Jason McIntyre (5:48)

We.

Colin Cowherd (5:48)

We believe that we play with a lot of heart and a lot of passion for the game, and then we win football games. And if winning football games makes you a villain, we're going to go keep going out there and doing it. Now, listen, I have been vocal against the Chiefs on this show. I'm not a huge fan of this dynasty. However, I need to be honest with you guys. I'm gonna keep it real. They are a likable team. Andy Reid. Who's more likable than Andy Reid? I mean, he looks like your neighbor. You're going on vacation. You go, hey, Andy, how you doing, bud? Hey, you know, he's got this jolly look, the big mustache. Hey, I'm going on vacation. Do you think you could, like, take out my trash cans and then bring them back in? Oh, yeah, no problem, Jay. I got that. That's how Andy. Those are the vibes he gives off, right? You've got. You've seen the memes of, like, the Kool Aid man and Andy Reid. He looks like Santa Claus. Who doesn't like Andy Reid? Bill Belichick was this curmudgeon. He was angry at the podium, just unfriendly. Not chatty, but wore that ratty hoodie with the holes in it. Joked about social media without trying to be funny. Never cracked a smile like Andy Reid. Much more likable than Belichick. Now, Tom Brady, obviously very likable. You know, cool guy. Ladies loved him. You wanted to be friends with him. Same thing with Patrick Mahomes. And listen, I don't follow a ton of athletes on Instagram, but I follow Mahomes. He's a likable dude. He's got a wife, he's got kids. He seems like a normal guy, right? They're actually likable. So why are they villains? And again, I'm not calling them villains. I just don't really like their dominance. I'm ready for new teams, but if you watch how they play, they're a fun, good football team, right? They've got less fun since they lost Tyreek Hill. And they're a little less explosive. Team started going to the two high safeties to take away the big plays, and then it's death by seven yard, Patrick Mahomes scrambles or Isaac Pacheco carries. The reason I'm out on them. And again, okay, this is maybe just me is this whole referee thing they get. And again, I'm not saying it's rigged. They do get a lot of calls. Every pivotal play involving a Chiefs game, guys, no lie. You're watching. The play ends and you're looking around. Where's the flag? Is there a flag? Oh, no flag. Wow. It just feels like on every pivotal third or fourth down play, somehow it goes the Chief's way. And I know everybody wants to say, hey, that's, that's. They're buttoned up. And guys, every good team is buttoned up, okay? They've had coaching changes like the rest of the league at offensive coordinator. They've had guys shuffling on the offensive line, the defense, they've had a lot of changes. And this whole villain label is interesting because I'm going to be honest with you. If the Eagles pull this off, as I think they will, are the Chiefs still villains or are they only villains that they win? I just think it's good food for thought. And I thought that was fascinating from Patrick Mahomes last night. All right, now I want to pivot to the NBA and this story I'm kind of sort of obsessed with. So not to give you too much of a peek behind the curtain, but our morning meeting, you know, they got all these stories that are percolating. I'll throw out an idea. People will bat around topics. Sometimes they agree, sometimes they don't. This one. Oh, man, I love this story. Okay, so we all know that the player empowerment era in the NBA has been going strong for 15ish years. Quick history note it. It didn't totally start with LeBron, although it kind of did. So LeBron, if you go back to, I believe it's 2006 beats up, or maybe 2007, beats the Detroit Pistons in that heroic series where he just goes nuclear, takes them down gets the young Cavs to the finals. He basically, if you look at that Cavs roster, he dragged, like, the equivalent of my men's basketball team to the finals. They get swept by the spurs, but it was LeBron against the world. And Danny Ainge in Boston saw that and very quickly realized, ain't nobody stopping LeBron. He's too good. This guy's about to take over the league. So the Celtics went out and got their own super team. They built the first super team. Let's bring on Kevin Garnett. We got. We got Pierce. Let's bring on Ray Allen. And they had their super team. They took down LeBron. So a couple years later, LeBron's like, shucks, Cavs can't build me a super team. I'm going to create my own super team. And he did that in Miami, ushering in the player empowerment era. And for about the last 15 years, NBA players around the league, hey, you know what? I kind of want to play with that superstar. Come on over and hey, owner, I want the max deal. And then five minutes later, I want out of here. The players controlled the league. They ran everything. It was. It was all players teaming up, players calling the shots. The owners were kind of beholden to the superstars. It's a superstar league. A funny thing happened over the weekend, okay? Luka Doncic got traded. And the reaction was universally, who the hell trades Luka Doncic? It can't just be because the GM and Michael Finley is assisted. GM thought that Luca was like, you know, fat and out of shape and didn't want to grind. You gotta. You gotta run that by the owner, right? You can't just trade Luka Doncic. And it really shook up the league. And 24 hours later, guess what? De'Aaron Fox, he got shipped to San Antonio. Zach Levine, who apparently was. Wasn't going to get traded anywhere. He goes to Sacramento. Owners, it's almost like they've had it. They've had it with the player empowerment era. And I'm sure you guys have seen that movie, Captain Phillips, right? It has Tom Hanks as he's like, you know, the captain of a cargo liner. It gets overtaken by Somali pirates. And at one point in the movie, and you could go watch this on YouTube, you know, they're like, who's the captain? And Tom Hanks is like, I'm the captain. This is my ship. And this guy goes, no, no, no. Look me in my eyes. I'm the captain now. I'm the captain. It feels like the owners are looking their star players in the eye and saying, no more player empowerment. I'm running the show. This is my show. I'm the billionaire now. And if Luka Doncic could get created, shucks, anybody could get traded. Anybody could get traded. I'll get you to the big name who's starting to percolate now in a second. But I bring up this. This player empowerment stuff because one of the guys in the morning meeting said something I just totally forgot about. So last year, the Timberwolves go to the conference finals, and. And I. I get all these guys on social media saying, jason, stop with the Karl Anthony Towns to New York. It's not happening. I've been saying this for, like, three years. We knew he wanted to go to New York, and this guy made, like, a friendly bet with me on social media. I bet you he doesn't get traded now. They went to the conference finals, and I was like, I'll just stick with my prediction. Even though they went to the conference finals, folks, did we forget Minnesota was in the conference finals and just traded away their second best player? Now, why is that? Well, you could say they're not a great fit, but they went to the conference finals. It's because the owner didn't want to pay that luxury tax that they were going to be in for because Carl Anthony Towns, his salary, and Gobert and Anthony Edwards, it's like, holy cow, they traded away Carl Anthony Towns. And that was kind of glossed over at the time. But Dallas, the real reason that's coming out, that they didn't want to pay Luka Doncic. They traded him. They didn't want to pay him 345 million because it's tough to build around one guy making that much money. As a side note, NFL owners take note. Quarterbacks, they're headed in this direction. You know, it's happening. We saw it with Dak Prescott. He got paid. How'd the Mavericks do? Sorry. Had the Cowboy. The Cancun Cowboys, as I'm told they're called now. How did they do? So just file that away. NFL, what's happening in the NBA is these owners are like, these salaries are out of control. We're not winning paying all these guys all the money. Let's go trade Luka Doncic. And I'll wrap up with this, because this is the other name that emerged here in the last 24 hours, and that's Kevin Durant. Kevin Durant was in Brooklyn, said, get me the hell out of here. I'd like to go to Phoenix. Okay, yes, yes, Kevin, we got you. We'll let you go to Phoenix. And Kevin Durant is now sitting in Phoenix. Everybody's waiting for Bradley Beal to get traded, but it doesn't look like it's going to happen. And as a result, Phoenix, sitting 10th in the west, they could miss the playoffs, miss the play in. And all of a sudden we're starting to hear, oh, everybody's calling about Kevin Durant. And you have to, if you're the young owner in Phoenix, how, how do we get better? We might have to trade Kevin Durant. We might have to get off our second best player because you know what? We can't miss the playoffs and pay a massive luxury tax bill because of the salaries and folks, unbelievably. Dwyane Wade kind of sort of addressed this this week on the the why podcast. Here's his take on why Luca was traded.

