THE HERD – HOUR 3 – Channing Frye: LeBron Joining The Warriors Would Be Gross

Summary

Podcast Summary: The Herd with Colin Cowherd – Hour 3

Episode: Channing Frye: LeBron Joining The Warriors Would Be Gross
Date: June 30, 2026
Host: Colin Cowherd, with Jason McIntyre, Rob Parker
Guest: Channing Frye, Dan Woike (The Athletic)

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Episode Overview

This episode centers on the seismic NBA news that LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers are officially parting ways. Colin Cowherd, Jason McIntyre, Channing Frye, and later Dan Woike analyze the Lakers’ decision, potential destinations for LeBron, and the ripple effect on league power dynamics. Channing Frye offers unfiltered perspective on LeBron’s legacy, the idea of him joining the Warriors (“gross”), and shares colorful behind-the-scenes stories of a recent European golf trip with LeBron and their former Cavaliers teammates.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Channing Frye on LeBron’s Mindset and the “Breakup” with Lakers

Timestamps: [03:54] - [08:53]

• Golf & Brotherhood:

  • Channing shares details from a recent trip to Scotland with LeBron and former Cavs teammates. The group’s chemistry and ability to stay close despite busy schedules is highlighted.
    • “Just the fact that Shump came out for 36 hours, Deli came out for 36 hours… it was just one of those trips where it just felt like it was forever. And now we're just still, you know, we're still recovering.” — Channing Frye [05:37]

• LeBron’s Future:

  • Frye describes the Lakers-LeBron split as “amicable,” noting both sides wanted to pursue different directions and praising the Lakers for letting LeBron control the announcement.
  • Frye believes LeBron’s priority is to find a situation where he’s “comfortable” and “appreciated”—not necessarily to be “built around” at this stage.
    • “He doesn't need to be built around. He's 40. You see the beard? The dude is almost 62 years old.” — Channing Frye [06:38]

• LeBron’s Possible Destinations:

  • Channing strongly advocates for a Cleveland return, calling it “the only choice” and the “right ending to the story.”
    • “The place is going to be rocking. He's coming back home for the third time... what he brings could be what's right for that team.” — Channing Frye [07:23]
  • Dismisses San Antonio/Wemby as a fit: “That's kind of a—what? It's not the right ending to the story.” — Channing Frye [08:19]

2. Lakers Move On: Analysis and Reaction

Timestamps: [09:00] - [10:59], [29:31] - [38:05]

• Lakers’ Strategy:
  • The hosts applaud the Lakers for handling LeBron’s departure with “class” (letting him and his agent take control of the public narrative).
  • Jason floats a Jalen Duren trade to LA; Channing crushes the rumor, insisting Detroit won’t let him go and big men are too valuable and rare:
    • "Buy a house in Auburn Hills. You're not going anywhere... You're 22, and the only thing we have to work on is for you to learn how to score a little bit. Stop it. Bigs are some of the most important. You're not finding another player like that." — Channing Frye [09:51]

3. LeBron to the Warriors?

Timestamps: [10:59] - [12:27]

• Channing reacts bluntly and emotionally to the idea:
  • "Please don't do that. Please don't do that. Please don't do that. I know, that's just gross. That's gross... it won't look right. Like Jordan in a Wizards jersey just didn't look right… LeBron in a Warriors [jersey]? No." — Channing Frye [11:05]
  • He breaks down the poor roster fit, lack of floor spacing, and aging core: “It's the men's 40 and over league. What are we doing?”

4. Inside the NBA Brotherhood – Vacation Stories

Timestamps: [12:27] - [15:14]

• Frye tells stories about how trip logistics are handled (Kevin Love is the real “ringleader”), and gives a fun account of J.R. Smith’s off-the-plane golf skills:
  • “Junior gets off an airplane for nine hours... hits about five shots... proceeds to shoot, I think, a 76 or a 78. Swish is the best human being of all time.” — Channing Frye [13:28]
  • Richard Jefferson is “the most sarcastic—can’t get a real answer out of the guy. ‘Hey Rich, are you hungry?’ ‘Well, do I look hungry?’ What does that even mean?” — Channing Frye [14:43]
  • Tristan Thompson assigned “cart lady” duties as he doesn’t play golf.

