Cowboys Draft Reaction, Chris Paul & Lil Wayne, LeBron's Title chase
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Here we go. This is the Skip Bayless Show, episode 63.

This is the Un-Undisputed, everything I cannot share with you during the two and a half hour go for the throat debate show that is undisputed. Today, I will take you inside my NFL draft weekend nightmare that wound up with a shockingly happy ending. Today, I will take you way inside Lil Wayne's brother-brother relationship with Chris Paul.

and how CP3's injury the other night had Lil Wayne in tears. Today, I will finally give white NFL owners at least a little bit of credit for at least a little bit of racial progress. And finally today, I will put myself on a psychiatrist's couch. I will do a Skip Bayless on Skip Bayless. But first up, as always, it is not to be skipped.

One of my wife Ernestine's all-time favorite movies back in the 1980s was called After Hours, directed by Martin Scorsese. I didn't love After Hours, but I thought of After Hours this past weekend because I felt like I was in the surreal After Hours. In the real After Hours, which is a very dark comedy, a manic comedy,

Griffin Dunn suffers through a long, crazed night of misadventures in New York City that don't end until the sun comes up. That was my last Thursday night, Friday night, and Saturday going into the night as the NFL draft took me on a long and crazed, surreal ride. You might remember last week's podcast, last week on Undisputed.

I rhapsodized about Dalton Kincaid, a tight end I had identified for my Dallas Cowboys back on the night of October 15th as I watched USC Utah, mostly because I was watching Caleb Williams, who probably will be next year's number one overall pick, late of my Oklahoma Sooners, now a USC Trojan. But that night, the guy who kept catching my eye was not Caleb Williams.

The guy who was catching my eye, if not my soul, was Utah's tight end. The guy with the Hollywood star's name and the game that could change life in the NFL's Hollywood, that is Dallas, Texas. Dalton Kincaid, 16 catches, 234 yards that Saturday night. As I started to talk up Dalton Kincaid on TV, it was almost like I spoke it into existence.

I started seeing mock drafts that had Dalton Kincaid to Dallas, to the same Dallas that had lost its tight end, obviously Dalton Schultz to free agency. I am telling you, I do see some Travis Kelsey and Dalton Kincaid, big stud, just big sensational supreme athlete, so quick, so fast that he just makes...

at 250 pounds. Linebackers' safety looked embarrassingly overmatched. I taped last week's podcast on Wednesday, as I'm doing now. During that podcast, I'll put Dalton Kincaid in the Hall of Fame. After Thursday's undisputed live show, I took a quick break. I ran out to Brentwood Country Club to hit some golf balls on the driving range. I wound up hitting

alongside a good friend of mine, Dr. Ryan Davis. He's a psychiatrist who actually needs a psychiatrist when it comes to golf, as do I. His obsession bordering on possession might be even worse than mine is. But he did ask me which player I had my eye on Thursday night's draft for my Dallas Cowboys in the first round. And of course, I gushed about Dalton Kincaid, saying I feared somebody

would snatch him as early as the Jets who were picking 15th because yeah, that's all Aaron Rodgers needed, another weapon, another new toy in New York for the Jets. My Cowboys weren't picking until 26th. And then a very weird conversation took place with my friend, Ryan Davis. Ryan said to me, between the three woods he was launching off the far fence, "If Dalton Kincaid is gone,

Would the Cowboys be interested in Mozzie? Okay, so you have to understand, Ryan, born and raised in Detroit, went undergraduate to Michigan, then he went to med school at Virginia, but he is all about go blue, as in Michigan football and of course basketball. But I'm thinking, Mozzie? I figured Ryan was talking about some Michigan player, but I did not know this Mozzie guy. I said, "Who?" He said, "Mozzie Smith."

the defensive tackle. Then Ryan asked me, "How are you guys fixed at defensive tackle?" And I thought quickly, "I don't know. We got a cast of dozens. You know, O.C., Neville Gallimore, Hankins, Bohanna, usual suspects." Okay, I said, "Not great. We did lead the league for the second year in a row in takeaways, but against the run, we ranked 22nd in the National Football League."

So Ryan Davis, standing next to me on the driving range, raises his eyebrows. He says, "Mozzie's pretty good." And I thought to myself, "I watched six full Michigan games last year. Six." I counted it off my head. Not once did I notice somebody named Mozzie Smith. What's my all-time rule of thumb about judging talent via television? It's the eye test.

I don't break down coach's tape. I carefully watch games on TV. I'm looking for that player to flash, that player to jump off the screen at me repeatedly. This method has always served me well when I'm projecting college to pro. Not once in six games, heck not once this past season or the season before, did I ever even notice somebody named Mozzie Smith. And I'm thinking,

Man, Ryan must be blinded by blue by his love for Michigan. In fact, I'd never even heard the name Mozzie Smith. This is on Thursday afternoon. So it was Thursday evening, settled in, watched the draft unfold. I got Hazel, little Maltese. My daughter is at my feet asleep. And I nervously began to track the story within the story, the fate of one Dalton Kincaid.

