July 31, 2020 • 40 mins
The return of the NBA looks fantastic
Colin recaps the Lakers-Clippers game last night
The Pelicans need to stop putting Zion Williamson on minute restrictions
Most people complaining about NBA players kneeling are simply miserable people
The Buccaneers could very well make it to the Super Bowl
Guest: 5 time NBA All-Star Chris Webber
Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Thanks for listening to the Best of Herd podcast. Be
sure to catch us live every weekday from twelve to
three eastern nine to noon Pacific on Fox Sports Radio
and FS one. 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 Herd. This
is the Best of the Herd with Colin cowher on
Fox Sports Radio. Ah, here we go on a glorious
(00:28):
sports saturated Friday, live in Los Angeles. This is a
happy place. This is the Herd. I'll speak for Joy
Taylor today. It is a happy place wherever you may be,
and however you may be listening on any device. We're
on Fox Sports Radio. We're right here on FS one.
(00:50):
I am speaking for Joy Taylor today, even though I
have not spoken yet. The Joy Taylor today is a
happy day. In the show, wasn't that wonderfully? Yes? Said,
Oh my god, how be a little emotional? I ate
like a mobster last night. It was yeah, you had
a good night steaks and yelling and screaming. I had
buddies texting me during the game. They're like this is great,
(01:12):
and I'm like, now they're gonna come over to the
night we're gonna watch NBA MLS. It was just so great.
You know what I last night? What Lemon Pepper Wings.
Oh it's your favorite. Not the Magic City though they're
not the Lue Will Yeah, well those are supposed to
be good too. So let's start with this. Lakers beat
the Clippers. There's two truths about the Lakers. One is
really good and one was fine last night, but it's troublesome.
(01:33):
Let's start with this. Their chemistry has been great all year.
Lebron and a d just work. It just works. Vogel Lebron.
Frank's done a great job. Dion Waiters doesn't fit anywhere.
He fits there. Dwight Howard's been odd for years. He's
kind of important. JaVale McGee's a fascinating player. He's crucial
for them on the defensive end. Alex Caruso and his
(01:55):
headband work really well with Lebron. Their chemistry is excellent.
It was right where they and it was great in
the first week. You know, listen, Lebron and d Waite
are best friends. It took a month and a half
for him to get it together, and by the end
of that first year they still didn't have it together.
This thing works okay, and it shouldn't on paper. It
(02:18):
is a reality show. It's the odd balls of the
NBA and Jr. Smith and Waiters and Javail and Dwight Howard,
who's Alex Caruso and his ed bad? But it works.
And when he had juxtaposed that against the Clippers last night,
their chemistry was not good. They had more turnovers than assists.
Lebroun really frustrated them defensively in a couple of possessions.
(02:38):
Paul George was great last night. He was stupendous, but
he kind of felt sometimes he was doing it by himself.
I didn't like kind of their offensive situational basketball. I
felt they were off last night and none of it
was pretty early. Lebron really struggled for much of the game.
But the Lakers chemistry is it's really are to Vogel
(03:00):
and Lebron. It shouldn't be this good on paper. This
roster has so many parts that don't look like they fit,
and they do. I mean, Dion Waiters drives me nuts.
Last nine he was really important. And here's the second
thing with the Lakers, that's the truth. They got a pattern.
They get carried by Anthony Davis early and then he
(03:21):
disappears and Lebron carries him late, and that was good enough.
Last night, Lebron was very good late. Couple of big baskets,
a couple of great assists, too, great defensive stops. Anthony
Davis this year shoots fifty three percent from the field
in the first three quarters. He shoots forty percent in
the fourth. He just dries up. But he's a monster
(03:42):
for the first three quarters. He may be the best
player in the NBA quarters one, two, and three. And
last night he had thirty two in the first three quarters.
You know what he had in the fourth nutting. So
here's my two takeaways. Their chemistry is great and it matters.
And they got to figure out is Anthony Davis thing
because for years everybody said he's kind of soft. This
(04:03):
is what people complained about. Where is he? Where's the dog?
Playoffs are about dog It's about veteran players getting in
your face. Kevin Garnett, Dwayne Wade, tough guys, Lebron Kawhi
getting in your face. A lot of guys get they
just don't have dogging them. They're talented, they don't got
dogging them this league. Pepponhead Dog, Michael let Dog Bird
(04:26):
had it, Magic had it the Lake, Kobe had it
that it matters. Four games against the Clippers this year.
Who listen to this Anthony Davis's fourth quarters, And remember
this is a top five offensive player in the league.
This is a great talent. I mean, you watched last night.
When he's in his game, it's lights out. You can't
stop him. Clippers fourth quarter, four games Anthony Davis zero four,
(04:50):
four and two points. The hell that is a problem.
This is why I don't consider him a championship team. Now.
It worked last night because Lou Williams didn't play best
six man in the league, Montrez Harrold's size nineteen a game.
He didn't play. The Lakers bench outscored the Clippers last night.
(05:12):
It's not the way it's gonna work if they keep playing.
But I will say this, wildly fun. Lebron, who struggled early,
was tremendous late. He had that shoddy missed follow up shot.
He had a couple of huge assists. Lebron did something
last night that was really impressive. Seventeenth year in the NBA.
(05:32):
Two huge defensive stops in fact, on it it's either
the last or the second to last possession. He stopped
Kawai and Paul George seventeenth year in the NBA. Even
great players. After about year twelve in the NBA, they
stopped playing D like D somebody else's problem. Once you got,
like MVPs a lot of money, it's like I get
(05:53):
I gave you twelve years of defense. I'm done play
even the great guys. I mean, Kobe was a nine
time All Defense last four years. He was done with
the defense. He had his cash, he had his titles,
he had his legacy. I'm kind done with the defensive end.
Lebron last night was huge late on the defensive end.
So and it was a great knight of NBA. Now
now now I'm frustrated. Now this is getting out of hand.
(06:15):
Zion Williamson was on a minute's restriction. This isn't like
he's not a football player on concussion protocol. He's not
a baseball pitcher off Tommy John surgery. Zion was on
a minute restriction. This is bulldoze parenting by the Pelicans.
(06:35):
We talked about this yesterday. There's a term called helicopter
parenting when parents hover over their kids to make sure
they're safe. The new term is bulldoze parenting, where you
just clear a path for your kids. Pelicans, you need
to win these games. You're not in the playoffs yet
you've got to win these games. You had the game.
(06:56):
Zion wasn't on the floor at the end. Put him
in for two minutes. He's not dealing with concussion protocol.
He's not a Tommy John surgery case. Put him in
the game. Alvin Gentry, his coach, protecting him, disgusted. We
wish we could have played him down in the stretch,
but you know, he had used the minutes that was
that was given to us. So you know, that's just,
(07:19):
you know, that's the way it is. I mean, we
weren't going to stick him back out there. Uh you
know how medical people said that we played him in
the minutes that was allowed us to play him. Was
his conditioning that bad because he had he had let
me look this up real quick. Didn't he have like
(07:40):
fifteen points in thirteen minutes? Not that bad of shape.
Maybe it was thirteen points and fifteen minutes. Either way,
not that bad of shape. Here's the other thing, brandon
ingram is the All Star for this team. Zion's the
MVP when he was on the floor. This year, they're
plus eleven. He's off their minus four. That is a
monster swing. He's the MVP. He has a physicality that
(08:03):
Brandon Ingram does not have. They're just certain people. Joy
talked about it yesterday, walk into the room and kind
of own it. Zion walks into the Room's like, damn.
Even in NBA circles, it doesn't look like anybody else.
There is a physical presence with him that is so crucial.
Put him back in the game. They need the wins.
Here's the other thing. So Zion off a real injury
(08:23):
now it's just because he's not in perfect shape. And
for the record, I don't think everybody's anybody's in great
shape yet. So Zion in college he got hurt. Remember
at Duke, he was out a month. He came back
for the ACC Tournament. I looked this up this morning.
You know how many minutes he played in the first
three games back, thirty six, thirty five and forty. MVP
of the ACC Tourney. You got him stopping at fifteen
(08:48):
because he's got a little belly. Is anybody in great
shape now? I mean, seriously, this isn't Tommy John, this
isn't concuction protocol. Just put him in for the last
nineties as you had that game and gave it away
to Utah. You know, Utah's in the playoffs. They're gonna
be fine. Pelicans need those ws. And again this is this,
(09:09):
this bulldozing parenting, this protecting Zion. Listen, NBA travel stinks.
Oh wait, there is no NBA travel Like I get
the NBA travel. Veteran players don't want to play back
to backs, totally get it. Eighty two games Winter, I
get it. Guy plays. You know, if you're a star
(09:31):
in the NBA, in play seventy two, I'm good with it.
People did that forever until they gave it a nickname
load management. But the worst part of the NBA the travel.
There is no travel. You play, go on a StairMaster,
go to your room, get a catered meal. This is
personal coaching, shooting coaches, personal training. Listen, I'm not asking
(09:53):
you to play Zion thirty nine, but fifteen. How do
you get in shape? You play your way into shape.
He's good. We can go up to twenty minutes. We're good.
And last night that was your game Pelicans, that was
your game. This isn't Steven Strasburg, this isn't picture limits.
