Hang Up and Listen
A weekly sports discussion from Slate. Hang Up and Listen features Slate sports editor Josh Levin, writer Stefan Fatsis (author of A Few Seconds of Panic), Slate writer and Slow Burn host Joel Anderson, and a selection of interesting guests from around the sports world.
Episodes
August 8, 2022 • 84 min
Josh Levin, the New Yorker’s Vinson Cunningham, and Slate’s Henry Grabar take an audio tour of Vin Scully’s broadcasting career. They also discuss the documentary NYC Point Gods. Finally, Josh interviews tennis players Maxime Cressy and Daria Saville.
Vin Scully (2:36): Eight moments from 66 years in the booth.
NYC Point Gods (33:11): Is the new basketball documentary worth watching?
Tennis (48:33): Conversations with two of ...
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August 1, 2022 • 64 min
Josh Levin is joined by Aram Goudsouzian for a conversation about Bill Russell’s life and legacy; by Grant Wahl to talk about England’s historic victory at the women’s European soccer championships; and by Andscape’s Jason Reid to discuss Deshaun Watson, Kyler Murray, and Reid’s book Rise of the Black Quarterback.
Bill Russell (2:21): The basketball legend’s biographer on his impact on and off the court.
England (23:28):...
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July 25, 2022 • 75 min
Josh Levin and the New Yorker’s Vinson Cunningham are joined by Tim Layden to discuss the record breakers of the world track and field championships; by Abe Riesman to talk about Vince McMahon’s scandal-laden retirement from WWE; and by Sarah Larson for a conversation about her New Yorker feature on pickleball.
Track and field (1:30): What’s next for Sydney McLaughlin, Noah Lyles, and the sport as a whole?
Vince McMahon (25:24)...
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July 18, 2022 • 75 min
Joel Anderson, Stefan Fatsis, and Josh Levin discuss the opening weekend of the world track and field championships. They also talk about why the Angels are so bad in spite of Shohei Ohtani and Mike Trout and the Nationals’ Juan Soto dilemma. Finally, Puck’s Julia Ioffe joins for a conversation about Brittney Griner’s detention in Russia.
Track (4:07): Why an American hurdler got a raw deal.
Baseball (25:02): Is Juan Soto crazy...
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July 11, 2022 • 78 min
Joel Anderson, Josh Levin, and Ben Mathis-Lilley discuss their proposals for fixing college football. Josh then speaks with Ben Rothenberg about Novak Djokovic’s Wimbledon win over Nick Kyrgios. Finally, Joel, Josh, and Ben assess the rising stars of NBA Summer League.
College football (3:26): How will the sport reshape itself in the next five years?
Tennis (27:01): Wimbledon got the final it deserved.
Summer League (53:07): ...
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July 5, 2022 • 81 min
Joel Anderson, Stefan Fatsis, and Josh Levin discuss the Brooklyn Nets’ Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving trade drama. They also talk about UCLA and USC moving to the Big Ten and assess the verbal sparring between Nick Kyrgios and Stefanos Tsitsipas at Wimbledon.
Nets (2:26): Could they still keep KD and Kyrie?
Big Ten (24:28): What the latest big move means for the future of college football and every other sport.
Kyrgios and Ts...
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June 27, 2022 • 71 min
Joel Anderson, Stefan Fatsis, and Josh Levin are joined by Olympic gold medalist Crissy Perham to discuss what Roe v. Wade getting overturned means for women athletes. They also discuss Arch Manning’s decision to play football at the University of Texas and Ohio State getting a trademark on the word “the.”
Crissy Perham (2:56): A champion swimmer on why she’s speaking out about her abortion.
Arch Manning (23:15): America’s lead...
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June 22, 2022 • 85 min
Joel Anderson, Stefan Fatsis, and Josh Levin are joined by ESPN’s Greg Wyshynski to discuss the Stanley Cup Finals. They also talk about Dream On, the ESPN documentary on the 1996 U.S. women’s Olympic basketball team. Finally, they assess Nike upon its 50th anniversary.
Stanley Cup (2:40): Inside the match-up between the Colorado Avalanche and Tampa Bay Lightning.
Dream On (26:57): Looking back at a landmark moment for women’s ...
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June 13, 2022 • 79 min
Joel Anderson and Josh Levin are joined by the New Yorker’s Vinson Cunningham to discuss Steph Curry and the NBA Finals. Then, they review the Adam Sandler basketball movie Hustle. Finally, ESPN’s Kevin Van Valkenburg joins Joel and Josh to talk about the debut weekend of the Saudi-funded LIV Golf.
Steph and the NBA (3:30): The Warriors got back into the Finals with some Curry magic. Can Jayson Tatum summon some of his own?
Hus...
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June 7, 2022 • 83 min
Joel Anderson, Stefan Fatsis, and Josh Levin assess the back-and-forth NBA Finals between the Warriors and Celtics. The New York Times’ Andrew Das also joins to talk about Ukraine’s loss to Wales in a World Cup playoff match. Finally, they discuss the Oklahoma softball juggernaut.
NBA Finals (3:09): How the Celtics took Game 1, and how the Warriors struck back.
