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Speaker 1: Thanks for listening to the Best of the Herd podcast.

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Speaker 1: Be sure to catch us live every weekday on Fox

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Speaker 1: Sports Radio in noon to three Eastern nine am to

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Speaker 1: noone Pacific. Find your local station for The Herd at

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Speaker 1: Fox Sports Radio dot com, or stream us live every

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Speaker 1: day on the iHeartRadio app by searching Fox Sports Radio

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Speaker 1: or FSR.

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Speaker 2: This is the Best of the Herd with Colin cowher

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Speaker 2: on Fox Sports Radio.

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Speaker 1: Here we go. It's a Friday. There is shockingly a

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Speaker 1: lot to talk about. We've got a what a good

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Speaker 1: week host the NFL live in Chicago. It's the Herd

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Speaker 1: wherever you may be and however you may be listening.

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Speaker 1: Thank you for making us part of your day. Gamax

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Speaker 1: off today. Our buddy John Middlecoff, former Scout three and

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Speaker 1: out at the Volume, is joining us. So John Middletough.

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Speaker 1: We've still got a lot of NFL stuff to talk about.

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Speaker 1: But baseball pitchers, catchers reporting this week. Dodgers are infuriating people.

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Speaker 1: John Lebron's doing his thing.

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Speaker 3: John.

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Speaker 1: I know you're I'm a movie fan, you're a music fan.

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Speaker 1: I'm a music fan, but I want to start the

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Speaker 1: show with this. I don't like my sports stars to

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Speaker 1: end their careers like Elvis or Marlon Brando. I want

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Speaker 1: it to look like Elway or Derek Jeter, like that's

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Speaker 1: I want it to be. I like my movies, my

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Speaker 1: movie stars. My athletes that have a clean, tight ending

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Speaker 1: like Elway and Jeter did it better than anybody.

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Speaker 3: So Lebron.

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Speaker 1: Last night Lakers beat the MAVs and Lebron first twenty

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Speaker 1: three points of the game, he scored or assistant for

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Speaker 1: the Lakers oldest player ever to have a triple double.

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Speaker 3: He's still very, very good. Nobody would dispute that.

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Speaker 1: And I really do think Lebron and Tom Brady their

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Speaker 1: arcs are very similar. Number one is they're the most

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Speaker 1: productive players in the history of their sport. They got

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Speaker 1: to a lot of world championships in basketball or Super Bowls,

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Speaker 1: and they didn't win all of them, but they got

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Speaker 1: to a lot of them. Both are the system, regardless

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Speaker 1: of how good the coach is. Rus Arians tell of

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Speaker 1: a coach Tom Brady's like Bruce were running my offense,

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Speaker 1: Eric Spolstra amazing coach. He and Lebron but it heads.

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Speaker 1: And fourth, they're both Brady and Lebron pioneers in longevity,

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Speaker 1: and I think you know, MJ was flashier, more beloved

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Speaker 1: and cooler. He's more Beatles, pandemonium. Lebron's more rolling stones,

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Speaker 1: still touring really really high level for a long time.

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Speaker 1: And Mahomes in l Way are a little flashier than Brady.

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Speaker 1: You know, better high lights maybe than Brady. But there's

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Speaker 1: a fundamental truth with Lebron, you saw it last night,

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Speaker 1: and with Brady in his last couple of years. The

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Speaker 1: more obsessed you are by it, the more disciplined you

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Speaker 1: are as a professional athlete, you will be the goat,

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Speaker 1: you will be the most productive, you will dominate the

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Speaker 1: record book. And there's no argument you can say the

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Speaker 1: other guy's cooler. Lebron has all the records and Brady

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Speaker 1: has most of them. But I do wish Lebron would

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Speaker 1: retire after the year. And I'll give you the example why,

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Speaker 1: because there's a list that he makes, my list that

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Speaker 1: isn't great. And I've always thought about basketball this way.

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Speaker 1: How do you judge the best player? It can't be

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Speaker 1: scoring average? Do you play defense? Are you a good distributor?

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Speaker 1: I mean, James Harden scored a bunch of points. Never

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Speaker 1: the best player in the league. Tim Duncan wasn't flashy, rebounded, defended, scored.

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Speaker 1: I mean, Tim Duncan's one of the seven or eight

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Speaker 1: best players in terms of complete game. Ever, I always

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Speaker 1: judge guys like this, and Lebron is now forty one.

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Speaker 1: If there's a tie game with two and a half

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Speaker 1: minutes left, two and a half minutes left, I'm counting everything,

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Speaker 1: your stamina, your free throw shooting, your offense, your defense,

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Speaker 1: your distribution. Who are the ten guys in the NBA?

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Speaker 1: I would take in order, and here's my list again,

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Speaker 1: two and a half minutes multiple, I'm counting all of

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Speaker 1: your game offense, defense, ball handling, stamina, free throw shooting.

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Speaker 1: Number one would be Jokic. He is the best player

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Speaker 1: in the world, makes every teammate better. Third in clutch scoring.

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Speaker 1: SGA would be two. Number one in clutch scoring. He's

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Speaker 1: just a bucket the I mean, he's just a bucket.

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Speaker 1: I would put Victor web Binyama at number three, the

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Speaker 1: best defensive player, totally absolutely disruptive. Also, you're going to

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Speaker 1: get dunks and freebies. Number four, I would put Anthony

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Speaker 1: Edwards behind SGA number two in scoring. He can hit

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Speaker 1: a three, he can handle the ball, he can make

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Speaker 1: defensive stops. Number five, because he's actually playing again, is

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Speaker 1: Kawhi Leonard. I mean, cross your fingers. He may not

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Speaker 1: in two days, but right now he's playing. And I

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Speaker 1: said this years ago. Get a bucket, get a stop.

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Speaker 1: He is a wizard. There's a lot of MJ to

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Speaker 1: his game. Number six would be Steph Curry, still at

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Speaker 1: his age, unbelievable stamina. I don't think there's ever been

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Speaker 1: an NBA player in that good of cardio shape. He

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Speaker 1: is also right now three point shooting forty six percent

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Speaker 1: clutch three point shooting. That's insane. Number seven would be

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Speaker 1: Kad Cunningham. He has the third most field goals in

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Speaker 1: the league in clutch. He can defend, he's got size,

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Speaker 1: he can ball handle. He now plays with a confidence

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Speaker 1: he didn't three years ago. Kid Cunningham at seven. Colin,

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Speaker 1: where's Luca? I would put him eight?

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Speaker 3: Why.

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Speaker 1: I don't like his stamina late in games. He's a

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Speaker 1: revolving door on defense. I love him offensively, but he

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Speaker 1: often doesn't include others.

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Speaker 3: I'd put him eight.

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Speaker 1: Number nine, I'm gonna put Kadi on this until the

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Speaker 1: day he retires. I'm sorry. Catch and shoot off a

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Speaker 1: pick dribble. Kevin Durant is somewhere between five and ten

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Speaker 1: on this list. I'll put him nine because of his age,

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Speaker 1: and number ten.

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Speaker 3: Is not Lebron.

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Speaker 1: It's Jalen Runson, who twenty four twenty five in the

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Speaker 1: NBA was voted the clutch player. I trust them more

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Speaker 1: at the free throw line than Lebron. He's not a

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Speaker 1: good defensive player, he's a better ball handler. I trust

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Speaker 1: his mid range game more than Lebron. I trust his

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Speaker 1: free throw shooting more than Lebron. It's the first time

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Speaker 1: I've ever done this list. Lebron's not part of it.

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Speaker 3: Lebron.

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Speaker 1: Last night I saw Lebron live this year at Chicago.

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Speaker 1: Best player on the floor for about twelve minutes, and

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Speaker 1: then there were gaps of stamina and energy, and I

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Speaker 1: like my actors, I want it to look more like

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Speaker 1: a Tom Hanks. You don't see him in as many

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Speaker 1: good movies because you don't see him in as many movies,

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Speaker 1: but everything he does is tight and clean and good.

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Speaker 1: I don't want it to end like Marlon Brando. I

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Speaker 1: don't want to look like that. Lebron next year would

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Speaker 1: still be a top fifteen to eighteen player in the league.

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Speaker 1: But I just love the way Lway and Jeter ended it.

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Speaker 1: It's just so tight and clean. And I know that's

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Speaker 1: just subjective, and that's my opinion. I don't want to mjending.

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Speaker 1: You got all the records, you beat them in the

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Speaker 1: record books. Call it a career. You're averaging twenty a game.

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Speaker 1: I think that'd be amazing. Here's Lebron last night on

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Speaker 1: his longevity and his future.

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Speaker 4: My game is not going anywhere. It's just it's my body.

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Speaker 4: It's all the other things. There's so many more factors

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Speaker 4: that come with how long will I play a game? Now,

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Speaker 4: I don't think my game will ever suffer if if

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Speaker 4: I decided to continue to go how long, however long

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Speaker 4: that is. I just think it's like it has to

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Speaker 4: be here. If this goes, then my body's going to go.

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Speaker 4: Then once my body goes in, it's a wrap.

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Speaker 5: You know.

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Speaker 4: Then the love goes, and then the fund and all

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Speaker 4: that stuff goes.

