House of Strauss

Latest Episodes:

HoS: Mike Silver on 'The Why Is Everything' Jun 25, 2025

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This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.houseofstrauss.com

Mike Silver, senior NFL writer at the Athletic, has written a remarkable book. “The Why Is Everything” is, in my opinion, the type of work that will no longer happen in the modern access-constrained world. So we get into it, exploring the coaching rivalries that shaped modern football and analyzing the friend/enemy relationships involved. Topics include but aren’t limited to…

* Why is the “why” important for players to understand?

* “It’s a crazy business. I’ve seen people fire their brothers.”

* Five future head coaches worked on one 2013 Washington Redskins staff: Kyle Shanahan, Sean McVay, Matt LaFleur, Raheem Morris, and Mike McDaniel

* Is Sean McVay a big hypocrite? Or just uncommonly vulnerable?

* Mike McDaniel was Kyle Shanahan’s right hand man, to the point where Kyle undermined Mike’s dreams

* What was working at the Daily Cal like for Mike and myself?

* Will sports writers be replaced by AI technology?

* Why the hell isn’t Mike Shanahan in the NFL Hall of Fame?!

Taking Random Offense With Mike Pesca on Friday 4 pm EST Jun 19, 2025

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Stop by live, Friday, at 2way.tv/ethan, where I can discuss most things and Mike Pesca can discuss everything. Topics I’d like to get into include NBA Finals, sports gambling as indicator of sports decline, plus the emergent visibility of baby boomer liberals in protest culture. Also…do we dare discuss Israel/Iran? See you there!

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.houseofstrauss.com/subscribe

HoS: Daman Rangoola on Lakers Sale SHOCKER Jun 19, 2025

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This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.houseofstrauss.com

After angering Stratechery’s Daman Rangoola in private about his JOY over Wednesday’s Lakers team sale, I decided to allow his grievances to be aired in public. Or at least behind this paywall. Beyond being highly informed about the tech world, Daman is a Laker obsessive, with ties to people in the know. And so we discussed topics including but not limited to…

* Was I improperly throwing cold water on Laker fan excitement?

* What’s up with the trend of hyped ownership changes going poorly?

* Did Mark Cuban negotiate a bad team sale price?

* How can Daman compliment Jeanie and be so damned thrilled?

* Is Luka Doncic an OWNER KILLER???

* End of NBA mom and pop shops

* What should even get improved by the new Lakers?

* Is Rob Pelinka guaranteed to be fired?

* Why does the NBA allow the interruption of its Finals with this stuff?

* Should the NBA overtly take over the WNBA?

HoS: Tom Haberstroh on NBA Finals, Aaron Judge vs. Barry Bonds Jun 11, 2025

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This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.houseofstrauss.com

Our old friend and Yahoo!/Substack NBA writer Tom Haberstoh is here for some analytical diving. Great talk in my humble opinion. Topics include but aren’t limited to…

* Tom and I made Tim MacMahon famous and he owes us big time

* Is a Thunder-Pacers Finals good for the NBA?

* Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is the new Tim Duncan

* Does SGA not have a signature move? Which stars have what signature moves?

* If you take away the steroid peak, is current Aaron Judge better than Barry Bonds?

* Is Tyrese Haliburton not a superstar?

* Are NBA coaches less valuable than ever?

* How many draft picks would you trade for your team to acquire Sam Presti?

* It’s time for NBA coaches to wear suits again!

HoS: Ryan Glasspiegel on Media Beef Week Jun 04, 2025

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This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.houseofstrauss.com

Our man Glass is here to discuss an oddly contentious week in sports media. Prominent names are fighting, so we decided to give our takes on what the hell is happening. Topics include but aren’t limited to…

* Is Bill Simmons right that ESPN will fuck up Inside the NBA?

* Ryen Russillo draws ire of Mina Kimes over a harmless joke

* Towel snapping maleness of Inside

* Bill Simmons vs. Pablo Torre (A B.S. report with Pablo was released right after we recorded, so perhaps not history’s most contentious feud)

* LeBron James vs. Brian Windhorst

* How successful is LeBron’s Mind the Game podcast?

* Is there are a big audience for basketball strategy in a podcast?

* “NBA ratings don’t matter,” say people who seem to love when they’re up

* The “High Floor, Low Ceiling” theory of NBA viewership

* How big is the impact of small markets on viewership?

* Is Pride Month now Pride Day in sports?

* Why do sports teams tweet more about Pride than other corporations?

* Elon Musk going at Trump’s bill on Twitter/X

HoS: Ed Latimore May 29, 2025

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This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.houseofstrauss.com

I’ve heard buzz about a memoir by Ed Latimore, who’s a former professional boxer and current professional writer. Ed’s developed a following for his life advice and his upcoming book is titled, Hard Lessons From the Hurt Business.

I loved getting to know Ed on quite a free range assortment of topics. These topics include but aren’t limited to...

* Having kids is the choice that later doesn’t feel like a choice

* There’s a town in Canada that’s inundated with polar bears

* What lessons you learn from getting knocked out on live television

* Ed worries that anyone who’d attack him would likely have a gun

* I sort of choked when opening up my live YouTube show

* Why are we so afraid of public shame?

* The story you can tell yourself to get over a breakup

* Losing weight requires a “why” and mine is embarrassing

Live w Ethan Strauss Mike Pesca n' Caitlin Clark, Jayson Tatum & you May 20, 2025

Show notes

Here’s my Substack live video with Mike Pesca!

Btw, Mike and Bomani Jones will be joining me for my inaugural launch of Random Offense on YouTube, Friday 4pm ET (1 pm PST). Here’s a link for that. Join up.

Idea of Random Offense is it’s a bit like the old Callin show I used to do, with listener involvement, only more visual. You guys can call in, ask questions, submit article ideas for the Substack. See you Friday.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.houseofstrauss.com/subscribe

HoS: Matt Klinman May 16, 2025

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Matt is back! Nearly two hours of tech and media conversation, in which Matt reveals that he endorses Jon Voight’s plan to take Hollywood back to the 1970s. Also, we discuss how sports television is now aggressively eating scripted Hollywood.

Topics include but aren’t limited to…

* We were bullied into doing this episode by my only female subscriber

* Woke Matt doesn’t think HBO’s The Pitt is woke

* Did I accidentally trick a writer into thinking I’m a robot?

* Max goes back to HBO Max

* Old people are still running the show

* “The creator economy is a scam”

* Sports asserted their dominance at Upfronts

* Are Group Chats going public?

* Woke Matt defends universities

Thanks for reading House of Strauss! This post is public so feel free to share it.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.houseofstrauss.com/subscribe

HoS: Ryan Glasspiegel May 14, 2025

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This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.houseofstrauss.com

House of Glass alert! Topics include but aren’t limited…

* Nike not optimizing shareholder value

* NBA lottery history suspicious but probably not rigged

* Is Cooper Flagg a top tier prospect historically? Would you trade him for Giannis?

* Why nobody cares about Anthony Edwards’ off court issues

* Sad Bill Belichick situation

* Does Bill Belichick really still have sex?

* Meadowlark Media crossroads

* Why the other media moguls have issues with Dan Le Batard

HoS: Spike Eskin on Redick, Harden, Chokers May 05, 2025

Show notes

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.houseofstrauss.com

You people emailed me, wanting Spike Eskin’s commentary on JJ Redick’s playoff flameout. This tweet was but a taste…

We discuss Spike’s anti Redick theory and so much. more. Topics include but aren’t limited to…

* “Farting in church” basketball takes like wanting more from Popovich’s coaching tree

* Is it fair to suggest that Redick’s choking as a player can carry over into coaching?

* Why everyone loves James Harden as choking archetype

* What Redick misses about coaching

* Why NFL film watching is “astrology for dudes”

* A good sports pundit is right a lot. A great sports pundit is constantly wrong and it never matters

* Does Spike feel betrayed by Dasha Nekrasova hiding her imminent marriage?

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