Best of The Herd

Welcome in to the Best of The Herd. It’s Thursday, we’re live, and today’s show rides on two tracks: injuries reshaping the NBA race, and Aaron Rodgers laying out a clear last‑season timeline. Plus, fresh data on Austin Reaves and what it really means for the Lakers.

Oklahoma City’s path just got bumpy. J‑Dub tweaked the hamstring again, AJ Mitchell picked up a quad strain, and a deep roster suddenly leans hard on SGA against a fierce Spurs defense.

The Wemanyama problem won’t be solved by holding and hacking on the road, and the league won’t let the face of its future get dragged around on national TV. San Antonio’s own issue is ballhandling—Stephon Castle is a tough wing, not a natural point—and OKC’s traps turned the game on turnovers.

If De’Aaron Fox can go and Dylan Harper can’t, that single absence might swing the series even though the Spurs have been cleaner in the paint and from deep. Non‑contact soft tissue injuries keep piling up, and shrinking quarters to cool the pace no longer sounds crazy.

It’s brutal, Colin. You finally get a blockbuster West series and three of the top guys are limping. Add a rest day or two, because fans deserved this at full strength; and yes, I need my Knicks healthy tonight.

Don’t overreact to blown leads. In today’s three‑heavy league, 30 to 8 runs happen, and the Knicks are a cold‑blooded fourth‑quarter team with Brunson closing like a star. Cleveland’s vets can steady themselves.

I like New York to come out smoking in the first half. They found the rhythm, cleaned up the shot profile, and should carry it into tip.

On Rodgers: he’s not washed, he’s been under‑credited. He dragged a thin receiver room to clutch wins, protected the ball, and that ugly Texans tape humbled a lot of great offenses. With new help and a workable schedule, he can push for the division again.

He still ranks among the all‑timers, and linking back up with Mike McCarthy plus bigger outside targets puts them in the AFC North and Super Bowl conversations.

The Athletic’s tiers back up what we’ve said on Austin Reaves: terrific player, best as a third option on a contender. In a cap league, you can’t pay a No. 3 like a No. 2 and still add the athletes you need.

I want to lift the trophy every year, but I’m realistic. We fought, we weren’t outworked or out‑toughed; Oklahoma City just had more talent. We need more good players.

That’s the math. Value deals let you stack depth; overpaying your second or third guy tightens the roster. The polling isn’t perfect, but the principle holds.

Camps are opening, and I appreciated Rodgers putting a clock on it. No games, no guessing—one more year—now the burden shifts to the building.

Matt Hasselbeck joins. When do good quarterbacks actually know it’s time?

For QBs it’s usually the injury grind or the mental fatigue. You sit in a run‑install at 40 and think, I know all of this, and the rehab or the boredom outweighs the juice of competing.

Rodgers has aired things publicly at times. Does that leadership style still fit?

Everyone leads differently, but he won’t need the public pressure now. He’s got real synergy with this staff, deep respect with McCarthy, and teammates who rally around him, so he can keep those messages in‑house.

What’s his superpower at this stage?

He’s elite at protecting the football while still being aggressive, and he wins the line with cadence and checks. Coaches live off that turnover edge.

Green Bay is a unique universe—no owner, tiny market, impossible to hide. How does that shape a QB?

It’s a global brand with local red tape. Without an owner you get policies over pragmatism, and that can wear on a quarterback obsessed with chasing another ring.

Good to see you—have a great weekend, Colin.