5. The Lakers’ New Era: Luka & AR, More Roster Plans

Timestamps: [20:22] - [38:05]

• Current Roster Analysis:

  • Rob Parker notes Luka Doncic reacting to LeBron’s exit ("an honor to play with LeBron") and dissects future pairings (Luka & Austin Reaves).
  • Nicknames new Lakers core as offensively gifted but notes questions remain on defense.

• Market For Big Men Has Exploded:

  • Discussion of Robert Williams' massive new contract and how Wembanyama’s presence is warping center salaries across the league.
  • “You have to have multiple bigs to stop Wemby. Oklahoma City could have drafted a guard; they drafted Aday Mara giving them three bigs.” — Jason McIntyre [22:55]
  • “If Luka’s healthy, they’re winning like 50 games.” — Rob Parker [37:53]

• Dan Woike (The Athletic) on Lakers Strategy:

  • Lakers’ decision to trade for Luka Doncic (February 2025) was a clear sign of moving on:
    • “That was not a LeBron James decision… probably the first time since LeBron was a freshman in high school, that such an important basketball decision was made that he had no input on. That's a powerful message…we are going to move on without you.” — Dan Woike [31:05]
  • The Lakers used cap space signals to prepare for a post-LeBron roster.
  • Their priority is now “building the best possible Luka Doncic team” and optimizing the supporting cast, not chasing a Wemby-stopper or other “side quests.”
  • On Bronny James’ guaranteed salary: strictly procedural—cap mechanics, not a definitive statement he sticks around.

6. Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Channing Frye on LeBron’s Work Ethic:
  • “We woke up one day and a dude was running laps around a damn castle, and I'm sitting there with a mimosa, like, nah, that ain't me, brother.” [06:50]
• Channing Frye on LeBron to Warriors:
  • “It’s gross… won’t look right... this lineup, it’s the men’s 40-over league. What are we doing?” [11:05]
• Dan Woike on the Lakers:
  • “To be a team with massive cap space this summer, you're going to have to renounce LeBron James's contract… these are all actions that, quite frankly, laid out, yeah, they wanted him back, but… if they wanted him back at a big number, probably.” [32:30]
• LeBron’s Farewell Tweet (quoted by Jason McIntyre):
  • “Thank you. Truly an honor to wear the purple and gold while trying to continue the greatness and legacies that came before. Hope I made a few proud during my stint.” [36:42]

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Important Segment Timestamps

• Channing Frye on LeBron/Lakers 'amicable' breakup: [06:05]
• LeBron’s possible destinations, Cleveland pitch: [07:23]
• LeBron-to-Warriors reaction: [11:05]
• Golf trip stories (J.R. Smith, Kevin Love, Jefferson): [12:34] - [14:43]
• Rob Parker on Lakers' future, Luka & Reaves: [20:22] - [21:56]
• Lakers' plans for big men, the Wembanyama effect: [22:55]
• Dan Woike deep dive on Lakers’ front office moves: [29:31] - [36:08]
• LeBron’s farewell tweet reaction: [36:40]

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Tone & Style

• Candid, humorous, and direct.
  Channing Frye delivers hot takes (“gross!”), personal anecdotes, and inside-the-locker-room honesty.
• Strategic analysis.
  Cowherd/McIntyre/Parker blend macro league trends and nerdy cap talk with freewheeling banter.

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Conclusion

This episode offers a front-row seat to a rare NBA power shift, with experts peeling back the layers on LeBron and the Lakers’ “amicable breakup,” pondering LeBron’s next chapter, and painting a gritty, witty portrait of ex-player camaraderie and behind-the-scenes NBA life. The roster impact, cap strategy, and fan emotion are all deeply explored—whether you’re a Lakers fan, LeBron observer, or NBA junkie, this broadcast delivers thoughtful perspective and memorable storytelling.

Transcript

[Colin Cowherd]

This is an iHeart podcast.

[Channing Frye]

Guaranteed Human.

[Jason McIntyre]

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[Jason McIntyre]

or call 1-844botox 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 [e-mail] or stream us live every day on the iHeartRadio app by searching Fox Sports Radio or FSR.

[Channing Frye]

Now let's get this party started.

[Colin Cowherd]

You're listening to Box Sports Radio.