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Speaker 1: He remains very good, but down the stretch two and

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Speaker 1: a half, left, defense, free throw shooting, stamina, I don't

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Speaker 1: think he's a top ten player. Pictures and catchers report

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Speaker 1: in Baseball. In fact, the Dodgers pictures and catchers report today.

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Speaker 1: So Jeff pass An ESPN, a wonderful baseball guy Wright,

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Speaker 1: it's a really interesting story today that baseball is in

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Speaker 1: a weird place. There's a renaissance, the attendance is up,

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Speaker 1: the ratings are up. We've talked about this on this show.

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Speaker 1: I went about fifteen years I stopped talking baseball. The

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Speaker 1: last two and a half years, the playoffs have been incredible.

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Speaker 1: Why games faster, games quicker. And the Cubs are good,

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Speaker 1: and the Yankees are good, and the Mets are interesting,

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Speaker 1: and the Dodgers are good, and Houston's dominant, and Boston

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Speaker 1: had a good year. But he also points out in

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Speaker 1: the article that Kyle Tucker's signing that that's going to

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Speaker 1: guarantee a labor stop.

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Speaker 3: He suggests that, and I.

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Speaker 1: Just want to throw this out there. One year ago

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Speaker 1: in the NFL, I want you to think about this.

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Speaker 1: One year ago in the NFL, after the Eagles won

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Speaker 1: the Super Bowl, the Tush push was a national crisis.

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Speaker 3: Something needs to be done. This is unfair.

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Speaker 1: People are meeting and flying and talking and debating and

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Speaker 1: arguing the Tush push. And then this year when the

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Speaker 1: Eagles face planted, you know what nobody cared about the

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Speaker 1: tush push. They weren't as good at it. It didn't matter.

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Speaker 1: It suddenly wasn't unfair. Go ahead, do it as many

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Speaker 1: time as you want.

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Speaker 3: But when the.

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Speaker 1: Eagles felt like they were unstoppable, they had an advantage

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Speaker 1: though it was legal, they were pulling away from the league.

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Speaker 3: Nobody liked it. And that's our nature.

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Speaker 1: We often hate successful people because they're successful. And what's

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Speaker 1: interesting when the Dodgers signed Mookie bats much better than

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Speaker 1: Kyle Tucker, when they signed Freddie Freeman, both.

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Speaker 3: Will be Hall of Famers. Where was the outrage.

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Speaker 1: Well, that's because at the time the Dodgers weren't stacking

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Speaker 1: World Series titles. I'm arguing and have that if the

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Speaker 1: Dodgers would have lost to the Blue Jays in Game seven,

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Speaker 1: nobody'd freak.

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Speaker 3: Out with Kyle Tucker.

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Speaker 1: You'd be like, well, you spend a fortune, what you

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Speaker 1: got one World Series show?

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Speaker 3: You think I'm wrong on that? Okay?

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Speaker 1: Because so it was Kyle Tucker who the Cubs couldn't

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Speaker 1: get out of town fast enough. That's the one that's

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Speaker 1: the straw that broke the camel's back. What's interesting the

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Speaker 1: Blue Jays lost the World series. So nobody's already bothered

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Speaker 1: that Vlad Guerrero Junior signed for five hundred million dollars

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Speaker 1: or that the Blue Jays were the bigger spenders again

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Speaker 1: in this offseason because they didn't win a World Series,

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Speaker 1: because they're not stacking titles. Really, Freddy Freeman, why did

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Speaker 1: he leave Atlanta? Was money? They knew Freddy Freeman was

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Speaker 1: great that Braves couldn't afford him.

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Speaker 3: Dodgers could. Why did Mookie Betts leave Boston?

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Speaker 1: They said they couldn't afford him, so the same reason

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Speaker 1: they got Otawni and Bets and Freeman. It's always money.

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Speaker 1: Kyle Tucker really wasn't that expensive relative to those guys.

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Speaker 1: But Kyle Tucker after back to back World Series titles

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Speaker 1: that stings push push outrage this year what evs.

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Speaker 3: That's how it works.

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Speaker 1: Here's an absolute fact data that you can't deny. The

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Speaker 1: Dodgers in twenty twenty four made seven hundred and fifty

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Speaker 1: two million. The Yankees made seven one hundred and thirty million,

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Speaker 1: two biggest revenue teams in the sport. The difference is

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Speaker 1: the Yankees only spend forty nine and a half percent

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Speaker 1: of their revenue on players and the Dodgers almost spend

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Speaker 1: seventy five percent they make about the same. The Dodgers

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Speaker 1: are more committed to winning. Steinbrenner's kids are more committed

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Speaker 1: to committed to keeping more of that money. By the way,

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Speaker 1: the Mets spend the highest percent by a mile in

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Speaker 1: the sport of the revenues they make. They don't make

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Speaker 1: the Dodger money. They don't make the Yankee money. But

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Speaker 1: Steve Cohen spends ninety percent of the money. Good for him.

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Speaker 1: But we it's human nature. We don't like people pulling

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Speaker 1: away the idea that Kyle Tucker, who the Cubs couldn't

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Speaker 1: get rid of, Fathomon, who everybody says that I didn't

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Speaker 1: love the game. I don't know if he does or not.

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Speaker 1: He not really passionate. I mean they signed Mookey bat

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Speaker 1: To Everybody's like, oh, great move by the Dodgers. Yeah,

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Speaker 1: Kyle Tucker's got us all freaking out. Dave Roberts on

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Speaker 1: this Dodger team, as pitchers and catchers report today, compared

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Speaker 1: to previous Dodger teams.

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Speaker 6: Last year's team a very good team on paper, I thought.

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Speaker 6: Twenty twenty one, I think was a very good team

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Speaker 6: on paper, but this team, I think yeah, looking at

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Speaker 6: the guys in their prime, the experience, the talent, the starters,

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Speaker 6: and the depth of the young players that we have

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Speaker 6: coming behind them on the pitching side, especially probably the best.

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Speaker 3: Team we'd.

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Speaker 1: Be totally honest. If the Dodgers would have lost in

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Speaker 1: Game seven to the Blue Jays, you would have all laughed.

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Speaker 1: Suckers can't buy a World Series title. And by the way,

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Speaker 1: the guy making the great catch in left center field

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Speaker 1: for the Dodgers wasn't one of their great players. He

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Speaker 1: was a defensive specialist. They couldn't figure out their bullpen.

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Speaker 1: But the minute they won Game seven, that's separating and

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Speaker 1: people don't like it.

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Speaker 2: Be sure to catch live editions of The Herd weekdays

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Speaker 2: and noon Eastern a em Pacific on Fox Sports Radio

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Speaker 2: FS one and the iHeartRadio.

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Speaker 7: App sot Got here. I have a podcast empire. It

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Speaker 7: continues to grow, and I have brought it here to Eeharn.

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Speaker 7: I'm also doing a live radio show from three to

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Speaker 7: five pm Eastern because.

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Speaker 3: My wife wanted to kick me out of the house.

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Speaker 7: It's called Stegtson Company Live, which is available in podcast

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Speaker 7: form right when the show finishes. Every single day, some

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Speaker 7: of the biggest names in sports, a lot of phone calls.

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Speaker 8: I love you got your show, It's one of my favorites.

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Speaker 7: A lot of interact shit guys not taking themselves too seriously.

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Speaker 7: Those are just some of the things that you can

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Speaker 7: expect from Stu Gottson Company and Steve Gotson Company Live.

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Speaker 7: So listen to Steve Gotson Company Live and Ouriur Original Podcast.

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Speaker 7: Please subscribe, rate and review Stu Gotson Company and God

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Speaker 7: Bless Football. Taylor's livelihood depends on it. Do it today

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Speaker 7: and you can check all of those out on the

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Speaker 7: iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcasts.

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Speaker 1: We're live in Chicago. It's the Herd, Eats and Strauss.

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Speaker 1: How do you fix the NBA All Star Game? Fixed

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Speaker 1: tanking Coamingo Warriors story in about three minutes. So Lebron

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Speaker 1: last night became the oldest player to ever have a

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Speaker 1: triple double. And you know, through the years, I told

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Speaker 1: the story years ago. My wife went to the doctor

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Speaker 1: in Los Angeles and she doesn't know sports or anything.

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Speaker 1: So she sat down. But she used to live in

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Speaker 1: Chicago and now she does again. And then she saw

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Speaker 1: this guy and she's like, ah, that's kind of familiar.

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Speaker 1: He looks like a sports guy. It was Phil Jackson,

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Speaker 1: and so they started talking and she said Phil was

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Speaker 1: very nice and everything, and she said, Phil said at

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Speaker 1: the end, tell your husband he's.

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Speaker 3: Wrong about Lebron and Michael and.

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Speaker 1: Jordan, because I've said before Lebron James does more things

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Speaker 1: well than any basketball player I've ever seen. I always

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Speaker 1: felt he was more Magic Johnson, where he really did

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Speaker 1: love initiating offense for other people. But he's a better

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Speaker 1: athlete than and a better defender than Magic Johnson. But

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Speaker 1: I think his game Kobe was more Michael. Lebron's more

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Speaker 1: Magic Johnson. You know, he's got the power element. He

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Speaker 1: loves to elevate others.

