THE HERD - Hour 3 - Tomorrow's Headlines Today

Summary

The Herd with Colin Cowherd – Hour 3 Summary

Date: March 20, 2026
Guest Hosts: Jason McIntyre & Rachel Nichols
Episode Focus: Tomorrow's Headlines Today & Deep-Dive on NBA, NCAA, and Flag Football Classic

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Episode Overview

This hour of "The Herd" features Jason McIntyre and Rachel Nichols leading the conversation on the most exciting topics in sports as the weekend approaches. The centerpiece is an in-depth preview of the Fanatics Flag Football Classic, set to showcase NFL stars against Team USA's flag football champions. Discussion shifts naturally to NBA storylines (Lakers, Luka Doncic’s incredible 60-point game), the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament, league expansion, debates about player/coach legacies, and MVP races, all delivered in a lively, accessible style.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Fanatics Flag Football Classic Preview

Guest: Michael Rubin (Fanatics CEO)
Timestamps: 04:54 – 13:27

• The Event’s Origin:

  • The idea came from Tom Brady, envisioning the "biggest flag football game ever" originally set for Saudi Arabia. Due to geopolitical tensions, it was moved to LA.
  • Rubin: "Flag football has just exploded...so much enthusiasm around it." (05:37)

• Game Format & Stakes:

  • Shifted from three NFL-based teams to a round robin with two NFL teams and Team USA, five-time flag football world champions.
  • “Big question, could the NFL-based teams beat the USA flag champions?” (06:13, Rubin)

• Intensity & Athlete Buy-In:

  • Serious competitive edge: “Practice yesterday was like a very serious practice. There was no playing around. Everyone’s locked in.” (07:36, Rubin, quoting Sean Payton)
  • Rubin notes the pride and $100,000 incentives for USA Flag players, who aren’t big celebrities or highly paid.

• Star Power:

  • NFL names: Tom Brady (still competitive, co-captained by Jalen Hurts), Joe Burrow, Jaden Daniels, Devonta Smith, Saquon Barkley, Stefon Diggs, Davante Adams, Ashton Gentry.
  • “Tom reminds me every day that if he didn’t own part of the Raiders, he could play in the NFL and be a top five quarterback today.” (11:36, Rubin)

• Final Picks:

  • Rachel picks "whoever Tom Brady is playing with," citing his competitive nature.
  • Jason leans toward the Jaden Daniels team.
  • Rubin jokes, “So neither one of you guys have the USA flag team. I like that. So confident in the NFL guys.” (13:07)

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2. Luka Doncic’s Historic Game & Lakers Momentum

Timestamps: 18:09 – 26:51

• Luka's 60-Point Night:

  • “Luka Doncic last night was incredible. 60 piece. 60 against the Miami Heat...their eighth straight win for the Lakers.” (18:09, McIntyre)
  • Highlights the schedule fatigue and LeBron’s leadership: “When he said he was playing, I was like, I can’t let a 41 year old play and I don’t play. So I signed up to play and so did Luka.” (20:16, Austin Reaves via McIntyre)

• Comparisons and Perspective:

  • Luka’s 60 lauded as more impressive than Bam Adebayo’s 83 due to context and game difficulty.
  • “Luka’s 60 was more impressive than Bam’s 83 last week...60 earned, a little more impressive than 83 given.” (20:16-21:36)

• LeBron’s Historic Feat:

  • At 41, has four triple-doubles post-40—more than any NBA player except Karl Malone (who has one).
  • Contradicts narrative he can’t fit with the Lakers’ current roster.

Notable Quotes

• “An authentic 60, not a Fugazi 60.” (20:56, McIntyre)
• “LeBron’s doing right now...Hello, narrative killer.” (20:56, McIntyre)

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3. College Basketball & NIL Discussion

Timestamps: 22:45 – 28:25

• AJ DeBonsa and NIL Value Debate:

  • BYU’s star scores 35 points, but they drop out after one game—prompting a deeper question about roster construction and NIL spending.
  • “For seven million dollars, they got one game in the NCAA tournament. It’s over.” (25:38, McIntyre)
  • Is spreading NIL funds among multiple good players a better approach than a single superstar deal?

• Sean Miller on DeBonsa:

  • "We understood that he has the ability to score like nobody else...he puts so many fouls on the opponent that he wears out the other team." (26:51, Miller)

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4. NBA Expansion vs. Relocation Debate

Timestamps: 28:29 – 32:14

• Upcoming Vote: NBA considering expansion teams for Seattle and Las Vegas, expected franchise fees of $7–10 billion, with $500 million per current owner.

• Rachel’s Pushback:

  • “I would much rather see relocation...you’re going to water down the talent pool.” (29:38, Nichols)
  • Underscores economic drivers, issues with Memphis and New Orleans (expiring arena deals, low attendance).

• Jason's Counter:

  • “It’s weird that you mention Memphis and New Orleans. They got Ja Morant and Zion...” (30:46, McIntyre)

• Rachel’s Bottom Line:

  • “The health of the league, in my opinion, would be better off with relocation than expansion.” (31:34, Nichols)

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5. Basketball Culture & Player Debates

Timestamps: 32:14 – 35:35

• Building the ‘Perfect Player’ with Anthony Edwards:

  • Edwards picks Kyrie Irving for handles, Steph Curry for shooting, Jaden McDaniels for defense, Chris Paul for IQ, Zach LaVine for dunking.
  • Debate between hosts on best handles—Iverson’s opinion (“Kyrie has the best handles of all time”) vs. Curry’s candidacy.

• Jordan & Durant:

  • KD set to surpass MJ on all-time scoring list; he reflects on being inspired to “scare defenders” like Jordan.
  • Rachel notes scoring context/eras—open question if Durant or Luka could challenge LeBron’s eventual record.

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6. Tomorrow’s Headlines Today: Bold Predictions

Timestamps: 44:34 – 55:00

• NCAA Tournament Upset Alert:

  • Jason predicts Hofstra "pound for pound better than Alabama" due to 'Bama's roster loss and 3-point volatility. (45:11, McIntyre)

• NCAA Champion:

  • “Wildcats Pajamas: Arizona puts rest of field to sleep”—Jason very high on Arizona’s roster, questions about Coach Tommy Lloyd’s March record. (46:22, McIntyre)

• Most Outstanding Player:

  • “Basketball Has Been Betty: Betty’s Good To Me”—Jason picks Braden Buries, Arizona’s clutch freshman.
  • “This kid is so clutch...reminds [Fran Fraschilla] of SGA.” (47:58, McIntyre)

• NBA Champion:

  • “Diuretic Lakers Flow: Flow Right Into Finals”—despite skepticism, Jason touts Lakers’ chemistry, Reddick’s coaching, and LeBron’s buy-in. (49:26, McIntyre)

• NBA MVP:

  • “How Luka Can One Guy Be? Make the Finals and Win MVP?”—Luka Doncic’s current hot streak, narrative momentum, and statistical dominance. (52:02, McIntyre)
  • “He is just unstoppable right now...the guy is on another planet.” (52:09, McIntyre)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “This is like a playoff atmosphere. Yesterday at practice, Sean Payton told me...practice yesterday was like a very serious practice. There was no playing around.” (07:24, Michael Rubin)
• “LeBron, by the way, got to give him some props...Guys over the age of 40 in the history of basketball in the NBA, triple-doubles—LeBron has four of them. The entire rest of the league has one. Karl Malone.” (20:56, McIntyre)
• “I just wonder, are teams going to start saying, let's spread the wealth around, let's retain guys for more than one year?” (27:29, McIntyre)
• “The health of the league...would be better off with relocation than expansion.” (31:34, Nichols)
• “Kyrie has the best handles of all time. You got to listen to that.” (35:24, Nichols quoting Iverson)
• “How Luka Can One Guy Be? Make the finals and win MVP?” (53:02, McIntyre)
• Luka, after his 60-point night: “I was tired. But, you know, that shows the team...we fight till the end and win the game.” (53:43, Luka audio)

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Segment Timestamps for Reference

• Fanatics Flag Football Classic Interview: 04:54–13:27
• Lakers/Luka Spotlight: 18:09–26:51
• NCAA & NIL Roster Value: 22:45–28:25
• NBA Expansion/Relocation: 28:29–32:14
• Perfect Player Debate: 32:14–35:35
• Durant & All-Time Scoring: 36:13–39:12
• Tomorrow's Headlines Today (Predictions): 44:34–55:00

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Tone & Style

Throughout the episode, Jason and Rachel maintain a lively, conversational, and analytical tone—challenging each other’s takes, riffing on news, and providing both sharp insight and humor. Michael Rubin brings real energy and inside information about the flag football event. The show balances predictive speculation with grounded reporting and a respect for statistics, context, and culture.

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For Listeners Who Missed the Episode

This hour is a fast-paced sports talk tour-de-force, with inside access on the unique Flag Football Classic, fresh NBA perspectives, and concrete predictions heading into one of the busiest sports weekends of the year. Whether you’re seeking deep dives, bold takes, or just want to stay plugged in to the rhythms of NBA and college basketball, this episode delivers.

Transcript

[Jason McIntyre]

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Thanks for listening to the Herd podcast. Be sure to catch us live every weekday on Fox Sports Radio at 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.

[Rachel Nichols]

Now let's get this party started.

[Jason McIntyre]

You're listening to Fox Sports Radio, our number three here on the Herd. It's the power hour, final hour of the week, glorious sports action end to end all week. World Baseball Classic, MCA Tournament, Luka, Lakers, Wemby. And then this weekend, big flag football football event. Oh, everybody's fired up about it. It's me, Jason McIntyre, in for Colin Cowherd, joined by Rachel Nichols. Rachel, I know you're pumped for the flag football event this weekend.

[Rachel Nichols]

It's gonna be great.

[Jason McIntyre]

You happen to be friends with one of the gentlemen putting this whole thing together. And let's welcome in Michael Rubin, founder and CEO of Fanatics. Rachel has known him for a long time.

[Rachel Nichols]

What do you think? A lot.

[Michael Rubin]

A long time. I remember meeting Rachel at least 10 years ago, coming up with NBA together and good to be with you guys today.

[Jason McIntyre]

Yeah, thanks, Michael. And you know Rachel for a while. She'll be at the event. Rachel, get us started.

[Rachel Nichols]

Yeah, yeah, absolutely. I mean, it's so funny. Flag football has just exploded. And I want to remind people this is going to be in the Olympics at LA28. So this is a preview of what you're going to see in the Olympic Games. And I'm so psyched for it. Michael, how did you even think of doing this? How did this originate?

[Michael Rubin]

You know, the original idea came from Tom. He called me about a year ago and said, rube, I got a great idea. I want to do the biggest flag football game ever. Let's do it in Saudi Arabia. It would be just a great way to market flag, be a great way to, you know, kind of market global growth. And so that's what we set up to do. Obviously, what's happened in the Middle east right now that made that impossible to do it, but this game is just such a big opportunity. As you said, flag is growing incredibly quickly, so much enthusiasm around it. And what's so interesting about what we're doing, we changed the entire thing in the last couple of weeks is originally we were going to have three teams, primarily and NFL based to play against each other. And then when we move the game from Saudi to L. A, we realized at the same time we've got an opportunity to actually really put Flag on, on the map in the biggest ways. And people said, look, the USA flag football team, they're the best flag football team in the world. They won the last five championships. Big question, could the NFL based teams beat the USA flag champions? And so we went back and said, hey, we're going to change the format. Round robin. Two NFL based teams and the USA flag football champions. And this is going to be insane. I mean, if you ask the sports book, fanatic, Sportsbook said to us that the USA flag football team, it's like a six, six and a half point favorite. As soon as we told yes, because they're just, they're fast, they know how to pull flags. And I'm sitting here right now in my suite at the, at BMO Stadium, J.D. daniels is outside watching Tom Brady's practice. And then literally the USA flag guys came in the next week and they're all studying together. It's like, I mean, this is like a playoff atmosphere. Yesterday at practice, Sean Payton told me he's coached, you know, several pro balls and like, it's hard to get the guys focused. Nobody really cares. They're not locked in. They're just there to be with the friends, have a good time. He said, practice yesterday was like a very serious practice. There was no playing around. Everyone's locked in. Look, the USA flag guys are here to show they're the best in the world and to embarrass the two NFL squads. The NFL squads are here to say we're the best. NFL players in the world. We're going to kick your ass. So it's going to be a lot of fun to see what happens tomorrow.

[Jason McIntyre]

What do you think fans can expect on the field? Like, it sounds like it's going to be an incredibly heated contest. Is that fair to say?

[Michael Rubin]

Yeah, I think there's going to be no fun. This is here to see who the best players are. I'm watching these guys right now. The NFL guys are practicing how to pull flags, how to slide. They're taking all the differences. This will be a very competitive game. I think it's going to be high scoring. My sense is that it's going to be hard to stop either team. Obviously, the NFL guys have the size and incredible speed, but the flag guys are just. They're the best in the world. They've won the last five championships.

[Rachel Nichols]

Yeah. And, Michael, I want to talk a little bit more just about how popular flag football has gotten. Because it's a sport. You know, it's much easier for girls to play flag football than tackle football. My daughter played it in elementary school. She had so much fun. She loved it. And even for boys, you know, there are moms and dads out there who are worried about concussions, and flag is so popular. When you first floated flag football, where people like flag football, or were people saying, flag football? Yes, I love it.

[Michael Rubin]

No, when Tom brought me the idea a year ago, said, look, I have this big idea, but we need to do it with Fanatics. We need help and, you know, business. We have called Fanatics Studios, partnered to kind of produce this together with Tom. I think the immediate reaction from the NFL is we love this. We want to support this in every way that we can. We would not have been able to do this without the NFL support. I mean, Robert Kraft showed up here yesterday. Robert, Roger Goodell is coming in today for this. There's going to be huge NFL support. They've helped us every bit of the way. I mean, the reality is we've never produced a football game before. This is the first time we're doing it. It would not have been possible without NFL support. But I'll tell you, the enthusiasm at the league about how to grow flag, I think is as high as it could be. I think this really meets that initiative of getting the best NFL stars in the world, getting the best flag football team in the world. And to showcase this, and I think for the flag, for the USA flag football team, we're giving them the spotlight they've always dreamed of. There's going to be tens of millions of people that I think watch this. And I think from a flag football perspective, we're just putting this on a map in a way it's never been before. And it was interesting for me. I just asked J. Daniels five minutes ago, like, how good are you at flag? As Michael, he just showed me a picture of himself when he was like 5, 6, 7 years old. Said, I've been playing flag my whole life. I love flag. So I think these two things are so complimentary. So Jaden could be the most experienced flag football player out there from an NFL perspective. He just, again, he just showed me these pictures. But these guys are all ready to compete for who's the best. And you know, nobody wants to not win this match in this tournament.

[Jason McIntyre]

We saw some good video footage from the draft on Wednesday. You were there, obviously. How intense are we talking? Obviously the guys are happy to hang out, but it looked like maybe there was a little more intensity than people anticipated.

[Michael Rubin]

I think there's a lot more intensity. I think when you think about a traditional, you know, kind of game from any sport, All Star game, pro ball, I think it's, it's, you know, the best players that we're all getting together, but the games aren't competitive enough. I think by changing the format and adding the five time champion USA flag team, who are great flag players now, the NFL guys are all called, we don't want to lose these guys. We don't want to be embarrassed. The USA flag guys, by the way, they get an extra $100,000 each if they win this game. I mean, these are guys that are, you know, not highly paid athletes yet. And so the money's real for them, the pride's real for them, the spotlight's real for them. So this is going to be, I think, as competitive as anything.

[Rachel Nichols]

And the level of players you guys have recruited. Can you just throw it, throw out your names here. Throw the names of current NFL players. We know Tom Brady obviously retired, but the high level we're going to see is huge, right?

[Jason McIntyre]

First.

[Michael Rubin]

Yeah. Tom reminds me every day that if he didn't own part of the Raiders, he could play in the NFL and be a top five quarterback today. So let's not, let's not just call him a retired great. I mean, he's still in the of his life, you know, then he's. His co captain is Jalen Hurts. You've got Joe Burrow and Jaden Daniels co captain, the Wildcat team and you've got so many other incredible players. From Devonta Smith to Saquon Barkley. And, you know, Ashton Genty, step on Diggs. I mean, there's just Devonte Adams. I mean, you've got the list up now. There's so many incredible players. So, you know, this started as like a friendly match, and now this is like everyone's pride is on the line. Nobody doesn't want to take the championship home.

[Jason McIntyre]

Yeah. Michael Rubin, founder and CEO of Fanatics. The game is tomorrow, 4pm Eastern on Fox. Fans can get tickets at fanatics flag football classic dot com. Michael, thanks a lot. Enjoy the game tomorrow, man.

[Rachel Nichols]

Thanks, Michael.

[Michael Rubin]

Before you guys go, I've been asking everybody, we need you guys on record. Rachel, who do you got?

[Rachel Nichols]

Oh, man, I'm going to go with one of. I haven't studied your rosters, but I think whoever Tom Brady is playing with, stealing mine, I think he's the most. I think he's. Because I've been around him, and when he wants something, he wants something. I mean, it's just. That's how it is.

[Michael Rubin]

Okay, so you got Brady hurts. Who do you got?

[Jason McIntyre]

I mean, listen, I don't bet against Brady either. He comes into the studio, he's the nicest guy I got to rock with him.

[Michael Rubin]

You were just mocking Racer. You got Brady or I just. You got to make your pick and be accountable.

[Jason McIntyre]

I mean, I guess I'll roll with Jaden Daniels.

[Michael Rubin]

Okay, so neither one of you guys have the USA flag team. I like that. So confident in the NFL. Guys. I'm gonna go tell the guys that the USA flag team is right next door to me. You guys are betting? Guess we think they have no shot. We need everyone.

[Rachel Nichols]

Exactly. Yeah. Please, please go tell them that, Michael. I love it.

[Jason McIntyre]

I'll double down on Daniels based on that for sure. Thanks a lot, Michael.

[Rachel Nichols]

Thank you.

[Michael Rubin]

Thanks for having me, guys.

[Jason McIntyre]

All right, should be a fun event tomorrow out here in LA. 4pm Eastern on Fox if you can catch it. All right, coming up next, Lakers. Luca 60 piece. Oh, ladies and gentlemen, it was glorious. We'll talk about that next year on the Herd. Be sure to catch live editions of the Herd. Weekdays at noon Eastern, 9:00am Pacific. Hey, this is Jason McIntyre. Join me every weekday morning on my podcast, Straight fire with Jason McIntyre. This isn't your typical sports pod, pushing the same tired narratives down your throat every day. Straight Fire gives you honest opinions on all the biggest sports headlines, accurate stats to help you win big at the sportsbook and all the best guests. Do yourself a favor and listen to Straight fire with Jason McIntyre on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

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[Michael Rubin]

Pay the Apple way.

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Terms apply. Support for the show comes from Public if you look at your investing app, what do you see? An Interface stuck in 1997 or something that looks modern but feels more like a casino than a place to build wealth? Public is different. It's the investing platform for those who take it seriously and public. You can build your portfolio for the long haul. Stocks, options, bonds, crypto. It's all there. But what really makes Public different is the technology behind it. Imagine starting your day with an AI summarized market briefing, getting clear summaries of earnings calls the moment they end. Or turning any idea into an investable index just by typing a prompt. This is what investing looks like when the tools finally catch up. Go to public.com and earn a 1% uncapped match when you transfer your portfolio. Public Investing for those who take it seriously Ad paid for by Public Holdings Brokerage Services by Public Investing member FINRA SIPC Advisory Services By Public Advisors SEC Registered Advisor Crypto Services By ZeroHash all investing involves risk of loss. See complete [e-mail] Disclosures Ever wonder how

[Martha Stewart]

to make hosting look effortless? Here's a secret when prepping for cooking and baking, get ahead of the mess with new rentals. Kitchens Countertop prep paper Just lightly wet the counter so the paper grips. Lay it down and drips and spills stay on the paper, not on your counter. Cleanup is as simple as lifting it away to reveal clean counters. Effortless it is thanks to Reynolds Kitchens Countertop prep Paper Wet it, set it, prep it done. Available in the Reynolds Wrap aisle at Walmart.