[Jason McIntyre]

For the record, I got nothing against John Morant, but of the 500 players in the NBA last four years that have shot at least 253 point shots, John Morant is ranked 500th. Yeah, so he and Dame and Scoot. I I don't know, whatever. You kind of a discount now actually maybe he's undervalued with that Channing Fry. 13 NBA seasons. Who I listen if you're that's social media nonsense. I try to stay away from it but occasionally I will see stuff like you and Lebron in Santro Pay living big. And I got to be honest with you, low jelly. I thought it was pretty interesting. All good times had by all here. Now you guys reportedly didn't even ask Lebron about what was happening. So let me ask you this. He knew the temperature of the room. Was he in a good mood the whole time?

[Channing Frye]

Great mood. Great mood the whole time. I think honestly man, how are you not in a great mood when you're drinking good wine, your witcher buddies and playing golf? Like I can't remember the last time I laughed. This, this scene right here when we were in Scotland, it's just us in this castle. So we're around each other 18 hours a day, whether that's golfing, whether it's on helicopters or in cars. And I mean it never got old. You see, I'm dying laughing. Swish had a great time, right? But like it was so good to see my boys. Like we talk every day and so for everyone's schedules to come together to make it actually work. Because if, you know, Richard wouldn't have been able to make it if the Knicks had gone to game six or seven, Braun if the Lakers. And so, you know, Kevin, if Utah didn't do what they did. But no, I mean, just the fact that Shump came out for 36 hours, deli came out for 36 hours, you know, it was. Man, it was just one of those trips where it just felt like it was forever. And then now we're just still, you know, we're still recovering.

[Jason McIntyre]

Now the news comes out, he's no longer a Laker. I guarantee you. You were on 13 chat rooms. What's the overall take on that?

[Channing Frye]

Well, we all. We all custom out because now we're going to get a million questions about where he's going, and none of us really know. I'll say this from my perspective. I feel like that's a very amicable breakup, right? It's like you chose AR as your second guy. You're going with Luke and ar, which is a great move, I think, for Lakers. Good, good base to build off of. And Bron's saying, well, hey, I want to go somewhere where I have a chance to continue my career and be. I don't want to say built around. That's not right. Where I can just go, you know, KD goes to a team and he's a great addition. I think Braun wanted to see what that feels like. He doesn't need to be built around. He's 40. You see the beard? You know, the dude is almost 62 years old. So I think for me, if I was putting myself in this situation, I just want to go where I'm comfortable. I have to think about my career. I got to think about what's best for me and where I'm going to get appreciated. This last year or two years or wherever long he's playing, the dude is in ridiculous shape. Like, we woke up one day and a dude was running laps around a damn castle, and I'm sitting there with a. With a mimosa, like, nah, that ain't me, brother. You know, so he's still got a motor. So I think it's going to be interesting this summer to see where do I want him to go. Personally, me, Channing Frye, I think the only choice is Cleveland. I just think it's. The place is going to be rocking. He's coming back home. For the third time, the team went to the Eastern Conference finals. There's Some room for improvement in that roster. And I think what he brings will be. Could be what's right for that team.

[Jason McIntyre]

But, you know, I mean, he's like, I don't want to. I don't even want to play a game in Milwaukee or Memphis. Cities matter, does he? I mean, he's left it twice. And this is not a knock on LeBron at all. I've seen you get a certain amount of money in your life. There's just hotels you're not going to stay at, courses you're not going to golf at, cities you're not going to live at. Do you think he wants to live in Cleveland again?

[Channing Frye]

Have you seen his house in Akron, Ohio? It looks like a Ritz Carlton. I think he's perfectly fine with Ohio. No, I just think, you know, I think you look at, like, where he's most comfortable, where he's had the most success. And again, you think about who is going to welcome him with the most open arms is Cleveland. I just think if he goes, let's say I'm going to shoot something out of the. Let's say goes to San Antonio. Let's say he says, hey, Wemby, I want to play with you for a year. It's not. That's kind of a. What? It's a weird story. It's not the right. It's not. To me, that's not the right ending to the, to the story. The right ending is Cleveland to me. Channing Fry.

[Jason McIntyre]

Wow. You know, there's. I mean, it's. How about this?

[Botox Advertisement Voice]

You're the Lakers.

[Channing Frye]

Yeah.

