closed, the better for them. That then leaves the two interesting teams, the Ravens and the Rams. The Rams will not do this, especially with McVeigh coming back.

and I understand it. But the Rams, if they were to take a hard look in the mirror and say, guys, we had our window, we made two Super Bowls, we won one, and now, unless we want to be in the NFL wilderness for the next six, seven years, we absolutely should shop Jalen Ramsey. We absolutely should talk to Aaron Donald and see if he only has one year, left? Does he maybe want to spend it on a contender? And also maybe have that conversation with Matt Stafford. They won't do it. Instead, they will win eight games next year, and then Donald

retires, and McVeigh maybe goes to television, and all of a sudden they're out in the wilderness. And then that leaves the Ravens. The Ravens have made it clear they do not believe in Lamar Jackson enough to give him the contract he wants. He will never have more trade value than he has right now. Take your medicine and trade him if you're not going to sign him to a long-term deal. Well, Nick, we can just franchise tag him. Okay, let's talk through that. You franchise tagging for $45 million. Then at the end of the year, he gets dinged up again,

and once again, he has no long-term money, so once again he's super cautious as far as his own injury management, and once again, you're left saying, what the hell? Our season went to hell. And then, this off-season, a year from now, you're still not going to want to give him the guaranteed money. You franchise him again? Okay, then he knows

that you will have paid him $100 million for two years, then he hits true free agency. The whole league will know you have to trade him a year from now we're losing for nothing and the value is minimal. Right now this moment what could you get from Atlanta? Their first round

pick this year, Kyle Pitts and another high draft pick, maybe. Would they throw in Desmond Ritter? Possibly, the Ravens, once you decided not to sign Lamar, you started walking down this path, acknowledge it. Admit it and turn the page. Rebuilding. This is pretty self-explanatory. We can be quickly here. Almost all of these teams know they're rebuilding with possibly two exceptions. The Raiders and the Cardinals. The Raiders maybe don't know they're rebuilding, but I do.

They're right now roughly the 13th or 12th best team in the conference. They are likely the worst team in their own division. They don't have a great coach. They don't know who their quarterback is. They are rebuilding. And then there's the Cardinals. The Cardinals are in a very tricky spot because they have an undersized,

underwhelming, polarizing quarterback that it appears they don't even believe in who's going to miss at least half of this upcoming season with injury. what do you do? The answer is you start rebuilding and you hope and pray that Kyler from a health perspective from a football evolution perspective

and from all there's so much smoke there's got to be some fire about him not being a great personality in that locker room from a maturity perspective that he during this injured time grows up as a player and as a leader and that you just take your

medicine this year. You take your medicine this year, tell him take all the time you need to get better. You trade DeAndre Hopkins. You pare down that roster. You bottom out this year. And then you hope next year you have a top five pick that you can possibly flip for extra picks because you're not going to draft a quarterback. And you hope that Kyler in 2024 is the player you thought he might be after his rookie season. Next group, be patient. Okay, these six, teams all have something in common in that, okay, the roster's pretty good. This season, for four of the six, is probably a little better than expected. Steelers, Giants, Lions, Seahawks.

For the other two, you have somewhere to put the blame on why the season went to hell. For the Broncos, they're going to blame it all on Nat Hackett. For the Browns, it's going to be, ah, you know, we didn't have Deshaun for 11 games. That's why none of these six teams. should do anything drastic in either direction. They should make sure they have as much flexibility financially for future off-season. They should stay the course as much as they can because all six of them have to use this coming season to find out. Do we have the quarterback?

Was golf and Gino, were their years outlier years, or is this who they can be now in their career? Daniel Jones. I read the report Daniel Jones wants $45 million. Good luck, buddy. The Giants, and I assume they know this, they're going to franchise tag Daniel Jones. The smart thing there with Daniel Jones

and Kenny Pickett for those teams, even if it hurts your win-loss record, take the training wheels off, ask them to play real adult quarterback, and see how much they can succeed if they are given the full playbook, the full options,