Jason McIntyre (14:32)

This was billionaire business. Yes, this was at the top. This was. This was the last two to 15 years. The players have decided. Right.

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What we want to do.

Jason McIntyre (14:42)

This was the owners, the governors, the billionaires deciding what they want to do. So you got the top international player in la. So the viewership, the, the, the ticket sales, everybody, Europe, Spain, they all coming in to la. We know how this. So I'm looking at the business and I'm like, yo, hold up. This was an amazing business decision by billionaires. Yes. Sure to say, this is what I want for now and this is what we need as a league.

Colin Cowherd (15:11)

You guys remember when Ohtani went to the Dodgers, they paid all of the money. It was like, oh, my God, how can they afford this? Kind of worked out well, didn't it? They won the World Series. Merch sales through the roof, ticket sales spiking. They're printing money now. The Dodgers by spending money. And I wonder, did the Lakers make this move? Hey, we are set up for the future, but we just got Luka, an international superstar that's going to open a gateway to Europe for us financially. I mean, I don't know if you guys saw the reports. The Dallas Mavericks social media accounts were just hemorrhaging followers, tens of thousands. I saw a report, hundreds of thousands of followers. I don't know if it's official. They lost a lot of followers because they're out on. They traded Luca and Dwyane Wade is totally onto something here. This was a great business move. And coming up next year on the Herd, I will tell you, the next big NBA star on the move. I don't think you're going to know Kevin Durant's in the mix, but there are a couple others Keep an eye out. That's next year on the Herd.

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Bobby Bones (17:56)

Hey, it's Bobby Bones. Join me and former NFL quarterback Matt Castle every Wednesday for our new podcast, Lots to say with Bobby Bones and Matt Castle. Between us, we have over 17,500 passing yards, multiple New York Times Best Sellers sellers and one mirrorball trophy from Dancing with the Star. So where else are you gonna find a show with that much athleticism and football insight? Based in Nashville, we're more than just your basic NFL show. We talk sports, but we talk pop culture and music and a little bit everything. Because we got lots to say. I I texted you and you texted me back. Now I don't know if you have the update, but like all the little thumbs up and heart and stuff. Like, it's all colored. They changed it and the heart's a little pink. It felt like I told you I loved you. I'm going to be honest. It was a little pink.

Albert Breer (18:39)

There was something sentimental when you.

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When you send it.

Albert Breer (18:43)

It was like, do I send the heart now?

Bobby Bones (18:46)

I don't like the color edition.

Albert Breer (18:47)

It's extremely pink.

Bobby Bones (18:48)

Listen to lots to say with Bobby Bones and Matt castle on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Colin Cowherd (18:55)

Welcome back. We got Albert Breer stopping by in about 15 to 20 minutes. Albert Breer, really good guy. Really plugged in. I think he's already in New Orleans at the Super Bowl. I'm sure he'll offer us some great stuff from last night at super bowl media night, which looked like a big time party down in New Orleans. All right, let's quickly go back to the NBA. Anthony Edwards is a young, ascending star. I know this is probably the first time in the show's history we've actually mentioned the Timberwolves twice in the first hour, but Anthony Edwards, I thought he would be taking over the league. There's a new book coming out on him shortly. Anthony Edwards took the Timberwolves to the conference finals last year. Appeared to be one of these, like, face of the league guys. Very likable individual dunking machines, scorer. Everything about Anthony Edwards is awesome. But a weird thing starting to happen again. This Luka Doncic trade really shook everybody up. And this idea that nobody's safe and owners have the power and they can move off anybody. Well, Anthony Edwards saw what happened with Luka Doncic, and he talked to the media about it last night.

Jason McIntyre (20:03)

They say that none of that. Nobody knew about the trade. Yeah. So that's crazy. At 25, they traded probably the best score in the NBA. At 25, he didn't know about it. So it's a lot more digging somebody got to do to find out why he got traded. Because you don't just trade him at 25. He just went to the finals. You know what I'm saying? Everybody. Everybody getting formed. Yeah. I'm scared, Tim. Hey, if you're gonna trade me, let me know, dog. When Luca got traded, anybody is. Is able to get trained at that point.

Colin Cowherd (20:41)

I'm scared. I like that. And. And that's. It feels. It felt authentic from Anthony Edwards. Like, I'm sure he's joking. Ha ha ha. You know, one of those deals where you're looking over your shoulder a little bit. Listen, if you could Trade Luka Doncic? Why wouldn't you trade Anthony Edwards? Now, obviously, Anthony Edwards is a foundational piece in Minnesota. I would say there's 0.0% chance of him getting moved. But post Luca, maybe you've got to add like a.001 chance. Which brings me, by the way, Luca's meeting with the media. I think, like right now out here in L. A, they're doing the press conference. We'll have sound as soon as the good stuff comes out. But it got me thinking, like, who else could be moved this week? What else is happening around the league? And I touched on Kevin Durant earlier. We got like 48 hours left, folks. Kevin Durant would not surprise me at all if he got shipped. The interesting team is the Golden State Warriors. And I know some people are like, come on, they're not going to do that again. Listen, the warriors needed Kevin Durant when they got him in 2016. I don't care. I hear so many. Just goofballs. Oh, they didn't need them. They won 73 games. Hello. They lost in the finals to LeBron and Kyrie. They lost after being up 3:1. They lost the series. They needed Kevin Durant. And it's not like Kevin Durant came on to the warriors and was like, you know, riding shotgun. He was the MVP of the finals two years in a row. He was the best player on the best team in my. For my money, in NBA history. Of course the warriors needed him. Well, you know who else needs him right now? The Golden State Warriors. I'm looking at the standings. Oh, look at that. Golden State is 11th in the West. Steph Curry, 36, turns 37 later this year. Come on, guys, are we really going to waste the prime, final prime years of Steph Curry? We saw what he did in August at the Olympics. For my money, that was the greatest Sports Moment in 2024. Like Steph Curry putting. Putting everybody to sleep with the unbelievable finish at the Olympics. Spectacular. And now he's going to miss the freaking playoffs.

Jason McIntyre (22:45)

What?

Colin Cowherd (22:45)