[Jason McIntyre]

And I made this discussion earlier, Channing. I thought the Lakers did him a solid. They let him announce it with his agent.

[Channing Frye]

Perfect. Yeah.

[Jason McIntyre]

They let him say, hey, I. I got other options. The Lakers said, hey, listen, we're not. We're not going to dump on Rich Paul. We're not going to dump on you. We like you guys. You got us a title. You guys say you walk away. And I think that's the classy thing to do. The Lakers are interesting. Everybody's banging on Jalen Duran because he didn't have a good playoff series. But my argument is, yeah, that's because Allen and Mobley are great defensive bigs and they bullied him. And the NBA officials don't call anything. That's why. That's why Wemby, by the way, got pushed all over the floor. That's why OKC drafted Mara. Let's have a third big we can throw at Wemby. So my take is Jalen Duran to the Lakers. I. I like.

[Channing Frye]

Were you giving. If I'm Detroit, what are you. You must be. What are you drinking this morning to give up on a big. How old is Jalen Durant? 23, 22. Stop it. He ain't go a. I'm telling Jalen Duran's real estate agent right now a buy a house. Buy a house in Auburn Hills. Get the biggest one. You're not going anywhere. You're 22, and the only thing we have to work on is. Is for you to learn how to score a little bit. Stop it. Bigs are some of the most important. You're not finding another player like that, another centerpiece. And if you think about all the greats, big men that have ever played, who's had a great first series, like, think about the pressure he's had to work with. Yeah, like other Shaq. Other Shaq. Right. Other than Shaq. Shaq had a great rookie year. But like Jalen Duran's progress each and every year. What's going to happen in a year, two years? Lakers. Stop it. They must be on the mimosas. I was on at my Scotland Castle, because there's no way. Unless you package. Who knows? Everybody and they mama for Jalen Durham. No way, no how. No way, no how am I getting rid of Jalen Durham?

[Jason McIntyre]

All right, what do you think of LeBron to the Warriors?

[Channing Frye]

Please don't do that. Please don't do that. Please don't do that. I know, I. That's just gross. That's gross. It's just not. Again, it's gross. It's just not. It won't look right. Like Jordan in a Wizards jersey just didn't look right. Braun in a Lakers, you kind of got used to it. Braun in Miami. Okay, that makes sense. Braun in a Warriors. No. In this lineup, it's the men's 40 and overleague. What are we doing? This is not. No. For what? No. No. And at the end of the day, there's so many what ifs on this roster construction. This floor spacing, the shooting like this is not good for Steph and it's not great for Braun. Now, if there were other. If Clay Prime. Clay was on here, there was some youth on here. If there was some other than Steph, some elite shooting, for sure. This is not the roster construction that is great for Steph or that is great for LeBron. Now, Lori, market in instead of A.D. okay, now. Okay, now we're getting somewhere. But you need floor spacing for both of them. But AD Ambron and Draymond on the same court. I'm zoning you up. I'm zoning you up. Like old school Bill Bay. Bayheim and Syracuse, like boxing one on Steph Curry.

[Jason McIntyre]

Hey, before we go, you know, I've never been to San Trope or Nice. You're going to both of them. I mean, that's a.

[Rob Parker]

That's a.

[Jason McIntyre]

By the way, when LeBron wants you to go, just he lets text you, hey, Channing, we're going here. How does it work when LeBron texts you?

[Channing Frye]

First of all, Bron Brown ain't the big, big man in the group, okay? Bron ain't the big guy in the group. He may be the most expensive. Honestly, the. The ringleader is Kevin. Kevin is the most organized. He's the one who organized the trip. Kevin and Ramos. So shout out those guys. Kevin did 92% of the work, so big shout out to Caleb, my guy. We were set up with a great trip. The plan, the. The helicopters, the cars, the, you know, the golfing, everything. So Braun was just along for the ride, just like the rest of us. But, yeah, yeah, he may be the richest, but he's definitely not the organizer.

[Jason McIntyre]

Okay, how about, what does J.R. smith like to be with the best?

