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Stefan Fatsis, Josh Levin, and Ben Mathis-Lilley talk about the field for this year’s NCAA tournament and Zion Williamson’s return to the court. They also discuss the college admissions scandal and the Giants’ move to trade Odell Beckham Jr. to the Browns.

March Madness (1:55): Did the selection committee get it right? Will Zion dominate the tournament? Should you root for LSU or Yale?

College admissions scandal (22:00): The best tidbits from Operation Varsity Blues. Plus: Is the bribery at issue here a massive problem or a minor issue?

Odell Beckham Jr. (39:50): Why the Giants traded their best player. (Spoiler alert: It makes no sense.)

Afterballs(54:48): Ben on Terance Mann and Sam Malone, Josh on Raycom Sports.

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Stefan Fatsis and Josh Levin talk about the basketball recruiting scandal at LSU. The New York Times’ Joe Drape also joins to discuss the deaths of 21 horses at Santa Anita Park. Finally, the Ringer’s Bryan Curtis assesses the sportswriter Dan Jenkins, who died last week at age 90.

LSU (1:48): Should webe outraged about what we heard basketball coach Will Wade say on an FBI wiretap? Is Wade a villain or a victim?

Horse racing (21:53): Why have so many horses died at Santa Anita in such a short period of time? What can be done to stop the epidemic?

Dan Jenkins (38:14): What made the sportswriting legend a sportswriting legend.

Afterballs (58:30): Stefan on Marxist sportswriter Mike Jay and Josh on the NCAA’s NET rating system.

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Stefan Fatsis and Josh Levin are joined by Jemele Hill of the Atlantic to discuss what’s gone wrong with LeBron James and the Lakers. They also talk about Bryce Harper’s $330 million deal with the Phillies and Jason Witten’s return to football after a year in the broadcast booth.

LeBron (1:18): We knew the Lakers star would have a tough road in the Western Conference. We didn’t know it would be this tough.

Bryce Harper (17:04): Was the Phillies’ record-setting outlay wise or foolish? Will Philly fans embrace Harper or boo him?

Jason Witten (29:31): The Cowboys tight end had a rough first year on Monday Night Football. Is that why he’s hanging up his microphone and heading back to the field?

Afterballs (45:56): Stefan on Bill Walton and Jack Scott and Josh on a crazy high school basketball ending.

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Stefan Fatsis and Josh Levin are joined by Damon Young to discuss Zion Williamson and the NCAA. ESPN’s Scott Eden also joins to talk about disgraced NBA ref Tim Donaghy and Deadspin’s Dvora Meyers assesses whether breaking should be an Olympic sport. Zion Williamson (1:24): In the aftermath of his shoe explosion and knee injury, should the 18-year-old superstar leave college basketball for good? Tim Donaghy (19:46): ESPN investigated the referee for two years and found evidence that he fixed games. What should we make of his (and the NBA’s) continued denials? Breaking (40:51): If it becomes an Olympic sport, what will it look like and who will profit from it?

This episode is brought to you by Capterra. Try it today, for free, at Capterra.com/HANGUP.

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Josh Levin is joined by Robert Lipsyte to discuss the settlement between the NFL and ex-49ers Colin Kaepernick and Eric Reid. Sean Forman also joins to explain how he built Sports Reference and Tom Junod talks about his article on his father and sports gambling.

Colin Kaepernick (3:10): Robert Lipsyte opines on whether Kaepernick or the league emerged victorious and what the next step is for the quarterback.

Sports Reference (25:57): Sean Forman’s network of sites gets more than 1 billion pageviews per year. He explains how it got started and how it works as a business.

Gambling (44:54): Tom Junod details how illegal sports betting helped bring his father to ruin and brought his family closer together.

Afterball (60:05): Josh on the pioneering 7-footer Elmore Morgenthaler.