They're. They're 11th in the West. Jimmy Butler said he doesn't want to go there because he's not going to sign long term. Which brings me to Kevin Durant. Why wouldn't the warriors say, hey, how do we get Kevin Durant? I was reading. You guys know Brian Winhorst covers the league. Probably one of the best plugged in reporters out there. He used to joke, if you have a three team trade idea, you have a no team trade idea because it's so difficult to make them work. And now he's reversed course and said, geez, with all these new salaries, I mean, the Utah Jazz got in on that Luka Doncic trade. They didn't even know about it until 30 minutes before. Hey, Jazz, by the way, you guys are taking this in the deal. You don't have to do anything. You just take this, okay? We'll take more picks. Sure. And it's like, why couldn't you figure out a way, if you're Golden State, to pry Kevin Durant away? And now the question becomes, would Kevin Durant want to go to Golden State? Does he have a choice? Hey, KD, you're with the Suns. They are currently 10th in the West. You're going to the warriors, who are 11th in the West. Why not? I mean, if you're the owner of the Phoenix Suns and you've got to make the playoffs and you've got to do something, you can't stand pat. Nobody takes Brad Beal. Why wouldn't you move off KD and get Jimmy Butler, who's a tougher defender, more of a leader? No disrespect, kd. You know I'm a fan. I don't need KD coming after me. Yes, I'll tag him when I post this. This video that Wes clips off, but don't come after me. Kd, I still think you can help the Warriors. I don't think y'all are winning a title. I don't know that you'd want to go back and play with Draymond Green, who was kind of a jerk to you many moons ago, and, you know, sucker punched Jordan Poole. And I don't know that you want to go there, but do the warriors have anything that the Heat would want? Kuminga pods, like, it becomes very difficult, but if I'm a Warriors, I'm working the phones, and I'm gonna toss this other name. Two other names in there. So number one and Anthony. You just heard Anthony Edwards say, nobody's safe. I'm just gonna mention him. Giannis and Milwaukee. The Bucks currently are fifth in the East. The Damian Lillard thing, we've given it a while. I. I don't know that it's working. I. I just don't. I don't know what the future holds for Dame in Milwaukee. Ain't nobody taking on Dame's contract. That's just not happening. You can't. It's, like, not quite Bradley Beal bad, but, you know, Dame's a better player now than Beal, but it Becomes a little onerous. And if you're the ownership group and you're looking around like, geez, we don't have a path to success, Middleton keeps getting injured. Do we just, hey, we got a title with Giannis. Do we just start over? And I know it sounds stupid, but look what the Mavericks just did with Luca. Now, Giannis, obviously less of an issue, fitness wise. Allegedly. I'm not calling Luca fat or anything, but that's. It's become clear. The Mavericks shipped him for two reasons, and out of shape and reluctance to work is one of them. There's none of that with Giannis. But you have to wonder, do the Bucs consider Shucks, Maybe. Maybe we move on from Giannis and start over and it's too late to get in the Cooper Flag sweepstakes. But it's like, I don't know. And again, I know you guys are listening. Like, come on, they're not trading Giannis. Look around the league. Towns went to the conference finals. They shipped him. Luca went to the finals, traded. Like, things are happening. The other name I'll put out there, and his name has been out in the past, including for the Lakers, although that's not happening now, is Trey Young. Trey Young, a guy who hit this league like something of a comet. Remember, he was taking the Hawks to the playoffs, took down the Knicks in msg, took down Embiid and the Sixers. Do you guys remember that? Okay, that was. Yes, I know, the Ben Simmons pass, whatever. And B was on the court at seven turnovers. Game seven. I don't want to hear it. And now the Hawks, by the way, are ninth in the East. They lost their budding star, Jalen Johnson for the season. And if you look at that roster, they're playing dudes that. And you guys know I'm a big college basketball nerd. I don't know some of these guys on their roster, and it's like, they might miss the playoffs. What's the point? And again, you know, I don't know what the market is for a small point guard like Trey Young, who really. I know he's leading the league in assists, and Barkley and Shaq love him now. Weird. The Hawks stink and they love Trey Young. Does Trey Young have a market? I don't know. But I think the Hawks have to ask themselves, what are we doing with Trey Young? We're not a playoff team anymore. We're maybe a play in team. He's not our foundational piece. Jalen Johnson is. Do we reconfigure around A guy and just shoot for the moon next year. And we move on from Trey Young. I would keep an eye on Trey Young. I would keep an eye on Giannis. And to go back to Jimmy Butler. Real quick, we have some sound from Kevin Garnett. People are fired up about this Butler thing, because I do believe it is kind of the end of the player empowerment era. And Jimmy Butler's kind of, you know, thinking he still got power and he's got no juice, and it's like failing miserably. This. The Heat keeps suspending him. Here's Kevin Garnett on the Jimmy Butler situation.

Albert Breer (27:53)

When you step out of being professional and then you step out of not.

Colin Cowherd (27:57)

You know, to your oath and holding up your end of the bargain, bro.

Jason McIntyre (28:01)

You open up for all this right here, bro.

Colin Cowherd (28:03)

This is how non guarantees are gonna.

Jason McIntyre (28:05)

Come into our league right here for like this.

Colin Cowherd (28:08)

We fought our ass off through five.

Albert Breer (28:10)

And six lockouts to get to a.

Colin Cowherd (28:12)

Point where there's no where we protect.

Albert Breer (28:15)

The integrity of the talent.

Colin Cowherd (28:17)

And then that talent has a responsibility to be professional.

Jason McIntyre (28:20)

Come in here and do your job.

Colin Cowherd (28:22)

We came here, we did our jobs. You got paid, and you home. You go home. Soon as you get opportunity to change that, you change it. Kevin Garnett very fired up about that. And listen, I have been a huge Jimmy Butler fan, essentially for the last, like, 10 years. His story is incredible. You know, had a rough family upbringing, no real offers out of high school, had to go the juco route. Ends up at Marquette. I think to sign with Marquette, he had to go to, like, a McDonald's to fax his letter of intent. Like, it was that kind of situation for Butler. It basically does nothing and then kind of pops, you know, falls in the draft a little bit and just works his way up from benchwarmer in Chicago to legitimate All Star. Ends up, like, just the gritty nature of Jimmy Butler carrying the Heat to the Finals twice. I know they didn't win a chip, but it's like, come on, man. Jimmy Butler's a warrior. I love his style of play. He doesn't take crap from anyone. You know, he's one of these. He's like a legit dog. Like, if you've got him on your team, you're going to have a chance because he's Jimmy Butler. You know, there are legendary stories about him in Minnesota when he ran into issues with the front office, and he would come into practice and say, I don't want to run with the starters. I'm going to take these four bench warmers and we're going to beat their ass. And he would then go into practice and they would win the scrimmage. Like these stories are out there. Jimmy Butler is an absolute dog and you'd think everyone would want him, but he's kind of killed his value with these actions in Miami. He thought he had the power, but the players kind of sort of have lost it. All right, coming up next here on the Herd, Luka introduced in la. Wait for what you hear about his departure from Dallas. Oh, boy. And Albert Breer live from New Orleans.

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The Herd, weekdays at noon Eastern, 9am Pacific.

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Hey, Steve Covino. And I'm Rich Davis, and together we're Covino and Rich on Fox. You can catch us weekdays from 5.

Colin Cowherd (30:16)

To 7pm Eastern, 2 to 4 Pacific.

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On Fox Sports Radio and of course, the iHeartRadio app. Why should you listen to Covino and Rich? We talk about everything, life, sports, relationships, what's going on in the world. We have a lot of fun talking about the stories behind the stories in the world of sports and pop culture, stories that, well, other shows don't seem to have the time to discuss. And the fact that we've been friends.

Albert Breer (30:37)

For the last 20 years and still.

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Work together, I mean, that says something, right? So check us out. We like to get you involved, too. Take your phone calls, chop it up, as they say. I'd say the most interactive show on Fox Sports Radio, maybe the most interactive show on planet Earth. Be sure to check out Covino and Rich live on Fox Sports radio and the iHeartradio app from 5 to 7pm Eastern, 2 to 4 Pacific. And if you miss any of the live show, just search Ko Vino and Rich wherever you get your podcast. And of course, on social media, that's Covino and Rich. You can count on T Mobile to help keep you connected from big cities to small towns on America's largest 5G network. Switch the T Mobile keep your phone and they'll pay it off up to 800 bucks per line via prepaid card. Learn more@t mobile.com heap and switch up to 4 lines via virtual prepaid card. Allow 15 days qualifying unlock device, credit service port in 90 plus days with device and eligible carrier and timely redemption required. Card has no cash access and expires in six months. Hey, it's Ryan Seacrest for Albertsons and Safeway now through February 25th. Stock up on your favorite self care items and save up to $3. Shop in store or online for items like Old Spice deodorant Always Ultra thin pads, Gillette Fusion razors and refills, Old Spice Total Body Spray, Tampax Pearl and Gillette Mach three razors and refills. And save up to $3. You won't want to miss out on these deals. Offer ends February 25th. Offers may vary. Restrictions apply. Visit albertsons or safeway.com for more details.

Bobby Bones (32:12)

Hey, it's Bobby Bones. Join me and former NFL quarterback Matt Castle every Wednesday for our new podcast, Lots to say with Bobby Bones and Matt Castle. Between us, we have over 17,500 passing yards, multiple New York Times bestsellers, and one mirror ball trophy from Dancing With a Star. So where else you going to find a show with that much athleticism and football insight? Based in Nashville, we're more than just your basic NFL show. We talk sports, but we talk pop culture and music and a little bit of everything because we got lots to say. I. I texted you and you texted me back. Now, I don't know if you have the update, but, like, all the little thumbs up and heart and stuff, like, it's all colored.