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Speaker 3: He's fun.

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Speaker 1: His sheer size, like Magic came in at six eight

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Speaker 1: and a half his sheer size and nobody knew how

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Speaker 1: to defend a guard that was six eight and a half.

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Speaker 1: Lebron is still I've stood next to Lebron two or

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Speaker 1: three times. It was like a pro football player. He

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Speaker 1: looks like an NFL defensive end. And last night is

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Speaker 1: he really is remarkable. But when you really really love

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Speaker 1: a player, I love Derek Jeter, I love John Elway.

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Speaker 3: You know, I love certain actors.

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Speaker 1: I don't want to see him straight to you know,

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Speaker 1: rental video, the old term in their movie career. I

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Speaker 1: want to see clean endings. I want to see, like

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Speaker 1: you know, Martin Scorsese, the direct director direct every three years,

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Speaker 1: have a great film.

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Speaker 3: The irishman.

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Speaker 1: Spielberg still feels like he's in his prime as Primes

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Speaker 1: lasted forever. Yeah, but it's like, you know, every couple

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Speaker 1: of years, do a great film. You don't have the

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Speaker 1: energy when you get older or whatever. It's like when

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Speaker 1: you really love people. I like nice, clean endings. I

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Speaker 1: don't want an Elvis ending or a Marlon Brando ending.

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Speaker 1: And so I think this should be Lebron's last year.

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Speaker 1: He's still like a top fifteen sixteen player. He still

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Speaker 1: has moments. I went and saw him in Chicago. He

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Speaker 1: literally was the best player on the floor, and then

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Speaker 1: Luca was the best player after that, and Luke ended

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Speaker 1: up with like forty some points. But here was Lebron

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Speaker 1: on becoming the oldest player to ever have a triple

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Speaker 1: double last night, and it went over the map.

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Speaker 4: I've never been sorry got basketball, So yeah, I've been

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Speaker 4: good ever since I started playing it any given night,

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Speaker 4: like a.

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Speaker 3: Finding to turn it on.

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Speaker 4: I could turn the fact that you can go out

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Speaker 4: and be able to have an impact in three fasted

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Speaker 4: a game, you know, rebound and this obviously is what

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Speaker 4: I love the most, being able to get my guys

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Speaker 4: involved throughout my career. I've always loved that morning anything,

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Speaker 4: and I'm being up with the ball in the basket

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Speaker 4: obviously that's that's part of his game as well.

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Speaker 3: Yeah, and he can still do that.

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Speaker 1: And I have no idea if he's going to retire,

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Speaker 1: but it does feel like it would be. I think

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Speaker 1: John Elway could have played another year. Jeter probably could have,

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Speaker 1: Brady certainly could have three years after his retirement.

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Speaker 3: Who knows. If Lebron plays, he'll be good.

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Speaker 1: But when you really like a director, an actor and athlete,

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Speaker 1: I just like cleaner endings. So the NBA is, and

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Speaker 1: I don't want to overstate this, because every time the

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Speaker 1: NFL season ends, we start paying more attend baseball hasn't started.

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Speaker 1: We start paying more attention to the NBA. And I

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Speaker 1: feel like there's a month it's like mid February to

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Speaker 1: mid March. All we do is crap on the NBA

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Speaker 1: and the playoffs will be amazing.

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Speaker 3: They always are. But when Bill Simmons.

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Speaker 1: Comes out and I think it's something I because I

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Speaker 1: talk about this a lot the business side of sports,

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Speaker 1: It's like, is Adam Silver the right guy? The tankings

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Speaker 1: feels like it's really bad. The load management's almost comical.

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Speaker 1: And with that, Ethan Strauss, one of the best substacks

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Speaker 1: out there, House of Strauss, NBA Warriors and Culture podcasts,

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Speaker 1: is joining us. So listen. Tanking's been going on forever.

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Speaker 1: I said about an hour ago with David Stern, you

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Speaker 1: had it. But Stern was an ominous, threatening, loud presence

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Speaker 1: and like he would call gms and coaches and players,

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Speaker 1: and you know, he was brutal. He wouldn't apologize. Adam

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Speaker 1: Silver more pleasant, and I think at times it feels

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Speaker 1: like star players take advantage of Adam Silver. Do you

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Speaker 1: have a belief Ethan, on how to fix the tanking problem?

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Speaker 5: I do, and I have to disagree with you right

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Speaker 5: off the bat. I don't think tanking has been a

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Speaker 5: problem forever. I think there's a time when you were

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Speaker 5: an NBA fan when it wasn't And sometimes the old

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Speaker 5: ways work better than some of these crazy, big brained

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Speaker 5: ideas I'm seeing floated around out there.

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Speaker 3: The NBA used to do it this way.

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Speaker 5: If you missed the playoffs, you had an equal chance

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Speaker 5: as every other lottery team to win the lottery.

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Speaker 3: Now some people might say that's not fair.

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Speaker 5: You know that you're the worst team and you get

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Speaker 5: the thirteenth pick or whatever. What. I don't think we

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Speaker 5: want to reward losing to such a degree and let's

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Speaker 5: just do on the one hand, On the other hand,

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Speaker 5: right on the one hand, maybe the worst team in

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Speaker 5: the league gets the eleventh or twelfth pick and they

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Speaker 5: stay bad. On the other hand, we have what we

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Speaker 5: have now, which is a third of the league intentionally

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Speaker 5: losing for months. I would say that outcome is worse,

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Speaker 5: and I would say go back in time. The league

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Speaker 5: made a mistake in the past when they flipped out

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Speaker 5: after Orlando got consecutive number one picks and they got

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Speaker 5: Shack and they got Penny Hardaway.

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Speaker 4: Yeah.

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Speaker 5: You know the funny thing about that is the owners

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Speaker 5: freaked out. That was objectively great for the NBA. That

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Speaker 5: was a charismatic team. If that's the bad outcome, I mean,

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Speaker 5: I think that they made a huge mistake way back

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Speaker 5: when I think return to the old days. You make

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Speaker 5: the playoffs, you get a bigger playoff share to incentivize

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Speaker 5: making the playoffs. You miss the playoffs. Everybody's got the

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Speaker 5: same long shot. Do it that way, get rid of

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Speaker 5: all this tanking.

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Speaker 1: The All Star Game and further record in fairness, the

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Speaker 1: Pro Bowls unwatchable. The only All Star game that's any

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Speaker 1: good is baseball. I do think we've moved into a

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Speaker 1: time now. The All Star Game in baseball was great

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Speaker 1: because you didn't see all these players and all these games.

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Speaker 1: Now that I can watch any team anytime, even the

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Speaker 1: Baseball All Star Game doesn't feel as big. It's good,

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Speaker 1: it's the best, but it doesn't feel as great. Pro

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Speaker 1: Bowls unwatchable and was for years. The NBA All Star Game. Listen,

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Speaker 1: could I say this? The players are so rich now

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Speaker 1: they just want time off. It's not solvable. Or do

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Speaker 1: you have a way to fix the NBA All Star Game.

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Speaker 5: I do have a way to fix the NBA All

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Speaker 5: Star Game, but I don't think it's ever going to

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Speaker 5: be implemented. And no, it's not Nick Wright's idea. Our

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Speaker 5: guy Nick writes idea to have the black guys play

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Speaker 5: the white guys, which that will never be implemented, but

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Speaker 5: that would be interesting. That would be interesting. I guess

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Speaker 5: the first thing I would say about it is this.

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Speaker 5: The NBA's general problem with Adam Silver is doing too much.

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Speaker 3: It's doing too much the NBA.

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Speaker 5: It's like a celebrity that gets so many plastic surgeries,

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Speaker 5: a good looking celebrity that you go, I don't even

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Speaker 5: recognize this. So the first thing I do to the

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Speaker 5: All Star Game is stop with all the crazy reforms.

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Speaker 3: I don't even know what this thing is right now.

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Speaker 5: Or there's a round robin, you know, before they had

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Speaker 5: the players pick the guys they the elam ending.

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Speaker 3: Here's a crazy idea.

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Speaker 5: You get the most popular players from the Eastern Conference

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Speaker 5: and they play the most popular players in the Western Conference.

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Speaker 5: It's something that makes sense to my dad. It's something

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Speaker 5: I can explain to my son. Well, how do you

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Speaker 5: get them to tryhard? That's the thing everybody's thinking about

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Speaker 5: right now. You hear about money. The All Star Game

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Speaker 5: is not about money, It's about status. What I think

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Speaker 5: should happen and that Adam Silver will never do is

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Speaker 5: he chooses the players. He makes the selection based on

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Speaker 5: what he's seen in the popularity, and if you dog it,

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Speaker 5: if you loaf, well, guess what, maybe you're not getting

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Speaker 5: invited to next season's All Star Game. Because the players,

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Speaker 5: they might not care about trying in the All Star Game,

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Speaker 5: but they care about being an All Star. They care

432
00:23:08,880 --> 00:23:12,520
Speaker 5: about having that designation, and when Hall of Fame voting happens,

433
00:23:12,760 --> 00:23:16,000
Speaker 5: that's something that they want on their mantle. So if

434
00:23:16,000 --> 00:23:18,119
Speaker 5: you have a little bit of that incentive of the

435
00:23:18,119 --> 00:23:22,080
Speaker 5: commissioners choosing the guys, we're choosing the twelve best entertainers

436
00:23:22,119 --> 00:23:25,159
Speaker 5: in our sport on each team, and if you're not

437
00:23:25,240 --> 00:23:28,280
Speaker 5: going to be an entertainer for our sport, you're not

438
00:23:28,440 --> 00:23:31,919
Speaker 5: showing up. I think that's enough incentive not to try

439
00:23:31,960 --> 00:23:34,040
Speaker 5: to the point where you might get yourself hurt, but

440
00:23:34,080 --> 00:23:36,840
Speaker 5: at least not to dog it, not to loaf, not

441
00:23:36,920 --> 00:23:37,720
Speaker 5: to launch from.

442
00:23:37,600 --> 00:23:42,080
Speaker 1: Fifty feet away. That's what I would do. Always have

443
00:23:42,160 --> 00:23:44,840
Speaker 1: great ideas. Okay, so you know, I mean, you really

444
00:23:44,840 --> 00:23:48,000
Speaker 1: covered the Warriors forever, you had wrote a book about it,

445
00:23:48,040 --> 00:23:51,240
Speaker 1: The Victory Machine, The Making and Unmaking of the Warriors Dynasty.

446
00:23:52,160 --> 00:23:54,959
Speaker 1: I've always felt you should love your kids like your

447
00:23:54,960 --> 00:23:59,040
Speaker 1: superstar players. The Warriors fell in love with Steph Curry,

448
00:23:59,440 --> 00:24:02,639
Speaker 1: and they've tried to make everything work through that ecosystem.

449
00:24:02,760 --> 00:24:05,240
Speaker 1: And the truth is young players can't play with current

450
00:24:05,280 --> 00:24:08,359
Speaker 1: Steph Curry's offense. It hasn't worked. And now they're old

451
00:24:08,480 --> 00:24:11,320
Speaker 1: and slow and small, and it's just like if he's

452
00:24:11,320 --> 00:24:13,480
Speaker 1: not on the floor, it's hard to watch. So the

453
00:24:13,520 --> 00:24:16,320
Speaker 1: Kaminga story is one and I talked about this two

454
00:24:16,400 --> 00:24:18,000
Speaker 1: days ago. I was never I've never been a G

455
00:24:18,200 --> 00:24:23,000
Speaker 1: League fan, especially G League ignite, Scoot Henderson, Jalen Jalen

456
00:24:24,280 --> 00:24:28,160
Speaker 1: the kid yeh Jalen Green and cominga our G League ignite,

457
00:24:28,200 --> 00:24:31,560
Speaker 1: I would call it G League ignore. It was overstated,

458
00:24:31,680 --> 00:24:33,320
Speaker 1: none of that. There's never been a great player from

459
00:24:33,400 --> 00:24:35,800
Speaker 1: G League. You don't get the coaching, you don't get

460
00:24:35,840 --> 00:24:39,000
Speaker 1: the marketing, you don't get the development. And I think

461
00:24:39,000 --> 00:24:46,640
Speaker 1: college basketball shouldn't be demonized. That being said, clearly, Kaminga,

462
00:24:47,080 --> 00:24:50,520
Speaker 1: as he improved as a player, played less under Kerr.

463
00:24:51,280 --> 00:24:52,560
Speaker 3: So I mean it's like.

464
00:24:52,520 --> 00:24:54,720
Speaker 1: You would think he starts here, but the last three

465
00:24:54,800 --> 00:24:57,280
Speaker 1: years it's like it's fewer games, it's fewer minutes. He's

466
00:24:57,280 --> 00:25:01,240
Speaker 1: in the doghouse. What do you make of it? They

467
00:25:01,280 --> 00:25:03,520
Speaker 1: all say nice stuff. Kurse has nice stuff. On the

468
00:25:03,520 --> 00:25:05,600
Speaker 1: way out. But like what happened?

469
00:25:05,600 --> 00:25:06,280
Speaker 3: Do you believe?

470
00:25:07,400 --> 00:25:10,000
Speaker 5: Okay, So when you started with the parenting analogy, I

471
00:25:10,040 --> 00:25:13,360
Speaker 5: thought it was going to be about Kaminga because Kminga

472
00:25:13,400 --> 00:25:15,960
Speaker 5: reminds me of something I try to tell my son

473
00:25:16,040 --> 00:25:20,560
Speaker 5: all the time, which is the Roman proverb Before you

474
00:25:20,600 --> 00:25:25,520
Speaker 5: can lead, you must follow. And so I'm reading these

475
00:25:25,560 --> 00:25:29,280
Speaker 5: reports by Anthony Slater and other people that Kminga's offended

476
00:25:29,600 --> 00:25:32,359
Speaker 5: that Kerr wanted him to be an Aaron Gordon or

477
00:25:32,400 --> 00:25:36,720
Speaker 5: as Sean Marian. Well, guess what in the NBA, before

478
00:25:36,760 --> 00:25:39,240
Speaker 5: you get to be what you want to be, you've

479
00:25:39,280 --> 00:25:41,560
Speaker 5: got to build a basis of what the coach needs

480
00:25:41,600 --> 00:25:42,000
Speaker 5: you to be.

481
00:25:42,560 --> 00:25:43,640
Speaker 3: It's not a charity.

482
00:25:43,720 --> 00:25:47,200
Speaker 5: The coach needs to win, and afterwards you can build

483
00:25:47,200 --> 00:25:50,879
Speaker 5: out your game. You can be more than useful to

484
00:25:50,960 --> 00:25:53,359
Speaker 5: your coach, but it's got to start with useful to

485
00:25:53,440 --> 00:25:55,960
Speaker 5: your coach. And I think a lot of these guys, okay,

486
00:25:56,000 --> 00:25:58,159
Speaker 5: So here's something I was told last time I was

487
00:25:58,160 --> 00:26:00,159
Speaker 5: at Summer League, because I was asking, is the bigig

488
00:26:00,160 --> 00:26:03,080
Speaker 5: money screwing these guys up because there's so much money

489
00:26:03,119 --> 00:26:06,879
Speaker 5: in the league, And somebody who's in ownership told me, no,

490
00:26:07,040 --> 00:26:09,760
Speaker 5: you know, It's funny. The big money's not screwing up

491
00:26:09,800 --> 00:26:12,240
Speaker 5: the guys who get it, it's screwing up the guys

492
00:26:12,240 --> 00:26:15,840
Speaker 5: who don't, the young guys like Kuminga, who feel, hey,

493
00:26:15,920 --> 00:26:19,159
Speaker 5: I'm just as good as this guy getting crazy money.

494
00:26:19,480 --> 00:26:21,920
Speaker 5: In the new CBA structure, it's haves and have not,

495
00:26:22,359 --> 00:26:24,960
Speaker 5: so if you're on the outside looking in, it creates

496
00:26:24,960 --> 00:26:27,639
Speaker 5: this dynamic where I think I'm a superstar already. I

497
00:26:27,720 --> 00:26:30,400
Speaker 5: want the money already, it's right there. And a lot

498
00:26:30,440 --> 00:26:32,240
Speaker 5: of guys, a lot of young guys, I think, are

499
00:26:32,280 --> 00:26:34,800
Speaker 5: forgoing the process. And that's what that G League knit

500
00:26:34,880 --> 00:26:37,040
Speaker 5: thing was all about. It was guys who wanted to

501
00:26:37,040 --> 00:26:40,640
Speaker 5: be a superstar right now, as opposed to paying dues,

502
00:26:40,840 --> 00:26:42,760
Speaker 5: as opposed to getting through their paces.

503
00:26:42,880 --> 00:26:44,120
Speaker 3: And I would say one more thing.

504
00:26:44,400 --> 00:26:47,200
Speaker 5: I'm not saying Steve Kerr is perfect, but I do

505
00:26:47,200 --> 00:26:49,399
Speaker 5: think he's had a good track record on this. We

506
00:26:49,440 --> 00:26:52,800
Speaker 5: can say Steve Kerr doesn't develop young talent, and I

507
00:26:52,800 --> 00:26:56,199
Speaker 5: would say, well, who's the young guy who left the

508
00:26:56,200 --> 00:26:59,639
Speaker 5: Warriors and flourished? Who is he wrong about? Is Patrick

509
00:26:59,720 --> 00:27:03,880
Speaker 5: mca ah putting up any triple doubles anywhere? He's been

510
00:27:04,000 --> 00:27:06,280
Speaker 5: correct about these guys for the most part. I just

511
00:27:06,280 --> 00:27:07,480
Speaker 5: don't think he's had the horses.

512
00:27:07,880 --> 00:27:10,760
Speaker 1: Yeah, I don't think Kaminga ever developed a three point shot.

513
00:27:10,880 --> 00:27:14,000
Speaker 1: He's up and down in the interior. He's a lousy rebounder.

