What's Wright - Best Of: Luka & Lakers own Nuggets, Suns are doomed, Bengals big mistake

Summary

Podcast Summary: The Herd with Colin Cowherd Episode: What's Wright - Best Of: Luka & Lakers Own Nuggets, Suns are Doomed, Bengals Big Mistake
Release Date: March 22, 2025

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1. NBA Showdown: Luka Doncic, Lakers, and the Nuggets' Struggles

Overview:
Nick Wright delves into the intense NBA rivalry between Luka Doncic's Mavericks and the Lakers, highlighting the Mavericks' recent dominance over the Nuggets. The discussion also touches upon the Phoenix Suns' precarious position in the league and the broader implications of team management decisions.

Key Points:

• Mavericks vs. Nuggets Performance: The Mavericks have been performing exceptionally well, overshadowing the Nuggets despite the latter's talented roster.
• Coaching and Management Critique: Nick criticizes Matt Ishbia's management decisions, particularly the trades involving Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal, which have destabilized the Suns' future prospects.
• Suns' Future Outlook: The Suns are projected to miss the play-in tournament due to poor management and lack of draft picks, creating a challenging rebuild scenario.

Notable Quotes:

• Nick Wright (02:50): “The Suns are in the worst position moving forward of any team in the league because Matt Ishbia came in and traded away everything for Kevin Durant and then Bradley Beal.”
• Guest Analyst (02:37): “They have traded their picks away and then swapped picks, making it like a mortgage crisis in the NBA.”

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2. Dallas Mavericks' Cap Conundrum: Potential Forfeits Loom

Overview:
The discussion shifts to the Dallas Mavericks' severe salary cap issues, which may force the team to forfeit games. Wright explains the intricacies of the NBA's cap system and how the Mavericks have reached a critical tipping point.

Key Points:

• Hard Cap Restrictions: Unlike the NBA’s soft cap, certain transactions trigger hard cap rules, limiting the Mavericks' flexibility.
• Roster Limitations: Due to injuries and exhausted two-way contracts, the Mavericks lack eligible players, risking game forfeitures.
• Impact of Recent Trades: Long-standing trades and injuries have severely depleted the Mavericks' active roster, exacerbating cap space issues.

Notable Quotes:

• Nick Wright (15:20): “This is super nerdy, but the NBA has rules that prevent teams from just destroying themselves financially, and the Mavericks are at the brink of that with possible forfeits.”
• Guest Analyst (15:27): “The Mavericks suited up eight healthy guys the other day, which is unprecedented.”

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3. Western Conference Standings and Strength of Schedule Analysis

Overview:
Wright provides a comprehensive analysis of the Western Conference standings, emphasizing the strength of remaining schedules for key teams and predicting potential playoff outcomes.

Key Points:

• Minnesota Timberwolves' Position: Favorable remaining schedule with games against weaker teams, positioning them securely within playoff contention.
• Golden State Warriors' Challenges: Despite having an average schedule, the Warriors face fatigue and strategic resting of key players like Steph Curry.
• Houston Rockets' Momentum: Currently enjoying a winning streak against weaker opponents but facing tougher challenges ahead.

Notable Quotes:

• Nick Wright (07:56): “Minnesota has games remaining against teams that actively want to lose, which plays significantly in their favor.”
• Guest Analyst (07:56): “Phoenix has the hardest schedule remaining, making their playoff hopes dim.”

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4. Lakers' Offensive Surge and LeBron's Role

Overview:
The conversation highlights the Lakers' offensive improvements, even in LeBron James' absence, and speculates on his potential adjustments upon returning to the court.

Key Points:

• Offensive Performance: The Lakers have become one of the best offensive teams, generating numerous three-point opportunities without LeBron.
• LeBron's Statistical Goals: Wright discusses LeBron’s pursuit of averaging 25 points per game, a personal milestone he is likely to maintain upon his return.
• Team Dynamics: Speculation on how LeBron’s return will affect team strategies and Luka’s role.

Notable Quotes:

• Nick Wright (31:13): “LeBron can play almost any style of offensive basketball, so he should and will look different when he comes back.”
• Guest Analyst (31:07): “LeBron's ability to adjust won't require Luka to change his game significantly.”

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5. Cincinnati Bengals' Salary Cap Mismanagement

Overview:
Nick Wright criticizes the Bengals' front office for their poor salary cap management, emphasizing the over-investment in key wide receivers at the expense of team balance.

Key Points:

• Over-Payment of Receivers: Jamar Chase and Tee Higgins are now the highest-paid non-quarterbacks, consuming 40% of the Bengals' cap space.
• Impact on Team Performance: The heavy investment in passing game weapons has neglected the team’s defensive and offensive line, leading to long-term sustainability issues.
• Comparison with Other Teams: Wright contrasts the Bengals' strategy with more balanced approaches taken by successful franchises like the Colts and Chiefs.

Notable Quotes:

• Nick Wright (39:13): “Putting all of your huge contracts just on the passing game doesn’t make a lot of sense and is an insult to the rest of the team.”
• Guest Analyst (39:32): “It’s a mistake that removes the ability to improve the offensive line and defense.”

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6. Aaron Rodgers' Uncertain Future in the NFL

Overview:
The episode concludes with a discussion about Aaron Rodgers' uncertain future, pondering whether he will retire or seek a move to another team amidst ongoing contract and performance debates.

Key Points:

• Potential Retirement: Speculation that Rodgers may retire if the Vikings are not interested in re-signing him.
• Trade Possibilities: Consideration of Rodgers moving to teams like the Steelers, albeit contingent on draft outcomes and team needs.
• Leadership and Performance Critique: Criticism of Rodgers' leadership and decision-making, which may affect his desirability among teams.

Notable Quotes:

• Nick Wright (44:48): “I don't think the 20th best quarterback in football is worth this time or attention.”
• Guest Analyst (47:16): “It’s simply not the right approach to building a sustainable champion.”

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Conclusion

This episode of "The Herd with Colin Cowherd" offers a deep dive into several pressing sports topics, from NBA team dynamics and salary cap issues to NFL player movements and team management strategies. Nick Wright, alongside his guest analysts, provides insightful critiques and predictions, enriched with notable quotes that underscore the complexities of professional sports management and athlete performance.

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Note: Advertisements, podcast intros, outros, and non-content segments have been excluded from this summary to focus solely on the main discussions and analyses.

Transcript

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[Julie Stewart-Banks]

Julie Swerbinks here along with former NHL player Nate Thompson.

[Nate Thompson]

We're doing a new podcast together. Here we go.

[Julie Stewart-Banks]

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[Nick Wright]

Welcome to the Best of the Week for what's Right with Nick Wright. The best takes and moments from this week on the show. Enjoy.

[Guest Analyst]

So since the start of February they are 7 and 15 and like you just said, they have no injuries. So it's kind of weird whatever's going on over there. Their preseason projected win total was set at 4:46 and a half games and it's seeming like they might miss the play in do you think that the do you think the Suns are going to try to actually go on a run or are they going to Tank here.

[Nick Wright]

Well the, the coach and the owner want them to go on a run. I think the players might be over.

[Guest Analyst]

Yeah Every time I see him just seems more and more pissed these days.

[Nick Wright]

He seemed. Yeah, Katie doesn't seem happy. Coach Bud told Devin Booker basically to shut up the other day. That didn't go over well. I mean they are not trying at all on the defensive end. Luca was miked up against the Suns and Luca just said kind of in passing. I've never had so many open looks in my life. Luca been playing professional basketball since he's 15. He's like this is the worst defense I've ever seen and LeBron wasn't even out there to open stuff up and so but the Suns, I don't know that this is a hot take. The Suns are in the worst position moving forward of any team in the league because Mattish be came in and bought the team and traded away everything for Kevin Durant and then traded away everything they had left for Bradley Beal. Beal has a no trade and is not good. Durant is approaching 37 and not going to get you a ton in return and is gone this summer. And then you have Devin Booker who's a real asset but it doesn't really make sense to trade Booker because you would then be tanking and you don't Damanza they do not have their own pick until 2032. 2032 it's 2025. So they they traded their picks away and then they swapped picks and then as part of the Beal trade they swapped the swaps. This is like a mortgage crisis but in the N B A so they over the next seven drafts they either simply give their pick away or they are in a three way swap with other teams where of the three teams they get the worst draft pick. So even if they're the worst team in the league that that doesn't help them and they traded away most of their second round picks. So it was the again I used to this is sorry for all these kind of non sequiturs. Today is a show I'm gonna be totally honest. Today's a show that is not necessarily going to go viral for a lot of things but real folks that are real what's right or as awkward as this is to say like Nick Wright fans are gonna really be enjoying today cause we we talked hard cap Soft cap. I did my basking my March Madness rant. I'm now going to talk about Ted Stepien for a second. So Ted Stepien was an owner in the NBA in the 80s and he was so bad and so disastrous for the Cavs. The NBA made a rule that's called the Stepien rule. That's about how many draft picks you can and cannot trade. You can't trade draft picks in consecutive years. That's why teams have to like, you know, I'll trade you my 25 and my 27 because you can't just trade away all, all your picks and you can only trade draft picks like six years out, you know, seven years out. Those are the rules they put in to prevent an owner from just destroying a team. And there has been a lot of frustration from GM since then of like, man, I, I would like full flexibility to, you know, run my team as I see fit and not have these guardrails in there. And I think at one point there was a little momentum in the league. Like, all right, we're not in the tape delayed era of the 80s. It's smarter people running the teams. It's big money. Maybe we don't need to, you know, have these guardrails in. And then Matt Ishbia came along and is like Ted Steppe and hold my beer. I'm going to show you. I'm going to speed run absolutely wrecking a decade of a team that again, the Suns, right before he took over, made the finals and then were the number one seed, 64 win or 60 some win team. And then Luka eviscerated them and then they trade for kd, then they trade for Beal and now they're just ruined. Absolutely ruined to a point. To where they, even though The Mavericks are 2 and 8 in their last 10, don't have any healthy players, their fans have turned on them. The Mavericks still have a cushion in the standings. It's really a remarkable, remarkable turn of events.