I thought, is it possible that Jerry Jones will trade up for him just to make sure? Or is it possible he'll fall all the way into the Dallas Cowboys laps just the way you remember back in 2020, CeeDee Lamb, my guy from Oklahoma, fell all the way out of heaven into our laps that year at 17th overall. Remember now we're at 26, so it's a longer fall, longer wait.

That Thursday night, last Thursday night, I was wearing a PGA West t-shirt. It's from one of my favorite golf courses out in Palm Springs. By the time we got to about 20, I might as well have been wearing that shirt outside in July in Palm Springs playing golf in it because I was sweating so profusely I had to change t-shirts. True story. So at 15, the Jets did not take Dalton Kincaid. They opted instead for Will McDonald.

An edge rusher for Iowa State, watched several times, never really wowed me. Then came two cornerbacks, another linebacker, a defensive tackle, then four straight wide receivers. And I'm thinking, wait a second, we are all the way to 24 with the rival New York football giant steal Dalton Kincaid right out from under our noses.

so that Daniel Jones would finally have the security blanket, the kind of weapon that he does not have as we speak. So I am hyper-focused on the commissioner's lips, as he says with the 24th pick, the New York Giants select. My heart fell when Roger Goodell's first letter out of his mouth was...

But he didn't go "duh" as in Dalton. He went "dee" as in Deontay Banks, the corner out of Maryland. We were one pick away from Dalton Kincaid. Thank you, God. I closed my eyes. I sweated. Minutes passed like hours. And suddenly, wait a second, a trade was announced. What? A trade? Wait, Buffalo?

had just jumped up from 27 to 25. That's one pick ahead of the Cowboys from one pick behind the Cowboys. They traded a fourth round pick to Jacksonville to swap spots with them. And I'm thinking, wait, didn't Buffalo just give its tight end Dawson Knox? Same initials as DK. Hmm, interesting. Dawson Knox, didn't they just give him a big new four-year deal for like 50 million bucks?

I thought, no way that Buffalo was traded up for Dalton Kincaid. Way. When the commissioner announced that Buffalo had in fact stolen Dalton Kincaid, I screamed so painfully loudly that my wife Ernestine actually knocked on the door to ask if I was okay.

She knew there wasn't a game in progress that I cared about, so she couldn't figure out why I would be screaming in such agony about the NFL draft, for which she has little to no use. I said, no, I'm not okay. She asked what happened. I said, Buffalo just bamboozled Jerry Jones and stole Dalton Kincaid right out from under his upturned nose. Ernstine shrugged and said, oh, well.

I immediately tweeted all caps, no, like in and then oh, all caps. I was devastated. I don't think I've ever been more crushed in the middle of an NFL draft. I truly believe that Dalton Kincaid would have changed Dak Prescott's life. Similar to how Travis Kelsey has helped make Patrick Mahomes what he is in Kansas City. Dak did lean heavily on Dalton Schultz.

fourth rounder out of Stanford. Dalton Kincaid is a whole nother level. Watch what he does for Josh Allen. To me, Jerry Jones was asleep at the wheel. Of course, then I had no choice but to wonder if I'd fallen victim to what I call self-defeating prophecy, self-defeating prophecy in that I had spoken so publicly so many times about how much I coveted Dalton Kincaid.

that is it possible I had influenced the Bills to believe they had to trade up above the Cowboys to get Dalton Kincaid? Maybe that happened, but you have to believe me. I spoke to no one inside the Cowboys about Dalton Kincaid. I was the one setting the agenda here. I didn't want to speak to anybody inside. I wanted them to listen to me, to hear me from a distance.

I was trying to influence them. I didn't care about what they thought. It was only about what I thought. I was pre-acting, not reacting to something they had told me about. "Hey, we love us some Dalton Kincaid. We're riveted on him. We just hope he falls to us." I hadn't heard a word, not a peep from the Dallas Cowboys. And maybe Buffalo thought, because I'm such a Cowboy fan, sometimes a Cowboy insider,

that I had some inside info. I had none because I wanted none. Of course, Jerry and Stephen Jones, his son, have indicated to the reporters in Dallas they were not at all interested in Dalton Kincaid at 26, but I do not believe them for one second. They're just trying to save some face because Buffalo buffaloed both of them, left egg all over their faces, and obviously they're trying to save some face for Mozzie Smith.

just to make him feel like he was first choice and not second helping. I am still sick at my stomach about losing Dalton Kincaid. This is the kind of draft night move. That's why I love the NFL draft night. But this is the kind of move that changes NFL history. Just watch. So I heaved a sigh and I waited for my Cowboys to take the other tight end on the board. I told you last week on this podcast, I did not love Notre Dame's Michael Mayer.

