Jason McIntyre (4:14)

Yeah, that's certainly an all time great playoff game in the NBA. And Tyrese Halliburton, Colin, I mean is he a top 10 player at this point where this guy just doesn't miss in the clutch? He's unbelievable.

Colin Cowherd (4:23)

Okay, so the Knicks had a 14 point lead. Wasn't much time left and they lost in overtime. But I'm going to defend the Knicks. They did not choke. The Knicks had three baskets and two free throws in the final three minutes. They scored enough. Now they had some bad turnovers, but they scored enough. The story of the game is give the Pacers credit. That was insane. They couldn't miss. In the last six minutes they shot over 70% and they were hard shots. Aaron Neesmith, six straight threes, three in the final minute. Now this team plays with pace and tempo so they score fast. We know that they've done it all season and they're a great clutch team because of Halle. They're 31 and 2 when they score 120 points or more. So you do not want to get into a track meet with the Pacers. That's Milwaukee tried it. Cleveland Tried it. The Knicks tried it. Don't they never get tired? They're like watching ninth graders. They never get tired. Charles Barkley said it at halftime. This pace totally favors Indiana. And what's remarkable about Halliburton and Indy is they play at this pace and they don't turn it over. They had seven turnovers on the road against the Knicks. Size and the Knicks tenacity. Seven turnovers. Jalen Brunson alone had seven. So what you watched last night and I said, I think Indy's going to win the series. This is what they did to Milwaukee, this is what they did to Cleveland. They're controlling the tempo. Listen, give the Knicks credit. Knicks should have won. They shot 51%. They got a bad bounce. And I think last night New York beats everybody in the league except Halliburton and the Pacers and maybe okc. Halliburton got the bounce. Neesmith was unbelievable. How about the Gonzaga kid, Nemhardt? Multiple threes late. Obi Toppin. I mean it's just everything worked for them late. But I'll tell you, Halliburton is amazing because he reminds me of Steve Nash. Steve Nash won an MVP averaging 15 a game. The next year he won another MVP averaging 18 a game. But Steve Nash, one of the smartest athletes I've ever met, had unbelievable self awareness. And that's Halliburton. What do you need? I'll provide. The guy plays with zero fear, but his self awareness, he knows what the clock is. Is uncanny. The choke sign, I love it. Bring it on. But he is an all timer man. He is the aggressor. He can play with physicality. And again we can bang on the Knicks. But in the last six minutes of the fourth and overtime, they scored 24 points. The Pacers scored 44 on 72% shooting. That is unheard of. The Knicks should have won. Now the Knicks had too many turnovers, but I think, I think this comes down to Halliburton. And the Pacers play with the aggressiveness that I think Celtic fans wish Tatum and Boston did. Like they just played downhill. And Lamar Jackson could throw 48 times a game and win. But that's not how Lamar and the Ravens are built. They're a power football team with Derrick Henry. The Knicks stayed in this game, shot 51%. But this is going to be a six or seven game series. This is not what the Knicks are. And yesterday on this show I kept saying over and over, the Pacers play the fastest pace in the league. What a perfect name. For a team last three years, Knicks are the slowest team. That's not a bad thing for the playoffs. Half court offense is great. They play the slowest pace. Whoever wins the pace will win the series. And the Knicks almost pulled it off. But if you remember last year when these two teams played, what happened? Indiana played really, really quick up tempo and over time the Knicks were down. This didn't have the body, so Indy's got more bodies. They're built for this. Their guys are in their prime. Halliburton controlled it like he did against Cleveland, like he did against the Bucks. The Knicks almost pulled it off. But here's Hallie after. Basketball's fun, you know, winning is fun. And you know, I'm so proud of the resilience of this group. We've shown it all year. We've had to win in so many different, random, unique ways and today we just kept, kept going, kept fighting and man, that's fun. There's Halliburton is a lot like Steve Nash and that everybody that played with Steve Nash was at their best. He'd give you 15, but he elevated everybody. James Harden scored a lot of guys that score Halliburton. This is a one star team with a bunch of B plus players. But what's amazing is the B plus players for Indiana because of Halliburton and self awareness and movement and pace, they're all playing in an A level like all of Indiana's players are rising to the moment. This is not about the Knicks not playing well. This is about Indiana being on fire and making a remarkable number of big shots. If you did not hear the final call, we'll give it to you from the Pacers radio network. Halliburton driving. He's in the lane. He nearly lost it. He backs up and unloads a three. Oh, that did not happen. It hit the back of the rim, popped high into the air and it dropped gently through the net. And the Pacers have. The scoreboard shows 125. 125. It's called a two point shot. So it's just, it's an incredible moment. And I'll get to two things that worry me about the Knicks going forward. Let's now talk about Brunson. So Jaylen had 43 points and you say to yourself that's a great night. But he had seven turnovers. Why? Because he's playing faster than he's used to. That's the most turnovers Jalen Brunson has had all season. And he also Got into foul trouble again. We're asking somebody who can type 40 words a minute to type 60. You know, it's just. This isn't what he's built for. Brunson and Halliburton are two very different players. Brunson's a score small, strong. He uses, you know, his leverage. He uses his hips. He does that mid post game. He just plays way bigger than his height. But he is a score and a finisher. He sometimes is plotting. He wants to get you in that half court. He wants to work you. He's going to work his shoulders, he's going to work his hips. Halliburton is different. He's long, gangly, herky jerky. It's kind of awkward. He's strong and can use it a couple of times on occasion. But what he is, he's the pace car. He is the guy that's going to. Okay, I'm going to tell you how, how fast we're all going to play. And you can't stop him because he's just so long and gangly. He's a very awkward player. He's hard to defend. The two things that worry me about New York after last night, first of all, Karl Anthony Towns, that's about as good as he can play in the playoffs. He was efficient. He's not always efficient. He hit his threes. He didn't get in foul trouble. You know, Cat gets in foul trouble. Cat does dumb fouls. He's a really good offensive player, but through his career, he drives you nuts. I thought Cat last night was spectacular. I don't know if he can duplicate that. I just don't know if he can play any better than that. It was fun watching it. The second thing is Brunson going to say, hey man, I got 43. I'm gonna play at this tempo. We're scoring. We should have won the game. They could talk themselves into that. So. But again, I'll say it. Last year when these two teams played in the end of the series, I mean, Brunson last night, because of foul trouble, played the fewest minutes of any New York Knicks starter. That is not what you want. I don't care if he scored 43 points. And to lose in overtime. When you have the shorter bench. Game one, you blow a pretty big lead at that pace. I didn't love it. That's a game it feels like for the road team to win that game and control the tempo. Didn't love it for New York. Here's Brunson after. Give them A lot of credit. They close the game out like they've been doing all playoffs. Just not really good on our part for all the players, and I know it wasn't a huge number, but for the players, that said Halliburton is overrated. Check yourself. Because when I'm watching and we were sitting there, I mean, I look at all, I look at the box score and the difference is Knicks had twice as many turnovers and a couple costly ones in overtime. That's your ball game. But I'm going to push back. I'm going to push back on the choke thing. The Knicks scored six minutes left. They scored 24 points. That's enough. And by the way, you have turnovers when you're playing above your tempo. But I think what you're seeing with Halliburton here, and I don't know if it's innate, I don't know if you're born with it, but there are some people that not only does he rise in the moment, but he elevates all his teammates in the moment. I mean, I got nothing against the Pacer squad. It's a really good team. But there's a lot of B guys right now that are playing an A level on the road in New York against a really well coached team. What you're watching with Indiana is we just got to give them credit. We can blame the Knicks on this. You got to give Indiana credit. They are really, really. And we said this J. Mac, you called it. You picked them over Cleveland. And one of the reasons you did, you, you fell in love with Halliburton last year. Last year on the show, folks, if you didn't listen, he went crazy on Halliburton. He basically called him the next Magic Johnson. And I don't think that's his style because. But I do see a lot of Steve Nash. He can score, he can take the foot off the gas, he can play. But Nash, just when you watch Steve Nash, how did Steve Nash win the MVP at 15 a game? Because he controlled the basketball game. Steve Nash literally controlled every game he was in. People were like, how can you win mvp? You had to watch the Suns play. What Indiana is doing and you caught onto it last year is they are between Caitlin Clark and the Pacers. They are so much to me, fun to watch.

Jason McIntyre (14:52)

Yeah, I love the Halliburton story. You know, Midwest kid, grew up under, recruited the big colleges didn't want him. I love the stories of these underdogs coming out of nowhere. Colin, he's emerging right now. Honestly, as one of the most clutch players in the league and I mean, I don't see how he's not like an all NBA guy, how he's not like a top 10 player. He does everything and like you said, makes everyone around him better.

Colin Cowherd (15:15)

Think about that. Much like Nash last two years we've talked about the Sixers and the Celtics and we've talked about all these teams. Pacers back to back, back to back Eastern Conference finals.

Jason McIntyre (15:29)

But let's be real, the Knicks are not in that much trouble. It took six threes from Nismith in the fourth quarter. That's I believe an NBA record. Like, listen, we're not going to see that again. However, the choke by my Knicks has me a little nervous because you know, they go into game two, you can't blow game two. And Pacers have sown a propensity. They stole game two in Cleveland.

Colin Cowherd (15:50)

Yeah, I mean the thing about Indy is they're completely fearless at home or away, doesn't matter. And I think some of that is, it's almost like hockey. It's when you play fast, the road crowd, you're flying by the crowd. This is not applauding half court offense where the fans are on you. They're just up and down the floor. It's hard to get your arms around Indiana. They're just breakneck, you know, I'm not comparing him in any way to the Showtime Lakers, but the Celtics could do more half court. The Lakers were up and down the floor. Nash's sons were up and down the floor. Jordan's Bulls could do a lot of half court stuff. So it's just, it's. They just watching Indiana, I, you know, I. Obviously the New York crowd's insane and wonderful. You can't tell where they're playing. Every time the Pacers play, it looks the same. They're a tempo team more than anything else. Be sure to catch live editions of the Herd, weekdays at noon Eastern, 9am Pacific on Fox Sports Radio, FS1 and the iHeartRadio app. Summer is almost here and you can now get almost anything you need for your sunny days delivered with Uber Eats. Now what do we mean by almost? Well, you can't get a well groomed lawn delivered, but you can get chicken parm delivered. A day at the lake, that's a no. A Philly cheesesteak. That's a yes. A nice tan. Sorry. A box fan. Happily, yes. What about a day of sunshine? Not happening. How about a box of fine wines? Yeah, that's happening. Delivery's on its way. Okay, how about some clear skies? Nope. Well, how about some French fries? Yeah. So how about a freshly cut lawn? Can't help you there. But a barbecued prawn? Order it and it's on its way. Even throw in some paper towels. Clean up after the feast. So while you can't get fun in the sun delivered, don't worry because you can get pork buns delivered. Uber Eats can definitely get you that. 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Greenriverwhisky.com, please drink responsibly. You're now entering the no Bull zone, sponsored by Credible Great Rates. None of the Bulls. So let's get to the choke gesture. We talked about it regarding the WN yesterday and the day before is there is a performative nature to sports. Trash talking. Taunting, within reason, flaunting. I'm okay with it. I thought it was funny that Alberton did the choke signal. He thought he'd won. So did I, by the way. It's hard to sometimes relate to six'9, six'10 basketball players, but that was a relatable moment. We've all done that right in the playground, chest out. Sports makes you feel something. And I don't think it's fair to ask these athletes to train for years to do something, then surround them with 20,000 people and then in the biggest shot in the world at that moment, to ask an athlete to be subtle and nuanced. I watched that last night and I'm like, here we go. If you didn't see the Reggie Miller Spike Lee moment, that got a 30 for 30. And Reggie Miller last night is laughing. Watching Halliburton, you can say what you want. It's iconic. It got documentaries. Even Bill Belichick, as grumpy as he can be. I can remember watching a story, a documentary on Belichick. Belichick used to say, guys, celebrate. This stuff is hard. Scoring touchdowns is hard celebrate. Belichick was furious when you didn't pump your fist, when you didn't play with emotion. So I mean, listen, the chokesign is universal. Sometimes it feels like it's warranted. It's personal. Reggie Miller laughing about it on tv. But I just thought the whole thing, the shot, the moment, the sign, I thought it was all time stuff. Here's Hallie in the moment.

Jason McIntyre (22:21)

I mean, I wasn't like plotting on it or anything.

Colin Cowherd (22:24)

I just, everybody wanted me to do it. Like last year at Some different point, but it's just got it, it's got to feel right. And it felt right at the time. If it would have been, if, if I would have known it was a two, I. I would not have done it.

Jason McIntyre (22:39)

So I think I, I might have wasted it.

Colin Cowherd (22:42)

He's having a remarkable postseason. So he's averaging nine and a half assists a game. Leads the NBA in the, in the playoffs. Six games with 10 plus assists. And he's a scorer by the way, his clutch time points. It's really remarkable. There's a fine line between being confident and arrogant. And I think he's an incredibly likable, confident player. I don't think it veers into arrogant. I think it's just really confident. They have four wins now trailing. Think about this, this postseason, they have four wins when trailing by 17 points. And I think a lot of it's Halliburton, but I also think it's their pace. When you play fast and you're not sloppy, they're not sloppy. So when you pay, play fast. 17 points feels like you're down nine. You know, the Knicks get down 17 points. The way they play, a more plotting style, it feels like it's over. But Steph Curry got down 17. The Steve Nash teams got down 17. It's different. You're always within a punch. And so they're very unique team when being down does not mean being out. I still like Indiana to win this series. I thought the Knicks played well enough to win. And I'm not sure anybody but the Pacers and maybe okc, he could have beaten the Knicks last night in Madison Square. Here's J. Mac with the news. No, no, no, turn on the news. This is the third line news.

Jason McIntyre (24:06)

All right, Colin, let's bust right into it. Brock Purdy, he got paid. Big guy, we love it. Seventh highest paid quarterback in the NFL at 53 mil a year. His contract is five years, 265 million. And you know, he spoke to the media. Interestingly, Colin Purdy's new deal, he accounts for just under 19% of the Niners salary cap. Which, you know, again, this capologist really made that happen. And I know people hear 53 million and see that number and they're like, oh, no way, that's too high. It seems to me, again, just to me, like this is well structured for the Niners and this is not going to be an impediment to them going forward.

Colin Cowherd (24:47)

Okay, so like people have been saying this. Well, it's only 19%. First of all, being 1/5 of your cap is a number. I am not. I don't have a problem with Lamar Burrow, Mahomes Allen being 20 to 25%. I don't think Purdy is that player. Combined with my concern, which is now not arguable, they have missed on too many draft picks. So my take is at some point they are a Kiddle or a Trent. These are older players. They are a Kittle or a Trent Williams injury away from needing Brock Purdy to carry an incredibly thin roster. If he was making 19% of the roster, little bigger arm, little better athlete and it was a deeper roster like let's say the Bills or the Ravens or the Lions. It's not just you say it's 19%. I can live with that. With about six guys in the league, not 12. Like, like Jalen Hurts. I don't know where he is, but Saquon Barkley feels like I could almost live with a running back being 15%. It's not just the money. It's the money with some of his limitations against playoff teams with an old roster that is going to get hurt. Old players in this league playing 17 games, somebody's going to get hurt.

Jason McIntyre (26:05)

That's fair. I just. This whole 20 to 25% is okay for Allen and Burrow and Mahomes. Are they really 5% better than Brock Purdy when it comes to the salary cap? Oh, really? So if that's the case. Well, if you want to say Kittle or they're a Kittle injury or a Trent Williams injury away. Well, we can play that game with all those guys if Jamar.

Colin Cowherd (26:27)

The difference is. The difference is. The difference is Josh Allen got to an AFC championship at one point with a bad O line. Burrow got to a Super bowl with a horrible O line. Kansas City, their receiving core the last two years has been a mess and they have two super bowl appearances. Purdy isn't getting to a Super bowl with a terrible O line which a Trent Williams gets hurt because they didn't address it in the draft is what their O line will be. So it's not just the number. You have to contextualize it. There's about six guys that can carry bad receiving course battle. Even Matt Stafford can't carry a battle line. We've seen that. He now he can carry a limited tight end receiving core. We've seen that. But Matt Stafford, as good as he is, he needs the O line. Lamar doesn't. Allen doesn't. So my take is it's not just the number. It's not that you have to contextualize.

Jason McIntyre (27:20)

Everything, but some of that stuff's out of Brock Purdy's control if he loses an offensive lineman. I mean, Patrick Mahomes offensive line in the super bowl got destroyed and they got smashed. Like that happens to everybody.

Colin Cowherd (27:32)

Like also. Also. Not only does Brock Purdy not have the ammo he had three years ago, when this was the three years ago, nobody disputed it. Niners had the best roster in the league. Now we say it's Philadelphia and now it's Detroit and then we can argue over the third. But three years ago they had seven hall of Famers play. Hunga was a star. War, Greenlaw, Bosa, Kittle, Williams, Chris. I mean, three years ago it was a stacked roster. It is not a stacked roster. If Bosa goes down, it's an incredibly average defense.

Jason McIntyre (28:04)

Now Chris Jones goes down for kc. I mean, their defense is awful.

Colin Cowherd (28:08)

Yeah. But the difference is Mahomes has proven he can win shootouts.

Jason McIntyre (28:12)

He can win some shootouts. Yeah. Well, remember, I think the great equalizer, Colin, is that schedule for Rock Purdy, as you said, one of the easiest, I believe in the last 10 years.

Colin Cowherd (28:22)

Or something helps, no question. So.

Jason McIntyre (28:24)

So when they're 13 and 4 and I'm out here thumping my chest, you're gonna be a little salty. That's my guess. Let's go on to the Bears, your new favorite team in the league. Obviously the QB position has been a bit of a quagmire for Chicago for decades now, but Ben Johnson spoke about it and he's very excited. Likes the challenge of the situation.

