The War On Tanking

<p>Hosts <a href="https://www.splitzoneduo.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Alex Kirshner</a>, <a href="https://lindsaygibbs.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Lindsay Gibbs</a>, and <a href="https://www.theringer.com/authors/ben-lindbergh" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Ben Lindbergh</a> examine the NBA’s growing tanking problem and the league’s ongoing struggle to make the All-Star Game competitive. Then they’re joined by sportswriter, <a href="https://neilpaine.substack.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Neil Paine</a>, to discuss the rise of Connor Zilisch, a young NASCAR driver drawing comparisons to Jeff Gordon. To close, Hang Up vet, <a href="https://josh-levin.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Josh Levin</a>, returns to talk all things Winter Olympics and what he’s looking forward to in its last week.</p><br><p>Ben also has an Afterball on the Snoop Dogg-ification of the Olympics and sports in general.</p><p>On the bonus episode, available exclusively for Slate Plus members, the panel talks about the NCAA's messy player eligibility lawsuits.</p><br><p><strong>NBA (2:39): </strong>The race to the bottom</p><p><strong>NASCAR (20:40)</strong>: A new young phenom racing to the top</p><p><strong>Olympics with Josh (37:38):</strong> Levin crosses the hog line!</p><p><strong>Afterballs (01:00:14):</strong> Ben drops it like it's hot</p><br><p><br></p><br><p><br></p><p>(Note: time codes are only accurate for Slate Plus members, who listen ad-free.)</p><br><p>Get more Hang Up and Listen with Slate Plus! Join for weekly bonus episodes of Hang Up and Listen and ad-free listening on all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe from the Hang Up and Listen show page on <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/hang-up-and-listen/id327595087" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Apple Podcasts</a> or <a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/65uyYjdz34l1411uDzmKlA" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Spotify</a>, or visit <a href="https://slate.com/podcast-plus?utm_medium=link&amp;utm_campaign=plus_pod&amp;utm_content=Hang_Up&amp;utm_source=episode_summary" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">slate.com/hangupplus</a> for access wherever you listen.</p><br><p>You can email us at <a href="mailto:hangup@slate.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">hangup@slate.com</a>.</p><br><p>Podcast production and editing by Kevin Bendis, with production assistance from Patrick Fort.</p><