The r/BillSimmons Podcast

In this episode I break down why we’re about to see such a massive shift in the NBA rights deals. I discuss:

— What went wrong with the formation of TNT’s parent Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD)

— Why WBD’s recent financials have been disastrous

— The highly negative impact of WBD signing a new NBA deal at double the cost of the previous one

— Why the deal makes much more sense for NBC and Amazon

— Why the NBA prefers NBC and Amazon over WBD

Welcome to Episode 73! We bring on Mike from Twitter (@PokerPolitics) for a deeper look into the evolution of Bill Simmons, as Mike's been reading Bill since the Page 2 ESPN days in the early 2000s.

First we start with Bill Simmons current events. His flip flops on the Wolves-Nuggets series have been legendary. Plus, we react to the embarrassing Justin Termine appearance defending Bill's outrageous takes.

Next we go back to Mike's origins finding Bill and wonder whether he'd be as successful if he were the "Seattle Sports Guy" or the "Cleveland Sports Guy." We agree that Boston played a large role in his success.

Next we revisit some classic Page 2 columns and try to get to the bottom of why Bill turned into 2024 Full Parody Hot Take Artist Bill Simmons. Was it inevitable after being in sports media for so long? Was it a conscious choice? Is he simply following the trends of what media has become these days?

We finish up discussing how Bill's refusal to take an L on his takes has made his listeners more than ever root aggressively against his Boston teams.

Hope you enjoyed! Thank you to Wiser Times for the intro song and Zach Blatter for the cover art.

Welcome to Episode 72! We bring on Wiser Times - the creator of the awesome intro song - for another classic r/BS Pod ep.

First we delve into Bill Simmons current events. We're seeing previously unimagined levels of flip flopping from the Podfather, which is backfiring on him in hilarious ways. It's been very fun to see Bill's takes age poorly almost immediately this NBA postseason.

Next we get into how Wiser Times found Bill, which he did through The Ringer's NBA Desktop show. Why did Bill's website essentially stop doing video for years, especially when this is *the* growth segment for younger sports and pop culture fans?

We then talk NHL and The Ringer's lack of coverage, comparing it to the editorial decision to also not cover college football and basketball; Bill personally doesn't like them. Plus, why have the NHL and MLB fallen in popularity, and what can the NBA do in their new rights deal to better reach young fans?

We next talk about Wiser Times' background in music, including his favorite music pods, and end up talking Red Hot Chili Peppers and their place in music history, including whether they're on the post 1990 Mount Rushmore of rock bands (and who else is on it).

We finish up discussing how Russillo keeps market correcting Bill for many listeners.

If you like the show, follow Wiser Times on social media and music platforms (links below)

Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/ca/artist/wiser-times/1448970048

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/2XiRm7fyJD4pxKO0KroEyG?si=17N24sgxTFmkNpod3CESgQ&nd=1&dlsi=6a6d115897764c24

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wisertimes_?igsh=MXdicGVrdnlicHM5eA%3D%3D&utm_source=qr

Also, thank you to Zach Blatter for the cover art

Welcome to Episode 71! We bring on JF, who reached out to me on the Bill Simmons subreddit wanting to talk Simmons, The Ringer and more.

We first hit on Bill Simmons current events - it's laughable how much Bill praises and makes excuses for KD but hates on LeBron. What's the reason for this? We think it's obvious.

Next we discuss why Mark Titus and others have left The Ringer - is Bill not paying people enough and not giving them creative freedom? That appears to be the case. And why is Barstool of all places better at developing talent than The Ringer?

After we do a check-in on r/BillSimmons, of which JF has been a fan of for years, we finish with an in-depth discussion of the new NBA deal. Is NBC overpaying? Is Warner Bros. screwed without it? Do the economics work for Amazon? We get into all that and more.

Hope you enjoy the episode! And thank you to Wiser Times for the intro music and Zach Blatter for the cover art.

Welcome to Episode 70! We bring on Doug from Twitter (@dougie_fresh055) for a rollicking ride of all things Bill Simmons.

We first hit on Bill Simmons current events, including what will surely be a hilariously petty response to LeBron's podcast with JJ; in fact, this likely explains the uptick in cheap shots Bill's taken at LeBron lately.

Next we look back at Doug's Bill Simmons tweets starting as early as 2012. We see the highs (mailbags, NBA Draft, Grantland, Countdown, Bill & Jalen's Previews) before Bill's descent: It started with the KD pods, Bill's first shows that felt transactional rather than an earnest conversation. Then we get to JackieMac's awful pods, some of the worst NBA audio content there ever was - why did Bill think this was good radio? And finally, we get to the Ringer lackey phase - Bill can't do better than Ruiz & Solak?

After our journey to Nadir Canyon, we discuss how both Guess the Lines and the Russillo NBA pods are stale - does Ryen even like doing them anymore? We think it's a Bill problem, not a Russillo issue. Part of what is plaguing Bill is his extreme arrogance, with guests not wanting to push back, afraid of offending only child Bill.

We close out the pod comparing Bill to his peer group Russillo, Cowherd and Nick Wright - some of these guys are doing better than others.

Hope you enjoy! And thank you to Wiser Times music for the intro song and Zach Blatter for the cover art.

That’s right — an entire show talking Ringer Union. The BS Pod has continued to be released despite no contract after it expired, yet Bill added a disclaimer today that The Ringer is “owned, managed and operated by Spotify” - was this an attempt to pass the buck? We say yes. Bill not only has significant influence at Spotify, but he’s also Head of Podcast Monetization & Innovation!

