House of Strauss

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HoS: Eli Lake Apr 19, 2024

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

Prominent foreign policy writer Eli Lake, currently posting at The Free Press, dropped by HoS to talk basketball. I, of course, wanted to discuss Lake’s views on politics, culture and the ever fraught topic of Israel. I’m not sure which of us won the battle for topic allocation, but I thoroughly enjoyed the conversation (and I’ve made the NBA part of it free).

Subjects include, but are not limited to…

* Why Eli is “my least favorite kind of intellectual”

* Eli’s beloved Sixers…getting mighty intriguing?

* How to fix the Warriors

* Eli, much like fellow Philly Jew Spike Eskin, has issues with LeBron’s public persona.

* Why LeBron vs. Daryl Morey on China turned into a crisis at my then place of work

* Is Eli, post October 7th, still friendly with Glenn Greenwald?

* The Zionist case for America ceasing to fund Israel’s military

* Protestors who block bridges against Israeli military action…is there a logic to what they’re doing?

* Are today’s protestors imitating the legend of the 60s? Or doing their own thing?

* Trump at the bodega

HoS: Andrew Bogut and Mike Procopio Apr 18, 2024

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We’ve got Andrew Bogut and Mike “Pro” Procopio of the Rogue Bogues podcast to discuss the eliminated and possibly dead Golden State Warriors dynasty. Obviously we talked about a lot of other subjects with these first grade ballbusters. Topics include but aren’t limited to…

* The Warriors. What should they do?

* Draymond Green as player-podcaster

* Did the Warriors really screw up the James Wiseman pick? Or were there just few good options?

* Jontay Porter getting banned from the NBA for prop bets

* The way assistant coaches scheme against one another for power

* The time I got yelled at by a media member in front of Steph Curry

* Players and coaches leaking secret information to reporters

* Gilbert Arenas slighting Nikola Jokic

* Is it an issue at all if Luka Doncic is chubby?

* Pro is the King of Feminism because he was pro WNBA before it was cool

HoS: Spike Eskin, Talking LeBron+ JJ Redick and Michael Porter Jr. Podcast Ventures Apr 11, 2024

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Top flight Audio Man Spike Eskin is here to discuss the newest NBA podcast hits. Spike’s gotten a lot of mileage out of humorously critiquing LeBron and JJ Redick’s “Mind the Game” pod, but perhaps he should be focusing more of his energy on Michael Porter Jr.’s “Curious Mike” product?

Topics discussed:

* Is Spike a hater for laughing at LeBron’s Internet-lauded NBA strategy podcast? What’s wrong with two dudes drinking fancy wine and talking hoops?

* Why did Spike’s “LeBron caught himself in a lie” clip go this viral?

* Is the broader media afraid to have fun with LeBron’s foibles?

* LeBron’s child star origins on display

* Michael Porter Jr. interviewed porn star Lana Rhoades and the results are very entertaining

* “Poop cookies” and the controversy surrounding Porter Jr.’s Rhoades interview

* A case of “locker room” talk infuriating segments of social media

* Athletes as political/social omnivores

HoS: Ryan Glasspiegel on the Caitlin Clark Boom, backlash from other women's players and that Outkick Final Four question Apr 08, 2024

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Boy do we have a loaded topic docket with America’s preeminent sports media critic and New York Post newsbreaker Ryan Glasspiegel. Honestly discussed fraught topics abound.

As Ryan would frame this rundown:

* All things Caitlin Clark (ratings, will it translate to WNBA, the backlash from women's basketball players and the backlash to the backlash)

* Why Norby Williamson's out at ESPN/who he is/what it means

* Dawn Staley/Outkick: What’s with the prestige media anger over the biological male in women’s sports question?

* Why Timberwolves ownership dustup should be a bigger story

* Ryan loves WrestleMania. I don’t understand WrestleMania

HoS: Guy Haberman on his voice, amicable breakup with John Middlekauff, and what the 49ers will do Apr 04, 2024

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Sports announcers and 49ers Youtuber Guy Haberman had vocal cord surgery and now sounds like Patty + Selma. I find his current predicament fascinating. He insists the subject of announcer voice issues isn’t interesting. We start talking 49ers around the 52 minute mark, for people who are into that sort of thing.

Topics include:

* What does a vocal cord surgery do for a broadcaster?