[Guest Analyst]

Month away from the playoffs, who do you see avoiding the play in.

[Nick Wright]

So this is where our friends at Tankathon are super helpful. So where we can look at most difficult or easiest strength of schedule left. So as a for instance, Phoenix, who we're going to get to in a minute, has far and away the hardest schedule remaining. Phoenix has games left against the Cavs, the Thunder, two against Boston, the Knicks, the Rockets and the warriors with only two like layup games, the spurs and the Bulls. So Phoenix, if they were fighting for something, you'd be like, oh, they're in rough shape. Here's why it matters. Minnesota has the third easiest schedule remaining. Minnesota, now it's a bad loss last night, but Minnesota, you know, their team. The teams they're up against have a combined winning percentage of.430. And they have games remaining against New Orleans, two of them, the Jazz, two against the Nets, one against the Sixers. So you have five games remaining. No, I'm sorry, two against New Orleans, two against the Nets, one Sixers, one Jazz, six games remaining against teams that actively want to lose. So that's super helpful for Minnesota. The warriors are right at league average as far as their schedule remaining. Their easiest games are New Orleans, Toronto, two against San Antonio, Miami and Portland. Here's why it's to me somewhat noteworthy. That's they, they as far as teams that want to lose, it's really only four for the warriors as far as the games they have left and it's six for Minnesota. So that plays in Minnesota's favor. Significantly, they, you know that Minnesota has two fewer games left than Golden State. They have won more loss than Golden State. When I heard Steve Kerr say, you know, we are, you know, Steph's worn down and that essentially we're going to take care of Steph down the stretch and rest him tomorrow or tonight, pardon me, against Milwaukee. Now, they don't have. The warriors don't have many. In fact, they only have one. No, two back to backs left. They have a back to back at the Lakers and then home for the Nuggets and then they have a back to back a week later at Phoenix and then home for San Antonio. Right now I would and this is not going to be where Vegas would have it, but right now I would anticipate that the Western Conference standings and mark this down and let's see how this ages. But I think the Western Conference standings are going to end up Minnesota 6, Golden State 7, Clippers 8 with the Kings being the nine seed and then that tin seed being just the saddest competition ever between Dallas and Phoenix. Just two teams who did not ever think this is where they were going to end up, but it's where they have ended up.

[Guest Analyst]

And I think one of the reasons actually Dallas might.

[Nick Wright]

What's that? Might need you. Oh yeah. Well, they might have to forfeit games. Yeah, it's in. So if people don't understand the forfeiting games things with the Mavs, let me explain it. This is super nerdy, but I'll do my best to explain it. The NBA has. Here's. Okay, I'm going to have to talk about a few things here. Hard cap, soft cap. Okay. Hard cap is the NFL where the salary cap is a number and you must from the first day of the league year until the last day of the league year, be under it at all times. You cannot go a dollar over the hard cap. Now because of the way NFL contracts are structured, you can always manipulate that year's cap guys cap figures by turning salaries into signing bonuses, spreading them out over multiple years. So it can feel like a soft cap at times. But the cap is the cap and however you need to manipulate it, you can manipulate your own guys salaries, but you can't ever be over it. That's why the NFL doesn't have things like a luxury tax. Because a luxury tax is for a soft cap sport like the NBA where we have a cap. But you can go over it for various reasons. You can go way over it at times. You just pay a penalty in luxury tax. And one of the reasons the NBA kind of has to work like that is because NBA con player contracts are guaranteed for the most part. You can't really manipulate a player's contract like oh, we're turning your salary into a signing bonus. It's not how it works. So they need a soft cap. Except. And of course there are certain things NBA teams can do transactionally which triggers an actual hard cap. So if you're an apron team and do a sign in trade, all of a sudden you have a hard cap. If there's certain things, we need Bobby Marks to really explain all of it. But there are certain things that can happen where, oh no, now you do have an NFL style hard cap. The Mavs are a team with a hard cap. So here's why you're hearing about the Mavs potentially having to forfeit games. You must have eight healthy players ready and able to play. The Mavs are close to exhausting their limit on two way guys. Guys from their G league team that can call up, send down, call up and send down. They have had all these injuries and because of the hard cap demons, a, they are not allowed to sign another minimum player. They are, they, they can't go over the hard cap. They are running out of two way guys eligibility even they are so close to the hard cap, they don't have the space for another minimum guy. They can't sign their version of an Alex Lynn, just be like, hey, come off the street and play for us.