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[Jason McIntyre]

Good stuff from Michael Rubin. Big flag football game tomorrow, 4 Eastern on Fox. You're going to love it. We got to talk about Luka Doncic, folks. I mean, Luka Doncic last night was incredible. 60 piece. 60 against the Miami Heat hit nine three pointers, their eighth straight win for the Lakers. Listen, if that 60 ball wasn't enough to convince you that he's the best player in basketball, I don't know what to tell you. In NBA parlance, last night for the Lakers was supposed to be a scheduled loss. Okay, they play Wednesday in Houston. Game ends, they gotta fly to South Beach. Apparently they land around 4am get to the hotel at 5. As you heard here yesterday on the show, when you hear that, you're like, okay, let's assume Luka's going to sit. LeBron, I mean, the old man, 41, he's going to sit, probably rest. Austin Reaves, you don't need to risk injury. You're in the middle of a long road trip. So as the story goes, J.J. redick said, anybody tired, who's healthy, who's ready to go? And LeBron James was the first one. I'm in LeBron. That's leadership, my friends. That's. That doesn't sound like somebody who's pouting and whining about next year or whether or not he fits alongside Luka and Reaves. That sounds like leadership. And LeBron saying he's going to play. Instantly, everyone fell in line. It's Luka, it's Reaves. And then the real surprise happened. Luka Doncic on the second night of a back to back, as Rachel said, he scored 40 against Houston. He dropped a 60 piece, folks. 60 points in 38 minutes. Last night the Lakers stunned the Heat. And listen, Miami's not a great team this year. They're top eight in the east. They have a player named Bam Adebayo who scored 83 points last week. I think we'll reference that in a moment. But I want to go to Austin Reaves who talked about the Lakers. They're not settling anymore. This is a legit championship team. And listen to how Reeves talks about their new mentality. When he said he was playing, I was like, I can't let a 41

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year old play and I don't play.

[Jason McIntyre]

So I signed up to play and so did Luca. And we went grinded a win out. It's not an easy one, especially with the pace that that team plays at. But second half, especially that third quarter, we played some good basketball and then down the stretch took over the game. You see the celebration and you could just tell the vibes are off the charts right now. I mean, they are freaking out on the Laker bench when Luka goes to the free throw line to get his 60th point. An authentic 60, not a Fugazi 60. Okay, LeBron, by the way, got to give him some props. You see on the screen, 30, 15 and 10. And our stats team came up with this whopper. This is crazy. Guys over the age of 40 in the history of basketball in the NBA, triple doubles, LeBron has four of them. The entire rest of the league has won. Karl Malone. I could not have guessed Karl Malone. That's how dominant LeBron was on the night of a back to back. And again, we're like four weeks removed from does LeBron fit with this team? Hello, narrative killer. That's what LeBron's doing right now. Now I just want to really quick want to drill down on Luka's 60 for a moment because somebody smart recently said, oh, Luca, 27 years old. He's like an old 27. I mean, he only has three dunks this year. I don't think he's first team, all NBA. All he does is whine. Listen, Luca is shredding everybody. He's torching the league and he's torching the media. Anybody wanted to push back on Luca, hey, man, just take it. You were wrong. Eat it. He had 60 points and you could argue Luca's 60 a pure 60. They needed it. They had to come back in the fourth quarter. To win this game. Luka's 60 was more impressive than Bam's 83 last week. Now I know you think, hey, Jay, save that for hot take happy hour. I don't need to. That's a legitimate take. That's credible. Bam last week, 83 points. There was some gimmicks involved. Hey, let's intentionally foul so Bam can get the ball back. Get to the free throw line. I mean, they were up a billion. He barely shoots threes. He's just chucking all game long. And again, 83 points is amazing. Obviously I'm not knocking that. The path to 83, not as pure as Luca's 60. 60 earned, a little more impressive than 83 given. And here's what Luka's done in this eight game streak, folks. He's on fire. 40 points per game in the last eight games. He is, I mean, just doing an unbelievable job. Somebody in our meeting this morning had a funny line, you know, Bam's 83 points. It's kind of like when you hit a home run and you're up 19 to 2 and the pitcher is a guy who was playing shortstop two innings ago, that they're just joking around and that home runs like, does it really matter that much? Again, not taking away from Bam's 83. Just putting it in context what Luka did last night. 60 on a back to back against a good team. Remember the tanking Wizards were Bam's opponent during the 83. I'm just continue to be blown away by the Lakers. They have a huge one in Orlando Saturday. I know there's NCAA tournament games. It's the weekend. It's gonna be like 85 degrees out here in LA. Everybody's gonna be at the beach. Just keep one eye on Luka and the Lakers who seem to be rolling toward the NBA finals. All right, now I'm gonna pivot to college basketball. And you guys know I love to geek out during the tournament. We had some amazing guests this week. Casey Jacobson, Miles Simon. Everybody seems to be under the consensus that AJ debonza, probably the number one pick. It was Darren Peterson for a minute and now it's pivoted back to DebonSA. Boozers lurking. Darius Acuff is in the mix. Caleb Wilson as well. But A.J. deBonsa, let's talk about him. So yesterday the BYU star scores 35 and has 10 boards. But BYU lost to Texas. There's some great sound. We'll play for you in a minute. From Sean Miller, the coach of Texas. How do you stop him? We can't stop him. I mean, AJ DeBonta was insane. If you've seen the highlight reels online, I mean, they're throwing double teams at him. He's doing whatever the hell he wants. You cannot stop this kid. I see like a young Tracy McGrady. You know, some people say they see a little quicker Paul Pierce. Bottom line is A.J. deBonsa is going to be an NBA pro. Maybe the first pick overall. I just had a, I just had a question though. He cost in the 5 to 7 million dollar range. If you look online, he allegedly got $7 million. I'm just wondering. BYU, last year they made the sweet 16 guys. Good run, lost Alabama. Alabama made like 75, three pointers. Crazy game this year they get AJ debonsa. They're like a middle of the pack team in the Big 12. Now. They did lose Richie Saunders, their second best player. Obviously that hurts, but for five to seven million dollars, we'll go with seven. For seven million dollars. They got one game in the NCAA tournament. It's over. I'm not saying they would not take AJ debonse. If you could get the number one recruit, top five recruit, you take him, obviously. But we're in the infancy period of nil and how to pay players and build your roster. And we've talked a lot in the NFL about how, man, once you pay that quarterback a ton of money, it's tough to build a roster around. It's even tougher in the NFL with 11, you know, 11 offense, 11 defense. Special teams, basketball should be easier, right? Five guys pay them, right? Michigan's doing it. You know, Duke, BYU interestingly has DebonSA at 7 mil. I'm just wondering, are teams seeing this and being like, hey, we all know no man is an island. You cannot do it yourself. It is impossible in this era. There's just too much talent. Would BYU have maybe fared better if they had go, I don't know, two guys for 2 million and a $1 million guy. And oh, by the way, that trio, hey, let's, let's run it back next year. We're not going to the league yet. And again, I'm not saying you don't take DebonSA. I'm just asking a question, like, was the value, did they get the value that they spent on DebonSA? And it's not a knock on the kid. He brought the major pub right there all over newspapers, online. We're talking about him on this show. When do you talk about BYU basketball and national TV shows? Not Ever. And they got high profile games. And again, he was exceptional. But they're one and done. It's over. We don't get any more debonza. And to me that it's just a little annoying. Here's Sean Miller, the Texas coach, on trying to stop the potential number one pick in the draft.

