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Transcript103 lines
- [00:00]
Colin Cowherd
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Terms apply. Access to the card member entrance not limited to the American Express Platinum card. Learn more@americanexpress.com with Amex. Thanks for listening to the Heard podcast. Be sure to catch us live every weekday on Fox Sports radio and noon to 3 Eastern, 9am to noon Pacific. Find your local station for the herd@foxsportsradio.com or stream us live every day on the iHeartRadio app by searching Fox Sports Radio or FSR. Now let's get this party started. You're listening to Fox Sports Radio, here we go, hour two. It is a Wednesday. Good night. Sleep last night. No earthquakes. I mean, Luke and LeBron head over. You know, they had 30. There's your mini earthquake. Yeah, so I, I was doubtful for today's show. I had an awful night's sleep, woke up and I was telling the wife, like, I don't want to deal with the traffic this morning. I was a little rattled. Deal with the traffic. Well, if you, if you get a late start from where I live, it's like an hour drive. And it's just, it was. Boy, that, that's. That is blank privilege or something, that Brown privilege. This show's too much fun to miss. Come on. So I, I thought this, this was interesting. You know, I'm pretty consistent on this. I like aggressive. I just. I just like aggressive, even if I don't agree with everything like live golf. I appreciate the effort. And if you're sitting around for years and years not treating the best golfers in the world better, they're going to go to another. They're going to know, do another tour. Deal with it. Treat them better. So the Eagles gave Saquon Barkley a fat contract. 41 million, 36 million of it guaranteed at signing. And so this is why the Eagles are elite. They write a huge check with most of the money up front, meaning they can escape by year two. I don't think they'll want to, but running back Saquon's been hurt. They can get out of it. This is what Arizona, Chicago, Cincinnati. That is the space. Those days, those guys don't operate in. They did this with Carson, Carson Wentz. Philly takes big swings and they write big checks up front and, and so they can get out of stuff. And the Saquon deal is a massive check. And until the Raiders recently got a couple of new investors, they couldn't write these checks. Chicago doesn't write them. Cincinnati doesn't write them. Arizona doesn't write them. I mean, all legendary poker players, every Phil Hellmuth down is. They are selectively aggressive. They do not always have the best hand. You gotta be aggressive. And I think the heart and soul remember Howie Roseman. This is a team that want to got to a Super bowl. And they, you know, know, they tend to. They win a Super bowl and everybody wants to bring everybody back. And I'm not a fan of that. I think you got to keep moving the roster in professional football to keep everybody fresh. I think they're going to move off like seven or eight guys. You cannot Move off Saquon Barkley. There are three or four players on the Eagles. You can't duplicate that. You can't duplicate Jaylen Carter on a rookie contract. You cannot replace Aquan Barkley. Even Derrick Henry's not this. So the soul of the Eagles to me is GM O line quarterback Saquon Barkley and Jalen Carter. And there was this ridiculous narrative that was happening for about a year ago at running backs. They're going extinct. No, they're not. The most important football games in this league are played in December, January and February. It gets cold and windy, and nobody is more valuable to a quarterback than a great running back. And what I love about Saquon Barkley, among other things, class quiet, head down. I mean, this guy played battle lines at Penn State, battle lines with the Giants. Never complained a single time. He does it the right way. So I could not be happier for Saquon Barkley. And I. I know a lot of people out there, running backs, a dime a dozen. No, they're not. No, they are not. The O line as a collective is really the centerpiece of the team. But when Saquon didn't have a great O line, he was still remarkable, and all the smart people knew it. So, you know, I. And I had said this. People get worked up. Certain positions don't get paid. If you're a great tight end, if you're a great guard. Joe Tuni, he got paid. Guards don't make any money. Joe Tuney got paid. You'll get paid. Safeties don't get paid. Ed Reed got paid. You know, Ronnie Lock got paid. You'll get paid if you're great. Now, there's other positions where you don't have to be great. You can be Brock Purdy and good and get paid, but that's just the way the game works. There's some positions, if you're a good left tackle, the Rams have a good left tackle. You get. You get a lot of money. Running back, you got to be great. Saquon Barkley is. And with that, our friend Rachel Nichols, Fox Sports NBA analyst, is joining us on the show. You know, I never try to be a Homer, but, you know, as a Warrior and Laker guy, it is good living right now.
- [07:39]
Rachel Nichols
Good time to be in California and be a basketball fan, right?
- [07:42]
Colin Cowherd
It is. So I want to. I want to talk about Jimmy Butler. So before they made the move, I watched a lot of Warrior games, and I had said, man, when Steph Curry's not in the floor, this team is boring. Yeah, and they're charging a lot for tickets. The standards very high. And like, you got to keep moving, like the San Francisco Giants didn't. They're kind of irrelevant, like, you got to make a move. So I think there were people in the league that thought, you know, Jimmy's noisy. You know, Jimmy's past his prime. And I kept saying, just get his energy in the building. I wonder if the warriors privately are a little surprised how perfectly he's fit.
- [08:24]
Rachel Nichols
I mean, I think they're thrilled. We know that they were going after Kevin Durant that week, so he wasn't even their first choice, but he's turned out to be a better fit. Jimmy Butler says one of the things about me is I fit in everywhere. And I think that is true. And he's been able to fit in there so well, seamlessly, basketball wise. But as you point out, it's also energy and culture wise. He might not be the stereotypical runs on Joy Golden State warrior, but he is that sort of character, energy guy that this team has been known for. You know, Draymond Green put it this way, Colin, he said we needed another a hole, although it's Draymond. So he did not use the word a hole. You can just fill in what he actually said. Steve Kerr talked about that too, last night, that he just has given Steph Curry more energy because Steph knows when he goes to the bench, someone else is going to be out there. He doesn't have to do everything by himself.
- [09:10]
Colin Cowherd
Yeah.
