← The Herd with Colin Cowherd
The Herd with Colin Cowherd
THE HERD - Hour 2 - Top 10 American NBA Players to build around, James Palmer
00:42:36
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Jason McIntyre
This is an iHeart podcast.
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Rachel Nichols
Guaranteed Human.
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Lavar Arrington
This is Lavar Arrington from up on Game. This message is brought to you by Apple Card. It's a great time to apply for an Apple Card. You'll love earning unlimited daily cash on every purchase. That includes 3% daily cash when you buy the latest iPhone, AirPods and Apple Watch at Apple through this special referral offer. When you get a new Apple card, you can earn bonus daily cash. To qualify, you must apply at Apple Co. Get daily cash Apple card issued by Goldman Sachs bank usa Salt Lake City Branch offer may not be available elsewhere. Terms and limitations apply.
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Fox Sports Radio Announcer
Thanks for listening to the Herd 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.
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James Palmer
Now, let's get this party started.
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Fox Sports Radio Host
You're listening to Fox Sports Radio.
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Jason McIntyre
Here we go, our number two on a Friday in February. It's me, Jason McIntyre, in for Colin Cowherd, joined by Rachel Nichols. We are breaking down all the best stories in sports and it is a hell of a great sports week. Got some NBA, some NFL. We got James Palmer coming up. Mr. Scoop City coming up here in about six minutes. Talk NFL. Wonder if he'll be at the combine. Man, I used to go, rachel, did you ever go to the NFL combine?
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Rachel Nichols
No, I was always covering the NBA at that part of the season.
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Jason McIntyre
Yeah, I love the NFL combine. It's coming up. I would go hang out at that one bar and just, just be a. A fly on the wall and watch stuff go down. It was wild.
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Rachel Nichols
The Slippery Noodle.
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Jason McIntyre
Yeah. No, I think St. Elmo's, maybe that's not a bar.
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Rachel Nichols
That's.
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Jason McIntyre
Yeah, but they had a bar that was pretty good.
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James Palmer
I.
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Jason McIntyre
And I'll never forget, someone came up to me and like, I was like, oh, hey, how are you? He's like, yeah, I know you. You trashed my guy, Gino Smith. I was like, damn. Okay.
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Fox Sports Radio Announcer
Sorry, bro.
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Jason McIntyre
Because I was a Jets fan. All right, we're going to do an interesting list here. So last night, Cade Cunningham goes off 42 points at the Garden. Unbelievable performance. And it actually came on the heels of him giving an interview to GQ magazine. And he said, I want to be on the Olympic team coming up. I think it's a lot that he's going to be on it. Right? And then he said to the interviewer Cade Cunningham. Mild mannered, quiet guy. I think I'm the best American player, full stop. Okay, so Cade goes off last night at the Garden and his coach, J.B. bickerstaff had this to say. Listen closely.
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J.B. Bickerstaff
I mean, he's a superstar and there's no doubt about it. You know, it's hard for me to think of five guys in this league that do more on both ends, that does more on both ends than he does. He never says no, he never complains, you know, and he goes out and gets the job done. And it's impacted winning. And I think that's what superstars do, right? Superstars aren't hollow numbers. Superstars are people that impact winning at a level that he has. Like he just does the right thing by his teammates over and over again to help them excel and succeed also. And, you know, so if you got a superstar player with talent, superstar character, you know, I mean, like he's the guy that goes down in the hall of Fame someday.
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Jason McIntyre
Hall of Fame. Can the guy win a playoff series first? Sorry, jb, I had to do that. And, and now when you hear my list here, the guy at the top of the list. Well, we'll get there in a second. So we batted this around a good 20 minute debate discussion. If you had the top 10Americans in the NBA that you would build around like four years ago, this would have been John Morant Zion one, two, right? They ain't even on the list or even close to it. So here is my list. 10 to 1Americans in the NBA to build around. Jason Tatum did not make it. Tyrese Halliburton did not make it. They are currently hurt and not playing. They would have definitely made it. Let's start with number 10. Number 10, Tyrese Maxey. The Philadelphia 76ers, incredible guard, fifth in the league in scoring. What a steal he was in the draft. 29 points per game. Obviously an all star. He's the new guy you build around in Philly. Embiid had his run. It's now Tyrese Maxey show.
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Fox Sports Radio Host
Number nine, D book.
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Jason McIntyre
Devin Booker. Nearly won a title with the Suns. Had that tough loss to the bucks. Booker, 29 years old, he leads the team in scoring and assists. He's the only all star on his team. And the Suns are actually good ahead of schedule. Matt Ishbia know you care deeply about the media. I hope you're watching Devin Booker ninth on my list. Number eight had to go Jalen Brunson. When I started this list, he was like in the 4 range had to get bumped down. I love me some Brunson. 11th in the league in scoring. He's an all NBA player the last two years. Most clutch player in the league last year literally won the award folks. I wanted to make him higher, but I just something. We'll see the rest of the list. But again, build around. I think you could build around Brunson for sure because you know what he can do. He just needs the ball in his hands a lot. So I've got him at eight. Number seven, Donovan Mitchell. Maybe the most underrated American player in the league right now, folks. He was first team all NBA last year. He's a bucket. I mean he was so good in Utah ahead of schedule. Now he's in Cleveland and they're really frickin good. They got James Harden. I would keep an eye on this team. I would not be shocked if they were in the finals. Donovan Mitchell, great ambassador for the league. Just a good overall human being. I love him. I have him. Seventh, number six, Jalen Brown. Boston Celtics forward. Now it's interesting because for the longest time I've had Tatum ahead of him. So this year Brown has been exceptional. Now we know he's the finals MVP of course, but we're talking about a guy who took over a Celtics team a lot of people thought was maybe playing material without Tatum and they end up dumping I think all three of their centers to get out of cap hell. All Jaylen Brown done has been incredible. Fourth in the league in scoring. He's averaging 29, 7 and 5, shooting 48% from the field, folks. He's like a sleeper MVP candidate if SGA can't get healthy. Number five, Cade Cunningham, 24 years old. Boy, he has taken the league by storm. I I said on my podcast this week at 1400 to win the MVP. I don't hate that bet again, SGA and Jokic may miss games. Cade is playing exceptional. The team is number one seed in the east. Best record in the league. I mean he, he's averaging 26 and 10 and 6. Pistons have the best record in the league. He's exceptional. You build around him.
