Episodes
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Early this week, I texted Kirk Goldsberry to invite him onto the pod and talk about his awesome new book, HOOP ATLAS: Mapping the Remarkable Transformation of the Modern NBA. He was in. He had one request.
Can we get Brandon Payne on too?
YES.
A man of many talents, Goldsberry is a professor of Sports Analytics at the University of Texas and has worked at ESPN and the San Antonio Spurs, and evidently, he is also a great producer. It was a great hour with Goldsberry and Payne.
Goldsberry’s changed the way we watch and talk about basketball, if not changed basketball itself. In his chapter on Stephen Curry, Goldsberry talked to our pal Brandon Payne, Curry’s longtime trainer, and shared a bunch of insights on what makes Curry one of one. You should pick up Goldsberry’s book at your local Amazon store. Tell ‘em I sent ya!
We caught Payne just before he headed out to The Bay to run some workouts with Curry before he jets off to France for the Olympics this summer. As always, he shared so much wisdom with us about basketball, especially here in the States compared to abroad.
On this episode, we hit a bunch of topics:
* The technology that Stephen Curry uses in workouts
* Why the nose is so important
* Why swishes aren’t good enough for Payne re: Steph
* Goldsberry’s campaign to kill the corner 3
* The return of the bigs
* The problem with American youth basketball
* What is Wemby going to do to basketball?
* Are there too many 3s?
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You might have seen the Patrick Mahomes stat that went viral this week. The man behind that stat, , joins us this week at The Finder.
An old colleague from the ESPN days, the whip-smart proprietor of Neil’s Substack talks about using numbers to do premium storytelling, his final days at the now-defunct The Messenger, Denver’s altitude as a superpower, the full-circle response to his “infamous” Andrew Wiggins story, reimagining the Kobe Bryant clutch debate, his recent post on an NBA efficiency paradox and what he learned while working in the Atlanta Hawks’ basketball operations.
Really great to catch up with Paine. Follow my lead and subscribe to his Substack!
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After Kyrie Irving dropped 44 on the red-hot Knicks, we had to run it back with Brandon Payne.
Stephen Curry’s longtime trainer Brandon Payne couldn’t wait to talk about Irving’s array of shot-making, creativity and space creation. What struck me about Irving is how unique his moves are. Totally unpredictable. No one else is like him.
On Friday we ran thr…
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Victor Wembanyama celebrated his 20th birthday by melting candles and melting minds on Thursday.
27 points, 9 rebounds and 5 blocks in just 26 minutes against Milwaukee Bucks’ frontline of Giannis Antetokounmpo and Brook Lopez. The numbers don’t do his performance justice.
The behind-the-back And-1 dunk in transition on Brook Lopez.
The backdoor cut that j…
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Stephen Curry dropped 36 points on Tuesday night against Orlando with a couple shots that made its way through socials.
Since y’all seemed to love the Steph moonball video we did, I sent out the Brandon Payne bat signal.
He’s been Stephen Curry’s skills trainer and shot guru for Curry for years.
We went through each and every one of Curry’s 12 makes. Slow…
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One of my favorite people (and a favorite to so many others in the NBA universe), my friend Travonne “Tray” Edwards joins the pod at a very … let’s say transitional time in my life.
The copywriter at top ad agency Weiden-Kennedy / author of two books / confidante to NBA stars / Count The Dings co-founder / social media expert / Compton native / amazing teammate helps me untangle the web of emotions following my mother’s recent death.
First, the social media guru explains the memification of the Mexico aliens and how to game the Twitter/X/Instagram system. We ask: is it actually shameful to pay for Twitter Blue?
Then we get to the heavy stuff. The text he sent me after my mom died. Grief. Loss. Childhood trauma. Forgiveness and what it was like to have a mom who was 14. The difference between a mom and Mom. Gratitude. Spiritual healing. A lot.
Then he breaks some big news about Team USA.
As he texted me after, “it’s not a pod it’s a open convo.”
Enjoy. And go follow Tray.
Thank you to super producer Anthony Mayes.
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This week’s guest is ESPN’s Dan Orlovsky, a former NFL quarterback and terrific TV analyst for ESPN NFL Live and Monday Night Football. He’s also bff’s with my older brother Chuck.
This week on the pod, we discuss:
* Why don’t pro athletes play two sports anymore? My recent piece on Bo and Deion.
* Why specialization and year-round youth sports is “suffocating” kids
* Why Dan doesn’t want to parent like his father
* Did the end zone blooper make him a better TV analyst?
* Could Calvin Johnson have played in the NBA/MLB?
* Did the official NFL data get his first TD wrong?