[Channing Frye]

He is my guy. He is the sweetest, nicest, calmest, funnest guy of all time. And here's a crazy story about Junior and golf. We all try to be good. Junior gets off an airplane for nine hours, meets us directly at the golf course, has some shirt on, gets a regular shirt, hits about five shots on the driving tee, goes, okay, let's go. Gets it. He's like, cheney, what we drinking? And I was like, oh, we're, you know, we're in England. Let's grab a couple beers. Chugs a beer with me. We go to the first tee. He's talking to his caddy, goes to the tips, and proceeds to shoot. I think he shot a 76 or a 78 for the round. And it's just chilling the whole time. Like, Swish is the best human being of all time. And I will always. If I was like, hey, Swish, let's go walk down to the beach. Hey, Swish, let's go explore the city. Hey, let's go do this. He's all right. Come on, let's go. He's just the best. I mean, honestly, each one of the guys in the group and Shump and Deli and Kyrie and those guys included, they're great guys, and we just love hanging out with him. How else can you hang out with somebody 16 hours a day, eight days in a row and still be friend best. Even better friends.

[Jason McIntyre]

Look at Richard Jefferson. I bet you he just likes poking you guys in the ribs.

[Channing Frye]

All the most sarcastic. You can't get a real answer out of the guy, so you're like, hey, Rich, are you hungry? Well, do I look hungry? What does that even mean? Richard, what does that mean?

[Jason McIntyre]

Okay.

[Channing Frye]

But yeah, man, it was a great trip. We had a good time. We had a good time.

[Jason McIntyre]

Look at that. Channing, it is always a pleasure you let us.

[Colin Cowherd]

Oh, yeah.

[Channing Frye]

Thank you for having me, man.

[Jason McIntyre]

Oh, I love having you.

[Channing Frye]

Oh, yeah, look at Tristan. He doesn't play golf, so we made him the drink. The cart lady. Good, good seated too.

[Rob Parker]

Gu.

[Jason McIntyre]

Channing Fry, just one of the all time great guys. That's a pretty cool thing. Like those guys having a good time. Kevin Love. You know, Kevin loves Lake Oswego High School. Same high school as John Strong, the voice of American soccer. Kevin Love went to Lake Oswego High, dominant high school player, then went to ucla. I mean, that's, that's, that's, that's pretty good. John Strong's on the show tomorrow. Butterflies. I mean, what is it like, J. Mac, to live in a country that's a soccer power? What is it like to live such an amazing.

[Rob Parker]

It is a good feeling. We're obviously better than Germany, right? I mean, we spank Paraguay and Germany

[Jason McIntyre]

gets bounced by them. We look down at Germany, it's like we have more.

[Rob Parker]

This is, this is a real thing. I was just reading one of these write ups from these analytic guys. They were like, Germany did not have the creators on the wing. They didn't to break down Paraguay. They just kept crossing and crossing and connected on like 10 of 56 crosses. We have Pulisic, who destroyed Paraguay with ease. Oh, it's good. Feels good to be part of a soccer power.

[Jason McIntyre]

Yeah, it really does. Dare I say juggernaut.

[Colin Cowherd]

Going forward, be sure to catch live

[Jason McIntyre]

editions of the Herd, Weekdays at noon

[Colin Cowherd]

Eastern, 9am Pacific on Fox Sports Radio, FS1 and the iHeartRadio app.

[Rob Parker]

Hey, it's me, Rob Parker. Check out my weekly MLB podcast, Inside the Parker for 22 minutes of piping hot baseball talk featuring the biggest names and newsmakers in the sport. Whether you believe in analytics or the eye test, we've got all the bases covered. New episodes drop every Thursday. So do yourself a favor and listen to Inside the Parker with Rob Parker on the iHeartRadio app or wherever you get your podcast.

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[Jason McIntyre]

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[Channing Frye]

No, no, no, no. Turn on the news.

[Colin Cowherd]

This is the Herdline news.

[Rob Parker]

All right, let's go back to the big news of the day. LeBron James and the Lakers parting ways. I hope I can say that LeBron's wanted to play elsewhere. Luka Doncic went on Instagram and said it was an honor to play with LeBron James. First comments from Luka about LeBron's departure. It's almost like Luka knew this was coming.

[Botox Advertisement Voice]

Yes.

[Rob Parker]

I mean, you remember a year ago there was the infamous dinner, I believe at Craig's out here. One of the hot spots you go to when you're out here hanging out with the Kardashians and so forth. But apparently there was a binder and there was this plan for Luca about what they were going to do once LeBron's big money comes off of the books.