514
00:27:14,560 --> 00:27:17,600
Speaker 1: On I think Kerr knows that he got frustrated with

515
00:27:17,640 --> 00:27:21,840
Speaker 1: a player who didn't grow and develop. You know, people

516
00:27:21,880 --> 00:27:24,919
Speaker 1: by now know the you know the redemptive arc of

517
00:27:25,000 --> 00:27:28,359
Speaker 1: Sam Darnold. And I do think every year we learn

518
00:27:28,520 --> 00:27:31,800
Speaker 1: things in pro sports, and we'll see it with Mendoza

519
00:27:31,880 --> 00:27:34,160
Speaker 1: in with the Raiders. He's gonna get beat up, he's

520
00:27:34,200 --> 00:27:35,920
Speaker 1: gonna lose a lot of games. He's gonna throw a

521
00:27:35,960 --> 00:27:38,600
Speaker 1: lot of picks. And I do think I will be

522
00:27:39,480 --> 00:27:41,320
Speaker 1: and I think I try to do this all the time.

523
00:27:41,400 --> 00:27:45,040
Speaker 1: Is let's not bail on young people. Young people's success

524
00:27:45,200 --> 00:27:48,880
Speaker 1: is largely beholden to who are their bosses. And when

525
00:27:48,880 --> 00:27:51,280
Speaker 1: you get to be forty or fifty, y're established. You know,

526
00:27:51,400 --> 00:27:54,120
Speaker 1: Tom Brady by the end in Tampa, guys, I'm gonna

527
00:27:54,160 --> 00:27:54,800
Speaker 1: run the offense.

528
00:27:54,840 --> 00:27:55,880
Speaker 3: So I don't really care.

529
00:27:57,480 --> 00:27:59,640
Speaker 1: Is there anything that jumped out to you on Sam

530
00:27:59,640 --> 00:28:02,320
Speaker 1: Donald but maybe hadn't been said, or how did through

531
00:28:02,359 --> 00:28:04,760
Speaker 1: your prism, how did you view it well.

532
00:28:04,760 --> 00:28:07,080
Speaker 5: I know you love Sam Donald, so I don't want

533
00:28:07,119 --> 00:28:10,200
Speaker 5: to denigrate him and say that he didn't turn into

534
00:28:10,240 --> 00:28:13,520
Speaker 5: some great player. But I think Sam Donald's average, and

535
00:28:13,600 --> 00:28:15,679
Speaker 5: I think that's okay, And I think that's what my

536
00:28:15,800 --> 00:28:19,159
Speaker 5: lesson was on this whole thing. He played really well

537
00:28:19,280 --> 00:28:22,080
Speaker 5: against the Rams. I thought he was okay in the

538
00:28:22,119 --> 00:28:24,720
Speaker 5: Super Bowl. The advanced stats say that he was pretty average.

539
00:28:24,760 --> 00:28:28,400
Speaker 5: And maybe the lesson is that we overrate the quarterback

540
00:28:28,800 --> 00:28:31,040
Speaker 5: because this isn't the NBA. We act like it's the

541
00:28:31,119 --> 00:28:34,520
Speaker 5: NBA and you're one of five guys if you're a superstar.

542
00:28:34,960 --> 00:28:36,320
Speaker 3: I mean, that just means so much.

543
00:28:36,359 --> 00:28:39,040
Speaker 5: I feel as though the Bills get overrated every year

544
00:28:39,160 --> 00:28:42,560
Speaker 5: for their playoff chances because people act as though Josh

545
00:28:42,600 --> 00:28:46,880
Speaker 5: Allen's greatness can overcome a talent deficit. And so I

546
00:28:46,880 --> 00:28:49,800
Speaker 5: think the lesson with Sam Donald is perhaps we might

547
00:28:49,840 --> 00:28:52,400
Speaker 5: even make too big a deal of the surrounding weapons

548
00:28:52,480 --> 00:28:55,880
Speaker 5: quarterbacks have on offense and not a big enough deal

549
00:28:56,160 --> 00:28:59,040
Speaker 5: about all the other help that allows them to win.

550
00:28:59,120 --> 00:29:03,240
Speaker 5: If you've got the best defense and a good running game,

551
00:29:03,840 --> 00:29:06,840
Speaker 5: as the Seahawks had, that goes a long way.

552
00:29:06,960 --> 00:29:08,720
Speaker 3: You can win with an average quarterback.

553
00:29:08,840 --> 00:29:12,400
Speaker 5: We say, hey, this guy's not a super Bowl level quarterback.

554
00:29:12,520 --> 00:29:14,720
Speaker 5: I think a super Bowl level quarterback is just a

555
00:29:14,720 --> 00:29:17,720
Speaker 5: guy who's competent. I think we saw this super Bowl

556
00:29:17,960 --> 00:29:19,600
Speaker 5: and I think we saw it last Super Bowl with

557
00:29:19,680 --> 00:29:21,920
Speaker 5: Jalen Hurtz when we were trying to make him out

558
00:29:21,960 --> 00:29:23,320
Speaker 5: to be somebody that he wasn't.

559
00:29:23,400 --> 00:29:24,240
Speaker 3: He was fine.

560
00:29:24,520 --> 00:29:27,040
Speaker 5: And that's the lesson in the NFL. You can win

561
00:29:27,360 --> 00:29:30,840
Speaker 5: with a quarterback who's fine. It doesn't have to be Mahomes.

562
00:29:31,040 --> 00:29:32,760
Speaker 5: You just have to be great at the other stuff.

563
00:29:33,480 --> 00:29:34,240
Speaker 4: I like that take.

564
00:29:34,360 --> 00:29:38,160
Speaker 1: I don't have to agree with it, but I like it.

565
00:29:37,520 --> 00:29:40,440
Speaker 1: I was saying this Ethan Ethan Strauss joining us for

566
00:29:40,440 --> 00:29:41,280
Speaker 1: the radio audience.

567
00:29:41,400 --> 00:29:41,920
Speaker 3: Check him out.

568
00:29:42,160 --> 00:29:45,120
Speaker 1: House of Strauss is probably my favorite podcast I listened

569
00:29:45,120 --> 00:29:48,880
Speaker 1: to on a regular basis. I was saying on Lebron,

570
00:29:49,040 --> 00:29:51,840
Speaker 1: I don't want I didn't like the way MJ's career ended.

571
00:29:51,920 --> 00:29:55,080
Speaker 1: I love the way it ended for Jeter, Kobe's last game,

572
00:29:55,320 --> 00:29:57,920
Speaker 1: John Elway. I don't want my actor to end like

573
00:29:57,960 --> 00:30:02,960
Speaker 1: Marlon Brando, my musician, like Elvis. Lebron is still very

574
00:30:03,000 --> 00:30:05,920
Speaker 1: good two and a half three minutes left in the game.

575
00:30:06,960 --> 00:30:10,280
Speaker 1: Because his lack of stamina late he's not the defensive player.

576
00:30:10,320 --> 00:30:11,800
Speaker 1: I don't trust him at the free throw on in

577
00:30:11,800 --> 00:30:14,800
Speaker 1: big spots. He's still a top fifteen to twenty player,

578
00:30:15,040 --> 00:30:17,360
Speaker 1: but I wouldn't take him over like right now, Kawhi

579
00:30:17,440 --> 00:30:20,280
Speaker 1: late in the game, Jokic, Wemby, SGA and all that.

580
00:30:21,280 --> 00:30:23,239
Speaker 1: I think it's the perfect time to go. We have

581
00:30:23,240 --> 00:30:29,720
Speaker 1: great memories. It's amazing. He doesn't need the money. How

582
00:30:29,720 --> 00:30:31,200
Speaker 1: do you think the Lakers ends?

583
00:30:31,800 --> 00:30:32,120
Speaker 3: Andy?

584
00:30:32,480 --> 00:30:36,400
Speaker 1: Does it matter to It won't hurt Lebron's legacy, But

585
00:30:36,800 --> 00:30:40,520
Speaker 1: would you prefer a clean ending? If the Lakers are like,

586
00:30:40,640 --> 00:30:42,520
Speaker 1: ye know, we're not bringing you back. How do you

587
00:30:42,520 --> 00:30:44,520
Speaker 1: think it ends? And how do you want it to end?

588
00:30:45,960 --> 00:30:48,960
Speaker 5: I believe the story is kind of run out, and

589
00:30:49,480 --> 00:30:52,400
Speaker 5: you're already seeing signs of it. I know you famously

590
00:30:52,480 --> 00:30:55,760
Speaker 5: talked about worrying when the guy gets really into golf.

591
00:30:56,200 --> 00:30:59,120
Speaker 5: I saw it reported that Lebron got a track man

592
00:30:59,720 --> 00:31:01,800
Speaker 5: in his house. For people who don't know what that is.

593
00:31:02,480 --> 00:31:05,640
Speaker 5: That's this thing that shows you exactly how hard and

594
00:31:05,680 --> 00:31:08,040
Speaker 5: where you're hitting a golf ball, and how you're hitting

595
00:31:08,040 --> 00:31:12,080
Speaker 5: a golf ball. That's often a sign that the mind

596
00:31:12,360 --> 00:31:17,040
Speaker 5: is on something other than the hard woods. So it

597
00:31:17,040 --> 00:31:20,280
Speaker 5: almost seems like he's spiritually he's spiritually removed from it.