- [09:10]
Rachel Nichols
And I think we've seen the effect of all of that. And. And they are a real force now in the west, which wasn't true at the turn of the year.
- [09:17]
Colin Cowherd
Yeah, it, you know, it's. I said this earlier. Los Angeles sort of forces you as a franchise to be aggressive. The Lakers have been aggressive with Westbrook. Didn't work aggressive with ad And Luca works. The Dodgers win a World series and spend $450 million more dollars on players. The Clippers feel stale and a little tired because it's like, okay, they're. They're stagnant. Stagnant. Status quo doesn't work in la.
- [09:47]
Rachel Nichols
Yep.
- [09:47]
Colin Cowherd
If you're good in Cincinnati with Joe Burrow, that's good enough. It's not here. And so I look at the Lakers and Luca. I do. I think it's a honeymoon period. But I'm watching them the last couple of games without a Rui and a Reeves. I mean, Condo there. I don't think it's crazy. I did this yesterday. I did my NBA championship bubble yeah, and I don't, I always worry about being like recency bias or confirmation bias. I think the Lakers, I don't know if they can beat Boston. I think they can win the West. I, I, here's my bubble radio audience. I put Denver, Lakers, warriors, okc, Cleveland, Boston, I think are the two best teams. Knicks on the outside. Any problem having the Lakers in it?
- [10:32]
Rachel Nichols
Oh, I don't have a problem having the Lakers in it. I feel, as much as this pains me because I'm a huge Nikola Jokic fan of just what he can do on the court. I'm not sure the Nuggets are actually in the bubble, but I like your optimism. There you go. I do think you're completely right with your other teams there. And it's just going to be interesting. I mean, Steph Curry playing the way that he is. To your point.
- [10:51]
Colin Cowherd
Yeah.
- [10:52]
Rachel Nichols
I would never have imagined Golden State in that bubble just a couple months ago. I mean, they were barely scraping a playing spot.
- [10:58]
Colin Cowherd
Kaminga's not playing.
- [11:00]
Rachel Nichols
Right.
- [11:00]
Colin Cowherd
And the one thing they miss is length.
- [11:02]
Rachel Nichols
Exactly.
- [11:03]
Colin Cowherd
And so Kaminga's got a bad ankle. I think he's back in the next week. So, folks, this team is. The Lakers are getting Reeves and Rui back and the warriors are getting Kaminga back.
- [11:13]
Rachel Nichols
Absolutely. I do want to make one, one Steph Curry point just. And then, and then we can dovetail into the Lakers. You know, I think the control room has the Steph Curry shot from before we've been talking about a week, right. That shot before the Orlando halftime against the Orlando Magic. That is a shot that most players in the NBA run from. Right. It's the end of the half, it messes with their shooting percentage. There's a thing in the NBA about, hey, pass it to the rookie right before the buzzer at halftime so his shooting percentage can get messed up. Steph always goes for that shot. He always wants that shot. And you have a player like that who always wants to take that shot because he could make it. And that turned into a 56 point performance for him. Those are the guys I want in your playoff bubble, in your Finals contention bubble. Teams that have that, they have that in Steph Curry, which is why you never count the warriors out as long as Steph's on the court. The Lakers have that in Luka and LeBron. Those guys are not scared. And when it comes to the playoffs, you said you may have recency bias. Recency bias is part of the NBA. It's how you are playing toward the end of the regular season and then going into the playoffs. That are the teams that should be in your bubble. Your recency bias is correct because the Lakers have those kinds of guys.
- [12:24]
Colin Cowherd
They are.
- [12:24]
Rachel Nichols
They have the best record in the NBA since the middle of January. Top five on both sides of the ball. In fact, they have the best defense in the entire.
- [12:32]
Colin Cowherd
Isn't that crazy? Since the beginning, they lose ad they acquire Luka, who's always been a bit of a defensive liability, and they're as good a defensive team.
- [12:42]
Rachel Nichols
And Luka can play defense when he needs to. And there you go.
- [12:45]
Colin Cowherd
So the JJ Redick hire is interesting because there, there was a lot of pushback on. He didn't have a lot of experience, which I always think that's a bit overrated.
- [12:53]
Rachel Nichols
No experience?
- [12:54]
Colin Cowherd
Yeah. I mean, none. He's LeBron's pod partner. But it's, it's, it's hard for me. I can judge a football coach very quickly.
- [13:02]
Rachel Nichols
Sure.
- [13:02]
Colin Cowherd
Basketball is so fluid and so star driven. I have to watch multiple games to get a feel. Are you a good coach or not?
- [13:08]
Rachel Nichols
Yeah. Yeah.
- [13:09]
Colin Cowherd
Because a lot of times even a Steve Kerr or a Spoelstroke will just let the star dictate the offense. You're not calling plays a lot like you do in college basketball, but the one thing I see with the Lakers, especially in the first quarter, I can see what they're trying to do. I always. They have a game plan. And with Darvin Ham, a lot of times it was. I felt like they were kind of just letting the game come to them. I feel like JJ Redick, this is what we're doing for the first six minutes. And I don't know, I just. Is he. I think he's been sensational.
- [13:40]
Rachel Nichols
I really. First of all, I really like JJ personally, and I think he's been popular in the locker room because of that personality. He's super intense, obviously very meticulous, but players like that, they want a guy who cares as much or more than they do. And one of JJ's core beliefs is there's a lot outside of the game that you can control. And since there's so much inside the game that you can't, once you get on the court, control everything outside the game, make it all better. So to your point about being organized, having your rotations down, having the guys know where they're supposed to be, when all of that really matters, so that when the stuff happens that you can't control, you already have the leg up of the stuff that you can. And we see that over and over on the court. You also see, frankly, with the way that he is playing Luka at the beginning of games. Luka has so much of the load in the first quarter that LeBron James, at 40 years old, is able to be great offensively, but also defensively at the end of games. And that has been a problem for them the last couple of years. When LeBron runs out of gas, which he has toward, you know, in playoff games, for the end of games, the Lakers don't have anything else. Not only now do they have something else in Luca, but LeBron's not running out of gas. And it's the first time, Colin, in LeBron's entire career that you and I have ever seen anyone multiply LeBron. LeBron is usually the multiplier. He's the guy who makes other guys around him better than they are.