[Jason McIntyre]

Well, how do you know that?

[Rob Parker]

Well, there was a story at espn. Ramona Shelburne and Brian Windhorst wrote it, that there was a big dinner, there was photos, it was Pelinka and Luka. And I guess the Lakers presented something to Luka saying, hey, this is what it's zero are options. And now they're going through the options. We shall see what the next move is. Colin, I mean, I was just kind of breaking this down real quick. Just be honest with me. Best backcourt in the West. Is it Luka and Austin Reeves?

[Jason McIntyre]

Offensively, it's in a very elite class. Offensively, you got to play some defense. Knicks play. You know, the story of the Knicks championship is a part of it is Brunson and Cat, you know, were very, very willing and capable defenders. I mean, that's okay. Who are you taking?

[Rob Parker]

Anthony Edwards and LaMelo Ball or Luka and Austin Reaves?

[Jason McIntyre]

Well, I don't know what LaMelo and Ant looks like, so I'm not. I don't have any. I would say ants, the most explosive athletically, but LaMelo Ball's silly, so I don't know what you're getting.

[Rob Parker]

There you go. I'm just, I'm just saying I think the Lakers are going to be okay. I'm not saying this is addition by subtraction. Obviously LeBron put up a lot of numbers. We got to still get guys. But Luka has Spoken on playing with LeBron. And we'll see what happens with King James. Now, this next story, Colin, is kind of sort of staggering. Okay, so we've talked about Lakers options at center for a while now. One of the names that had come up was Robert Williams. Okay. Formerly of the Celtics. Now he was in Portland. Collin, Robert Williams just agreed to a three year, $44 million extension with the Blazers. Now, before we go into this, I need to point out Robert Williams is getting about $15 million a year. He started one game last year, played in 59 games, averaged six points and seven rebounds. Yeah, put that into context. A backup center is getting 15 million a year and he's averaging 6 and 7. That's the problem with the league right now. The going rate for centers is off the charts.

[Jason McIntyre]

Well, that's insane. No, that's the way the world works. That right now Wemby has created a cultural change in the sport. You have to have multiple bigs to stop Wemby. Oklahoma City could have drafted a guard. They drafted a die Mara giving them three bigs. They could let Hartenstein go. Nope, they're going to resign him. So this is all that tells you the greatness of Wemby. Teams are drafting and acquiring and giving guys like Robert Williams huge money.

[Rob Parker]

Okay, so this is why I say it's insane. Deandre Ayton opted in. He's making $8 million. This is a real thing. Would you rather have Deandre Ayden at 8 mil next year or Robert Williams at 15? Deandre Ayton's not a bad deal given what's on the market, Colin. I mean, Walker Kessler is going to get like 35 million a year.

[Colin Cowherd]

Jalen Duran.

[Jason McIntyre]

Kessler is much better than those guys.

[Rob Parker]

100%. Is he four times better, Colin?

[Jason McIntyre]

Well, it just. Again, this is what the market. Bears, Wembley has changed the discourse and decision making that just, you know, you should have seen it two, three years ago. You had it. You should have had Biggs locked in. I don't. For all these teams now that are overpaying for centers. You knew Wemby was great two years ago. Why didn't you sign guys early then?

[Rob Parker]

Yeah. All right, let's go to the final story real quick. Colin, that's the U.S. i had to the producer triple check this. The U.S. remember, they were minus 250 earlier this week, or maybe it was Monday, early in the show. They are now minus 700 against Bosnia. Minus 250 to minus 700. There's so much money on the US right now the books can't raise it high enough. Here's Tim Ream on the pressure Team USA is facing against Bosnia.

[Channing Frye]

In a lot of moments, our training sessions are, you know, tougher, more, more condensed than, than a, than a game. And I think I saw something the other day, I think it was yesterday that, you know, obviously we covered more distance than any team in the, in the tournament so far. So

[Jason McIntyre]

I think that that says a

[Channing Frye]

lot about where we are physically, which

[Jason McIntyre]

also says a lot about where we are mentally.

[Channing Frye]

So I think we're, yeah, we're absolutely

[Jason McIntyre]

where we want to be and ready

[Channing Frye]

to go for whatever happens.