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Fox Sports Radio Host
Number four.
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Jason McIntyre
You're going to hate me. Guys. Kawhi Leonard. This is probably recency bias because he is playing out of his mind right now. He is 34 but as Rachel alluded to earlier, not many people want to do the Raptors thing where we're going to rent you. If I'm building around for one year, I'm taking a roll of the dice with Kawhi Leonard, he's that good this season. 28, 6 and 47 team 7 time all defensive team selection. Plays at both ends. He's. He's just playing unbelievable basketball right now. He is 34 and I know the injury history. Number three, Steph Curry. Yes, I know. How is he not one? How is he on the list? We're going to get the full Gambit. He is 37 but I know they stink this year. Are you looking at his numbers? He's 10th in the league in scoring. He's missed a bunch of games. He leads the NBA in threes made. Leads the NBA in 45 plus point games. Leads the NBA in free throw percentage. Steph Curry is still a God G a W D. You can build around him for a year or two. Number two, Anthony Edwards. It's tough for me to put him ahead of Curry on any list but the guy is freaking incredible. Unbelievable to watch. I personally think he needs to clean up some of his interviews. Way too many curse words, dude. The young kids are watching. But he's a scoring machine, plays at both ends. He's going to be a tough out in the playoffs. Back to back conference finals appearances for ant number one, Cooper flag hasn't won a playoff series. I'm aware of that. He's 19 years old but I am able to build at least 12 years around this guy. Plays hard at Both ends already a plus defender folks. Offensively the things he's doing at 19. Put him in the discussion with LeBron for the greatest teenager in NBA history. He has been everything we expected and more. I think take the over on one and a half MVPs for his career. I know that we're going to hear a lot of brief grief on this. Youngest player to score 40 or more points a game. He's done that twice. We're going to get to our guest but Rachel, I will need your feedback on this. Rachel was laughing through most of the segment. I have Cooper Flag one again. It's build around. All right, let's get to our guest. He's been waiting patiently. James Palmer, Mr. Scoop City great NFL reporter. NFL Insider for bleacher Report. I love that background. Did you get like professional art? Look at that.
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James Palmer
Professional art. I like where your head's at because that is 13 year old Nixon Palmer right there. My son who now I'm just gonna quick moment to brag here will have a piece at the Denver Art Museum that an art contest he won. So we're working rolling here are artists in the house.
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Jason McIntyre
James, you buried the lead. I've got an eye for art, clearly. I mean, you do year old at a museum. It's amazing.
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James Palmer
Yeah, you know, you got an eye. It's for sale. If anybody's interested, just give us a shout.
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Jason McIntyre
Yeah, I like it. All right. You know what else I like is drama and James. I kind of want to start with the Lamar Jackson situation. Some comments from Declan Doyle about expecting everyone at voluntary OTAs. That includes the quarterback who just may or may not have run off the head coach and is asking for a lot of money. Rookie head coach, rookie OC play caller. A lot going on in Baltimore. Your thoughts?
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James Palmer
Yeah, there certainly is. I would say this when you say rookie head coach, for sure I wasn't brought up enough that there was a previous relationship. Obviously he was in the building. Jesse Minter in Baltimore and on the other side of the ball. But I was told during the entire interview process that there was a pretty good relationship between Lamar Jackson and Jesse Minter dating back to their time together in that building. Lamar kind of talks to everybody in the building, so I wasn't fully surprised, but that should be mentioned in some sense. But you're right. Rookie play caller, rookie offensive mind, obviously running the show on that side. And this isn't the first time, honestly, we've heard kind of like a little, kind of not really a jab, but a little kind of comment. You heard it from Steve Bashadi, honestly, in his press conference too. Like, hey, you can come up to Baltimore, Lamar, if you'd like. Because we know that he doesn't really attend a lot of these voluntary workouts. I think he missed eight of nine last year of the on the field workouts. And that was what Declan Doyle was kind of hinting at. If we want to get over the hump, we want to be one of the premier teams in the afc. And we all know that it was really the Ravens, the Bengals, the Bills. I was in that room when Josh Allen was crying his eyes out after the divisional round where Thanos wasn't part of the AFC playoffs last year. Right? No Patrick Mahomes. And any year you waste with one of these guys is a wasted year and the pressure increases. So I do think there's that aspect for sure. And I'm going to see what this marriage is going to be like. The main thing I'm looking at Jason, honestly, is the way that Ben Johnson and Declan Doyle worked with Caleb Williams. There was so much about how do we get Caleb to play in our system. There's an adverse side of that, that Ben Johnson figured out and what it I need to learn about Caleb. I think Declan's needs to do that exact same thing with Lamar because of the way he plays. But I do think it was an interesting comment. I think April 6th, I think is the date we're all going to be looking at now.
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Jason McIntyre
So. So yeah. What do you make of Lamar coming off the injury? A lot of drama swirling around the him Harbaugh stuff. I don't know if you've heard like, have you heard anything about how that ended? Because I haven't heard Lamar come out publicly. Maybe I missed it or on social media. Did he say like a, hey man, I'm really going to miss Coach Harbs or anything like that?
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James Palmer
There hasn't been much, no. I mean, obviously when he gets, you know, in front of the media in Baltimore, when, when he's up there, obviously there'll be some comments and some questions to be asked of Lamar and he's obviously very short with that group, I will say that. But you know, he has been, you know, one of these guys that is kind of an enigma. You know, you, you go through the weekend in my job and all these other guys that do the same thing I do is we're wondering if he's going to play on Sunday. He's one of those rare players. You may not see him practice during the week and then all of a sudden he plays on a Sunday. I do know that was one of the things that maybe stuck in their side a little bit. Todd Monkins going, hey man, need our quarterback on the field on a Wednesday? I think that will help our chances. Obviously he battled a number of injuries. We saw that the talent is obviously still there. The fourth quarter against Pittsburgh, you're like, yeah, this is the two time mvp. This is the incredible athlete, the guy who has the highest pass rating in the history of the NFL and more rushing yards than any quarterback in the history of the NFL. But how you get him to play at that level consistently, I think everybody's curious when he wasn't able to use his legs. When I talked to defensive coordinators that went against him, it was, we can play him differently. And Lamar was seeing things defensively differently than he has in the past and it is a little bit of a struggle. So how does they adapt and change in this year? I think Declan Doyle saying, like, the more time we spend together, the better. And obviously there's the contract part of it, which his contract negotiations are very different than anybody else's. It's him and mom, and it's not the same as everybody else, but that cap number needs to change. So it's going to be a very interesting off season involved.
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Jason McIntyre
Yeah. Let's go up the 95 corridor to Philadelphia. A lot of issues going on there. Somebody in the meeting this morning referenced like, hey, you know, Philly struck out on like their top four offensive coordinator tries. Like, they were go. They were shooting high and kind of had to settle at the end. There is good news that Lane Johnson's back, but what are you hearing In Philadelphia, the A.J. brown stuff? It seems to have gone away and now it sounds like they're going to keep him. Or is that gamesmanship and they're really working behind the scenes to unload him.
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James Palmer
It's interesting you ask this. I was having a conversation with a coach last week about this and they were like, you know, there's so many of us around the league that are envious of Philadelphia's building. No lie. Just because of the owner and how, you know, forward thinking Jeffrey Lurie is and Howie Roseman operates and how they blend so many different aspects of the evaluation process together and how they go about evaluating talent. And a lot of teams look at them as kind of like a North Star in that sense. But then the coach joked and said, there's also. It's also a building that's just so unbelievably intense all the time. He didn't use dysfunction. Some people may use that word, but it's just so intense. I would say this offseason is very similar to what we saw in 2023 heading into the 24 season. No lie. I think Nick Sirianni was on the hot seat and there was a lot of changes that were possibly going to be made. Well, he responded, the coaching staff responded, the team responded with a Super bowl right in commanding fashion. It almost has a similar feel going into 26, and we'll see how they respond into it because there's a lot of change. You know, I think Shawn Manion coming in, the entire system is going to change. You mentioned the offensive coordinators and striking out on some of them. I would say this. There were a lot of varying opinions on the. On the perception of this job from the candidates. I would say that. And some took jobs that they thought were better.
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Jason McIntyre
Let's double click on that. What do you mean?
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James Palmer
I think it's a very particular situation you're walking into with the way the job has been a revolving door each and every year. Yes, there are guys that have gotten head Coaching jobs out of it with Shane Steichen or Kellen Moore. And I thought Kellen coached his tail off in what he did in that super bowl year. But then there's been guys that have been let go immediately when I mentioned that there's some turmoil in terms of the way things could be after the 26 season. Are you going to be looking for a job again? I think that's something that a lot of these guys look for when they're looking at working with certain situations. I think the quarterback is one of the best in football. I really do. I'll put it out there. But I also know talking to offensive coordinators around the league, you have to play a certain style with Jalen, and obviously that's no slouch. I mean, you got to. You got to play a certain style with Patrick. He's a field quarterback, right? Patrick Mahomes a field quarterback. You got to kind of play that way in terms of how you call the offense. And Andy's figured that out. Jalen has a certain style in which he plays, and you have to work within that. And there's a lot of differing opinions, I would say, about Jalen Hurts. But this guy is a Super bowl mvp. He has two of the best super bowl performances maybe we've ever seen. And the other one, he lost to Patrick. He was unbelievable. I remember Andy Reid telling me at something I was hosting in Kansas City, he looked at Jalen Hurts. It was like, it's the best performance I've ever seen in a Super bowl in the one that Jalen lost. So he has it in him. I just think it's very specific in how he operates. The one thing I would keep an eye on, Jason, honestly, is devontae Smith this year. There are a lot of people that I talk to that think this is a surefire. Number one, whether A.J. brown is there or not, look for him to be used more. Look for him to be used in a variety of fashions that they think they can expand his role. He's a volume type of receiver, they think. I would be interested to see what Devontae Smith will be like in 2020.
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Jason McIntyre
Wow. Okay.
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J.B. Bickerstaff
All right.
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Jason McIntyre
I'll put that. I'll make a note in my app for fantasy football draft Devonte Smith. All right, let Max Crosby anything on that trade front. It sounds like he's still going out. A lot of people are speculating. Patriots. There's a lot of Bears chatter. I know in the NBA, anytime all the reporters say something, it ain't happening. And something else happens. Should we expect the same with the NFL or are they onto something here?
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James Palmer
Yeah, I would say. You mentioned at the top, have I been to the combine? I will be at the combine. I'm there every year. It's outstanding. And you mentioned it's most, by the way, or used to be most, not anymore. I think they've been renamed, obviously. But listen, I think that I bring it up is going to definitely be a spot where there's conversations at between Max's representation and the Raiders. And there's really three things to figure out here. The first one is, does Max want to be there? He's been in the building every day. He's rehabbing. I thought it was interesting that he wasn't in there for Clint Kubiak's press conference when he's been sitting in there for some of the other head coaches that have been hired. And I say that with a grain of salt because he's been there repeatedly and told repeatedly that it's going to change and it's going to be different.
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Jason McIntyre
Right.
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James Palmer
And so when is there a breaking point for Max Crosby going, maybe I should play somewhere else? He loves being a Raider. He has a great relationship with Mark Davis, to my understanding. I think if he wants to be there, it's the first part. And there is some relationships that need to be mended. But Clint Kubiak is not part of that. They promote his position coach to be the defensive coordinator. I think that's a different wrinkle that plays a factor in this as well. Is this irreparable? I don't think so. But I do think he's very upset with the way the season ended. And if he doesn't want to be there and you're Clint Kubiak starting your new regime, do you want the best player, the culture setter, the guy in your locker room that everybody looks to who doesn't want to be there? Do you want him to be a part of that? And then the other part is just do the Raiders see him as part of what they want to build? I think now you're starting to have those early conversations that Clint, you know, obviously was delayed with winning a Super Bowl. Shucks. But at the same time, and he finally gets to meet with John Spytek and Tom Brady and everybody and put this together and really be realistic with themselves and say, how far away are we in this rebuild if we're more than two years away, which some people outside that building I talked to think they are. Do you take the picks from Max Crosby and you help that be a part of a build that has a lot of holes on your team now. I think it's a great fit with Genty and Bowers and what Clay Kubiak runs. But at the same time, how long is that rebuild going to take and do you want Max to be a part of it? I think those are the three big things. But the part that nobody talks about is the injury. Like I don't see a trade happening anytime soon because this is a months long injury here with the meniscus repair, not a trim. Do you make the trade without a fiscal, without just like on good faith? I don't know. It has happened. But I do think this could be something that had multiple timelines to it.
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Jason McIntyre
You mentioned injury, so it got me thinking about Tyreek Hill. He's coming off a major injury. Dolphins dumped him. I'm assuming same deal. Like nobody's going to be jumping for Tyreek instantly. They're going to wait to see assuming he's healthy. You're not trying to make a move on him, right?
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James Palmer
Yeah, this is going to be something that's going to take a minute for sure. I would say also the receiver class in this draft plays a part in it as well, you know, I mean it is an outstanding receiver class. Shameless plug. Steve Smith and I on our show just did our top 10 receivers that Steve ranked and we just put that up on our on our channel. So it's a really, really deep class that plays a part. I would say this. There are some people around the league who think he may not play in 2026. So I would put that out there. I would say mid season is what a lot of people think may be the case. I wouldn't put it past because he's great at this. Drew Rosenz having some sort of workout, some sort of showcase. He's done it in the past. Teams will attend. Teams will certainly attend and there will be interest because I think if you're chasing the ring, you want your group to get, you know, over the hump. I think he could really, really help out a team. I think there's a lot of people that still think he can have a lot of really good football in him. He's always defied the odds, honestly on the football field and the way he's played. Does Buffalo make that move? The Ravens have a history doing that at the receiver position, right. A number of times now. They did it. They just did it with Hopkins. They did it with Steve Smith. Honestly, my buddy and co host in the show. So there are teams that are going to be interested. I just think the timeline is so up in the air right now.
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Jason McIntyre
So it's similar to the Odell Beckham Rams situation from a few years back, maybe, is that.
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James Palmer
Yeah, I could see something similar. Like, let's have everybody take a look. Let's have everybody take a look at what Tyreek brings to the table. See him work out, see him run. I think obviously everybody wants to see that. Remember, the only information we really have, Jason, honestly, is coming from Drew, where it's an ACL and multiple ligaments. We still don't know exactly what all of the damage that was there. There was a dislocation. I. It seems like from everything I hear, it's headed in the right direction. But again, there's a lot to overcome here. I wouldn't put it past Tyrique to come back from it, but there are a lot of questions that teams are interested to have answered.
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Jason McIntyre
All right. We could wrap up with quarterbacks, the quarterback carousel, if you will. It's not pretty. Now, we said that last year, Geno Smith was the guy with the Raiders. Did not work out. Sam Darnold was the guy with the Seahawks. It did. We've seen Baker Mayfield in recent years, you know, get on the cheap to Tampa. That's worked out. Is there a guy who's the leader in the clubhouse right now? I mean, look at the list we got on the screen. We got two of Kyler on there. They're on teams technically, but their teams don't really want them. I don't. Malik Willis, I can't believe he threw 35 passes last year. I'm like, that's the guy everybody can't wait to get their hands on. This is gotta be one of the weaker lists. You've seen a recent night.
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James Palmer
It's. It's not an outstanding list. You don't even have my boy Joe Flacco on there. Oh, and I would be surprised that he. I would be surprised if he didn't have a job. In all honesty, he'll probably be on a roster. It is a wild list. I think you're taking a gamble. When I talk to people around the league about Malik Willis, I think he's going to be overpaid or somebody's going to overpay. Could it be 20 million? Like, like a month ago, it was 15 to 20. When I talked to GMs about, you know, their thought on what Malik Lew would be and that'd be maybe incentive based. It's Gone up in a lot of people's minds because of probably this list, because of where he comes from with lafleur and being there with Jordan Love and kind of being in that quarterback incubator he was in. And I think that's. That puts some validity to it. I'll put a name on here that you didn't have. I know The San Francisco 49ers are saying they will not move Mac Jones. There's what, Jason? A dozen players that are untradable in this league.
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Fox Sports Radio Host
That's it.
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James Palmer
You know what I mean? Like, when I look at value, I think Kyler is probably the most talented player on there. And this inconsistency is a problem. Obviously he's played at stretches where he's a top 10 quarterback. Honestly, the contract and the rollover for 2027 makes it a little more complicated in terms of what you could do for him, but he's probably the most talented. But when I look at value from the player to the contract, all those things. Mac Jones is on a contract for 20, 26, under $5 million. So I mean, and you look at the way he played for a stretch, again, he was a backup. And I think the system helps. And Kyle's obviously outstanding with quarterbacks.
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Jason McIntyre
But if.
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James Palmer
What if a team is like, we'll give you a second round pick for Mac Jones. Is John lynch going to hang up the phone? Is, is, is, is he going to hang up the phone? I don't know.
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Jason McIntyre
Is that in the 30s or the 50s?
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James Palmer
Yeah, it would depend. Yeah, I would. Obviously no team is running right now to give a second round pick to the 49ers, but if they're looking at their landscape and going, wait a minute, I have, I can have this guy under control for under $5 million at the quarterback position in terms of what our spot is. I'm just saying the value of all the guys that you had on that list varies and the contract plays a part in that. And max contract is outstanding compared to the other ones.
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Jason McIntyre
Who would you go for? Mac Jones, 1 year, 5 million or Malik Joe, Malik Willis, what, 3 years for 60 miles?
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James Palmer
Yeah, I mean, I would try to get a two year deal with Malik Willis if I could. I wouldn't want to try to commit to probably that third year because I still. The sample size like you mentioned is just so small, but there's a higher ceiling. I would say the ability to throw the football downfield accurately is awesome. The ability to move and manipulate the pocket. I think a lot of people that I talked to pointed out the poise he had in the pocket in the small, small sample size he had. And that's always something that always comes up with every quarterback you talk about. And so yeah, there's a lot to like about Malik. But I also think the landscape and I mentioned the draft with the receivers, the lack thereof, talent at the quarterback position in this draft also may play a factor into what some of these teams are looking at.
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Jason McIntyre
Finally, anything on my jets, Are they going after a quarterback? Are they they standing down and waiting for 27?
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James Palmer
I think standing down waiting for 27 just really looks like it right when they made some of these trades. And you can tell, you can comment Darren Muji on this like he was wanted picks in 27. I think he wanted picks in 27 for a reason and I think a stopgap is what you're looking at now. And do you take a chance on somebody that you can just kind of fill the seat and build off of and hope for upside or you look for somebody to fill the seat? I don't think they pick a quarterback in the draft. So I do think, yeah, some of those names looking at them, they might be your quarterback in 26, but the group in 27 is outstanding and so they're going to be positioned pretty well if that's what ends up happening.
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Jason McIntyre
Love it. All right, James Palmer, Scoop City does some stuff with Steve Smith. Bleacher Report. Amen. Great stuff. Have a great weekend.
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James Palmer
Yeah, I appreciate you guys too. I'll enjoy Andy. Trust me.
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Jason McIntyre
All right. Oh, good stuff. I like it. I like it. Especially my jets not doing anything, which is great. Which is great. More tanking talk. Just kidding. Coming up next, another NBA player went off last night. He didn't make my list. He's a pretty damn good player. That's next.
- [25:36]
Fox Sports Radio Host
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- [26:08]
James Palmer
Subscribe hit that thumbs up icon and comment away.
- [26:11]
Winter Games Narrator
This month, IHeartRadio is celebrating the stars of the 2026 Winter Games. Lake City, Minnesota produced Taylor Heisey the explosive new face of American hockey. After dominating the collegiate level and world championships, the dynamic forward makes her long awaited Olympic debut in Milano.
- [26:27]
Lavar Arrington
Cortina.
- [26:27]
Winter Games Narrator
Known for her blatant amazing speed and lethal wrist shot, Heisey adds a dangerous new weapon to an already stacked Team USA roster. She hits the ice ready to prove that the next generation of greatness has officially arrived. For more Winter Games gold. Search olympics on the iHeartRadio app all
- [26:43]
Fox Sports Radio Announcer
right, two truths and a lie. Here we go. I went to college with college football coach Jim McElwaine, I began my broadcasting career doing play by play for the Las Vegas Stars, and I've been a Verizon customer for 15 years. Okay, I lied. All three are true. Verizon isn't as expensive as you think. In fact, if you bring in your ATT or T Mobile bill to a Verizon store, they'll give you a better deal. That's right, a better deal on the best network with the most ways to save on plans, streaming and phone deals. So take that AT and T or T Mobile build to your local Verizon store today, get a better deal and start saving based on root metrics. Best overall Mobile Network Performance U.S. 2nd Half 2025 All Rights Reserve must provide recent consumer mobile bill in the name of the person redeeming the deal. Additional terms, conditions and restrictions apply.
- [27:32]
Jason McIntyre
Rachel laughed when I was like, yes, my jets aren't doing anything. I do not want to invest $50 million in Malik Willis. No, thank you. We just tried that with Justin Fields. We're good. All right, let's go to Rachel Nichols with the news.
- [27:46]
Rachel Nichols
No, no, no.
- [27:47]
James Palmer
Heard on the news.
- [27:48]
Fox Sports Radio Host
This is the Herd line news.
- [27:51]
Rachel Nichols
I just think it's adorable that you think anything the jets do is going to change their fate there. But we'll see what happens. Let's talk about Kevin Durant. Jason, I know you have been itching for this story. Spectacular last night, by the way. He hit Charlotte for 35 points, eight rebounds. The Rockets won their first game after the All Star break. And this is notable since a lot of fans were watching to see if the team would be affected by the KD Burner controversy. And at this point, we all know what I'm talking about, right? Earlier this week, Internet sleuths found what is alleged alleged to be a Durant Berner Twitter account with several posts disparaging former and current teammates and coaches, some with very strong language. There was a Hitler comparison. At one point, Durant was asked point blank, is this your burner or not? He did not give a yes or no answer. He said he was not going to get into Twitter nonsense, quote, unquote. So, Jason, give me the take. Come on. You've been. You've been dying to get this up.
- [28:49]
Jason McIntyre
Yeah, I listen, it's tough for me to tell. Draymond Green has chimed in. Devin Booker has chimed in. My thing that I. I question, you know, he went after Sengoon pretty hard, essentially said, if it's him. If it's him, yes. I mean, if there's something that people say you said, but you didn't say it, wouldn't you just say, bro, that's not me. I did not do that. I'm online all the time. That's not me.
- [29:12]
Rachel Nichols
As the journalist over here, I'm obligated to use the word allegedly.
- [29:16]
Jason McIntyre
Yes. Alleged. Alleged. What happens in a playoff series if Dylan Brooks is guarding Shen Goon in the post? Your boy KD said you're soft. You don't play defense, you can't rebound. And he's just getting on him all like, what can you do if you're sengun? You can try to show him up, but then you maybe get out of character and try to do things you don't normally do, you know, Same holds true for Jabari Smith, who he bashed. I don't know how. This is great. Ime Udoka is interesting. He's. We agree he's a great coach.
- [29:44]
Rachel Nichols
Yes.
- [29:45]
Jason McIntyre
We know he ended in Boston ugly because of some non basketball stuff. He's got a tall order there now. Kevin Durant taking over. Did you watch closely the end of that game? He basically was like, nobody can guard me. Yep, I'm cooking con canopel, lamelo. Whoever wants a piece, come get it. And he carried the team in the playoffs. It's gonna be different. He's gonna be facing like elite defenders in the West. I don't know if it's going to be easy for him. And then what happens if they lose in the first round? You know this stuff's going to come back up. We've all talked trash about. Who hasn't talked trash about people. But for it to come out, your coaches see it, your GM teammates ball boys. Well, everybody's seeing this. I don't see how it's possibly a nothing burger.
- [30:28]
Rachel Nichols
It's hard to know with KD at this point, Right. Because we've had the whole Katie Burner controversy before. I could be recycling old headlines, right. These acknowledged he has burners out there, that sort of thing. Does it become almost like Charles Barkley, where he says so many wild things that when he says all women in San Antonio are fat, nobody does like a big deal. If Bob Costas said all women in San Antonio are fat, that would be a huge deal, right? People would be like, oh, my God, Bob Costas, right? Charles Barkley said. Charles Barkley says it. And it's like, yeah, it's just Charles.
- [31:00]
Jason McIntyre
It's just Charles.
- [31:01]
Rachel Nichols
I don't know, you know who he play for that they do on tnt, right? Or, sorry, now on espn, the you know, where they test Charles on does he know where certain NBA players play? And he often has no idea.
- [31:12]
Jason McIntyre
No clue.
- [31:12]
Rachel Nichols
Right. But everyone's like, ah, it's just Charles. Right? Whereas some people would be like, man, an NBA analyst who doesn't know where certain guys play. But it's Charles Barkley and it's just part of it, right? And it's lovable and it's fun. Now, this isn't as lovable, this allegation, but I do wonder if after time with Kevin, there is enough of it's just Kevin on Twitter. You know how he is like, I don't know. I'm just saying that there is room for that.
- [31:37]
Jason McIntyre
Yeah.
- [31:38]
Rachel Nichols
There's also room for your scenario, though. I don't know.
- [31:40]
Jason McIntyre
I don't love normalizing that kind of behavior. I mean, whether it's an welcome to America or a basketball announcer or a star player. Like, again, you know, we've all talked trash, but to normalize it, well, that's just kd. I don't love that. You heard what Draymond said about it, right? Yeah, yeah, we'll see. I know Luka's a big trash talker. Lakers, Rockets, round one. Luke is going to get in his head and Jabaris and Sengoons. It'll be fun.
- [32:10]
Rachel Nichols
We'll have to see. I don't know. All right, back to the topic at hand in the NBA, though. Tanking. I actually have been the one burning to talk about this one. It is a main topic going around. And Phoenix Suns owner Matt Ishbia weighed in on this very strongly. Jason, he called tanking, quote, losing behavior done by losers. He then went on to say that as far as the integrity of the league goes, quote, this is much worse than any prop bet scandal. This is throwing games strategically. Ishbia called for massive changes. And Jason, as you noted at the top of the show, there is a list of reported proposals the NBA governors will be considering this week. Do you like anything of them? Do you think that they need to Tweak more. What are you going for here?
- [32:53]
Jason McIntyre
Okay, let's back up to the comments. So Matt is be a tanking is losing behavior done by losers. I just looked it up his net worth, like you could. Your net worth is $10 billion. You could say whatever the hell you want.
- [33:09]
Rachel Nichols
And you have no draft picks to tank for.
- [33:11]
Jason McIntyre
No draft picks. Your salary cap is in disarray. I know he's doing like a victory lash because they're not a dumpster fire this year. Congrats.
- [33:18]
Rachel Nichols
Which he deserves.
- [33:19]
Jason McIntyre
By the way. How did it go with the Bradley Bee or Kevin Durant stuff? I mean, I liked that move at the time. It turned out, like blew up in his face. Does this guy know what he's doing? Maybe he does. I mean, he's net worth of 10 billion. But, like, essentially this felt like a shot at Mark Cuban, didn't it?
- [33:31]
Rachel Nichols
A little bit. Because Mark came out and said they should embrace tanking. Look, I've said this a bunch. I'm going to say it again. Tanking is not the problem. If you try to, quote, solve tanking and ignore that tanking is actually a symptom of a different problem, you are going to create more problems. Adam Silver likes to say, unintended consequences. Right. You are going to make things worse. You have to go back to the actual problem, not the symptom. The problem is bad teams do not have enough other avenues to get better. That's it. Nobody's trying to lose six months of games, empty their arena of fans. They're doing it because they have to. So instead of looking at proposals to, quote, cure tanking. And by the way, some of the proposals out there I agree with. Right. I like some of the proposals that they've got going, but they all have to focus on what are the proposals that will actually help bad teams get better. How do we widen that avenue? And by the way, I would go all the way from littler things, right? In terms of, you know, I like the idea of freezing the record at the trade deadline in terms of picks because I think that, you know, the idea that the trade deadline is really the way that bad teams can acquire players because they don't really get any free agency. So if you give them a fresh start at that point, that's great. But in the bigger picture, I would say I would eliminate the lottery. Forget this flattening of lottery odds. That just makes it worse. That just makes it harder for bad teams to get better. A lot of these proposals make it harder, make it easier. Say no More lottery. No more Dallas getting Cooper flag right. Instead, it is going to be the worst team, gets the best pick all the way down. By the way, that creates a much smaller group of teams that are tanking. Right. Because if you're not in the bottom two or three, and I do think that once you do something like that, you have to say, great, you can't pick in the top three two years in a row or something like that.
- [35:26]
Jason McIntyre
But because would that incentivize teams? Hey, we're not waiting until February or March to tank. We're just not going to put out a competitive team because we know that the draft is loaded. We win nine games. We win nine games.
- [35:38]
Rachel Nichols
I don't think, first of all, most drafts aren't this draft to your point at the top of the show. But again, you have to give bad teams a way to get better, which, by the way, is much better for the league overall. The tanking is a symptom. And I wouldn't stop, by the way, at any of these proposals. You know me, I always want to hold the owners accountable. Right?
- [35:57]
Jason McIntyre
Yeah.
- [35:57]
Rachel Nichols
So I think. And by the way, I am aware the owners will never vote themselves out. So I know this won't happen. But in my dream world, Jason, let me dream. There would be some sort of rule that said if you didn't hit a certain winning percentage over a certain number of years, doesn't have to be short number of years, but 10 years. If in 10 years you don't hit a certain winning percentage, you have to sell the team and give someone else a shot to do it.
- [36:19]
Jason McIntyre
Worse than relegation because.
- [36:21]
Rachel Nichols
Well, because here's the thing. Some teams aren't good because of personnel or they got themselves in trouble or a star retired or whatever. Some teams aren't good because the ownership is crappy.
- [36:31]
Jason McIntyre
Which ones? Rachel, come on. Putting you on the spot.
- [36:34]
Rachel Nichols
I don't think I have to say I think people know or that the management team is crappy and they've been in that spot for too long because the ownership hasn't been forced to make a change. And for those teams, there is no other avenue to get better because those teams are poorly run. So this comes under the same umbrella. Give bad teams more avenues to get better. And again, I know they're not going to do this, but the truth is that for the teams that are poorly run, forcing an ownership change at some point would be. And by the way, that ownership change would give that older owner, the previous owner, billions of dollars. So I don't feel bad about it at all.
- [37:08]
Jason McIntyre
So I just looked the Wizards let's use a dct. Sure. They've been bad for a long time. The last time I remember them good it was Beal and won Wall but before that was like Chris Weber, Juwan Howard, George Miras. So they drafted second. Usually that's like oh my gosh, home run. They got Alex Sar. Yeah who is young but he ain't Wemby. He's not Chad Holmgren over under all star games for Alexar one and a half.
- [37:31]
Rachel Nichols
I mean he was, he was the best, one of the best in the rising stars this year. I mean he's actually, he's developing really well. I mean guy like that is going to be a slower developer but like and he's going to do better with Trae Young there.
- [37:42]
Jason McIntyre
By the way, even the Hawks they get Reese Sachet number one. It's like I don't know what he is.
- [37:46]
Rachel Nichols
There's no sometimes you get it, sometimes you don't get a good draft. This is going to be a particularly good draft. But again, there is a solution. The solution isn't to tanking. The solution is make tanking not your only option. You have to give teams more options to get better and then they won't have to tank.
- [38:05]
Jason McIntyre
All right, Rachel Nichols with the news.
- [38:07]
Fox Sports Radio Host
Well, that's the news and thanks for stopping by the Herd Lie news.
- [38:12]
Jason McIntyre
All right. We touched on it with James Palmer, but this Eagles situation is sort of percolating. Is everybody on notice there for next season? That's next.
- [38:23]
Fox Sports Radio Host
Be sure to catch live editions of the Herd, weekdays at noon Eastern, 9am Pacific on Fox Sports Radio, FS1 and the iHeartRadio app.
- [38:32]
Fox Sports Radio Announcer
All right, two truths and a lie. Here we go. I went to college with college football coach Jim McElwain. I began my broadcasting career doing play by play for the Las Vegas Stars, and I've been a Verizon customer for 15 years. Okay, I lied. All three are true. Verizon isn't as expensive as you think. In fact, if you bring in your ATT or T Mobile bill to a Verizon store, they'll give you a better deal. That's right, a better deal on the best network with the most ways to save on plans, streaming and phone deals. So take that AT and T or T Mobile. Build to your local Verizon store today, get a better deal and start saving based on root metrics. Best overall Mobile Network Performance US Second Half 2025 all rights reserve must provide recent consumer mobile bill in the name of the person redeeming the deal. Additional terms, conditions and restrictions apply.
- [39:21]
Rachel Nichols
Cross state rivals tipping it off on Fox College Hoop Fridays. Braden Smith leads seventh ranked Purdue in a Big Ten battle against Indiana. Tonight, 8 Eastern, only on Fox.
- [39:35]
Jason McIntyre
All right. We talked to James Palmer a little bit, a little bit ago about situation in Philadelphia. I saw the good news. Hey, Lane Johnson is coming back. Landon Dickerson, he's going to be fine. He's coming back as well. Get excited, Eagles fans. Oh, but what about A.J. brown? What about Jalen? Hurts not being able to throw over the middle of the field. Sorry, Jalen, I, the numbers say you don't. What about Nick Sirianni? What the hell's going on there? Here's James Palmer talking about the Eagles.
