May 2, 2024 • 38 mins
Following the Clippers suffering their worst playoff loss ever, Colin explains why this is just another example of LA's inability to seize the moment and rise above their reputation. He criticizes the NBA as a whole for placing all the blame on head coaches when teams take a disappointing exit in the playoffs. Plus, NBA champion Paul Pierce joins the show to share what makes this current Celtics team special
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Thanks for listening to the Best of the Herd podcast.
Be sure to catch us live every weekday on Fox
Sports Radio in noon to three Eastern nine am to
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or FSR. This is the Best of the Herd with
(00:22):
Colin cowher on Fox Sports Radio. Oh, We're ready to go.
It's a Thursday. We're live in Los Angeles. It's the Herd.
Wherever you may be and however you may be listening.
Thanks for making us part of your day. So I'm
sitting there last night thin get out, Okay, Westbrook's gonna
come off the bench and deliver for the Cliffers. He
(00:44):
started the game over eight, so it didn't go exactly
as planned. Man's had a good shooting performs Luca legend.
Speaker 2 (00:52):
Oh, he made calling a sad man last night and
we were out together.
Speaker 1 (00:56):
I'm not hearring it out Listen. I'm not anti Mavericks.
I've said for years and years. I can't understand why
more were stars don't choose Dallas right in the middle
of the country. No state tax, great city, beautiful people,
they had great owner. I'm not anti Dallas. Mavericks have
had a great history. So in Los Angeles, the Lakers,
their owners, their executives have always sort of rolled their
(01:17):
eyes at the Clippers. Clippers make big promises, they have
great nicknames lob City, but make no mistake, it's a
Lakers city and the Crypto dot Com Arena is the
Lakers building. Last night, though, it was a moment, the
Clippers two and two with Dallas at home, Luca rising star.
(01:38):
They have the veteran players rising to seize Los Angeles
and it was the perfect Clipper playoff, super fecta. Paul
George couldn't shoot Westbrook, Harden no showed, Kawhi not available.
Paul George said, yeah, this isn't who we are. Unfortunately,
it's exactly who you are. The Clipper stars twenty two
(02:00):
percent from the field, eight for thirty six, had more
turnovers than baskets.
Speaker 3 (02:04):
It was a.
Speaker 1 (02:05):
Disaster and this is why for years, you know, the
Lakers executives, Genie Buss, the Bus family have sort of
rolled their eyes. They got a shiny new arena coming again.
Paul George and Kawhi, they're gonna dominate the city and
cross town. You know, the Lakers ad and Lebron get
the conference finals, they win an NBA championship. And there's
(02:26):
always been kind of a weird desperation with the second
the little brother like the Jets or the Mets, or
the Clippers or the White Sox. There's a desperation right
like gets like a big swing, which I'm not opposed to.
But Kawhi Leonard has missed forty one percent of his
games as a Clipper, and they re signed him and
the city is just right now. You got the Otawani
(02:48):
mess with the Dodgers, Lebron, Lakers are out of the playoffs.
You know, USC football not quite what we think. The
Chargers had to go get a new coach. Los Angeles says,
ready to be seized. Clippers have a shiny new arena,
KWHI is not available, and the rest of the guys think,
(03:09):
and I just think they for years, it's the classic,
you know, little brother syndom. I've seen it with the
Mets where they reach or the Jets where they reach,
and I've seen it with the Clippers. They're just trying
too hard. But last night is I mean, there was
a time when the Lakers only made the playoffs two
times in eight years. I mean the city was wide open,
(03:31):
and the Clippers made the playoffs seven times in eight years.
It was like, here's your moment, just like when Michigan
football was down in Michigan State. Could have seized it.
And in the end, yeah, they didn't, and last night
the Clippers they didn't. They've had their opportunities. They have
had their opportunities in the last ten to twelve years,
and Steve Balmer is the richest owner in the NBA
(03:54):
and they've got a brilliant new arena. But this is
Los Angeles. Making the playoffs is not enough. Have a
really cool movie poster is not enough. The movies gotta
be good. And with the Clippers so often the posters great,
the movie isn't. And last night was a complete and
utter dud. And Paul George was the best of their
(04:16):
four stars. I guess he talked after.
Speaker 4 (04:20):
That, wasn't who we We've been in this series and
that's not who we are, you know. Uh So we
gotta we gotta be better, especially in this situation. A
chance to go up three two. We've been here before,
going to Dallas being down three two, so we we
we just you know, it's gotta be a win and
(04:44):
only mentality we have is to try to go get
a win in Dallas.
Speaker 1 (04:47):
Kyrie Irving was amazing, spectacular and Luca hobbling around was
good too. It goes back to Dallas. Clippers could certainly win.
It's been a weird series and a really fun series.
But man, last night was there for the taking. It's
not that they lost, it's that they weren't competitive and
no self awareness. And that leads me to the next story,
(05:08):
because you can't blame Tyloo on that is that one
of the reasons that Fox News has been so successful,
and there's talented people in all these cable networks, but
is because the media has leaned left for so long,
sometimes severely left, that there's a gaping hole in the coverage.
There's a lot of conservative viewers in America, and Fox
News sees those moderate conservative viewers. The rest of the
(05:32):
media largely was doing stuff moderate left and one of
the reasons TNT's basketball coverage, to me, is so much
better than ESPN's not blaming anybody, but it's such a
pro player league. The media is so soft I've begged
on this for years, is that Charles and Shack they're
(05:52):
just the balance. Sometimes they're very pro players, they love players,
but at least they're the balance in it. And the
Lakers lose, and it's immediately Darvin Ham is the reason. Well,
you know how this works, right, there's a reason the Sixers,
the Bucks and the Lakers have megastars in this league
and they're running through coaches each have had three and
(06:14):
six years. Because the megastars complain to their agent, their
agent leaks to willing media. Coaches lost the locker room.
That's always the de facto, the default end statement. Well,
Frank Vogel, Darvin Ham, they have lost the locker room.
(06:36):
And the agent of the star calls the willing media
reports it, It circulates and all of a sudden gets momentum.
It's an avalanche and a guy like Frank Vogel's out
of work. And Charles Barkley last night had had enough.
Speaker 5 (06:52):
Anybody who thinks the reason the Lakers suck is because
of Darwin Ham, But the reason the Sun sucked is
because the Frank Vogel, you don't know what you're talking about.
Frank Vogler is a hell of a coach. Darvin Ham
is a hell of a coast trying to get his
career started.
Speaker 3 (07:08):
But for all you.
Speaker 5 (07:09):
Punks, idiots and jackass is on other networks who want
to be median, who want all the players to like y'all,
do your damn job. The Lakers suck and the Sun
sucked because of the players. Has nothing to do with
the coaches.
Speaker 1 (07:22):
I've been saying this about Darvin Ham. The fact that
they led the Nugget seventy percent of the time and
Denver's easily the best team in the league is amazing.
Ruey No showed a couple of games dlo No showed.
Reeves is he being asked on some nights offensively to
be the number two because Anthony Davis SA is so
great defensively and has such a burden to guard Jokic
that he spends so much of his energy. I'm not
(07:44):
blaming Ad. That's the reality. He's a great defensive player.
He is so good on the defensive end that sometimes
he didn't have any gas in the fourth quarter. So
it's Lebron and Austin Reeves. You're not beating Porter Gordon,
Jamal Murray and Jokic and casep with that. Yeah, they
led some twenty percent of the series. I mean, Frank
Vogel won a title in the Bubble, every other old
(08:05):
team went man overboard except the Lakers. Vogel galvanized him.
They won a title. He got the backed about Eastern
Conference championships with an Indiana roster that was Roy Hibbert,
Paul George and lawn chairs. Give me a break. He'd
been bounced around the league. And he'll get blamed in Phoenix.
They don't have a point guard in Phoenix. That's part
(08:25):
of the problem. Frank Vogel. They had a big Frank
Vogel's good with bigs. They traded him. They don't have
a point guard. Is that Frank Vogel's vault. He'll get blamed.
Mike Budenholzer won a title, two time coach of the Year,
two organizations. Doesn't have a job. By the way, how
are the Bucks since Mike Budenholder left a bigger mess yet?
(08:46):
Mike Malone in Denver? You know how long it took
Mike Malone in Denver? The Nuggets missed the playoffs this
first three years. Following that, there were four years of
you know, Yokich can't win in the postseason. It was
year eight that Mike Malone finally won. So if you
wonder why Mike Malone has a bit of a chip
(09:06):
on his shoulder, he was told he was a bum
for seven years. I mean the kid at Oklahoma City,
Mark at Dagnault, he didn't do anything for the first
three years, like nothing, couldn't make the playoffs. Everybody makes
the playoffs. They were patient, Sam Presty patient this year
number one seat. I whether I agree with everything on
(09:28):
Fox News, and I don't. If you've listened to my
show for years, if you know where I'm politically, if
you leave openings, consumers will move toward the openings if
you provide something they like. TNT's not perfect, but there's
a wide open space to be critical and defend coaches
(09:48):
and occasionally critical of star players. It is not It
is not a coincidence that Lakers with a superstar, Bucks
with a super Sixers with a superstar are running through
coaches and it's always the coach lost the locker room,
and the willing media is like, yeah, yeah, I don't
(10:11):
you thought Darvin Ham lost the locker room? Did you
see how hard the Lakers played they out played Denver,
much more talented Denver. You can criticize Darvin ham on
you want that team comes to play. Ruey was awful
a couple of games and early in the season, and
Dlo's DLO, but effort. Losing the locker room is the
team quits. Lakers never quit, they were just outmanned by
(10:33):
a better team. So I don't want to hear Darvin
ham lost the locker room. Where Frank Vogel can't coach,
you can sit. Here's another thing that people forget. Nick
Nurse a hell of a coach, but sometimes this is
the reality you get into a playoff game. The arena
is loud. Players can't all hear you. Hell, officials couldn't
hear Nick Nurse call a time out. It's not a
(10:54):
perfect sport to coach. They're not wearing headsets like the NFL.