[Michael Rubin]

We understood that he has the ability to score like nobody else. What we talked about is a jump shot by him is a victory for us. Among the many things he does, he just, he puts so many fouls on the opponent that he wears out the other team. And we were able to, you know, play him and again I see he had 12 free throws. But these guys were able to play all the way to the end. You know, we knew he was going to score. We just wanted to make sure that we did a great job rebounding and that we did as good of a job as we can guarding the rest of the group. And I think that's really why we were able to win.

[Jason McIntyre]

And that's a great point. Rebounding. They grabbed 16 offensive rebounds. Some Texas center nobody had ever heard of had nine offensive boards. BYU couldn't get rebounds. They couldn't make shots. Look at the non AJ debons of players 1331, I think the number was 3 of 15 from deep. They didn't have a well rounded roster. They had a superstar, that's it. And Texas of course had a better roster. I had, you know, BYU in my bracket, so I lost this one. But I watched a bonsai. I think it's very clear because when you look at the NCAA tournament today, a lot of great games coming up. I just wonder, are teams going to start saying let's spread the wealth around, let's retain guys for more than one year. It was nice having A.J. he's definitely going to the league. Let's just not wish the Sacramento Kings upon AJ debonza. AJ debonza superstar. Off to the NBA. We are off to Herdline news. No, no, no.

[Advertisement Voice]

Turn on the news.

[Jason McIntyre]

This is the Herdline news.

[Rachel Nichols]

Jason. NBA owners will vote next week on expansion, specifically expanding to Seattle and Las Vegas. The buy in to own one of these teams is supposed to be around 7 to 10 billion dollars. And this money does not go to players. They don't revenue share when expansion teams come in. So what that will mean is a cool $500 million in every current NBA owner's pocket. And that my friend, by the way, is the answer to why is the NBA expanding? But I had to tell you, I look at this Story. I wish some of the richest people in the USA were a little less concerned with getting $500 million richer than. Because I don't think expansion is the right move for the NBA. I would much rather see relocation. I think Seattle and Las Vegas, they should have NBA teams. They're projected to be in the top 10 in profitability. But you have other teams in other markets that frankly aren't working and you're going to water down the talent pool. I don't, I don't know. And not just that, but you know, look, the way teams are tanking this year is obviously historic. Right. There was a stat last week that combined the 10 teams they're considered tanking were on a 40 game losing streak. And I'm sure it's only increased since then. You know, expansion teams often expansion draft get players other teams don't care about losing. Right. By definition they don't protect them.

[Jason McIntyre]

Maybe. Let me push back. You say some teams should be relocated.

[Rachel Nichols]

Yes.

[Jason McIntyre]

Is that because the fans just don't care or the owners aren't putting in the required money or what?

[Rachel Nichols]

It's a combination of factors. So Memphis has some of the most die hard fans in the league. Right. But there's not that many of them. They are dead last in attendance this season. New Orleans has a very outdated arena. Their, their attendance is not great. The arena deal is expiring in the next year or two. Same thing in Memphis. They both have soon to be expiring arena deals. I love both of those cities. I am not trying to wrest those teams from those fans. But the bottom line is there are not enough of fans in those cities to be supporting NBA teams at the level that they could in Seattle and Las Vegas. And remember there's revenue sharing in the NBA.

[Jason McIntyre]

Yeah. So wait. So I mean it's weird that you mentioned Memphis and New Orleans. They got Ja Morant and Zion and were supposed to be on the uptick. Both of them look to be well more Ja Morant and Memphis. I mean they had Bane, Jackson and Morant. I think they were second round and it looked like the arrow was pointing up. Ja go sideways, franchise falls. Zion, you know, I don't want to say ate his way out of the league. He had some other off court issues.

[Rachel Nichols]

He's played well this year.

[Jason McIntyre]

He has and he's been healthy. But this is like year seven or six or whatever it is. Interesting. I didn't think about stripping teams. I like more expanding. But I think to go back to your billionaire point. Yeah. We need them the rich to get richer.

[Michael Rubin]

Right.

[Jason McIntyre]

That's what this country needs.

[Rachel Nichols]

I mean, I just, we got sort of like, how much, how much does everyone need? How much money do they all need?

[Jason McIntyre]

They all need their results of the league.

[Rachel Nichols]

The health of the league, in my opinion, would be better off with relocation than expansion. And if that was really the chief concern, I don't think they'd be expanding. I think they'd be relocating because again, these cities, Memphis and New Orleans, they have some incredibly loyal die hard fans, but they're not enough of them. These are cities with lower populations. Yeah, it's not anyone's fault that they don't have as many people to come to games. And it's not the die hard fans fault that there aren't that many more casual fans coming to games. But the truth is the truth. There's numbers on attendance, there's numbers on how well the arena does, how many suites it has, what the condition of the arenas are, what the concessions are, whether fans even want to be there.

[Jason McIntyre]

I just wonder what the approach would be when you go to Memphis and say, hey, we're moving you guys to Seattle.

[Rachel Nichols]

Well, I know that. I don't know what the answer would be because I haven't quizzed those owners, but I know they would make a lot more money if they went to Seattle than Memphis. So if we're saying money is a

[Jason McIntyre]

factor here, money is always a factor to rich guys.

[Rachel Nichols]

Yeah, right. So deeply, I don't know, I. I just think that. I think that there should have been a little bit more consideration on doing it a different way. But it's not how people get rich, Jason. So there we go. Interesting. For Anthony Edwards in Minnesota, this was really fun. He's, of course, a huge star in his own right, but he was asked to make a perfect NBA player using traits from other guys. So take a listen to what he said.

[Michael Rubin]

We're going to build your perfect player. Handles Kyrie, Kyrie shooting stiff Defense, defense.

[Jason McIntyre]

Jaden McGain, IQ.

[Michael Rubin]

IQ.

[Jason McIntyre]

IQ. Ah.

[Michael Rubin]

I got to go with Chris Paul dunking Duncan.

[Jason McIntyre]

I got to go with.

[Michael Rubin]

Hey, I think they know the answer. Nah, nah, I'm gonna go with. I'm gonna go with

[Jason McIntyre]

Zach Levine.

[Rachel Nichols]

All right, so Chris Paul, he's not

[Jason McIntyre]

even in the league anymore.

[Michael Rubin]

Wow.

[Rachel Nichols]

What do you think of this?

[Jason McIntyre]

No, LeBron, that's what.