Albert Breer (32:50)

They changed it.

Bobby Bones (32:51)

And the heart. Heart's a little pink. It felt like I told you I loved you. I'm gonna be honest, it was a little pink.

Albert Breer (32:56)

There was something sentimental when you, like, when you send it, it's like, do I send the heart now?

Bobby Bones (33:02)

I don't like the color edition.

Albert Breer (33:03)

It's extremely pink.

Bobby Bones (33:05)

Listen to Lots to say with Bobby Bones and Matt Castle on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Colin Cowherd (33:11)

Hey, you guys, I'm Katherine Leg.

Jason McIntyre (33:13)

I'm a racing driver who's literally driven everything with four wheels across the planet.

Colin Cowherd (33:18)

And I've got a new podcast. It's called Throttle Therapy. This season, I'm gearing up to make.

Jason McIntyre (33:23)

History, competing in some of the world's most notorious racing events, starting at the Indy 500.

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Join me as I travel from racetrack to racetrack in my quest to continue.

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A memorable career in racing.

Colin Cowherd (33:35)

I'm also going to bring you inside stories with legends of sports, new faces from the next generation of auto racing.

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And conversations with the people who've supported me throughout my career.

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We'll be getting into everything from karting.

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To nascar, even Formula one.

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Whether you dream about being a pro athlete or an astronaut, we're talking about.

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What it takes to make it.

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Listen to Throttle Therapy with Katherine Legge.

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Colin Cowherd (34:04)

App Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Presented by Capital One, founding partner of iHeart Women's Sports. Back here on the Herd, Albert Breer, coming up in a second. But, folks, Luka Doncic just met the media in Los Angeles. Oh, boy. Oh, wait till you hear this. So Luca is very measured. He actually looks slim. I was expecting him to wear black to look skinnier, you know, like, because of all the jokes. But Luca just met with the media and oh, boy. Here's a veiled shot at the Mavs front office from Luka Doncic.

Jason McIntyre (34:39)

I'm just excited, you know, to be here, to start this new journey. And obviously, at some point, I knew this was going to happen, but I would say I always take the high road. You know, I had my amazing moments in Dallas with all my teammates, coaches, and the most importantly, the fans. You know, they always supported me, and it was. It was an amazing journey.

Colin Cowherd (35:04)

Players, coaches, fans. I knew this was going to happen. Oh, gosh, that's delicious. So I found, you know, people put stuff online and this. This came from an article that the Mavericks have, in August of 23rd, fired their player of health and performance coaching, and then they fired two other strength coaches and a therapist. And the common thread was all those guys were friendly with Luca. I know this sounds illusory to say as a guy, but some guys are just cool guys that everybody likes, you know, And I know people are laughing in the control room. Lukas just seems like a cool guy. He's friendly, he's funny. I don't know if you guys have seen some of the clips that the Mavs used to put out of him playing, like, horse or one on one. Like, everybody likes Luka Doncic. Why didn't the front office like him? That was the issue. They fired the people that liked Luka. Right. Get them out of the building. Hey, let's get some people who Luca's not tight with. And it's like, it's just very ugly in Dallas and him knowing this was going to happen and saying that, oh, that is not good. I think the clock is. If it wasn't already, the clock is ticking on Nico Harrison in. In Dallas. Hey, by the way, if they miss the playoffs, is he their GM next year? Luca also talked about playing with LeBron. He's a little excited, just like a.

Jason McIntyre (36:24)

Dream come true, you know, I always look up to him. There's so many learn. There's so many things I can learn from him, and I'm just excited, you know, just to learn everything. And now I get to play with him. So it's an amazing feeling.

Colin Cowherd (36:38)

Yeah. Very excited. All right, let's get to Albert Breer, live from New Orleans, The Monday morning quarterback.com breer, what is up? You look like you're. Where are you tucked in some. I'm at the.

Albert Breer (36:52)

No, I'm at the chief's hotel. I'm, like, outside their access. And I'm sure, like, Dave and the guys in the studio probably aren't happy about this light that's coming down on me and washing me out a little bit, but I trust you can help me fight through it. J. Mac.

Colin Cowherd (37:05)

Yes. Yes. Yes. So, Chiefs, what's the vibe around the team? You're in the hotel. Have you seen Taylor Swift? That's got to be the first question, right?

Albert Breer (37:12)

Yeah, I don't think Taylor Swift's staying at the Marriott. I might be wrong about that, but I don't think she's staying at the Marriott. No, man. Like, it's like, this is a confident group, you know, and they've been here, obviously, five times in six years now. That's unprecedented. You know, you can kind of feel with them where they really know this is a business trip. They know what to expect, and they know the ins and outs of the week and kind of the way everything goes. And so, you know, I think that's their advantage, is that they'll be able to take the stage without having to deal with a lot of the unknown that another team might. You know, whether it's the length of warmups, the length of. Of. Of of the. The introductions, a lot of the standing around, you know, during game day, the halftime show. They know, you know, how to prepare for every single piece of that, which, you know, I know they hope allows them to hit the ground running on Sunday.

Colin Cowherd (38:06)

Yeah. What do you make of this a villains comment from Patrick Mahomes? You know, we don't mind being the villains. We'll embrace it. It's weird, Albert. Like, I don't know that people hate them. I think. I think people hate their winning, but people, like, don't dis. Dislike Andy Reid or Patrick Mahomes, you know?

Albert Breer (38:24)

Yeah, I don't think that there's a hatred towards the individual people, but I do think there's a little bit of that villain thing with the way people complain about the officiating, the way. I think people have grown a little tired of them. You know, obviously, all the conversation, Taylor Swift, which. And the reality is, like, if you count up all the seconds that she's actually on TV During NFL games, is it more than, like, the owner is of the team? I mean, I. Probably not. And I think a lot more people would like to see Taylor Swift than some old rich guy up in the. Up in the box, you know, so. And I think there's a lot of, like, those sorts of elements that have existed with every dynasty. You know, the Patriots dealt with it. You're sitting there in Los Angeles. There are a lot of people who probably aren't happy about Luca winding up there and think there's some sort of conspiracy afoot. You know, it's just with teams like this that reach this sort of plateau, you have that element of it, and I actually think it's good that you embrace the villain role. It's really. They're really right about the same point in their ascent and their dynasty as the Patriots were when they took on the villain role. And I think, really, things really turned for the Patriots with Spygate, you know, and 2007 was when they went from sort of being just a really good team that was respected into this, like, kind of dark operation, you know, And I don't know the Chiefs will ever get that level of villain status, but it definitely exists to some degree, and I think it's a smart move for them all to embrace it because, you know, as long as Patrick Mahomes and Andy Reid are there now, I think that'll sort of be the way that they're looked at.

Colin Cowherd (40:00)

Here's one who's under more pressure in this Super Bowl. Patrick Mahomes or Jalen Hurts? And is there a case to be made for Mahomes because of the pressure of the three peat, which they've been talking about for basically a calendar year now? Whereas Jalen Hurts is like, I throw the ball 18 times a game. This is no big deal. I'm carrying my briefcase. This is a business trip. Is there more pressure on Mahomes here?

Albert Breer (40:24)

I don't think so. I mean, I think Mahomes. I mean, to me, I look at where the Chiefs are, and it's sort of. You're playing with house money. You know what I mean? Like, I. And I know they don't approach it that way, and I know there's history on the line and everything else, but, you know, I think Mahomes has played so well in so many of these settings that if he were to, you know, throw an interception at the end of the game, it's not going to really affect his legacy, where if you come in this near jail and hurts, you've had this is going to be your second opportunity to get there. I don't think, you know, most people would view you in that top echelon of quarterbacks where Mahomes is at the top, right underneath him, you have Josh Allen, Joe Burrow and Lamar Jackson, you know, and so I think it's sort of for, for. For Hertz. This is an opportunity to kind of elevate your legacy, elevate the way that you're looked at, elevate the way your team is looked at. There's a lot on the line, whereas I think with the Chiefs, there's probably a chance to really burnish your legacy with the three peat. But I think the way that history is going to look at you is sort of already set in stone not.

Colin Cowherd (41:27)

To get two X's and O's, but I don't know if it was Hasselbeck or Sanchez yesterday who had a good point. You know, left tackle had been an issue for the Chiefs, so they moved Tooney out. He's been great. But for the Eagles, you need interior blocking. It's paramount against, you know, their two big horses, Davis and Carter inside. Do you think the Chiefs play a little musical chairs and kick Tooney back inside?

Albert Breer (41:51)

Yeah. J. Mac, I'm glad you brought that up because I think that's one of the more underrated pieces of this game and decisions to be made in this game by Andy Reid and Matt Nagy and, you know, all the guys who work with the offensive line. That left tackle spot was a revolving door for much of the year, and it was a real problem. It's a credit to Joe Tuney, who's been one of the NFL's ultimate Ironman. He's going for his fifth ring here, you know, one two at Brady's, one two with Mahomes. For him to be able to do that and sort of stop the revolving door and stabilize, it's been amazing. But you're right to look at it like that. The Eagles have good edge guys, but they don't have a great edge guy. And they've got Jordan Davis and Jalen Carter inside. Jalen Carter during the playoffs has been a true game wrecker. Like, you could argue he really won that game at the end in the divisional round against the Rams in the snow. And so, you know, if you take Tuney and leave him at left tackle, then left guard becomes a hole and they've got the opportunity to match Jalen Carter up and create a mismatch there, and then you've got to handle that. So what do you feel more comfortable with. Do you feel more comfortable with Wanye Morris or DJ Humphries, who's been banged up but has a lot of experience at left tackle handling the edge guys, which you might still be at a disadvantage there, but a little less so? Or do you feel like you need to put Tooney out of left tackle because that's the mix that's worked, and then just help with the guards on the, on the, on the, on the, on the defensive tackles? I think it's a. It's a pivotal. I think it's a pivotal decision for the Chiefs coaches to make going into this. This game, and it'll be interesting to see what they do. And maybe it's a mix of both. You know, maybe it's a field thing where they rotate a little bit in the first quarter and then go with what's working.

Colin Cowherd (43:34)

Yeah, I like Nolan Smith on the outside against Morris all day for the Eagles, but let me, let me go. So we saw the Buffalo Bills struggle with the Tush push badly against the Chiefs. I'm just curious, do you think that was more about what the Chiefs were doing or. The Bills are just not very good at it? And I don't. It probably won't apply to the Eagles, who are great at it.

Albert Breer (43:54)

No, I think it does apply to the Eagles to some degree, where I think Steve Spagnolo, his defense is so versatile, and he's able to do so many different things with the group of guys that he has. He said to me last year during the playoffs that this is the smartest group I've ever had. So this was during last year's playoffs. And then as I talked to him this year, he's like. And this group is even smarter than that one. You know, his point's been like. His point. The point he's made to me a few times is like that. You know, he's always had smart guys. His defense requires having smart guys, but there'll always be, like, a few guys out there that are kind of iffy. The difference with these two groups he's had the last two years is that everybody knows what they're doing and what that allows for. It allows for you to do different things, to mess with the matchups because you can move guys around and play them in different spots, and they're smart enough to learn all the different spots and the different responsibilities, which allows you to play these situations the way that they were able to play them against Buffalo. Now, that said, I think we both know that stopping those short yardage plays against the Eagles is a totally different kettle of fish. And so I think there's a little bit of a cascading effect here. It's stopping Saquon Barkley on first down. And then if you can get them in second along, that's where you got to stop. Jalen hurts running the ball because generally that's when he runs the ball the most. And that's where he creates those third and shorts, those fourth and shorts, to put them in a position to really take advantage of being the best team in short yardage there is in football. So I think there's a really cool, like, element of game within the game there where, yes, the Chiefs are better at those things than a lot of other teams, but they've got to be capable of staying out of them, too, because if you say you're in four of them, you know, over the course of the game, well, it's easier to say, like, let's stop three of those, and maybe one gets. Gets biased. Then it's going to be if you've got to face eight or 10 of them.

Colin Cowherd (45:44)

Yeah. All right, let's look at the NFL at large. You're as plugged in as anybody talking, texting Cooper, cup, your best guess at some landing spots, some teams perhaps interested in Cup. And then I'm curious as to the damage that does to the Rams. And Stafford, that was his boy on the team. They were tight. I wonder if something's afoot with the Rams that maybe we're not aware of yet.

Albert Breer (46:07)

Well, you're talking about Stafford maybe moving or.

Colin Cowherd (46:09)

Yep.

Albert Breer (46:11)

Yeah. So I. I would say with cup, like, just in a vacuum, you know, things have sort of, I think, turned a little bit over the last year or two to some degree. Like, he and Puka are great players. They're a little redundant to one another in that they're both maybe best inside. Neither guy's a burner. And so, you know, you know, when you're building an offense and the way that Sean McVay builds his offense, there's a way of doing it where you want to kind of build the basketball team and have all those guys do different things. And so as great as those two guys are individually, you know, you maybe you look at it at the Rams and it's like, is it a luxury to have two of them out there? As for landing spots, I mean, I think, you know, Cooper would be great with a young quarterback, you know, so could he be, like, a really good number two for Washington? Right. Like, imagine him with Terry McLaurin on the other side, where he doesn't have to be the number one, and as a security blanket for Jaden Daniels. So maybe Jaden Daniels has to run a little bit less. That's the sort of situation where I think it would be ideal. The same way the Panthers a couple years ago brought in Adam Thielen to try, try to be like, okay, like, we want to give Bryce Young somebody that he can count on, a smart receiver who can do everything. I think cup can be that guy for a young quarterback. As for Stafford, I think this one's really up in the air. J. Mac, I mean, that contract negotiation was strained last year. It took the entire off season to get it done. They took all the guaranteed money out of 2025, moved money up to 2024 and created a decision point after this year. And so by the middle of March, they got a roster bonus due. Then they're going to have to make a decision on what they want to do with Matthew Stafford going forward. And I know this, like, if I'm a team like the Pittsburgh Steelers, I'm at least calling right now to see if he's available because I don't think it's a sure thing that he's back. In part because if he was looking for a market correction last year on his contract, chances are he's going to be looking for the same sort of market correction again this year. And I'm not sure where the Rams appetite is for that. When you consider what is there, seven or eight or nine quarterbacks making over $50 million per year right now.

Jason McIntyre (48:16)

Now.

Colin Cowherd (48:16)

All right, real quick, we got a minute left. Miles Garrett. I floated Washington and the Rams as options. Just guessing. How about you? Any, any teams for Miles Garrett?

Albert Breer (48:27)

Detroit.

Colin Cowherd (48:28)

Yes, Detroit with Hutchinson. Anyone else?

Albert Breer (48:31)

I love Detroit. I, I, I just like the idea of look like they've had so much positive momentum the last couple of years, right? Like, and everything's gone so right for them the last two years. And then they have the shocking loss of the commanders and they lose a half dozen coaches. Both their coordinators are gone. It sort of feels like some of the momentum has gone the other way for them. So they have Aiden Hutchinson coming back off the injury. They're going to pay Aiden Hutchinson. What better way to kind of make sure that he has some Runway and coming back off the injury and the defense has a real strength to build off of. Then you get Aiden Hutchinson back from injury, you'll have a Lane McNeil coming back from injury. And then, oh, by the way, You've got Myles Garrett out there. The key for me with Myles Garrett is he's got to match up with your timeline. You know what I'm saying? Like, so 29 years old and you have to be a team that's in a position where you can say over the next two years or so, we need to be in position to compete for a championship. Or we risk by the time we get there, maybe this guy is starting to go downhill a little bit. Detroit's the perfect team for that. Detroit's right in the championship window. They've got cap space, their roster's loaded. There may not be five or six rookies that make their team next year. So their draft picks are a little bit more expendable. I love the idea of having Aiden Hutchinson and Miles Garrett opposite each other. Maybe sort of the same way Denver had von Milburn and aging DeMarcus Ware on the other side about a decade ago.