[Jason McIntyre]

I just, I think we're in a good spot. Bosnia does not create a ton of high quality shots. They are like Australia, better but physical. Gonna pack it in. They're gonna, you know, they're. Bosnia is a great test pre Belgium.

[Rob Parker]

Yeah, somebody called them a poor man's Canada. Remember they played a draw with Canada. I do not advocate betting. USA minus 700. That is goofy. That's a ridiculous number.

[Jason McIntyre]

Come on. I agree J Mac with the news.

[Colin Cowherd]

Well, that's the news and thanks for stopping by the Herd lie news.

[Jason McIntyre]

Quite a day. I love when we get breaking news right out first five minutes into a show. Breaking news. I love it.

[Colin Cowherd]

Be sure to catch live editions of the Herd weekdays at noon Eastern, 9am Pacific.

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[Jason McIntyre]

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[Colin Cowherd]

Not terribly surprised? I think what was pretty clear over the last month or so was that no one was really sure what LeBron wanted to do or was going to do. And because of that I think I. I was wide eyed and ready for anything basically.

[Jason McIntyre]

Okay, I assumed.

[Colin Cowherd]

I assumed.

[Channing Frye]

Colin.

[Colin Cowherd]

Look, I assumed to a certain degree that like all roads sort of led back to the Lakers because it was the path of least resistance.

[Jason McIntyre]

Yeah, same here.

[Colin Cowherd]

I'm not, I'm not like shocked by any stretch.

[Jason McIntyre]

My take, I'll just throw my take at you and you can react. My take was the Dodger owners. I don't know if the bus family would have had the chutzpah, the courage to kind of move off him. They've always kind of felt like they're. They're holding on to glory days. The new Laker owners have moved off star after star after star to upgrade to Ohtani and Bets and Freddie Freeman. And my take was we want to get out of the LeBron business, but we don't. Don't want to alienate LeBron or Rich Paul. Let's do it with class. Let's let him win the day or the week. So today you're seeing all these leaks, all these stories. LeBron's decision. This was the Lakers saying, listen, we're not interested. We're going to let you control the narrative for a couple days on this. But I think they made their mind up. They just, I think they just made their mind up weeks or months ago. I really do. Is that sound crazy?

[Channing Frye]

Well.

[Colin Cowherd]

Well, it doesn't sound crazy. I think I would say this, Colin. Look, they made their decision in February of 2025 when they traded for Luka Doncic. That's when they made their decision. Right. Was, you know, that was not a LeBron James decision. LeBron was not consulted in that decision. It was the first time as a professional, probably the first time since LeBron was a freshman in high school, that such an important basketball decision was made that he had no input on. Right. Like, I mean, that was. That's a powerful message to, you know, the NBA's all time leading score that we are, we are going to move on without you. We have a plan now to move on without you. I think, you know, look, did the Lakers want him back this year? I think there was, you know, an appetite for it. Was it like they did. They have to have him back this year? They did not operate that way. This was not. They did. They didn't. I mean, this was not. There was no full press recruitment or anything like that. You know, they, they were very public about what their plan was with LeBron. They wanted to give him space. They were going to let him make up his mind and tell them what he wanted to do, and they were going to acquiesce to it. Now, I think, you know, while all that being said, every signal that they gave teams around the league that they gave their own players was that they were going to be a team with massive cap space this summer. And to be a team with massive cap space this summer, you're going to have to renounce LeBron James's contract, which meant that you were going to have to significantly pay him, or you have to pay him significantly less than he made last year. Right. Like, these are all actions that I think, you know, laid out kind of quite frankly, like, yeah, they wanted him back, but, like, I mean, if they wanted him back at a. They could have had him at a big number, probably.

[Jason McIntyre]

All right, so give me. They need a big. They need a wing defender. What's next? Prediction. Put your prediction hat on. What's next?

[Colin Cowherd]

They need bigs and wing defenders, right? They're going to be.

[Channing Frye]

They're.

