Bill Simmons: Good Luck With Your Life.

DJnVa

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bankshot1 said:
I also posted this in the Grantand thread, but IMO the new page design at ESPN.com all but hides access to Grantland and 538, and led me to wonder if ESPN is trying to kill off those sites.
 
And I'm waiting for the Simmons rant/lawsuit.
 
 
Uh, Grantland and 538 are right in the middle of the main ESPN page.
 
 

ifmanis5

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Interesting podcast from Bill explaining how he got to ESPN.com. I had totally forgotten he was a big links guy. I also remembered that I pretty much ignored all those links.
 
Also of note is that he admitted he was totally burned out on writing at a few points in his career. Is this why he doesn't write as much anymore now? Left unsaid is that perhaps he feels he had taken his writing as far as he could take it and so he's unofficially done with it. And by it, I mean growing and evolving as a writer and trying hard. It would explain his decline in output and quality in the past 5 years or so.
 

Blacken

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This might be the most interesting podcast that Simmons has ever done. Worth a listen even if you're not a regular podcast listener.
 

Cellar-Door

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ifmanis5 said:
Interesting podcast from Bill explaining how he got to ESPN.com. I had totally forgotten he was a big links guy. I also remembered that I pretty much ignored all those links.
 
Also of note is that he admitted he was totally burned out on writing at a few points in his career. Is this why he doesn't write as much anymore now? Left unsaid is that perhaps he feels he had taken his writing as far as he could take it and so he's unofficially done with it. And by it, I mean growing and evolving as a writer and trying hard. It would explain his decline in output and quality in the past 5 years or so.
I think the output declined because he's running a multimedia empire.
The quality is similar to what it always was, it just isn't fresh anymore because other people do it better.
 

ifmanis5

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Cellar-Door said:
I think the output declined because he's running a multimedia empire.
The quality is similar to what it always was, it just isn't fresh anymore because other people do it better.
I disagree but that's fine. It was an good listen for those who haven't heard it.
 

Cellar-Door

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adam42381 said:
Are you guys referencing the Wesley Morris podcast from Friday? Looking for something to listen to while playing The Show this evening.
Yeah, the first 1/3 or so is Bill solo recapping how he came to work for ESPN, from College on. Then Wesley Morris comes on.
 

ifmanis5

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Listening to LeBron's mouthpiece Windhorst try to conjure up a Olynyk did it on purpose theory was totally laughable. "The ball went left but Love's arm went right, YOU CAN'T DENT THAT, Bill!" Great point Brian, shoulder don't lie.
 

allstonite

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ifmanis5 said:
Listening to LeBron's mouthpiece Windhorst try to conjure up a Olynyk did it on purpose theory was totally laughable. "The ball went left but Love's arm went right, YOU CAN'T DENT THAT, Bill!" Great point Brian, shoulder don't lie.
 
I just came in to post about that. Holy shit he sucks. He said Love does the exact thing on every rebound but it's only bad when goofy Olynyk does it.  And then pivots from talking about the play into going on and on about how cute the Celtics were but they have no future, all unprompted by Bill, was truly incredible. 
 

ifmanis5

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allstonite said:
I just came in to post about that. Holy shit he sucks. He said Love does the exact thing on every rebound but it's only bad when goofy Olynyk does it.  And then pivots from talking about the play into going on and on about how cute the Celtics were but they have no future, all unprompted by Bill, was truly incredible. 
So true. Brian explains Love's technique as "he isn't athletic or quick so he gets his hands on guys and pushes them in the chest" for every rebound. Oh, so he's fouling guys on every play, great technique! And I also loved Detective Windhorst who went back and called everyone who's every played with Olynyk going back to Canada AAU just to make sure he's a good guy. What a fucking tool.
 

Carmine Hose

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Windhorst is classic.  He really seems to take himself serious.  The way he "analyzes" basketball, when his qualification is that he went to the same HS - but not at the same time - with LeBron, is hilarious.  He treats it like he's covering foreign policy issues.
 
And to believe he actually contacted a bunch of people in Canada to check on Olynyk's background is laughable.
 

Ed Hillel

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Windhorst is like fat fat Jonah Hill. He's basically to LeBron James what Pedro Gomez was to Barry Bonds. Listening to a dude from Cleveland talk with all the gravitas of a Jets fan is something special. At least the Jets won something like 46 years ago.
 

ifmanis5

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I'm gonna get on the phone and talk to guys in High School who knew Windhorst to see if he was a tool back then or not. Context is important.
 

Revkeith

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Someone else said it better than I:

Most people who stalk a high schooler get arrested. Brian Windhorst turned it into a career.
 