They can't talk to the quarterback. Baseball stadiums are mostly quiet.
You can do signals through the course of a baseball game,
the third base code. Sometimes in the NBA stars listen,
they don't. They don't hear. They do hear. The officials
here they don't hear. It's not easy. These arenas are
crazy time. But the constant ease in which the media
(11:18):
just rips coaches sends them packing. There's a reason Frank
Bogel keeps getting jobs. People know he can coach. But
the Darvin Ham stuff is, you got to give me
a break on this lost the locker room. I watched
that series. You know what I saw inconsistent players outside
of Lebron. Lebron really the only offensive player you could
(11:40):
depend on in the series. Austin reeves on some nights
had to be the two because AD's working so hard
on the defensive end that he just doesn't have a
lot left in his tank offensively in the fourth quarter.
It's not lack of effort. Sometimes with embiid late it
feels like lack of effort. AD's never lack of effort.
And yeah, he had got hurt with this. He stayed
(12:01):
in the game, he kept playing. But I just TNT
provides ballance. They're willing to be critical occasionally, and I
appreciate that. As a consumer of the NBA, I just
appreciate it. And by the way, if TNT loses rights
to the NBA, it's gonna be a bidding war for
those guys. They're gonna be a bidding war for Charles
(12:23):
and Shaq and Kenny and Ernie because they provide something
the rest of the NBA media too often does not.
All right, Jay McK and, I know you can have
your issues with Barkley, but I like people who are
willing to say what others aren't, and he is. And
I liked it last night.
Speaker 3 (12:37):
Well, of course you liked it.
Speaker 1 (12:38):
You you love Charles Barkley. I think he's uh great.
Speaker 2 (12:42):
He's a little past his prime, shall I say?
Speaker 3 (12:44):
But I'll just say this.
Speaker 2 (12:46):
If you want a nitpick like Lakers fanzil, they've got it,
chapter and verse.
Speaker 1 (12:50):
Why didn't Darvinham use his challenge here? Why were we
out of tota?
Speaker 2 (12:53):
Sorry for saying week why were the Lakers out of timeoutska? Well,
when Jamalmury hit that shot with three seconds.
Speaker 1 (12:58):
Left, Like, if you lose twelve to thirteen games to
a team, you go ahead and talk about rotations and
unused timeouts, I'm gonna go back to talent. Michael Jordan
just kept winning the finals, and so did Bill Russell
and Kareem and Magic and Bird. You go ahead and
let that fester on the coaches that lost to Magic,
(13:18):
Magic was in nine finals. All those Western coaches probably
didn't use the timeouts as much as guy on reddit board.
Woman prereddit board like, I'm sorry. When you watch the
Chiefs play, you can start blaming everybody and he reads great.
Mahomes is great. Next you can start arguing about coaches
and play calling. Brady Mahomes and Peyton Manning made seventeen
(13:41):
to twenty three Super Bowls. Go ahead and bang on
Mike Tomlin. He didn't have as good a quarterback.
Speaker 2 (13:45):
And when you lose as the Philadelphia Eagles did this season,
cratered at the end. Hey, you better get a new
offensive coordator, Gotta get a new defense.
Speaker 1 (13:53):
That's what different they they lost. They cratered. The Lakers
didn't crater. The Lakers went toe to toe with the Nuggets,
and tie I would largely agree they didn't. They just
don't have the players. Ron's an All NBA guy, And
if Broun was the only player for the Lakers that
consistently on offense every game provided big production, that was it.
(14:14):
A d didn't really didn't. Delo portered at every game.
Jamal Murray Adenomen defensively but offensively to twice. But the
series I know there is no you know, it's just
production data. Fourth quarter A D is not consistent in the.
Speaker 2 (14:33):
Fourth So the rosters the issue, would you yes?
Speaker 1 (14:36):
Okay, so Rob Polinka get him on the stand. Let's say,
let's hear about that. Rob Polinka's job is an in jeopardy.
What Barkley is saying is you're keeping the gms like
you didn't say what you want about Phoenix. They don't
have a point guard. They had a big Vogels known
for Biggs. So somebody on the internet said this, They said,
they gave Frank Vogel, who's great with Biggs, a Mike
d'An toni roster like so, so you can blame Vogel,
(14:59):
But Vocals won titles. Vocal has been a conference championships.
They didn't have a point guy. If you watch the
Suns play, the construct of the team isn't as good
as Minnesota's. Minnesota's got the point, the big, the score,
the blocker, whole season. Figure it out. Frank Vogel, your
championship winning is a great coach. Why couldn't he figure
out the offense without James Harden. He didn't have a
(15:20):
point guard. That's like putting five guys on the floor
an Olympic team and have no center and no point
guard and go, why aren't you great? There's a reason
teams have quarterbacks, running backs, tight ends. You need people
to engineer the offense and get you into it. Before
James Harden Tyler was pulling his hair out the team
that you had Kawhi who's rarely available, leading him into
(15:40):
an offense. So it's easy to blame coaches. Players win games,
players lose games. People arguing about timeouts not used in
rotational decisions mid third quarter. How about you stop Jamal Murray?
They couldn't they tried. Yeah, how much you stop Aunt Edwards?
(16:01):
You can say with Joey and triple team him. So
you know again, I just like media that provides a
view that's not mainstream all the time. These coaches, it's
just just running through these guys. Laker fans with Darvin Ham,
I hear this all the time about you know the
Dodgers and Dave Roberts. Do you know the best managers
(16:24):
in baseball? They have theorized for years. Analytically they're worth
three wins. It's one hundred and sixty two game season. Okay,
you replace Dave Roberts and you win three and a
half more games a year. Bottom line is Walker Buhler's
been hurt, the bullpen's been spotty. You can pitch around that.
You know, the top of the order sometimes it's pretty
top heavy, but it's just easier to blame Dave Roberts
(16:45):
and go the construct of it's not ideal and the
Dodgers are you know, I'm not banging on the Dodgers.
They are really well constructed, but it's just too easy
to blame the coach. Be sure to catch live editions
of The Herd weekdays and Noone Easter non am Pacific
on Fox Sports Radio FS one and the iHeartRadio app.
So matt Ishbia is a very aggressive guy. He takes
(17:07):
over the Suns. He's a Michigan State booster, big money guy,
mortgage guy, takes over the Suns and he goes, hey,
let's go get Bradley Beale, Let's go get Kevin Durant
takes a big swing. You know, I'm a fan of
big swings because when you make a big swing, even
if it fails, you have good assets. And that's what
the Suns. After a disappointing finish, have, They've got good assets.
(17:28):
They could move KD With the Knicks, you get a
lot of good players and picks. They could move Devin
Booker if they wanted to. People think they won't, but
they get a hole. That's why you take big swings.
Even if you fail, you're left with really good assets
you can usually move in the NBA. So Matt Ashpia
yesterday talking about the disappointing end of the season, he's optimistic.
Speaker 6 (17:50):
The narrative around the house is burning. It's incorrect.
Speaker 7 (17:53):
The Phoenix Suns are doing great, excellent, not as good
as we want to be, and not as good we're
gonna do next year, and that's we're gonna figure out
what we got a tweak, modify, adjust to win a
championship next year. Ask the other twenty nine gms, twenty
six of them would trade their whole team for our
whole team, and our whole in our draft picks and
everything as is. Like, the house is not on fire.
We're in great pusiness. It's not hard to fix. It's
not like we're like, hey, we don't have enough talent
(18:15):
to win a champion.
Speaker 6 (18:16):
We have enough talent to win a championship.
Speaker 1 (18:18):
Okay, Now he's a super aggressive guy and you can
push back. Now the Bradley Beal contract, that's trickier. He's
got a no trade class and Bradley Beal was banged
up a lot of the year. If he's healthy next year,
you're fine. What you don't want to do is the
Clippers we assigned Kawhi Leonard, he's never available, and you
double down on it, or the New York Giants reaching
on Daniel Jones and then doubling down on it. Take
(18:41):
big swing. People that sit and criticize people who take
big swings have never taken a big swing. Half of
them fail in sports. Who cares. You're left with assets
and you can start over. The Niners took a big
swing on Trey Lance. Didn't work. They found brock Purty.
If you have confidence in yourself in life, fear based,
(19:02):
you take swings. Phoenix has good assets. More of Matt Ishbie.
Speaker 7 (19:08):
Fans like to like look in the future and say, hey,
I really like that twenty thirty one draft pick, because
maybe that seventh grader is gonna be really good and
we're gonna draft him and one day he's gonna be
a player like you ain't gonna like the Phoenix Suns
because we're gonna say draft picks are to get great players.
Speaker 6 (19:23):
Five of the next eight years we have a first
round draft pick.
Speaker 7 (19:24):
I know that's not like a cool thing to say
out there because people like to, you know, say their nerves.
Speaker 6 (19:28):
We have no draft picks, but we have five of
the next.
Speaker 7 (19:30):
Eight years, and we can trade two of them next
month if we want. What would be a house on fire.
We didn't have any players signed. We have our starting
five signed for multiple years together. Do we have to
make some adjustments because that's starting five didn't win a championship.
Speaker 6 (19:43):
Of course we did. Of course we do and we will.
Speaker 1 (19:47):
Booker and KD are the fifth and six leading scorers
in the league. Phoenix is a super attractive NBA market
in a winter league. It's got perfect weather along with Miami.
So and again you got to ask take swings. Don't sit
on the sidelines criticizing those who do.
Speaker 3 (20:04):
This.
Speaker 1 (20:04):
Guy took big swings. I'm in now. Beal needs to
be healthier. I'd probably move KD to the Knicks find
a point guard somewhere, but there are assets here that
can be moved. I would consider moving Booker, but I
cause you can get more for him. But I do
think KD to the Knicks is a perfect fit. New
York's got draft picks and young, nice players, not stars
(20:27):
outside of Brunson, but really nice, willing to be coached players.