[Rachel Nichols]

All right, so which, which attributes that

[Jason McIntyre]

we're gonna see the attributes on the screen. Do we have a screen grab?

[Rachel Nichols]

I can tell you handles Kyrie shooting Steph Curry defense, he said is James Daniels. He's got to keep up for his guy, right? Iq, Chris Paul and dunking. Yes.

[Jason McIntyre]

Defense Wemby.

[Rachel Nichols]

I would have gone Defense Wemby, too. He will be the defensive player of the year this year.

[Jason McIntyre]

Dunking. I mean, ants in the mix for dunking. He's one of the percent.

[Rachel Nichols]

And you heard the person asking the question, like, you know, and the kids in the. In the audience were, you know, you, you, you.

[Jason McIntyre]

I would say I would go IQ Luka. Passing is not an attribute, I guess, because then you get Joke Jokic in there.

[Rachel Nichols]

I would go IQ LeBron.

[Jason McIntyre]

LeBron, yeah. But then Luke is not building the perfect player when he might be the perfect player.

[Rachel Nichols]

Well, I mean, with him. With him, you'd have to. Does he. Oh, how about this?

[Jason McIntyre]

Let's go, Steph Curry handles.

[Rachel Nichols]

Oh, over Kyrie?

[Michael Rubin]

Yeah.

[Jason McIntyre]

Steph does the warmup drill. I would go to the game.

[Rachel Nichols]

Those are not handles.

[Jason McIntyre]

Those are amazing handles in game.

[Rachel Nichols]

Shooting from the corner is not a handle.

[Jason McIntyre]

No, no, no. That's not.

[Rachel Nichols]

Do you know what that handle is?

[Jason McIntyre]

Curry's handle is ridiculous. I mean, look, he's. Kyrie's is really good, but I'll take Curry's, and then I can get luka at shooting. LeBron. IQ. So as a better overall player.

[Rachel Nichols]

I see. Okay, well, look, I mean, I certainly. Korea has great handles, but I think Kyrie, he's existential. I mean, it's just. It's crazy. Extraterrestrial.

[Jason McIntyre]

Can we get some Curry handles? Here we go against Jaime Haquez. Step back.

[Rachel Nichols]

That's not a handle either.

[Jason McIntyre]

That was not. That's a handle. Look at the left. He's got the great left. Pull out.

[Rachel Nichols]

I'm not saying he's bad at it. He's one of the best in the league. He's just, in my opinion, not the best in the league. I like his list. You know, it's a shame he can't be on it, according to the question, because I would put him in there for dunking.

[Jason McIntyre]

Is this Kyrie footage? Wow, look at you guys in your bag there in the control room.

[Rachel Nichols]

I'm sorry. When Allen Iverson says Kyrie has the best handles of all time. Yeah, you got to listen to that.

[Jason McIntyre]

I don't, actually. I don't have to listen.

[Rachel Nichols]

Yes, you do. Allen Iverson is a God. Don't say different.

[Jason McIntyre]

Fan of that. I'm a huge fan.

[Rachel Nichols]

He's my favorite player.

[Jason McIntyre]

Not to go too sideways. I was a young guy in Virginia, and he had the bowling alley incident, and there Was no, like video footage. There was no YouTube at the time. You just would have to read newspaper articles. You're like, iverson hit a lady with a chair who was pregnant. And all the, the rumors were crazy. He was like a legendary football and basketball player in, I think they called it Newport Blues. Yeah.

[Rachel Nichols]

In Newport Beach.

[Jason McIntyre]

Yeah.

[Rachel Nichols]

No, absolutely. And of course, just to follow that up, once the truth came out, it was nothing like this.

[Jason McIntyre]

It wasn't the reports. He still did a little time in jail.

[Rachel Nichols]

Yeah. But then he was let out because the. Yes, exactly. So don't believe everything you read.

[Jason McIntyre]

No, for sure.

[Rachel Nichols]

Kevin Durant, 50 points away from tying the fifth spot in the NBA's all time scoring list. That means he will pass Michael Jeffrey Jordan. Durant was asked recently about passing the legend and he said, quote, jordan has always been my inspiration. He scared defenders every night. And I wanted to put that same kind of fear in the defender who's guarding me. He also said that Michael Jordan's game inspired him to play at all. Basketball, I mean, I don't know. Do you think that KD can play what Jordan played in his late 30s? LeBron's playing in his early 40s. Do you think KD is going to keep playing that line, that he'll keep moving up the scoring list?

[Jason McIntyre]

Well, I was just looking at Jordan with the Wizards at 38 and KD is going to be better with the Rockets than Jordan was with the Wizards.

[Rachel Nichols]

Yeah.

[Jason McIntyre]

It's so weird looking back on the Jordan career as your inspiration. A guy who questions quit the NBA twice to come back a third time. I don't know what's inspiring about that. Obviously winning and dominating. You know, after Magic and Larry and Isaiah all left. That's wonderful. I think it was a depleted as you used, watered down with expansion, watered down 90s, not taking anything away from Jordan. But it just is interesting to me. I thought KD would gravitate more toward a DMV player or just a legendary shooter, but obviously mj, the shoes, the commercials.

[Rachel Nichols]

I hate to break it to you, when Kevin Durant was growing up, there was no, no Washington Wizards player Jeff Malone.

[Jason McIntyre]

He.

[Rachel Nichols]

How old do you think Kevin Durant is? Please. I do think it's interesting and this puts the scoring list in perspective that KD for a while was seen as someone who could potentially pass LeBron. If anyone was going to pass LeBron, it would be Kevin Durant. But the idea when people were talking about that was that LeBron would probably retire at 38, 39. He has obviously not done that just LeBron's total right now. If he stopped playing basketball forever, Kevin would have to play six more seasons scoring at a high rate and not missing any games. Yeah, so clearly he's not going to get it. Now. The next person that people say maybe could break it, although obviously it's very hard to break, is Luka.

[Jason McIntyre]

Yeah, I mean the KD had the 1 8. Well, he's had multiple injuries. Yeah, but he missed the full season after the Warriors. That hurt. You know, I don't think he's gotten back to Golden State KD since the injury. I mean, he's been close, but.

[Rachel Nichols]

Yeah, but also, look, when Jordan played, scoring was nowhere near as inflated as it is now. So a lot of this is aerospecific too. I mean, frankly, when Kareem played, they were scoring at a much higher rate than the NBA players do even now. So it's always a little bit where you played and when you played and your injury, luck. But obviously huge accomplishment. You passed Michael Jordan on the all time scoring list. That's big.

[Jason McIntyre]

It's impressive. Yeah, I mean, you know, I, I so miss those 94, 89 Bulls Jazz finals games. Go watch them on YouTube, guys. You'll be asleep in minutes.

[Rachel Nichols]

I loved why I will tell you. I cover Michael Jordan. He was astounding to watch play. I know they were. I know that, I know your point. But like, come on, they were good

[Jason McIntyre]

in the moment, but given what we're seeing now, it's just.

