Game Theory

By Barstool SportsSports Basketball

Ranking
37th
on Basketball
Favorites
184
Followers
Typical duration
105 min
per episode
If it hooks
41%
finish an episode

Based on Podcast App listening data

Game Theory episodes

October 15 2026-27 NBA Award Predictions | Can Luka, Wemby, Jokic challenge Shai? | Pritchard, Podz Extensions
Sam is joined by The Athletic's Eric Nehm to discuss the Brandin Podziemski and Payton Pritchard extensions before predicting the 2026-27 NBA Awards! Can Victor Wembanyama, Nikola Jokic, or Luka Doncic challenge Shai for MVP? Can anyone challenge Wemby for DPOY?
(00:00) Intro
(00:40) Payton Pritchard extension
(08:55) Brandin Podziemski extension
(16:40) NBA Award voting
(21:30) MVP
(40:25) Surprise All-NBA players
(45:50) Rookie of the Year
(54:35) All Rookie Team
(57:50) Defensive Player of The Year
(1:02:15) Most Improved Player
(1:07:25) Sixth Man of the Year
(1:09:25) Coach of the Year
1 hr 17 min
October 12 2027 NBA Mock Draft v. 1.0 with Adam Finkelstein
Sam is joined by Adam Finkelstein of CBS Sports do to the first NBA mock draft of the season!
(00:00) Intro
(09:33) 1 - Tyran Stokes
(19:40) 2 - Stefan Joksimovic
(25:00) 3 - Jordan Smith Jr.
(31:50) 4 - Caleb Holt
(35:50) 5 - Bruce Branch III
(40:45) 6 - Anthony Thompson
(43:40) 7 - Quentin Coleman
(46:55) 8 - Ivan Kharchenkov
(49:05) 9 -Thomas Haugh
(52:35) 10 - Motiejus Krivas
(55:45) 11 - Caleb Gaskins
(1:00:25) 12 - Amari Allen
(1:02:55) 13 - JJ Andrews
(1:06:00) 14 - Patrick Ngongba
(1:08:25) 15 - Dame Sarr
(1:13:45) 16 - David Mirkovic
(1:18:45) 17 - Alijah Arenas
(1:24:30) 18 - Braylon Mullins
(1:27:20) 19 - Abdou Toure
(1:29:35) 20 - Trey McKenney
(1:32:45) 21 - Malachi Moreno
(1:34:00) 22 - Tyler Tanner
(1:37:50) 23 - Jason Crowe Jr.
(1:39:55) 24 - Austin Goosby
(1:42:00) 25 - Colben Landrew
(1:46:15) 26 - Dash Daniels
(1:49:30) 27 - Neo Avdalas
(1:51:40) 28 - Billy Richmond
(1:54:00) 29 - Hugo Yimga-Moukoura
(1:56:10) 30 - Tounde Yessoufou
(1:59:00) Honorable mentions
2 hr 9 min
October 09 NBA Western Conference Win Total Over/Unders with Jason Timpf
Sam Vecenie is joined by Jason Timpf of @HoopsTonight to go through win total over/unders for every team in the Western Conference with help from DraftKings Sportsbook. We talk Oklahoma City Thunder, the Los Angeles Lakers, Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs, the Houston Rockets, whether Anthony Edwards and LaMelo Ball will work well together for the Minnesota Timberwolves, and more.
(00:00) INTRO
(03:50) Oklahoma City Thunder
(15:35) San Antonio Spurs
(29:35) Denver Nuggets
(39:41) Minnesota Timberwolves
(49:27) Houston Rockets
(56:20) Los Angeles Lakers
(1:06:58) Portland Trail Blazers
(1:14:05) Phoenix Suns
(1:18:05) Golden State Warriors
(1:24:30) Utah Jazz
(1:30:45) Dallas Mavericks
(1:35:44) Memphis Grizzlies
(1:39:45) Los Angeles Clippers
(1:42:20) New Orleans Pelicans
(1:51:22) Sacramento Kings
(1:56:50) RECAP
2 hr
October 06 NBA Eastern Conference Over/Under Win Totals with Es Baraheni
Sam is joined by The Athletic's Es Baraheni to go through win total over/unders for every team in the Eastern Conference.
(00:00) INTRO
(04:18) Knicks
(18:05) Celtics
(30:10) 76ers
(42:20) Pistons
(51:05) Cavaliers
(57:15) Raptors
(1:05:45) Heat
(1:11:00) Pacers
(1:18:25) Hawks
(1:24:50) Magic
(1:31:35) Hornets
(1:35:00) Wizards
(1:43:20) Bulls
(1:47:50) Bucks
(1:53:03) Nets
(1:59:35) RECAP
2 hr 5 min
October 02 Jalen Duren Watch, Plus Future NBA Trade and Free Agency Lookahead with Grant Liffmann
Sam is joined by Grant Liffmann of NBC Sports to discuss the ongoing contract battle between the Pistons and Jalen Duren. Then, they look ahead to some of the biggest players who could hit free agency after this season, as well as some potential trade candidates. Plus, they do a rapid-fire round covering the biggest question mark for every contender.
(00:00) Intro
(01:00) Jalen Duren saga from a front office perspective 
(13:45) Brandon Ingram’s Achilles injury 
(17:15) Jamal Shead’s $24M extension 
(18:30) New team-building trends 
(21:40) How will new draft lottery rules affect the trade deadline? 
(28:15) Possible big-name future free agents 
(31:40) Rudy Gobert 
(34:00) Michael Porter Jr. 
(42:10) Tyler Herro 
(46:45) Are the Warriors big-game hunting at the deadline? 
(52:40) LA Clippers 
(1:02:00) Speed Round: Biggest question marks for title contenders
1 hr 9 min
September 28 Biggest NBA X-Factors of the 2026-27 Season