Get him some size. Frank Vogel likes that when your
business reaches a certain scale, challenges begin to surface, you
deserve a tailored solution, and that's net Suite. Absolutely Free
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Herd agrd be sure to catch live editions of The
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Speaker 8 (20:51):
Hey, this is Tom Berducci from Fox Sports, MLB Network
and Sports Illustrated.
Speaker 1 (20:56):
And I'm Joe Madden.
Speaker 7 (20:57):
We're going to be around to talk a little bit
about manage real decisions may have occurred to the dugout,
maybe in the nineteen eighties.
Speaker 8 (21:02):
It's the Book of Joe podcast. I can't wait for this, Joe.
We're going to dive into what goes on in the
dugout and behind the scenes in Major.
Speaker 1 (21:09):
League Baseball, cars, wind whatever else we want to talk about.
Speaker 8 (21:12):
Yeah, well, there are no boundaries, right Listen, to the
Book of Joe podcast on the iHeartRadio app, on Apple
podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.
Speaker 1 (21:20):
We've been watching him on Undisputed and we say, hey, man,
if you get time, we'd love to have you on
the show. He's a busy guy. He's got to drive
out to the valley, but he made time for us today.
The ten time All Star Paul Pierce joining us in
the herd. Look at Paul the daffer. Yeah, it is
good to see you.
Speaker 3 (21:38):
Yeah, what's up?
Speaker 1 (21:40):
What you look like? You could still play? Do you
ever go out and wreck league? It a little bit?
Speaker 3 (21:44):
A little bit today? I want to leave here.
Speaker 1 (21:47):
You're playing tonight?
Speaker 6 (21:48):
Yeah?
Speaker 3 (21:48):
On playing tonight?
Speaker 1 (21:49):
Now, when you were a great defensive player in the league,
that's good enough. Do you defend when you go out
and play.
Speaker 9 (21:55):
The okay mix, I just go and shoot threes.
Speaker 1 (22:02):
You know, when we were talking about this last night,
there are some organizations that rise the Yankees and Alabama
football and the Lakers. I mean, the Lakers are a
flawed roster, but historically in the big games, Celtics have
a lot And I watched the Clippers last night and
I'm like, okay, this is a moment, and it was
like the ghost of Clippers past arrived. It was their
(22:23):
worst playoff loss in history.
Speaker 3 (22:25):
So I want to ask you.
Speaker 1 (22:26):
You played for Kansas Boston, so you won a lot
of games, and those are legendary, iconic basketball organizations. Right,
does the Clippers from the outside looking in look like
not that it's haunted, but there's something hanging on the
franchise in big spots.
Speaker 3 (22:42):
Yeah, I truly believe.
Speaker 9 (22:44):
And I said this before, I think they got a
dark cloud over them. And I think the only way
that dark cloud is going to get removed is when
they move into their own building next year. I truly
believe that. Yeah, you know, they shared a building there
in the shadow of the Lakers.
Speaker 3 (23:00):
You know, you share locker rooms and stuff Lakers.
Speaker 9 (23:04):
It's the Lakers building, you know, it's they crib and
you just kind of lease it out. You go in
there and hang out and put your you know, and
then they then you gotta get out and then but
it's always gonna be the Laker House. So I just
think that dark cloud is gonna be removed when they
get into their own building.
Speaker 3 (23:21):
You know, because even when I played there.
Speaker 9 (23:25):
Uh, Colin and Jason, I just it was just untimely
injuries and it just seemed like some untimely happens every
single year.
Speaker 1 (23:34):
Now was the medical staff up to snuff? There was
as good as the Celtics.
Speaker 9 (23:39):
I mean, you got all the best of the best.
I mean this is Los Angeles, you got us LA,
all the doctors is coming from over there, and you
got the best of the best. But it's just like
when I was there, Break Blake got hurt. CP three
got hurt. And now you see every year it's either
Kawhi or Paul George. It's just like something and these
(24:00):
are years where you're like, Okay, this team could content
for a title.
Speaker 1 (24:04):
They have an excellent roster right now.
Speaker 9 (24:06):
Yeah, yeah, And this is a team you feel like,
all right, they could content for a title, but unfortunately,
right now Kawhi is dealing with injuries and it just
seem like it's the same song every year. So I
just feel like when they get some new energy in
a new building, things are kind of refresh, you know.
Speaker 3 (24:23):
So that's just me, That's what I think.
Speaker 1 (24:25):
So I have defended Darvin ham on this is that
the Bucks, the Lakers, and the Sixers have superstar players
and it's not a coincidence. They've each had three coaches
in six years. So in the NBA, the star player
grumbles to his agent. The agent calls the media and says,
coach lost the locker room. But the truth is Malone
(24:48):
went seven years without winning. The guy in Oklahoma City
couldn't make the playoffs for three years. Is that? When
I watch the Lakers played, I think it's a flawed team.
Ruly didn't show up for two games, de Lo's hitting
miss against the Nuggets, and the only player I could
depend on offensively late in the games was usually Austin
Reeves and Lebron, whereas they got Porter and Murray and
(25:09):
Yok and KCP is one of the most underad dudes
in the league. Yeah, I saw a Lakers team that
played their arse off. They played hard. Now when you
look at them, what do you see?
Speaker 3 (25:22):
They just don't have enough defensively.
Speaker 9 (25:24):
We we always tend to look at the offensive prowess
between you know, A D. Lebron and teams. You know,
the first thing we always look at in the stat
sheets is the score. All right, well I'll tell you one.
I'll tell you one stat and this is about the Celtics.
Because we got to talk a little. Soh Jason Tatum
(25:45):
went four to nine, played over thirty minutes, and they
won by thirty.
Speaker 3 (25:51):
You know why because they can defend.
Speaker 9 (25:53):
Yeah, and yeah, they're nor talented, they're deeper and everything,
but defense wins championship. And the Lakers just didn't have
a consistent enough defense or reliable defense to where they
can get stops down the stretch.
Speaker 3 (26:09):
Because they got the guys that could score to win
ball games.
Speaker 9 (26:13):
And so when you don't have that dependable defense down
the stretch, I mean, it just seemed like every game
was the same. Okay, you play for stretches a defense,
you have moments, but you just couldn't put nothing consistently together.
And so the talent was there? Is it the coach?
Somebody's escapegoat every year? You know, it can't be the
(26:35):
coaches every time. It's time for the players to start
looking in the mirror.
Speaker 1 (26:40):
So it's interesting we romanticize. Somebody once said this, and
I thought it was I forget who said it. They
said a lot of the athletes, the way they treat people,
you never want them as a boss. Like Michael Jordan,
he's hard to play with. But we romanticize that, like
Kobe could be rough to play with. You read the
book Three Ring Circus. Uh, Kobe was a lot to do.
Speaker 3 (27:05):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (27:06):
So then there's Jason Tatum. Uh, he's a nice guy.
Everybody likes him. And there's and I watched them and
I think if you look at most NBA champions, I
mean Shaq and Kobe were they were killers there. And
by the way, KG, Paul Pierce, you guys dogs dogs,
And then you look at Boston and you're like, Jason
(27:28):
Tatum is a nice guy. And part of me is like,
do you have to have that? Get me the ball,
get out of here? Because I think Tatum likes to share,
likes to help, likes to lubricate the offense. He's not
always doesn't always want to take the big shot. And
that's when I watch him, I think, do you have
to have that?
Speaker 9 (27:49):
I think he has it. I think he has some
way that we don't. Maybe we don't see it all
the time, but when I go back and I look
at what you did last year to the sixers, and
when I go back and when he has a forty
fifty point game in uh in Philadelphia, and then I
go back and it was a huge game.
Speaker 3 (28:09):
It's a swing game. They lose.
Speaker 9 (28:10):
And then when I go back and I look at
that game seven in Milwaukee, I mean, you can't tell
me that's not kind of like a dog Dog games
just because he don't come out as a raw row
type person guy. No, not a big trash talking guy.
And you know he don't hear, you know, he just
don't come off that way. When he talks is kind
(28:31):
of like subtle.
Speaker 3 (28:33):
Yeah.
Speaker 9 (28:34):
So you know that's why we kind of build him
with that, you know, personality wise. But I've seen some
Dog games where I was like, I mean, he had
fifty five in the All Star Game.
Speaker 3 (28:44):
I mean, you gotta have you gotta have some type
of drive competitive.
Speaker 9 (28:47):
I know the All Star Game is not as competitive
as it used to be, but you gotta have a
mentality to.
Speaker 3 (28:51):
Go out there and do it.
Speaker 9 (28:53):
And so, but they have some guys on the team
like that, like I mean Drew Holliday, Dog Jaylen Brown.
Speaker 1 (29:01):
Oh, he got he's feisty.
Speaker 3 (29:04):
Yeah.
Speaker 9 (29:04):
So you know, I wouldn't call that a knock on
him because he's shown in big moments he can come
up big.
Speaker 3 (29:11):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (29:12):
So we like to say that markets don't matter but
if you go to when I grew up, the first
face of the league was probably Jerry West, La, Magic
La Bird Boston, Yeah, Michael Jordan Chicago, Shaq, Kobe La
Tim Duncan was never the face of the league. Lebron
is the only small market guy that's been the face
(29:33):
of the league. And he was a star coming out
of high school.
Speaker 3 (29:35):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (29:36):
The chosen one was his nick hat.
Speaker 3 (29:37):
Right.
Speaker 1 (29:38):
So it's interesting we say markets don't matter, but you know,
I look at the NBA right now and I'm thinking,
who's the face of the league. Now, First of all,
you have to want it. Jokis doesn't want it, no,
so you have to want it. And then I look
at Ant and I think, well, he wants it. But
it's Minnesota.
Speaker 3 (29:56):
You know. It's not that they don't want to call it.
Speaker 9 (29:59):
It's who gravitates towards you.
Speaker 3 (30:02):
You know what I'm saying.
Speaker 9 (30:04):
It's who are the people gravitating toward. Now you can
say Jannis, Joker and b Tatum, all these guys are
the best players, But the people who choose the face
of the league, that's who the people gravitate toward. And
right now a lot of people are gravitating toward Anthony Edwards,
(30:27):
They're like.
Speaker 3 (30:28):
Man, you know when you see him in his interviews, Man,
he talked like me.
Speaker 9 (30:32):
He's just a normal dude, he say, he looking at
his own highlight. He just he don't come on. He
coming off real authentic. I mean, he got the flair,
the personality, the games, the game, and right now you.
Speaker 3 (30:46):
Just see the kids gravitating toward that.
Speaker 1 (30:48):
I think John Morant had a chance. But then where
his aunt is all basketball.
Speaker 3 (30:53):
It's all basketball.
Speaker 9 (30:54):
You don't have nothing to say really about him outside
of it. Whatever girl stuff, whatever. But I mean people
are like, man, I can relate to him, I can
grab man. He just just the way he talks. It's
feel like he's talking right to you. Yeah, you know,
and it's interviews. Yes, it feels naturally real, Like when
(31:15):
he's sitting there with well Carl Towns and he was like, man,
you need to just stop foulings so damn much.
Speaker 3 (31:21):
You know.
Speaker 1 (31:23):
You know, it's just like, oh, that's how people are
talking to Jim.
Speaker 9 (31:25):
Yeah, that's like at the gym, and you relate to
that and you gravitate toward that.
Speaker 3 (31:30):
So he's on his way. You know, it could be Tatum.
Speaker 9 (31:33):
You know, I mean just personality wise and charisma wise,
Anthony Is is checking all the boxes.
Speaker 1 (31:39):
Paul Pierce joining us for our radio audience, the Finals, MVP,
the ten time NBA All Star. I want to go
back to your Boston days because it was it was
really one. I'm a believer outside of Lebron and the
Celtics usually that the baking in the ovens better than
the microwave. We think you can just go grab all stars.
(32:00):
Denver was baked right now, Oklahoma City Bank, you guys,
Lebron Okay, he wins everywhere and you guys, So all
these experiments Barkley and Pippin went to Houston didn't Yeah,
the Suns didn't work. Brooklyn didn't work. You guys worked,
and you were big personalities.
Speaker 3 (32:20):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (32:20):
So I want to know why because Ray Allen had
to go from the one to the two or the three?
Speaker 3 (32:25):
Yeah, why did it work?
Speaker 1 (32:27):
In Boston?
Speaker 3 (32:29):
I think we were just old and desperate. All of
us had been the All Star Games and had money.
They had money. I mean we were like what else
is left?
Speaker 9 (32:40):
I mean we're old, I'm thirty, Kg's thirty one, race
thirty two.
Speaker 3 (32:45):
We're like, man, come on, we gotta win.
Speaker 9 (32:47):
We didn't accomplish we'd just scored the ball as many points,
shot as many three. Defensive Player of the Year Kevin
won that year, but he won an MVP. So just like, man,
we don't got a lot of time left we we
you know, docs he laid out the plan. Yeah, he
laid out the plan because we.
Speaker 3 (33:04):
Was on the duck boat.
Speaker 9 (33:04):
We took a ride on the duck boat before the
season started. We jumped on and rolled around the city
just us, US four, just us.
Speaker 1 (33:10):
By the way, for people that don't know this, if
you've never been to Boston, they have duck boats everywhere. Yeah, everywhere,
and they can drive and then they go into the
water and that's a big thing in Boston.
Speaker 3 (33:18):
It's a huge thing in Boston outside the clam chowder.
Speaker 9 (33:21):
But you uh, we rolled the duck boat around the
city so people can see us, waving at us, and
he was.
Speaker 3 (33:27):
Like, all right, uh, Casey was like, you think we
can win this year.
Speaker 9 (33:31):
He's like, we gotta win it this year the first
year because usually it takes time to kind of get
to know each other.
Speaker 3 (33:37):
And he was like, what you think our window is?
Speaker 9 (33:39):
It's I think we got a three year window, because
y'all old as hell, you know what I'm saying.
Speaker 3 (33:44):
So we got a three year and that was our window.
Speaker 9 (33:47):
Thank god we won it the first year because the
next year Kevin got hurt. And then we went back
to the finals in twenty ten, and so that was
our chance. We said, we can probably get two out
of three. That was our We said this, how many
you think you can get a doc? He said, we
can if we can squeeze two out of three legends. Yeah,
and so we got to the finals. But as you
(34:07):
all know, we wasn't as the healthiest team. But it
was a good run, you know, for a short period
of time. And you know, if we got together a
little younger, like four or five years earlier, we could
have been sitting on It.
Speaker 1 (34:20):
Was really interesting though, because and I felt this with
the Heatls a little bit, is that I did feel
the guys liked each other, which is not easy because
in the NFL offensive and defensive players they don't even
practice together along in baseball, a third of the rosters
in the bullpen. In the NBA, as a small roster,
they're all in the same restaurants playing like if you
(34:42):
don't one guy can screw up a locker room. Absolutely,
And it was like you went three years and you
guys were or.
Speaker 3 (34:48):
One girlfriend or one wife can screw up a locker room.
Oh I've heard stories, so a lot of things can.
It has to go right, and it didn't. Yes, Yeah,
I mean I think because and Garnett was already friends.
We knew each other since high school.
Speaker 9 (35:02):
Okay, so you know, I think we just left our
egos at the door and they race Chill and Kevin
already knew Ray. I didn't have a relationship prior to
to Boston with Ray, but Ray's respected, you know, And
so when we got there.
Speaker 3 (35:15):
The good thing is we talked every.
Speaker 9 (35:16):
Day on the phone, damn there when we got when
the trade happened, we was on three way call, like
when we gonna.
Speaker 3 (35:22):
Get the Boston Let's start playing what's up? What y'all?
Y'all good?
Speaker 9 (35:25):
Were talking like every week every other day. Wow, right
out the gate.
Speaker 1 (35:29):
Okay, So I said about the Phoenix Suns because boy,
I whiffed on that I had him in the Western
Conference room.
Speaker 9 (35:34):
I'm going to the finals before the season when they
made the trade. Yeah, I predicted them in the finals.
Speaker 1 (35:40):
So I I will make the argument that Vogel actually
he's great with Biggs and they didn't give him a
great one and he had no point guard, so it
wasn't built. It was a Mike D'Antoni roster, yea with
Frank Vogel the coach. So be that as it may.
I do think the Knicks are a you don't want
somebody to take the all the Jalen Brunson's hands. Kevin doesn't.
(36:02):
You can give him the ball with five seconds, letting
the shot. I think i'd move Kevin Keith Booker. Now
I'm not being anti Kevin, but I think Chicago to
get past the Minnesota. Okay, see those teams are want
to get better Denver, Boston. They gotta make a move, right.
What do you make of the KD to New York idea.
Speaker 9 (36:26):
That's a great idea, and you don't want to take
the ball out of Brunson's hand, But I'm not sure
he really fits that New York mode.
Speaker 1 (36:34):
They're grinders.
Speaker 3 (36:35):
Yeah, they like if things go south with KD.
Speaker 9 (36:39):
And we already know how he is when people start
talking bad about him, and if the New York media
jumps on him, he not gonna like that.
Speaker 3 (36:46):
You know that, Oh, I know.
Speaker 9 (36:48):
I mean, so if there is a player and you
have to have some more star power, I think I think.
Speaker 10 (36:58):
Maybe Paul George, he DEFENDSS, but then what do you
do with you play him in anernobi They kind of
like the science position.
Speaker 9 (37:08):
But I think you do need another guy to take
pressure off bruntson.
Speaker 1 (37:12):
I mean, he's playing hard, minutes, long minutes. They're asking
a lot of him.
Speaker 3 (37:18):
Maybe if Katie's willing to take a step.
Speaker 1 (37:21):
Back, I think he is doesn't want to be the leader.
Speaker 3 (37:24):
Yeah, yeah, that makes it work. I mean, that make
it work.
Speaker 1 (37:29):
We were talking about this, how I think the NBA
with all these small market and European influences, I think
the league needs New York. So go back to your
I mean the Celtics and the Knicks or rivals, but
the Celtics just have dominated it. But when you played
in the Garden, did it feel different?
Speaker 3 (37:46):
It definitely feels different.
Speaker 9 (37:48):
You feel like it feels like I feel like I'm
in this feels like the Garden. Actually, you know it's
dark on the you can't see the crowd, but the
stage is lit.
Speaker 3 (37:58):
It's that's no arena. Does that you know there's no
other rien.
Speaker 9 (38:02):
I could think like the stage is like a stage
is lit and the crowd is dark, and it's just
like the spotlights on you.
Speaker 3 (38:09):
I loved I always played well in New York.
Speaker 9 (38:11):
I got a few game winners, you know, I got
I got a I got a nice little collage of
game winners in.
Speaker 3 (38:16):
The in the garden.
Speaker 1 (38:17):
They never get old, do they?
Speaker 3 (38:18):
No, I never get old.
Speaker 9 (38:19):
I love playing there, just slapping Spike Lee on the head,
watching him in discuss.
Speaker 3 (38:25):
Oh man, you gotta love it.
Speaker 1 (38:26):
I know I love watching the game. Hey man, it's
a real pleasure to have you. We we we I
know you're busy.
Speaker 3 (38:32):
Yeah, man, No, that's great. Now. I'm glad we had
a chance to sit down.
Speaker 1 (38:35):
And I'm just out of here a talking head with
gray hair. But you've been really nice to me, and
I appreciate it.
Speaker 6 (38:40):
Man.
Speaker 3 (38:40):
No, it's all love. It's all love.
Speaker 1 (38:42):
The legend Paul Pierce
Thanks for listening to the Best of the Herd podcast.
Be sure to catch us live every weekday on Fox
Sports Radio in noon to three Eastern nine am to
noon Pacific. Find your local station for The Herd at
Fox Sports Radio dot com, or stream us live every
day on the iHeartRadio app by searching Fox Sports Radio
or FSR. This is the Best of the Herd with
(00:22):
Colin cowher on Fox Sports Radio. Oh, We're ready to go.
It's a Thursday. We're live in Los Angeles. It's the Herd.
Wherever you may be and however you may be listening.
Thanks for making us part of your day. So I'm
sitting there last night thin get out, Okay, Westbrook's gonna
come off the bench and deliver for the Cliffers. He
(00:44):
started the game over eight, so it didn't go exactly
as planned. Man's had a good shooting performs Luca legend.
Speaker 2 (00:52):
Oh, he made calling a sad man last night and
we were out together.
Speaker 1 (00:56):
I'm not hearring it out Listen. I'm not anti Mavericks.
I've said for years and years. I can't understand why
more were stars don't choose Dallas right in the middle
of the country. No state tax, great city, beautiful people,
they had great owner. I'm not anti Dallas. Mavericks have
had a great history. So in Los Angeles, the Lakers,
their owners, their executives have always sort of rolled their
(01:17):
eyes at the Clippers. Clippers make big promises, they have
great nicknames lob City, but make no mistake, it's a
Lakers city and the Crypto dot Com Arena is the
Lakers building. Last night, though, it was a moment, the
Clippers two and two with Dallas at home, Luca rising star.
(01:38):
They have the veteran players rising to seize Los Angeles
and it was the perfect Clipper playoff, super fecta. Paul
George couldn't shoot Westbrook, Harden no showed, Kawhi not available.
Paul George said, yeah, this isn't who we are. Unfortunately,
it's exactly who you are. The Clipper stars twenty two
(02:00):
percent from the field, eight for thirty six, had more
turnovers than baskets.
Speaker 3 (02:04):
It was a.
Speaker 1 (02:05):
Disaster and this is why for years, you know, the
Lakers executives, Genie Buss, the Bus family have sort of
rolled their eyes. They got a shiny new arena coming again.
Paul George and Kawhi, they're gonna dominate the city and
cross town. You know, the Lakers ad and Lebron get
the conference finals, they win an NBA championship. And there's
(02:26):
always been kind of a weird desperation with the second
the little brother like the Jets or the Mets, or
the Clippers or the White Sox. There's a desperation right
like gets like a big swing, which I'm not opposed to.
But Kawhi Leonard has missed forty one percent of his
games as a Clipper, and they re signed him and
the city is just right now. You got the Otawani
(02:48):
mess with the Dodgers, Lebron, Lakers are out of the playoffs.
You know, USC football not quite what we think. The
Chargers had to go get a new coach. Los Angeles says,
ready to be seized. Clippers have a shiny new arena,
KWHI is not available, and the rest of the guys think,
(03:09):
and I just think they for years, it's the classic,
you know, little brother syndom. I've seen it with the
Mets where they reach or the Jets where they reach,
and I've seen it with the Clippers. They're just trying
too hard. But last night is I mean, there was
a time when the Lakers only made the playoffs two
times in eight years. I mean the city was wide open,
(03:31):
and the Clippers made the playoffs seven times in eight years.
It was like, here's your moment, just like when Michigan
football was down in Michigan State. Could have seized it.
And in the end, yeah, they didn't, and last night
the Clippers they didn't. They've had their opportunities. They have
had their opportunities in the last ten to twelve years,
and Steve Balmer is the richest owner in the NBA
(03:54):
and they've got a brilliant new arena. But this is
Los Angeles. Making the playoffs is not enough. Have a
really cool movie poster is not enough. The movies gotta
be good. And with the Clippers so often the posters great,
the movie isn't. And last night was a complete and
utter dud. And Paul George was the best of their
(04:16):
four stars. I guess he talked after.
Speaker 4 (04:20):
That, wasn't who we We've been in this series and
that's not who we are, you know. Uh So we
gotta we gotta be better, especially in this situation. A
chance to go up three two. We've been here before,
going to Dallas being down three two, so we we
we just you know, it's gotta be a win and
(04:44):
only mentality we have is to try to go get
a win in Dallas.
Speaker 1 (04:47):
Kyrie Irving was amazing, spectacular and Luca hobbling around was
good too. It goes back to Dallas. Clippers could certainly win.
It's been a weird series and a really fun series.
But man, last night was there for the taking. It's
not that they lost, it's that they weren't competitive and
no self awareness. And that leads me to the next story,
(05:08):
because you can't blame Tyloo on that is that one
of the reasons that Fox News has been so successful,
and there's talented people in all these cable networks, but
is because the media has leaned left for so long,
sometimes severely left, that there's a gaping hole in the coverage.
There's a lot of conservative viewers in America, and Fox
News sees those moderate conservative viewers. The rest of the
(05:32):
media largely was doing stuff moderate left and one of
the reasons TNT's basketball coverage, to me, is so much
better than ESPN's not blaming anybody, but it's such a
pro player league. The media is so soft I've begged
on this for years, is that Charles and Shack they're
(05:52):
just the balance. Sometimes they're very pro players, they love players,
but at least they're the balance in it. And the
Lakers lose, and it's immediately Darvin Ham is the reason. Well,
you know how this works, right, there's a reason the Sixers,
the Bucks and the Lakers have megastars in this league
and they're running through coaches each have had three and
(06:14):
six years. Because the megastars complain to their agent, their
agent leaks to willing media. Coaches lost the locker room.
That's always the de facto, the default end statement. Well,
Frank Vogel, Darvin Ham, they have lost the locker room.
(06:36):
And the agent of the star calls the willing media
reports it, It circulates and all of a sudden gets momentum.
It's an avalanche and a guy like Frank Vogel's out
of work. And Charles Barkley last night had had enough.
Speaker 5 (06:52):
Anybody who thinks the reason the Lakers suck is because
of Darwin Ham, But the reason the Sun sucked is
because the Frank Vogel, you don't know what you're talking about.
Frank Vogler is a hell of a coach. Darvin Ham
is a hell of a coast trying to get his
career started.
Speaker 3 (07:08):
But for all you.
Speaker 5 (07:09):
Punks, idiots and jackass is on other networks who want
to be median, who want all the players to like y'all,
do your damn job. The Lakers suck and the Sun
sucked because of the players. Has nothing to do with
the coaches.
Speaker 1 (07:22):
I've been saying this about Darvin Ham. The fact that
they led the Nugget seventy percent of the time and
Denver's easily the best team in the league is amazing.
Ruey No showed a couple of games dlo No showed.
Reeves is he being asked on some nights offensively to
be the number two because Anthony Davis SA is so
great defensively and has such a burden to guard Jokic
that he spends so much of his energy. I'm not
(07:44):
blaming Ad. That's the reality. He's a great defensive player.
He is so good on the defensive end that sometimes
he didn't have any gas in the fourth quarter. So
it's Lebron and Austin Reeves. You're not beating Porter Gordon,
Jamal Murray and Jokic and casep with that. Yeah, they
led some twenty percent of the series. I mean, Frank
Vogel won a title in the Bubble, every other old
(08:05):
team went man overboard except the Lakers. Vogel galvanized him.
They won a title. He got the backed about Eastern
Conference championships with an Indiana roster that was Roy Hibbert,
Paul George and lawn chairs. Give me a break. He'd
been bounced around the league. And he'll get blamed in Phoenix.
They don't have a point guard in Phoenix. That's part
(08:25):
of the problem. Frank Vogel. They had a big Frank
Vogel's good with bigs. They traded him. They don't have
a point guard. Is that Frank Vogel's vault. He'll get blamed.
Mike Budenholzer won a title, two time coach of the Year,
two organizations. Doesn't have a job. By the way, how
are the Bucks since Mike Budenholder left a bigger mess yet?
(08:46):
Mike Malone in Denver? You know how long it took
Mike Malone in Denver? The Nuggets missed the playoffs this
first three years. Following that, there were four years of
you know, Yokich can't win in the postseason. It was
year eight that Mike Malone finally won. So if you
wonder why Mike Malone has a bit of a chip
(09:06):
on his shoulder, he was told he was a bum
for seven years. I mean the kid at Oklahoma City,
Mark at Dagnault, he didn't do anything for the first
three years, like nothing, couldn't make the playoffs. Everybody makes
the playoffs. They were patient, Sam Presty patient this year
number one seat. I whether I agree with everything on
(09:28):
Fox News, and I don't. If you've listened to my
show for years, if you know where I'm politically, if
you leave openings, consumers will move toward the openings if
you provide something they like. TNT's not perfect, but there's
a wide open space to be critical and defend coaches
(09:48):
and occasionally critical of star players. It is not It
is not a coincidence that Lakers with a superstar, Bucks
with a super Sixers with a superstar are running through
coaches and it's always the coach lost the locker room,
and the willing media is like, yeah, yeah, I don't
(10:11):
you thought Darvin Ham lost the locker room? Did you
see how hard the Lakers played they out played Denver,
much more talented Denver. You can criticize Darvin ham on
you want that team comes to play. Ruey was awful
a couple of games and early in the season, and
Dlo's DLO, but effort. Losing the locker room is the
team quits. Lakers never quit, they were just outmanned by
(10:33):
a better team. So I don't want to hear Darvin
ham lost the locker room. Where Frank Vogel can't coach,
you can sit. Here's another thing that people forget. Nick
Nurse a hell of a coach, but sometimes this is
the reality you get into a playoff game. The arena
is loud. Players can't all hear you. Hell, officials couldn't
hear Nick Nurse call a time out. It's not a
(10:54):
perfect sport to coach. They're not wearing headsets like the NFL.
They can't talk to the quarterback. Baseball stadiums are mostly quiet.
You can do signals through the course of a baseball game,
the third base code. Sometimes in the NBA stars listen,
they don't. They don't hear. They do hear. The officials
here they don't hear. It's not easy. These arenas are
crazy time. But the constant ease in which the media
(11:18):
just rips coaches sends them packing. There's a reason Frank
Bogel keeps getting jobs. People know he can coach. But
the Darvin Ham stuff is, you got to give me
a break on this lost the locker room. I watched
that series. You know what I saw inconsistent players outside
of Lebron. Lebron really the only offensive player you could
(11:40):
depend on in the series. Austin reeves on some nights
had to be the two because AD's working so hard
on the defensive end that he just doesn't have a
lot left in his tank offensively in the fourth quarter.
It's not lack of effort. Sometimes with embiid late it
feels like lack of effort. AD's never lack of effort.
And yeah, he had got hurt with this. He stayed
(12:01):
in the game, he kept playing. But I just TNT
provides ballance. They're willing to be critical occasionally, and I
appreciate that. As a consumer of the NBA, I just
appreciate it. And by the way, if TNT loses rights
to the NBA, it's gonna be a bidding war for
those guys. They're gonna be a bidding war for Charles
(12:23):
and Shaq and Kenny and Ernie because they provide something
the rest of the NBA media too often does not.
All right, Jay McK and, I know you can have
your issues with Barkley, but I like people who are
willing to say what others aren't, and he is. And
I liked it last night.
Speaker 3 (12:37):
Well, of course you liked it.
Speaker 1 (12:38):
You you love Charles Barkley. I think he's uh great.
Speaker 2 (12:42):
He's a little past his prime, shall I say?
Speaker 3 (12:44):
But I'll just say this.
Speaker 2 (12:46):
If you want a nitpick like Lakers fanzil, they've got it,
chapter and verse.
Speaker 1 (12:50):
Why didn't Darvinham use his challenge here? Why were we
out of tota?
Speaker 2 (12:53):
Sorry for saying week why were the Lakers out of timeoutska? Well,
when Jamalmury hit that shot with three seconds.
Speaker 1 (12:58):
Left, Like, if you lose twelve to thirteen games to
a team, you go ahead and talk about rotations and
unused timeouts, I'm gonna go back to talent. Michael Jordan
just kept winning the finals, and so did Bill Russell
and Kareem and Magic and Bird. You go ahead and
let that fester on the coaches that lost to Magic,
(13:18):
Magic was in nine finals. All those Western coaches probably
didn't use the timeouts as much as guy on reddit board.
Woman prereddit board like, I'm sorry. When you watch the
Chiefs play, you can start blaming everybody and he reads great.
Mahomes is great. Next you can start arguing about coaches
and play calling. Brady Mahomes and Peyton Manning made seventeen
(13:41):
to twenty three Super Bowls. Go ahead and bang on
Mike Tomlin. He didn't have as good a quarterback.
Speaker 2 (13:45):
And when you lose as the Philadelphia Eagles did this season,
cratered at the end. Hey, you better get a new
offensive coordator, Gotta get a new defense.
Speaker 1 (13:53):
That's what different they they lost. They cratered. The Lakers
didn't crater. The Lakers went toe to toe with the Nuggets,
and tie I would largely agree they didn't. They just
don't have the players. Ron's an All NBA guy, And
if Broun was the only player for the Lakers that
consistently on offense every game provided big production, that was it.
(14:14):
A d didn't really didn't. Delo portered at every game.
Jamal Murray Adenomen defensively but offensively to twice. But the
series I know there is no you know, it's just
production data. Fourth quarter A D is not consistent in the.
Speaker 2 (14:33):
Fourth So the rosters the issue, would you yes?
Speaker 1 (14:36):
Okay, so Rob Polinka get him on the stand. Let's say,
let's hear about that. Rob Polinka's job is an in jeopardy.
What Barkley is saying is you're keeping the gms like
you didn't say what you want about Phoenix. They don't
have a point guard. They had a big Vogels known
for Biggs. So somebody on the internet said this, They said,
they gave Frank Vogel, who's great with Biggs, a Mike
d'An toni roster like so, so you can blame Vogel,
(14:59):
But Vocals won titles. Vocal has been a conference championships.
They didn't have a point guy. If you watch the
Suns play, the construct of the team isn't as good
as Minnesota's. Minnesota's got the point, the big, the score,
the blocker, whole season. Figure it out. Frank Vogel, your
championship winning is a great coach. Why couldn't he figure
out the offense without James Harden. He didn't have a
(15:20):
point guard. That's like putting five guys on the floor
an Olympic team and have no center and no point
guard and go, why aren't you great? There's a reason
teams have quarterbacks, running backs, tight ends. You need people
to engineer the offense and get you into it. Before
James Harden Tyler was pulling his hair out the team
that you had Kawhi who's rarely available, leading him into
(15:40):
an offense. So it's easy to blame coaches. Players win games,
players lose games. People arguing about timeouts not used in
rotational decisions mid third quarter. How about you stop Jamal Murray?
They couldn't they tried. Yeah, how much you stop Aunt Edwards?
(16:01):
You can say with Joey and triple team him. So
you know again, I just like media that provides a
view that's not mainstream all the time. These coaches, it's
just just running through these guys. Laker fans with Darvin Ham,
I hear this all the time about you know the
Dodgers and Dave Roberts. Do you know the best managers
(16:24):
in baseball? They have theorized for years. Analytically they're worth
three wins. It's one hundred and sixty two game season. Okay,
you replace Dave Roberts and you win three and a
half more games a year. Bottom line is Walker Buhler's
been hurt, the bullpen's been spotty. You can pitch around that.
You know, the top of the order sometimes it's pretty
top heavy, but it's just easier to blame Dave Roberts
(16:45):
and go the construct of it's not ideal and the
Dodgers are you know, I'm not banging on the Dodgers.
They are really well constructed, but it's just too easy
to blame the coach. Be sure to catch live editions
of The Herd weekdays and Noone Easter non am Pacific
on Fox Sports Radio FS one and the iHeartRadio app.
So matt Ishbia is a very aggressive guy. He takes
(17:07):
over the Suns. He's a Michigan State booster, big money guy,
mortgage guy, takes over the Suns and he goes, hey,
let's go get Bradley Beale, Let's go get Kevin Durant
takes a big swing. You know, I'm a fan of
big swings because when you make a big swing, even
if it fails, you have good assets. And that's what
the Suns. After a disappointing finish, have, They've got good assets.
(17:28):
They could move KD With the Knicks, you get a
lot of good players and picks. They could move Devin
Booker if they wanted to. People think they won't, but
they get a hole. That's why you take big swings.
Even if you fail, you're left with really good assets
you can usually move in the NBA. So Matt Ashpia
yesterday talking about the disappointing end of the season, he's optimistic.
Speaker 6 (17:50):
The narrative around the house is burning. It's incorrect.
Speaker 7 (17:53):
The Phoenix Suns are doing great, excellent, not as good
as we want to be, and not as good we're
gonna do next year, and that's we're gonna figure out
what we got a tweak, modify, adjust to win a
championship next year. Ask the other twenty nine gms, twenty
six of them would trade their whole team for our
whole team, and our whole in our draft picks and
everything as is. Like, the house is not on fire.
We're in great pusiness. It's not hard to fix. It's
not like we're like, hey, we don't have enough talent
(18:15):
to win a champion.
Speaker 6 (18:16):
We have enough talent to win a championship.
Speaker 1 (18:18):
Okay, Now he's a super aggressive guy and you can
push back. Now the Bradley Beal contract, that's trickier. He's
got a no trade class and Bradley Beal was banged
up a lot of the year. If he's healthy next year,
you're fine. What you don't want to do is the
Clippers we assigned Kawhi Leonard, he's never available, and you
double down on it, or the New York Giants reaching
on Daniel Jones and then doubling down on it. Take
(18:41):
big swing. People that sit and criticize people who take
big swings have never taken a big swing. Half of
them fail in sports. Who cares. You're left with assets
and you can start over. The Niners took a big
swing on Trey Lance. Didn't work. They found brock Purty.
If you have confidence in yourself in life, fear based,
(19:02):
you take swings. Phoenix has good assets. More of Matt Ishbie.
Speaker 7 (19:08):
Fans like to like look in the future and say, hey,
I really like that twenty thirty one draft pick, because
maybe that seventh grader is gonna be really good and
we're gonna draft him and one day he's gonna be
a player like you ain't gonna like the Phoenix Suns
because we're gonna say draft picks are to get great players.
Speaker 6 (19:23):
Five of the next eight years we have a first
round draft pick.
Speaker 7 (19:24):
I know that's not like a cool thing to say
out there because people like to, you know, say their nerves.
Speaker 6 (19:28):
We have no draft picks, but we have five of
the next.
Speaker 7 (19:30):
Eight years, and we can trade two of them next
month if we want. What would be a house on fire.
We didn't have any players signed. We have our starting
five signed for multiple years together. Do we have to
make some adjustments because that's starting five didn't win a championship.
Speaker 6 (19:43):
Of course we did. Of course we do and we will.
Speaker 1 (19:47):
Booker and KD are the fifth and six leading scorers
in the league. Phoenix is a super attractive NBA market
in a winter league. It's got perfect weather along with Miami.
So and again you got to ask take swings. Don't sit
on the sidelines criticizing those who do.
Speaker 3 (20:04):
This.
Speaker 1 (20:04):
Guy took big swings. I'm in now. Beal needs to
be healthier. I'd probably move KD to the Knicks find
a point guard somewhere, but there are assets here that
can be moved. I would consider moving Booker, but I
cause you can get more for him. But I do
think KD to the Knicks is a perfect fit. New
York's got draft picks and young, nice players, not stars
(20:27):
outside of Brunson, but really nice, willing to be coached players.