Because that is what you're going to need if you're going to stay with them long term. And for the Broncos and the Browns, you're going to use this year to find out, do you have the worst contract in the league on your team? Or can those two quarterbacks both bounce back from the worst years of their careers? And I don't know which one of those contracts looks worse right now. Everyone's killing Russell all year, and I was one of those people, and he looked horrible. Deshaun Watson, granted, he had two years off, you know, one of the, those years totally his own doing, I guess both his own doing, but one for horrible reasons,

the other just contractual reasons. But regardless, you need those two guys over the next three seasons are going to make more money playing quarterback in this league than almost anybody else. You need them to be excellent. Last year, both of them were downright bad. So you be patient, you see if they get back to being who you signed them up to be. If not, you have a really tough decision this following offseason as far as what you're going to do franchise wise. If they do, the next off season you can go try to become a true

contender. All right, one big move. These teams are all, in my opinion, set up relatively well. And they all, the Jags are not in the greatest cap situation. The bills, Josh Allen's money

goes up. We understand that. But they all, if they really want to, could add one significant piece. Now the Chargers, they added a few significant pieces this past off season. Khalil Mack, J.C. Jackson. We know the Jaguar spending spree.

We know the bills added Bond Miller. The Chiefs, of course, went in the other direction, decided to rebuild, take a step back, and it cost them a lot because they just went 14-3-1 the Super Bowl. Let's set that aside. All of these teams should look at it as our championship

window is now starting to open if you're the jets and the Jags or has been open if you're the bills, chargers, and cowboys, or is as wide open as any window's ever been if you're the chiefs? Because of that, you don't want to put all of your future resources into this year, but if any of those teams wanted to trade their first round pick for an impact player this moment, if any of those teams wanted to overpay slightly in free agency for one super high. impact guy, you would get it.

Now, none of them should act as if, you know, the way the Rams and the Bucks acted, which is, we're just going to go all, or the Saints for a few years, all in for this one Super Bowl and then be screwed long term, because with the Bills, Chiefs,

chargers, and jags, you have a decade-plus long quarterback. For the Jets, your one big move is probably acquiring that quarterback. For the Cowboys, while Dax's on the level of those other quarterbacks that the AFC teams have there, aside from the Jets, obviously, because you're in the NFC, you have a top three quarterback in the conference, and he's just now turning 30. You've got time.

But one major addition to potentially put you over the top, the chiefs obviously are already over the top. They're sitting at the top, looking down on the rest of the league, but still, they could maybe add one significant piece. And then lastly, go all in. So these are teams, a very disparate group of teams, and I'll explain why I have all of them in this go-all-in category. For the Dolphins, Tua is still very cheap, and you do not know how long he's going to be able to play quarterback in this league, and how long until you have to go quarterback shopping again.

You do know that that team, when healthy, looked like a true contender. You also know that Tyree Kill is coming off one of the best years of his career, but is older. So you don't know how long that, that Tyree Kill, Jail and Waddle combo is going to last in that regard. That defense obviously needs some major additions. If you're Miami, I would put major resources into this offseason and keep my fingers crossed that Tuas stays healthy and see what we can do. The Niners. you can only come this close for so long before your core pieces

start to say, okay, it's not going to happen. If you're the Niners, you're still not paying a quarterback, you're going to run with Trey Lance, you already said you were essentially going all in with the McAfree trade, continue on that trajectory. What are the Vikings doing here? The Vikings are tied to Kurt Cousins in a way they don't really want to be, but they are.

after the year they had the way it ended with that defense being exposed the way it was the Vikings should try to remake their defense the way the Bengals did a couple years ago overspending in free agency in a wide open NFC to see if hey Aaron Rogers leaves

maybe the Eagles have Super Bowl hangover the Cowboys are the Cowboys the Niners know who their quarterback is try to turn your 13 win team that no one believes in into a 13-win team that actually people think could do damage in the playoffs. And then the Bengals and the Eagles. The two last Super Bowl losers, neither of whom is yet paying their quarterback, I know the Bengals are about to and the Eagles are likely about to as well.