[Rachel Nichols]

Do you ever watch him play live?

[Jason McIntyre]

I did. What you mean on TV or in

[Rachel Nichols]

the arena Life making person?

[Jason McIntyre]

I was not rich enough to go to games. We would go to like Washington Wizards games against bad teams. Okay, well, Bullets teams.

[Rachel Nichols]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Jason McIntyre]

Rachel with the news. Well, that's the news. And thanks for stopping by the Herd line news. All right, tomorrow's headlines today talking NCAA tournament and a certain 60 point score. That's next. Be sure to catch live editions of the Herd. Weekdays at noon Eastern, 9am Pacific on Fox Sports Radio, FS1 and the iHeartRadio app.

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[Rachel Nichols]

Are you missing football? Have you looked at a calendar and realized it's still 120something games? Until the NFL comes back, I have your answer. United Football League returns with a new season of real pro football. Don't miss UFL Kickoff Weekend, March 27th through 29th on Fox and ESPN. Should be fun.

[Jason McIntyre]

Indeed. All right, it's been a banger of a week. The NCAA Tournament's underway. We're going to do tomorrow's headlines today with some NCAA tournament and a certain NBA player absolutely cooking. So let's get it going. Rachel Nichols.

[Rachel Nichols]

All right, we had to start with the tournament. Of course. You've been screaming at phones and scores and stuff.

[Jason McIntyre]

No, I don't operate like that at all.

[Rachel Nichols]

So let's, let's talk a little bit about potential underdog. Tomorrow's headlines today. I feel like that's like in a world, right? That guy. That's going to be me. In this segment, what would the headline be for the NHCAA tournament's next big upset? We've already seen a couple.

[Jason McIntyre]

Yeah, I did not. I mean, I actually did. You're right. I called High Point yesterday.

[Rachel Nichols]

You did?

[Jason McIntyre]

This one. If I nailed today would be a big shocker because they're big underdogs. The headline will be up in smoke Hofstra pound for pound. Better than Alabama. Sorry, Alabama. I had to get the digs in Smoke pound for pound. If you've been following the news, Alabama's second best player busted a large amount of marijuana and he will not play today. I like Hofstra to pull the upset outright Listen, obviously Alabama's the better team. There's no doubt they're favored by. They were favored by double digits. The line keeps coming down because you know what? Alabama is a three point shooting team. And three point variance is going to be the key to this tournament. We saw it yesterday with Wisconsin high point. And we're going to see it throughout the tournament. If you make your threes, boom, you're hot. If you don't, there's a chance you could go out. And I think Alabama is in deep trouble. Give me the Hofstra pride in an upset.

[Rachel Nichols]

By the way, a pound of marijuana.

[Jason McIntyre]

Yeah.

[Rachel Nichols]

Not just a little bit.

[Jason McIntyre]

Well, I don't want to crush again.

[Rachel Nichols]

All right, let's get to the big game at the big dance. Tomorrow's headlines today. What will the headline be for the NCAA tournament champion?

[Jason McIntyre]

They happen to be playing now. They're up, I think 74 at halftime. I think they've been one of the best teams in the country all season. Not Duke, not Michigan. The headline for the NCAA champion will be Wildcats pajamas. Arizona puts rest of the field to sleep. Yes, I'm going with Arizona. Listen, their Final four matchup against Michigan would be a classic. Michigan's excellent. I just think this Alabama team, man, unbelievable. We had Miles Simon on earlier this week. They have four starters who are probably going to be first round picks and their center probably goes second round. They're loaded. They got a great backcourt, great defensive backcourt. Bradley and buries the BB boys. I mean, they're going to face a cuff likely in the sweet 16. That will be a tough matchup as he looks extraordinary. I like their role players. Just everything about Arizona. The big question, Rachel, will be their head coach, Tommy Lloyd, who has had, shall we say, some missteps in March. I like that. Missteps in March. It happens to the best of them. Hubert Davis, John Shire of Duke. It's tough to win in March. It's a one game setting. This is the NBA playoffs where you got like seven games to make adjustments and watch tape and change things up. You got to do stuff on the fly. And there is some reluctance regarding Lloyd. But I'm going to take in Arizona to cut down the.

[Rachel Nichols]

Yeah, I think it's what, 25 years since they won title?

[Jason McIntyre]

Something like that. Yeah.

[Rachel Nichols]

Yeah. I don't know. By the way, Kat's pajamas. I see what you did there. That's very good. I like that. All right. Going from a great team to a great player. Tomorrow's headlines today, Jason, Today. Tomorrow's headlines Today. What do you got?

[Jason McIntyre]

All right, so if we're going with

[Rachel Nichols]

most outstanding, like who's going to be

[Jason McIntyre]

the most outstanding mop? I have Arizona winning it, so it has to come from the Arizona team. The problem is there's so much talent. I love KOA Pete. I think he's probably like that next batch of guys to get drafted at the top. But I'm going with a surprise here. The mop of the final four. The headline will be basketball has been Betty. Betty's good to me. I'm going with Braden Buries the awesome freshman from Arizona. Dude, this kid is so clutch. I had Fran Frischilla on my podcast before the tournament and he's been covering college forever. He's seen all the best players. Burry's reminds him of sga. He gets to his mid range, super quick cat like separation on the jumper. Actually a pretty good three point shooter, only 36% but it has something to do with the way their offense is structured. They're heavy. Let's go inside and work out. But Buries who struggled for a minute in the Big 12 tournament and then in the second half took over in the championship game. The kid is a special talent. Five star recruit can do it all. You see the handle there, crossover into the three. I love his game. Bradley, his backcourt mate was the Big 12 player of the year. And I like Pete, the big center. This is an awesome team. Arizona's loaded.

[Rachel Nichols]

All right, you've been talking all day about the Lakers being contenders. So let's go to the NBA. The playoffs start in a month. Are you ready to put your money where your mouth is? Tomorrow's headlines today. Who have you got for the NBA champion of this year, 2026?

[Jason McIntyre]

I know people, Jason, you're too reactionary. It's only been two weeks. It's. I mean the Knicks have been great all season. OkC's had a had a lock on the number one seed forever.

[Rachel Nichols]

The Knicks have not been great all season. But okay, you're right.

[Jason McIntyre]

Not, not great. They've been very good up and down. Yeah. Mike Brown, new coach. Detroit's been great.

[Michael Rubin]

All

[Jason McIntyre]

going with a surprise. The headline for the NBA champion will be diuretic Lakers flow. Flow right into finals. I can't believe we got away with that. Tish is the man. This is his last day. And that's how they let him let that headline slide. That will never appear on the front of the J. Mac Journal. I just think Reddick's been incredible. It's probably too late to push for coach of the year, but he somehow got deandre Ayton, the delusional center, to buy into being a role player. Two weeks ago, they want me to be Clint Capella. Now after a Reddick come to Jesus moment with him, Oh, I guess I could be Clint Capella. That works. That's what they want. And he's got LeBron to buy in. I think that's probably the biggest story of the second half. It was supposed to be Giannis Macro in the NBA, but now it's been LeBron.