Three10toLeft

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Does anyone know why Bill came out with a separate podcast, Bill Don't Lie? The format is the exact same, the topics are pretty much the same, seeing as though he still covers NBA topics on the BS Report.
 
The only thing I could think of is maybe he could take Bill Don't Lie with him if he were to go rogue once his contract with ESPN is up, and maybe the BS Report is property that belongs to ESPN.
 

JimBoSox9

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Three10toLeft said:
Does anyone know why Bill came out with a separate podcast, Bill Don't Lie? The format is the exact same, the topics are pretty much the same, seeing as though he still covers NBA topics on the BS Report.
 
The only thing I could think of is maybe he could take Bill Don't Lie with him if he were to go rogue once his contract with ESPN is up, and maybe the BS Report is property that belongs to ESPN.
 
My $10 says the BDL show has less restrictive editorial oversight from corporate, and in return gets a much less significant cross-platform syndication/promotion push.  I'm just guessing, but it's his main pet peeve, it's a thing they'd definitely want back, and the brand split is an easy way to do it.
 

deanx0

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Three10toLeft said:
Does anyone know why Bill came out with a separate podcast, Bill Don't Lie? The format is the exact same, the topics are pretty much the same, seeing as though he still covers NBA topics on the BS Report.
 
The only thing I could think of is maybe he could take Bill Don't Lie with him if he were to go rogue once his contract with ESPN is up, and maybe the BS Report is property that belongs to ESPN.
 
Why have just the #1 podcast on the sports & recreation chart, when you can have #1 and #2?
 

Nick Kaufman

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Simmons put up another podcast with Voulgaris on Wednesday and I can't recommend it enough. I listened to it right after the one he did with Zach Lowe on Monday and while Lowe is knowledgable and is a good dude, the one with Voulgaris was so much better just because Simmons has chemistry with him and they both get passionate about the topic giving amazing flow to the conversation. Plus, like the one, there were some tidbits I ve never heard before, this time revolving around how the relationship players and coaches have with the refs affect how the game was called. Tremendously interesting for me.
 

luckiestman

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Nick Kaufman said:
Simmons put up another podcast with Voulgaris on Wednesday and I can't recommend it enough. I listened to it right after the one he did with Zach Lowe on Monday and while Lowe is knowledgable and is a good dude, the one with Voulgaris was so much better just because Simmons has chemistry with him and they both get passionate about the topic giving amazing flow to the conversation. Plus, like the one, there were some tidbits I ve never heard before, this time revolving around how the relationship players and coaches have with the refs affect how the game was called. Tremendously interesting for me.
Yes, it was great.  These are almost as fun as the podcasts with Sal but the analysis is at a higher level.
 
Voulgaris saying that teams should have coordinators in a better position to see the court was very interesting. Simmons also made me want to lay money on the clips to win the championship at 45 - 1 (odds must have come way down today)
 

NatetheGreat

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Simmons piece today on "what should one do,fly out to Spurs-Clippers game 7 in person or head to vegas to watch Pacquaio-Mayweather in person?" has to be one of the more out of touch things I've ever read. Its like devoting an article to "what should one fill their Scrooge McDuck-style swimming pool with, the classic gold coins or a big shitload of diamonds?" 
 

jimbobim

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NatetheGreat said:
Simmons piece today on "what should one do,fly out to Spurs-Clippers game 7 in person or head to vegas to watch Pacquaio-Mayweather in person?" has to be one of the more out of touch things I've ever read. Its like devoting an article to "what should one fill their Scrooge McDuck-style swimming pool with, the classic gold coins or a big shitload of diamonds?" 
I like the metaphor ,but at least he is becoming self aware to how much he's changed from the persona he used to embody. Also it would be a start if he's admitting to being the 76's of writing columns now. 
 
Q: Couldn’t you just call it: Pulling a Simmons for Simmons?  I mean, I pretty sure the 76ers won more games than you wrote columns during the 14/15 season…
—Blair S., S.F.

BS: Words hurt. The truth hurts even more. But here’s our winner:
 

Three10toLeft

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NatetheGreat said:
Simmons piece today on "what should one do,fly out to Spurs-Clippers game 7 in person or head to vegas to watch Pacquaio-Mayweather in person?" has to be one of the more out of touch things I've ever read. Its like devoting an article to "what should one fill their Scrooge McDuck-style swimming pool with, the classic gold coins or a big shitload of diamonds?" 
 
 
This is his life now.
 
Taking shots at him for laying out his options in a situation most sports fans would kill for is not something worth knocking him over, especially when their are other reasons to do so.
 

deanx0

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I didn't think it was completely out of touch, as I could see people playing a "what if" game saying if you could only attend one of the two events live, which would you pick? He just gets to actually pick.