But even if you pay those guys, that contract won't kick in this coming season. Both of you, these teams have two awesome receivers. Both of these teams, in my opinion, had defenses that were great regular season defenses. The Bengals have a pretty damn good postseason defense too, but you could add a superstar on the back end if one's available. So when I say the Rams should be talking about trading Jalen Ramsey, these are the teams that should be calling about him. Try right now, if you're Cincinnati,

before you have to move on from T. Higgins, because you're not going to have Higgins and Chase. I know Joe Burroughs said Super Bowl windows, my entire career, maybe, but these teams should be your biggest off-season spenders, The Eagles have multiple first round picks. They should be, they also have the Saints first round pick. They could flip that. These are teams that should absolutely make moves this offseason saying,

we are trying to win the Super Bowl in 2023, and we're going to put it on the credit card and deal with the consequences of that after. Rick Buecker, who does he blame for the All-Star game fiasco? What does he think about LeBron's proclamation? At his Nikola Yokic, actually the greatest player we've ever seen, and I'm just a hater. We talk to him about all that next. Nick Wright and for Colin on the herd.

Want more herd? The herd streams 24 hours a day, seven days a week, within the IHeard radio app. Search herd to listen live or on demand whenever you'd like. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal, but encouraged.

It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's Superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth.

Listen to Superhuman on the I-Hard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care which I'm saying. Yep, that's me, Cliver Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, the reactions, my journey from basketball to college football,

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Listen to stuff to blow your mind on the iHeart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Great job there by my partner, Chris Broussard, who you'll be able to see alongside me and Kevin Wilds on first things first in a little over 90 minutes. Alex Curry has the news in about 10 minutes but first A guy I've not talked to in quite some time And oh he didn't want to talk to me

While LeBron's just rewriting the record books The great refuquer Who you can see on speak This afternoon and moving forward In basketball season I would imagine Rick, thank you so much for taking the time I want to get to the All-Star game But first there is some actual news today

The Clippers have added Russell West Brooke. And I'll just give you my very quick take on it. You tell me if you agree. I think Russ is one of the, I had him ranked 35 of the 50 greatest players last 50 years. I think he's an all-timer.

I think he's a legend. I think he's clearly a great dude off the court. And I think when that, how good he was is kind of being maligned by contemporary analysis of him. I also think he is incapable of contributing to winning basketball right now. And it is a baffling decision by the Los Angeles Clippers.

What do you make of what I just said and what do you make of the move? It's certainly a gamble and it feels desperate. Now, we knew that the Clippers were looking for a true point guard. It's why they moved Reggie Jackson and John Wall out. It's why they brought Eric Gordon and Bones Island end. And we've only seen what? a game or two of them and it's already been decided no we need to add something more i'm going to associate this i'm going to contribute this to steve balmer and his tech background what do you do with

with with tech you're always fixing it you're always working on a bug you're always changing things up trying to move things forward and sometimes you just need to let things settle and and group as far as ross i could see where his energy and maybe his need for redemption is going to motivate him and add a piece because the clippers at times have felt like they're kind of sitting back and waiting. And Russ, as we know, does not sit back and wait for anything. So I can make an argument why his energy might be something that they need. But it is a huge risk and a huge gamble because what he has demonstrated over and over is that he can't take just a little role.

Like, you either have to be all in on Russ playing or forget about it. And so I'm looking at them, and I really like the addition of Eric Gordon. I don't know if Bones is going to be able to contribute, but I really like what Eric brought. And to me, they need continuity more than anything else. And so now you're adding one more wrinkle to the equation.

They are adding him for the exact reason, the same logical tree that Lake, added him for. Now, I understand the Lakers traded the farm and they're getting him for free. I totally get that, so it's not that level of risk. But the Lakers logic was, all right, our stars, LeBron

and AD aren't going to play every night. So the nights they don't play, Russ can be the old Russ. Also, it's a hundred game season. We have an older team, so we want someone who's going to go 100% effort every night, keep our end, all those things.

It's the same logical tree, but at the end of the day this is a guy who in modern basketball offensively is broken and in any era of basketball defensively hasn't been a plus and even in his heyday

was a historically inefficient playoff performer at some point in this career could help you in the playoffs I just don't the clippers to me Rick this year in this Western conference had the best chance they've had in this entire era

to go on a real run if you keep your fingers crossed. Kauai Leonard can somehow be healthy for two months. And now they just added a variable that I don't, it was to me such an unnecessary risk that they took on right here. I agree.