Colin Cowherd (28:48)

I love it. I love it. I love the opportunity to come on in and change that narrative. That's where great stories are written. And so we're looking to write a new chapter here. 2025 Chicago Bears and looking forward to the future. It starts with developing a rapport and a trust and that's earned over time. You don't walk in day one and expect that to be achieved. And so the more time we spend together, he understands that I have his best interests at hearts and vice versa. Yeah, I'm already. I'm. Here's the other thing to think about. Something has happened. You know how you and I have talked about this, how the NBA basically suddenly it's a point guard led league because you can't stack rosters. And what you have to do is get somebody that can score like Halliburton, but elevate other B players because they're more stacked rosters. And the NBA physicality is hurting three pointers. Teams get beat up, they're physically tired, they don't hit their threes. There's something happening in the NFL, the NFC. I think we'd both agree the AFC teams hit on about seven quarterbacks. Allen, Lamar, Burrow, Mahomes, Herbert, C.J. strout. So the AFC is easier to predict because it's, there's so many great quarterbacks at the top. The nfc, not as many. But I will tell you now I would argue the two best rosters in the league are NFC rosters. Philly, Detroit and I think Philly by a mile and Detroit second. I think LA is in a argument for third, fourth or fifth. So I think what's funny about the Bears is last year may have been the last season where you could be okay and make the playoffs. It's going to be hard to be an nfc. I think the last two years there's. That's why I say about Dallas. There was about a two to three year window. Aaron Rodgers left the conference, right. Russell Wilson, whatever leaves the conference. Stafford got hurt. There was about a, about a two, three year window here where the afc, nfc. There was a gap. I think that gap is closed. I think the NFC now is just an inch behind the afc.

Jason McIntyre (30:53)

So what's a. Colin, what's a reasonable expectation for Ben Johnson in a first year? I mean, I know we're calling him the savior and offensive mind and Caleb with. I do feel like the hype train has left the station and people are going to be disappointed if they don't win 9, 10, 11 games.

Colin Cowherd (31:10)

Yeah, I think 9, 10 is where I land with that schedule. Yeah, you make way too much. I always. This is the second time you're talking about the schedule. If somebody can punch up the Bears home schedule, it's just a bunch of W's. I mean, I mean, I'll give you.

Jason McIntyre (31:31)

I'm just trying to reset expectations, Colin, because there's a world where they win eight games and it was, it was progress. Right. Step in the right direction. You look at the schedule right out of the gate, they could be 02. I'm telling you, the Minnesota Vikings or.

Colin Cowherd (31:45)

They'Re going to Detroit and winning for our radio audience. Does this scare you? For a radio audience that can't see this. Vikings at home, Cowboys at home, Raiders bye. Saints at home, New York Giants at home, Steelers at home, Cleveland Browns and Shador Sanders at home. That doesn't scare anybody.

Jason McIntyre (32:05)

You're glossing over the road games that are brutal. Baltimore Washington's an L yeah. But they got to go back to back against Ravens and Bengals. Colin.

Colin Cowherd (32:16)

Oh, okay.

Jason McIntyre (32:19)

That's two of the best four quarterbacks in the league right there.

Colin Cowherd (32:21)

Cincinnati didn't make the expectations. Cincinnati didn't make the playoffs last year. They're not scary, they're just talented.

Jason McIntyre (32:28)

Last bone to pick and I don't want to make this a thing. We've got all summer to stew on it. You keep saying the Detroit Lions have a top 10 roster in the league or top five roster in the league. I don't know. Who do they really? Who? Who on that defense scares you after Aiden Hutchinson and the safety branch? That that defense is not great. The roster's not awesome.

Colin Cowherd (32:47)

I think the bigger issue is they lost two great coordinators.

Jason McIntyre (32:51)

Yeah.

Colin Cowherd (32:52)

And when's Philadelphia lost two great coordinators? They replaced him and it was a disaster.

Jason McIntyre (32:56)

Yeah.

Colin Cowherd (32:57)

You're not Aaron Glenn and Ben Johnson. You did not hire equals. So. And I know nobody wants to talk about this but a go ask Bill Belichick when you put the wrong guy at oc. Okay. Like coordinators win games.

Jason McIntyre (33:12)

Major brain drain.

Colin Cowherd (33:13)

Brady didn't even deal during the week with Belichick. They would meet once a week. He was. He and Josh McDaniel are on the phone or in meetings all week. So I don't think Detroit. I don't think it's possible. And go ask Philly to lose. Argue. Last year you could argue they had the best coaching staff in the league. If you count coordinators and head coach, the Lions had the best staff. I think it's going to be a downgrade and to me that's at least a game to two out of the window, maybe.

Jason McIntyre (33:41)

Final story. Colin Is sad news in the NFL, where the Colts announced the passing of owner Jim Ursay yesterday at the age of 65. Irsay became the NFL's youngest owner at 37 years old when he inherited the team from his father back in 1997. Colts went on to win two Super Bowls, winning Super Bowl 41 under Ursay's ownership.