Colin Cowherd (49:53)

Albert Brear, Monday morning quarterback. Great stuff. Thank you, Albert. We are back after this one more herd. The herd streams 24 hours a day, seven days a week within the iHeartRadio app. Search heard to listen live or on demand whenever you'd like. Eddie House, who I think at 61 and in either a college or NBA game game, he could get buckets. But you guys know I love hoops. I was trying to show out for Paul Pierce who's on a show later today. He started a pickup game out here in la. And yes, I'm trying to crowbar my way into that bad boy because I love hoops. And last night one of the producers said, hey, what about a top 10 duo list in the NBA for tomorrow? I was like, oh, hell yes. I bang that bad boy out quickly. And then I, I forgot a couple people. So we had to readjust the list. So here we go. We'll go Eddie house in like five minutes. But first, the top 10 duos of the NBA today as of right now. Now listen, some people got left out and don't be upset. There's a lot of movement in the league. I. I know one pairing people are gonna be ticked off about, but let's get started. Number 10 top 10 duos in the league. I'm going with Wembanyama and De'Aaron Fox sight unseen. We haven't even seen them once together. Listen, if you have any NBA list right now, you must have have one. Benyama. He's a transformative player. He's a unicorn. He is a plastic man, whatever you want to call him, he's awesome. He's shooting one legged threes. Did you guys see that? So now you pair him with a great point guard like De'Aaron Fox. How do you stop that pick and roll? Now it's weird. I'm a big deer and Fox guy, but there is like a negative connotation around his name. You think he's awesome. He's averaging what, 24 and 25 points per game for the last five years. And then you look up and you're like, oh, he hasn't won a playoff series all NBA once.

Jason McIntyre (51:39)

How.

Colin Cowherd (51:40)

How good is dear Fox? I think we're about to find out because he's gonna play with one Banyama. So that's number 10. Number nine, Donovan Mitchell and Evan Mobley. I don't think that's gonna roll off the tongue of everybody when you guys watch this list, but they are right now number one in the east with a bullet. And the only reason they're not higher is because I had some pushback in my own head when I was like, so who's Donovan Mitchell's wingman? Is it Darius Garland who's having a fantastic season? Is it Jared Allen? I went with Mobley because he is on the come up. Man, this kid looks good. They finally unlocked playing Mobley next to Allen. Mobley's developed something of a three point shot. The Cavs are a real threat. I don't get the whiff that this is like smoke and mirrors. This is a hungry team. Donovan Mitchell's a stud. I think Mobley and Mitchell are the ninth best duo in the NBA. All right, let's get to number eight. Another one, sight unseen. Kyrie and A.D. now this is a tricky one because you know, both of them are getting up there in age. Both are great. Proven number twos, right? AD was the number two, second best player to LeBron for many years in LA. They won a title. Kyrie, not a great one as we saw in Boston and wherever he was after Brooklyn, he was like the guy who got that team. It's not a one. Now you put him next to Luca. Oh, Kyrie, different player. He's under control. And now you wonder who's the alpha in that locker room. I think that's the big question for Dallas because again, I'm not bashing Kyrie, but his history says he ain't an alpha. Can AD Be that guy? Is he extra motivated because the Lakers shipped him? I think they're going to be a great duo, work together. That pick and roll is going to be fierce. So Kyrie and AD number eight, number seven. Bit of a surprise entrant here. John Morant. John Morant And Jaren Jackson Jr. Memphis Grizzlies, they're up to number two in the West. And Jaren Jackson's having a ridiculously good year. 23 points a game. He's been out of this world. We know John Morant now under control, cleaned up his off the court stuff. He's been tremendous. I mean, you look at this, this pairing. John morant, one of 10 players in the league, averaging 20 and seven this season. I. I know people go, oh, what have they won? Listen, they've had some playoff experience. I would not be shocked if the Grizzlies were in the conference finals. They look very, very good. All right, let's get to number six. I wanted to make a case for them higher. They're my guys, Brunson and Cat in New York. They. It's. It's only been half a season, really working together. But Cat seems in a great spot because there's no pressure on him whatsoever. They've got a great team where Josh Hart does all the dirty work. Gosh, I love Josh Hart. Mikhail Bridges, really a three and D guy. And then Cat just slides in and they're not asking too much from him. It's like, play a little bit of defense. You don't have to be a rim protector. Just like, try on defense. Cat historically has not been a great defender, and now you get a lot of open threes because Jalen Brunson is the man. I like this duo a lot. I wanted to make him higher than six. It's just tough when you see these top five. Let's get to number five top duos in the NBA. A lot of pushback from one of the guys, SGA and Chet. Now I know J Dub. Some people are like, how can you not put J Dub on there? Guys, he's a nice player, but Chet Holmgren is clearly the guy. If they're going to go to the finals, here's SGA dropping somebody on the Bucks last night. I mean, sga, he's really, really good. I know. I call him a free throw merchant and it pisses off all these Thunder fans. Well, I should say not all these Thunder Fans like the 17 Thunder fans there are. They hate when I say that SGA is really, really good. I, I still have some reservations about OKC in the playoffs. We'll see. But I like Chet Holmgren more than a lot of people. We're just seeing a little of him because. Because of the Injury. I. I expect big things from Chet and, And OKC this year. All right, let's get to number four. This one you guys are gonna hate because they have not worked well. Giannis and Dame. It's been about a calendar year. It's not really working. So why the hell are they for? Well, because Giannis is unbelievable. I mean, it's almost like Jokic is so good. Luka so good. SGA is on the come up. We're forgetting Giannis is automatic, folks. The numbers for Giannis. This is the highest scoring duo in the NBA at 56 points per game. The chemistry, Doc Rivers, all that stuff's not there yet. But, man, if they keep Giannis, and yes, if you missed a segment earlier last hour, I would not be shocked if something, you know, Giannis becomes available somehow. But right now, they. This is a deadly duo. I. I don't know about the Bucks in the postseason, if that makes any sense. Giannis and Dame, number four. Now, I know we haven't hit on a certain pairing yet. And you guys are. Where are they? Where are they? Here they are. Jalen Brown and Jason Tatum. Now, this is a Boston team that stacked. Porzingis, right? You got Drew Holiday, I mean, Derrick White. This team is just so loaded in Boston. But for me, Tatum, you guys know I've got a big, big Jason Tatum, man crush. I. I would. He would get my MVP vote if it were today. I know everybody say SGA or, or yic. I just think Tatum's been unbelievable. He's an excellent basketball player. Jaylen Brown, I know It's a little LeBron Wade ish and they duplicate each other, but I've got them as the third best duo. Number two. This one should be obvious. They've done a lot together. Jokic and Murray. It is a really formidable duo, especially in the playoffs. Jokic, the doughy European, is just still unstoppable. And Jamal Murray. Jamal, Playoff. Murray is a thing. I know he's still never been an NBA All Star. Hasn't. I'm sorry, hasn't played in an All Star game. Murray's just an excellent player, can create his own shot. Clutch, as Lakers fans very much know. Yeah, Jamal Murray and Jokic, without a doubt. To me, the second best duo in the league. And here we go, number one with a bullet. LeBron and Luca. Yeah. Oh, you know it. You cannot wait. The best player in the NBA for me, luka Doncic and LeBron, the ageless wonder at 40. I don't think people real. He put up a triple Double in MSG against the formidable Knicks. And he didn't have A.D. i mean, look at the guy. He's flying through the lane. LeBron is still the man. Wait till Luca comes back from this cap strain. I've got Luca and LeBron number one. Now, did Harden and Kawhi got bumped. Okay. Because, you know, we don't know if Kawhi is going to show up next week. They're playing great right now, but we don't know what's up with Kawhi. And I know people are going to be upset about KD and Booker. I'll take it up with the Suns fans later. But now we got my main man, Eddie House, joining the show. Eddie House, one of the real good shooters from his era. Basketball analyst for Fox Sports Radio. Eddie, how we doing, my man?