[Guest Analyst]

So to be a perfect situation for Bronnie, right?

[Nick Wright]

Oh yeah. Or for any young player, any draft pick, right. To get some burn. But they, they suited up eight healthy guys the other day.

[Guest Analyst]

Yeah.

[Nick Wright]

So it would be. I've never in my life watching the NBA. I've never seen a team have to forfeit games because they didn't have eligible players. Very weird. It would be kind of the crowning achievement of what has been six weeks of just a fever dream of terror for Mavs fans. Starting with the Luca trade, then the added pain of AD getting hurt, then the real pain of Kyrie blowing out his knee, then the like, oh, you've got to be kidding me. Quentin Grimes all of a sudden is a star player in this league. We gave him away for Caleb Martin for no reason whatsoever and now we're gonna have to maybe forfeit games. Unprecedented. Just unprecedented. But flip side of that is AD's ramping up and they might make the playoffs or the play in over the damn Suns who desperately want to win and are incredibly healthy. This episode of what's Right is brought to you by Daya Pizza Featuring Dairy Free Cheese made with their new Daiya Oat Cream Blend, Dairy Free Cheese has come a long way. Day is leading the charge. Their pizzas offer the melt and stretch of traditional cheese without any dairy each day. A pizza starts with a perfectly crisp crust layered with savory satisfying toppings and finished with cheese that melts and stretches beautifully. The Daiya Oat Cream Blend delivers a creamy, cheesy texture that's indistinguishable from dairy based options. Every pizza is crafted to be dairy free, making it a great choice for anyone seeking more inclusive meal options without compromising on taste. Daiya takes the concept of dairy free to a new level, eliminating faux moo that is not the fear of cows, that is the fear of missing dairy. These pizzas deliver delicious taste and texture, making them perfect for any occasion from casual dinners to game day spreads. Enjoy a Fomu Free Pizza night with Daya. Visit dayofoods.com for more information or find Day of Pizza at retailers like Whole Foods, Kroger and Walmart. Coming soon to select Publix and Sprouts, Follow Daya on Instagram and Tick Tock for more updates and recipes.

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[Julie Stewart-Banks]

Iheart Women's Sports, it's Julie Stewart Banks. I'm doing a new podcast from iHeart Podcasts and the National Hockey League, and I'm paired up with one of my favorite players, the always quotable Nate Thompson.

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I'm vibing, Julie. I'm ready to roll.

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Listen to Energy Line with Nate and jsb on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Guest Analyst]

Yeah, so funny. Luca actually came out and said that any team that has jokers is always going to be dangerous. But like you just said, Jokic and Murray didn't play, so Luca lit Them up La Cruz, that W. Yeah, he's like, he's looking really good. He's also at his 6 30th point game in a month of March. What do you think about the Nuggets resting their guys again though?

[Nick Wright]