Colin Cowherd (34:04)

One of the most charitable people in the NFL. A complex guy who was a huge personality. And one of the things that Jim Ursay did. I was. I was talking to Chris Ballard last night, the gm. One of the things that Irsay did. The Colts always felt like a family. And that is not the case with a lot of NFL teams. You just have a billionaire owner and there's always been. The Steelers have always felt like a family. The Ravens do and the Colts do. And he could be impulsive and he could be difficult. And he was incredibly complicated. But he viewed himself as basically a poet and an artist. He had the largest guitar great Kadar collection in the world. And I had him on the show one time and I remember the Colts when I reached out to have him on the show, they're like, you're gonna really enjoy it. He's just a different cat. And Ballard shared some of those thoughts last night. He loved sitting down with people, his gm, his president. He wanted feedback. We're a family and families fight. And that was Irsay. I really feel like the Colts are one of those organizations. It's not about your win total. Do you feel like family? And if you do, families are imperfect. But the NFL lost an absolute, charitable, genuine, completely authentic rock star last night in Jim or say. And with that, we take a break. Be sure to catch live editions of the Herd weekdays at noon Eastern, 9am Pacific. Hey, Steve Covino. And I'm Rich Davis and together we're Covino and Rich on Fox Sports Radio. You can catch us weekdays from 5 to 7pm Eastern, 2 to 4 Pacific 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 for the last 20 years and still work together, I mean, that says something, right? So check us out. We like to get you involved, to 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 Covino and Rich wherever you get your podcast. And of course, on social media, that's Covino and Rich. Summer is almost here and you can now get almost any anything you need for your sunny days delivered with Uber Eats. Now, what do we mean by almost? Well, you can't get a well groomed lawn delivered, but you can get chicken parm delivered. A day at the lake, that's a no. A Philly cheesesteak, that's a yes. A nice tan. Sorry, a box fan? Happily, yes. What about a day of sunshine? Not happening. 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Jason McIntyre (40:11)

In just three days, it's the biggest day in motorsports as the greatest spectacle in Racing. The 109th Indy 500 comes to Fox with Joseph Newgarden going for a historic three peat. Coverage begins at 10am Eastern Sunday on Fox. We are fired up for the race. We got an authentic Indy 500 driver helmet and an Indy 500 milk jug. Of course, the winner Sunday will continue the tradition of drinking milk in victory Lane.

Colin Cowherd (40:43)