- [40:03]
James Palmer
I was having a conversation with a coach last week about this and they were like, you know, there's so many of us around the league that are envious of Philadelphia's building. No lie, just because of the owner and how, you know, forward thinking Jeffrey Lurie is and Howie Roseman operates and how they blend so many different aspects of the evaluation process together and how they go about evaluating talent. And a lot of teams look at them as kind of like a North Star in that sense. But then the coach joked and said there's also, it's also a building that's just so unbelievably intense all the time. There's a lot of change. You know, I think Sean Manion coming in, the entire system is going to change. I mean, you mentioned the offensive coordinators and striking out on some of them. I would say this, there were a lot of varying opinions on the, on the perception of this job from the candidates.
- [40:45]
Jason McIntyre
So it's interesting. One thing I like to do ahead of seasons is look at who you're playing. Obviously the schedule will come out and we'll crystallize everything. But I'm looking at the Eagles opponents next year. This is tough. You got to play the Houston Colts division, which includes Jacksonville. Not easy. Tennessee getting better. And then the real bad news is the NFC West, Rams, Niners, Seahawks, three playoff teams, including one that won the Super Bowl. And then Arizona, which we can count as an automatic win. But the schedule is not great. They got to go to Chicago, obviously Philadelphia, not an issue going anywhere. But Chicago's gonna be good next year. Guys, I like what I saw from Ben Johnson. I know a lot of close games already looking at the one score games. But this schedule does not look favorable as opposed to say, a Washington who plays a much weaker schedule because they did not finish in first place. And the New York Giants, who real have a much easier schedule and a much better coach, the division got harder, the schedule is difficult, and you've got just drama circling. It's not like a black cloud hovering over the franchise. But the offensive coordinator situation was not good. I don't know. I haven't looked at odds for whether or not A.J. brown will get traded. I just hearing what he said. Sometimes you talk to these reporters, insiders, and they can't give away everything they have, right? They just can't. Because some of it is speculative. But the fact that he was pumping up Devonta Smith is interesting. I mean, I like Devontae Smith. I've never heard anybody talk about him as like a number one. He's I think, clear. Maybe a one, B or a two. But like Devontae Smith is not the kind of guy who's gonna stretch the field. That's the A.J. brown job on the outside. He's gonna win in man coverage down the field. Is Devontae Smith doing that? I don't know. The fact that he's pumping all up makes me wonder if the Eagles are telling people, hey, we love devonte Smith. He's in the building. He's on time, he's no drama. He catches everything. No, no real drop issue. AJ had some brutal drops there in the playoffs. And I just, I wonder if we're starting to get pumped up version of Devonta Smith because that means A.J. brown could be on the move. So I think the Eagles are a team to watch. Earlier we talked about the Baltimore Ravens being a team to watch. Ravens kind of fell off this past year, but yeah, we'll. We'll see. Right now, according to Kalshee, 54% A.J. brown stays with the Eagles next season. 54% According to the peanut gallery at Calshe. Don't laugh. I don't. I'm not spending a ton of time on the prediction markets.
- [43:25]
Rachel Nichols
You mean Ziana sent it to Kupos Kelshi?
- [43:27]
Jason McIntyre
What? I don't know. That's right. He's like a spokesman.
- [43:30]
Rachel Nichols
No, he's investment in the company.
- [43:33]
Jason McIntyre
I don't love that.
- [43:34]
Rachel Nichols
No, I mean, supposedly there's a stipulation that he can't have anything to do with NBA predictions, prediction market. But I would be interested to see if this off season that's addressed by the NBA.
- [43:45]
Jason McIntyre
Well, what if his. His wife's looking at real estate in Los Angeles and she's telling a friend, oh, look at this house I saw in Bel Air. What does that mean why are you looking at real estate in la? And then the next thing you know, that lady tells me, well, that's true of anyone.
- [43:59]
Rachel Nichols
Right? I mean, that's the problem with these prediction markets. People have. People do have inside information.
- [44:04]
Jason McIntyre
Yeah. And then profit off of it.
- [44:06]
James Palmer
Yeah.
- [44:07]
Jason McIntyre
Anyway, so I had the top 10 list earlier. Rachel, you had some laughs. We got, like a minute left. You want to. You want to dig into it at all? You want to take some shots?
- [44:16]
Rachel Nichols
My favorite part was you saying, Jayson Tatum's not on here because he's hurt right now. That is the biggest cop out I have ever heard in my life.
- [44:24]
Jason McIntyre
He's. He. First of all, I, I want to put him ahead of Jaylen Brown. But can you. Jaylen Brown's playing the besties of his career.
- [44:30]
Rachel Nichols
So where would you put him on this list? Let's pretend, Jason, that he was healthy.
- [44:35]
Jason McIntyre
Well, a year ago, I would have put Brown, you know, I had a Kawhi Leonard who wasn't healthy, and I would have put him ahead of Cade Cunningham. I'm a big Tatum guy. Tatum, and I don't like Boston Teeth. Tatum, for me, would have been top five for sure. Would you have had him? Where would you have had him?
- [44:49]
Rachel Nichols
Yeah, I would absolutely have had.
- [44:51]
Jason McIntyre
Who does not belong on the list. And you hear from agents, so be careful.
- [44:55]
Rachel Nichols
I mean, look, I, I have the. The one that has the biggest red flag to me is the health concern one, and that is Kawhi Leonard. When he's. When he's on and he's healthy, he is one of the best players in the NBA still. And when he's not, he's just not there.
- [45:08]
Jason McIntyre
Jason, I'm waiting for the alert that he's sitting out tonight against the Lakers. It might be coming.
- [45:12]
Rachel Nichols
No, they have no reason to take next Knicks.
- [45:15]
Jason McIntyre
Are they in trouble after that Pistons loss? That was a bad one. What's next? This is an iHeart podcast. Guaranteed Human.