Get him some size. Frank Vogel likes that when your
business reaches a certain scale, challenges begin to surface, you
deserve a tailored solution, and that's net Suite. Absolutely Free
is their KPI checklist. Go to NetSuite dot com slash
Herd agrd be sure to catch live editions of The
Herd weekdays and noon Easter non a em Pacific.
Speaker 8 (20:51):
Hey, this is Tom Berducci from Fox Sports, MLB Network
and Sports Illustrated.
Speaker 1 (20:56):
And I'm Joe Madden.
Speaker 7 (20:57):
We're going to be around to talk a little bit
about manage real decisions may have occurred to the dugout,
maybe in the nineteen eighties.
Speaker 8 (21:02):
It's the Book of Joe podcast. I can't wait for this, Joe.
We're going to dive into what goes on in the
dugout and behind the scenes in Major.
Speaker 1 (21:09):
League Baseball, cars, wind whatever else we want to talk about.
Speaker 8 (21:12):
Yeah, well, there are no boundaries, right Listen, to the
Book of Joe podcast on the iHeartRadio app, on Apple
podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.
Speaker 1 (21:20):
We've been watching him on Undisputed and we say, hey, man,
if you get time, we'd love to have you on
the show. He's a busy guy. He's got to drive
out to the valley, but he made time for us today.
The ten time All Star Paul Pierce joining us in
the herd. Look at Paul the daffer. Yeah, it is
good to see you.
Speaker 3 (21:38):
Yeah, what's up?
Speaker 1 (21:40):
What you look like? You could still play? Do you
ever go out and wreck league? It a little bit?
Speaker 3 (21:44):
A little bit today? I want to leave here.
Speaker 1 (21:47):
You're playing tonight?
Speaker 6 (21:48):
Yeah?
Speaker 3 (21:48):
On playing tonight?
Speaker 1 (21:49):
Now, when you were a great defensive player in the league,
that's good enough. Do you defend when you go out
and play.
Speaker 9 (21:55):
The okay mix, I just go and shoot threes.
Speaker 1 (22:02):
You know, when we were talking about this last night,
there are some organizations that rise the Yankees and Alabama
football and the Lakers. I mean, the Lakers are a
flawed roster, but historically in the big games, Celtics have
a lot And I watched the Clippers last night and
I'm like, okay, this is a moment, and it was
like the ghost of Clippers past arrived. It was their
(22:23):
worst playoff loss in history.
Speaker 3 (22:25):
So I want to ask you.
Speaker 1 (22:26):
You played for Kansas Boston, so you won a lot
of games, and those are legendary, iconic basketball organizations. Right,
does the Clippers from the outside looking in look like
not that it's haunted, but there's something hanging on the
franchise in big spots.
Speaker 3 (22:42):
Yeah, I truly believe.
Speaker 9 (22:44):
And I said this before, I think they got a
dark cloud over them. And I think the only way
that dark cloud is going to get removed is when
they move into their own building next year. I truly
believe that. Yeah, you know, they shared a building there
in the shadow of the Lakers.
Speaker 3 (23:00):
You know, you share locker rooms and stuff Lakers.
Speaker 9 (23:04):
It's the Lakers building, you know, it's they crib and
you just kind of lease it out. You go in
there and hang out and put your you know, and
then they then you gotta get out and then but
it's always gonna be the Laker House. So I just
think that dark cloud is gonna be removed when they
get into their own building.
Speaker 3 (23:21):
You know, because even when I played there.
Speaker 9 (23:25):
Uh, Colin and Jason, I just it was just untimely
injuries and it just seemed like some untimely happens every
single year.
Speaker 1 (23:34):
Now was the medical staff up to snuff? There was
as good as the Celtics.
Speaker 9 (23:39):
I mean, you got all the best of the best.
I mean this is Los Angeles, you got us LA,
all the doctors is coming from over there, and you
got the best of the best. But it's just like
when I was there, Break Blake got hurt. CP three
got hurt. And now you see every year it's either
Kawhi or Paul George. It's just like something and these
(24:00):
are years where you're like, Okay, this team could content
for a title.
Speaker 1 (24:04):
They have an excellent roster right now.
Speaker 9 (24:06):
Yeah, yeah, And this is a team you feel like,
all right, they could content for a title, but unfortunately,
right now Kawhi is dealing with injuries and it just
seem like it's the same song every year. So I
just feel like when they get some new energy in
a new building, things are kind of refresh, you know.
Speaker 3 (24:23):
So that's just me, That's what I think.
Speaker 1 (24:25):
So I have defended Darvin ham on this is that
the Bucks, the Lakers, and the Sixers have superstar players
and it's not a coincidence. They've each had three coaches
in six years. So in the NBA, the star player
grumbles to his agent. The agent calls the media and says,
coach lost the locker room. But the truth is Malone
(24:48):
went seven years without winning. The guy in Oklahoma City
couldn't make the playoffs for three years. Is that? When
I watch the Lakers played, I think it's a flawed team.
Ruly didn't show up for two games, de Lo's hitting
miss against the Nuggets, and the only player I could
depend on offensively late in the games was usually Austin
Reeves and Lebron, whereas they got Porter and Murray and
(25:09):
Yok and KCP is one of the most underad dudes
in the league. Yeah, I saw a Lakers team that
played their arse off. They played hard. Now when you
look at them, what do you see?
Speaker 3 (25:22):
They just don't have enough defensively.
Speaker 9 (25:24):
We we always tend to look at the offensive prowess
between you know, A D. Lebron and teams. You know,
the first thing we always look at in the stat
sheets is the score. All right, well I'll tell you one.
I'll tell you one stat and this is about the Celtics.
Because we got to talk a little. Soh Jason Tatum
(25:45):
went four to nine, played over thirty minutes, and they
won by thirty.
Speaker 3 (25:51):
You know why because they can defend.
Speaker 9 (25:53):
Yeah, and yeah, they're nor talented, they're deeper and everything,
but defense wins championship. And the Lakers just didn't have
a consistent enough defense or reliable defense to where they
can get stops down the stretch.
Speaker 3 (26:09):
Because they got the guys that could score to win
ball games.
Speaker 9 (26:13):
And so when you don't have that dependable defense down
the stretch, I mean, it just seemed like every game
was the same. Okay, you play for stretches a defense,
you have moments, but you just couldn't put nothing consistently together.
And so the talent was there? Is it the coach?
Somebody's escapegoat every year? You know, it can't be the
(26:35):
coaches every time. It's time for the players to start
looking in the mirror.
Speaker 1 (26:40):
So it's interesting we romanticize. Somebody once said this, and
I thought it was I forget who said it. They
said a lot of the athletes, the way they treat people,
you never want them as a boss. Like Michael Jordan,
he's hard to play with. But we romanticize that, like
Kobe could be rough to play with. You read the
book Three Ring Circus. Uh, Kobe was a lot to do.
Speaker 3 (27:05):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (27:06):
So then there's Jason Tatum. Uh, he's a nice guy.
Everybody likes him. And there's and I watched them and
I think if you look at most NBA champions, I
mean Shaq and Kobe were they were killers there. And
by the way, KG, Paul Pierce, you guys dogs dogs,
And then you look at Boston and you're like, Jason
(27:28):
Tatum is a nice guy. And part of me is like,
do you have to have that? Get me the ball,
get out of here? Because I think Tatum likes to share,
likes to help, likes to lubricate the offense. He's not
always doesn't always want to take the big shot. And
that's when I watch him, I think, do you have
to have that?
Speaker 9 (27:49):
I think he has it. I think he has some
way that we don't. Maybe we don't see it all
the time, but when I go back and I look
at what you did last year to the sixers, and
when I go back and when he has a forty
fifty point game in uh in Philadelphia, and then I
go back and it was a huge game.
Speaker 3 (28:09):
It's a swing game. They lose.
Speaker 9 (28:10):
And then when I go back and I look at
that game seven in Milwaukee, I mean, you can't tell
me that's not kind of like a dog Dog games
just because he don't come out as a raw row
type person guy. No, not a big trash talking guy.
And you know he don't hear, you know, he just
don't come off that way. When he talks is kind
(28:31):
of like subtle.
Speaker 3 (28:33):
Yeah.
Speaker 9 (28:34):
So you know that's why we kind of build him
with that, you know, personality wise. But I've seen some
Dog games where I was like, I mean, he had
fifty five in the All Star Game.
Speaker 3 (28:44):
I mean, you gotta have you gotta have some type
of drive competitive.
Speaker 9 (28:47):
I know the All Star Game is not as competitive
as it used to be, but you gotta have a
mentality to.
Speaker 3 (28:51):
Go out there and do it.
Speaker 9 (28:53):
And so, but they have some guys on the team
like that, like I mean Drew Holliday, Dog Jaylen Brown.
Speaker 1 (29:01):
Oh, he got he's feisty.
Speaker 3 (29:04):
Yeah.
Speaker 9 (29:04):
So you know, I wouldn't call that a knock on
him because he's shown in big moments he can come
up big.
Speaker 3 (29:11):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (29:12):
So we like to say that markets don't matter but
if you go to when I grew up, the first
face of the league was probably Jerry West, La, Magic
La Bird Boston, Yeah, Michael Jordan Chicago, Shaq, Kobe La
Tim Duncan was never the face of the league. Lebron
is the only small market guy that's been the face
(29:33):
of the league. And he was a star coming out
of high school.
Speaker 3 (29:35):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (29:36):
The chosen one was his nick hat.
Speaker 3 (29:37):
Right.
Speaker 1 (29:38):
So it's interesting we say markets don't matter, but you know,
I look at the NBA right now and I'm thinking,
who's the face of the league. Now, First of all,
you have to want it. Jokis doesn't want it, no,
so you have to want it. And then I look
at Ant and I think, well, he wants it. But
it's Minnesota.
Speaker 3 (29:56):
You know. It's not that they don't want to call it.
Speaker 9 (29:59):
It's who gravitates towards you.