598
00:31:20,360 --> 00:31:23,000
Speaker 5: But then you've got this other thing happening, which, again,

599
00:31:23,040 --> 00:31:24,240
Speaker 5: the money is so big.

600
00:31:24,400 --> 00:31:26,360
Speaker 3: I'm not saying Lebron's motivated by money.

601
00:31:26,360 --> 00:31:28,320
Speaker 5: He clearly has a ton of money, but it has

602
00:31:28,360 --> 00:31:31,480
Speaker 5: gotten to this point column where you're walking away from

603
00:31:31,760 --> 00:31:34,120
Speaker 5: you know, sixty seventy million dollars a year.

604
00:31:34,280 --> 00:31:35,479
Speaker 3: That's that's not nothing.

605
00:31:35,880 --> 00:31:39,200
Speaker 5: So I kind of wonder with some of these older players,

606
00:31:39,800 --> 00:31:42,400
Speaker 5: some of these millennial players in the NBA, if they're

607
00:31:42,440 --> 00:31:45,160
Speaker 5: all going to stick around a little too long, because

608
00:31:45,160 --> 00:31:48,080
Speaker 5: it's hard to walk away from this amount of money,

609
00:31:48,480 --> 00:31:50,560
Speaker 5: and it's already hard to just say goodbye to the

610
00:31:50,600 --> 00:31:51,640
Speaker 5: sport that you're used to.

611
00:31:51,800 --> 00:31:53,320
Speaker 3: So I think that one's tough.

612
00:31:53,400 --> 00:31:56,720
Speaker 5: I'd expect him to at least do another year, get

613
00:31:56,760 --> 00:32:00,800
Speaker 5: the farewell tour. Lebron likes attention, that's my expectation. I

614
00:32:00,800 --> 00:32:02,440
Speaker 5: think it would be better and cleaner of be in it.

615
00:32:02,480 --> 00:32:04,720
Speaker 5: And now, like you said, but I think we're getting

616
00:32:04,720 --> 00:32:05,840
Speaker 5: at least one more season.

617
00:32:06,600 --> 00:32:08,400
Speaker 1: Oh, I you know, I didn't have this written down,

618
00:32:08,440 --> 00:32:13,160
Speaker 1: or maybe I did. I love your macro take on this.

619
00:32:13,360 --> 00:32:17,560
Speaker 1: So if the Dodgers, my take is the outrage for

620
00:32:17,600 --> 00:32:21,280
Speaker 1: the Dodgers signing Kyle Tucker is based on the Dodgers

621
00:32:21,560 --> 00:32:25,360
Speaker 1: winning Game seven and they start now they're stacking trophies

622
00:32:25,400 --> 00:32:28,120
Speaker 1: in succession. We don't like that. We didn't love the

623
00:32:28,160 --> 00:32:31,720
Speaker 1: Tush push. It was outrageous and needed to be banned.

624
00:32:32,480 --> 00:32:35,320
Speaker 1: And then the Eagles went belly up this last year,

625
00:32:35,400 --> 00:32:38,280
Speaker 1: and nobody cares about the Tush push, right. They weren't

626
00:32:38,280 --> 00:32:40,440
Speaker 1: as good at it. The team isn't as good. We

627
00:32:40,560 --> 00:32:45,480
Speaker 1: don't like separation. We watched dynasties, but sometimes we resent them.

628
00:32:45,760 --> 00:32:49,200
Speaker 1: And my take is the Kyle Tucker, who the Cubs

629
00:32:49,200 --> 00:32:50,480
Speaker 1: couldn't get rid of fast.

630
00:32:50,320 --> 00:32:52,400
Speaker 3: Enough, drew all this outrage.

631
00:32:53,440 --> 00:32:57,080
Speaker 1: The Yankees and the Mets and the Blue Jays are

632
00:32:57,080 --> 00:33:00,480
Speaker 1: often out spending the Dodgers, but the Mets aren't unwell,

633
00:33:00,800 --> 00:33:03,200
Speaker 1: the Yankees don't care as much, and the Blue Jays

634
00:33:03,200 --> 00:33:05,520
Speaker 1: don't have a title, and that a lot of this

635
00:33:05,560 --> 00:33:09,479
Speaker 1: with the Dodgers isn't the spending. It's that now that

636
00:33:09,520 --> 00:33:13,520
Speaker 1: they put them back to back Kyle Tucker, who's not

637
00:33:13,880 --> 00:33:16,480
Speaker 1: but Milkie Betts, who's not Freddy Freeman, who's not close

638
00:33:16,520 --> 00:33:22,640
Speaker 1: to Otani. We're bothered by the titles, not necessarily the acquisition,

639
00:33:22,800 --> 00:33:28,600
Speaker 1: and I don't think baseball should have a salary cap. Mets, Cubs, Astros, Dodgers, Padres,

640
00:33:28,640 --> 00:33:33,360
Speaker 1: they're all interesting, small market Seattle, Cleveland. Interesting. Where do

641
00:33:33,440 --> 00:33:38,080
Speaker 1: you land on this, this labor stoppage that is imminent

642
00:33:38,800 --> 00:33:40,719
Speaker 1: because of the Kyle Tucker signing.

643
00:33:41,800 --> 00:33:43,560
Speaker 5: I'm one hundred percent with you on this, and it

644
00:33:43,600 --> 00:33:46,720
Speaker 5: reminds me of something from my career as a beat writer.

645
00:33:47,320 --> 00:33:50,680
Speaker 5: People they almost forget about this, but do you remember

646
00:33:51,240 --> 00:33:55,600
Speaker 5: when the Warriors added to Marcus Cousins one summer and

647
00:33:55,640 --> 00:34:01,160
Speaker 5: how everybody flipped out. Indeed, it in inspired the NBA

648
00:34:01,240 --> 00:34:05,479
Speaker 5: owners to restructure the CBA to punish the Warriors and

649
00:34:05,560 --> 00:34:08,560
Speaker 5: prevent this stacking of talent. You know what DeMarcus Cousins

650
00:34:08,560 --> 00:34:13,680
Speaker 5: did for the Warriors absolutely nothing, absolutely nothing. He frustrated

651
00:34:13,680 --> 00:34:17,640
Speaker 5: Steve Kerr even more than Jonathan Kaminga. It wasn't anything

652
00:34:17,719 --> 00:34:20,759
Speaker 5: for them, But because of that impression that they were

653
00:34:20,920 --> 00:34:25,040
Speaker 5: unbeatable and had such a massive edge, people flipped out

654
00:34:25,080 --> 00:34:25,400
Speaker 5: about it.

655
00:34:25,400 --> 00:34:26,840
Speaker 3: And I think it's the same with the Dodgers.

656
00:34:26,880 --> 00:34:29,440
Speaker 5: I think it's been great for baseball that the Dodgers

657
00:34:29,480 --> 00:34:32,319
Speaker 5: are a recognizable brand and that they've been winning, and

658
00:34:32,360 --> 00:34:34,600
Speaker 5: I don't think that their victory is as assured as

659
00:34:34,640 --> 00:34:37,640
Speaker 5: people think it is. Baseball still got a lot of randomness,

660
00:34:37,960 --> 00:34:40,680
Speaker 5: a lot of randomness. They almost lost that game seven,

661
00:34:40,719 --> 00:34:44,440
Speaker 5: like you said. And look, I think it's better for

662
00:34:44,520 --> 00:34:48,400
Speaker 5: the MLB that the Dodgers are competitive than these weird

663
00:34:48,440 --> 00:34:52,640
Speaker 5: world series like the Rangers versus the Diamondbacks. With apologies

664
00:34:52,680 --> 00:34:54,719
Speaker 5: to fans of those teams, I think it's been great

665
00:34:54,719 --> 00:34:57,239
Speaker 5: for the MLB. And this is one of these situations

666
00:34:57,239 --> 00:35:01,160
Speaker 5: to bring this whole conversation full circle. The NBA screwed

667
00:35:01,239 --> 00:35:04,640
Speaker 5: up their whole draft lottery system, where the petty resentments

668
00:35:04,680 --> 00:35:08,200
Speaker 5: of owners get in the way of the best product

669
00:35:08,480 --> 00:35:10,200
Speaker 5: for everybody and for the fans.

670
00:35:11,000 --> 00:35:13,920
Speaker 1: Ethan Strauss. He does such a great job as Substack.

671
00:35:14,880 --> 00:35:18,200
Speaker 1: Read that every time one's out his podcast, The House

672
00:35:18,239 --> 00:35:24,040
Speaker 1: of Strauss covers everything Big Thinker. And football season's over,

673
00:35:24,160 --> 00:35:26,279
Speaker 1: we have to work a little harder. There's not as

674
00:35:26,360 --> 00:35:28,960
Speaker 1: much juice out there in material and content. Your stuff

675
00:35:29,000 --> 00:35:33,200
Speaker 1: remains just viable and interesting and good sceneing again.

676
00:35:34,080 --> 00:35:36,320
Speaker 3: Oh great, senior, Colin love being here.