So listen, Joker plays as much as anybody. Michael Malone was correct that Joker's played I think the second most games of any player in the last decade. So I'm not going to kill him for it. I'm not certain exactly why Jamal, you know, Jamal Murray couldn't play. Maybe because Jamal Murray without Nikola Jokic, you know, doesn't quite look like the Jamal Murray that a lot of folks like to believe he can be. I, I will say this. The Nuggets are no longer a bad matchup for the Lakers. The Lakers are a bad matchup for the Nuggets. And that's with or without Joker. And there's multiple reasons for this. I understand Daniel, our producer, saying Jamal was hurt last game too. I get it, man. I'm the, I, I'm not, I'm, I'm not accusing anyone of anything. Do I, do I, does anybody think that if this were a playoff game, Jokic and Murray wouldn't, Wouldn't have played? Of course not. They're not that injured, but that's totally fine. You want them to be rested and healthy. You'd prefer it not happen on a national TV game. You'd prefer it not have to happen in back to back games. But it is what it is, so to speak. Like, you deal with it and you, you know, you, you move forward. I think a lot of people assumed that the Nuggets, because they rested those guys or they didn't play against the warriors, that they would play in the next game. But whatever, I'm not going to kill him for that. What I am going to talk about is if this is a playoff matchup, it favors the Lakers heavily. Because here is the thing. The Lakers scored 1:20 last night, could have scored 1:40. And I said it on the TV show. I will say it again with this question. In the playoffs, if you get Lakers Nuggets, if Aaron Gordon is primarily matched up on LeBron, who is guarding Luca? They tried some Peyton Watson last night. How'd that work? Luca had 20 before you turn the game on and okay, no, no, no. Aaron Gordon's gonna guard Luca, then who is guarding LeBron? It ain't Michael Porter Jr. And his bad back. It ain't Russell Westbrook. It certainly ain't Christian Brown. Who, who are we talking about? Con Car. He ain't doing it. Gonna dust off Dario Sarich. He ain't doing it. It's. It's certainly not the two guys who were missing last night and Jokic and Murray. The Nuggets are a bad defensive team at this point, and having Jokic and Murray out doesn't hurt their defense. And the Lakers scored at will without LeBron. Now the Lakers, I think, are going to actually end up being the best offense in the league. And you're starting to see it where they are generating so many great looks from three, so many wide open threes, and that's without LeBron on the court. And here's the other thing about the Lakers Nuggets matchup. The best thing the Nuggets had going for them in these playoff matchups is Joker. No question. The second best thing they had going for him was D'Angelo Russell minutes. And the third best thing they had going for him was Darvin Ham's coaching, which is why there was nobody that was a bigger Darvin Ham defender than Michael Malone. Michael Malone out there defending Darvin Ham. Like Darvin Ham owes him money and he needs him to stay employed to get it. He's like, this is unfair. That guy took him to the conference final. This is an outrage. And Michael Malone now all of a sudden, Lakers got real coach. And by the way, are we done with that damanze? I haven't checked the scoreboard. Is J.J. redick now just Lakers head coach or is he still, you know, LeBron's podcast buddy? Or now that everybody knows he's a great coach, are we just saying, no, he's a Lakers head coach? Because I know if he wasn't a great coach, it would be LeBron's podcast buddy. It'd be like, I'm just, I just again, I'm not sure the exact rule. Right? I'm not sure about the rules of any of this stuff. What I do know is this Nuggets are in real, real trouble and the Lakers are real, real dangerous.

[Guest Analyst]

You don't think they're just like resting their guys strategically, like the same thing Golden State did with Steph Curry? I like bigger picture.

[Nick Wright]

I think that's a game they wanted to win that you're fighting for seating. I, I don't. Right now, the western garment standings go like this. Oklahoma City has locked the one seed. It's so bananas. They. They have locked, locked up that. Well, I guess technically their, their magic number for locking up the one seed is one game with 15. Or how however many 13 games remaining. They have 57 wins. No one else in the conference can get to 58. So Oklahoma City's locked. And then it gets interesting. The Rockets have 25 losses. The Lakers have 25 losses. The Nuggets have 26. The Grizzlies have 27. The warriors have 29, Clippers 30. Tim rules 31. So four, five, six or I'm sorry, two, three, four, five. Two games apart. Two, three, four, one loss apart. And I don't think the Nuggets want to give these games away. Say it again.

[Guest Analyst]

It would be in their best interest being one game. I mean, they were tied before last night and then not like.

[Nick Wright]

Absolutely, yeah, yeah. And the other piece of it is because of last, with a win yesterday, they would have locked up the season series three one, which would have given them the head to head tiebreaker if they finished with the same record. Now it's 2:2. So I'm not even sure what tiebreaker it goes to. Now the Nuggets, do they get Portland next, then Houston, Chicago? Like, I'm just looking at their easy, tough games. I think they. When we went to Tankathon before and we checked it, I thought the Nuggets were league average, essentially remaining strength, strength of schedule. They have the, It's a little tougher than league average. They, they have the 11th hardest strength of schedule left. The Lakers, by the way, have the third hardest strength of schedule left. Houston, 10th hardest. I'm just doing the teams fighting for this seed. Memphis, seventh hardest, Golden State with the easiest of the group with the 18th hardest. So. But here's the other piece of it for the Lakers. As I said the other day, you can now kind of definitively say, even though they lost those first three without LeBron, they have survived his injury. They. I said if you miss 10 games, going 6 and 4 would be a great result. And 6 and 4 is now very on the board. And I don't know that he's going to miss four more, but the Lakers are three and three. Lost to Brooklyn, bad loss, loss to Milwaukee, lost to Denver. And what would have been an unbelievable win when Denver had all its guys and Lakers without six of their top eight and then blew out Phoenix, blew out San Antonio, blew out Denver, and now the next four. Home for Milwaukee tonight, home for Chicago, at Orlando, at Indiana. Can you go three and one in those four? You should be able to even if LeBron's not back. And that's the other piece of last night. The blowout being awesome. Luca only played 32 minutes. Reeves probably Played a little more than he needed to, but so be it. And so the Lakers are really well positioned. Houston keeps winning. Houston, to their credit, has really taken advantage of the absolute softest stretch of their schedule imaginable. And they have one more soft game Friday against Miami. But their schedule during this winning streak has been the following teams for Houston, New Orleans, New Orleans, Orlando, Phoenix, Dallas, Chicago, Philly, Orlando. So those are the wor, like some of the worst teams in the league, plus Orlando, which has been really bad for months, and Phoenix, which hates itself. And now you have Miami. And then it gets way tougher for Houston. So I. Because after Miami, Houston goes Denver, Atlanta, Utah, Phoenix, Lakers, Utah. Okc, Golden State, Clippers, Lakers, Denver. What a final stretch for Houston. Final five games. Okc, Golden State, Clippers, Lakers, Denver. I wonder what OKC is going to do down the stretch because they will have locked up the one seed and with the Cavs losing all of a sudden, as of late, they won't, you know, they're in going to be in a good position for the number one overall seed. But I expect Houston to drop back. And I think the Lakers got a real shot at the two. A real shot at the two. And so I, you know, I think and Daniel tells me LA as the tiebreaker because they win. Win their division. Oh, the stupid divisions are the next tiebreaker. Oh, well then last night's game was even bigger for Denver because now if they finish with the same record, Lakers have the tiebreaker. That's noteworthy. That's really, really noteworthy. All right, ask what are the follow ups here, pal?