Speaker 3 (30:02):
You know what I'm saying.
Speaker 9 (30:04):
It's who are the people gravitating toward. Now you can
say Jannis, Joker and b Tatum, all these guys are
the best players, But the people who choose the face
of the league, that's who the people gravitate toward. And
right now a lot of people are gravitating toward Anthony Edwards,
(30:27):
They're like.
Speaker 3 (30:28):
Man, you know when you see him in his interviews, Man,
he talked like me.
Speaker 9 (30:32):
He's just a normal dude, he say, he looking at
his own highlight. He just he don't come on. He
coming off real authentic. I mean, he got the flair,
the personality, the games, the game, and right now you.
Speaker 3 (30:46):
Just see the kids gravitating toward that.
Speaker 1 (30:48):
I think John Morant had a chance. But then where
his aunt is all basketball.
Speaker 3 (30:53):
It's all basketball.
Speaker 9 (30:54):
You don't have nothing to say really about him outside
of it. Whatever girl stuff, whatever. But I mean people
are like, man, I can relate to him, I can
grab man. He just just the way he talks. It's
feel like he's talking right to you. Yeah, you know,
and it's interviews. Yes, it feels naturally real, Like when
(31:15):
he's sitting there with well Carl Towns and he was like, man,
you need to just stop foulings so damn much.
Speaker 3 (31:21):
You know.
Speaker 1 (31:23):
You know, it's just like, oh, that's how people are
talking to Jim.
Speaker 9 (31:25):
Yeah, that's like at the gym, and you relate to
that and you gravitate toward that.
Speaker 3 (31:30):
So he's on his way. You know, it could be Tatum.
Speaker 9 (31:33):
You know, I mean just personality wise and charisma wise,
Anthony Is is checking all the boxes.
Speaker 1 (31:39):
Paul Pierce joining us for our radio audience, the Finals, MVP,
the ten time NBA All Star. I want to go
back to your Boston days because it was it was
really one. I'm a believer outside of Lebron and the
Celtics usually that the baking in the ovens better than
the microwave. We think you can just go grab all stars.
(32:00):
Denver was baked right now, Oklahoma City Bank, you guys,
Lebron Okay, he wins everywhere and you guys, So all
these experiments Barkley and Pippin went to Houston didn't Yeah,
the Suns didn't work. Brooklyn didn't work. You guys worked,
and you were big personalities.
Speaker 3 (32:20):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (32:20):
So I want to know why because Ray Allen had
to go from the one to the two or the three?
Speaker 3 (32:25):
Yeah, why did it work?
Speaker 1 (32:27):
In Boston?
Speaker 3 (32:29):
I think we were just old and desperate. All of
us had been the All Star Games and had money.
They had money. I mean we were like what else
is left?
Speaker 9 (32:40):
I mean we're old, I'm thirty, Kg's thirty one, race
thirty two.
Speaker 3 (32:45):
We're like, man, come on, we gotta win.
Speaker 9 (32:47):
We didn't accomplish we'd just scored the ball as many points,
shot as many three. Defensive Player of the Year Kevin
won that year, but he won an MVP. So just like, man,
we don't got a lot of time left we we
you know, docs he laid out the plan. Yeah, he
laid out the plan because we.
Speaker 3 (33:04):
Was on the duck boat.
Speaker 9 (33:04):
We took a ride on the duck boat before the
season started. We jumped on and rolled around the city
just us, US four, just us.
Speaker 1 (33:10):
By the way, for people that don't know this, if
you've never been to Boston, they have duck boats everywhere. Yeah, everywhere,
and they can drive and then they go into the
water and that's a big thing in Boston.
Speaker 3 (33:18):
It's a huge thing in Boston outside the clam chowder.
Speaker 9 (33:21):
But you uh, we rolled the duck boat around the
city so people can see us, waving at us, and
he was.
Speaker 3 (33:27):
Like, all right, uh, Casey was like, you think we
can win this year.
Speaker 9 (33:31):
He's like, we gotta win it this year the first
year because usually it takes time to kind of get
to know each other.
Speaker 3 (33:37):
And he was like, what you think our window is?
Speaker 9 (33:39):
It's I think we got a three year window, because
y'all old as hell, you know what I'm saying.
Speaker 3 (33:44):
So we got a three year and that was our window.
Speaker 9 (33:47):
Thank god we won it the first year because the
next year Kevin got hurt. And then we went back
to the finals in twenty ten, and so that was
our chance. We said, we can probably get two out
of three. That was our We said this, how many
you think you can get a doc? He said, we
can if we can squeeze two out of three legends. Yeah,
and so we got to the finals. But as you
(34:07):
all know, we wasn't as the healthiest team. But it
was a good run, you know, for a short period
of time. And you know, if we got together a
little younger, like four or five years earlier, we could
have been sitting on It.
Speaker 1 (34:20):
Was really interesting though, because and I felt this with
the Heatls a little bit, is that I did feel
the guys liked each other, which is not easy because
in the NFL offensive and defensive players they don't even
practice together along in baseball, a third of the rosters
in the bullpen. In the NBA, as a small roster,
they're all in the same restaurants playing like if you
(34:42):
don't one guy can screw up a locker room. Absolutely,
And it was like you went three years and you
guys were or.
Speaker 3 (34:48):
One girlfriend or one wife can screw up a locker room.
Oh I've heard stories, so a lot of things can.
It has to go right, and it didn't. Yes, Yeah,
I mean I think because and Garnett was already friends.
We knew each other since high school.
Speaker 9 (35:02):
Okay, so you know, I think we just left our
egos at the door and they race Chill and Kevin
already knew Ray. I didn't have a relationship prior to
to Boston with Ray, but Ray's respected, you know, And
so when we got there.
Speaker 3 (35:15):
The good thing is we talked every.
Speaker 9 (35:16):
Day on the phone, damn there when we got when
the trade happened, we was on three way call, like
when we gonna.
Speaker 3 (35:22):
Get the Boston Let's start playing what's up? What y'all?
Y'all good?
Speaker 9 (35:25):
Were talking like every week every other day. Wow, right
out the gate.
Speaker 1 (35:29):
Okay, So I said about the Phoenix Suns because boy,
I whiffed on that I had him in the Western
Conference room.
Speaker 9 (35:34):
I'm going to the finals before the season when they
made the trade. Yeah, I predicted them in the finals.
Speaker 1 (35:40):
So I I will make the argument that Vogel actually
he's great with Biggs and they didn't give him a
great one and he had no point guard, so it
wasn't built. It was a Mike D'Antoni roster, yea with
Frank Vogel the coach. So be that as it may.
I do think the Knicks are a you don't want
somebody to take the all the Jalen Brunson's hands. Kevin doesn't.
(36:02):
You can give him the ball with five seconds, letting
the shot. I think i'd move Kevin Keith Booker. Now
I'm not being anti Kevin, but I think Chicago to
get past the Minnesota. Okay, see those teams are want
to get better Denver, Boston. They gotta make a move, right.
What do you make of the KD to New York idea.
Speaker 9 (36:26):
That's a great idea, and you don't want to take
the ball out of Brunson's hand, But I'm not sure
he really fits that New York mode.
Speaker 1 (36:34):
They're grinders.
Speaker 3 (36:35):
Yeah, they like if things go south with KD.
Speaker 9 (36:39):
And we already know how he is when people start
talking bad about him, and if the New York media
jumps on him, he not gonna like that.
Speaker 3 (36:46):
You know that, Oh, I know.
Speaker 9 (36:48):
I mean, so if there is a player and you
have to have some more star power, I think I think.
Speaker 10 (36:58):
Maybe Paul George, he DEFENDSS, but then what do you
do with you play him in anernobi They kind of
like the science position.
Speaker 9 (37:08):
But I think you do need another guy to take
pressure off bruntson.
Speaker 1 (37:12):
I mean, he's playing hard, minutes, long minutes. They're asking
a lot of him.
Speaker 3 (37:18):
Maybe if Katie's willing to take a step.
Speaker 1 (37:21):
Back, I think he is doesn't want to be the leader.
Speaker 3 (37:24):
Yeah, yeah, that makes it work. I mean, that make
it work.
Speaker 1 (37:29):
We were talking about this, how I think the NBA
with all these small market and European influences, I think
the league needs New York. So go back to your
I mean the Celtics and the Knicks or rivals, but
the Celtics just have dominated it. But when you played
in the Garden, did it feel different?
Speaker 3 (37:46):
It definitely feels different.
Speaker 9 (37:48):
You feel like it feels like I feel like I'm
in this feels like the Garden. Actually, you know it's
dark on the you can't see the crowd, but the
stage is lit.
Speaker 3 (37:58):
It's that's no arena. Does that you know there's no
other rien.
Speaker 9 (38:02):
I could think like the stage is like a stage
is lit and the crowd is dark, and it's just
like the spotlights on you.
Speaker 3 (38:09):
I loved I always played well in New York.
Speaker 9 (38:11):
I got a few game winners, you know, I got
I got a I got a nice little collage of
game winners in.
Speaker 3 (38:16):
The in the garden.
Speaker 1 (38:17):
They never get old, do they?
Speaker 3 (38:18):
No, I never get old.
Speaker 9 (38:19):
I love playing there, just slapping Spike Lee on the head,
watching him in discuss.
Speaker 3 (38:25):
Oh man, you gotta love it.
Speaker 1 (38:26):
I know I love watching the game. Hey man, it's
a real pleasure to have you. We we we I
know you're busy.
Speaker 3 (38:32):
Yeah, man, No, that's great. Now. I'm glad we had
a chance to sit down.
Speaker 1 (38:35):
And I'm just out of here a talking head with
gray hair. But you've been really nice to me, and
I appreciate it.
Speaker 6 (38:40):
Man.
Speaker 3 (38:40):
No, it's all love. It's all love.
Speaker 1 (38:42):
The legend Paul Pierce
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