I get picture limits, I do. I get young pitcher Strasburg.
(10:14):
Let's watch his arm, let's not go to two hundred innings.
I get those. I get people concussion protocol like you know,
one more week. I get all that stuff. I get
if he had an ACL tear, I get it. This
is because yeah, I needs a few more days on
the treadmill. Last night, Ida said, what's the clock say?
Two fifteen? Boom back in. Because when he's on the floor,
(10:36):
he may not be the All Star. Yet on this team,
he's the MVP. Be sure to catch live editions of
The Herd weekdays in noon Easter nine am Pacific on
Fox Sports Radio FS one and the iHeart Radio app.
So I thought last night I watched the second half
of the Utah Jazz Pelican game, and then I watched
the entire every basket Lakers Clippers game. I thought it
(10:58):
was fantastic. I thought it was nine cent of the
real thing. I thought the intensity was through the roof.
NBA had a great night. I'm watching baseball kind of
sputter around with cancelations, and you know postponements, and you
know COVID stuff, and I'm watching the NBA last night
and two games lots of stars, both came down to
the final shot. The look of it is absolutely fantastic.
(11:20):
I mean, I am shocked how good it is. Every
friend I have that already likes the NBA, don't don't.
Don't pretend you like the NBA criticizing it. You were
never into it. Go to your last one hundred posts
on the NBA. It was fantastic. The intensity was I
thought I was. I had to remind myself more than
(11:42):
once it was not a playoff game. I mean, the
games were intense. Guys were into it. Lebron barking at
the refs. I keep forgetting we got eight of these
warm up games into the playoffs. I thought it was fantastic.
It felt like a playoff game. There's a couple two
or three things I have watched so far in the
pandemic that have felt like the real thing. I think
(12:02):
the UFC fights feel like the real thing. I thought
last night felt like the real thing. And let me
just say that I think MLS has done a very
good job. But UFC and the NBA have an advantage.
They're both indoors, and they're both loud. UFC is guys
on the ground, fighting, pushing, pumping, and announcers. There's constant
(12:23):
action in UFC, so you have to constantly describe it.
Basketball is indoors. The octagon in an NBA court, there's
a spotlight on it, not the crowd in the NBA,
there's constant action. There's no pauses, so the play by
play guys never stopped. There's the sneakers, there's the arguing.
So this visceral connection, I have to it. It's visual,
(12:44):
it's audio UFC. In basketball, you're getting constant play by play,
constant noise, sneakers, punches, octagon banging around, and I'm in
I'm just I am into it. There's not a lot
of pauses in UFC. If it is, if you're pausing,
you're getting hit. In basketball, there's not a lot of pauses.
I imagine, you know, hockey may have some of this too.
(13:04):
I haven't watched the hockey yet, but I thought overall
it was really, really good. I'm kind of blown away
by the MLS. I'm kind of blown away by UFC,
blown away by NASCAR. I've really been blown away by
all of it. I just sit there and I'm like
tip of the cap. I'm seeing people struggling the airlines.
I'm seeing all sorts of industries not get it right.
(13:25):
Sports and tech are flourishing. Here's Lebron after there are
two teams in the same city, Um, you know, and
two teams that's fighting for a one common goal and
that's to uh win a championship and bring it to
the city of Los Angeles and in respective fan base. So, um,
you know, you have just so many competitors on the floor,
(13:46):
you know, So you know, going out there and represent
the purple and goal, representing Laker Nation, and those those
guys doing the same thing for their fan base. Um,
no matter what the cause is, no matter what the
bubble is, no fans were fans. Basketball is basketball, competitive spirits,
competitive spirits. Yet right back to you, right back to
(14:06):
where we left off. And I'll say it again. One
of the advantages for the bubble, NBA travel is alloyd.
It is hard. There is no travel. I thought the
energy of the players last night was spectacular. I mean,
I'm watching I'm watching Utah and New Orleans and I'm
(14:28):
sitting there. I have to remind myself it felt like
a playoff game. I mean, New Orleans has to get in,
Utah has to save their spot because they don't want
to have to open up against, you know, like the
Clipper or the Lakers. So listen, man, A lot of
people have impressed me. You can sit around and complained
during the pandemic, and the media's got a lot of
people that wake up looking for problems. I like people
(14:52):
who seek solutions, and I am blown away by how
many smart men and women in this country are flourishing
during this God, I couldn't believe how good it was
last night. I can't believe how good the MLS is.
I can't believe UFC went to an island and how
many fights I watched. You know you can. You can
(15:12):
wake up unhappy or wake up and marvel at the
talent in this country. Be sure to catch live editions
of The Herd weekdays and noon Easter nine a m. Pacific.
Great to have you back on a sport saturated Friday.
I don't say many clever things ever on this show,
but I have a saying I use all the time
at home. It's mine. I'm proud of it. So here goes.
(15:35):
I tell my kids this all the time, my daughter specifically.
Don't allow people with no life to ruin yours. Laugh
at their misery. They're miserable people. Not many in America,
but there's too many. If you want to complain about something,
you're a farmer and you don't feel the subsidies are fair,
(15:58):
I've got your back. You're a renter and the landlord
suddenly doubles the cost. Damn right, you should be mad.
You're in your seventies. You go to the pharmacy one day,
they've jacked the prices forty five percent. Be pissed. I
would be be loud proud. I got your back. But
there are people in America that complain about things they
(16:21):
don't even care about, like the NBA players kneeled last
night and conservatives imploded. Let's be honest. Your last forty tweets,
you don't like the league, You're just miserable. The NBA
is the one league in America, just the one. You
(16:43):
have to tolerate, this one where the stars are powerful
black voices socially and culturally. It's the one and their
best player for fifteen years, much more than MJ. Magicer
is socially deft, socially skilled, and stuff matters to him
(17:07):
based on what he's seen and lived. You don't have
to watch it. I'm not telling you to love the NBA.
There's a lot of I don't watch a lot of
college basketball. But if you go to Spokane, Washington, or Lawrence, Kansas,
or Syracuse or Raleigh, North Carolina, people love college basketball.
I'm not going to talk you out of it. You
watch what you want to watch, You vote for who
(17:29):
you want to vote for. But I don't complain about
college basketball because I have no real passion for it
other than four or five programs where I have a
buddy who coaches. But people complaining about the kneeling last night.
You don't even watch it. You're just miserable. You just
want to complain. I hear this all the time, con
on the hypocrisy of the China situation. Really, you stay
(17:53):
up at night thinking about that. You're on a Friday
night with your wife, having some Mexican food and a
couple of margharita's, hoping things turn good for you. You've
been married twenty seven years. You get very few special nights.
You start talking about NBA China bureaucracy with your wife.
Let me just put it this way, romance killer. We
(18:13):
want to talk about something else, like the next trip,
another honeymoon, getting remarried, buying, or a nice bracelet or something.
You don't talk about this stuff. You don't care about
this stuff. You've never loved the NBA. It's not for you.
I get it. I found that out in college. I
grew up on the coast of Washington State next to
a cannery. Okay, there was a football team we played.
(18:35):
It was in Oysterville. That's how I grew up, clams oysters.
I thought everybody liked him. I didn't travel much as
a kid. And then I went to Eastern Washington University,
which was cattle country. And I went out to a
nice dinner once with friends. Eight guys at the table,
all from Spokane. I ordered seafood. They all went a god.
I like, doesn't everybody like salmon? The smell of it?
(18:56):
And I'm like, oh wait, not everybody thinks like me.
My life experience was different than their life experience growing
up around cattle farms. And that's okay. Nobody's saying you
have to love the NBA. But it's a unique league Culturally,
it's stylistic, it's culturally relevant, and its stars are black
(19:19):
men who have voices in this country. Many of you
no other league. Do you rush to wear what they wear?
That doesn't happen in football. I've never once said I
gotta get Tom Brady's shoes. These are people that matter,
they have voices, they're culturally significant, and the star Lebron
James has decided much more than previous stars, more than
(19:40):
a Wilter and MJ or a bird. There are things
that matter to him and his community based on what
he lived and saw. If you don't want to watch
the league, I'm bro I got your back. I'm not
into college basketball's regular season, not like the Final Four.
But if you're complaining about a league you don't really
watch or care about, you fall into the category which
(20:01):
I've always told my daughter, don't let people with no
life ruin yours. Last night, the ratings doubled. Studies continue
to indicate an increasing number of Americans I believe it's
now over fifty percent are comfortable with players kneeling and
(20:23):
are comfortable with black lives matter. It's not even about
being on the right side of history. I hear that
all the time. You want to be on the right
side of history. I want to be on the right
side of now. That's what I want to be on
the right side. I won't be here for the history.
I want to be on the right side of now.
Right side of now is compassion and empathy and enjoying
life and being happy and celebrating people outside our little cylinders.
(20:48):
I saw the kneeling, all right, and then I watched
the game. But I love the NBA. I get it.
If you don't, I'm all good. But stop, guy that
never watches it. Tell me how outrage you are about China.
All leagues have a blind eye, NFL concussions, baseball steroids.