So SGA won the MVP this week. I would have voted him mvp. It's a regular season award and I do think how your team finishes matter. Jokic's Nuggets weren't as good in the regular season. I think Jokic is the best player in the world. But Michael Jordan did not win. Nor did LeBron or Magic in his prime. They didn't win the MVP every year. A lot of it is how is your team doing? And SGA's team won by an average of 12.9 points. They were a blizzard, a hot knife through butter of this league. So and he's a remarkable player. But the other thing is he now is eligible for $380 million with the new CBA and I would have no problem writing that check. Unlike Luka, I don't question his fitness. Unlike Giannis, I want him to have the ball with two minutes left. He'll hit the free throws. Unlike Kawhi or Embiid, there's no load management. I like Donovan Mitchell. I don't think he elevates teammates quite as much as SGA does. Even for billionaire owners, the new CBA makes you pause. You have to consider everything. $76 million per season. If you're just dropping 30 that it used to be in the NBA, get buckets. You'll get your max. Nope. Nope. Not interested. That's why Laker fans now see watch every Night. You really know a player. When he's yours, he's on your team. Otherwise, nobody outside of OKC is watching okc. Every night, they are in okc. So, you know, with sga, you get the whistle, you get elevation. There's no load management. He gets you buckets. He's great in clutch time. That's the easiest check in the league to write. After Jokic, that's the easy one. A lot of these guys that like Jamal Murray. I like Jamal Murray. He plays himself into shape. I'm not signing that check. I'm not giving you $300 million. Luca. That was the concern in Dallas. He's playing himself into shape. Those are the guys that get hurt more. So I think now that you have this, you have this new cba. If you miss on, a player like Trey Young gets buckets. I'm not. I like Trey. I'm not paying that money for trade. I didn't play defense. I don't know if he's a leader. I don't know if he elevates teammates. He gives you some assists. And I like Trae Young, but I think all the stars thought, oh, this new CBA is great, but I'm a billionaire. It's one thing paying LeBron 38 million in his prime. I'll sign that check. I'll pay LeBron 76 million in his prime. But Kevin Durant was a little flaky. Kevin Durant had a few injuries. I'm gonna think about it. And that's why I said, if Nico Harrison would have gotten three firsts and Austin Reaves with ad, I would have defended the move. Not sure I would have made it. I would have defended it. Like, I get Giannis, he's had some injuries. You don't want him with the ball late. He's bad at the free throw line. Like, that doesn't mean he's not a star. But $380 million, you get into that area, I have to consider everything. And it's just an incredibly punitive new cba. And so it's just not about getting buckets anymore. Here's SGA on winning the award. I always thought that, like, I could be a really good player because I had. I had seen, like, what just putting your head down and working and controlling what you can control can do for you, like I dreamt about as a kid. But it's like a. You know, as a kid, it's a fake dream. But to. To. As the days go on, on, and you realize that, like, you get closer to Your dream. It's hard to like, not freak out. It's hard to like, not be a 6 year old kid again. And I think that's what's allowed me to achieve it. You know, I gotta tell you, right now, with the NBA, between sga, Tyrese Halliburton and Jalen Brunson, I'm not sure there ever been three more relatable NBA stars. I mean, again, NBA guys are six, eight. I remember going to the ESPYs and, you know, athletes are big, but they look like human beings. And then you watch the NBA guys come in in their tuxes and they're 7 2. They don't look like the rest of it. You know, Teddy Brusky I work with, he was a great, fearless linebacker after he retired. He carried a briefcase. He looked like the company's accountant. You couldn't tell. So I just find that SGA is just such a relatable dude. Halliburton and Brunson, it's really cool. So we talked about this yesterday. I said I thought that Jason Kelsey, with his inspirational speech to the owners, got the tush push. Barely. Now, I'll say this. It was a 22 to 10 vote against the tush push. Let's not make it sound like people were in favor of it. The league didn't really want it. The health and safety committee didn't want it. The rules committee didn't want it. And 22 owners didn't want it. But you needed 24 to get it banned. So the NFL, as suspected, asked the packers to propose a failed push push that's been reported. So the league did not want it. The league didn't want it. The vote led to a, according to stories here, multiple heated exchanges. So this is one of these things where I said this yesterday. I think it's Jason Kelsey and Jeffrey Lurie. And this is the thing about the NFL, and I guess this is the same with every league, but there are certain owners in the NFL that have a lot of pull. And it's not Michael Bidwell, okay? It