677
00:35:36,440 --> 00:35:39,200
Speaker 1: All right, Ethan Strauss. If I'm going to go on

678
00:35:39,239 --> 00:35:41,839
Speaker 1: a forty five Minute Walk. That's one of the podcasts

679
00:35:41,880 --> 00:35:44,800
Speaker 1: I put in always makes me think, Yeah, the baseball

680
00:35:44,800 --> 00:35:48,120
Speaker 1: thing pictures Catchers report this week Dodgers today is I

681
00:35:48,239 --> 00:35:51,160
Speaker 1: remember the DeMarcus Cousin signed with the Warriors, and it's

682
00:35:51,200 --> 00:35:54,239
Speaker 1: all this. Listen right now. The Yankees are relevant, the

683
00:35:54,320 --> 00:35:58,040
Speaker 1: Mets are relevant, the Phillies are relevant, the Cubs are relevant,

684
00:35:58,080 --> 00:36:03,200
Speaker 1: the Dodgers are relevant, the Podreys are relevant. The Astros,

685
00:36:03,239 --> 00:36:06,040
Speaker 1: if they're healthy, will be in small market Cleveland and

686
00:36:06,080 --> 00:36:08,600
Speaker 1: small market Seattle, though though I don't think of Seattle

687
00:36:08,600 --> 00:36:11,480
Speaker 1: a small market. Were excellent last year, and that could

688
00:36:11,480 --> 00:36:14,640
Speaker 1: be wrong on this one. In Baltimore really good. You know,

689
00:36:14,760 --> 00:36:16,799
Speaker 1: everybody looks at well, what about Saint Louis, Well, the

690
00:36:16,800 --> 00:36:18,200
Speaker 1: economy in Saint Louis has died.

691
00:36:18,480 --> 00:36:19,480
Speaker 3: Is that LA's fault.

692
00:36:20,280 --> 00:36:24,440
Speaker 1: You don't build leagues to protect the bottom eight teams.

693
00:36:25,200 --> 00:36:28,040
Speaker 1: You should build teams for the middle class and above.

694
00:36:28,880 --> 00:36:33,080
Speaker 1: And like networks, ESPN and Fox have no responsibility or

695
00:36:33,200 --> 00:36:37,000
Speaker 1: NBC to air the bottom twelve teams. The television ratings

696
00:36:37,040 --> 00:36:40,280
Speaker 1: are up nationally, why because you're airing these really stacked

697
00:36:40,360 --> 00:36:45,239
Speaker 1: excellent teams. So, for the record, Milwaukee was great last year.

698
00:36:45,320 --> 00:36:48,319
Speaker 1: Seattle was great. Last year, Cleveland was great. Last year,

699
00:36:49,040 --> 00:36:54,960
Speaker 1: Big market DC wasn't. The Mets underwhelmed. So it's and

700
00:36:55,000 --> 00:36:57,760
Speaker 1: there's also, as Ethan said, there's so much randomness in baseball.

701
00:36:57,760 --> 00:37:00,000
Speaker 3: Dodgers couldn't keep pictures healthy for two years.

702
00:37:00,440 --> 00:37:03,359
Speaker 1: And if not for Dave Johnson in one of the

703
00:37:03,400 --> 00:37:09,560
Speaker 1: craziest games evers ever, pulling every right lever I mean substituting,

704
00:37:10,000 --> 00:37:15,320
Speaker 1: you know, an infielder who hadn't been hitting. Dave Roberts

705
00:37:15,360 --> 00:37:18,600
Speaker 1: Excuse me, I mean literally Dave Roberts pulled every stink

706
00:37:18,640 --> 00:37:21,160
Speaker 1: and lever in Game seven, and they all just.

707
00:37:21,320 --> 00:37:24,520
Speaker 3: Happened to work. There was a randomness to it.

708
00:37:25,480 --> 00:37:28,080
Speaker 1: That's why the Dodgers won the World Series because, and

709
00:37:28,160 --> 00:37:32,239
Speaker 1: I think if Dodger fans were truly honest, the more

710
00:37:32,280 --> 00:37:35,719
Speaker 1: consistent team at the plate was Toronto. I mean, for

711
00:37:35,800 --> 00:37:37,920
Speaker 1: a lot of that series, I felt Toronto was the

712
00:37:37,960 --> 00:37:41,760
Speaker 1: better team. When I had runners on or big spots

713
00:37:41,800 --> 00:37:44,480
Speaker 1: at the plate, I trusted Toronto's bats more than I

714
00:37:44,480 --> 00:37:48,719
Speaker 1: did the Dodgers. And it just so happens the randomness

715
00:37:48,800 --> 00:37:51,000
Speaker 1: kind of worked in the dodgers favor.

716
00:37:51,200 --> 00:37:54,279
Speaker 2: One more heard the Herd streams twenty four hours a day,

717
00:37:54,360 --> 00:37:57,560
Speaker 2: seven days a week. Within the iHeartRadio app, search Herd

718
00:37:57,600 --> 00:38:00,560
Speaker 2: to listen live or on demand whenever you like.

719
00:38:01,200 --> 00:38:02,719
Speaker 1: Well, as many of you, you know, I am a

720
00:38:02,719 --> 00:38:03,920
Speaker 1: hopeless romantic.

721
00:38:04,239 --> 00:38:06,600
Speaker 3: I'm going to play. Valentine's Day is tomorrow.

722
00:38:06,640 --> 00:38:11,480
Speaker 1: I'm gonna play matchmaker teams that need a quarterback and

723
00:38:11,640 --> 00:38:15,839
Speaker 1: quarterbacks who are available. John, set me up. Here we

724
00:38:15,920 --> 00:38:18,120
Speaker 1: go on the eve of Valentine's Day.

725
00:38:18,400 --> 00:38:22,440
Speaker 8: Okay, Colin, who are you pairing with Kevin O'Connell and

726
00:38:22,480 --> 00:38:23,560
Speaker 8: the Minnesota Vikings.

727
00:38:23,760 --> 00:38:26,279
Speaker 1: Well, the Vikings are ready to win now with their personnel,

728
00:38:26,400 --> 00:38:30,000
Speaker 1: I would go get Aaron Rodgers. Aaron, will you be

729
00:38:30,120 --> 00:38:34,320
Speaker 1: my schalmate? I think it works. First of all, JJ

730
00:38:34,440 --> 00:38:38,440
Speaker 1: McCarthy's going into year three. It is beyond durability issues.

731
00:38:38,840 --> 00:38:42,080
Speaker 1: It's little stuff, it's big stuff. You can't depend on him.

732
00:38:42,160 --> 00:38:45,440
Speaker 1: You got Justin Jefferson, an elite left tackle. Minnesota's got

733
00:38:45,440 --> 00:38:48,760
Speaker 1: good players, an excellent head coach. Minnesota's got an elite

734
00:38:48,760 --> 00:38:53,360
Speaker 1: defensive coordinator. By the way, Chicago's getting better, Green Bays better,

735
00:38:53,840 --> 00:38:57,680
Speaker 1: the Lions solved their offensive coordinator issues. You could be

736
00:38:57,760 --> 00:39:01,520
Speaker 1: in fourth place very quickly with another JJ McCarthy injury.

737
00:39:01,880 --> 00:39:02,560
Speaker 3: I'd go get.

738
00:39:02,440 --> 00:39:06,560
Speaker 8: Aaron Okay, Colin new GM, new coach, who are repairing

739
00:39:06,600 --> 00:39:07,480
Speaker 8: with the Dolphins.

740
00:39:08,760 --> 00:39:12,399
Speaker 1: I would retain. I would stay with Tua for one

741
00:39:12,440 --> 00:39:15,640
Speaker 1: more year. He's under contract. Nobody's gonna buy it out.

742
00:39:16,239 --> 00:39:19,920
Speaker 1: It's sort of fantastic, right for a year he's got

743
00:39:20,000 --> 00:39:23,480
Speaker 1: he's got an out after next season. The Dolphins can

744
00:39:23,600 --> 00:39:27,640
Speaker 1: go big game hunting in a year. But John, he's

745
00:39:27,640 --> 00:39:28,760
Speaker 1: good enough to win games.

746
00:39:28,800 --> 00:39:29,080
Speaker 4: Now.

747
00:39:29,520 --> 00:39:33,680
Speaker 1: There's limitations on the market he has. There's a new GM.

748
00:39:33,880 --> 00:39:36,840
Speaker 1: There's no reason to commit unless you could get a

749
00:39:36,920 --> 00:39:41,200
Speaker 1: Fernando Mendoza. There's no real reason that Steven Ross in

750
00:39:41,239 --> 00:39:45,000
Speaker 1: this organization could commit. They have some roster rebuilding to

751
00:39:45,080 --> 00:39:48,840
Speaker 1: do before they worry about the quarterback too, is expensive,

752
00:39:48,920 --> 00:39:49,840
Speaker 1: he doesn't have a market.

753
00:39:49,880 --> 00:39:50,719
Speaker 3: I'd stay with him.

754
00:39:50,960 --> 00:39:53,120
Speaker 8: Okay, we have a new sheriff in town. Who are

755
00:39:53,160 --> 00:39:54,799
Speaker 8: we pairing with the Steelers?

756
00:39:55,400 --> 00:39:58,759
Speaker 1: Okay, this one makes sense to me. I would go

757
00:39:58,800 --> 00:40:00,560
Speaker 1: get Malik Willis.

758
00:40:00,640 --> 00:40:03,799
Speaker 3: Okay. McCarthy has a connection to Green Bay. He's going

759
00:40:03,880 --> 00:40:04,600
Speaker 3: to have intel.

760
00:40:05,480 --> 00:40:09,160
Speaker 1: Also, the Steeters need to get younger and more athletic.

761
00:40:09,360 --> 00:40:10,320
Speaker 3: Malik Willis.

762
00:40:10,400 --> 00:40:12,239
Speaker 1: I mean there are people in the building and people

763
00:40:12,280 --> 00:40:13,840
Speaker 1: out of the building that are saying he's better than

764
00:40:13,920 --> 00:40:16,640
Speaker 1: Jordan Love. I don't think so, but he is electric.

765
00:40:17,000 --> 00:40:19,880
Speaker 1: He played very well in Green Bay. McCarthy has a

766
00:40:20,000 --> 00:40:23,440
Speaker 1: history of getting the best out of quarterbacks despite the

767
00:40:23,480 --> 00:40:26,960
Speaker 1: criticism he gets. He's got that connection. I mean, let's

768
00:40:27,000 --> 00:40:30,400
Speaker 1: face it, with Aaron, Aaron to the best job possible.

769
00:40:30,680 --> 00:40:33,160
Speaker 1: But do you really think Aaron and Mike McCarthy. I mean,

770
00:40:33,239 --> 00:40:35,680
Speaker 1: McCarthy's went and hired a new staff. One of them

771
00:40:35,680 --> 00:40:38,040
Speaker 1: doesn't really see eye to eye with Aaron. It doesn't

772
00:40:38,040 --> 00:40:41,120
Speaker 1: feel like an ideal fit. I think Malik Willis works

773
00:40:41,120 --> 00:40:41,360
Speaker 1: for me.

774
00:40:41,680 --> 00:40:44,080
Speaker 8: Okay, Colin, this could be a team fresh off of

775
00:40:44,160 --> 00:40:47,320
Speaker 8: divorce looking for love who are repairing with the Cardinals.

776
00:40:47,560 --> 00:40:47,880
Speaker 3: Okay.

777
00:40:47,880 --> 00:40:50,480
Speaker 1: I think Kyler Murray has served his time. There's not

778
00:40:50,560 --> 00:40:53,919
Speaker 1: a good vibe with ownership and Kyler Murray. I like him.

779
00:40:54,200 --> 00:40:56,440
Speaker 1: I'm in the minority. I would move him out and

780
00:40:56,480 --> 00:41:00,560
Speaker 1: eat his contract. I would go do what on Peyton

781
00:41:00,560 --> 00:41:03,320
Speaker 1: and the Denver Broncos did. I would eat the contract.

782
00:41:03,320 --> 00:41:05,600
Speaker 1: They just wanted Russell Wilson out of the building. We're

783
00:41:05,600 --> 00:41:07,440
Speaker 1: going to reach a little bit on bow Nicks. It

784
00:41:07,480 --> 00:41:09,280
Speaker 1: was viewed as a reach by many in the league.

785
00:41:09,800 --> 00:41:12,640
Speaker 1: I would not take Ty Simpson from Bama at three.

786
00:41:13,360 --> 00:41:16,319
Speaker 1: I would trade down to ten, eleven, twelve. I'm much

787
00:41:16,360 --> 00:41:21,400
Speaker 1: more comfortable if I can accumulate more picks. Okay, if

788
00:41:21,400 --> 00:41:23,600
Speaker 1: I can get a fourth or a fifth and move

789
00:41:23,680 --> 00:41:26,960
Speaker 1: down from three to ten or twelve, then I'll reach

790
00:41:27,600 --> 00:41:31,040
Speaker 1: on Ty Simpson. And for the record, you got a

791
00:41:31,080 --> 00:41:34,799
Speaker 1: young offensive coach, Jacoby Brissett. He may not be able

792
00:41:34,800 --> 00:41:37,480
Speaker 1: to beat him out, but you'll know in a year

793
00:41:37,800 --> 00:41:41,120
Speaker 1: from practice in some play whether you should go for

794
00:41:41,200 --> 00:41:44,560
Speaker 1: another quarterback or keep the kid. But if you think

795
00:41:44,600 --> 00:41:47,200
Speaker 1: he's got the ability to be your starter, get him

796
00:41:47,239 --> 00:41:51,160
Speaker 1: in house. Former Rams assistant, work on him for a year.

797
00:41:51,719 --> 00:41:52,000
Speaker 3: Listen.

798
00:41:52,440 --> 00:41:55,040
Speaker 1: It's not a great situation. But I do think occasionally

799
00:41:55,719 --> 00:41:58,720
Speaker 1: with Russell Wilson and Kyler Murray, and this has happened before.

800
00:41:59,160 --> 00:42:02,080
Speaker 1: I think it's just the locker room needs to be cleared.

801
00:42:02,239 --> 00:42:04,200
Speaker 1: You eat the contract to Kyler for a year.

802
00:42:04,920 --> 00:42:07,120
Speaker 8: Well, this is a team that once got famously left

803
00:42:07,120 --> 00:42:09,240
Speaker 8: at the altar right before the start of the season.

804
00:42:09,320 --> 00:42:11,560
Speaker 8: They've been looking for love ever since. Colin, who are

805
00:42:11,600 --> 00:42:12,680
Speaker 8: you pairing with the Colts?

806
00:42:13,000 --> 00:42:15,120
Speaker 1: I think Riley Leonard let him play for a year.

807
00:42:15,560 --> 00:42:17,560
Speaker 1: I liked him more than most people out of Notre Dame.

808
00:42:17,600 --> 00:42:19,640
Speaker 1: He had one start last year. The Texans rested a

809
00:42:19,680 --> 00:42:22,839
Speaker 1: lot of starters. Shane Steichen will get the most out

810
00:42:22,840 --> 00:42:25,440
Speaker 1: of anybody now. They gave up first round picks for

811
00:42:25,480 --> 00:42:28,560
Speaker 1: Sauce Gardner, so I wouldn't be giving up picks to

812
00:42:28,600 --> 00:42:31,000
Speaker 1: move up play the kid. I don't want to commit

813
00:42:31,040 --> 00:42:32,200
Speaker 1: long term to Daniel.

814
00:42:32,000 --> 00:42:33,960
Speaker 3: Jones, who were pairing with the Jets.

815
00:42:34,640 --> 00:42:37,880
Speaker 1: I would take greg Nessmeyer LSU quarterback in the second round.

816
00:42:38,160 --> 00:42:40,279
Speaker 1: Not because I think he's going to be amazing, but

817
00:42:40,440 --> 00:42:42,480
Speaker 1: Justin Fields gets hurt. This is going to be a

818
00:42:42,600 --> 00:42:46,040
Speaker 1: terrible team. Whether he's a starter or a backup. I

819
00:42:46,040 --> 00:42:48,560
Speaker 1: think he's absolutely at some point at least a spot

820
00:42:48,640 --> 00:42:51,000
Speaker 1: starter or a bridge starter. I'd get him in the building.

821
00:42:51,480 --> 00:42:54,239
Speaker 8: Well, Cleveland ever find a quarterback?

822
00:42:54,880 --> 00:42:57,239
Speaker 1: Well, I'm going to be a matchmaker here. I should

823
00:42:57,280 --> 00:42:59,440
Speaker 1: do or do love having you as a friend. I

824
00:42:59,440 --> 00:43:01,239
Speaker 1: would keep Schador Sanders.

825
00:43:01,560 --> 00:43:01,960
Speaker 3: Why not?

826
00:43:02,440 --> 00:43:06,000
Speaker 1: They're still stuck with the Shawn Watsons contract. I think

827
00:43:06,040 --> 00:43:10,080
Speaker 1: he's entertaining MERT sales interest. I like watching him play.

828
00:43:10,640 --> 00:43:13,760
Speaker 1: I'd give him another year. You're not a title team anyway.

829
00:43:13,960 --> 00:43:15,720
Speaker 1: Strongest opinion on my match.

830
00:43:15,600 --> 00:43:16,840
Speaker 5: Made you know.

831
00:43:17,239 --> 00:43:19,760
Speaker 8: I think you left out a name. Derek Carr. Rumors

832
00:43:19,760 --> 00:43:22,319
Speaker 8: have been circulating about him making comeback. I think he

833
00:43:22,440 --> 00:43:26,760
Speaker 8: makes sense Minnesota, Indianapolis, two Dome teams, I mean Aaron Rodgers.

834
00:43:26,840 --> 00:43:29,040
Speaker 8: There's no guarantee. He might just stay in Malibu, col

835
00:43:29,120 --> 00:43:32,719
Speaker 8: and work the beaches. Derek Carr, Shanstike, and Kevin O'Connell.

836
00:43:32,960 --> 00:43:35,640
Speaker 8: I think he'd be an upgrade for both franchises. Inside

837
00:43:35,840 --> 00:43:36,680
Speaker 8: makes some sense to me