ESPN Daily

Athletes often say they love the city where they play, but Giannis Antetokounmpo takes it to a new level. He’s called Milwaukee home since the team drafted him in 2013. It wasn’t a given that the Greek native, a son of Nigerian immigrants, would stay in the midwestern city. But his massive 2020 contract extension shows the love is mutual. In an encore of one of our favorite episodes from the last year, our own ESPN Daily producer (and Wisconsin native) Ryan Nantell digs into a legendary anecdote from Giannis’ rookie season that shows why he and Milwaukee have been such a good fit. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

10 years ago today, the “Butt Fumble” was born. On November 22, 2012, a crisp Thanksgiving night, Bill Belichick and the New England Patriots visited the Mark Sanchez-led New York Jets at MetLife Stadium…where in the second quarter, Mark Sanchez turned the wrong way after a snap and ran right into his right guard’s butt and fumbled the ball to an awaiting Patriots defense that promptly ran it in for a touchdown. The play became a symbol of the Jets’ dysfunction, and has been immortalized forever through video clips, replays, and memes. Former Jets head coach Rex Ryan takes us back to that dark day in Jets history, and ESPN Daily producer Chris Tumminello, who attended the Butt Fumble game, helps us commemorate the notorious anniversary. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Week 11 in the NFL had the makings of a snoozefest…until the Chargers and Chiefs battled it out on Sunday night, with the Chiefs pulling off yet another last-second comeback. Just a week after putting the NFL on notice with a win over the Bills in the game of the year, the Vikings got embarrassed at home by the Dallas Cowboys. The NFC East’s good day continued as the Washington Commanders beat the Houston Texans to improve to 6-5 after starting the season 1-4…and more importantly, they finally named Taylor Heinicke their starting QB going forward. And amid all the outrage over the Colts’ hiring of Jeff Saturday as their interim head coach…prompted us to think, what actually makes someone qualified to be a head coach anyway? We brought in Alex Smith for another edition of QB Confidential, so he could help us make sense of all of this. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It’s no surprise that the athlete's mental health has been one of the biggest topics in sports in recent years, as more and more players are coming forward with the struggles they face in dealing with the constant pressure. But screaming fans and high-stakes moments are exactly what makes sports so compelling. So today, in a special crossover episode with The Old Man & The Three podcast, we offer an extended conversation with JJ Redick, who has both thrived and suffered under the pressure of elite competition, on how we should think about the strain on athletes’ mental health…while also acknowledging that watching athletes succeed or fail in high pressure situations is exactly what makes them worth watching. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The World Cup, the biggest sporting event on the planet, begins this Sunday. While every World Cup is extreme in its own way, nothing compares to what’s going on in Qatar right now. There is the migrant worker crisis (which this podcast reported on two weeks ago). There’s the fact that Qatar is the smallest country to ever host the World Cup. And there are concerns about the rights of the LGBTQ community in Qatar and the possibility of protests in a country that historically has been very tightly controlled. Sam Borden has been covering all of the issues surrounding Qatar’s bid for years, and reports from on the ground in Doha about the most controversial World Cup ever. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Klay Thompson is one of the best shooters in NBA history. He’s one half of the Splash Brothers, a five-time NBA All-Star, and a four-time NBA champion. He is also an avid boater. But he’s 32 years old…and coming off a torn ACL injury which was immediately followed by a torn Achilles. Couple that with the emergence of younger role players such as Jordan Poole and Andrew Wiggins…and the Warriors’ slow start to this season, and all of a sudden Thompson’s future with the dynasty he’s been a cornerstone for is murkier than ever. Ramona Shelburne joins us to explain how Thompson’s role has been changing…and charts the course for how both he and the Warriors can make it through these troubled waters. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

For years One-and-Done has been the name of the game in men’s college basketball, with top programs courting superstar freshmen to play for one season before they head to the NBA. But now, with college players now legally raking in cash via Name, Image and Likeness deals, the calculus is starting to change. Many players can make as much, if not more in college than in trying their luck in the pros. It all means that college basketball in 2022 looks at once very new…but also, a little old…as star players like Gonzaga’s Drew Timme and Kentucky’s Oscar Tshiebwe have returned for their senior seasons and brought back the notion of “college basketball veteran.” So Myron Medcalf gets us ready for the 2022-23 men’s college basketball season…and he takes us on a campus tour unlike any we’ve ever seen. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

With Week 10 of the NFL in the books, Alex Smith stops by to talk about the Game of the Year…and catch of the year, courtesy of Kirk Cousins and Justin Jefferson in the Vikings’ win over the Bills. Josh Allen now leads the league in interceptions, but is it time to panic in Buffalo just yet? Elsewhere in the AFC East, the now-first place Miami Dolphins steamrolled the Browns…and MVP chants echoed down on QB Tua Tagovailoa. And after everything we saw Sunday…are the Eagles still the best team in the NFL? Alex Smith answers these questions, and reflects on his time in Washington ahead of the Commanders-Eagles game on Monday Night Football. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

There may be no more thankless job than referee. At best, your existence is completely invisible. No one notices when you do a terrific job. At worst, you become enemy #1 for fans or coaches or in lower levels, angry parents. Combine that with low pay and high pressure, and it's no wonder why officiating is undergoing a crisis at the moment. Not enough people are willing to do the job…a job without which, the games quite literally can not go on. But, today, on Veteran’s Day, we bring you the story of a solution. And it’ll make you think differently about what this job actually is. And the people who really would love to do it. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It’s arguably the greatest play in college football history. November 20th, 1982. Stanford vs. Cal. A legendary rivalry known as the “Big Game,” that was made even bigger that year by the presence of Stanford’s all-world QB, John Elway. What happened in the final seconds still echoes across 40 years…the iconic call of Cal Radio’s Joe Starkey exclaiming, “The band is out on the field!” With a new E:60 special airing Sunday, Jeremy Schaap tells the story of how five laterals and a trombone became an indelible part of college football history. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices