Welcome back to The Victory Degree Podcast! There are plenty of podcasts out there and so I thank you for choosing The Victory Degree today - the podcast where my mission is to interview the most influential people in sports both on and off the field. 

Today’s guest is Jimmy Traina. Jimmy has been with Sports Illustrated since 2000, covering the world of sports and sports media in various capacities. He has been writing daily sports columns since 2007 and has been the host of the Sports Illustrated Media Podcast since 2017 interviewing athletes and media personalities like Tom Brady, Derek Jeter, Charles Barkley, Bill Simmons, Ryen Russilo, Pat McAfee, and more.

In this interview, Jimmy explains why New Haven Pizza is overrated, how he landed a job at Sports Illustrated, what separates great broadcasters like Kevin Harlan and Mike Breen from everyone else, the future of sports media, the grind of writing a daily sports column, what he’s learned from interviewing Ryen Russillo, Bill Simmons, Charles Barkley, Scott Hansen, Pat McAfee, and much more…

As always, I sincerely hope you enjoy this episode. And if you do, please consider leaving a review on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you find this episode. It helps the show more than you know. With that, let’s get to the episode…

TIMESTAMPS

(00:00) Intro

(03:22) Worst Tuesday of the Year?

(04:08) Working From Home

(06:00) New Haven Pizza

(10:30) How Jimmy Got Into Sports

(14:54) Sports as a Career

(16:09) Sports Broadcasting

(19:54) How to Deal With Criticism

(22:17) How Twitter Changed Sports

(24:21) Athlete Podcasts & Future of Sports Media

(28:37) The Optimal TV Setup

(32:28) Streaming Platforms

(33:29) How Fantasy & Gambling Have Changed the NFL

(36:00) The Grind of Writing a Daily Sports Column

(40:04) Getting Into Sports Media

(44:17) Starting a Podcast in 2017

(49:08) Jimmy's Interview Style

(55:38) Ryen Russillo

(56:57) Bill Simmons

(58:16) Charles Barkley

(61:10) Scott Hansen

(01:02:21) Pat McAfee

(01:07:55) Downsides of Working in Sports

(01:11:24) Jimmy's Favorite Character from The Office

(01:14:19) The Legacy of Bill Walton

(01:17:00) Life Advice

Connect with Jimmy: 

Twitter: https://x.com/JimmyTraina

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jimmytraina/

SI Media Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/si-media-with-jimmy-traina/id997819235

Connect with Nik: 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nikatanackovic/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Nik_Atanackovic