And the added issue here is you've only got 20-some games. And it's not as if the clippers have had everybody on the floor to this point. So we're just, we're adding another piece. If you're trying to work Russ into the equation or try to figure out what role he's going to play, that requires attention that they really need to be

putting on getting all of the other more meaningful pieces together. So it's, it is a risk, it's a gamble. I can, you know, if I close one eye, I can see why they would do it. But when I add everything together, I don't see the reason. All right. So Mike Malone said yesterday's All-Star game was the worst game ever played, something to that effect. It did not resemble even pickup basketball game. Yep. I have a... No lies told so far.

No lies told. So here's my explanation. And here's who I think deserves the blame. Yeah. Us in the media, but mostly you, but not just you, but not as much me. And here's why. We have turned sports, all of it, into a binary count the rings conversation. Did you win a championship?

Then you sucked. You know what I mean? Who's the best ever? Count the rings. How good of a season did he have? Do you win the title? We have made it clear in the media that all we are going to reward is championship success. And the players have then internalized that and said, okay, so why would I compete in a slim dunk contest?

Why would I compete in an All-Star game? Why would I even compete on back-to-back nights when it could by 1% hurt my ability in the postseason? How much of what we saw last night? is the logical end result of the media's obsession with champion, with the end of the journey rather than the actual journey itself. I knew that this conversation was going to turn mean and contentious at some point. I just didn't know when. No, because you could.

I'm part of that too. You could not be more wrong. And the problem is that we don't value winning enough anymore. It's no longer necessary to win the All-Star game or championships because the analytics say you're a great player. So let's give, and if we're assigning blame, the players, I agree with you, are probably last on the list. The media do have a hand in it. Fans do have a hand in it. The teams have a hand in it because we're handing out max salaries to players who have not won.

We are labeling players as stars and MVPs who have not won. And so where is the emphasis or the need to win for a player to have individual success? Do they need to win the All-Star game? No, nobody cares. But the All-Star game is just a microcosm of what has happened to the league in general, which is if you have great highlights, if you have great statistics, you're a star,

and you're a star equitable with all the other stars that came before. So my issue is that we are not rewarding or valuing winning enough, and that has basically streamed down to affecting the all-star game. Listen, I don't know if that's not as contentious. This won't get as contentious as you implied there.

I think you actually make some, fair points. But I also think you would have to acknowledge that part of the load management issue is teams and players have just, everyone has accepted that everything that happens

prior to the playoffs is essentially meaningless. Agreed. And that none of it matters and the regular season is, it's not that it's lesser than the postseason, which it always has been. It's that it is, one thing matters everything and the other

thing, the only thing it matters is, did you get into the postseason? And when we have that logic tree, and that's the path we follow, and by the way, I think that's why we're likely about to have a three-time MVP that is the most ridiculous thing I've ever seen in the league. And so let's talk here. Okay. So if you have to get a bucket, Rick, who's the number one guy you want to give? Let's just say everyone in the league's healthy.

Who's your number one pick? probably Covent Durant Who's number two? Steph Curry Three Oh boy now that now it gets watered down I'm putting you on the spot

Janus it wouldn't be next for you Have to get a bucket Just go put your head down Probably yes Yes Yeah and Luca's probably shortly Joel Embed Joe Embed's in there too

Joel Embed in there too Yeah And then once we get past those guys Yeah Then you mention a guy like LeBron and the guy like Yokich and a guy like Tatum. Agreed? Yeah.

Somewhere in there? Sure. You got to get a stop. I could name 10 guys you won on the court before I mentioned Yokic. Yonis is number one. Yonis is number one with a bullet. And there's, and Embedge's probably number two, and then Anthony Davis on there. Okay.

So he's not the guy you got to have to get a bucket. He's not the guy you got to have to get a stop. Yeah. He hadn't gone on deep playoff run in three years, and that was in the bubble. And all you guys tell me the bubble. doesn't count. Yeah. We also have history.

And I value the history. I'm not arguing with you on this. I'm asking you to join me in this righteous indignation, okay? Yeah. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is a pretty damn good player. He won back-to-back MVP's early in his career to already won a title. Yeah. And the year he was going to win his third straight.