- [14:54]
Colin Cowherd
Right.
- [14:54]
Rachel Nichols
He makes things easier. He makes things better. He draws more attention. Luka is making LeBron better at age 40. We've never seen that with LeBron. No one's ever multiplied LeBron or made LeBron better. And Luka Doncic is doing that. That's incredible for the Lakers.
- [15:07]
Colin Cowherd
You know, when you make trades in pro sports and this. This is really kind of systemic in business as well, is that there are always unintended benefits or consequences that you make a big merger and you're like, oh, we didn't know this would be good, too, or the opposite. And so I think when you make the Jimmy Butler move for the warriors, you knew you'd be better defensively, and you knew he'd get you the line, but you didn't know that Steph would be playing with a vigor and energy that was like, oh, multiplied. So it's like, you can't guess everything. So here's where the Mavericks. Not only was the trade bad, but.
- [15:49]
Rachel Nichols
The problem, the visceral reaction. I apologize.
- [15:52]
Colin Cowherd
The problem giving up Luka, coupled with the injuries they had with their bigs before Luca was traded, is that then Kyrie is your only play initiator now. Spencer Dinwiddie's a good player now. Kyrie's got to play more minutes and have the ball incessantly. And my take, and maybe it's a reach, is part of the injury, is you didn't consider, oh, God, we've only got two initiators. We trade one. Kyrie's a smaller athlete with injuries.
- [16:26]
Rachel Nichols
I don't think that's controversial at all. We have heard people say, oh, come on, ACL isn't an overuse injury. Stop Talking about his minutes. I'm sorry, I completely disagree. No, it's not an overuse injury. I know that. But when your body is tired, we all know this. When your body is tired, you are more vulnerable to everything.
- [16:45]
Colin Cowherd
Rachel, what's the worst run skiing the last run of the day. Like the old saying is, you're most.
- [16:51]
Rachel Nichols
Likely to get injured in the last.
- [16:52]
Colin Cowherd
Run of the day.
- [16:53]
Rachel Nichols
Your body is. Everything is less precise in your movements. Every part of your body is sort of compensating for different things and different muscles. And I don't care if something is, quote, an overuse injury or not. If your body is worn down, you are more susceptible to getting hurt. And it of course is bad luck the way Kyrie got hurt. But you can create conditions that make bad luck more or less likely to happen.
- [17:17]
Colin Cowherd
That's right.
- [17:17]
Rachel Nichols
And a team in the Dallas Mavericks that partly they're justification for the trade, partly was that Lucas habits and conditioning was creating poor conditions for his possible future health. If that is part of the reason that you decided, hey, bad luck happens. But we can create conditions to make it more or less likely. Don't trade for a guy, an Anthony Davis, who has an injury history and is older, and don't put so much of a load on Kyrie Irving, who has an injury history and is old. You are creating conditions for bad luck to happen, whether it's overuse or fluke or not. And the Dallas Mavericks have walked right into it. And again, I don't understand it because Jason Kidd is so smart and Nico Harrison is really smart, and I don't know what's happening there.
- [18:04]
Colin Cowherd
Well, you know, I had, I had a discussion with somebody the other day on this in the NBA circle, and I think when the players that CBA, where the players like LeBron and Chris Paul had a big say in the CBA where it paid the stars like seven, it felt like they got all the money. Yes, C players, all the money.
- [18:23]
Rachel Nichols
All the money.
- [18:24]
Colin Cowherd
So it was great for LeBron, it was great for Chris Paul, Steph Curry, it's great for Giannis. But now the max is 70 million to 75. So Luca qualifies for that. I think it's one thing for a billionaire to write a $40 million annual check when you almost double it. They're going to consider everything, including conditioning, injury, history. I mean, I, I mean, like Paul George, good player. Clippers are like, we can't go there.
- [18:51]
Rachel Nichols
But don't you have to consider it in both directions if you're the Mavericks?
- [18:55]
Colin Cowherd
Sure.
- [18:55]
Rachel Nichols
If you're considering it on the way out for Luka. Aren't you supposed to be considering it on the way in with the guys that you got coming in? Yeah, I just, I don't think that this was foreseeable in the way of, like, man, we're going to be sitting here three weeks a month after the trade and, you know, their top two stars are going to be gone. But it wasn't unimaginable. And that's the difference. It's not like you couldn't been like, ah, that's impossible. You had two older stars on the other side of 30 who have an injury history and it's not a complete. Oh, my God, I could never have imagined this, that this happened. And the question now is, do you even bring AD back this season?
- [19:27]
Colin Cowherd
I'm not sure I would right now that Kyrie's out. I probably wouldn't.
- [19:32]
Rachel Nichols
I don't know. Maybe, you know, and then you have a contingent of Dallas fans online and, you know, they're still feeling emotional. They're in their feelings, but they'd like to trade AD this summer. Because the point is, the thinking goes, this is not my theory. No, no. But there is a fan push out there to say, hey, Anthony Davis is never going to be more valuable than he is this summer. He's not going to be more valuable the next summer. The next summer. Kyrie isn't going to be there for at least half the season next season. So really, what is the AD Kyrie window that you're talking about? And do you have to just start again now? I think that Anthony Davis should stick around in Dallas and see what you can do with him next season. But I understand the frustration of people feeling like this is already a loss. Are you already going to tell me a future? When Nico Harrison said, I've got three or four year window, tell me the future. How would it lay out that they could win a championship in the next three years? It's a tough. It's a tough look.