is. Jerry Jones wanted an NFL team in Vegas. There's an NFL team in Vegas. Jerry Jones wanted the Rams to go from St. Louis to Los Angeles. They went from St. Louis to Los Angeles. Robert Kraft has always handled. I'm not sure if he still does. For years, he handled all the TV deals. He would collectively talk to all the owners, and then he would go call Fox and CBS and NBC and espn. So Jeffrey Lurie of Philadelphia got a lot of smoke. Stan Kroenke is one of the richest. Arthur Blank, the Hunt family. They've earned it. Kraft, Jerry Jones, you know, Detroit's owners, Cleveland's owner, Chicago's owner, Arizona's owner. Either they don't have the money. They don't have the wins. I think people look at Philadelphia, I don't think. I think if 25 teams were doing the tush push, it would be banned. I think it is allowed because it's Philadelphia and Jeffrey Lurie. And I think. I think there's only about four to five owners that get this thing pushed through. A Steve Bushotti of Baltimore maybe get it, gets it pushed through. But Philadelphia is iconic. They arguably have the most passionate fan base. They're a blue blood that's incredibly important for the league. Jeffrey Lurie is a creative, progressive owner. Howie Roseman has built the best roster. They're good for the league. I mean, I've said this about all pro sports in America. You could drop six to eight NHL teams. Nobody would. 99% of you don't know the arena the St. Louis Blues play in. You could drop eight baseball teams. You could drop about five to six NBA teams. Nobody would care. It's the same in the NFL. I got news for you. You could erase about six NFL teams. Nobody would care. Philadelphia is one of those four foundational teams to me, like Philadelphia, the Niners out West, Philadelphia, the Green Bay Packers. There's just. There's just a handful of teams. Dallas Cowboys, obviously. They just matter a lot. So I think. I think this comes down to Jeffrey Lurie, Philadelphia, they're standing in the league. Jason Kelsey or this thing. Again, the boat was 22 to 10. If it was 24 to 8, it's banned. And, you know, people are upset with it. I do think. I do think the one thing that, you know, for years and years, Phil Jackson ran, they called it the triangle offense. And you're like, why didn't everybody use the triangle offense? And my argument would be, because you didn't have Michael Jordan and Kobe. The triangle offense. Yeah. Lamar Odom was kind of a clever player that it worked with. It worked mostly because of Kobe and Michael Jordan. This tush push works because it's the biggest offensive line in league history. And it works because Jalen hurts, squats 600 pounds and he's small. I mean, you would. If I would have told you you'd never seen the tush push because Tom Brady in his era was a tall guy that was kind of lanky and was the best quarterback sneak guy. If I would have told you, you'd never watch the NFL. I'd say there's this team. All you knew is you, you, you, you, you kind of had a sense of the league. I said, there's this team that invented this play. It's a one yard play. Who do you think runs it? You would have guessed, like, oh, Lamar Jackson could always get a yard. Or, or Josh Allen or Herbert. They're huge. They could get a yard. You know, you look at the big guy. I said, no, It's Jalen Hurts. Second round. Jalen Hurts small squats 650 pounds behind the biggest offensive line in league history. So it's a lot of Jalen hurts. This, this. Even with that old line, it doesn't work with Jared Goff. Okay? It's not going to work. It's not working with Brock Purdy. It's probably not working with Joe Burrow. It works with Jalen hurts. So I do think Philadelphia's argument is a, there's no, there's no data that people are getting hurt. And B, we've got unique personnel. Don't punish us for being the deepest offense in the league. Two receivers, two tight ends, star quarterback, star back for all pro level alignment. Don't punish us for that. I think that's the best argument I've had. Philadelphia fans say you're punishing us. We created something. It's a good argument. Now, now, the defensive shift in baseball was created by Joe Madden down in Tampa. And the problem was everybody started using. Right. That wasn't really player specific and it, it made the game slower. You did not want Bryce Harper lining out. You wanted Bryce Harper and the hair and the look. You wanted it on base. So that was so easy to duplicate. It became bad for the league. Just like Adam Silver right now doesn't love all the three point shots because you can find three point shooters. What Philadelphia is doing is hard to duplicate and so it's not all through the league. You only see it about four times a game from one team. So the unique flavor of it actually works to Philadelphia's favor. If 22 teams were using this 11 times a game, it would get banned because what the owners really care about is the entertainment value. But one team does it well and uses it four to five times a game. It's their thing. It's their thing. J Mac. Great first hour on a Friday. We got Channing Fry and Paul Pierce stopping by to get today on.

Jason McIntyre (51:54)

Yeah, I got some good news for you. The numbers on the Brock Purdy contract, the granular numbers are coming out. I'll send them to you during the break.

Colin Cowherd (52:01)

Okay?

Jason McIntyre (52:02)

You're gonna love it.

Colin Cowherd (52:05)

Hour one down on a Thursday. Hour two next In Chicago, it's the herd. Summer is almost here, and you can now get almost anything you need for your sunny days delivered with Uber Eats. Now, what do we mean by almost? Well, you can't get a well groomed lawn delivered, but you can get chicken parm delivered. A nice tan. Sorry, A box fan? Happily, yes. A day of sunshine? No. A box of fine wines? Yes. Uber Eats can definitely get you that. Get almost, almost anything delivered with Uber Eats. Order now. Alcohol in select markets. Product availability may vary by region. See app for details. You've heard me talk about Green River Whiskey, the official whiskey of the herd podcast. I love a good metaphor, so here's one for you. Green River Whiskey is like a big playoff win by your favorite team, always sure to raise your spirits. So pair the thrills of this playoff season with Green River Whiskey. To find Green river near you, head on over to greenriverwhiskey.com here's the green River Whiskey. Raise your spirits. A product of Green River Distilling Company, Owensboro, Kentucky. Alcohol by volume, varies by product. Greenriverwhiskey.com Please drink responsibly. Just like how true champs master both offense and defense, the BMW IX masters both ultimate performance and unbeatable space. Love mine. The greatest legends in sports never compromise in any aspect of their game. So why would you settle for anything less from your suv? What I love about my BMW IX is that it redefines the electric vehicle experience, seamlessly integrates powerful performance. It's bold, daring design, a refined interior, details, cutting edge technology. Basically pushes the boundaries of innovation. Thousands of details went into creating the ultimate electric suv. Compromise? Not one of them. The following heartwarming yet informative scene is brought to you by Trust and Will. Son, your grandpa and I used to work on this car together and when I'm gone, I want you to have it. Wow. Thanks dad. Doesn't count. What you need is a will. Luckily, trust and will makes it easy. Designed by attorneys but customized by you, you can easily create a state specific, legally valid document that actually counts. Now let's let the engine do the talking. Am I right? Start your will@trustandwill.com use offer code count for 20 off and make it count. Trust and Will is an online estate planning service. For details, see trustandwill.com you're listening to an I Heart podcast.