One more Herd. The Herd streams twenty four hours a day,
(21:11):
seven days a week within the iHeartRadio app. Search Herd
to listen live or on demand whenever you like. Let
me start with this. Zion Williamson's on a minutes restriction. Lord,
he's not in perfect shape. He's good, and he doesn't
play good defense. By the way the people bagging on him.
Buker's like he doesn't play good defense. Find me the
(21:34):
rookies that do. Lebron was not a great defender early on.
First of all, you go from high school basketball, college
basketball to the NBA. Do you know how few guys
in college basketball can create their own shot. There's three
hundred and seventy programs, fifteen maybe two. You go to
the NBA. Half the league can rate their own shot.
So to try and to defend NBA guys is no
(21:55):
day at the beach. But he's on a minute restrictions
restriction because he's not in good shape. What abs He's fine.
But here's what's funny or or interesting to me. I
think Zion is going to have a lot more team
success than Lebron in his first seven years. Now, I
do not think he's Lebron the player. No, he's not.
(22:15):
He's not that good. He doesn't see the floor quite
like Lebron, didn't have the handles. I mean, let's just
you know, he's not Lebron. But there's a lot there.
There's a there's a lot of Blake Griffin, a lot
of Karl Malone, a lot of Charles Barkley, there's a
there's a fifteen year All Star if he can stay healthy,
No doubt. I love Zion, but the difference is is
(22:37):
the Pelicans had Anthony Davis and they traded him. Cleveland
didn't have that. Cleveland just stunk. The Anthony Davis trade
has given them twenty two year old Brandon Ingram All Star,
twenty two year old Lonzo Ball twelve points this year,
and they also have Drew Holliday, who's made an All
Star team and is a veteran twenty point guy. So
(23:00):
Leons got two young one of them an All Star
players to grow with. Lebron didn't have that early and
he's got a veteran grown up and Drew Holliday who
plays on both ends as a real player, I mean Lebron,
I mean, do you remember what Lebron's for seven years
were like? It was Mo Williams and kind of a
disappointing Drew Gooden and ancient Shack Jamario Moon. It was
(23:20):
a lot of Lebron had one reliable guy, a big
guy Zadrunas Ilgauskas, good energy, good body, smart guy, ran hard,
played both ends, limited offensively, but a very nice player,
no headcase stuff, like like a real player. And he
made one All Star team I think, and that was it.
And then it was an owner that was an ideal
(23:41):
bad gms, litany of coaches. Pelicans have a real GM
that's respected. Alvin Gentry's bounced around, but very respected. They
have an owner that's a football owner, but very supportive
of the basketball. Brandon Ingram's now an All Star at
twenty two. Lonzo balls and nice fit for Zion's game.
(24:01):
He's not gonna hog up shots. Zion's better than y'all thought,
and Drew Holliday can ball. I think this is a
real team. I think that. I think when I look
at the Pelicans, I don't think it's gonna be I
think it's gonna be much better than the Anthony Davis
Pelicans because I think this kid has a physical dimension
to him that elevates everybody. It's almost like you always
(24:22):
feel like if you go out with guys and one
of the guys you're with is a tough guy, everybody
has more confidence. You can be like a smart alegant
a bar. If one of the guys is a big,
tough guy, you go with a football player, an offensive
lineman too, a bar, you talk a little more smack like.
Zion is the guy that walks in and when he's
on the floor, everybody's chest puffs out a little more.
With the Pelicans, brandon Ingram's an All Star. You don't
(24:43):
feel like that way, but Zion gives you a certain confidence.
Lebron did that, so and I think this roster is
really good. I think it's really interesting. They also have
all their most of their good players with the Pelicans
shoot well. Brandon Ingram thirty eight percent on threes, JJ
Reddick forty five percent, Lonzo's gotten better eight percent, Drew
Holiday thirty six, Josh Hart thirty five. And Zion's a
(25:03):
way better three point shooter than anybody thought. And it
is now a shooters league. So I think I think
Zion's gonna win a lot of games. I think They're
gonna win a lot of games. That's why I wouldn't
helicopter parent him and not put him in the last
two minutes of the game last night. Put him in,
let him play, all right, this is a bigger deal
(25:24):
than you think. Do you see what Tom Brady got today? Oh,
Shady McCoy's that, I'll play there. Shady McCoy was part
of the Kansas City Chiefs kind of troika running back
group last year. Five hundred yards, four touchdowns average four
point six yards of carry. Shady can play. It's not
You're not gonna give him twenty five carries, but he
can play. Very good rotational running back. Historically, he can catch.
(25:48):
He may not be Zeke, but he can catch. He
not Christian McCaffrey, but he had twenty eight receptions last year.
I'm gonna say it right now. Tampa Bay to the
Super Bowl is not crazy. It's not crazy. And I'll
tell you why. Think about the teams that are supposed
to block them. Seattle bad, old line, worst d line.
(26:09):
Seattle's become Russell Wilson as a life preserver. Philadelphia like him.
But Carson Wentz can he stay healthy? Green Bay got
out gained last year. Vegas and Fox bat have them
winning three less, three fewer games this year. Saints Drew
Brees is forty one. They don't throw the ball vertically
last year. I want you to think about this. You're
(26:31):
not gonna believe it when I say this. Do you
know only two teams scored more last year than Tampa,
Baltimore and San Francisco. That was it, and that was
with the interceptions. That jamis how many points did they
give away? Just think about who do you think would
be in their way? San Francisco, that's reasonable, right, Like
we know Baltimore in Kansas City, they go play a
(26:52):
lot next ten years. San Francisco's fair. San Francisco plays
in the toughest division in football. There's a real chance
Super Bowl losing teams little hangover come down a smidge.
We think Arizona is going to be better a Seattle
got Jamal Adams could be a little better. Rams we
think will be better. And they were nine and seven.
(27:14):
Tampa Bay's got a team in their division, Carolina's total rebuild.
I mean Atlanta, you can't trust San Francisco and Tampa
meet and Tampa's got home field advantage. Just say it
out loud, Tom Brady, Jimmy Garoppolo, Brady's got better weapons
and is at home? Really? Is that crazy? Am I
(27:36):
crazy on that? Because I just watched the Super Bowl
where there was a team with a great offense and
a pretty good defense play a great defense and a
pretty good offense, and the offense won. And more and
more and more and more, I'm watching football and I'm
seeing the great offense score a lot of points on
the great defense. Remember that great New England defense that
(27:58):
Philadelphia ate up as an offenses now score New England
kept Kansas City and Mahomes down for about three quarters.
A couple of years ago. San Francisco kept him down
for offensive score. They eventually score Tom Brady the weapons here.
Now they got three backs, three tight ends, two big
time wide receivers. They're gonna lead the NFL on offense. Hell,
(28:20):
they were third last year as a turnover machine with
Jamis Winston. So if you start looking at the roadblocks
for Seattle or for Tampa, all right, San Francisco in
a much tougher division could come in ten and six.
You know, Tampa goes eleven and five. I get Brady
at home with the weapons, you get Garoppolo on the road.
(28:43):
By the way, Tom's gonna have a lot of motivation
to beat the kid who you know, Belichick wanted to
bail on Tom earlier. For so I look at Shady
McCoy and I'm like, this is what the Miami Heat did.
Gronks like, you know, it's funny. I don't know well,
but I know people who know Gronk. Gronk was retired,
he was not going to come back. Gronk was done.
(29:06):
This was not like a Gronk saw Brady sign and
Gronk being Gronk is like Tampa jet skis no state tax.
I miss playing Gronk kind of like went, I'll do it.
By the way, Shady's looking down there thinking no state
tax about done? Why don't Why don't I want to
play with Tom Brady. This is what Lebron and d
Wade Bosh did in Miami. Guys were like, it's Miami,
(29:30):
it's a Winter League, the waters Aqua. This would be fun.
Then your agents like, yeah, of course I want you
to play. Go down there, get on television in May
and June, get your shoe deals in endorsements. You want
to be on television May and June for the NBA.
Believe me, agents want to put their players in places
where they're on TV for the shoe deals. You don't
think agents look at this and think in COVID year,
(29:54):
Brady Tampa highest scoring offense, Gronk was done. I'll play, Shady,
other options I'll play. I'm just saying it's not the
craziest thing in the world. It's not. It's not it's
not crazy. I mean, you go look at how much
success far I've had I'll play from the Super Bowl.
Joe Montana had these Peyton Manning like this, these guys
(30:16):
that go remember Peyton Manning, Cherry picked where he wanted
to go. Tom Brady looked at all the weapons and said,
I like Tampa. We were all like Tampa, and then
you looked at it about a week later, we were
all like, oh yeah, Tampa. Yeah, drop back, tight ends backs.
They solve their problem on the right side of the
offensive line with Tristan Wirfs. I don't know. I don't
(30:38):
think it's crazy. I don't Nick Wright. Last night was crazy.
That's not crazy. Be sure to catch live editions of
The Herd weekdays and noon Easter nine am Pacific on
Fox Sports Radio FS one and the iHeart Radio app.
Chris Webber one of the top three college basketball players.
I think I've ever seen Rookie of the Year, a
(31:00):
bunch of NBA All Star teams fifteen years see web
t NT analyst. What are you doing? See web How
are things? Everything's great? Man? How are you doing? Thanks
for having me on you bet, I was saying last night.