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Josh Levin, NPR’s Gene Demby, and the New Yorker’s Vinson Cunninham discuss the big moves and non-moves at the NBA trade deadline. They also talk about Steven Soderbergh’s new NBA lockout movie High Flying Bird and the nascent Alliance of American Football.

NBA trades (1:25): Anthony Davis isn’t going to the Lakers (yet) and Markelle Fultz is leaving Philly. How does that shift the league’s balance of power on the court and between players and management?

High Flying Bird (22:05): A rare movie about sports and business with a pro-labor point of view, and that thinks seriously about race.

AAF (39:56): Did this new spring football league learn from the XFL’s mistakes or is it doomed to repeat them?

Afterball(51:45): Josh on the best comparison for Zion Williamson.

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Stefan Fatsis, Josh Levin, and Slate’s Ben Mathis-Lilley discuss the Patriots’ putrid Super Bowl win over the Rams. The Ringer’s Bryan Curtis also joins to assess Tony Romo’s performance. Finally, they critique the Knicks’ Kristaps Porzingis trade.

Super Bowl (1:32): It was a bad game. Very bad. How did the defenses muck things up in such an offense-dominated season?

Tony Romo (21:21): The CBS star didn’t have much great material to work with. Did he shine anyway?

Porzingis (39:23): Ben says the Knicks’ move to deal their best player was “fandom-destroying.” Some smart analysts disagree. Who’s right?

Afterballs (52:55): Stefan on Chip Oliver and Josh on “left, right, left, right, sit down!”

This episode is brought to you by Capterra. Try it today, for free, at Capterra.com/HANGUP.

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Stefan Fatsis and Josh Levin are joined by Courtney Nguyen to talk about Naomi Osaka’s Australian Open win. The Wall Street Journal’s Louise Radnofsky also joins to assess the U.S. figure skating championships, and the Washington Post’s Candace Buckner discusses NBA players’ feet.

Naomi Osaka (6:22): The 21-year-old backed up her U.S. Open victory with a second grand slam title. Has Osaka matured in the last five months, and how should we reconcile her shyness and on-court toughness?

Figure skating (22:50): What you need to know about U.S. champions Alysa Liu (she’s 13!) and Nathan Chen. Plus, Gracie Gold opened up about her battle with depression.

NBA feet (44:01): Everything you maybe don’t want to know about basketball players’ disgusting toes.

Afterballs(58:55): Stefan on the Dane who invented modern team handball and Josh on the biggest feet in NBA history.

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Stefan Fatsis and Josh Levin are joined by The Gist’s Mike Pesca to discuss the NFL’s conference championship games. ESPN’s Steve Fainaru also joins to talk about the collapsing football insurance market, and Ben Lindbergh of the Ringer assesses baseball’s ice-cold free agent market.

NFL playoffs (3:51): The Saints got robbed. Does that mean the NFL should institute instant replay for pass interference? Also: Is there anything new to say about the Patriots?

Football and insurance (32:44): It’s getting harder and harder for the NFL and other football entities to get insurance coverage. Does that mean the sport is on the verge of collapse?

MLB free agency (50:01): With spring training getting closer, superstars Bryce Harper and Manny Machado remain unsigned. What’s going to break the impasse?

Afterballs (68:05): Stefan on “good from 70” and Josh on Mike Tice’s Super Bowl ticket scalping.

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Josh Levin is here to introduce you to What Next, Slate's new daily news podcast.

UCLA’s Katelyn Ohashi wowed the internet this week with a viral video of her college gymnastics floor routine. As Ohashi’s star rises, the U.S. women’s gymnastics program is imploding. Fans of the sport wonder: What is the price of being world-class? Slate contributor Rebecca Schumann joins What Next host Mary Harris to investigate.

Subscribe to What Next on Apple Podcasts or sending an email to [email protected]. Follow us on Instagram for updates on the show.

Podcast production by Mary Wilson and Jayson De Leon, with help from Danielle Hewitt. 

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