- [20:26]
Colin Cowherd
So I think. I don't think the NBA's had nearly as many faces of the league as people would submit to. Sure, yeah, I think it's been Magic. I don't even think Bird was. Bird was French Lick. He was ornery. He didn't want to do ads. I think Magic sort of pulled him along. Magic was the face. Michael was the best face. LeBron's the face. Curry's close. Some have argued that Kobe and Shaq together collectively for about five years with a face. I'm not gonna I don't argue, I've argued that Jason Tatum has a lot of things but kind of lacks a. Or aura or a clutch time resonance with people. But the other thing that's thrown out there and it's fascinating because I don't know what's right, people say could an international player be face of the league now something that was brought up to me that I think is important is that we knew Michael, Magic and LeBron's story when they were like 18, 19, 20.
- [21:25]
Rachel Nichols
Yeah.
- [21:26]
Colin Cowherd
International guys. We don't now I do think it's international basketball elevates. It is. I mean we knew Wembley a year before he came to say so I don't have an answer. Could an international player be the face of a sport in America?
- [21:40]
Rachel Nichols
I mean, look, we've seen it in baseball, right. Right here in Los Angeles. I do think the most likely candidates are Victor Webanyama, who I think is going to be the, you know, health obviously health being a factor. And we saw something just last month, but in the last month, but health sustained. Then I think that he is going to be maybe the top player in the next 10 years. Is he the face of the league? Is that instead going to be Luka because he's here in Los Angeles another foreign burn player or is it going to be an Anthony Edwards? And Jason Tatum was complaining. You know, Anthony Edwards hasn't done the things that Jason Tatum has done. Not by a mile. By the way Jason done has significantly more than Anthony has done. However, there is a swashbuckler sort of sense to Anthony Edwards, to Michael Jordan.
- [22:23]
Colin Cowherd
Right.
- [22:24]
Rachel Nichols
To LeBron in his way that Jayson Tatum just doesn't have Our guy. Paul Pierce also brought up the fact that Jason Tatum plays in Boston and a lot of people around the country do not like Boston sports teams.
- [22:34]
Colin Cowherd
Yeah.
- [22:35]
Rachel Nichols
And to your Larry Bird point, it was Magic, not Larry who was so popular. Boston guy.
- [22:39]
Colin Cowherd
Yeah. Let's end it with this. I think it's fascinating. I really, you know, I, I had theorized that when James Dolan spent two years on the sphere in Vegas, he got out of the basketball ops.
- [22:50]
Rachel Nichols
Yep.
- [22:50]
Colin Cowherd
And the Knicks put together an excellent front office and have made great move after great move. I love what the Knicks have done. There is an advantage to losing. It creates clarity in the building. Y. They can't beat the Celtics. They can't beat okc. They can't beat Cleveland. They probably couldn't beat Luca in a series if they played LeBron. They couldn't beat last night though, missing Kaminga. They were Missing cat. But they're not an elite team. They're a good team on certain nights, very good, but they're not great. I think that's great. I think where NBA franchises die is when everybody in the building is arguing.
- [23:23]
Rachel Nichols
Right.
- [23:24]
Colin Cowherd
I think there were a lot of Darvin ham believers in the building until the very end of the season. And then they all said it's not working.
- [23:30]
Rachel Nichols
Right.
- [23:31]
Colin Cowherd
Knicks needing to make another big move. Right.
- [23:34]
Rachel Nichols
But they're.07 against the top teams in the league. That is not the number that you want. It's interesting. A week or so ago, we heard a report from Shams over on ESPN saying Giannis wants to stay in Milwaukee, but not if they don't keep winning. Those reports, by the way, don't happen by accident. Those are little, as you and I both know over the years, little warning shots to franchises. Oh, gee. We happen to be having the conversation. And there's no secret that the New York Knicks would like to get their hands on Giannis Antetokounmpo. And we'll just have to keep watching. People in Milwaukee love Giannis. They don't like it when people talk about him leaving their team. I get it. I don't want him to leave the Bucks either.
- [24:12]
Colin Cowherd
I don't want to blow the Knicks up, though. Well, OG four draft picks, Carl Anthony Towns. I don't want. I want. You're not moving Brunson.
- [24:20]
Rachel Nichols
I would move a lot in that franchise to get Giannis. Santa to Kupo. I mean, really save Jaylen Brunson. I, I, I think they're all integral parts of the Knicks and how we know them. And they're scrappy and they work hard, and guess what? If you had Giannis, you'd go further. And I think in the end, it's.
- [24:35]
Colin Cowherd
About winning and, and I. But let's, let's be fair about this. Luca to the Lakers and JB to the Warriors. You got to have two A's. That's just the way it is.
- [24:46]
Rachel Nichols
Change the franchise. Right?
- [24:47]
Colin Cowherd
Right. You can go like that. Brunson's an A minus. And a lot of guys that are B's. That's just not good enough.
- [24:53]
Rachel Nichols
Nope.
- [24:53]
Colin Cowherd
Because I've watched them play Boston twice. Boston comes out eight minutes in, they attack Carl Anthony Towns. It's over.
- [25:01]
Rachel Nichols
But again, I would like to see Giannis win in Milwaukee again. I thought that was so fun when they won that title and the city, the way they embrace them. Your original point when we sat down here, of, hey, it's a competitive market. In la, in San Francisco. It's not as competitive a market in Milwaukee. That town loves the Bucks. That is what that town is about. And if he can bring them another title, that would be incredible. But if he wants to leave, New York is a logical place for him to go.
- [25:26]
Colin Cowherd
Love having you on the show as always, Rachel Nichols.
- [25:28]
Rachel Nichols
Thanks cats.
- [25:29]
Colin Cowherd
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. It's the last game of the season and with amex you can save time with card member entrances at select venues and go straight to the action so you can catch every moment. That's the powerful backing of American Express. Turn to Fly. Learn more@americanexpress.com With Amex, Omaha Steaks delivers the world's best steak experience and it brings people together with more than 100 years of family owned expertise as America's original butcher. Omaha Steak's legendary filet mignons are extra aged to maximize tenderness and are tested to the highest standards to maintain the coveted distinction of USDA Certified tender. And now during their semi annual sale, you can get 50% off site wide at Omaha steaks.com plus our listeners get an extra $30 off with the promo code Herdherd at checkout. This weekend was a great time to bust open my Omaha Steaks assortment. Pack air Chilled boneless chicken breasts, ribeye and steak burgers Gourmet jumbo franks. They're great butcher's cut top sirloins and for dessert, caramel apple tartlets. It doesn't get better than this. From legendary steaks to classic comfort food, bring home that exceptional handcrafted flavor and convenience of Omaha Steaks. Every steak perfectly aged. Five generations of uncompromising quality Omaha Steaks has been America's original butcher since 1917. Don't miss the semiannual sale at Omaha Steaks. Visit OmahaSteaks.com for 50% off site wide and for an extra $30 off, use the promo code herdherd at checkout. That's 50% off at OmahaSteaks.com and an extra $30 off with a promo code Herd at checkout. 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 Keep 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. It's Julie Stewart Banks. I'm doing a new podcast from iHeart podcast and the National Hockey League, and I'm paired up with one of my favorite players, the always quotable Nate Thompson.
- [28:05]
Rachel Nichols
I wore nine NHL sweaters and I have story after story to share. And believe it or not, I have plenty to say, and not just about hockey.
- [28:12]
Colin Cowherd
Believe me, he does. Energy Line with Nate and JSB is the name of the podcast and it's going to be, well, it's going to be quite, quite the ride. We're officially line mates, Nate. We're the Energy Line.
- [28:24]
Rachel Nichols
We'll have plenty of folks join us, Current players, some of my former teammates, hall of Famers, and wait till you see some of the connections that Julie has. She has quite the Rolodex.
- [28:33]
Colin Cowherd
Okay, we'll lean into Nate's playing experience and tap into our interests away from hockey and try to do what Energy alliance are supposed to do. Provide an emotional boost. How do you feel about all that, Nate? I'm vibing Julie. I'm ready to roll. Listen to Energy Line with Nate and jsb on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts, man. Good stuff we got. Are you putting that in updates? Is that one of your stories, J. Mac? Or should I mention it right here, your vacation that's coming up. No, no, no, no. The story that's breaking. Yeah, we're talking about it. You're talking about it. Okay. All right. I don't want to steal your thunder.
- [29:11]
Rachel Nichols
Steal away.
- [29:11]
Colin Cowherd
I mean, I'm lucky to have you here today. The guy had an ice cream headache. Couldn't show up to the show. I mean, God, J. Mac with the news. No, no, no. Turn on the news. This is the Herd line news. We're not starting with the breaking NFL news, but we'll start with the NBA because I don't know if you saw this video last night. Check it out. Kevin Durant and Buddenholzer get into it. KD basically says, I don't. I guess gtfo, you know, basically just telling the coach, get off me and walking away from him. It was bad in Phoenix last night. And then Durant goes off in the fourth quarter for 19 points. The game winning assist. Suns come back from 23 down to get the dub. Here's KD afterward.
- [29:52]
Rachel Nichols
Yeah, that's what usually happens when you.
- [29:53]
Colin Cowherd
Don'T know the dynamics of a relationship. You know, you catch something on tv.
- [29:57]
Rachel Nichols
You get a quote, and now you pushing that narrative as if me and.
- [30:01]
Colin Cowherd
Bud don't do that all the time. We competitive as two individuals who want to see things done the right way. And sometimes my way ain't the way that Bud want to do it and vice versa. And he allows me, as a player on the team, a veteran on the team, to voice my opinion. If I. If we both didn't care, we would never have stuff like that. Okay, let me defend Kevin Durant. Oh, oh, okay, here we go. Why is it okay for football coaches and players to argue and we all. It's all cool. Why can't Kevin Durant voice his opinion with a basketball coach? Well, what's wrong with this? Wait a minute. Arguing is different from get off me, don't touch me. Which is what KD did. If Patrick Mahomes and Andy Reid had that kind of get off me encounter. Travis Kelce, almost. He's not a quarterback. He's a tight end. Who cares? This is Kevin Durant, a legend in the league. Timeout. Show me the video again. He turns around and disagrees with him in the middle of a game. All the emotion of the middle of a game. And then Budenholzer puts his arm around this. I won't watch this. Get off me. Imagine if you grab me after a segment. We're like, j. Mac, get the hell off. Dude, I've done that about four times. Let me tell you something. Kevin Durant. I've defended Peyton Manning on this. I've defended Brady. I'm going to defend Kevin Durant. When you're in the middle of an NBA game or a pro game, your emotions are through the roof. Got you. Okay, okay. You get. You can get snarky, you can get upset. This is okay. We always kill NBA guys when they bark at a coach. NFL guys are barking at each other constantly. Fine. I'll give you that. However, this video, on the heels of the Devin Booker, Budenholzer thing last week, where Budenholzer said, hey, man, I need you to be less vocal. We now have Budenholzer talking to Booker. Booker was shocked by it, according to reports. And now he's grabbing KD and kd saying, get off me. I'm just saying, Frank Vogel coached his team last year. They ran him out. The stars ran him out in one year. And now Buden Holzer. One week beefing with Booker, and now this with. With kd. And you can Defend kd. No, I'm not saying the Suns are going in the right up. You are. They're not going in the right direction. It's, I think it's, everybody in the league knows it's. It's reboot time. But I, I, I think we do this with basketball players. It's like, you know, LeBron had some moments with the Israeli coach, David Blatt, okay. And he had moments with Eric. Well, LeBron James is playing 45 minutes both ends. And in the, you get, like, when I'm in the middle of a show, I barked at a producer. I don't do that before shows. You bark sometimes when you're in the middle of action. It's okay. It's like, it's part of its life. Just remember those LeBron teams, they were always in the finals, okay? Kevin Durant's not. They're not in the play in Colin. I am playing. I think we sound disconnected when we're in the media and we bang on athletes, because in the middle of these, I mean, just think about this. This isn't necessarily just about kd. This is the relationship, the dynamic of the team. It's all bubbling up into a disaster. I've seen Steve Kerr and Draymond have issues. It's the league, it's the association. You got fights at practice. Nbd, no big deal. Much ado about nothing if Portland passes Phoenix in the west in that playing race, we're doing that for. We're doing that in the hurt line, if that ever happens. Okay, next up, let's go to the NFL. The Buffalo Bills were not able to get past the Chiefs, obviously, and get to the Super Bowl. But offensive tackle Dion Dawkins, who comes on the show regularly, thinks things could have been different if Buffalo had met Philly in the super bowl, faced off. He thinks Buffalo would have had a better chance. Here he is. Yeah, we would have put on a better show. And shoot, I am a part of my team, so I think my team is going to put on the best show regardless of anybody performing.