The Lakers chemistry surprises me. A d and Lebron work
Caruso works. Dan Waiters drives me nuts, but it kind
of works. Why do you think Lebron and a D's
(31:20):
chemistry is so good so fast? What explain that to me? Well,
you're a historian, you know the game, and you talk
about it in different ways. And if you think about
back to remember in Cleveland, everybody thought getting I'm not
talking about JR. Smith today, but everybody thought, you know,
j R. Smith and those guys wasn't going to help him.
And myself and other people thought you needed a couple
(31:41):
crazy guys around you because really all you want to
do his manage. You just want to manage the personality.
But you want guys to get a tech when you can't.
You know, he's the ambassador. You want guys to file.
And so the tick and roll game, the fact that
they've been courting each other, Lebron and a D for
a year, the fact that you know, if you really
look at that game, Lebron was sixteen points. I mean
a D really held them and Lebron could do his
(32:03):
thing at the end, especially on the defensive end. So
one I think is because you have two top five
players in this league and then two you know when
you have guys everybody sleeps on with Shaq calls the
others your teammates role players. And when you have guys
like that, just think about who the Lakers have had.
I mean to the band of my existence, whether it's
Horrid Fisher, Grant, guys that come in and know their
(32:26):
roles and they're experts at it. And I think that
when you come into LA as a role player, you
better have your focus up because more is expected of
you as a role player there than any other franchise. Man.
Are you worried, Chris that Anthony Davison four games against
the Clippers has virtually disappeared in all four quarters. And
you know this, Chris, some guys get tight late. Some
(32:48):
guys are talented, they don't have a lot of dog.
He has just dried up four times against the Clippers
in the fourth quarter. He did last night concerned at
all about that? You know, I first I have to
full disclosure. I think the Clipper is going to win
the championship, So that's that's what I picked. And the
fact that they didn't have the number one scoring tandem,
(33:09):
maybe the first teammates to get six Man of the
Year together co six man of the year. Really got
to think about that. That's at least, you know, at
least low side seven boards. You know, that's at least
a couple of files there. So what I what I
think is that Lebron and ath are gonna have to
do everything to win. Everybody's going to criticize the broad
(33:31):
every middle of the game because he can't take any
plays off. And the same with a d And when
you really think about it, when you have Harold in
and you have one more big body and it's not Noah,
a guy trying to get in shape for the season,
and then you caused problems on the pick and roll
on the other end, and that's what Noah didn't do.
He wasn't, you know, causing any problems on the other end. Defensively,
when you have those two guys, it's gonna be tough.
(33:53):
So Caruso. Those guys are playing great, but I don't
see how they're gonna keep that up. A lot of
that's gonna be on Dwight Howard and fill McGee defensively
because it's not I don't know how they're going to
be able to keep pace. So Zion's on a minute
restriction thing and I was like, man, it feels like
a helicopter parent. It's not like he's coming off Tommy
John or concussion protocol. I mean even in college, after
(34:16):
he got hurt, he came back and played thirty seven
minutes in three straight games and won the MVP in
the ACC tournament. What do you make of the minute
restrictions on Zion? I agree with the expert on the show.
I agree with Joyan when she said earlier, it feels
kind of weird to me. And I have some players.
(34:36):
I had some X players call me, And don't get
me wrong, X players call all the time for different
reasons the event to relive just because they're chicked off,
but more than a few called me last night, and
two of the comments. Two of the main topics were
you guys are letting him off the hook. If this
was anyone else that wasn't so caught in shape? And
(34:59):
then the next and was, you know, if I'm a player,
you know, come hell of high water. I'm a player,
especially in the last minutes when all we're playing for,
you know, is a playoff spot. Right. Those are the
kind of two things that I kept, you know, defending,
because I'm like, he must be hurt because in my
in my point of view, it's no way like you
(35:19):
talked about dogs earlier. The ones like AI, the ones
that play and get criticized for going three for twenty five,
they're the only ones that will do it. Curry's the
only one that will go three for twenty five because
he thinks he's gonna make the next one. So you
need those personalities. And I think it must be something
serious because you like you're saying it's a helicopter parent,
(35:40):
but you know they want to make the playoffs. I mean,
it seems like that's why we have this good tight
race right now. It's to see if the Pelicans can
make it. So in my heart, I know he wants
to play, but I don't understand that. So I have
this theory. I told Joy and Rick Buker, and Buker
thinks I'm nuts, But I said, the NBA travel is
a Schlloyd. I mean baseball. You go into city for
(36:00):
four days, NFL eight road games, NBA's winter cold turbulence,
late night van to the hotel, and now we don't
have that. I thought the energy last night from the
players was unbelievable. So everybody's gonna tell me they're not
going to be very good. They're gonna be rusty. I
don't know, Chris, if you would have never had to
(36:20):
travel only play home games in the NBA. I wonder
if some of these guys, some of these old guys
are like they're gonna start, they're gonna like the bubble
that they're gonna not be like I don't have to
be in vans and road trips and when your take
on the bubble experience, yeah, and at least the next year. Well,
to tell the truth, we were always when I played,
was a little jealous of the baseball schedule because the
(36:42):
baseball schedule you're in town for a week. Now, it's
no way you really can do that in basketball, But
we just meant the way that you could move about.
And so you're right. That's why I do think Lebron,
with his experience, how Grady plays, all that, all the
things you can talk about, Lebron has an advantage. And
so I wouldn't be surprised even though I didn't tick
and if they won, because there is no travel and
everybody out there you know this, I mean to travel
(37:04):
and come back and do the show, and it takes.
Travel takes more out of you than a tough practice
a lot of times, especially after a loss, especially when
think about if you have any injuries, and so if
your leg is swollen, if you go on the plane,
that's more pain. That's an ice machine, just just the
inconvenience of it, getting into a hotel room, unpacking, ordering
your food at two in the morning. So I do
(37:25):
think the bubble is better for wild personalities, better for
the introvert, better for guys that really want to win,
better for guys that don't want to be there, because
if you're not focused, now, when are you going to be?
So I gotta ask you a Yanna's question. And I've
said this, Yannis is great. But if Chris Middleton, who
I think is a good player, being paid great money,
(37:47):
I have no bitterness. I hope you guys all make
a fortune. But if Middleton struggles like he did last
year against Toronto and Yannis can't get to the finals,
and you know how the media is like, come on, man,
where's hardware? You just sitting there in Milwaukee. It's not
even a free agent market. Do you think there's a
possibility that if that Chris Middleton holds the key for
(38:09):
Yannis and his free agency going forward. I think that's
a great point. But I would like to say Chris
Middleton could be the key, but it's the GM's fault
if they let that happen in don't stay there, you know,
and don't make a move. So I agree. That's why
as great as Lebron has done, I feel the Yannis
(38:31):
is the MVP with the best record, maybe defensive Player
of the year. AG's a leading score on the Lakers,
and so look at what he's done without, you know.
And I don't consider Middleton in my opinion, the true
number two. I just don't, and that's that's not his fault.
He could be a great number three somewhere, but yeah,
he's not a number two. I agree, And I think
the BUD does a great job coaching their system and
(38:53):
their team is one of the deepest, and I think
that's why them and members should have an advantage. But yeah,
I mean I would if Yanna's calls, you know, would
call me, I would just say, you're gonna want to
play today. You have to play with the best teammates
you can because at the end of the day, they're
gonna look back. They're not going to care that it
was a super team over here. They aren't gonna care
that a guy traded a player to his best friend there.
(39:16):
They used to be teammates and they want They're not
gonna care about that. They're gonna care that you win one.
And so it's really about does he trust the ownership
and GM to make that happen Because from my experience
and not this documental, but from my experience, the frustration
with small market teams the players there is that those
teams don't have enough balls to go get someone else big.
(39:37):
And that's the only reason why you stay small in
a lot of players. That's why okay, se wasn't a
small market even though it was. They didn't play like
that when they drafted those great players. So I would
be worried about that if if I was ownership, you
gotta make a point. You can't act cool. You can't say, oh,
we don't discuss it with our players, not when people
are discussing with Lebron or asking Kauai who you want
(40:00):
to play with? You see what the Clippers did? You know?
So no, I agree one hundred percent, But it wouldn't
be on Middleton to be on his play but it
would be on management because they're the ones that are
in total control of whom stays and go. Good stuff,
Chris Webber today, so you just so now you just
what are you doing today? You're just kind of hanging
waiting for games, waiting for the playoffs. I was just
(40:22):
watching the Old Game the other night. I'm trying to
grow a beer since my beer never connects. I'm looking
crazy and just working out, man, trying to trying to
stay busy in the meantime, trying to keep a good
schedule so so I don't go crazy or lose anything.
NBA and t nt R. Friend, Chris, what I love
talking to you man. Thanks for coming by, Hey saving
Thanks having me
Thanks for listening to the Best of Herd podcast. Be
sure to catch us live every weekday from twelve to
three eastern nine to noon Pacific on Fox Sports Radio
and FS one. 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 Herd. This
is the Best of the Herd with Colin cowher on
Fox Sports Radio. Ah, here we go on a glorious
(00:28):
sports saturated Friday, live in Los Angeles. This is a
happy place. This is the Herd. I'll speak for Joy
Taylor today. It is a happy place wherever you may be,
and however you may be listening on any device. We're
on Fox Sports Radio. We're right here on FS one.
