How do you turn overlooked data into bestselling stories that change industries? Michael Lewis reveals his process for finding and telling groundbreaking narratives, from Moneyball to Flash Boys to The Big Short. He also explains how he came across Shane’s unique impact on basketball, and how Kobe Bryant secretly studied his profile––“No Stats All-Star”––to counter Shane’s tactics. Jump inside the mind of one of our favorite authors and leave with a clear (and surprisingly simple) sense of how to find extraordinary stories.
For the full show notes, transcript, and links to mentioned content, check out the episode page here.
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Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant (https://thepodcastconsultant.com).
Show Notes:
(00:00:00) Learn about Ramp
(00:02:08) Introducing Michael Lewis: A Career Overview
(00:03:26) High School Football Memories: Reggie Bush and Beyond
(00:08:20) Evaluating Quarterbacks: Talent and Processing
(00:22:22) The Evolution of College Athletes
(00:24:24) The Story Behind 'No Stats All-Star'
(00:27:01) Shane Battier's Unique Defensive Techniques
(00:34:17) Impact of Writing on Sports and Athletes
(00:39:01) The Coal Miner Story and Public Service
(00:45:17) The Art of Finding the Right Character
(00:48:45) Revisiting Old Ideas
(00:50:17) The Intersection of Sports and Finance
(00:51:09) The Appeal of Competitive Environments
(00:52:14) From Wall Street to Sports Writing
(00:55:06) The Evolution of Analytics in Sports
(00:56:34) The Art of Storytelling
(00:57:51) Unique Jobs and Hidden Talents
(01:01:04) The Value of Being Useful
(01:05:17) Financial Literacy in Sports
(01:07:17) The Future of NIL Deals