And apparently the Cowboys agreed with me because they didn't either. They didn't take him. Instead, my Dallas Cowboys took Mozzie Smith. I immediately texted my friend Ryan Davis, Dr. Davis, the psychiatrist, and I said, "YOU CALLED IT," in all caps. Again, I'd never even heard of Mozzie Smith.

He had never once caught my eye. And now we had taken him at 26 instead of Dalton Kincaid. Jerry had done it again. Just devastating. I mean, Mozzie Smith had all of a half a sack last season. Yet, I will tell you this, in all objectivity, the more I heard about Mozzie, the more I read about Mozzie, heck, I didn't even know how to pronounce his first name. I thought it was Mazzie, but it's Mozzie. Okay, you got me.

But the more I heard, the more I began to come around on what he could be. It may take a while, but what he could be, could be something. Every late summer, Bruce Feldman of The Athletic has done work here at Fox Sports 1, Fox Sports. He puts out a college football freaks list, the biggest freaks in a good way in college football, the biggest athletic freaks. And guess who was number one last summer heading into the fall?

Mozzie Smith out of Michigan was first overall. So in that way, he reminds me somewhat of another Smith that the Cowboys took a year ago with their first overall pick, that being Tyler Smith. Everybody was skeptical of that, including me, including Mel Kiper. I expressed my skepticism to open undisputed in what we call our A block and A

In the break between our A and B block, I got a text from an assistant coach I know at Tulsa where Tyler Smith played college football and led the whole nation in penalties. But I get a text from an assistant I've known forever and he says, no, no, you missed the boat. You missed the point. Tyler Smith, he said, is a monster, is a freak.

that Nick Saban wanted him to enter the transfer portal and that they had a nice little NIL deal waiting for him at Alabama. That's what a freak he was and how right the assistant coach was because Tyler Smith is not just a keeper, he's gonna make Pro Bowls. Heck, I don't know, he could be on path to be a Hall of Famer at some point as a left tackle. Look, Mozzie Smith is monstrously strong and athletic for 323 pounds.

I think Jerry took him in part because he's going to be Jerry's answer to Jalen Carter, whom of course our arch rival Eagles plunged on with the ninth overall pick. As we all know, Jalen Carter had big character questions, issues, and for the record, Mozzie Smith did have one of his own. He was caught carrying a concealed weapon without a permit. It's a misdemeanor. He says he had

and filled out the paperwork but hadn't filed it by all accounts everybody I've talked to he is a good kid so I'm going to give him benefit of the doubt at least at this point but hey

with my Dallas Cowboys they cannot take a player in the first or second round of the draft who doesn't have some baggage because that's a team tradition you can't play for the Cowboys unless you have some off the field baggage it's just what we do it's how we market our product because we know that Cowboys they can break some rules and they can break some laws

I do believe Mozzie Smith will ultimately be as valuable for the Cowboys defense as a run stuffer as Jalen Carter will be for the Eagles defense. So I'm going to call that one a push early on. Now, quick aside. I saw my friend Ryan Davis actually on Friday after the show. It's a long story, but he's a huge Detroit Lions fan and having grown up in Michigan, and he was very upset with their first-round pick, which was Jameer Gibbs out of Alabama, speaking of,

They took him at 12th, did the Lions. Now, I really like Jameer Gibbs. I think he's an electric game breaker, but he almost certainly would have been there at 18 when Detroit picked again. He might have been there at 34 when Detroit would pick again early in the second round. But, you know, at least I told Ryan, at least the Lions did get Jameer Gibbs. I didn't get Dalton Kincaid. They overdrafted him. I get it, but they got him, right? Right.

I told Ryan immediately he'll be way better than DeAndre Swift, much more of a game breaker. And, of course, before I knew it, the Lions had traded DeAndre Swift to the Eagles. Hmm, okay, I'll get to that in a moment. So I said to Ryan, hey, maybe the Lions, your Lions, will take Will Levis early in the second round at 34. But I added...

I believe that Hendon Hooker will be much better than Will Levis will be. And would you believe the Lions took Hendon Hooker early in the third round? This is some weird conversations I'm having with Dr. Davis. So, speaking of Dr. Davis, what did the Cowboys do in the second round? They took another of Ryan's Michigan players. They took a tight end, Luke Schoonmaker. And I'm saying, what? What?