* Why he loves to make fun of himself
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I was going to wait a bit before I launched a podcast on The Finder. And then on Tuesday, ESPN went ahead and announced ESPN The Sportsbook! Kinda.
I had lots of questions so I asked my two industry buddies/gurus to hop on — the Bens.
Ben Fawkes — formerly of ESPN Chalk, the gambling section of ESPN.com, and VSiN — came to us from Vegas to share his sports betting expertise from the inside.
Ben Aronson, a longtime media/marketing executive, weighs in on the sports business side.
A little rundown …
🔦 Why did this happen now? Was it the earnings call?
🔦 Why Penn? How much market share do they have?
🔦 How does this impact newsbreakers like Adam Schefter and Adrian Wojnarowski? Is this why Woj all of a sudden stopped tipping his NBA Draft picks?
🔦 Will this make ESPN’s app indispensable?
🔦 Should ESPN restrict what kind of bets ESPN Bet offers? Should employees be allowed to gamble on sports?
So … what’s your bet on how this plays out?
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Wondering where Habershow went? They boarded the pirate ship with Meadowlark Media. Subscribe to Basketball Illuminati now
Tired of agenda-driven basketball talk that only offers glimpses of the truth? Wish there was a place you could get the full picture? Basketball Illuminati offers you salvation. Go behind the scenes with insider analysis previously restricted from the general public. Fearless NBA Insiders Amin Elhassan and Tom Haberstroh peel back the curtain on the “why” things happen in the NBA.
Email us: [email protected]
Twitter: @bballilluminati
Instagram: @basketballilluminati
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Amin and Tom break down the ramifications of the CJ McCollum trade, what it means for the future of the organization, how Damian Lillard will handle the breakup, and Tom's Trivia indicates how much of an outlier the pairing has been in NBA history.
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Tom and Amin are joined by just another kid from Akron, Rachel DeMita, to discuss her celebrity game resume, Shaq's life advice, the shell game that is the college recruiting process, H-O-R-S-E strategies, Barberton's famous fried chicken, and so much more.
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Amin and Tom discuss the white on white basketball crime plaguing the league, John Stockton's big numbers, James Harden's alleged dissatisfaction with Brooklyn, Daryl Morey's most desired target for Ben Simmons, Grant Hill's Sprite Commercials, and the most ejected players in recent NBA history. All facts and sources credited to Ballsack Sports.
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Tom and Amin discuss Frank Vogel's chair temperature, his lack of contract extension given other coaches with his resume, and what it means about his relationship with GM LeBron. Then they step in the way back machine to look at who the biggest losers in NBA history snapped their losing streaks against.
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Tom and Amin discuss Chauncey Billups' glowing comments about Kyrie Irving, the subtle differences between skill, talent and IQ, the latest addition the MVP conversation, Point Guard tiers, the plight of Russell Westbrook, and finally a walk down memory lane to the magical 90-91 Denver Nuggets squad.
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Amin and Tom discuss the futility of monthly player awards, the return of Kyrie and Klay, the Warriors crowded rotation, Josh Giddey becoming the youngest to record a triple double, and Kevin Porter Jr's antics.
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Amin and Tom tackle the ongoing soap opera that is the health and safety protocols in the NBA, Nate McMillan's history of getting fined, the invention and instant popularization of the hardship 10 day contract and Kareem's criticism of LeBron's meme posting.
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Tom and Amin are joined once again by the wonderful Renee Montgomery to discuss the inevitable health and safety protocol saga taking over the league, the disposition of small guards, Stephen Curry's campaign to ruin the game, how to run and defend the elevator doors play, and what it's like to have a Christmas song written about your love life. Finally, Tom's Trivia on who the greatest Christmas Day scorer of all time is.
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Tom and Amin bring back the third member of their merry trio, cog in the victory machine Ethan Sherwood Strauss to discuss Nikola Jokic' position in the MVP conversation, the resurgent covid crisis facing the NBA, and of course, dueling Stephen A impressions.
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https://houseofstrauss.substack.com
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Amin and Tom are joined by Caitlin Cooper to investigate all things Pacers after the report that they are moving towards a rebuild and receptive to trade discussions for Caris LeVert, Damontas Sabonis and Myles Turner. What are the ideal fits around those players? Will Pacers attendance ever surpass the interest in local high school games? Does a rebuild mean they'll select in the top ten for the first time in decades? Tune in to find out.
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Tom and Amin are joined by Sam Amick to discuss the tampering fines assessed by the league against Miami and Chicago, when Bogdan Bogdanovich was "betraded", the Kangs management situation, and if the Lakers are salvageable. Finally some Tom's Trivia and an Amin rant about Lavar Ball.
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