[Rachel Nichols]

Yeah.

[Jason McIntyre]

I mean, again, a month ago it was. Well, it's over for LeBron. He doesn't want to be a role player. He's not fitting in with Reaves and Luka. And so quickly the narrative has changed, and all of a sudden, oh, my gosh, LeBron's buying in. You've got Reeves as the wingman, Luca as the superstar, the role players. Jake Laravia looks good off the bench. I mean, Luke Kennard coming off the bench. He didn't do anything last night. But it's. The Lakers are in a really good place. And I know I'm getting overboard, but some of this is how hot you are heading into the playoffs.

[Rachel Nichols]

We talked about, look at the Dallas Mavericks. Yeah, they had a great final month and got to the NBA Finals.

[Jason McIntyre]

New York Giants in the NFL, they weren't the best team.

[Rachel Nichols]

I cover those teams. I was in New York covering those teams.

[Jason McIntyre]

I mean, they were. You get hot at the right time, anything's possible.

[Rachel Nichols]

And you catch something on your head,

[Jason McIntyre]

you can win a Super bowl on the helmet. Yeah. I mean, Luka may be flinging stuff over his head. Who knows? And Dia Redick may win headline of the year.

[Rachel Nichols]

My Lord. You know, I think Redick will get some votes for coach of the year. I don't think he'll win. By the way, Joe Missoula.

[Jason McIntyre]

Come on. Yeah, he's been. Yeah.

[Rachel Nichols]

There we go. All right, we are. Last one. You ready? We're going to stay on the hardwood. A lot of contenders who believe they're the NBA's best. So tell me, give me tomorrow, Jason, give me tomorrow's headline today. Who will the headline be for the NBA mvp? A lot of people. They've got a lot of guys this year. Some guys, Years. Guys don't want to say it right.

[Jason McIntyre]

You know, you're right.

[Rachel Nichols]

You got four guys this year who have said, I want to be the. I think I should be the mvp.

[Jason McIntyre]

So, Rachel, I love to sing in my car. I love to sing.

[Rachel Nichols]

Why Are you putting that into my head? Why do I have to do that?

[Jason McIntyre]

Here we go. I like to sing in the car. I like to sing in the shower. The headline for NBA MVP will be how Luca can one guy be make the finals and win mvp? How'd I do? Luka Dodcich. Hey, that is an outstanding picture of Luca. Yeah, I'm going overboard. Make the finals. He's going to win mvp. How can you not love what he's done here in the last couple of weeks? He has been extraordinary. Forget player of the month. I mean, the guy is just unstoppable right now. He is in the zone. 100 points in the last two days, last two games, he's averaging 39 points per game on back to backs. The guy is on another planet right now. I feel like he's shutting the haters up. And we know he's gone through some stuff off the court recently, and it's almost like a burden's been lifted now that that story's out there. And he has been cooking since it came out. Obviously, everybody rooting for Luka seems like a good guy. The tide has shifted, right? It went from, oh, he's a whining guy who's getting technical.

[Rachel Nichols]

That was a dumb narrative to begin with. It was. It just didn't make any sense. I mean, look, he does complain too much and he does get too many technicals. And I believe he is one away from a one game suspension.

[Jason McIntyre]

That would be bad.

[Rachel Nichols]

That is a real problem. But to say that he has washed or passed it at 27 is ridiculous.

[Jason McIntyre]

But he can't dunk, Rachel. I mean, he only has three dunks this year.

[Rachel Nichols]

I mean, what are we going to do?

[Jason McIntyre]

He had so many when he was 22.

[Rachel Nichols]

That's two whole points. Think about how much more he could score with two whole points. All right, that's very impressive prognosticating.

[Jason McIntyre]

I'm just. I'm told now we have sound on Luca after going off for 60 last night. Let's. Let's see what he had to say. I imagine you got to your room

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at about 5 in the morning.

[Michael Rubin]

How'd you do it? I don't know.

[Jason McIntyre]

I was tired.

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I was tired.

[Michael Rubin]

But, you know, that shows the team.

[Jason McIntyre]

We kind of play bad in the first half.

[Michael Rubin]

We struggle, but we came back. You know, this talks a lot about the team. It says a lot. So great win.

[Advertisement Voice]

It's very impressive.

[Jason McIntyre]

I know a lot of people didn't

[Michael Rubin]

get a lot of sleep yesterday. And we come here, you know, we

[Advertisement Voice]

fight we fight till the end and win the game.

[Michael Rubin]

It says a lot. Like I said, just an incredible win and we gotta keep going.

[Jason McIntyre]

Looks like a guy who's been through a lot. He looks exhausted.

[Rachel Nichols]

Look, we talked. We talked this week about 82 games and is that too many? And of course, again, the owners will never give back money, so whatever. But the toll. This is real and it's impressive what they did, but the toll it takes on these players bodies. They often do not get into these cities until 3, 4 in the morning and then go play a competitive basketball game that night. This is really remarkable, what he did.

[Jason McIntyre]

And you got these clowns on the Internet screaming, oh, well, they're flying first class. Who cares? Rachel, I'm excited for our next vacation. When I get off a long flight, three, four, five hours, I don't want to do anything.

[Rachel Nichols]

What if you've been up since the morning and it's now 4:00am Yeah, I know.

[Jason McIntyre]

They say, hey, go, get. Go to the gym, sweat it out, all that. No way. Yeah, I'm not doing any of that. I want to lie down on the beach, on the bed, go somewhere. I don't want to, like, play a basketball game. And. And it's just extraordinary. I think the players deserve a little bit more credit. It was a fun week.

[Rachel Nichols]

Yeah.

[Jason McIntyre]

Every day thankful for that.

[Rachel Nichols]

I think we're good luck. That's happened every time. We were pretty much here together.

[Jason McIntyre]

We didn't get in any trouble. No executives showing up on the set to shine us. Oh, did something happen?

[Rachel Nichols]

No, no. I'm just saying, you don't know. You're not done yet.

[Jason McIntyre]

Well, you're right. And listen, this is a tough week. I had to play in two championship games. You got.

[Rachel Nichols]

Oh, my Lord. Okay, you are officially cut off from talking about your basketball off air.

[Jason McIntyre]

I sang on air moments ago, by the way.

[Rachel Nichols]

You really had that? I already had to picture you singing in your car. Now I have to picture you singing in the shower.

[Jason McIntyre]

He doesn't do that. Every guy does that.

[Rachel Nichols]

No one needs it, Jason.

[Jason McIntyre]

No one more singing. Everybody have a great weekend. Watch some flag football tomorrow. Yeah, it's like a fun one.

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[Michael Rubin]

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[Michael Rubin]

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