Instead of "Go Blue," as they say at Michigan, I texted Ryan, "Go Metallic Blue," with parentheses around metallic, but the Cowboys' official color is metallic blue, so a little play on words. And I asked Ryan via text if he liked Schoonmaker, and he said he's not bad, which is the virtual kiss of death for a highly drafted prospect. Yeah, Luke Schoonmaker caught my eye a lot when I was watching Michigan for all the wrong reasons because

Look, he tries hard. Seems like a good kid, but as Bill Parcells used to say, he looks like what Parcells called a JAG, J-A-G, just another guy. So now my tight end room looks like this. I got Jake Ferguson, not bad. I got Peyton Hendershop, not bad.

I got Luke Schoonmaker, not bad. I got Sean McKeon, not bad. I got four not-bads in my tight end room, and I'm out of my mind. This is a nightmare. I got four not-bads, and I don't have Dalton Kincaid. So in the third round, the Cowboys take Damarvian Overshone out of Texas. Now, his highlights that they showed on ESPN look sensational. He looks like heat-seeking missile of a blitzer.

But I got to tell you, the four or five times I watched Texas last year, including the game against Oklahoma, he never popped for me. Not one time. He's a 230-pound safety who moved to linebacker. And then I hear he was best friends with Jerry Jones' grandson, who did play at Texas. I'm pretty sure he was a backup. But grandson, that they were locker mates and best friends. And I'm thinking, uh-oh, this is trouble.

This whole Cowboy draft at that point was starting to feel like one big long bust. Then it finally happened. After the draft had passed what I call the Thomas Edward Patrick Brady Jr. Memorial point of no return, the 199th overall pick in the sixth round, that's where Brady went.

After the draft had reached the 212th overall pick. Think about that. 212 players deep. This is six from the bottom of the sixth round. My Dallas Cowboys took Deuce Vaughn out of Kansas State and I fell off my chair. I fell off. I rolled on the floor.

the immediate sea to shining sea outpouring of emotion centered on Deuce's dad, who's the assistant director of college scouting for my Dallas Cowboys. Jerry rewarded a loyal, hardworking employee by drafting his son with a late round draft pick that didn't really matter anyway. For me, that was all well and good. What a nice story. But that nice story was obscuring

The very, for me, heartwarming fact that my Dallas Cowboys had just made the steal of the entire 2023 NFL draft. I'm not exaggerating. The steal. Little tiny deuce was the biggest steal of the draft. In fact, deuce is so small that...

I'd forgotten about him. I seriously, before the draft, I thought Deuce will go in the second round, maybe the third round. And I thought he had gone and I just missed it somehow. I just airballed it. I just figured he was already way off the board to somebody, maybe to Ryan's Detroit Lions. I didn't know. But now I'm thinking Deuce's decision to not run the 40 at the combine, which was a little mysterious to me because...

They say that he's run it before at Kansas State in 4-4, so I couldn't figure that out. But maybe that was all premeditated to scare teams off enough that he would fall all the way to his father's team in a late round such as the sixth round. Maybe it was all by design. All I know is that no player has ever popped off my screen more when I'm watching college football than Deuce Vaughn.

for all three of his years at Kansas State. Not one, not two, three years. I don't care how little he is. They list him at 5'5", 180 pounds, shortest back ever drafted. But wait a second, 180 pounds on a five-inch frame? That means he's packing a pretty good punch. And did you notice this kid hoisted up 225 pounds at the combine 17 times at 5'5", 180 pounds.

That's some real strength. Here's the only number though that I care about. Deuce Vaughn led the entire nation in total yards from scrimmage over the last three years. Led the whole nation. Not for one or two, but for three years. That is pro-duct-ivity. Trust me on this, because I watched Deuce Vaughn an awful lot, because he destroyed my Oklahoma Sooners three straight years.

Deuce is just hard to find and he's very hard to get on the ground. He's actually even short-legged for his short height. But this gives him amazing balance with these cartoon quick feet. These quicker than the eye feet. These feet that are quicker than hummingbirds wings. It's just all over the field. Can't find him. Can't tackle him. And now for the most amazing facet of Deuce's game is that

He's actually at least as good catching and running with the ball as he is just toting the rock. I mean, I'm talking about a real live bona fide slot receiver of a weapon. Against my third ranked Oklahoma Sooners in 2020, four catches for 129 yards. Against my sixth ranked Sooners in 2021, 10 catches for 104 yards.

Last year in Norman against the then sixth ranked Oklahoma Sooners, 25 carries for 116 yards. Last year, Deuce rushed for 170 against Texas Tech, 150 against Oklahoma State, 147 against their arch rival Kansas, and 133 against Nick Saban's Alabama in the Sugar Bowl. Deuce Vaughn is not some gadget. He's not some novelty act.

He's not just a drop or two of hot sauce on a steak. He's the steak. Deuce Vaughn is just, look, he's just not some little overachiever. He's a big talent, fearless, can run between the tackles, and carries himself with such confidence. He looks like he weighs 230 when he walks onto the field and just has that kind of swagger. He's a team igniter.

