Hang Up And Listen

Joel Anderson and Josh Levin are joined by Yahoo’s Seerat Sohi to talk about the latest NBA deals. Jessica Luther then joins Joel, Josh, and Stefan Fatsis to discuss LSU’s mishandling of sexual misconduct allegations. Finally, Grant Wahl comes on to talk about American Prodigy, his new podcast on soccer phenom Freddy Adu. NBA (03:17): What moves will make the biggest impact on the coming season? And is Giannis going to stay in Milwaukee? LSU (21:57): What Yahoo’s investigation revealed, and what should come next. Freddy Adu (44:54): Why was he so hyped? Was his career a failure? Afterball (01:06:43): Joel on Utah high school football amid the coronavirus. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Joel Anderson, Stefan Fatsis, and Josh Levin are joined by FanGraphs’ Meg Rowley to discuss the Marlins’ hiring of Kim Ng as baseball’s first woman general manager. They also talk about the putrid NFC East and why the sports world has failed to adjust as the COVID crisis worsens. Kim Ng (02:54): Why did it take so long for her—or any woman—to get a job running a major-league team? NFC East (21:55): How pro football’s showcase division got so bad. COVID (39:42): Will the games still go on this winter? And why are leagues still insisting on having fans in the stands? Afterball (57:14): Josh on domestic abuse allegations against tennis star Alexander Zverev. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Joel Anderson, Stefan Fatsis, and Josh Levin discuss the differences between election TV and sports TV, and whether election forecasters should be criticized. They also compare how a great sports victory compares to a political one. And they discuss Notre Dame’s win over Clemson and the field-storming that followed. Election TV (4:12): Can cable news learn something from how sports are covered? Sports victories vs. political victories (24:23): Do we prefer landslides/blowouts or the thrill of a last-second win? Notre Dame-Clemson (43:16): A great college football game feels different in 2020. Afterball (58:36): Stefan on the heroism of Nebraska state senator Ernie Chambers. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Joel Anderson, Stefan Fatsis, and Josh Levin discuss the positive COVID tests for the Dodgers’ Justin Turner and Clemson’s Trevor Lawrence. WNBA player Renee Montgomery then joins to talk about the More Than a Vote campaign. Finally, they revisit Ruth Shalit Barrett’s article about rich parents and niche sports, which the Atlantic has now retracted.  Positive COVID tests (03:17): Why are outbreaks spreading in college football? And how have fans responded to Justin Turner’s maskless on-field celebration? Renee Montgomery (23:03): Why she opted out of the WNBA season and how she approaches social activism. Ruth Shalit Barrett (40:52): What lessons should be learned from the Atlantic’s decision to assign the story to Barrett, and then to retract it in its entirety? Afterballs (01:00:56): Joel on Billy Tubbs and Josh on an NFL rule that needs to change. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Joel Anderson, Stefan Fatsis, and Josh Levin discuss the likely and unlikely heroes of the 2020 World Series. ESPN’s Myron Medcalf also comes on to talk about how the pandemic is affecting college sports “have nots” like UC Riverside. Finally, the hosts are joined by … a mystery guest! World Series (02:02): Where did Brett Phillips come from? And how did Clayton Kershaw transform his postseason legacy? UC Riverside (20:34): Why this Division I school is considering eliminating sports entirely. Mystery guest (37:31): A sports innovator joins the show. Will Joel and Stefan be able to guess who he is? Afterball (55:14): Josh on Andrew Giuliani’s failed lawsuit after he got kicked off the Duke University golf team. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Joel Anderson, Stefan Fatsis, and Josh Levin are joined by the Ringer’s Ben Lindbergh to discuss the World Series matchup between the Dodgers and the Rays. They also discuss Billy Beane reportedly leaving the Oakland A’s and Daryl Morey departing the Houston Rockets. Finally, they assess an Atlantic piece on rich white parents using niche sports to get their kids into Ivy League schools. World Series (02:12): What do the Dodgers and Rays have in common, and what are the differences between baseball’s best teams?  Beane and Morey (21:09): What’s the legacy of the sports world’s best-known analytically inclined executives? Rich parents and niche sports (39:12): On the culture of high-level squash and college admissions. Afterball (58:20): Joel on Derrick Henry, the rare star high school running back who made it in the NFL. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Joel Anderson, Stefan Fatsis, and Louisa Thomas discuss the end of the NBA’s bubble season, quarterback Alex Smith’s return from a gruesome 2018 leg injury, and the French Open victories of Rafael Nadal and Iga Swiatek. NBA finals (02:42): LeBron James won his fourth NBA title, this one with the Los Angeles Lakers. NFL (20:29): Is Alex Smith’s return to the NFL an inspiring comeback or a moral dilemma? French Open (37:32): Rafael Nadal won his 20th major and Iga Swiatek won her very first tournament.  Afterballs (52:44): Louisa on the mysterious life of tennis great Alice Marble and Stefan on when athlete deaths start to hit home. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Joel Anderson, Stefan Fatsis, and Josh Levin talk about Jimmy Butler’s masterful performance in Game 3 of the NBA Finals. They also discuss the NFL’s first big coronavirus outbreak and the opening week of the baseball playoffs. Finally, they’re joined by Chantel Jennings of the Athletic for a conversation about the WNBA Finals. NBA (02:47): What makes Jimmy Butler tick? Will he lead the Heat back against the Lakers? NFL (13:03): How has the league responded to its first big COVID challenge? MLB (25:19): Assessing the weird, unprecedented pandemic postseason. WNBA (37:01): Why are the Seattle Storm so dominant? Afterball (54:11): Josh on the strange endurance of Norm Van Brocklin’s single-game NFL passing yardage record. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Joel Anderson, Stefan Fatsis, and Josh Levin talk about the NBA Finals matchup between the Heat and the Lakers. They also discuss why they’re watching college football and life inside the NHL bubble. Finally, they’re joined by Father Edwin Leahy to discuss the documentary series Benedict Men. NBA (02:11): How did the Heat rebuild after LeBron left? And do they have a chance against LeBron now? College football and the NHL (16:22): Why we can’t shake an immoral sport, and what we’ve learned about the pro hockey postseason. Benedict Men (33:44): Why does a critic of big-time high school basketball preside over one of the nation’s top basketball programs? Afterball (47:54): Stefan on Brian’s Song, which has not aged well. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Joel Anderson, Stefan Fatsis, and Josh Levin talk about the Lakers’ win over the Nuggets and the Seahawks’ win over the Patriots. They also discuss the Big Ten’s decision to play football this fall. Finally, Slate’s Jim Newell joins to assess U.S. Open champion Bryson DeChambeau. Sunday in sports (02:24): Four good teams, two great finishes. Are sports normal again?  Big Ten (20:36): Is it surprising that the conference uncancelled the fall football season? DeChambeau (37:47): What you need to know about golf’s weirdo tinkerer. Afterball (57:01): Joel on Deion Sanders, a bad coaching hire. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Joel Anderson, Stefan Fatsis, and Josh Levin talk about the NFL’s opening weekend. They also discuss Naomi Osaka’s victory and her outspokenness at the U.S. Open. Finally, they survey happenings in college football, the NBA, and the Premier League.  NFL (02:56): The protests, Tom Brady’s interceptions, and everything else that happened on and off the field. U.S. Open (20:56): How Naomi Osaka found her voice. Sports mania (40:32): What we watched and thought about on one of the biggest sports weekends ever. Afterball (01:00:21): Josh on the worst punts in football history. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Stefan Fatsis and Josh Levin are joined by the Washington Post’s Ben Golliver to talk about the NBA playoffs. Tennis player Noah Rubin also joins to discuss Novak Djokovic’s disqualification and life in the U.S. Open bubble. And finally, Dom Cosentino of theScore comes on for a conversation about the start of the NFL season. NBA playoffs (01:52): What’s gone wrong for the Bucks? Are the Clippers still title favorites? Should the Rockets build a statue of P.J. Tucker? U.S. Open (22:38): Did Djokovic deserve to get tossed out? What’s going on behind the scenes in pro tennis during the pandemic? NFL (47:56): What will the league’s social justice protests look like, and what will the Patriots and Bucs do on the field? Afterball (01:05:10): Stefan on Stefanos Tsitsipas tweeting his feelings. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Joel Anderson, Josh Levin, and special guest Vinson Cunningham of the New Yorker discuss the aftermath of last week’s NBA strike. They also talk about the life and legacy of Georgetown basketball coach John Thompson. Finally, the Athletic’s Lindsay Jones joins to assess the latest reporting on the toxic culture of the Washington football team. NBA strike (01:40): Why did the players decide to come back? What did they gain? John Thompson (21:51): How he changed college basketball. Washington Football Team (41:38): What will it take for the NFL to have a #MeToo reckoning? Afterball (01:04:30): Joel on Cliff Robinson and the 1990-1991 Portland Trail Blazers. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Joel Anderson, Stefan Fatsis, and Josh Levin get together for a special podcast on NBA players’ decision to boycott playoff games after the shooting of Jacob Blake in Kenosha, Wisconsin. They discuss how the strike spread throughout the sports world, whether the NBA season will be cancelled, and how the pandemic might have factored into this unprecedented protest. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Joel Anderson and Stefan Fatsis discuss Luka Doncic’s spectacular performance for the Dallas Mavericks in the NBA playoffs. They are joined by David Ubben of the Athletic to talk about the return of high-school football across the country. And Josh interviews Ethan Strauss of the Athletic about declining television ratings in the NBA. Luka Doncic (01:51): The 21-year-old Slovenian is already one of the best players in the NBA. High-school football (18:35): While colleges debate what to do, high schools are plowing ahead with football. NBA ratings (32:35): Are declining TV ratings a sign of big trouble for the NBA?  Afterballs (51:41) Joel Anderson on rape allegations against football player Derrius Giuce. Stefan Fatsis on former NBA benchwarmer and youth-sports advocate Bob Bigelow, who died last week.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Joel Anderson, Stefan Fatsis, and Josh Levin discuss the 100th anniversary of baseball’s Negro Leagues. They’re also joined by the New York Times’ Rory Smith to talk about the Champions League. Finally, Louisa Thomas comes on for a conversation about the book Losers: Dispatches from the Other Side of the Scoreboard. Negro Leagues (03:35): How can MLB truly grapple with its segregationist past? Champions League (22:28): The storylines, the upsets, the excellent moments for North Americans. Losers (43:28): What makes a loser? What’s the difference between losing and failing? Afterballs (01:03:15): Joel on the Phoenix Suns and Stefan on the term “student-athlete.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this Plus preview, Joel Anderson, Josh Levin, and Slate’s Ben Mathis-Lilley talk about the battle over the 2020 college football season. To help support Hang Up and Listen and listen to every episode in full, sign up now for Slate Plus. Members get to skip the ads and get bonus segments and episodes on many Slate podcasts. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Joel Anderson, Stefan Fatsis, and Josh Levin talk about the NBA’s strong restart and Major League Baseball’s disastrous season. They’re also joined by UCLA’s Otito Ogbonnia and Elisha Guidry for a conversation about the #WeAreUnited movement. Finally, they discuss Joel’s piece about Liberty University’s attempt to become a sports powerhouse—and why Black athletes have started leaving the school. NBA and MLB (02:42): What the NBA is doing right and what baseball is doing wrong. #WeAreUnited (22:46): How Pac-12 football players came together, and what reforms they want to see in college sports. Liberty (45:34): Can Jerry Falwell Jr.’s school overcome its racist past and present to become a college sports juggernaut? Afterball (01:05:07): Stefan on the Seattle Sockeyes’ romance novel roots. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this Plus Preview, Joel Anderson, Stefan Fatsis, and Josh Levin talk about the spread of COVID in Major League Baseball. What should the Miami Marlins and Major League Baseball do in response to the team’s coronavirus outbreak? To help support Hang Up and Listen and listen to every episode in full, sign up now for Slate Plus. Members get to skip the ads and get bonus segments and episodes on many Slate podcasts. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hang Up listeners, we thought you'd enjoy this episode of Slate's daily news show What Next. The NBA has announced an ambitious plan to restart the season more than four months after it was abruptly halted due to the coronavirus. Twenty-two teams have entered the COVID-free “bubble” at Disney’s Wide World of Sports in Orlando, Florida—a state with some of the highest cases of coronavirus in the country. As long as players and staff remain in the bubble, they will undergo regular coronavirus tests and face strict campus rules. So what’s life like inside the NBA bubble? And what does this experiment say about who gets access to coronavirus testing and results? Guest: Ben Golliver covers the NBA for the Washington Post.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices