Bill Simmons

Bill Simmons Hints On Podcast That NBC’s NBA Deal Is Confirmed

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NBC has caused quite a stir with their bid to secure NBA rights for the next season. The Deal would push TNT out of the NBA business. The NBA hasn’t formally confirmed which network prevailed in the bidding war to broadcast league games. Based on Bill Simmons’ comments, it appears that NBC has emerged victorious. Additionally, this means that Inside the NBA is set to come to an end. Turner Sports had to match or exceed NBC’s offer. Now, NBA fans are already mourning the iconic late-night basketball show. If the news is true, fans are going to miss watching Shaq, Charles Barkley, Kenny Smith, and Ernie Johnson together.

TNT’s parent company, Warner Bros. Discovery, had to dig deep, shelling out $2.8 billion to win the bidding war over NBC. Additionally, NBC was reportedly prepared to pay $2.5 billion for the NBA broadcasting rights. During the most recent episode of “The Bill Simmons Podcast,” the media personality hinted that NBC has come out on top. Overall, while there could be an Inside the NBA on NBC, it’s clear that it will not be the same, leaving fans to wonder about the future of their beloved show. 

Read More: Stephen A. Smith Calls Bill Simmons Rant About Prince Harry And Meghan Markle “Excessive”

Bill Simmons Says NBC’s NBA Bid Has Won Over TNT

Bill Simmons, a trusted NBA insider, asserts that for two weeks the deal has been done. He says, “One of the funniest things ever is that we’re all pretending the TV deal wasn’t done like a week-and-a-half ago.” He continued, “I think it’s done. I think Warner already lost it. I don’t know why we’re waiting til after the playoffs. Maybe that’s how they have to do it, but it’s a wrap. NBC’s getting it.” Unfortunately for Inside the NBA fans, Simmons’ track record suggests that he might be spot on with his assessment. 

NBA fans should probably savor these next few weeks of the playoffs. Inside the NBA has become an iconic fixture in basketball. The chemistry between everyone is special, and other networks like ESPN have been trying to replicate it unsuccessfully for a decade. Furthermore, even if it comes back on NBC, it won’t be the same. The show was able to go to places other sports shows couldn’t because it operated more like a late-night talk show. Overall, if the news is true, it will be a sad day for NBA fans. Ultimately, it will be the end of an era when Inside the NBA isn’t on TV anymore. 

Read More: Charles Barkley Could Become A Free Agent If TNT Loses The NBA

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Stephen A. Smith Calls Bill Simmons Rant About Prince Harry and Meghan Markle “Excessive”

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Bill Simmons, founder of The Ringer and current high-ranking executive at Spotify, is currently beefing with Prince Harry and Meghan Markle. The veteran journalist’s ire stems from a recent decision by Spotify to prematurely end the company’s podcasting contract with the royal couple. Reportedly, Harry and Meagan produced just 12 episodes over two years despite being on a $20 million contract. Furthermore, additional reporting revealed that Spotify would not be paying out the full $20 million to the couple.

On his own podcast, Simmons went hard on the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. “I wish I’d been involved in the Meghan and Harry leave Spotify negotiation,” Simmons said. “The f*cking grifters. That’s the podcast that we should’ve launched with them.” Simmons also compared Harry and Meghan to the Obamas. Spotify saw a major return on investment with the former POTUS and FLOTUS, whose podcasting contract expired last year. Now Stephen A. Smith, who formerly worked with Simmons at ESPN, is entering the story.

Smith Addresses Royal Spotify Drama

“Bill Simmons went off!” Smith said during a recent episode of his own podcast. “Now, Bill Simmons is my contemporary, former colleague with me at ESPN, has his own stuff, The Ringer podcast network, moved up the ranks to an executive at Spotify, I like Bill. I respect the hell out of Bill … ain’t no shade here. But Bill Simmons was going off … Bill Simmons seemed very happy they were gone.”

