A great talk with Jay Caspan Kang on his viral, “Heir Ball: How the Cost of Youth Sports Is Changing the N.B.A.” We also discuss Jay’s BULLYING of Christine Brennan over her defense of Caitlin Clark. Topics include but aren’t limited to…

* Why youth sports is insanely competitive right now

* Jay’s own misgivings about becoming a competitive sports dad

* Why is t…

Dieter Kurtenbach and Jake Hutchinson have done for 49ers Youtube what pod friend Nate Duncan did for NBA podcasting. I’m entranced by how Dieter and Hutch have decided to build an audience by getting as niche as possible about my local football team. And so we dig into what they’re doing and why it works. Enjoy!

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Mike Silver, senior NFL writer at the Athletic, has written a remarkable book. “The Why Is Everything” is, in my opinion, the type of work that will no longer happen in the modern access-constrained world. So we get into it, exploring the coaching rivalries that shaped modern football and analyzing the friend/enemy relationships involved. Topics include but aren’t limited to…

* Why is the “why” important for players to understand?

* “It’s a crazy business. I’ve seen people fire their brothers.”

* Five future head coaches worked on one 2013 Washington Redskins staff: Kyle Shanahan, Sean McVay, Matt LaFleur, Raheem Morris, and Mike McDaniel

* Is Sean McVay a big hypocrite? Or just uncommonly vulnerable?

* Mike McDaniel was Kyle Shanahan’s right hand man, to the point where Kyle undermined Mike’s dreams

* What was working at the Daily Cal like for Mike and myself?

* Will sports writers be replaced by AI technology?

* Why the hell isn’t Mike Shanahan in the NFL Hall of Fame?!

Stop by live, Friday, at 2way.tv/ethan, where I can discuss most things and Mike Pesca can discuss everything. Topics I’d like to get into include NBA Finals, sports gambling as indicator of sports decline, plus the emergent visibility of baby boomer liberals in protest culture. Also…do we dare discuss Israel/Iran? See you there!

After angering Stratechery’s Daman Rangoola in private about his JOY over Wednesday’s Lakers team sale, I decided to allow his grievances to be aired in public. Or at least behind this paywall. Beyond being highly informed about the tech world, Daman is a Laker obsessive, with ties to people in the know. And so we discussed topics including but not limited to…

* Was I improperly throwing cold water on Laker fan excitement?

* What’s up with the trend of hyped ownership changes going poorly?

* Did Mark Cuban negotiate a bad team sale price?

* How can Daman compliment Jeanie and be so damned thrilled?

* Is Luka Doncic an OWNER KILLER???

* End of NBA mom and pop shops

* What should even get improved by the new Lakers?

* Is Rob Pelinka guaranteed to be fired?

* Why does the NBA allow the interruption of its Finals with this stuff?

* Should the NBA overtly take over the WNBA?

Our old friend and Yahoo!/Substack NBA writer Tom Haberstoh is here for some analytical diving. Great talk in my humble opinion. Topics include but aren’t limited to…

* Tom and I made Tim MacMahon famous and he owes us big time

* Is a Thunder-Pacers Finals good for the NBA?

* Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is the new Tim Duncan

* Does SGA not have a signature move? Which stars have what signature moves?

* If you take away the steroid peak, is current Aaron Judge better than Barry Bonds?

* Is Tyrese Haliburton not a superstar?

* Are NBA coaches less valuable than ever?

* How many draft picks would you trade for your team to acquire Sam Presti?

* It’s time for NBA coaches to wear suits again!

Our man Glass is here to discuss an oddly contentious week in sports media. Prominent names are fighting, so we decided to give our takes on what the hell is happening. Topics include but aren’t limited to…

* Is Bill Simmons right that ESPN will fuck up Inside the NBA?

* Ryen Russillo draws ire of Mina Kimes over a harmless joke

* Towel snapping maleness of Inside

* Bill Simmons vs. Pablo Torre (A B.S. report with Pablo was released right after we recorded, so perhaps not history’s most contentious feud)

* LeBron James vs. Brian Windhorst

* How successful is LeBron’s Mind the Game podcast?

* Is there are a big audience for basketball strategy in a podcast?

* “NBA ratings don’t matter,” say people who seem to love when they’re up

* The “High Floor, Low Ceiling” theory of NBA viewership

* How big is the impact of small markets on viewership?

* Is Pride Month now Pride Day in sports?

* Why do sports teams tweet more about Pride than other corporations?

* Elon Musk going at Trump’s bill on Twitter/X