Dear Adam Silver

Sister of the Co- Host, Meg Smithson, is on to discuss her own journey with basketball and her on the ground takes on Knicks fever! Works Cited: Link to article about Mitchell Robinson's political beliefs. Please share, rate and review wherever you get your podcasts.

We are excited to welcome back Emmy Award-winning writer, comedian and producer ⁠James Hamilton ⁠ to the show! James is the host of the Posters Basketball Show (season II coming soon...) and has worked with NBC Sports, VICE News, PBS, The Moth Radio Hour. He is on the show to discuss his experience covering the Winter Olympics and the nitty gritty behind producing a show like Posters. You can find...

Dear Adam Silver favorite  Maria Molteni  is back on the show! Previously a guest on episodes 32 (and introduction to their art practice) and 85 (featuring a conversation about the collaborative Senda/Sedna zine ), Maria joins to discuss their ever evolving multifaceted art practice, often made in dedication to and appreciation of basketball, a game they played growing up in Tennessee . This conve...

Blake Gillespie, H-O-R-S-E nemesis and the thinker/writer behind  Spirit of Hoops  is on the show to discuss his recent essay  Will Basketball In Concentration Camps Wake You To Action?   This episode focuses on a call to action to push back against the ongoing incarceration of undocumented people across the country, based on their country of origin, the language they are speaking, and the age-old...

Author and editor Rafi Kohan returns to the show to discuss some recent happenings in regards to a keynote speech he gave this past fall at a conference for the Association for Applied Sport Psychology. Rafi was first featured on the show in Episode 88 where we discussed his book Trash Talk: The Only Book About Destroying Your Rivals That Isn't Total Garbag e . He is a prolific writer and edit...

Artist and educator Ivan Salcido is back on the show to discuss his artwork about basketball, how his family history informs his work and his all time favorite logo design. Ivan was first featured in Episode 59 of Dear Adam Silver. His work is also currently featured in the Get in the Game exhibition that is traveling around the United States. I highly recommend checking out this show if it is com...

Maryam Amirvagehfi i s back on the show (first featured in episode 28) to discuss her art practice in the context of a book that Abigail and Kyle are writing about basketball and art (more on this soon!!!!). Maryam's work is is quirky, pointed, playful and heavy with the language of sports. It is always a pleasure to discuss her process and approach. Thanks for listening! Please subscribe, rat...

Kyle Green cohosts as we welcome Emmy Award-winning writer, comedian and producer James Hamilton to the show. We talk about aging as a basketball fan and player, favorite jerseys, dusty GOAT lists and what keeps us coming back for more. James has worked with NBC Sports, VICE News, PBS, The Moth Radio Hour and his new podcast, Posters, will be dropping soon, so be sure to keep an ear out! You can f...

Austin Bell joins the show to talk all about his project and book Shooting Hoops , where he documented 2,549 in Hong Kong. Whew. That's a lot. We dig into the process, the visuals, the energy of each court and what is up next for Austin, including the release of some Shooting Hoops shirts, which we desperately want! You can find Austin @austinwonderland on Instagram and you can buy his book he...

The collaborative team from Whereas Hoops , Noah Cohan and John Early,  are back on the show to discuss the recent opening of basketball courts in Forest Park. Are you interested in history? Public space? Social practice and engagement with place? St. Louis? And of course, basketball? Listen now! This project is wonderful and I am grateful to have Noah and John back on the show (check out Episode...

Hey Dear Adam Silver listeners! We are back with a new interview with writer and New York Times Bestselling author Mirin Fader who is on the show to talk about her new book Dream: The Life and Legacy of Hakeem Olajuwon , which was released earlier this week! Hakeem Olajuwon is of course a former professional basketball player who was a 2 x Defensive Player of the Year, a 2 league MVP, a 2 x NBA Ch...

Dear Adam Silver listeners! It has been awhile. After a cross country move and settling into my new home in northern northern California, we are back with our 88th episode. Author Rafi Kohan joins the show to discuss his new book Trash Talk: The Only Book About Destroying Your Rivals That Isn't Total Garbage (PublicAffairs 2023). Dr. Kyle Green of SUNY Brockport's sociology department is b...

New York Times Bestselling author Andrew Maraniss is back on the show to discuss Inaugural Ballers, his 2022 book that tells the story of the first US women's Olympic basketball team that played in the 1976 games. This incredible team was recently inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame and it felt like the perfect time to chat with Andrew about this moment in history, that has help...

The always charming and witty Kyle Green (Ph. D. in Sociology) and Tunisha Singleton (Ph. D. in Media Psychology) join the show to discuss the sports stories from the summer that are on our minds! Topics range from Las Vegas as a professional sports center point, watching big games and matches at Stadium Swim, the continued failures of UFC as an institution, and the misguided UNITUS apparel launch...

Dear Adam Silver listeners! It has been a minute! I am glad to be back at the mic and sharing a conversation that touches on themes of family, expectations of gender and health trauma all via the topics of basketball and astrology......very timely for Mother's Day. I am excited to share my conversation with interdisciplinary artist, educator, mystic and Team Captain of New Craft Artists in Act...

Journalist, photographer and writer Blake Gillespie is back on the pod to discuss his article for SLAM entitled In War-Torn Ukraine, these Ukrainian Hoopers are Trying to Uplift Others Through the Power of the Game .  Follow some of the basketball players mentioned in this story, including Natalia Yudytska who can be found @tasha_shorty and Dmytro “Smoove” Kryvenko, found @smooveukraine . You...

Dr. Johanna Mellis is an Assistant Professor of History at Ursinus College where her research focuses on international sport during the Cold War, namely in the Eastern Bloc and Hungary especially, in order to connect the local voices and experiences of Hungarian athletes to the IOC and broader international sport society. Her manuscript, Changing the Global Game: Hungarian Athletes and Internation...

Mikey Yates is a painter currently based in Kansas City, MO and a resident at the Charlotte Street Foundation , where our interview took place. Mikey paints tiny moments that carry a significant weight to him, sometimes also engaging with historical world events. Basketball, his first love, comes up again in different scenes that he depicts and his rich, dynamic palette brings a glow and reverence...

Blake and Giovanni are on the pod today to discuss pickup basketball and the creative culture around the game. We touch on playing during COVID and post vaccines, including their personal experiences, and the ways they have used basketball and photography as a means to connect with  other likeminded people around the world. Thank you to Blake and Giovanni for coming on the show. Follow them o...

Noah Cohan and John Early who are on the show to discuss their project Whereas Hoops. Noah Cohan is the Assistant Director of American Culture Studies at Washington University St. Louis and is a previous Dear Adam Silve r guest from Episode 22 where he joined the show to discuss his book on fandom entitled We Average Unbeautiful Watchers . John Early is an artist and senior lecturer at the Sam Fox...

Episode 79 features a conversation with Julie DiCaro, author of the recently published book Sidelined: Sports, Culture and Being a Woman in America . This book unpacks sexism in sports media for fans and non-fans alike. Julie writes about her time in radio covering sports, to the harassment she has received herself from fans and listeners to her time in the sport for development world. Thank you t...

Long time Dear Adam Silver supporter and returning guest Brian Tran is back on the show to discuss our feelings about the first weekend of the NBA playoffs, including the play in tournament, the long standing question of whether refs and players are coworkers or colleagues, and our recent transition to sworn enemies as the Suns vs. Lakers series begins. Thank you to Brian for joining and indulging...

Glacuo Adorno is back on the pod today (listen to episodes 40, 25 and 3 for more)! Long time listeners will remember that we collaborated in Lithuania on a body of artwork made about women’s basketball pioneer Senda Berenson. We met while we were both in graduate school at Louisiana State university, when I was studying fine art and Glauco was studying art history and he is now a curator based in...

I am so excited to share this episode, featuring Claude Johnson, founder of the Black Fives Foundation . The Black Fives Foundation’s mission is to research, preserve, showcase, teach, and honor the pre-NBA history of African Americans in basketball. The Foundation is doing incredible things around education and celebration of this history. I have been following Black Fives for the last couple of...

Episode 75 (!!!) features Gabe and Jamie, also known as the Menschwarmers, of the Menschwarmers Podcast . In their own words, Gabe and Jamie are Jews. They also love sports. But most of all? They love Jews in sports. Menschwarmers is their biweekly podcast where they gab about goings-on, interview fascinating industry figures and keep you updated on everything related to Jews in sports. I was exci...