- [33:47]
Rachel Nichols
We are the ones.
- [33:50]
Colin Cowherd
We're raw. Quarterback is raw. Our line is raw. D line is raw. We are the Raws. We put on the best show and we perform at a high level. Not to say that we would have, like, went in there and just beat the Eagles, because it would have been a. We would have had a chance, and we would have had a better a chance. You know, here's why. He's right. One of the strengths of the Bills is left tackle. That was the undoing of the Chiefs. They couldn't block him. And I think last year, especially at the tackle positions, I think Buffalo was better than Kansas City and that it just. You cannot face the Eagles front. And if you're struggling to block the edge, you're in trouble. Cuz everybody struggles to block Jaylen Carter. If you're struggling to block the edge and Jaylen Carter, game over. So I think Buffalo, I don't know if they'd have won. I don't think they would have won, but I think they would have matched up. We do know this to be true. There are matchups in the NFL that I think Houston matches up. I think the Raiders last year matched up very well with Kansas City. They just, they're just, they had a trouble blocking Max Crosby and the Raiders had some success maybe moving the chains that they wouldn't against other teams. I, I think matchups matter more than we think in the NFL. And Buffalo matched up with Philadelphia much. I think we said that before the super bowl. Is that it was a rough. Yeah, it was not great. Let me just ask you. So AFC usually dominated the top five of the Herd hierarchy all season, right? Ravens were in their Bills were in there. Was the AFC a little overrated last year? Remove the. Obviously the quarterback play was great. Yeah. But Ravens kind of look flustered in that playoff loss in Buffalo play great turnovers. I had a general manager tell me that. He said you lost like Buffalo's roster more than general managers do, that Buffalo's roster is much thinner because I, I was telling him how much I love the Buffalo roster. He said it's much thinner than you think. They've got like four great players. So it was Josh, it was the Josh Allen show in Buffalo. Well, James Cook is good. The line, one of their linebackers is excellent. Tight end Kincaid's good. But they, they have four really good players and then, you know, some guys. And seeing the Chiefs trade Tooney today after that super bowl and after these comments, I wonder what Kansas City has up its sleeve. Are they cooking up something? Well, I think we're going to probably do that later in the week because something's going on in Kansas City. Final story is the breaking news that you alluded to, and that is DK Metcalf has requested a trade out of Seattle. Seattle is saying all the right things. They want to keep him, but he wants to go to a contender. Colin, this is obviously not great news. On the heels of Lockett getting rolled, released today, Seattle could be essentially looking at a big Time rebuild. We. We don't know what their quarterback situation is going to be after Geno Smith. I think DK Metcalf and the Chargers makes a hell of a lot of sense. DK Metcalf and the Chargers does make sense. I think it's time. I like DK Metcalf a lot, but we've talked about this. Debo in San Francisco, it was time. Stefan Diggs in Buffalo, this is the most outspoken position in the league for a bunch of reasons, and I'm not sure I know all of them, but I think it's time. Tyler Lockett, they've moved off of DK Metcalf. They have a young receiver from Ohio State. They like. They like their young backs. They like their tight end fan. I think it's just time. Listen, we've got a lot of Raider fans on staff and they're floating to me. Hey, Pete Carroll reuniting with DK in Vegas. Yeah. But DK said he wants to go to a contender and if you look at the quarterback, I mean, why would DK want to get traded? No, I think I, I think he adds such a physical dimension. Oh, he's excellent. Yeah. I think the Chargers makes a lot of sense because remember the Chargers, they wanted T. Higgins every. I mean, that's obviously, you know, very well. And in the NFL, the trend is pay offense, draft defense. So he's going to have a market. And he's such. He's just physically a different kind of athlete. Like, Green Bay's got a bunch of number two receivers. I think they'd look at it. Dude, if you, you got DK and Lad Monkey as your two. Two, that's pretty damn good for Justin Herbert. And then Palmer's your third. They're gonna draft the tight end. I like, but see, it seems like the, they're, they're almost there for the reboot in Seattle. Like, hey, we had a good run with this group. Let's start over. I. I don't think they're gonna be great next year, are they. Are they last place? Would you give up? Would you what would you give up for DK Mecca? Probably in a weak draft, would you give up a 1? So Debo Samuel was expensive and got a 5th round pick. He's a little older. I would give up a three for DK. All right, what are you thinking? Probably a two, but a three because you have to pay him. Probably a three. Probably. Maybe a conditional second if he hits. That's right. You know, 90 catches, a three and then a conditional second. Or something like that. Yeah, that's a good call. He said he's a. Listen, he's still a top like 12ish receivers. No, no, no. He's, he's. DK's a, he's a, he's a one. Yeah. J. Mac with the news. Well, that's the news. And thanks for stopping by the herd lie news. For the record, the staff brought up a very interesting point. I was defending kd, arguing with Budenholzer, and I think we in the media like one of the things that's always driven me crazy. If you watch the Olympics and somebody trains for four to eight years to get to the Olympics and then they run the 800 meters and they finish fourth and don't get a medal and an NBC reporter goes up, how's it feel? It's like, could you give him 30 seconds here? He's trained eight years for it. I think we feel we sound a little disconnected in the media when we don't understand that these games are. We want all of our star athletes to be MJ and to be killers and to be intense and to be relentless. And in the middle of a game, when the coach comes to them and barks a little bit, it's okay. I'm going to give the players a little bit of a pass. I'm, I'm, you know, I'm old guy sitting here