(00:50):
I am speaking for Joy Taylor today, even though I
have not spoken yet. The Joy Taylor today is a
happy day. In the show, wasn't that wonderfully? Yes? Said,
Oh my god, how be a little emotional? I ate
like a mobster last night. It was yeah, you had
a good night steaks and yelling and screaming. I had
buddies texting me during the game. They're like this is great,
(01:12):
and I'm like, now they're gonna come over to the
night we're gonna watch NBA MLS. It was just so great.
You know what I last night? What Lemon Pepper Wings.
Oh it's your favorite. Not the Magic City though they're
not the Lue Will Yeah, well those are supposed to
be good too. So let's start with this. Lakers beat
the Clippers. There's two truths about the Lakers. One is
really good and one was fine last night, but it's troublesome.
(01:33):
Let's start with this. Their chemistry has been great all year.
Lebron and a d just work. It just works. Vogel Lebron.
Frank's done a great job. Dion Waiters doesn't fit anywhere.
He fits there. Dwight Howard's been odd for years. He's
kind of important. JaVale McGee's a fascinating player. He's crucial
for them on the defensive end. Alex Caruso and his
(01:55):
headband work really well with Lebron. Their chemistry is excellent.
It was right where they and it was great in
the first week. You know, listen, Lebron and d Waite
are best friends. It took a month and a half
for him to get it together, and by the end
of that first year they still didn't have it together.
This thing works okay, and it shouldn't on paper. It
(02:18):
is a reality show. It's the odd balls of the
NBA and Jr. Smith and Waiters and Javail and Dwight Howard,
who's Alex Caruso and his ed bad? But it works.
And when he had juxtaposed that against the Clippers last night,
their chemistry was not good. They had more turnovers than assists.
Lebroun really frustrated them defensively in a couple of possessions.
(02:38):
Paul George was great last night. He was stupendous, but
he kind of felt sometimes he was doing it by himself.
I didn't like kind of their offensive situational basketball. I
felt they were off last night and none of it
was pretty early. Lebron really struggled for much of the game.
But the Lakers chemistry is it's really are to Vogel
(03:00):
and Lebron. It shouldn't be this good on paper. This
roster has so many parts that don't look like they fit,
and they do. I mean, Dion Waiters drives me nuts.
Last nine he was really important. And here's the second
thing with the Lakers, that's the truth. They got a pattern.
They get carried by Anthony Davis early and then he
(03:21):
disappears and Lebron carries him late, and that was good enough.
Last night, Lebron was very good late. Couple of big baskets,
a couple of great assists, too, great defensive stops. Anthony
Davis this year shoots fifty three percent from the field
in the first three quarters. He shoots forty percent in
the fourth. He just dries up. But he's a monster
(03:42):
for the first three quarters. He may be the best
player in the NBA quarters one, two, and three. And
last night he had thirty two in the first three quarters.
You know what he had in the fourth nutting. So
here's my two takeaways. Their chemistry is great and it matters.
And they got to figure out is Anthony Davis thing
because for years everybody said he's kind of soft. This
(04:03):
is what people complained about. Where is he? Where's the dog?
Playoffs are about dog It's about veteran players getting in
your face. Kevin Garnett, Dwayne Wade, tough guys, Lebron Kawhi
getting in your face. A lot of guys get they
just don't have dogging them. They're talented, they don't got
dogging them this league. Pepponhead Dog, Michael let Dog Bird
(04:26):
had it, Magic had it the Lake, Kobe had it
that it matters. Four games against the Clippers this year.
Who listen to this Anthony Davis's fourth quarters, And remember
this is a top five offensive player in the league.
This is a great talent. I mean, you watched last night.
When he's in his game, it's lights out. You can't
stop him. Clippers fourth quarter, four games Anthony Davis zero four,
(04:50):
four and two points. The hell that is a problem.
This is why I don't consider him a championship team. Now.
It worked last night because Lou Williams didn't play best
six man in the league, Montrez Harrold's size nineteen a game.
He didn't play. The Lakers bench outscored the Clippers last night.
(05:12):
It's not the way it's gonna work if they keep playing.
But I will say this, wildly fun. Lebron, who struggled early,
was tremendous late. He had that shoddy missed follow up shot.
He had a couple of huge assists. Lebron did something
last night that was really impressive. Seventeenth year in the NBA.
(05:32):
Two huge defensive stops in fact, on it it's either
the last or the second to last possession. He stopped
Kawai and Paul George seventeenth year in the NBA. Even
great players. After about year twelve in the NBA, they
stopped playing D like D somebody else's problem. Once you got,
like MVPs a lot of money, it's like I get
(05:53):
I gave you twelve years of defense. I'm done play
even the great guys. I mean, Kobe was a nine
time All Defense last four years. He was done with
the defense. He had his cash, he had his titles,
he had his legacy. I'm kind done with the defensive end.
Lebron last night was huge late on the defensive end.
So and it was a great knight of NBA. Now
now now I'm frustrated. Now this is getting out of hand.
(06:15):
Zion Williamson was on a minute's restriction. This isn't like
he's not a football player on concussion protocol. He's not
a baseball pitcher off Tommy John surgery. Zion was on
a minute restriction. This is bulldoze parenting by the Pelicans.
(06:35):
We talked about this yesterday. There's a term called helicopter
parenting when parents hover over their kids to make sure
they're safe. The new term is bulldoze parenting, where you
just clear a path for your kids. Pelicans, you need
to win these games. You're not in the playoffs yet
you've got to win these games. You had the game.
(06:56):
Zion wasn't on the floor at the end. Put him
in for two minutes. He's not dealing with concussion protocol.
He's not a Tommy John surgery case. Put him in
the game. Alvin Gentry, his coach, protecting him, disgusted. We
wish we could have played him down in the stretch,
but you know, he had used the minutes that was
that was given to us. So you know, that's just,
(07:19):
you know, that's the way it is. I mean, we
weren't going to stick him back out there. Uh you
know how medical people said that we played him in
the minutes that was allowed us to play him. Was
his conditioning that bad because he had he had let
me look this up real quick. Didn't he have like
(07:40):
fifteen points in thirteen minutes? Not that bad of shape.
Maybe it was thirteen points and fifteen minutes. Either way,
not that bad of shape. Here's the other thing, brandon
ingram is the All Star for this team. Zion's the
MVP when he was on the floor. This year, they're
plus eleven. He's off their minus four. That is a
monster swing. He's the MVP. He has a physicality that
(08:03):
Brandon Ingram does not have. They're just certain people. Joy
talked about it yesterday, walk into the room and kind
of own it. Zion walks into the Room's like, damn.
Even in NBA circles, it doesn't look like anybody else.
There is a physical presence with him that is so crucial.
Put him back in the game. They need the wins.
Here's the other thing. So Zion off a real injury
(08:23):
now it's just because he's not in perfect shape. And
for the record, I don't think everybody's anybody's in great
shape yet. So Zion in college he got hurt. Remember
at Duke, he was out a month. He came back
for the ACC Tournament. I looked this up this morning.
You know how many minutes he played in the first
three games back, thirty six, thirty five and forty. MVP
of the ACC Tourney. You got him stopping at fifteen
(08:48):
because he's got a little belly. Is anybody in great
shape now? I mean, seriously, this isn't Tommy John, this
isn't concuction protocol. Just put him in for the last
nineties as you had that game and gave it away
to Utah. You know, Utah's in the playoffs. They're gonna
be fine. Pelicans need those ws. And again this is this,
(09:09):
this bulldozing parenting, this protecting Zion. Listen, NBA travel stinks.
Oh wait, there is no NBA travel Like I get
the NBA travel. Veteran players don't want to play back
to backs, totally get it. Eighty two games Winter, I
get it. Guy plays. You know, if you're a star
(09:31):
in the NBA, in play seventy two, I'm good with it.
People did that forever until they gave it a nickname
load management. But the worst part of the NBA the travel.
There is no travel. You play, go on a StairMaster,
go to your room, get a catered meal. This is
personal coaching, shooting coaches, personal training. Listen, I'm not asking
(09:53):
you to play Zion thirty nine, but fifteen. How do
you get in shape? You play your way into shape.
He's good. We can go up to twenty minutes. We're good.
And last night that was your game Pelicans, that was
your game. This isn't Steven Strasburg, this isn't picture limits.
I get picture limits, I do. I get young pitcher Strasburg.
(10:14):
Let's watch his arm, let's not go to two hundred innings.
I get those. I get people concussion protocol like you know,
one more week. I get all that stuff. I get
if he had an ACL tear, I get it. This
is because yeah, I needs a few more days on
the treadmill. Last night, Ida said, what's the clock say?
Two fifteen? Boom back in. Because when he's on the floor,
(10:36):
he may not be the All Star. Yet on this team,
he's the MVP. Be sure to catch live editions of
The Herd weekdays in noon Easter nine am Pacific on
Fox Sports Radio FS one and the iHeart Radio app.