[Guest Analyst]

Who do you think needs to adjust more when LeBron does come back? Cause you know, Luke is obviously getting into a groove. So. LeBron. Luca.

[Nick Wright]

Oh, LeBron's LeBron. LeBron can do more different things. LeBron can play so many different ways. So it wouldn't make sense to ask Luka to adjust because Luka's not going to be great at other things. LeBron can be great at playing almost any style of offensive basketball. So LeBron should and will look like. And so that to me is not even a concern. And one of the benefits to Monze to having every single statistical record in NBA history already accomplished. You don't have to worry about your stats as much. Like when you already have all the records, you already have all the all NBAs, all the points, all the, all of that, you can, you don't really have to necessarily put that first and foremost in your mind. Now I will tell you this, a sneaky stat that LeBron cares about that is such a silly one.

[Guest Analyst]

Is it the double digit?

[Nick Wright]

What? Oh, well, that. No, no, no. That one's not sneaky. That one's definitive. The 1300 straight games of at least 10 points. But he doesn't have to try to get that one. It's that he has averaged at least 25 points per game to the 10th of a point in every single year of his career, except for his rookie season. 21 straight years. And the reason I know he cares about it is a few years ago, post ankle injury, going into the final game of the year, he needed a bucket. I think he knew the exact amount of points he needed and he needed a bucket late and went and got it. So he finished that year averaging 25.000. Right now, this moment, LeBron has played 58 games and has scored 1,450 points. So let's just do the math on that. 1450 divided by 58, that is 25.00.000. So here's the point I'm making. I do think LeBron will want to make sure when he comes back he's still getting 25 a night. I. I haven't talked to him, but I, I think that is a sneaky one, that he would be annoyed if he missed it by a couple 100ths of a point.

[Guest Analyst]

So, yeah, having to make the adjustments with Luca, like him getting 25 points isn't like a stretch. Like, I don't think that's.

[Nick Wright]

No.

[Guest Analyst]

Ain't gonna be hard to do. Even with his new role.

[Nick Wright]

I actually think his scoring might go up with the new role because I think, I think his assists will plummet and scoring go up a bit and rebounding go up a lot. That's what I would anticipate is going to happen here. When it comes to college basketball and March mania, one thing's for sure, nothing is for sure. Upsets, buzzer beater. Cinderella's advancing. Top seeds going home early. It's all going to happen. Bet the unexpected. Every upset, every day with DraftKings sportsbook. With live betting, exclusive content, promos and parlays, DraftKings is the ultimate college basketball destination for March. Ready to make your first bet? Check out the matchups and pick a team to win. It's that simple. Told you guys the other day. I'll tell you again, my personal favorite for today. For this, the beginning of the tournament, Tennessee laying the wood. Eighteen and a half against Wofford and a nice little flyer. A little taste on Tennessee at 221 to win the national championship maybe. Finally, possibly Rick Barnes has a great NCAA's. All right, first time. Here's something special just for you. New DraftKings customers bet $5 get $200 in bonus bets instantly guys bet the unexpected. DraftKings Sportsbook Download DraftKings Sportsbook app. Use Code Wright that's my last name. W R I G H C that's code Wright for new customers to get $200 in bonus bets. When you bet just five bucks only on DraftKings, the crown is yours. Gambling problem. Call 1-800-GAMBLER in New York, call 877-8-HOPE NY or text Hopeny, which is 467-369 in Connecticut. Help is available for problem gambling. Call 888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org Please play responsibly on behalf of Boot Hill Casino and Resort in Kansas. 21 plus. Age and eligibility varies by jurisdiction. Void In Ontario, bonus bets expire 168 hours after issuance. For additional terms and responsible gaming resources, see DKNG co bball you can count.