Smith went on to admit that he wasn’t actually familiar with the term “grifter” and spent a few moments looking it up so he had the full context of what Simmons was saying. After educating himself, Smith said that he felt applying the term to Harry and Meghan was a “bit excessive.” However, he also noted that “he works at Spotify and not me.” Do you think Simmons went too far? Let us know in the comments. Follow all the latest sports news here at HotNewHipHop.

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Doc Rivers Calls Coaching James Harden “Challenging”

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Doc Rivers was fired by the Sixers after a spectacular collapse in the Eastern Conference Semifinals. The Game 7 loss put Rivers’ all-time Game 7 record at 6-10, the worst such record in NBA history. While many saw it as unfair and surprising to fire Rivers, many more saw it as the right decision if the Sixers ever wanted to capture that elusive NBA title.

Rivers appears to be stepping away from coaching for the time being, after going un-hired by the six teams looking for new head coaches this offseason. However, he was reportedly one of the final candidates for the vacant Suns’ job, which was eventually filled by Frank Vogel. Despite this, and perhaps because of it, Rivers is now opening up about his time in Philadelphia. In particular, he is breaking his silence on his fateful final season.

Doc Rivers Criticizes James Harden

Speaking on The Bill Simmons Podcast in his first media appearance since his firing, Rivers got honest about coaching James Harden. “It was challenging,” Rivers said on the podcast. “James was so good at playing one way, and the way I believe you have to play to win, in some ways is different because it’s a lot of giving up the ball, moving the ball and coming back to the ball. I would’ve loved to have [James] when he was younger, when that was easier for him. … I thought the first half of the year we were the best team in the game, I thought James was playing perfect basketball, he was a point guard of the team. But he was doing more playmaking and scoring. And then the second half he started scoring more, and I thought we got more stagnant at times.”

Harden averaged a double-double this season, with 21 points and a league-leading 10.7 assists per game. It was almost an exact replication of his stats from the 2021-22 season, which is not great because he only played 21 games that year and played 58 this year. His future is also in doubt, as he must decide if he wants to exercise a player option in Philly. If not, that would make Harden a free agent. He has already strongly expressed an interest to return to Houston, despite how others in the league might feel about that move. But it’s no secret that Harden isn’t getting any younger, and the sort of basketball he plays is fundamentally changing. Follow all the latest sports news here at HotNewHipHop.

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Bill Simmons Calls Out Twitter Account For Misinformation

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Bill Simmons has built an empire in the sports media industry. The founder of The Ringer has created one of the go-to places to listen to podcasts on the NBA. Sometimes others will try to snag a line from a Simmons podcast and run with a headline. Today was not the day to attempt that on Bill Simmons. One NBA news account on Twitter is being called out by the man himself. It seems as if Simmons has had enough of the misinformation that spreads on the platform.

NBA Central has grown large following a short time on Twitter. A page that is dedicated to sharing news and stories from the NBA, NBACentral has earned followers from big names in the industry. However, Simmons’ claim that the page is spreading false information may be a simple misunderstanding. Simmons quote tweeted the NBA Central post of his comments from his show. While on the surface it could be a misunderstanding, Simmons let everyone know his true feelings on the NBA Central page.

Simmons Tweets His Displeasure With NBA Central

Simmons claims he never mentioned the word “plotting” in his show, and he may not have even been accused of saying it. However, his reaction to the NBA Central tweet was an A+ comedy spot. At this point, the tweet may not deserve to be dunked on like it was. Yes, the tweet does state the word plotting. However, Simmons’ actual quote from his show is below the first statement. It seems as if NBA Central wasn’t trying to say that the word “plotting” was mentioned at all.

Whatever the case may be, it seems the damage is done. It also seems like Simmons had harsh feelings for NBA Central far before his tweet today. At last, whose side are you on? Is Simmons in the right for his cram slam on NBACentral? Or was NBACentral creating a headline to pull you into the quote? Let us know your answer and the reason behind it in the comment section below. To follow more NBA Twitter drama, stay up to date with HNHH. We will always be sure to keep you informed.