Ukraine-Wales (25:00): An epic sporting event with global consequen...
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May 31, 2022 • 76 min
Josh Levin and Joel Anderson are joined by Jack Hamilton to discuss the Warriors-Celtics NBA Finals matchup. Bradford William Davis then joins to talk about Josh Donaldson’s suspension for calling Tim Anderson “Jackie” and Tommy Pham slapping Joc Pederson for allegedly cheating in fantasy football.
NBA (2:53): What the rise of the Warriors and the Celtics says about pro basketball team-building.
Donaldson vs. Anderson (22:48): ...
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May 23, 2022 • 79 min
Josh Levin and Stefan Fatsis are joined by Jack Hamilton to discuss the NBA playoffs and Patrick Beverley’s chaotic media appearances; by Alex Kirshner to talk about the war of words between Nick Saban and Jimbo Fisher; and by the Washington Post’s Molly Hensley-Clancy to assess U.S. Soccer’s landmark equal pay deal.
NBA (2:07): Will the conference finals get any better? And is Patrick Beverley telling the truth or spinning his o...
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May 16, 2022 • 77 min
Vinson Cunningham, Josh Levin, and Ben Mathis-Lilley talk about the Mavs’ shocking win over the Suns, the Celtics’ romp over the Bucks, the 76ers’ flameout, and other NBA playoff happenings. They also discuss Tom Brady’s megabucks contract to call NFL games for Fox.
Mavs-Suns (3:05): How Luka Doncic and Dallas embarrassed Phoenix.
More NBA (24:53): With the Bucks and Suns gone, who’s the favorite to win the title?
Brady (48:0...
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May 9, 2022 • 85 min
Vinson Cunningham, Stefan Fatsis, and Josh Levin are joined by the New York Times‘ Joe Drape to talk about Rich Strike’s shocking Kentucky Derby win. They also discuss Brittney Griner’s continued detention in Russia. Finally, Shane Ryan joins for a conversation about the Ryder Cup and sports trivia.
Kentucky Derby (2:27): Inside one of the biggest upsets in horse racing history.
Brittney Griner (24:41): What comes next in the d...
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May 2, 2022 • 75 min
Vinson Cunningham and Stefan Fatsis are joined by Slate’s Jack Hamilton to talk about the NBA playoffs and the dawn of de facto free agency in college sports. Also, Kalyn Kahler of Defector discusses the NFL draft and her reporting on a rape allegation against an NFL lineman.
NBA playoffs (2:03): Giannis Antetokounmpo led the Bucks to an easy win over the Celtics. Can Boston turn it around?
College sports (25:07): Name, image, a...
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April 25, 2022 • 81 min
Vinson Cunningham, Stefan Fatsis, and Josh Levin talk about the decline of the Brooklyn Nets and the rise of the New Orleans Pelicans. They also discuss Wimbledon’s decision to ban Russian and Belarusian athletes, and they review the HBO series Winning Time, on the 1980s Los Angeles Lakers.
NBA playoffs (3:55): What’s gone wrong for Brooklyn? What’s going right for New Orleans?
Wimbledon (25:34): Is there any logic to banning i...
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April 18, 2022 • 78 min
Vinson Cunningham, Stefan Fatsis, and Josh Levin discuss the epic Game 1 of the Nets-Celtics series. They also talk about the Minnesota Timberwolves, young playoff stars, and Brooklyn Nets owner Joe Tsai. Finally, the Ringer’s Ben Lindbergh joins for a conversation about near-perfection at the start of the baseball season.
Nets-Celtics (3:05): Jayson Tatum, Kyrie Irving, and a whole lot more.
NBA playoffs (26:39): What we’re wat...
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April 11, 2022 • 78 min
Vinson Cunningham, Stefan Fatsis, and Josh Levin discuss the death of quarterback Dwayne Haskins. Slate’s Jim Newell also joins to discuss Tiger Woods’ dramatic return at the Masters. Finally, they assess the Los Angeles Lakers’ terrible season.
Dwayne Haskins (1:29): How should we talk about athletes who die young?
Tiger Woods (24:57): What comes after his miraculous comeback?
Lakers (47:58): What went so horribly wrong?
A...
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April 5, 2022 • 81 min
Joel Anderson, Stefan Fatsis, and Josh Levin discuss Kansas’ win over North Carolina’s in the men’s basketball title game, and the Athletic’s Chantel Jennings joins to talk about South Carolina’s win over UConn for the women’s title. Finally, they talk about Eric Church, and when it’s OK for sports to trump social and professional obligations.
NCAA men (2:21): How the Jayhawks turned it around against the Tar Heels.
NCAA women ...
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March 28, 2022 • 77 min
Slate’s sports podcast on the NCAA basketball tournaments and U.S. soccer. Plus, an interview with Bomani Jones.
NCAA basketball (3:26): After two weeks of upsets, it’s Duke, UNC, Kansas, and Villanova.
World Cup (24:20): The U.S. men’s national soccer team is on the brink of qualifying after a 5-1 win over Panama.
Bomani Jones (47:33): Joel interviews ESPN personality Bomani Jones about his new HBO show, “Game Theory With Bom...
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