* Which sports announcers qualify for Top 5 “All Pipes” Team

* Do New York announcers have the best accent for the job? Do Midwesterners have the worst?

* Why did the elite duo of Guy + John Middlekauff break up?

* Is Brandon Aiyuk going to be traded?

* My crazy contrarian NFL takes

* Does the NFL have a good understanding of which positions actually matter?

* Who should the Niners draft?

* How good is the talent around Brock Purdy? Better than what the Lions have around Goff?

* Why paying your QB big money is no death sentence

* Oh, and subscribe today!

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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: Amin Elhassan on "Dirty Debutantes," Iowa-LSU Race War, Caleb Williams' nail polish Apr 02, 2024

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Our friend Amin Elhassan went negatively viral with his jump shot, but it’s only made him stronger.

Many a fraught topic discussed in this one, including whether it’s easier to say things now vs. the recent past. Subjects include but aren’t limited to…

* Amin’s crazy co-workers argued that Michael Jordan lacked charisma

* Amin’s moment as Internet main character, based on a jump shot

* Ben Bolch of the LA Times becomes main character over calling LSU women’s team “Dirty Debutantes,” and something about hot sauce? What happened here?

* Don’t search “Dirty Debutantes” on a work computer

* Is the Basketball Race War good for society?

* Caleb Williams’ Nail Polishgate

* Is the younger generation of athletes more into Williams’ style of personal expression?

* Male feminist writers aren’t helping women’s sports when getting too defensive on behalf of players

HoS: Kat Rosenfield on Huberman, Blasey Ford and the Vibe Shift Mar 29, 2024

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In the Elon X era, no article ever goes viral. At least that’s what I used to think. But now, of late, articles in New York Magazine and The Cut have broken through as a sort of rage bait. To assess what’s going on, we’ve called in honest and trenchant culture writer Kat Rosenfield. Topics include but aren’t limited to…

* Pre mourning your old dog

* Getting “serious” with your significant other early

* The Andrew Huberman cover story in NY Mag

* How the Huberman story, while well written, fails to hit its target

* It’s hard to publicly shame a man over having six girlfriends

* Kat’s piece on how nobody cares about the Christine Blasey Ford memoir

* The weirdness of the Brett Kavanaugh moment

* Journalists taking out high school resentments on public figures

* I’m “ethnically liberal”

HoS: Andre Iguodala and Evan Turner Mar 28, 2024

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If you’re an NBA fan you know who Andre Iguodala and Evan Turner are, beyond being recent guests on House of Strauss. In this episode, I used my “stupid questions” approach to ask these current media members about their old jobs. The answers? Well, they were anything but stupid. Enjoy…

House of Strauss is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

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: Joe Pompliano Mar 22, 2024

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Joe covers sports, business and often how the two intertwine. He’s been all over the sports + gambling topic, most recently with his viral observation on live sports betting integration getting added into NBA League Pass. Basically, Joe discusses all my favorite topics, so of course we had a great conversation. Topics include but aren’t limited to…

* How America and Europe are on opposite timelines with sports betting

* Is the sports betting boom going to harm young peoples’ sports fandom?

* Why you can somewhat easily beat the books (except they won’t allow it)

* Should sports books be forced to take the bets of winners?

* Should sports gambling be made illegal again?

* Contradictory signals on the NBA’s TV rights prospects

* What do we think really happened with Shohei Ohtani?

* The future is athletes getting in trouble like Ohtani did

House of Strauss is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

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: Chris Vernon Mar 20, 2024

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

Thrilled to have Chris Vernon on because I’ve long been curious about his career as an NBA + overall sports podcaster. The best way I can summarize Verno for those who do not know: Think if Sam Kinison was really into the Memphis Grizzlies.

Topics include but are not limited to…

* Vernon used to hilariously CRUSH Pau Gasol

* How Chris chose the Grizzlies as his success vehicle

* Why Robert Saleh is the reason 49ers Youtube exploded

* JT The Brick saved Chris’ career with some unforgettable advice

* Why Tony Allen is a better NBA player podcaster than some others

* Why Vernon thinks the NBA will be profitable despite losing full game watchers

* Gas station boner pills?

* Do the kids like the NBA?

* Will this LeBron + JJ Redick podcast be a success?