The Lead

During this year's NHL playoffs, a lot of people had been rooting for veteran Toronto Maple Leafs forward (and noted nice guy) Joe Thornton. At age 41, the former #1 overall pick had been striving to win the first Stanley Cup of his long and storied career before the Leafs were eliminated by the Montreal Canadiens on Monday night. But what many people don’t know is that, for years, Thornton maintained a close relationship with a transcendent Canadian rock star: the late lead singer of The Tragically Hip, Gord Downie. Josh Kloke first broke the details of their unlikely friendship, and he joins us today to explain how the hockey superstar and the rock and roll icon saw similarities in their respective art forms and drew inspiration from one another right up until the end of Downie's life.

Read Joshua Kloke's story about Joe Thornton and Gord Downie:

https://theathletic.com/2542210/2021/04/28/joe-thornton-and-gord-downie-inside-a-friendship-that-changed-a-hockey-star-and-inspired-a-music-legend/

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

One of the most fascinating matchups in the first round of the NBA Playoffs has been the Dallas Mavericks against the Los Angeles Clippers -- a rematch of last year's battle in the NBA bubble. Today, we're rebroadcasting an episode that originally aired back in late March. The Athletic's Tim Cato joined us to talk about the Mavericks' roller coaster of a season, why they've experienced such highs and lows, and how dangerous this team could be come playoff time.

More from Tim Cato: https://theathletic.com/author/tim-cato/

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Manchester City will be the favorites when they take on Chelsea in the Champions League Final on Saturday in Portugal. And while City's march to the final now feels almost inevitable, especially on the heels of yet another Premier League title, it's easy forget that this team was floundering in the middle of the pack just six months ago. The Athletic's Sam Lee joins us today to explain how the team turned their season around, thanks in large part to three key players, and what another Champions League title would mean for manager Pep Guardiola's legacy.

More from Sam Lee:

https://theathletic.com/2555687/2021/05/11/slower-attacks-and-a-code-of-honour-inside-story-of-how-guardiolas-manchester-city-took-back-control-of-english-football/

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The Jacksonville Jaguars are at the start of a brand new chapter, with a new head coach in Urban Meyer and a franchise quarterback in Trevor Lawrence. But right now, a lot of the talk in Jacksonville is centered around a former quarterback-turned-tight end: Tim Tebow. Today, The Athletic’s Lindsay Jones joins us to discuss why the Jags are trying to bring back Tebow now — at age 33 — and what this polarizing experiment might say about the Urban Meyer regime. 

Read Lindsay Jones’s story about Tim Tebow and Urban Meyer: https://theathletic.com/2603123/2021/05/20/jones-tim-tebows-and-urban-meyers-egos-collide-in-a-large-jaguars-misstep/?source=theleadpodcast 

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The Vegas Golden Knights are one of the favorites to win the Stanley Cup this year, and that's thanks in part to their 36 year-old goaltender, Marc-Andre Fleury. The 3-time Stanley Cup Champion has been red-hot for the Knights so far this post-season after putting up the best numbers of his career during the regular season, despite questions about his age and longevity coming into the year. The Athletic's Jesse Granger joins us to break down what makes Fleury so special in goal and why some of the greatest goalies of all time believe Fleury is the most exciting netminder in the game today.

Read Jesse Granger's recent story about Marc-Andre Fleury:

https://theathletic.com/2559791/2021/05/13/vegas-marc-andre-fleury-better-than-ever-at-36-celebrates-joining-his-idols-in-nhl-record-books/

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The Phoenix Suns had the second best record in the NBA's Western Conference and a huge reason why was the play of their 36-year-old point guard, Chris Paul. The Suns acquired the surefire Hall of Famer this offseason and he has repaid them handsomely with MVP-caliber play this season. The Athletic's Sam Amick recently spoke with CP3 about why Phoenix was the perfect place for him to call home this season and whether the Suns have what it takes to make a run at a title and fill the only hole remaining on Paul's resume.

Read Sam Amick's story about Chris Paul here: https://theathletic.com/2535983/2021/04/23/chris-paul-lets-us-in-on-how-hes-still-balling-for-the-suns-and-why-you-just-dont-know-him-if-you-are-surprised-by-it/

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Last week, when Yermin Mercedes of the White Sox homered on a 3-0 pitch in a blowout win over the Twins, it put the team — and manager Tony La Russa — at the center of the latest heated debate over baseball’s unwritten rules. Today, we’re joined by The Athletic’s James Fegan to look at all the fallout from last week’s incident, and whether it’s only a matter of time until there’s more conflict in the Chicago clubhouse.

Read James Fegan’s story about the White Sox and baseball’s unwritten rules: https://theathletic.com/2597980/2021/05/18/tony-la-russas-enforcement-of-unwritten-rules-put-him-at-odds-with-his-own-yermin-mercedes/?source=theleadpodcast

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Over the second half of the NBA season, not many teams have been as hot as the Atlanta Hawks, who posted a 27-11 record under interim coach Nate McMillan after going 14-20 (with a ton of late-game collapses) under previous head coach Lloyd Pierce. Today, The Athletic’s Chris Kirschner on all the ups and downs of the Hawks season, and just how dangerous Trae Young, Bogdan Bogdanovic and John Collins could be as they take on the Knicks in the playoffs.

Read Chris Kirschner’s story about the Hawks’ long road to the playoffs: https://theathletic.com/2584324/2021/05/13/the-long-winding-journey-of-rebuilding-hawks-to-playoff-berth-were-here-now/?source=theleadpodcast 

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

When the San Francisco 49ers selected North Dakota State quarterback Trey Lance with the third overall pick at the 2021 NFL Draft, it made headlines across the country. But nowhere did it generate more excitement than in his hometown of Marshall, Minnesota. The Athletic’s Dan Hayes recently traveled from the Twin Cities to the rural town that gave birth to one of college football's biggest stars, and Dan joins us today to talk about the town, why Trey Lance was so overlooked there, and how folks in Marshall rang in draft night.

Read Dan Hayes' full story about Trey Lance and 'Trey Day':

https://theathletic.com/2579305/2021/05/14/buzzer-beaters-and-trey-day-how-49ers-qb-trey-lance-was-groomed-and-celebrated-by-his-minnesota-hometown/

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Major League Baseball's current home run leader is also... one of its best starting pitchers? It might seem too strange to be believed, but Shohei Ohtani is changing everything we thought we knew about what's possible in professional baseball. Today, we're joined by The Athletic's Jayson Stark who tells us about some of the Angels superstar's most impressive achievements and whether or not he can sustain his two-way play for an entire 162 game season.

Read all of Jayson Stark's Major League Baseball coverage here: https://theathletic.com/author/jayson-stark/

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.