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[Mel Reid]

Hey this is Mel Reid, LPGA Tour winner and six time ladies European Tour.

[Kira K. Dixon]

Winner and Kira K. Dixon, NBC Sports reporter and host.

[Mel Reid]

You forgot to say Warm and Miss America by the way. And we've got a new podcast, Quiet Please with Mel and Kira.

[Kira K. Dixon]

We are bringing you spicy takes on sports and pop culture, some golf haps and interviews with incredible people who have figured out how to make golf their.

[Mel Reid]

Superpower or just people we like. Plus tales from the road and everything in between. By the way, golf isn't just for the dads, Brads and chads.

[Kira K. Dixon]

Yeah, it's actually life's cheat code and we're not going to be quiet about it on or off the course. We're bringing on some of our friends like Michelle We, Heather McMahon, Amanda Baliotis.

[Mel Reid]

So if you want to keep up with us and here is yap, tune into our new podcast.

[Kira K. Dixon]

Listen to Quiet Please with Mel and Kira, an iHeart women's sports production in partnership with Deep Blue Sports and Entertainment. You can find us on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts Presented by Capital One, founding partner of I heart women's sports, it's Julie Stewart Banks.

[Julie Stewart-Banks]

I'm doing a new podcast from iHeart Podcasts and the National Hockey League and I'm paired up with one of my favorite players, the always quotable Nate Thompson.

[Nate Thompson]

I wore nine NHL sweaters and I have story after story to share. And believe it or not, I have plenty to say and not just about hockey.

[Julie Stewart-Banks]

Believe me, he does Energy Line with with Nate and JSB is the name of the podcast and it's going to be, well, it's going to be quite the ride. We're officially linemates, Nate. We're the Energy Line.

[Nate Thompson]

We'll have plenty of folks join us, current players, some of my former teammates, hall of Famers, and wait till you see some of the connections that Julie has. She has quite the Rolodex.

[Julie Stewart-Banks]

Okay. We'll lean into Nate's playing experience and tap into our interests away from hockey and try to do it. Energy lines are supposed to do provide an emotional boost. How do you feel about all that, Nate?

[Nate Thompson]

I'm vibing Julie. I'm ready to roll.

[Julie Stewart-Banks]

Listen to Energy Line with Nate and jsb on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Guest Analyst]

Bengals. Bengals. Bengals, man. So Jamar Chase and T. Higgins are now the highest paid non quarterbacks in history. And Higgins is the highest highest wide receiver too. So 40% of their cap is going to those players. Put your GM hat on. How would you fix this? Oh my goodness.

[Nick Wright]

I mean they don't. Well, I, I mean they don't think they're screwed. I think it's an insane way to run a team and I think it's a low key. So here's what Higgins becomes, as Demonte said, the Highest paid wide receiver 2 in the league. Chase becomes the highest paid non quarterback in the league and Burrows got a huge salary as well. It's not that you can't win with three huge contracts. It's that having all of your huge contracts just be about the passing game doesn't make a ton of sense. And having all of your resources debt like it's a low key insult to borough. And I know it's what Burrow wanted, so he doesn't view it this way. But here's what I mean. It operates as if you're not going to have an elite passing game Unless you have both of these elite weapons. And I, I think Joe Burrow is better than that. I think Joe Burrow would be just fine with just one of these guys. And I think that again the, the example people use as a defense of this is Peyton's Colts. But here's the problem with you because Peyton's Colts had Reggie Wayne and Marvin Harrison. The problem with using that as an example is they also had Dwight Freey and Robert Mathis as book end defensive ends. But the other problem with that is Peyton's Colts, with respect, underachieved. You had 13 years of Peyton Manning. 11 of those are peak Peyton Manning years. You made two Super Bowls one one. Compare that to the Broncos who had four years of Peyton Manning, only three of those peak Peyton Manning years. They also went to two Super Bowls and won one by building a well rounded team. Compare it to the Chiefs who had a choice to make a few years ago. We are not going to be able to pay Tyreek and Chris Jones. So you know what? We're going to move Tyreek to save the money for Chris and ask Patrick to do more with less. And they've been to every super bowl since then and so and yeah, Mahomes last two years his numbers have dipped. Now his first year without Tyreek he won the MVP at the most yards of any player in a season ever. First player to win league MVP and Super Bowl MVP since Kurt Warner. But set that aside, it is just to me the wrong approach to building a team. I so what would I have done? I would have a year ago, a year ago traded T. Higgins when I could have gotten a first round pick for him and dedicated more resources to the defense. But here is what I'll say about it. Demase I burrow wanted this and it's fine. But he's a smart guy and he understands the, the resources are limited. He understands what this means. It kind of removes a little bit of the if next year goes how last year went where burrows numbers are unbelievable. The Bengals offense is excellent and they miss the playoffs because the defense is terrible. It's not quite as an accomplishment for Joe Burrow as this year. He, you know, got MVP votes because it was like oh my God, he's doing his job. What can he do about the defense being awful? Well when you go on every talk show imaginable and say you need Higgin Higgins and Chase back and you understand what that means about your ability to improve your offensive line and your defense, well now it probably is a little more fair to at least put some of potential Bengals struggles, even if they're defense related, at the feet of their quarterback. I know that sounds odd, but I just think it's, I think it's probably the wrong approach to building a sustainable champion. And it also is, is to me certainly not the right approach to win that division. And the, the problem with that is I don't think you have any shot of winning three straight road AFC playoff games that'll probably be outdoors, probably in cold weather cities with a defense that looks like the Bengals is going to look for the near future. So I just think, I think it's a mistake. Even though it's fun. All right, let's talk Aaron Rodgers.