So I thought last night I watched the second half
of the Utah Jazz Pelican game, and then I watched
the entire every basket Lakers Clippers game. I thought it
(10:58):
was fantastic. I thought it was nine cent of the
real thing. I thought the intensity was through the roof.
NBA had a great night. I'm watching baseball kind of
sputter around with cancelations, and you know postponements, and you
know COVID stuff, and I'm watching the NBA last night
and two games lots of stars, both came down to
the final shot. The look of it is absolutely fantastic.
(11:20):
I mean, I am shocked how good it is. Every
friend I have that already likes the NBA, don't don't.
Don't pretend you like the NBA criticizing it. You were
never into it. Go to your last one hundred posts
on the NBA. It was fantastic. The intensity was I
thought I was. I had to remind myself more than
(11:42):
once it was not a playoff game. I mean, the
games were intense. Guys were into it. Lebron barking at
the refs. I keep forgetting we got eight of these
warm up games into the playoffs. I thought it was fantastic.
It felt like a playoff game. There's a couple two
or three things I have watched so far in the
pandemic that have felt like the real thing. I think
(12:02):
the UFC fights feel like the real thing. I thought
last night felt like the real thing. And let me
just say that I think MLS has done a very
good job. But UFC and the NBA have an advantage.
They're both indoors, and they're both loud. UFC is guys
on the ground, fighting, pushing, pumping, and announcers. There's constant
(12:23):
action in UFC, so you have to constantly describe it.
Basketball is indoors. The octagon in an NBA court, there's
a spotlight on it, not the crowd in the NBA,
there's constant action. There's no pauses, so the play by
play guys never stopped. There's the sneakers, there's the arguing.
So this visceral connection, I have to it. It's visual,
(12:44):
it's audio UFC. In basketball, you're getting constant play by play,
constant noise, sneakers, punches, octagon banging around, and I'm in
I'm just I am into it. There's not a lot
of pauses in UFC. If it is, if you're pausing,
you're getting hit. In basketball, there's not a lot of pauses.
I imagine, you know, hockey may have some of this too.
(13:04):
I haven't watched the hockey yet, but I thought overall
it was really, really good. I'm kind of blown away
by the MLS. I'm kind of blown away by UFC,
blown away by NASCAR. I've really been blown away by
all of it. I just sit there and I'm like
tip of the cap. I'm seeing people struggling the airlines.
I'm seeing all sorts of industries not get it right.
(13:25):
Sports and tech are flourishing. Here's Lebron after there are
two teams in the same city, Um, you know, and
two teams that's fighting for a one common goal and
that's to uh win a championship and bring it to
the city of Los Angeles and in respective fan base. So, um,
you know, you have just so many competitors on the floor,
(13:46):
you know, So you know, going out there and represent
the purple and goal, representing Laker Nation, and those those
guys doing the same thing for their fan base. Um,
no matter what the cause is, no matter what the
bubble is, no fans were fans. Basketball is basketball, competitive spirits,
competitive spirits. Yet right back to you, right back to
(14:06):
where we left off. And I'll say it again. One
of the advantages for the bubble, NBA travel is alloyd.
It is hard. There is no travel. I thought the
energy of the players last night was spectacular. I mean,
I'm watching I'm watching Utah and New Orleans and I'm
(14:28):
sitting there. I have to remind myself it felt like
a playoff game. I mean, New Orleans has to get in,
Utah has to save their spot because they don't want
to have to open up against, you know, like the
Clipper or the Lakers. So listen, man, A lot of
people have impressed me. You can sit around and complained
during the pandemic, and the media's got a lot of
people that wake up looking for problems. I like people
(14:52):
who seek solutions, and I am blown away by how
many smart men and women in this country are flourishing
during this God, I couldn't believe how good it was
last night. I can't believe how good the MLS is.
I can't believe UFC went to an island and how
many fights I watched. You know you can. You can
(15:12):
wake up unhappy or wake up and marvel at the
talent in this country. Be sure to catch live editions
of The Herd weekdays and noon Easter nine a m. Pacific.
Great to have you back on a sport saturated Friday.
I don't say many clever things ever on this show,
but I have a saying I use all the time
at home. It's mine. I'm proud of it. So here goes.
(15:35):
I tell my kids this all the time, my daughter specifically.
Don't allow people with no life to ruin yours. Laugh
at their misery. They're miserable people. Not many in America,
but there's too many. If you want to complain about something,
you're a farmer and you don't feel the subsidies are fair,
(15:58):
I've got your back. You're a renter and the landlord
suddenly doubles the cost. Damn right, you should be mad.
You're in your seventies. You go to the pharmacy one day,
they've jacked the prices forty five percent. Be pissed. I
would be be loud proud. I got your back. But
there are people in America that complain about things they
(16:21):
don't even care about, like the NBA players kneeled last
night and conservatives imploded. Let's be honest. Your last forty tweets,
you don't like the league, You're just miserable. The NBA
is the one league in America, just the one. You
(16:43):
have to tolerate, this one where the stars are powerful
black voices socially and culturally. It's the one and their
best player for fifteen years, much more than MJ. Magicer
is socially deft, socially skilled, and stuff matters to him
(17:07):
based on what he's seen and lived. You don't have
to watch it. I'm not telling you to love the NBA.
There's a lot of I don't watch a lot of
college basketball. But if you go to Spokane, Washington, or Lawrence, Kansas,
or Syracuse or Raleigh, North Carolina, people love college basketball.
I'm not going to talk you out of it. You
watch what you want to watch, You vote for who
(17:29):
you want to vote for. But I don't complain about
college basketball because I have no real passion for it
other than four or five programs where I have a
buddy who coaches. But people complaining about the kneeling last night.
You don't even watch it. You're just miserable. You just
want to complain. I hear this all the time, con
on the hypocrisy of the China situation. Really, you stay
(17:53):
up at night thinking about that. You're on a Friday
night with your wife, having some Mexican food and a
couple of margharita's, hoping things turn good for you. You've
been married twenty seven years. You get very few special nights.
You start talking about NBA China bureaucracy with your wife.
Let me just put it this way, romance killer. We
(18:13):
want to talk about something else, like the next trip,
another honeymoon, getting remarried, buying, or a nice bracelet or something.
You don't talk about this stuff. You don't care about
this stuff. You've never loved the NBA. It's not for you.
I get it. I found that out in college. I
grew up on the coast of Washington State next to
a cannery. Okay, there was a football team we played.
(18:35):
It was in Oysterville. That's how I grew up, clams oysters.
I thought everybody liked him. I didn't travel much as
a kid. And then I went to Eastern Washington University,
which was cattle country. And I went out to a
nice dinner once with friends. Eight guys at the table,
all from Spokane. I ordered seafood. They all went a god.
I like, doesn't everybody like salmon? The smell of it?
(18:56):
And I'm like, oh wait, not everybody thinks like me.
My life experience was different than their life experience growing
up around cattle farms. And that's okay. Nobody's saying you
have to love the NBA. But it's a unique league Culturally,
it's stylistic, it's culturally relevant, and its stars are black
(19:19):
men who have voices in this country. Many of you
no other league. Do you rush to wear what they wear?
That doesn't happen in football. I've never once said I
gotta get Tom Brady's shoes. These are people that matter,
they have voices, they're culturally significant, and the star Lebron
James has decided much more than previous stars, more than
(19:40):
a Wilter and MJ or a bird. There are things
that matter to him and his community based on what
he lived and saw. If you don't want to watch
the league, I'm bro I got your back. I'm not
into college basketball's regular season, not like the Final Four.
But if you're complaining about a league you don't really
watch or care about, you fall into the category which
(20:01):
I've always told my daughter, don't let people with no
life ruin yours. Last night, the ratings doubled. Studies continue
to indicate an increasing number of Americans I believe it's
now over fifty percent are comfortable with players kneeling and
(20:23):
are comfortable with black lives matter. It's not even about
being on the right side of history. I hear that
all the time. You want to be on the right
side of history. I want to be on the right
side of now. That's what I want to be on
the right side. I won't be here for the history.
I want to be on the right side of now.
Right side of now is compassion and empathy and enjoying
life and being happy and celebrating people outside our little cylinders.
(20:48):
I saw the kneeling, all right, and then I watched
the game. But I love the NBA. I get it.
If you don't, I'm all good. But stop, guy that
never watches it. Tell me how outrage you are about China.
All leagues have a blind eye, NFL concussions, baseball steroids.
One more Herd. The Herd streams twenty four hours a day,
(21:11):
seven days a week within the iHeartRadio app. Search Herd
to listen live or on demand whenever you like. Let
me start with this. Zion Williamson's on a minutes restriction. Lord,
he's not in perfect shape. He's good, and he doesn't
play good defense. By the way the people bagging on him.
Buker's like he doesn't play good defense. Find me the
(21:34):
rookies that do. Lebron was not a great defender early on.
First of all, you go from high school basketball, college
basketball to the NBA. Do you know how few guys
in college basketball can create their own shot. There's three
hundred and seventy programs, fifteen maybe two. You go to
the NBA. Half the league can rate their own shot.
