Ball and Order

In February 2016, Steph Curry and the Golden State Warriors had the best record ever after 57 games (52-5) and were on their way to the best regular season in NBA history. Then, they ran into a Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and the Oklahoma City Thunder. The teams played one of the best regular season games ever that ended with Curry hitting the signature shot of his career. Gabe and Alex breakdown the ridiculous end of the game and what it meant for the NBA. Follow us on twitter and tik tok: @ballandorder

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With the sports card collecting blowing up, Gabe spoke with Panini America’s VP of Marketing Jason Howarth about all things trading cards. They talked about how they collected sports cards as kids, the business of trading cards, the new WNBA Prizm collection including Sabrina Ionescu's rookie card, NBA Top Shot, blockchain collecting, and Kobe Bryant’s impact on the trading card world. It was a fun chat and you can keep up with all of the cool stuff Panini does on their website, instagram and twitter. Subscribe to our newsletter: ballandorder.substack.com.

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We decided to draft a team of 10 players from across NBA history and create our perfect teams. The draft had a snake format and our first five picks had to be starters. We also had to pick a player from each of the major NBA decades (1960s, 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, 2000s, 2010s), but had the additional limit that we could only select a maximum of two players from each decade. Some of you will be mad about the results. Subscribe to our newsletter: ballandorder.substack.com.

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The NBA in 1977 was very different than it is now. The ABA had just merged into the league, Finals games were getting bumped for non-major golf tournaments and several players called to be doctors, pinballs or aliens. In the first season since the merger, Bill Walton brought his Portland Trail Blazers to the NBA Finals against Julius Erving (aka Dr. J aka The Doctor aka Doctor Jota) and his Philadelphia Sixers. Gabe Ibrahim and Alex Lange breakdown the Blazers' victory to win the franchise's first and only title, as well as the great nicknames, where the NBA was at as a league and the NBA's first dunk contest. Subscribe to ballandorder.substack.com.

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Time for another edition of NBA history cold calls. Gabe and Alex ask each other questions about NBA history without much/any preparation. They talk about Gilbert Arenas’s time with the Orlando Magic (and as an off-Broadway actor), Dominque Wilkins, dumb basketball terms like “two-way players,” NBA Top Shot stonks, Dwyane Wade going to Denver in 2016 and why Elgin Baylor could win a title nowadays. Gabe is also opening up packs of NBA cards and randomly interjecting them into the podcast. Subscribe to our newsletter: ballandorder.substack.com. Follow us on twitter: @ballandorder_

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Luka Doncic and Giannis Antetokounmpo are two of the most exciting young players in the NBA history. They are already elite players. But in this structured debate, Gabe Ibrahim and Alex Lange are forced to pick only one of these two stars. Alex is trying to prove the following resolution: Luka is a better player to build a championship team around over the next five years than Giannis. Gabe tries to disprove the resolution. Subscribe to our free newsletter: ballandorder.substack.com.

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With Kevin Durant and James Harden getting back together in Brooklyn, it felt like a good time to revisit their biggest triumph in Oklahoma City with Russell Westbrook: making it to the 2012 NBA Finals. The Thunder went up 3-1 en route to a gentleman's sweep of Kobe Bryant's Lakers. This game also featured Derek Fisher, Kendrick Perkins, Steve Kerr, Craig Sager and Ramon Sessions. Sessions had the best performance of anybody in that group. Check out our substack for more: ballthoroughtheages.substack.com.

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Ohio State and Alabama are set to meet in the College Football Playoff Championship, so we revisited their last matchup in the 2015 Sugar Bowl in the first College Football Playoff. Ezekiel Elliott’s 85-yard run through the Heart of the South is what everyone remembers from this game, but so much more memorable stuff happened before that. Gabe Ibrahim and Alex Lange talked about all of it, from JK Scott’s amazing punting performance to Evan Spencer’s uniquely perfect game. They also breakdown how the Big 12’s “One True Champion” system produced two champions, leading to Ohio State getting to the CFP. And did it all as a coup attempt was happening like 3 miles away! 

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NBA basketball on Christmas Day is a 73-year old tradition with many amazing matchups throughout history. Very few, if any, of Christmas Day games have had as much hype as the 2004 matchup between Kobe Bryant's Los Angeles Lakers and Shaquille O'neal's Miami Heat after their very public breakup. Gabe Ibrahim and Alex Lange break down all of the hype around this game, what happened in the game itself, what it meant for Dwyane Wade's career and how we feel about Kobe as we head to our first Christmas without him. Subscribe to our substack: ballthroughtheages.substack.com

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Russell Westbrook is on the move for the second time since his MVP season. Only one other NBA MVP has ever been traded twice after winning MVP (Moses Malone) and none have ever been traded for as interesting of a return (John Wall and a mediocre first-round pick). Gabe and Alex get into historical comparisons to the Westbrook-Wall trade, the current state of the Houston Rockets and other depressing trades in NBA history. Gilbert Arenas-for-Rashard Lewis is obviously mentioned, as is the Iverson-Billups deal and Chris Paul's weird trade value.

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This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit ballandorder.substack.com