talking about it. When you go to an NBA game, there is a lot of trash talking. I mean, there is. I mean, LeBron's not a trash talker, but LeBron's even like throwing stuff at you and looks and is. I'm going to defend kd and you have a relationship with him. I do not. But, but, but I'll say this. The staff, during her line, somebody wrote this on the screen. Isn't it a healthier relationship if you do argue with your wife from time to time? That's an authentic relationship. Sometimes I have to tell Ann, listen, I'm right again. You're going to have to take one for the team here. I know it gets very frustrating, but that's an authentic relationship. Steve Kerr and Draymond. Draymond and Steve Kerr. I mean, Kerr loves Draymond and they bark at each other. No communication is inauthentic. Never showing your anger is totally inauthentic. Some. I guarantee you JJ Redick and LeBron will have a moment and he'll bark. And that's. That is absolutely okay. I mean that when the stakes are high. Peyton Manning screaming at Jeff Saturday and the reason he is screaming at Jeff Saturday. Remember that old clip is because he respected Jeff Saturday and he expected more from Jeff. So Jeff Saturday barked back to him and that made me respect Jeff Saturday more because most offensive linemen aren't barking to Peyton Maine, but Jeff Saturday knew. Bro, you got your hands on my rump, you know, 45 times every Sunday to 85 times and I'm blocking with the best centers in the league. I get an opinion too. And so I'm gonna give Katie a pass. I'm going to give football players three and a half hour window of pro sports. You can yell at a teammate. Remember Josh McDaniels? Brady Brady just dropping bombs on him. That's healthy. In fact, I may call Ann after the show and just, you know, start arguing just for the relationship. Live in LA it's the Herd. Be sure to catch live editions of the Herd, weekdays at noon Eastern, 9am Pacific on Fox Sports Radio, FS1 and the iHeartRadio app. Hey, it's 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 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 Cavino Enrich 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 Kobe Nonrich wherever you get your podcast. And of course on social media, that's Covino and Rich with AMEX Gold. You get up to $100 back annually on eligible purchases at Resi restaurants. So party of two, right this way is music to your ears. That's the powerful backing of American Express enrollment Required terms apply. Learn more@american express.com With Amex, 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 four 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. It's Julie Stewart Banks. I'm doing a new podcast from iHeart Podcasts and the National Hockey League and I'm paired up with one of my favorite players, the always quotable Nate Thompson.
- [43:48]
Rachel Nichols
I wore nine NHL sweaters and I.
- [43:50]
Colin Cowherd
Have story after story to share.
- [43:52]
Rachel Nichols
And believe it or not, I have plenty to say. And not just about hockey.
- [43:55]
Colin Cowherd
Believe me, he does. Energy Line with Nate and JSB is the name of the podcast and it's going to be, well, it's going to be quite the ride. We're officially linemates, Nate. We're the Energy Line.
- [44:07]
Rachel Nichols
We'll have plenty of folks join us. Current players, some of my former teammates, hall of famers.
- [44:12]
Colin Cowherd
And wait till you see some of.
- [44:13]
Rachel Nichols
The connections that Julie has.
- [44:15]
Colin Cowherd
She has quite the Rolodex. Okay, we'll lean into Nate's playing experience and tap into our interests away from hockey and try to do what energy lines are supposed to do. Provide an emotional boost. How do you feel about all that, Nate? I'm vibing Julie. I'm ready to roll. Listen to EnergyLine with Nate and JSB on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, Will, do you ever get overwhelmed by how much science happens these days? Constantly. I'm like, ah, there's so much science, I can't keep track of it all. Then it's a good thing. Our podcast Part time Genius is counting down the 25 greatest science ideas for from the past 25 years. That's right, Mango. We're talking animals in a paper called, quote, chickens prefer beautiful humans. This was actually the title of the paper. They all discovered that, much like humans, chickens are attracted to symmetrical faces. Got it. We're talking medical miracles. He's an endocrinologist who found a way to stimulate insulin producing cells using, wait for it, the saliva of a Gila monster. There's no way to make that not sound crazy. We even talked to some of the experts behind these breakthroughs. It's a week full of fact packed stories you won't want to miss. So listen to the part time Genius countdown of the 25 greatest science ideas of the past 25 years. Starting Monday, March 3rd on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcast or wherever you get your podcasts. In less than four weeks, get ready for a new kind of madness. With the College basketball crown, 16 teams from the top conferences face off in an all new postseason tournament. It all tips off March 31st on Fox. NFS1. I got cigars in the mail the other day from that. I didn't know what it was and now I do. They had that logo on the cigar. Can you let them know I didn't get my shipment? Well, well, you did. Almost didn't come to work today because you didn't get Your Binky at 2 in the morning or something. So, so there's a, there's a story that DK Metcalf wants out of Seattle. I think it's time. I think he's been a great player, but we've said this, this position for a variety of reasons and I, you know, I've always kind of theorized that wide receivers are the NBA players of football. They break the huddle first. They're kind of on their own, they're the most athletic guy on the team and they make more noise. Debo, aj, dk, they just, it's okay. It is what it is. Dez, go back to Andre Risen. It's okay. Randy Moss, they're great all time athletes and obj, they want theirs. Okay. I'm fine with it. But I do think once the noise starts it's time to move on. So I think DK Metcalf, John Snyder's making the right move here. I, I think you could get a two for, I think Seattle, if you get a two for him, you know, you got to pay him. But I think he's such a physical presence. He's like A.J. brown. He's just bigger and stronger than the corners that are going to guard him. So he's a major pain in the butt to defend. You know, he got world class speed, big body, catching radius pretty good. And I don't know if he's a good blocker. I've never looked at those analytics or numbers, but he's just different. He's a different type body. Mike Williams was like this Anquan BOLDEN Big and DK's got the world class speed like AJ Brown, but it's not. The reason you're seeing potential trades is the free agent market, which has always been overrated, is not very good this year. It's not a great Draft. It's not a great free agent market. So the Chicago Bears have very smartly made two trades to go get two starting guards. That's smart. If you look at the current free agent market for receivers, the best is Devonte Adams and I would take a look at him but he's very, very expensive now. It's also not a great wide receiver draft. There's one or two I really like. Christian Kirk, Tyler Lockett, Keenan Allen, Stefan Diggs, Chris Godwin's hurt a lot. Good player. DK Metcalf right now is the best available player on the market and I would say Devonte Adams is too. I think DK Metcalf if now Jim Harbaugh's history is he doesn't necessarily need great great receivers to get to Super Bowls or to get the natties in college. But Metcalf is unique. Devonte is still very good. But we'll go back to this. Did Devonte win games for the Jets? No. Receivers aren't necessarily winning you games. O lines are. Pass rushes are dominant, run games are. Quarterbacks are. They can add there. I always look at this, I, I think a good receiver, especially an over the top playmaking receiver, it's a freebie. Like once a game you're going to get a 50 yard play. You don't get a lot of those with running backs, you don't get those with tight ends. Not a lot of quarterbacks run for 50 yard scrambles. But a great big play wide receiver like Devonte or DK Metcalf is a little bit of a cheat code. You'll get like, you know, a big pass interference call up the sidelines 45 yards. You get a 50 yard play. I don't think you can build around them. I don't think you can count on them. Especially in December, January when it's windy and cold and, and if your quarterback has a Brock Purdy arm and not a Josh Allen arm, there's limitations on how far they're going to get the ball down the field or a two arm. But I do think over the course of a regular season a big play perimeter guy can give you free yards, give you a couple of freebies a game. A Tyreek Hill little drag route turns into a 67 yard touchdown. Just makes it easier on everybody. So I think there's, I think the Chargers are an interesting spot. They need a one. It would make lad McConkey who I believe is a two in this league, a legitimate two. Move him down. Palmer's then a three. They got their Tackle set, their quarterback set. I think their secondary now is fine. They're going to move off one of their edge rushers. They'll pick that up in the draft. So Chargers are, I think, DK Metcalf, the Chargers are discussing it. I think you make a call to John Snyder, kick the tires and say, what do we got to give up Now? The other thing is Harbaugh just got out of college football. They had a great draft last year. So Harbaugh is going to be very good with the draft for the next three years, and they may not want to give up picks. Harbaugh's like, hey, I'm going to draft better than any NFL coach because I just got out of college football. So I don't want to give up a first, second or a third. I'm not going to do it. I would get that as well. Hour three next. This is Nikki Glazer from the Nikki Glazer Podcast. On a more serious note, I'm still thinking about that commercial with Tom Brady and Snoop Dogg hating on each other. Because when you listen to the reasons for hating someone or something, you realize just how stupid they really are. There is too much hate in this country and it's gotta stop. So join us at iHeart in standing up to it. If you see hate, speak up, call it out, and you can learn more by following at. What's up with hate? What's up, everyone? Julie Swerbinks here along with former NHL player Nate Thompson. We're doing a new podcast together. Here we go. The name Energy Line with Nate and jsb.
- [51:18]
Rachel Nichols
Each week we'll get together and talk about hockey life.
- [51:21]
Colin Cowherd
All topics are fair game, right? Exactly.
- [51:24]
Rachel Nichols
And you'll never know who will drop by to join us. Julie is pretty well connected. She has text threads going that you wouldn't believe.
- [51:32]
Colin Cowherd
Listen to Energy Line with Nate and jsb on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you go, get your podcasts. Hey, Will, do you ever get overwhelmed by how much science happens these days? Constantly. I'm like, ah, there's so much science, I can't keep track of it all. Then it's a good thing. Our podcast part Time Genius is counting down the 25 greatest science ideas from the past 25 years. That's right, Mango. We're talking animals in a paper called, quote, chickens prefer beautiful humans. Right? This was actually the title of the paper. They all discovered that, much like humans, chickens are attracted to symmetrical faces. Got it. We're talking medical miracles. He's an endocrinologist who found a way to stimulate insulin producing cells using, wait for it, the saliva of a Gila monster. There's no way to make that not sound crazy. We even talked to some of the experts behind these breakthroughs. It's a week full of fact packed stories you won't want to miss. So listen to the Part Time Genius countdown of the 25 greatest science ideas of the past 25 years starting Monday, March 3rd on the iHeartRadio app, Apple podcast or wherever you get your podcasts. I'm Mark Seale. And I'm Nathan King. This is Leave the Gun, Take the Cannoli. The five families did not want us.
- [52:45]
Rachel Nichols
To shoot that picture.
- [52:46]
Colin Cowherd
This podcast is based on my co host Mark Seals best selling book of the same title. Leave the Gun, Take the Cannoli features new and archival interviews with Francis Ford Coppola, Robert Evans, James Caan, Talia Shire and many others. Yes, that was a real horse's head. Listen and subscribe to Leave the Gun, Take the Cannoli on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.