We then get into the crux of the Ringer Union issue and wonder how Bill got himself into this in the first place. Incredibly, the hold up seems to be creative rights in AI, which Bill has discussed in-depth with guests on his podcast including Derek Thompson and Matt Belloni. Why hasn’t this been solved yet?

We next talk The Ringer at large and why it hasn't been successful at developing talent, before reviewing the first Ringer Union timeline and how they ultimately got a deal. You won’t want to miss this breakdown.

If you liked the pod, check out Neil on Twitter: @NeilYayamanj

Welcome to another episode! We bring back r/BS Pod OGs Pop & Bob — these guys have been here from the beginning. We haven't done a 3-man weave since late October, so we needed to get another evolutionary Ric Bucher, Steiny Mo and BS Report-era Bill Simmons 3-man weave episode out with so much going on in BS Land.

We start with how we're holding up during this BS Pod break (some Russillo, Bill on another pod) before talking Derek Thompson's last appearance. In the spirit of Derek we do a little social commentary for where everything's going in 2024, and touch on his Ozempic takes.

Next we talk Russillo's appearance on Pardon My Take and contrast it with him on the BS Pod; we get an all-time analogy from Bob on this dynamic. We also continue our discussion of whether Ryen would leave for Barstool and conclude that he probably doesn't fit in there.

Then we do a Bill Simmons subreddit check-in, talking state of the sub, some recent top posts and memes, and celebrate one poster with an incredible batting and slugging percentage — someone even asked if he's the evolutionary Knife Guy. Plus, did the sub have too many posts about fixing the NBA All-Star game?

We then talk about the absurdity of Bill's guys Michael Rubin messing up the MLB uniforms and Doc Rivers going on a media tour during the season, before finishing up with Pop with McAfee vs. Simmons commentary. Then Bob stays on for a fantasy football season recap. Enjoy!

Welcome to Episode 67! We bring back fan favorite Zach (@_zachblatter) from Episode 55 for a return visit to The Ringer & Bill Simmons' video, social media and growth strategies. Zach (Brand Manager at The Strickland) is highly experienced in the field as anyone who listened to #55 can attest to and once again brings a variety of excellent ideas to the pod.

We first discuss The Ringer's video progress in 2024. In Episode 55 Zach highlighted The Ringer's lack of focus on video, especially short-form, and thus we begin by evaluating Bill's new YouTube Shorts content and strategy. Bill also just last week finally got a high-res camera - another discussion point in Episode 55 - which is promising but has not yet been utilized effectively in his content. And, while The Ringer has begun posting more YouTube clips, we don't think it's enough. Our overall assessment is that while The Ringer & Bill have made progress here, and it's a good start, there's a long way to go.

Next we discuss The Ringer's social media. Zach brings the receipts and they are not positive - The Ringer barely has a presence on a variety of social media sites compared with their competitors. We formulate a gameplan for what The Ringer could do to massively boost their numbers. With so much good content generated from the site, the podcasts, Bill Simmons' tweets and more, this is a huge missed opportunity that would not take much additional effort in our view.

We then finish up the pod discussing Bill Simmons current events, including his enjoyable pod with Derek Thompson, JJ Redick and Pat McAfee market correcting him, and discuss the shock of no BS/Russillo pod this week - Zach had never listened to Pardon My Take before but did for the Russillo NBA Preview, and we suspect he wasn't the only one. We also touch on what a new NBA rights deal could look like if YouTube gets involved.

Hope you enjoy the show! Find Zach and his work (he created there podcast cover art) on Twitter @_zachblatter. Also thank you to Wiser Times (@WiserTimesmusic) for the intro song.

Welcome to a jam packed episode with Jake from Twitter (@DeAnime69)! We start off with Bill Simmons current events. Mark Titus recently spoke not so glowingly about Bill on a podcast, so we discuss their falling out - Bill used to refer to Mark as his "illegitimate son" - as well as Titus' career progression to date, including some drawbacks of being at Barstool, and why he and Tate ultimately parted ways.

Next we get further into the Simmons vs. McAfee feud, with excellent context from Jake who has been listening to both guys for several years now. We also hit on why Pardon My Take has been market correcting Bill for some listeners and Jake tells us why he does *not* think Russillo would ever leave for Barstool.

We then hit on the original reason we wanted to record the show - Jake attended the Live Rewatchables in DC! We get a behind the scenes look at the event. Plus, we have some Rewatchables discussion, including the age old "Should Bill be releasing the movie ahead of time" debate.

Next we play a game called "Guess the Lines - Apex Mountain or Nadir Canyon?" where Jake prepared some quotes from Guess the Lines seasons starting at the beginning, ultimately begging the question of whether Bill's football analysis has always been as shoddy as it was this last season.

We then have a discussion of Bill's baseball book "Now I Can Die in Peace," which Jake recently read, and which features some absolutely classic but also outrageous Bill columns. It is must read if you haven't yet.

We finish up the episode talking Bill Simmons, The Ringer and Spotify and predict his next move.

Hope you enjoy! And thank you to Wiser Times for the intro music and Zach Blatter for the cover art.

Bill Simmons has been chirping at Pat McAfee for months. A few weeks back Bill ripped off a lengthy impression making in fun of McAfee on his show. This closely followed Bill & Cousin Sal's buddy Jimmy Kimmel being miffed at McAfee guest Aaron Rodgers.

McAfee waited a month, but today landed what I consider a nuclear blast on Simmons - audio included in the first two minutes of the pod.

In today's episode I break down the origins of the beef, why this was such an epic killshot by Pat, why Bill Simmons is finding himself in multiple beefs these days, and a lot more.