[Colin Cowherd]

They're going to. They're going to swim in what I would consider to be some of the murkiest waters that exist in the NBA, and that's restricted free agency. You know, I anticipate them speaking with Walker Kessler and Jalen Duran, you know, here early in free agency. Good luck getting a restricted free agent out of their respective team. You can pay more money. You can make it. You would have to make it kind of technically an overpay for either of those teams to not match. The history of the league says teams will still match anyways, right? Everybody gets matched. You know, they'll talk to Peyton Watson. Maybe they'll kick the tires on Tyrese. And look, I think they're looking for depth, they're looking for athleticism, and they're looking to build out a Luca. Team like this has been clear since they made the trade. This is the promise they made to Luka Doncic last summer when they got him to sign the extension. This was the. The plan pretty publicly, was to optimize Luka Doncic. Collin. I think, and I feel really strongly about this, I think there's one way to win in the NBA right now. There's one way, and it's not to try to be the spurs, not to try to be the Knicks, not to try to be the Celtics or the Nuggets or the Thunder. Your only chance is you have to, one, have a guy that is good enough to build around, and then you've got to build around him as close to perfect as possible. That's your only chance, right? The Lakers have that guy in Luka Doncic. He's one of those dudes. They have to optimize and build the best possible Luka Doncic team. That is the only chance they have to compete with these other teams. They don't need, you know, a Wemby stopper or any of that stuff you're going to get. You'll cross that road when you need to get to it. You need to have the best possible Luca team. And that starts right now with over $50 million of cap space to tradable first round picks. Like, like they've got to start building that.

[Jason McIntyre]

They fully guaranteed Bronnie's salary yesterday. What'd you make of that?

[Colin Cowherd]

Procedural. You know, look, I think they like what they don't. They like Bronnie James. I think the best thing for Bronnie James, give this a go on his own at this point. He got better last year. He played real rotation minutes played real rotation minutes with his father in the playoffs, which was a thing that was very cool for both of them, I think. Look, the cap geekery of this is he's. He's worth more cap space Colin on the roster than he is without it. If he's not. If they waived him tomorrow, the or if they didn't guarantee his deal, his like sort of like the prorated slot for a veteran player exception is more money than his $2.2 million salary. That's not to say the Lakers won't keep him or don't like him. They do like him. I'm not sure what they're going to do as far as keeping him decision wise or anything like that, but he's been a developmental project for him. He played for them last year. I'll tell you this about the Lakers. They don't need fewer young and athletic players, you know what I mean, who are inexpensive. So if you can keep a player at $2.2 million and you think he's still growing, he's probably worth keeping.

[Jason McIntyre]

Dan Woicke, the athletic. Read him, watch him. Next 72 hours going to be interesting. Good seeing you, buddy.

[Colin Cowherd]

Colin, I'm going to look so much worse on Thursday and it's pretty rocky right now.

[Jason McIntyre]

Okay, we'll see what happens. I know J. Mac is not in the Jalen Duran market. I know Walker Kessler well. LeBron just tweeted. This is what LeBron. Here we go. Just tweeted.

[Rob Parker]

I need my. I need glasses to read.

[Jason McIntyre]

That says thank you. Truly an honor to wear the purple and gold while trying to continue the greatness and legacies that came before. Hope I made a few proud during my stint.

[Rob Parker]

Fun. Nice. Hey, real quick. So Dan said something interesting. That restricted free agency is murky waters. I just want to put this out there right now. Lakers fans do not panic and go to bridges and go to top of buildings. If the Lakers don't land Duran or Kessler because it sounds like what Dan said, it's a long shot that they land either of those guys. Detroit's not letting go of their second best player from a 60 win team. Utah unlikely to let go of Kessler. So Laker fans, we're going to have to start start looking at like third season.

[Jason McIntyre]

I don't know why they didn't. I mean, I'm glad the Bulls got Nick Claxton. That one to me felt like I like Nick Claxton.

[Rob Parker]

But again, the Bulls had to give up assets. The Lakers didn't want to give up assets they don't want. They want to save ammo so they can go big game hunting.

[Jason McIntyre]

Dodger owners. They got their start, they got their coach, they got their complimentary piece. It's going to be a bumpy year. 53 wins to 40.

[Rob Parker]

Oh, stop it. If Luka's healthy, they're winning like 50 games.

[Jason McIntyre]

Okay, whoa, whoa, whoa, Whoa. Slow down. Score 28. Give up 26.

[Rob Parker]

Oh, relax. Defense. Who needs defense?

[Jason McIntyre]

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[Channing Frye]

Guaranteed Human.