Sam Vecenie is joined by Bryce Simon to draft the NBA names that could totally swing their team's 2026-27 season, including Paolo Banchero, LaMelo Ball, Walker Kessler, and many others. We'll also talk some injuries to Charlotte Hornets' stars, a Buddy Hield for Rob Dillingham trade, and Stephen Curry's contract extension.
(00:00) INTRO
(03:35) Steph Curry’s extension
(09:45) Buddy Hield / Rob Dillingham trade
(17:45) Hornets injuries piling up
(20:45) TOP 10 NBA X-FACTORS
(23:50) LaMelo Ball
(34:38) Paolo Banchero
(40:10) Bam Adebayo
(56:00) Fed Van Vleet
(1:03:10) Tyrese Haliburton
(1:10:10) Kyrie Irving
(1:20:00) Jaren Jackson Jr.
(1:26:30) Mitchell Robinson
(1:35:05) Walker Kessler
(1:40:30) Christian Braun
1 hr 56 min
September 25 NBA Watchability Index, Plus The Jalen Duren Saga Continues, and KAT Extension Talks with Dave DuFour
Sam is joined by The Athletic's Dave DuFour to discuss the tense contract standoff between Jalen Duren and the Pistons, and Karl-Anthony Towns' stalled extension talks with the Knicks, before creating the NBA Watchability Index where Sam and Dave highlight their 10 most watchable NBA teams for this upcoming season.
(00:00) Intro
(02:20) Jalen Duren saga continues
(14:35) Karl-Anthony Towns stalled
extension talks
(24:30) NBA Watchability Index
(27:10) Philadelphia 76ers
(38:45) Minnesota Timberwovles
(49:15) San Antonio Spurs
(59:34) New York Knicks
(1:06:08) Toronto Raptors
(1:11:49) Utah Jazz
(1:19:40) Indiana Pacers
(1:25:25) Los Angeles Lakers
(1:33:32) Washington Wizards
(1:45:15) Oklahoma City Thunder
1 hr 58 min
September 21 Top 10 NBA Rookies We're Excited to See, Plus Keyonte, Ausar & Other New Deals
Sam opens by talking about his move to team up with Russillo and Barstool and what people can expect from the new version of the show! Then, Bryce Simon joins to react to a bunch of guys getting new contracts, including Keyonte George and Ausar Thompson, before going through the top 10 rookies they’re most excited to watch this season.
(0:15) Sam on teaming up with Russillo and Barstool
CONTRACT EXTENSIONS
(8:00) Keyonte George
(18:48) Ausar Thompson
(27:42) Jalen Duren
(35:10) Pelle Larsson
EXCITING ROOKIES
(41:20) Caleb Wilson
(50:48) Cam Boozer
(57:30) Darryn Peterson
(1:03:25) AJ Dybantsa
(1:10:10) Keaton Wagler
(1:15:03) Brayden Burries
(1:20:37) Darius Acuff
(1:25:02) Yaxel Lendeborg
(1:27:52) Mikel Brown Jr.
(1:32:38) Cameron Carr
1 hr 43 min
September 07 Mock Rookie Extensions for 2023 NBA Draft | Miller, Wallace, Ausar, more | Game Theory Podcast
In this edition of the Game Theory Podcast, Sam Vecenie & Bryce Simon going through the 2023 Draft Class & prediction all potential rookie extensions for each eligible player ahead of next months deadline.
(0:00) INTRO
(1:00) Mock Rookie Extensions (Preview)
(11:30) Brandon Miller
(27:16) Scoot Henderson
(37:18) Amen Thompson (reaction to his extension)
(39:28) Ausar Thompson
(53:25) Anthony Black
(1:04:10) Bilal Coulibaly
(1:15:27) Jarace Walker
(1:19:46) Taylor Hendricks
(1:21:24) Cason Wallace
(1:36:20) Dereck Lively II
(1:39:10) Gradey Dick, Jordan Hawkins, Kobe Bufkin
(1:39:50) Keyonte George
(1:53:43) Jaime Jaquez Jr.
(2:01:10) Brandin Podziemski
(2:11:39) Noah Clowney
(2:14:30) Remaining Potential Extensions
(2:22:23) OUTRO
CHECK OUT THE ⁠⁠VIDEO VERSION⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ OF THE FULL LIVE SHOW ON THE GAME THEORY ⁠⁠YOUTUBE CHANNEL⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠!
⁠⁠SIGN UP FOR BONUS NBA DRAFT FILM BREAKDOWNS & DISCUSSIONS ON SUBSTACK!⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
2 hr 24 min
September 04 LA Clippers Get LARGEST Punishment in NBA History for Kawhi Leonard Cap Circumvention | What Now?
The Pablo Torre Clippers investigation has come to a final conclusion, where the Clippers have received the worst punishment in NBA history. The Athletic's Law Murray joins the show to discuss what this all means, why the league came down so hard on the Clippers, and where the team goes from here.
CHECK OUT THE ⁠⁠VIDEO VERSION⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ OF THE FULL LIVE SHOW ON THE GAME THEORY ⁠⁠YOUTUBE CHANNEL⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠!
⁠⁠SIGN UP FOR BONUS NBA DRAFT FILM BREAKDOWNS & DISCUSSIONS ON SUBSTACK!⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
1 hr 32 min

About Game Theory

From the publisher's feed

Sam Vecenie talks all about basketball. From the NBA, to the NBA Draft, to college hoops and even some high school, Vecenie is has you covered in this show. And some thoughts on movies, too.