He averaged 30, 16, and 5. And the voters were like, ah, three in a row. Give it to Dave Cowan, who averaged 2015 and 5. And then Jordan was going to win three in a row. People were like, ah, three in a row. Give it to Barclay and have a team finish ahead of Jordan. And then LeBron was going to win three in a row. And people were like, three in a row.

Come on. Give it to Derek Rose. And then Yonnas are going to win three in a row. And everyone's like, ah, he's flamed out in the playoffs. He got one vote. Three, give it to, you know what, it'll be fun. Give it to the Yokage kid. And now Yolkij is going to win them all.

He's just never going to stop winning him. And everyone says, I'm wrong for being like, What are we doing here? Where do you stand on Nikola Yokic looking like the runaway three-time MVP? Well, I don't have a problem with him winning it this year because this might be the first year that I would vote for. Me too! Or put him at the top of my ballot. Me too.

This is the first year. Go ahead. But it goes to what we were just talking about. We don't value winning. They were what? They finished fifth? Sixth. Last year they were sixth?

Yes. So how? How are we equating that with being an MVP? Now, what he's doing this year and the fact that Denver is at the top of the Western Conference, like, I'm good with him being an MVP and an MVP candidate this year. But the previous two years, for me, it was either Joelle M. Bede or Janice. And I would still say, Janus is very much in that conversation this year in terms of who is going to be at the top of my ballot. So you get no argument for me on that.

I really don't like the idea that we're avoiding voting for him because it would historically mean three in a row. The problem is that we didn't get it right the first two times and now we're stuck in this position. Steve Nash was the same, the identical, exactly the same. His third year was his best year. But we could not vote for him or it could not be given to him that year because he'd already won two in a row. Also, God dogged, it wasn't in the Constitution. You couldn't serve more than two terms as president until in the last 70 years. But everyone was like, ah, George Washington didn't do it.

I guess I won't do it. Now, FDR broke that, and then they had to put it in the rules. But it shouldn't have to be written down that this is how it's done when we see this is how it's done. And I agree with you. This year, my last three years, two years ago, you know you and I argued about it. I would have voted Chris Paul. The numbers didn't suggest it. but the winning and everything he did.

Last year, I argued for Luca. This year, Yokic has the best case he's had. But what frustrates me so much is last year, when those of us were arguing against Yokic saying, they're the sixth seed, everyone's like, ah, it doesn't matter. Teammates, bad teammates, and, you know, Lucas got this all-star cast around him. And this year, when we're like, it's not Yokic,

they're like, they're the one seed. What are you talking about? And can I show you the Raptor stat where he's the greatest player of all time? not recognizing if any of your stats say Nikoliyokic is the greatest player of all time, that stat is flawed. But whatever. I just care about history, Rick. You and me.

Oh, I could show you all these, man. Yokic is having the greatest three-year structure in the history of basketball. It's unbelievable. He gets picked seventh in the all-star game every year. Nobody thinks that he's a great defender. Nobody thinks he's the number one bucket guy in the league. He's the best player in the league. I'll lose my mind on it.

But I'm a hater. This is where I don't quite, and this is probably a conversation for another day with you and I. but how is it that you are able to accurately parse the issues with Yokic being MVP? And yet the drum that you have beaten for LeBron James this year still being a great player is based on the same thing. It's statistics. The narrative is the team's not good enough so that he's not winning.

But his numbers say that he's still a great player. It is basically the same argument, except you're making it in the other direction. But you haven't heard. You're just making up LeBron James takes about me. Right now, I think LeBron is somewhere from the eighth to tenth best player. You are a must-see TV for me. What are you talking about? If you think there's 10 guys better than him, I disagree with you.

I don't argue LeBron's still top-five player in the league. Now come the playoffs, if they get in, would he be a top-five guy I'd want? Maybe. Just maybe. We'll have to wait and see. Rick Buecker, I'm late. I got to go. See you on speak in a few hours. I really appreciate you doing double duty today, my man.

You got it. Absolutely. There's Rick Buecker. Take a very quick break. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern 9 a.m. Pacific. This is Steve Kavino and Rich. And together we are Kavino and Rich. Kavino and Rich.

Thanks, buddy. That's right. Kavino and Rich, Fox Sports Radio's newest hit show. Heard weekdays from 5 to 7 Eastern 2 to 4 Pacific on Fox Sports Radio and the I Heart Radio Every Covino and Rich show is available as a podcast. Just search Covino and Rich wherever you get your podcast and subscribe. I'm such a rocking dude. The show features our unique take on sports, injected with some fun, humor, and

relatability. Listen to Covino and Rich five days a week on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Covino and Rich, give me a 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 I-Hard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win.

I don't care which I'm saying. Yep, that's me. Clipper Taylor the FDefiardt, forth. You might have seen the skits, the reactions, my journey from basketball to college football, or my career in sports media. Well, somewhere along the way, this platform became bigger than I ever imagined. And now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfiltered conversations with some of your favorite athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. One week, I'll take you

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

or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. 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 problem. podcast. Welcome back in. Nick, right in for Colin on the herd. And as is often the case when I'm in for Colin, we are approximately 18 minutes behind schedule, 104 minutes into the show. Not great. So let's get right to it. Alex Curry with the news that we're supposed to happen almost 20 minutes ago. Turn on the news. This is the herd line news. Nick, we're doing our best, okay? We're on opposite sides of the country right now. We are really doing our best. I appreciate you.

using the word we there as if this is not entirely my fault. You have been wonderful. You have timed out perfectly each time every part of it. I was supposed to do a nine minute interview of Bucre, I did 17. I was supposed to do an 11 minute open of the hour. I did 16. I just disaster. Go ahead, Alex.

You're doing a double, so we all appreciate you. But let's talk about your favorite game of the year, the NBA All-Star game, shall we? Sure, yeah. Yeah. Okay, Jason Data made history. During the All-Star game last night, he scored. 55 points setting the record for most points in an all-star game. He also went on to win the MVP, and afterwards he spoke about how it felt what he realized

he could get that scoring record. I really didn't know. I didn't know what the record was. And some way through the fourth quarter, Dame was like, yo, the record is 52. I had like 49. And then I was like, it kind of hit me like, you know, breaking history in the moment. That was a cool thing. I love that he realized it while he was playing because you could really tell in that interview

that it was special to him. But also note, he made history the first player in the NBA to score 50 points in the regular season, the playoffs, and the All-Star game. So how impressed were you with his performance in this All-Star game? Well, listen, it was more impressive than the other 50-point All-Star game that I remember, the guy who held the record. That was Anthony Davis when he was with the Pelicans, and that was the All-Star game in New Orleans, and clearly they went into that game just saying he's going to get the record.

And so much of his were just uncontested dunks. Tatum at least hit some really tough shots. And I do want to give Tatum credit in that Kobe Bryant was his guy, who he idolized, loved, and adored. Pardon me. And for him to now get the award named after Kobe, he's got to be super special for him in a year where Tatum, it's not likely, but could be league MVP as well

after the tough finals performance that he had. But nothing about this all-star game was wildly impressive because the guys opted against really trying. But it's still a great job by him. Great job by him. Still a fun show. We're seeing great dunks, great shots. I'm going to focus on that.

But let's stick in the NBA and talk about the big story today. According to his agent, Russell Westbrook will sign with the Clippers once his buyout with the jazz is completed. Now, the chance to compete for a championship played a large role in Westbrook's decision. and he reportedly had conversations with the team about a role centered around his playmaking, rebounding, and toughness. Now, just note, shooting was not mentioned there, and that's because he's shooting 41.7%.

And at the three-point shooting, he's 29.6%. He is below league average, which is 47.4%. So the real question here is, are we going to get the good old, Westbrook that we saw with the Lakers, or are we going to see kind of a revenge? Look what I can do with the Clippers who happen to be in the same building, but have half amount of pressure than the Lakers do here in L.A. Because remember, he's coming to another team where he is going to be, once again, the third star on a team now just behind Kauai and Paul George.

So it's not that different of a situation. You're still in the same building. You're right back here in L.A. Is it going to work? I don't see why they did it. I don't see, no. I understand Paul George wanted him because he and Paul George had a nice time together in OKC. But even in OKC, Russ, when they got to the playoffs, had crazy good volume numbers,

but the efficiency numbers were impossibly bad. And again, the 29% from three is actually way worse than it sounds, because as you can see from this video, they are all unguarded. threes. So it's wide open threes. So it's you're hurting the team spacing. You're not making them pay. Russ in his peak was one of my favorite players to watch ever. Yeah. But there's a reason this is his fifth team in five years. And no, I don't understand why the Clippers did this at all. Go ahead. Now, he ranks 230th in the league in shooting. So that doesn't feel like a star player number.