He inspires everybody around him with his athletic arrogance that he plays with. And now Deuce is going to be loose in Dallas. He will give Dak Prescott yet another crucial weapon, along with our new deep threat, Brandon Cooks. So the Eagles traded for DeAndre Swift. Trust me, Deuce Vaughn will have much more impact than DeAndre Swift does in Philadelphia.

My defense, featuring newly acquired Stephon Gilmore, a top five corner, is still a little bit better than the Eagles, mainly because we have Micah, as in Parsons, and they do not. We also have Dan Quinn, and they do not. Now, yeah, you got me. Unfortunately, I have Dak Prescott. They have Jalen Hurts, advantage Philly. And yes, Buffalo has Dalton Kincaid, and we don't.

But we got the steal of the entire draft. So to the Eagles, I say deuces. Deuce Vaughn saved my draft in the 11th hour.

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And listeners of this show will get a $75 sponsored job credit to get your jobs more visibility at Indeed.com slash Bayless. Just go to Indeed.com slash Bayless right now and support our show by saying you heard about Indeed on this podcast. Indeed.com slash Bayless. Terms and conditions apply. Need to hire? You need Indeed. Question from the audience. This is Harold from New Jersey. Will you be happy if LeBron wins the title this year?

Harold. Yes, I would. That would mean Rob Palenka would win a ring and Rob Palenka deserves executive of the year for all the big and little moves that he made at the trade deadline that immediately turned around this team and turned it back into a title contender. That would also mean that Darvin Hamm would win a ring.

I like Darvin Ham. I know him a little bit. He's a really good guy, and I think he's turning into a pretty good first-year head coach, even though Twitter fires him every time the Lakers lose. But if LeBron does win a ring this time, that would mean he rode Anthony Davis' coattails all the way to a fifth ring because it's becoming more and more clear the Lakers go only as AD goes.

So the only reason I'd be unhappy if LeBron wins a ring is because then I'd have to sit across the debate desk morning after morning from a grown man across from me wearing a goat mask. That's the only reason I would be unhappy about this. No, Mr. Sharp, as in Shannon Sharp, the goat debate was put out to pasture long ago.

after so many epic LeBron finals flameouts. It's over. You're disqualified. Michael Jordan never had any flameouts in the finals. Are you kidding me? 6-0 with six finals MVPs. So what do we know about LeBron? He can't shoot threes. He can't shoot free throws. He can't close games. Disqualified from the GOAT debate. All-time great player, but he can't do any of those things. Disqualified from the GOAT debate. So

Heck, I'll root for him to win this year's finals because I really like these Lakers. Now for a sad basketball story. I'm not talking about a life and death sad story. I'm talking about a legacy tragedy concerning Chris Paul. As you probably know, I sometimes call Lil Wayne like a brother to me. I'm as close to Wayne as I am to any friend I have, including my oldest friend, Craig Humphreys.

I grew up within Oklahoma City from seventh grade on. He was the best man at my first wedding. But I talked to Wayne in ways much deeper than I even talked to my friend Craig Humphreys. Obviously, by far my closest relationship in the world is with my wife Ernestine, who's easily my best friend, my better half. And by the way, Wayne and Ernestine are like brother and sister, very close. Ernestine and I are very excited

because we're going to get to see Wayne, God willing, in concert next weekend, next Saturday night in LA, out here in LA, as he winds down his national tour. But there's no way I'm as close to Wayne as Chris Paul is. They first met in Wayne's hometown of New Orleans back in 2005, as they were both on the rise. Chris was a 20-year-old NBA rookie, Wayne a 22-year-old rising star.

just starting to explode across America, around the world. Carter too. Chris and Wayne really hit it off. Those two became just close, close. Brother, brother, because they're both on the way up close. Wayne obviously has been beyond blessed as heroes. Chris, not so much. The other night, I immediately texted Wayne the moment

Chris again pulled up lame. Third quarter, game two, Denver. I was crushed. So was Wayne. In part, my emotions had to do with professional pride because I picked the Suns to win it all because Kevin Durant had pushed to be traded to Phoenix to help CP3 finally win a ring as he turned 38 years of age. Chris had been the perfect fit for KD and Devin Booker.

especially late in games. His defenses blitz the wings with double teams on KD, on book. Chris Paul could just go to work in the middle of the floor, shooting those signature fadeaways. Doesn't get up quite like he used to, but he can still shoot them and make them from just inside of or just beyond the free throw line. He can just pick solo coverage to pieces and close games. In the first round against the Clippers in game four out here in L.A.,