So to try and to defend NBA guys is no
(21:55):
day at the beach. But he's on a minute restrictions
restriction because he's not in good shape. What abs He's fine.
But here's what's funny or or interesting to me. I
think Zion is going to have a lot more team
success than Lebron in his first seven years. Now, I
do not think he's Lebron the player. No, he's not.
(22:15):
He's not that good. He doesn't see the floor quite
like Lebron, didn't have the handles. I mean, let's just
you know, he's not Lebron. But there's a lot there.
There's a there's a lot of Blake Griffin, a lot
of Karl Malone, a lot of Charles Barkley, there's a
there's a fifteen year All Star if he can stay healthy,
No doubt. I love Zion, but the difference is is
(22:37):
the Pelicans had Anthony Davis and they traded him. Cleveland
didn't have that. Cleveland just stunk. The Anthony Davis trade
has given them twenty two year old Brandon Ingram All Star,
twenty two year old Lonzo Ball twelve points this year,
and they also have Drew Holliday, who's made an All
Star team and is a veteran twenty point guy. So
(23:00):
Leons got two young one of them an All Star
players to grow with. Lebron didn't have that early and
he's got a veteran grown up and Drew Holliday who
plays on both ends as a real player, I mean Lebron,
I mean, do you remember what Lebron's for seven years
were like? It was Mo Williams and kind of a
disappointing Drew Gooden and ancient Shack Jamario Moon. It was
(23:20):
a lot of Lebron had one reliable guy, a big
guy Zadrunas Ilgauskas, good energy, good body, smart guy, ran hard,
played both ends, limited offensively, but a very nice player,
no headcase stuff, like like a real player. And he
made one All Star team I think, and that was it.
And then it was an owner that was an ideal
(23:41):
bad gms, litany of coaches. Pelicans have a real GM
that's respected. Alvin Gentry's bounced around, but very respected. They
have an owner that's a football owner, but very supportive
of the basketball. Brandon Ingram's now an All Star at
twenty two. Lonzo balls and nice fit for Zion's game.
(24:01):
He's not gonna hog up shots. Zion's better than y'all thought,
and Drew Holliday can ball. I think this is a
real team. I think that. I think when I look
at the Pelicans, I don't think it's gonna be I
think it's gonna be much better than the Anthony Davis
Pelicans because I think this kid has a physical dimension
to him that elevates everybody. It's almost like you always
(24:22):
feel like if you go out with guys and one
of the guys you're with is a tough guy, everybody
has more confidence. You can be like a smart alegant
a bar. If one of the guys is a big,
tough guy, you go with a football player, an offensive
lineman too, a bar, you talk a little more smack like.
Zion is the guy that walks in and when he's
on the floor, everybody's chest puffs out a little more.
With the Pelicans, brandon Ingram's an All Star. You don't
(24:43):
feel like that way, but Zion gives you a certain confidence.
Lebron did that, so and I think this roster is
really good. I think it's really interesting. They also have
all their most of their good players with the Pelicans
shoot well. Brandon Ingram thirty eight percent on threes, JJ
Reddick forty five percent, Lonzo's gotten better eight percent, Drew
Holiday thirty six, Josh Hart thirty five. And Zion's a
(25:03):
way better three point shooter than anybody thought. And it
is now a shooters league. So I think I think
Zion's gonna win a lot of games. I think They're
gonna win a lot of games. That's why I wouldn't
helicopter parent him and not put him in the last
two minutes of the game last night. Put him in,
let him play, all right, this is a bigger deal
(25:24):
than you think. Do you see what Tom Brady got today? Oh,
Shady McCoy's that, I'll play there. Shady McCoy was part
of the Kansas City Chiefs kind of troika running back
group last year. Five hundred yards, four touchdowns average four
point six yards of carry. Shady can play. It's not
You're not gonna give him twenty five carries, but he
can play. Very good rotational running back. Historically, he can catch.
(25:48):
He may not be Zeke, but he can catch. He
not Christian McCaffrey, but he had twenty eight receptions last year.
I'm gonna say it right now. Tampa Bay to the
Super Bowl is not crazy. It's not crazy. And I'll
tell you why. Think about the teams that are supposed
to block them. Seattle bad, old line, worst d line.
(26:09):
Seattle's become Russell Wilson as a life preserver. Philadelphia like him.
But Carson Wentz can he stay healthy? Green Bay got
out gained last year. Vegas and Fox bat have them
winning three less, three fewer games this year. Saints Drew
Brees is forty one. They don't throw the ball vertically
last year. I want you to think about this. You're
(26:31):
not gonna believe it when I say this. Do you
know only two teams scored more last year than Tampa,
Baltimore and San Francisco. That was it, and that was
with the interceptions. That jamis how many points did they
give away? Just think about who do you think would
be in their way? San Francisco, that's reasonable, right, Like
we know Baltimore in Kansas City, they go play a
(26:52):
lot next ten years. San Francisco's fair. San Francisco plays
in the toughest division in football. There's a real chance
Super Bowl losing teams little hangover come down a smidge.
We think Arizona is going to be better a Seattle
got Jamal Adams could be a little better. Rams we
think will be better. And they were nine and seven.
(27:14):
Tampa Bay's got a team in their division, Carolina's total rebuild.
I mean Atlanta, you can't trust San Francisco and Tampa
meet and Tampa's got home field advantage. Just say it
out loud, Tom Brady, Jimmy Garoppolo, Brady's got better weapons
and is at home? Really? Is that crazy? Am I
(27:36):
crazy on that? Because I just watched the Super Bowl
where there was a team with a great offense and
a pretty good defense play a great defense and a
pretty good offense, and the offense won. And more and
more and more and more, I'm watching football and I'm
seeing the great offense score a lot of points on
the great defense. Remember that great New England defense that
(27:58):
Philadelphia ate up as an offenses now score New England
kept Kansas City and Mahomes down for about three quarters.
A couple of years ago. San Francisco kept him down
for offensive score. They eventually score Tom Brady the weapons here.
Now they got three backs, three tight ends, two big
time wide receivers. They're gonna lead the NFL on offense. Hell,
(28:20):
they were third last year as a turnover machine with
Jamis Winston. So if you start looking at the roadblocks
for Seattle or for Tampa, all right, San Francisco in
a much tougher division could come in ten and six.
You know, Tampa goes eleven and five. I get Brady
at home with the weapons, you get Garoppolo on the road.
(28:43):
By the way, Tom's gonna have a lot of motivation
to beat the kid who you know, Belichick wanted to
bail on Tom earlier. For so I look at Shady
McCoy and I'm like, this is what the Miami Heat did.
Gronks like, you know, it's funny. I don't know well,
but I know people who know Gronk. Gronk was retired,
he was not going to come back. Gronk was done.
(29:06):
This was not like a Gronk saw Brady sign and
Gronk being Gronk is like Tampa jet skis no state tax.
I miss playing Gronk kind of like went, I'll do it.
By the way, Shady's looking down there thinking no state
tax about done? Why don't Why don't I want to
play with Tom Brady. This is what Lebron and d
Wade Bosh did in Miami. Guys were like, it's Miami,
(29:30):
it's a Winter League, the waters Aqua. This would be fun.
Then your agents like, yeah, of course I want you
to play. Go down there, get on television in May
and June, get your shoe deals in endorsements. You want
to be on television May and June for the NBA.
Believe me, agents want to put their players in places
where they're on TV for the shoe deals. You don't
think agents look at this and think in COVID year,
(29:54):
Brady Tampa highest scoring offense, Gronk was done. I'll play, Shady,
other options I'll play. I'm just saying it's not the
craziest thing in the world. It's not. It's not it's
not crazy. I mean, you go look at how much
success far I've had I'll play from the Super Bowl.
Joe Montana had these Peyton Manning like this, these guys
(30:16):
that go remember Peyton Manning, Cherry picked where he wanted
to go. Tom Brady looked at all the weapons and said,
I like Tampa. We were all like Tampa, and then
you looked at it about a week later, we were
all like, oh yeah, Tampa. Yeah, drop back, tight ends backs.
They solve their problem on the right side of the
offensive line with Tristan Wirfs. I don't know. I don't
(30:38):
think it's crazy. I don't Nick Wright. Last night was crazy.
That's not crazy. Be sure to catch live editions of
The Herd weekdays and noon Easter nine am Pacific on
Fox Sports Radio FS one and the iHeart Radio app.
Chris Webber one of the top three college basketball players.
I think I've ever seen Rookie of the Year, a
(31:00):
bunch of NBA All Star teams fifteen years see web
t NT analyst. What are you doing? See web How
are things? Everything's great? Man? How are you doing? Thanks
for having me on you bet, I was saying last night.
The Lakers chemistry surprises me. A d and Lebron work
Caruso works. Dan Waiters drives me nuts, but it kind
of works. Why do you think Lebron and a D's
(31:20):
chemistry is so good so fast? What explain that to me? Well,
you're a historian, you know the game, and you talk
about it in different ways. And if you think about
back to remember in Cleveland, everybody thought getting I'm not
talking about JR. Smith today, but everybody thought, you know,
j R. Smith and those guys wasn't going to help him.