Jason McIntyre (58:31)

I'm doing good. How you feeling, man?

Colin Cowherd (58:32)

I'm excellent. There's a lot to talk about. Eddie. And your Celtics sitting pretty? They're doing great. Second in the East. They're fine. But what just happened over the weekend with Luca at traded for ad I need to know where you were when this went down and your immediate reaction.

Jason McIntyre (58:50)

My immediate reaction was at first I thought like. I was thinking like, Dallas won this trade. I thought Dallas won the trade, you know, because they were getting somebody that they're making a push right now. I don't think that the Lakers roster is constructed to make a push for the conference finals. I don't think that that's how that roster is constructed. So many defensive deficiencies, so many holes on the defensive side of the ball, and the one place that you could plug those holes was on the front line with AD blocking shots and being there rebounding the basketball. Now they're going to have an issue with that. You know, you're going to be leaning on Jackson Hayes. But then you also got Austin Reeves, who doesn't really play great defense. You got Luka, we all know, documented that he doesn't play great defense. And LeBron's defense has been declining even though he has put possessions together, but for the most part, it's been declining. So I looked at it and I was like, well, Dallas won because they got AD for three more years. And then on top of the three years, you know, you got Kyrie over there.

Colin Cowherd (59:51)

They.

Jason McIntyre (59:51)

They got two big men that are solid, lively is going to be coming back. And then also on top of that, AD is going to be happy because he's going to be able to play the four. So I looked at it in the short term. And then when I started rethinking about it in the long term, I think the Lakers won as well. You know, so in short. Short term, Dallas, long term, Lakers, because They can replace LeBron James with Luka Doncic, which they always have a superstar. They've never been a team without a superstar. I don't know how long it's been that they haven't had somebody over there that. That was a star player. So I think both of the teams won. It's just about what side of the fence that you want on. On the winning side, because Luca could be there for 10 years, and they don't want a championship if they win. That trade, if AD and Kyrie is able to go to the conference finals, I would think that you would look at it and say, oh, okay, they kind of won that trade. And if they're able to attract some. Some free agents over there and try to do something again next year. So, okay, that's where I'm at with it.

Colin Cowherd (60:52)

Don't get me too worked up, Eddie. First of all, over under one and a half titles for Luka with the Lakers.

Jason McIntyre (61:00)

I'm going under.

Colin Cowherd (61:02)

Oh, my gosh. Celtics fan says under. Okay, fair enough. Let me just quickly ask you on Dallas, what's your concern? Level with Kyrie Irving now going back into the role as the number one guy. We saw him in Boston, did not want to work with the young kids. We saw him in Brooklyn, bringing KD there. Did not work at all. Total disaster. Now, he cleaned up his act a little bit in Dallas, but that was as a clear number two to Luca. Now, you look around the Dallas huddle, who's. Who's the leader on that team? And if it's Kyrie, listen, we've seen him as the number one. It has not gone well historically.

Jason McIntyre (61:40)

Can I ask you a question, please? Right now, where are you at? Are you. Are you the number one? You in the driver's seat right now, right? Because Colin's not there. Right? But then any other time, you're the number two, right? And it's all. It's all about growth, right? And what we can say is that we have seen Kyrie grow over these years, and we could look back and say, man, damn. You know, he messed up the time in Boston. Boston's fans really don't like him because of what he did over there. Brooklyn, they feel the same way. But in Dallas, I feel like the Dallas fans love what he's doing. You know, he went to NBA finals with him. I don't think The Cleveland fans hate Kyrie. I think it's just a little. A couple spots that he had a couple blips in the map to where on the radar. Excuse me, where you look at it. He's like, okay, man, he could have been. He could have handled it better. But he was young, and I think he's mature. You know what I'm saying? And when you have kids, you know this, J. Mac. When you have kids, you have.

Colin Cowherd (62:35)

You.

Jason McIntyre (62:36)

You mature in a different way. You go from just thinking about yourself to also thinking about, like, okay, I got to make sure I'm good. So they're good. That's the main thing. And I think that he's learned from that. So I'm not worried. I'm not worried. I think they have a good rock. I think their roster right now constructed is better than the roster in LA to make a run into playoffs.

Colin Cowherd (62:58)

Now, I don't totally disagree with that. Here's my thing. The Mavs are actually built, Eddie, to really play against okc. Well, and against Denver. This Max Christie, he's not getting talked about, but since he went into the starting lineup, The Lakers are 15 and 8. I'm not saying he's a lockdown defender, but he's long, he's twitchy. I think he could capably defend SGA. And you've got the bigs. We know OKC's weakness are the bigs. If Dallas is healthy, I think you're probably right. In the postseason, they can make a run.

Jason McIntyre (63:30)

That's all I'm trying to say. So at the end, what are we playing for? We plan to get to the playoffs. And I have a little conspiracy theory.

Colin Cowherd (63:37)

Okay, here we go.

Jason McIntyre (63:38)

Just think about this. All right? So Ad waved his 8%. A trade kicker, you know, about $6 million. Okay, cool. Him and Rich Paul, they're. They're all clutch sports. LeBron, clutch sports. Maybe they know something that may. And maybe they tipped it to the organization to where? Hey, we gotta. We got to start trying to figure out who's going to replace LeBron. LeBron might not be there. Here's my conspiracy theory. LeBron possibly ends up in Dallas next year.

Colin Cowherd (64:13)

So. Oh, that's kind of spicy because he is still tight with Kyrie. They've talked about being partners. Oh, that's good stuff, Eddie. You got me there.

Jason McIntyre (64:26)

Once the trade happened, I started thinking like, oh, this could be a move for him to slide over there. He plays. Think about. They still have Klay Thompson over there. They'll have Kyrie over there. They'll have Anthony Davis. LeBron doesn't need the money. So he could play on a. He's not going to get short change now, but he's not going to get a max deal or anything like that. And they had the money to give a max deal to Luka Doncic. Now they look like, oh, we could get LeBron. Oh, okay, so now they can put something together and then you could piece the ancillary players around that, that, that core of, of players right there and they make a run for one or two years because that's probably all that's going to be really left for, for that type of run. But I, that was just something that I, that I came up with in my head. I was like, man, that's kind of.

Colin Cowherd (65:10)

So would Bronnie go weird? You know, he did.

Jason McIntyre (65:13)

He didn't get that trade kicker.

Colin Cowherd (65:14)

Yeah. So does he bring his son?

Jason McIntyre (65:19)

I don't know about all that.

Colin Cowherd (65:21)

Well, I mean, I don't. If LeBron's gone, I don't know if Bronnie's still on the roster. Crazy stat from our team here. Dalton Connect is 24, Lucas 25. Like that to me is kind of mind blowing. Stuff like that. That's how young Luca is and, and totally dominant. I am curious with you. You said the Lakers always magically end up with superstars, and you're not wrong. Magic, Jabbar, Shaq, Kobe on down the list. Are you one of these guys who thinks maybe the league likes that? You know, way we got Los Angeles, we need a good team. The team in New York is finally good. Chicago has been down for two decades. We need like, unlike the NFL, the NBA needs the big markets to have good teams. Are you alluding to something there?