CP3 scored 12 points in the fourth quarter alone, playing all 12 minutes, made five of nine shots, including two big threes as the Suns held off the Clippers 112 to 110. That was all about CP3. That reminded me of one of the first games that Chris had played with KD and Book. This was at Dallas. You might remember it on Sunday, March the 5th, a national TV game on ABC, fourth quarter.

they dared cp3 to shoot and he made a big jump shot he made a big three and then he made another big three that put phoenix up for good over luca and kyrie it was something he can still do that so right on schedule monday night cp3 had heated up in game two in the third quarter he went three for three made all three of his shots in the third and phoenix

seized control of that game. They were up three. And by the way, with Chris on the floor in that game, they were plus 19. Just seal that deal and the Suns tie the series at one all and head back to Phoenix for two games. And right on schedule, CP3 pulled up lame. It's usually a hamstring he pulls. This time it was a groin. From what I understand, it is not good. He's going to miss, I don't know, three games minimum.

which almost certainly means that the Suns will be done before he can return. I don't know, maybe there'll be a miracle. Maybe something will happen beyond my wildest dreams, but I seriously doubt it. After CP3 limped to the locker room, game two, Denver won the rest of the game 41-28. Phoenix went 1-12 from 3 from that point forward. They lost by 10. KD and Book looked lost. The next day,

on Tuesday, Lil Wayne texted me this, and I quote, "Had to let a few tears go for CP. Man, that hurt to see. Spoke with him briefly just to tell him I love him." That text brought tears to my eyes, and yet I'll be honest, I was never the biggest CP3 fan. But the more I talked to Wayne about him,

the more he grew on me i mean any close friend of wayne's feels like he should be a friend of mine listen chris paul used to haunt my san antonio spurs back in his new orleans days one year new orleans took my spurs to a game seven at new orleans in 2007. my spurs sources told me

They considered Chris Paul a pit bull of a scorer. Back in the day, he could score. They just couldn't stop him. He was like a force of nature to them. Then you might remember 2015. Chris was a Clipper. Took my Spurs to seven games out here in LA. Pulled his hamstring in the fourth quarter, but somehow hobbled back into the game just in time

to hit a runner up over Tim Duncan that arced up into the rafters before it kissed off the glass and fell through. Clippers won 11-109. Yet Chris's hamstring was so pulled that he missed games one and two of the next round against Houston. Clippers won those two games without Chris.

They went up 3-1, and Chris came back and tried to play through his hamstring, and it plagued him to the point he just couldn't play. Rockets won three straight games in that series. Then the all-timer, the all-time bad break, 2018 conference finals. You'll probably remember this was Chris's Rockets in the process of going up 3-2 on Golden State, conference finals, and CP3 pulled up.

with another hamstring. He was gone. So was Houston. It was just James Harden from that point on. Rockets got rocked in game six and game seven. Game seven, they missed 27 straight threes. 27 straight. What a collapse that was and what a letdown for Chris and for Lil Wayne. Two years ago, you might remember, Chris missed the first two games of the conference finals with

a hamstring pull yet again. But in game six at Staples, Chris Paul went berserk, all-time berserk. Final minute and a half of the third quarter and then through the fourth quarter, he scored 27 of his 41 points. And Chris's sons were NBA finals bound. They won game one and two in Milwaukee, but after game two, Lil Wayne told me all Chris wanted to talk about was

Devon Booker had pulled his hamstring. Ugh, you're kidding. In game three, Book tried to play. He went 3 of 14, 1 of 7 from 3, scored a grand total of 10 points. He continued to try to tough it out. He hit. He mostly missed. Suns lost four straight, including a closeout game six in which Devon Booker went 8 of 22 and 0 of 7 from 3 with six turnovers. Double ugh.

So how do you explain Chris Paul's star-crossed, injury-plagued legacy? Just bad breaks, bad karma, injury guys just don't like him. I don't have a cosmic answer for you on this. I'm not sure. If I look at Chris's physiology, he's built like more of a fullback than a basketball player. Built stout, tightly wound. One story I heard early on in his career is that

He went to an off-season workout with Kobe Bryant, lasted 30 minutes, had enough, couldn't take it, never went back for another workout with Kobe. I'm told Chris did eventually get himself a trainer, get himself a nutritionist. But even now, to me, he doesn't look in peak shape. But of course, muscle pulls are often just about flexibility, as Brady says, pliability. They're about stretching, about yoga, about Pilates.

I don't know how much Chris Paul stretches before games, at halftime. I would hope a whole lot. But you know and I know some humans are just genetically predisposed to muscle pulls. Can't explain it. It just is what it is and isn't. It just seems like Chris Paul always pulls something at the worst possible postseason moment. I can't explain it. I can only hurt myself.

for Christopher Emmanuel Paul III and for Dwayne Michael Carter Jr. who loves Chris like a brother. Back to your questions. This is Nolan from Toronto. Do you have some sort of rotation for the Jordans you wear? Nolan, from Monday through Thursday, I just pick the Jordans that go best with my suit that's laid out for me each day here at Fox.