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Yeah.

[Guest Analyst]

Aaron Rodgers still does not know where he wants to go. Talks are if the Vikings don't want him, he might retire. Where do you think see Aaron Rodgers going?

[Nick Wright]

I mean, probably the Steelers, but Rapaport reported this morning that he might not decide until after the draft. The draft. Draft's in like 40 days. And I understand actually why he would wait until after the draft because he doesn't want to pick Pittsburgh and then see, you know, as a for instance Shador drop and then the Steelers draft a quarterback and he's like what the hell so. Or pick the Giants and then they draft Shador at three. Like who knows. But I am, I'm over the Aaron Rodgers story in this regard. I just, I don't think the 20th best quarterback in football is worth this time or attention. And I really don't understand why the Vikings would be entertaining this demons a unless they are terror. Unless they have undisclosed news about JJ McCarthy's injury that they some. But the only way that even makes sense is if they got this news somehow in the short window of time between when they let Darnold walk and you know, this last week, which was only a few days. Because now that we have the actual Sam Darnold contract details, chalk another one up to the sports media ombudsman, by the way, who said instead of all these tweets, just giving love to the agents that negotiated the deals. Can we please get accurate contract info for a week? We were told Sam Darnold got 55 million guaranteed. Turns out he got 37 million guaranteed. Turns out the contract Sam Darnold got is essentially one year, $37.5 million and then two team options afterwards. Who to thunk it if that's all it was going to take to keep Darnold, they could have gotten him essentially for one year, 40 million bucks. If you're worried about JJ McCarthy, then do that. Yeah, he's better than Rogers at this point.

[Guest Analyst]

So clearly like, like, why would any team want it? Like, just not even a football standpoint, just him as a. I'm not trying to attack his character or anything, but he just, he ruined stuff.

[Nick Wright]

Well, yeah, I mean, I think it's fair to attack his football character and leadership. And also, like, why is he taking this long? I think because he can and because it is a good way to make it clear who has the upper hand in the relationship from the moment the relationship starts. Like if, if you can make some an entire organization, wait. Poor Russell Wilson's like, I can't even sign with a team until this guy does. Like. And so it's just asserting. Asserting dominance, I guess, is what some would say.

[Mel Reid]

This is Mel Reed, LPGA Tour winner and six time Ladies European Tour winner.

[Kira K. Dixon]

And Kyra K. Dixon, NBC Sports reporter and host.

[Mel Reid]

And we've got a new podcast, Quiet please. With Mel and Kira.

[Kira K. Dixon]

We are bringing you spicy takes on sports and pop culture. Some interviews with incredible people who have figured out how to make golf their superpower.

[Mel Reid]

An iHeart wins sports production in partnership with Deep Blue Sports and Entertainment. You can find us on iHeartRadio app or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Kira K. Dixon]

Presented by Elf Beauty, founding partner of iHeart Women's Sports.

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Tickets are on sale now, y'all, for our 2025 I Heart Country Festival presented by Capital one, happening Saturday, May 3rd at the Moody center in Austin, Texas. Don't miss your chance to see Brooks and Dunn, Thomas Rhett, Rascal Flag, Cole Swindell, Sam Hunt, Megan Maroney, Bailey Zimmerman, Nate Smith. Tickets are on Sale [e-mail] what's up everyone?

[Julie Stewart-Banks]

Julie Swearbinks here along with former NHL player Nate Thompson.

[Nate Thompson]

We're doing a new podcast together. Here we go.

[Julie Stewart-Banks]

The name Energy Line with Nate and jsb.

[Nate Thompson]

Each week we'll get together and talk about hockey life. All topics are fair game, right?

[Julie Stewart-Banks]

Exactly. And you'll never know who will drop by to join us.

[Nate Thompson]

Julie is pretty well connected. She has text threads going that you wouldn't believe.

[Julie Stewart-Banks]

Listen to Energyline with Nate and jsb on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.