All right. Well, let's move to the NFL because Jonathan Gannon left the Eagles to become the head coach of the Cardinals before he took the job, where reports were that some candidates were hesitant to go to Arizona because of Kyler Murray. But Gannon sees Kyler as a positive part of his new position. He said, if Kyler Murray isn't there, I don't take this job. I think this offense will look much different. This guy does things that completely handcuff you on how you play defense. I think he can take them to another level and unleash his full skill set. The way to take pressure off the quarterback and the O line is to put him under the center at times.

They were in gun all the time, and when you get him under center, the defense has to defend a lot more types of play types. Now, how much you believe what Gannon is saying of how excited he is to be here, or is he just telling you what you want to hear because now he has the job in position? Because is Kyler Murray an elite quarterback, I guess is the ultimate question here. And we know all the outside issues. Yeah, I would say the answer to that is absolutely not. And I think Jonathan Gannon is saying exactly what he had to say to get this job. And Jonathan Gannon also understood that whatever he's, how hot of a candidate he was before the Super Bowl, looks a lot different after the Super Bowl when his defense finally plays a really good quarterback

and once again get shredded by that quarterback. I think the Cardinals have a significant Kyler Murray problem. Not just his size, not just his injury, but he doesn't seem to be beloved by the guys who play for him, play with him. And, yeah, their only hope is to get him turned around. And I understand what Gannon is saying, but I don't think this works in any way, shape, or form. There's Alex Curry with the news. Well, that's the news. And thanks for stopping by.

The Hurdline News. So I want to talk about LeBron here for a second, because Rick Buecker says, said some very interesting at the end of this interview we did with him, where he's like, oh, you won't criticize LeBron. You still act like he's best player in the league or said some to that effect. And I don't. Listen, Janus has been the best player in the league for a number of years now. But at this point, as far as guys who impact winning,

and I'm going to do this off the top of my head, so I'm going to leave some people off accidentally. But hopefully I don't. But Janus, Luca, Durant, Steph, Embed, Yokic, Tatum, if I'm leaving out

somebody obvious, I apologize. Those seven guys, to me, have all, at this point, ascended past LeBron on a night-to-night basis,

especially because LeBron can't play every night, and he's played the second-most minutes in league history, and he's in year 20. So I do think it's remarkable. He's still one of the 10 best players in the league.

but so I think I'm very fair about where LeBron is at this point in his career. With that said, this dude who is exactly my age and is in year 20 did have the play of the All-Star game. Before he went out with an injury, the fact, can we run it? The fact that in year 20, my guy is doing this weeks after scoring more points than anyone in NBA history, he's just casually. doing the McGrady in the All-Star game when McGrady invented the play

and also cooler than the McGrady. The left hand around, is that Donovan he did it around? I couldn't quite tell. And then the two-handed dunk. That right there, best dunks of the weekend. Mack McClung won.

LeBron James, too. I'm calling it. And I'm doing this right now because I think Rick Buecker still has his ear in and can hear this and is probably trying to rush the set. No, Rick.

Time's up there. But also people a little worried about LeBron's hand because he wasn't able to play in the second half after he went up for a block in the All-Star game and got his pinky finger caught on the rim. As someone who has watched LeBron for 20 years, he has many seven or more step handshakes he does with a lot of other NBA guys.

And if you saw him at halftime, he was doing the full handshake routine with that allegedly injured hand so I think he'll be just fine. Another podcast from some SNL late night comedy guy, not quite unhumored me with Robert Smygel and friends, me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk

to David Letterman help make you funnier. This week my guest, S&L'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. humor me with Robert Smigel and friends on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever

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

I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the IHard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what you're saying. Yep, that's me, Cliver Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, my basketball and college football journey, or my career in sports media. Well, now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifers Show.

This is a place for raw, unfilled conversations with athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. So let's get to it. Listen to the Clifford show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. This is an IHeart podcast, guaranteed human.