And myself and other people thought you needed a couple
(31:41):
crazy guys around you because really all you want to
do his manage. You just want to manage the personality.
But you want guys to get a tech when you can't.
You know, he's the ambassador. You want guys to file.
And so the tick and roll game, the fact that
they've been courting each other, Lebron and a D for
a year, the fact that you know, if you really
look at that game, Lebron was sixteen points. I mean
a D really held them and Lebron could do his
(32:03):
thing at the end, especially on the defensive end. So
one I think is because you have two top five
players in this league and then two you know when
you have guys everybody sleeps on with Shaq calls the
others your teammates role players. And when you have guys
like that, just think about who the Lakers have had.
I mean to the band of my existence, whether it's
Horrid Fisher, Grant, guys that come in and know their
(32:26):
roles and they're experts at it. And I think that
when you come into LA as a role player, you
better have your focus up because more is expected of
you as a role player there than any other franchise. Man.
Are you worried, Chris that Anthony Davison four games against
the Clippers has virtually disappeared in all four quarters. And
you know this, Chris, some guys get tight late. Some
(32:48):
guys are talented, they don't have a lot of dog.
He has just dried up four times against the Clippers
in the fourth quarter. He did last night concerned at
all about that? You know, I first I have to
full disclosure. I think the Clipper is going to win
the championship, So that's that's what I picked. And the
fact that they didn't have the number one scoring tandem,
(33:09):
maybe the first teammates to get six Man of the
Year together co six man of the year. Really got
to think about that. That's at least, you know, at
least low side seven boards. You know, that's at least
a couple of files there. So what I what I
think is that Lebron and ath are gonna have to
do everything to win. Everybody's going to criticize the broad
(33:31):
every middle of the game because he can't take any
plays off. And the same with a d And when
you really think about it, when you have Harold in
and you have one more big body and it's not Noah,
a guy trying to get in shape for the season,
and then you caused problems on the pick and roll
on the other end, and that's what Noah didn't do.
He wasn't, you know, causing any problems on the other end. Defensively,
when you have those two guys, it's gonna be tough.
(33:53):
So Caruso. Those guys are playing great, but I don't
see how they're gonna keep that up. A lot of
that's gonna be on Dwight Howard and fill McGee defensively
because it's not I don't know how they're going to
be able to keep pace. So Zion's on a minute
restriction thing and I was like, man, it feels like
a helicopter parent. It's not like he's coming off Tommy
John or concussion protocol. I mean even in college, after
(34:16):
he got hurt, he came back and played thirty seven
minutes in three straight games and won the MVP in
the ACC tournament. What do you make of the minute
restrictions on Zion? I agree with the expert on the show.
I agree with Joyan when she said earlier, it feels
kind of weird to me. And I have some players.
(34:36):
I had some X players call me, And don't get
me wrong, X players call all the time for different
reasons the event to relive just because they're chicked off,
but more than a few called me last night, and
two of the comments. Two of the main topics were
you guys are letting him off the hook. If this
was anyone else that wasn't so caught in shape? And
(34:59):
then the next and was, you know, if I'm a player,
you know, come hell of high water. I'm a player,
especially in the last minutes when all we're playing for,
you know, is a playoff spot. Right. Those are the
kind of two things that I kept, you know, defending,
because I'm like, he must be hurt because in my
in my point of view, it's no way like you
(35:19):
talked about dogs earlier. The ones like AI, the ones
that play and get criticized for going three for twenty five,
they're the only ones that will do it. Curry's the
only one that will go three for twenty five because
he thinks he's gonna make the next one. So you
need those personalities. And I think it must be something
serious because you like you're saying it's a helicopter parent,
(35:40):
but you know they want to make the playoffs. I mean,
it seems like that's why we have this good tight
race right now. It's to see if the Pelicans can
make it. So in my heart, I know he wants
to play, but I don't understand that. So I have
this theory. I told Joy and Rick Buker, and Buker
thinks I'm nuts, But I said, the NBA travel is
a Schlloyd. I mean baseball. You go into city for
(36:00):
four days, NFL eight road games, NBA's winter cold turbulence,
late night van to the hotel, and now we don't
have that. I thought the energy last night from the
players was unbelievable. So everybody's gonna tell me they're not
going to be very good. They're gonna be rusty. I
don't know, Chris, if you would have never had to
(36:20):
travel only play home games in the NBA. I wonder
if some of these guys, some of these old guys
are like they're gonna start, they're gonna like the bubble
that they're gonna not be like I don't have to
be in vans and road trips and when your take
on the bubble experience, yeah, and at least the next year. Well,
to tell the truth, we were always when I played,
was a little jealous of the baseball schedule because the
(36:42):
baseball schedule you're in town for a week. Now, it's
no way you really can do that in basketball, But
we just meant the way that you could move about.
And so you're right. That's why I do think Lebron,
with his experience, how Grady plays, all that, all the
things you can talk about, Lebron has an advantage. And
so I wouldn't be surprised even though I didn't tick
and if they won, because there is no travel and
everybody out there you know this, I mean to travel
(37:04):
and come back and do the show, and it takes.
Travel takes more out of you than a tough practice
a lot of times, especially after a loss, especially when
think about if you have any injuries, and so if
your leg is swollen, if you go on the plane,
that's more pain. That's an ice machine, just just the
inconvenience of it, getting into a hotel room, unpacking, ordering
your food at two in the morning. So I do
(37:25):
think the bubble is better for wild personalities, better for
the introvert, better for guys that really want to win,
better for guys that don't want to be there, because
if you're not focused, now, when are you going to be?
So I gotta ask you a Yanna's question. And I've
said this, Yannis is great. But if Chris Middleton, who
I think is a good player, being paid great money,
(37:47):
I have no bitterness. I hope you guys all make
a fortune. But if Middleton struggles like he did last
year against Toronto and Yannis can't get to the finals,
and you know how the media is like, come on, man,
where's hardware? You just sitting there in Milwaukee. It's not
even a free agent market. Do you think there's a
possibility that if that Chris Middleton holds the key for
(38:09):
Yannis and his free agency going forward. I think that's
a great point. But I would like to say Chris
Middleton could be the key, but it's the GM's fault
if they let that happen in don't stay there, you know,
and don't make a move. So I agree. That's why
as great as Lebron has done, I feel the Yannis
(38:31):
is the MVP with the best record, maybe defensive Player
of the year. AG's a leading score on the Lakers,
and so look at what he's done without, you know.
And I don't consider Middleton in my opinion, the true
number two. I just don't, and that's that's not his fault.
He could be a great number three somewhere, but yeah,
he's not a number two. I agree, And I think
the BUD does a great job coaching their system and
(38:53):
their team is one of the deepest, and I think
that's why them and members should have an advantage. But yeah,
I mean I would if Yanna's calls, you know, would
call me, I would just say, you're gonna want to
play today. You have to play with the best teammates
you can because at the end of the day, they're
gonna look back. They're not going to care that it
was a super team over here. They aren't gonna care
that a guy traded a player to his best friend there.
(39:16):
They used to be teammates and they want They're not
gonna care about that. They're gonna care that you win one.
And so it's really about does he trust the ownership
and GM to make that happen Because from my experience
and not this documental, but from my experience, the frustration
with small market teams the players there is that those
teams don't have enough balls to go get someone else big.
(39:37):
And that's the only reason why you stay small in
a lot of players. That's why okay, se wasn't a
small market even though it was. They didn't play like
that when they drafted those great players. So I would
be worried about that if if I was ownership, you
gotta make a point. You can't act cool. You can't say, oh,
we don't discuss it with our players, not when people
are discussing with Lebron or asking Kauai who you want
(40:00):
to play with? You see what the Clippers did? You know?
So no, I agree one hundred percent, But it wouldn't
be on Middleton to be on his play but it
would be on management because they're the ones that are
in total control of whom stays and go. Good stuff,
Chris Webber today, so you just so now you just
what are you doing today? You're just kind of hanging
waiting for games, waiting for the playoffs. I was just
(40:22):
watching the Old Game the other night. I'm trying to
grow a beer since my beer never connects. I'm looking
crazy and just working out, man, trying to trying to
stay busy in the meantime, trying to keep a good
schedule so so I don't go crazy or lose anything.
NBA and t nt R. Friend, Chris, what I love
talking to you man. Thanks for coming by, Hey saving
Thanks having me
Hosts And Creators
Colin Cowherd
Jason McIntyre
Popular Podcasts
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
24/7 News: The Latest
The latest news in 4 minutes updated every hour, every day.
Crime Junkie
Does hearing about a true crime case always leave you scouring the internet for the truth behind the story? Dive into your next mystery with Crime Junkie. Every Monday, join your host Ashley Flowers as she unravels all the details of infamous and underreported true crime cases with her best friend Brit Prawat. From cold cases to missing persons and heroes in our community who seek justice, Crime Junkie is your destination for theories and stories you won’t hear anywhere else. Whether you're a seasoned true crime enthusiast or new to the genre, you'll find yourself on the edge of your seat awaiting a new episode every Monday. If you can never get enough true crime... Congratulations, you’ve found your people. Follow to join a community of Crime Junkies! Crime Junkie is presented by audiochuck Media Company.