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Where has The Magic gone Jun 06, 2022

Show notes

Welcome back to the Bill Bradley Collective, where we have for you the rare Monday drop: a subject we just had to get some takes off on that didn’t quite fit into tomorrow’s episode. When a man of one Ryan Fitzpatrick’s magnitude walks away from football before the end of an eternal prime, that is means for commemorating one of the game’s most distinct and unique careers. Fitzpatrick has stepped away from quarterbacking in the NFL, but not before your hosts put some proper respect on his distinguished career. The Ivy League’s greatest contribution to the NFL, Fitz lasted nearly two decades occupying one of the 32 hottest seats in all of sports, across nine franchises, while more often than not playing an aesthetically entertaining style of ball while always playing well above the level of his presumed vagabond status. Your hosts share some of their favorite magical Fitzpatrick moments, consider his place in *Jets’* history, and put a bow on the career of a truly one-of-a-kind talent in this bonus drop of the Bill Bradley Collective.

Midway to the Midterms May 31, 2022

Show notes

Welcome back to the Bill Bradley Collective, where it is primary season and your hosts are here to break down all of the results and narratives on the heels of primary elections that have set the table for forthcoming midterm elections this November. Among the highlights of the conversation include a trio of Republican Georgia races where perhaps Donald Trump’s influence or lack thereof made dominated headlines; the end of the Madison Cawthorn error in North Carolina’s 11th congressional district; the prospects of flipping departing Pennsylvania senator Pat Toomey’s seat blue following John Fetterman’s landslide primary victory; progressive victories in Oregon and elsewhere; and finally a nod to November as we take the temperature of how fights over abortion and gun rights will influence the midterms. But first, let there be rants, as Ed brings us up to speed on the increasingly diminished NFL Pro Bowl and everyone’s favorite commish’s intent to spice up the meaningless affair; Andrew remembers a shooting star of the film world, highlighting his most famous turn and lamenting the lack of notable success that followed; and finally Zak applauds the impassioned words of Warriors’ head coach Steve Kerr and the thoughtful choice to use his media availabilty to address the tragic mass shooting of a Uvalde, Texas elementary school.

#FreeBrittney May 24, 2022

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Welcome back to the Bill Bradley Collective, where this week your hosts examine WNBA star Brittney Griner’s ongoing detention in Russia following a dubious arrest on drug charges earlier this year. Griner is one of the faces of the WNBA: a perennial all-league performer, Olympic gold medalist and historic collegiate standout at Baylor. As is the case for many of her peers, financial inequities force Griner to ply her trade overseas during the WNBA offseason. When she arrived in Russia on February 17 to rejoin her team, UMMC Ekaterinburg of the Russian Premier League, Griner was detained on charges of possessing vaporizer cartridges containing weed oil. Three months later, Griner remains in detention awaiting trial. Your panel seek to unpack and reckon with the complicated circumstances of her situation. Griner’s unique position as an American celebrity in Russia amidst aggressive Western sanctions resulting from the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine and her probable characterization as a hostage; the integrity of a Russian media report claiming a potential exchange of Griner for a high profile imprisoned arms dealer; the efficacy of the American response: that of the public, the State Department and the White House; and expectations for resolution flesh out the conversation. While our collective hope is that of a swift return home for Brittney Griner, the forecast is not quite so optimistic. But first a rant or three, as Zak vets CT gubernatorial candidate Bob Stefanowski’s summit with Pete Ricketts and the conflicting virtue signaling of the GOP hopeful’s abortion position; Ed details how disaster can result from the mundane with a look at a seemingly innocuous security fraud case where two far-right judges rendered a decision calling into question government’s right to enforce its own regulations; finally Andrew recaps the week in golf outside the ropes, where Jack Nicklaus met cancel culture and golf course architecture met MAGA Twitter-outrage.

The 2030s: A Sporting Landscape Odyssey May 17, 2022

Show notes

Welcome back to the Bill Bradley Collective, where this week your hosts offer a look to the future with a nod to the present: a conversation about the state of American sports’ so-called “big four” and the chances of an upstart brand or property moving into that esteemed tier. Here’s what we know. The NFL is king. The NBA continues to broaden the gap between themselves and everyone else. Major League Baseball is flush with regional network dollars and some early season buzz following an offseason lockout. The NHL is enjoying nice early returns in the first year of their content partnership with ESPN and Turner (TNT/TBS). The purpose of this exercise is to evaluate the prospects of those outside this exclusive group in entering that level of recognition a decade from now. Can the PGA Tour overcome it’s clear demographic shortfalls? Will NASCAR ever ascend back to the status it enjoyed in the early 2000’s, or will it be the more globally branded Formula 1 that more successfully expands into the American marketplace? MLS appears a long shot, but will the EPL or another domestic European league punch soccer’s ticket into the American top four? The WNBA? Combat sports and the rise of female athletes in the UFC and boxing? The Collective surveys the field and assesses what the American sporting hierarchy will look like a decade from now. But first, yet another epic trilogy of rants: as Zak revels in the early season success of his New York Mets with a look at their recent multi-pitcher no-hitter and how such a feat compares to the more conventional solo no-no; Ed decries right-wing sob stories over the peaceful protest demonstrations outside the homes of Supreme Court justices behind leaked efforts to overturn Roe v. Wade; and finally Andrew lights a candle in memory of the 2021-22 Philadelphia 76ers, with condolences to Joel Embiid and all sorts of smoke for an alleged superstar guard and professed coaching legend. A full-on, full-length smorgasbord of sports, politics, prognostication, vitriol and some laughs, this week on the Bill Bradley Collective.

Head of the Class May 10, 2022

Show notes

Welcome again to the Bill Bradley Collective, where it is part two of this week’s double drop: a conversation profiling legendary Tennessee women’s college basketball coach Pat Summitt. Over a career spanning nearly four decades, the late Summitt set the record book for all to try and catch. Eight national titles, eighteen Final Four appearances, 1,000+ wins and an Olympic gold medal are among her many notable accomplishments, but her legacy goes far beyond the stat sheet and the hardware. Summitt’s career and eventual ascension of her and the Lady Vols’ program coincide with the rise and growth of the sport, itself. The greatest and highest profile rivalry the sport has ever seen, matching Tennessee and UConn, has attracted more eyes to the women’s game than any other and is in large part responsible for the elevated profile the sport maintains today, and Summitt and Huskies coach Geno Auriemma were the catalysts. Her place among the greatest coaches in college basketball history; the fight with early-onset Alzheimer’s disease that ended her career and took her life far prematurely; and the brief but sordid coaching career of son Tyler are all also considered in this week’s profile of the late coach Pat Summitt on the Bill Bradley Collective.

Welcome to Gilead May 09, 2022

Show notes

Welcome back to the Bill Bradley Collective, where we present the rare Monday drop: a conversation show on the fallout of a leaked Samuel Alito Supreme Court draft striking down the decision rendered in 1973 in the case of Roe v. Wade. The right-wing framing of the story: that a “leak” from the Supreme Court is the dominant narrative versus the content of said “leak” sets the Collective story. As we sit on the precipice of delegalizing abortion and criminalizing aiding and abetting the process, your hosts attempt to figure out how we got to this place; how in 2022 the ball has moved so far to the favor of so-called pro-life Republican interests, and what the future holds in the wake of the most politically-charged Court draft/leak that perhaps we’ve ever seen.

Elon and his Muskovites May 03, 2022

Show notes

Welcome again to the Bill Bradley Collective, where this week we examine billionaire Tesla CEO Elon Musk move to acquire social media giant Twitter and the broader picture of billionaire influence over our news media and free speech. But first a rant or three, as Zak highlights the passage of a Connecticut bill aimed to protect abortion rights for recipients and providers against out-of-state legal backlash from the many other far more restrictive states; Ed spotlights the fallout from the watershed Katie Taylor-Amanda Serrano unification bout from last weekend and the promising future of headline female prize-fighting; and finally Andrew decries the decision of the All England Club to ban competitors from Russia and Belarus amidst the ongoing Russo-Ukrainian War. This leads us to Musk, and his many peers among the billionaire class: Peter Thiel, Mark Zuckerberg and Jeff Bezos most notably, that control both news and social media as we know it. How we use and interact with Twitter, what to expect under Musk’s control and whether or not we continue to engage the platform going forward comprise the bulk of this conversation. But to comprehend and begin to understand Musk’s ascension to a controlling interest in Twitter, means also considering Zuckerberg and Facebook; Jeff Bezos’ ownership of the Washington Post, Peter Thiel’s funding of the destruction of independent Gawker Media, Sheldon Adleson, Ru0ert Murdoch, et al. What does free speech look like in the media: broadcast, news and social alike, when that speech is controlled by the world’s richest men? Your panel seeks seeks an answer to that question and others this week on the Bill Bradley Collective.