I have a bunch in my dressing room or I know what I'm going to wear the next day. So I bring a pair from home that works with said suit. But on Fridays, as you know, I wear all black. So honestly, on Fridays, I just go with my heart. Which Jays will make me feel most invincible that day? I can't lose in those shoes. So I don't have a rotation. I don't keep records. I just have...

when it comes to my Jordan's gut feelings. This is Kyle from Queens as in New York. How do you keep all your Jordans clean? Kyle, I now have so many Jordans that I never wear a single pair enough times to get that pair dirty. The only Jordans I ever get dirty are my golf shoes. I've got four pair of Jordan golf shoes and I wear

Jordans to play golf in almost every time I do play golf. I have one pair of Pumas that I like, but so forgive me, Michael, but I got one pair. They're old, but I still, they're favorites. But I swear, I hit my driver in golf farther when I wear my golf shoe ones, my Jordan ones, because they give me a better power base. And the truth is, I think they just give me more confidence.

I am Michael Jordan. Allow me just briefly to get something off my chest that's dear to my heart and deep in my soul. And this is about black-white relations in the National Football League. I have constantly bashed rich white owners for how few black head coaches they have. It's just shameful. Don't get me started. But now for a breakthrough that didn't get nearly enough attention and acclaim.

Quick story, back in the mid-1970s, by the grace of God, I got to experience sort of the forefront of black quarterbacks in the National Football League. At that point, I worked out here in LA for the LA Times, got to write a good bit about the Rams, and I got to know James Harris, Shaq as they called him. The first ever black quarterback to consistently start for an NFL team. I got to know that man.

He was a good man. He went on to be a very good GM in the National Football League. James, as you might remember, went to Grambling. So I talked my sports editor into sending me to Grambling that year because that year's Grambling team had an obviously black quarterback named Doug Williams, who I thought just might go number one overall in the draft. I got to spend a week at Grambling, Grambling, Louisiana,

with Doug Williams and with very possibly the greatest college coach ever, Eddie Robinson. Before I wrote a very lengthy story about Doug, which they stripped across the top of the front of the sports page, I called several NFL GMs to get their assessment of this potential number one overall pick. And one very prominent GM told me, "Doug doesn't have the mental capability to play that position in our league." Never forget that quote.

I used it anonymously. I'd tell you his name, may he rest in peace, but I'll just let it go. I still cringe when I read the quote. Doug Williams fell all the way to 17th in the first round, but 17th, Tampa Bay took him. He wound up playing for Washington, wound up becoming the first black quarterback to ever win a Super Bowl. So it was last Thursday night that I sat back thinking,

that those white guys who run the Carolina Panthers will probably talk themselves into taking the one big white quarterback with the big arm, number one overall. I'm talking about Will Levis. I just thought they'll probably talk themselves into it because that's what white guys do who run NFL teams. Will Levis, prototypical pocket passer, has all the measurables, arguably the biggest arm in the draft. I thought they'll go that way.

No, Carolina correctly took little Bryce Young, who's going to be a big star. Then, as you know, Houston took C.J. Stroud. Then, as you know, Indy at number four took Anthony Richardson. Three of the first four quarterbacks taken were black quarterbacks. The only three taken in the first round were three black quarterbacks. Will Levis didn't go until early in the second round. Huh.

And next came Hinn and Hooker, as I previously mentioned, early in the third round to Detroit. So four of the first five quarterbacks taken were black quarterbacks. That's a breakthrough. That's progress. That's worthy of a standing ovation. That didn't get nearly enough attention. And somewhere, I thought, on Thursday night late, Doug Williams had to be smiling.

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This is Marcus from Fresno, California. On the golf course, are you too in the zone to talk or do you enjoy socializing? I read this question to my wife, Ernestine, and she laughed and laughed and laughed some more. My wife, Ernestine, has driven the cart for me on many golf courses all over the country. My wife, Ernestine, when I go home to Oklahoma City in the summer to play with my high school friends, friends from high school,

She often goes out with the guys and drives the car. So she knows all about me and golf and she knows I am a complete psycho on the golf course. I take it way too seriously. My fuse is way too short. I am capable, highly capable of making two or three birdies and breaking 80. She will attest. I'm also...

Just as capable of coming completely unglued, self-destructing, and failing to break 90. So, no, I want no distracting sports talk or life talk on the golf course. I go to the golf course to escape from sports and life for just a little while. To escape inside my psycho brain.

Nothing in life makes me happier than making a birdie and nothing in life makes me angrier than making a triple bogey. So I am sorry. There is no socializing in my foursome on my golf course. Sorry, Ernestine. This is Oliver from Milwaukee. Do you consider yourself quote unquote high maintenance with all the routines and jinxes you adhere to? Oliver.

Thank you for this question. Ernestine thanks you for this question because I read this question to Ernestine and she said it was her all-time favorite question in the history of this podcast. 63 episodes going. This is her all-time favorite that I've ever answered on this podcast, says my wife Ernestine. So we began to discuss this concept and it led to a quote-unquote disagreement between us.

that turned into an argument between us which escalated into a full-on fight between me and my wife Ernestine. I believe with all my heart and soul I am extremely low maintenance, extremely low maintenance. She says I am the goat of high maintenance. So I said to my wife Ernestine, "Now wait a second. I am completely predictable. I follow exactly the same routine every minute of every day.

I never go out with the guys, which obviously in some cases can lead to going out with the girls. I do not play poker every Wednesday night like some guys do. I never mysteriously just drop out of pocket for, I don't know, four or five hours. I told her, you know exactly where I am every second of every day because I let you know.

Yet, I told her, "I give you complete freedom. You have lots of guy friends. I never check up on you. I'm low maintenance." And she launched into a diatribe about how hard I am to live with. Psycho jinxes and suicidal mood swings after I lose a big game or a bet to Shannon Sharpe. I sweat the small stuff. I take everything way too seriously. And she says, "You're never wrong.

As usual, I lost this debate to my wife Ernestine. Okay, so I'm high maintenance. Final question is from Alex from Columbus, Ohio. What do you consider your best at? Man, Alex, that is one of the best questions I have ever been asked on this podcast. For me, that's a deep question, but I will try. Okay, so as cliched as this is going to sound, it is the truth.

I believe I'm best at doing my very best every single minute of every single day. I'm talking about professionally, not on the home front. Doing my best every single minute of every single workday. High school, college kids often ask me, how did you rise up the ladder so quickly and get to where you are?

I always tell them, I just outworked everybody. Honestly, I work nights, I work weekends, I still do. I did it from the first year I was out of college. Gotta work nights, I'll work nights. Weekends, I'll work all weekend, every weekend. I do get up at two o'clock in the morning out here, Pacific Coast time, to prep for Undisputed. And some of these nights with these late NBA games,

I don't get to bed until 11, so do the math, 11 to 2, that's what I sleep. And by the way, just for the record, I hate, I despise getting up early. My first, I don't know, 20 years in this business, in the newspaper business, I was a night owl. I slept late, got up late.

Now I'm getting up at two o'clock in the morning, which seems like the middle of the night to me, but that's the price I had to pay, that I have to pay. That's what's required to make Undisputed as successful as it has been for these, below these, what are we, six and a half years. Look, if you'll let me go even deeper here, yep, I do believe in God. I do pray. I do go to church. And I do believe that God gave me some abilities. Then it's up to me.

whether I maximize the abilities given. And do I ever try? God knows I try. My late mother always told me what I do best is write. She said, you're a writer, natural born writer. You can write books, columns, magazine articles. You should write. My wife Ernestine thinks I'm best on television. Just know this, I give you my absolute best every single topic every day on Undisputed.

Just know this, I live for Undisputed. I live for this podcast. I live for my career, much to Ernestine's dismay. Now, what do I do best on TV? I'll go a level deeper. I believe God gave me very good instincts for debating sports on live TV. I'm talking about instincts to sort of see it, anticipate it, say it before it even happens.

Over time, and it took a while, I have learned to trust those instincts I was given, to have the courage of my convictions, have the guts to say what I see even if and when it's not popular. LeBron, Steph, I will tell you the absolute truth about their performances and I will back it up with facts. I watch everything. I watch closely. I research hard.

I come prepared. As I've often said, I wouldn't want to debate me every day because I would wear me out. So what I do best on TV is I bring fresh opinions every single day that are derived from carefully watching games and carefully studying, thinking about between the lines of breaking news. And I argue these opinions with all my heart and soul

with every ounce that I have to give, every topic, every day. I love to compete. I love to battle. I love to stand strong for what I believe, which brings me in the end to what I do worst. I do try way too hard. I am way too driven. I do take all of this way too seriously. I do make it hard on the people I work with in a good way, but hard on them

And I make it especially hard on the person, the one person I live with. Forgive me, Ernestine, if only I could try harder to quit trying so hard. Every night after I kiss Ernestine goodnight, she says to me, "Just take it light tomorrow." I am trying to take it light. I'm actually doing my best to not do my very best.

That is it for episode 63. Thank you for listening and or watching. Thanks to Jonathan Berger and his All Pro team for making this show go. Thanks to Tyler Korn for producing. Please remember, Undisputed, every weekday, 9.30 to noon Eastern Time, the Skip Bayless Show, every week.