Jason McIntyre (66:05)

No, I'm not saying that. Because think about it. OKC is not a big market. They got a damn good team and they got a superstar over there and shake, yo. Just Alexander Kay Cunningham. Detroit is not a huge market, but they got a solid team over there and a damn good player in Kay Cunningham. But it's the Lakers. It's just the Lakers. It's the way that the Lakers operate business. They constantly have. I mean, come on, you're. You're in Hollywood, you know, you're in la, you're in Tinseltown. You have to have stars because that brings stars to the game. That brings people to the game. Think about this and you say la. Whoa. Well, damn. Ain't the Clippers. Ain't the Clippers in la. It ain't the same. It ain't the same. You have to have stars when you're with the Lakers. It's just the way that that has been since I can remember.

Colin Cowherd (66:56)

So there's some stories starting to emerge that in the Dallas locker room that Luca, despite being well liked, the front office didn't like it, maybe because of his work habits, his diet habits. I'm just curious, did you ever, in your time in Boston or anywhere else, Miami, wherever, did you experience like just seeing front office being unhappy with guys like out of shape or not being in condition that were stars and the front office like being really ticked off at them?

Jason McIntyre (67:23)

No, because most of the guys I play with, pretty much all of the star superstar players I play with, held everybody else accountable by what they did, how they came in. And it never happened in Miami because you got weight and body fat. Check every week. You know, whether it was Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, every single week you got weight and body fat. You had to be at a certain weight and body fat. If you weren't, then you were doing extra running, you were doing extra things that you had to do to make sure you got to that weight and that body percent body fat percentage. But as far as, like, that's the thing, I think if, if you allow your superstar player, and I think that upper management, I don't think that it's, I think it's the, the owners, the new ownership is like, hey, we're not going to allow this to happen. Because the thing about is you can't have your star player come in out of shape, everybody else in shape, and you don't hold him accountable. That kind of, that fractures a locker room. But when you have a superstar player, like a Kevin Garnett that comes in and when you walk into the, into the gym, right, Practices in about an hour, you get there an hour before he's already on the court in a full fledged sweat, it makes you start kicking in like, oh, I got to get here a little earlier so I could put in this work. Well, if Luke is coming in, and I don't know this for a fact, I don't know at all. But if he's coming in out of shape, I know that he's been coming in out of shape. That's documented. But if he comes in with 12 minutes left before practice is starting, then, I mean, that sets a different type of standard. Like, what kind of leadership are you having? What kind of leadership are you out there presenting and how can you be the leader? We know that you're really good on the court, but it's other things that you have to do to set precedent for the rest of the team.

Colin Cowherd (69:08)

Yeah. All right, let me. Last one on the Lakers. Do you think they're done making moves? Because there's a lot of speculation, hey, we don't need Austin Reaves. We've got enough ball handlers who don't really defend. We need a center. We got to go get a rim protector, a Nick Claxton, a Miles Turner, and they package the pick they have left, Reeves, Rui, whatever the package is to go get something. You think they get a room protector?

Jason McIntyre (69:33)

I don't think they're done dealing. They definitely have to go get somebody as a rim protector because they have so many holes on the defense. You know, Luke is not going to play great defense. Austin Reed's not going to play great defense. And Also, excuse me, LeBron is, is up and down when with his defense, possession to possession, sometimes the quarter to quarter, a half to half. But what I believe is that they're going to go out there, try to find somebody. And like you said, if it's a Knicks, Claxton or Miles Turner, I really think Miles Turner would be a good fit for him because he could kind of stretch the floor a little bit and he could protect the rim. He rebounds the basketball. He's a younger guy. Nick Claxton is a younger guy too. But if they do that, does that move the needle? And to me, that doesn't move the needle. That doesn't make them all of a sudden be like, oh, yeah, they're contenders. They're going to have to make another big time deal for a big time player. No disrespect to those guys that I'm talking about because they all can hoop, you know, I mean, I'm not disrespecting nobody in the league like that, but they're going to have to get somebody that could do what Anthony Davis does. And that's 27 and 12. And maybe you get a couple guys that are able to put that together to make it work. But what I'm looking at right now, they rostered. That ain't it.

Colin Cowherd (70:49)

Yeah. Let me ask Jim, you spent time in Miami. What the hell is Jimmy Butler's problem? Like, he was such a good soldier, got them to two finals. It's all falling apart. He's getting suspended. He doesn't want to go to Golden State. He only wants to go to Phoenix. I love Jimmy Butler. I don't know what's happening, man. How do you think this ends?

Jason McIntyre (71:08)

It's not Going to end good for him as that's how I'm feeling. Knowing, knowing Pat Riley and knowing the business of basketball when you start and you know Pat Riley is the godfather, so people are going to lend their ear more to him than they will listen to Jimmy Butler's agent. Okay. Or what's going on. And the one thing I can say is that this has kind of been a pattern with Jimmy, you know, and every place that he's been to, he has usually left disgruntled and upset. He got upset at something. But I think the, the main thing is that when Pat said he didn't want to trade him, it wasn't the fact that he was trying to tell him, you can't go nowhere. I think it was like, no, we want you here. We. We're not going to trade you because we want you here. We signed you, you got another deal. I want to say it's 51 or $53 million for next year that he can opt into. Okay. We didn't give you extension because we don't see it. And okay. And that's fine. But they gave you a great deal. You're about to play for $50 million. And I'm not counting nobody pockets. Looking at nobody pockets or count nobody money. But what I'm saying is that you have an obligation when you are under contract. And I don't know if you watched any of the Heat games. When he came back from suspension, he took a one legged three point shot from the corner that he never takes, ever. You never seen Jimmy Butler ever take a shot like that. Then he threw the ball on the entry pass straight out of bounds. And then he did had lackluster effort getting back on defense. So now it's showing me you don't really want to be here and you're a detriment to what we're trying to do, the culture that we have. So I don't think that he helped himself, you know, in the way that he handled this. Can Jimmy Butler still help a team? Yes, he can.

Colin Cowherd (72:52)

So we'll wrap up with this, Eddie. So Luca got traded and Anthony Edwards was like, man, I'm scared. Nobody's safe. If Luca can get traded, I, maybe I'm next. Obviously we don't think Anthony Edwards is getting traded, but I floated two names. Let's start with Kevin Durant in Phoenix. The suns are like 10th in the West. Jimmy Butler wants to be there. You can't trade Beal. Maybe Kevin Durant gets shipped and the other one, and I've Been on this for a while. You know, I'm a Steph Curry guy. They're 11th in the West. They can't pull off a trade for anybody. At some point, do the warriors say we got to reboot and trade Steph Curry so we can at least maximize his final years? I mean, Eddie, you saw him at the Olympics. He was dominant, and now he's on the 11th place team in the West. The league can't have that.

Jason McIntyre (73:37)

Yeah, you. You. You can't trade Steph Curry, man. That. That's a guy that is. I feel that he should. He's one of those guys, should be a lifer with. With that team from where he came from to where they were at when he got there, to where he put them and where they're at right now. And his. And his status as a basketball player, and not only a basketball player, but a pillar of the community as well. Does a lot of work out there in the Bay Area, whether it be in Oakland, whether it be in San Francisco or anywhere else in the Bay Area. He does a lot of work, a philanthropist work. And to me, you can't trade him and for Jimmy Butler. No. And if you try to get Jimmy Butler now, think about what you have on your team. You got two. Two guys. You have a Draymond Green that, you know, can be unstable at times and does great for the team. He's perfect for what they try to do. Then you got Jimmy Butler, who could be, you know, a wild card at times as well. So I don't think Steph plays well with that. I think Steph just loves to go out and play hoop. And when it's all the other distractions like that's going on right now, I think that that's where it kind of does bother him. And I know Steph is getting a little older, but. No, he has to be a Golden State warrior for life.

Colin Cowherd (74:52)

Yeah. All right, Eddie House.

Jason McIntyre (74:53)

Unless he doesn't want to be.

Colin Cowherd (74:55)

Wow. That's the. Is there a way to politically pull that off? I don't. We'll see. All right, Eddie House. Great stuff. Keep up the good work and, you know, hope everything's well with your. Your kids who are awesome basketball players.

Jason McIntyre (75:06)

Appreciate it, man. Take care.

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