Draft: Political Movies Apr 26, 2022

Show notes

Welcome back to the Bill Bradley Collective, where in deference to the forthcoming NFL Player Selection Meeting, your hosts present the inaugural Political Movie Draft. You’ve heard us draft the best and worst men and women across each sports and politics, as well as our choices for best sports movies, and this week follows a similar format. *Five* selections per collective host, drafted in snake fashion following a hotly contested session of roshambo determining the all important order. Choices are discussed and analyzed for the extent and substance of their political content, as well as cinematic quality. No formal genre requirements were imposed, but eclecticism in draft choices was encouraged. The Collective cover many classics of the genre, including historical dramas, biopics, thrillers, satires, animated comedies and documentary features. In true Collective fashion, the nature and veracity of the “political” movie is brought into question from the very beginning with a nod to the many un-drafted works of one Aaron Sorkin. Located at the intersections of Mel Kiper and Siskel & Ebert, Hollywood and Washington, D.C., be sure to join us this week on the Bill Bradley Collective.

From the Locker Room to SCOTUS - Lisa Olson & Misogyny Apr 19, 2022

Show notes

Welcome back to the Bill Bradley Collective, where this week we continue our season long feature on women in sports with a profile of sports journalist Lisa Olson and her place in the NFL’s problematic history of female disenfranchisement. Olson got her start fresh out of college at the Boston Herald, where she quickly ascended to cover the New England Patriots beat. Shortly into her first season, Olson was sexually harassed and psychologically assaulted by three Patriots in a disgusting locker-room incident, one seemingly abetted and endorsed by team higher-ups including owner Victor Kiam. The league investigation and subsequent “punishment” reflected an extreme dereliction of duty in meeting the severity of the player’s and organization’s actions and effect on Olson’s livelihood. If anyone came out punished, it was the victimized reporter, forced to relocate to Australia in order to continue her journalistic career for the better part of the next decade. What should have served as a positive tipping point for the advancement of women in sports journalism, was merely a harbinger of how the league would continue to regard women in their orbit for the next thirty-plus years. The NFL culture as it regards treatment of females is no less, if not more, dubious today than it was all the way back in 1990. How the league has handled Dan Snyder and the environment he has presided over in Washington; the failure to assess any culpability to Deshaun Watson amidst myriad credible assault accusations; Greg Hardy; comments by Cam Newton; all reflect an open hostility towards any and all women with experiences potentially damaging to the league’s mythical shield. Lisa Olson’s plight, which in a moral world may have snapped the NFL out of it’s abhorrent sexual biases and mores, instead shows that as everything changes, everything stays the same, and what has stayed the same is the continued degradation and abasement of women victimized by the league. Come for Olson’s profile in courage, stay for an NFL profile in ignominy, this week on the Bill Bradley Collective.

🎶🎤 “Sorry Ms. Jackson (You Are For Real)” 🎼🎵 Apr 13, 2022

Show notes

Welcome back to the Bill Bradley Collective, where this week your hosts shine a deserved spotlight on the latest appointee to the Supreme Court, one Ketanji Brown Jackson. But first, we set the table with a rant or three, as Ed details the pending fate of Lizelle Herrera, charged with murder in the wake of Texas’ on-going legislative anti-abortion crusade; Andrew decries some of the coverage surrounding NFL QB Dwayne Haskins’ tragic and untimely passing, and Zak censures the right wing characterization of the Disney Company as supporters of so-called child “grooming” in response to the media behemoth’s opposition to Florida’s newly instituted anti-LGBTQ laws. This provides something of an unfortunate transition to this week’s main subject, newly appointed Supreme Court justice Ketanji Brown-Jackson. Much of the rhetoric from the Senate Judiciary Committee’s GOP contingent focused on Brown-Jackson having a perceived “softness” on crimes involving pedophilia, a case most mainstream news outlets as well as your hosts disapprovingly fact checked. The newest justice’s background and bonafides are also detailed, as well as the abhorrently partisan nature of her confirmation hearings, a vote that saw three(!) GOP senators vote to confirm Brown-Jackson to the bench, and how/if her appointment may shift the ideological makeup of the court in the years to come. A historic week for the Supreme Court, a seismic achievement for black women in our government, and more calamity brought to you courtesy of the Republican Party, all laid out in both great and grave detail this week on the Bill Bradley Collective.

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