Pablo Torre Finds Out
by The Athletic
Latest episode
Investigating Patient Zero of the NBA Gambling Scandal — and the Mob
Investigating Patient Zero of the NBA Gambling Scandal — and the Mob
About this podcast
Follow Pablo down the rabbit hole, beyond the game — every Tuesday, Thursday and Friday — on his award-winning video podcast, part of The Athletic Podcast Network.
You’ll get a deep-dive "talkumentary" episode, reported by Pablo and his correspondents. (The show's journalism has been honored by the Pulitzer Prizes, Edward R. Murrow Awards, National Magazine Awards, Emmy Awards and Peabody Awards.) Plus: Pablo hangs out with handpicked figures from sports, culture and politics like Sue Bird, Action Bronson and U.S. senators… plays Share & Tell with friends like Domonique Foxworth, Mina Kimes, Katie Nolan and Dan Le Batard (aka his boss)… and unveils the secrets of capitalism with David Samson and John Skipper on The Sporting Class.
• Subscribe to Pablo's (free) newsletter
• Submit a (confidential) tip
• Follow PTFO on YouTube
• Follow PTFO on Instagram
• Follow PTFO on Twitter
• Subscribe to The Athletic
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episodes
The newest 50 of 509 episodes
- Investigating Patient Zero of the NBA Gambling Scandal — and the Mob · 54 minJontay Porter got in too deep, betting millions on sports — and then on himself. But was the face of a federal investigation — and the integrity of the game — played by…
- The Best Possible A.I. Catastrophe, with Josh Tyrangiel · 52 minIt's impossible to trust the process of a starting five that includes Sam Altman, Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg. Why are we waiting around for impending doom, just because…
- How to Make Journalism Fun, with Maury Povich · 49 minJust because Steve Ballmer, Mark Walter and Vivek Ramaswamy are rich... doesn't mean they're always that smart. And just because investigating them is hard... doesn't mean the…
- How to Reset the Course of a Nation, with Rachel Maddow · 50 minAfter the so-called "blue tsunami," we turn to the MS NOW anchor, fresh off NFL RedZone-ing the midterms, with a new book in tow. The former three-sport athlete sits down with…
- Exclusive: The Onion Wants a Bowl Game. (Seriously.) Let's Make It Happen, America. · 39 minFirst, they came for the conspiracist Alex Jones — and won. Now, "America's Finest News Source" is trying to make The Onion Sports Bowl a real thing, on ESPN, in the name of…
- Welcome, New Listeners. This is Pablo Torre Finds Out. · 1 minFollow Pablo down the rabbit hole, beyond the game — every Tuesday, Thursday and Friday — on his award-winning video podcast, part of The Athletic Podcast Network. You’ll get a…
- The Sporting Class: Baseball's Salary Cap, Universal Playoff Expansion... and Elon Musk, Owner? · 51 minAs Major League Baseball heads for a lockout, peacemaker John Skipper and capitalist David Samson reunite on the new rules of engagement: What are the dealbreakers? How long can…
- The Unforced Errors of Vivek Ramaswamy · 42 minThe billionaire tennis fan, banished by Trump to run for governor in Ohio, was already a loser. But when independent journalist D.J. Byrnes uncovered a heinous campaign ad, he…
- The Summit of Steves: Share & Doppelgänger & Tell (Halloween Edition) with Michael Cruz Kayne and Katie Nolan · 41 minWhat if Steve Kerr met his viral look-alike? Are we safe from the bizarro world? What if David Letterman re-named this podcast? And is our curse on A.I. actually working? Plus…
- We Polled 1,417 Americans About Sports, Politics and Everything in Between · 54 minIs LeBron a better role model than Trump? Are the attacks on trans athletes working? And could Stephen A. Smith stop Democrats from taking back the White House? Pablo teams up…
- Tim Tebow, Sage Steele and Cancel Culture: We Followed the Money Inside Life Surge · 49 minIts Hall-of-Fame speakers may be vanishing, but this alleged "scam" defiantly continues to pitch financial salvation for vulnerable Christians — with a former SportsCenter anchor…
- What "You Can See Everything" Is Really About, with Wesley Morris · 58 minNathan Fielder's new film has been presented as a documentary about Elizabeth Holmes, the founder of notorious Silicon Valley scam Theranos. But this doesn't begin to describe…
- Blake Griffin Doesn't Stop for Anyone (feat. Joe Mande) · 43 minHe is a Clippers legend — and an off-the-court pioneer. On the eve of his new late-night show, the Prime Video analyst sits down with Pablo (plus a few surprises) about why he…
- Unboxing Wu-Tang's Secret "Once Upon a Time in Shaolin" Album for Method Man — and You · 46 minThe most expensive album in music history is a controversial, 1-of-1 work of art, owned by "Pharma Bro" Martin Shkreli, then the feds... and now a mysterious digital art…
- The Sporting Class: Tracking LeBron's Fanatics Helicopter and the NCAA's Anti-Player Power Play · 53 minDomonique Foxworth and David Samson lay down the law in a rule-bending moment for sports business: Did the Sixers land King James because of a backroom helicopter upgrade from…
- The Kelly Clarkson Tapes, Revealed: What Really Happened in That Brooklyn Store? · 47 minA beloved celebrity walks into a Brooklyn boutique, asks about a $15,000 mechanical bird, then riles millions of fans into a social-media frenzy. But since she's been gone, Pablo…
- "The Biggest Scandal There's Ever Been": Dissecting the Disgrace of Manchester City · 50 minSovereign wealth funds. Prime ministers. Fake money. Fake excuses. Fake people? If you thought the Clippers were bad, wait until you comprehend the depths of cheating that have…
- "I Am a Camera": John Wilson on Magic Tricks, Nathan Fielder and How to Make a Documentary · 51 minIn a crumbling empire of ludicrous wealth and slop, filmmaker John Wilson keeps showing us what it means to be human — even (and especially) when that involves poop and/or…
- The Brain Collector: Meet the Ex-Pro Wrestler Fighting the NFL's Concussion "Cover-Up" · 57 minChris Nowinski was a WWE heel. Then he got in on a secret the NFL allegedly has been trying to hide for more than a decade: There may be nothing worse you can do to your brain…
- Tim Tebow, Urban Meyer and the Christian Nationalist Surge at Ohio State · 45 minWhen candidates cosplay as football fans and QBs become a passport to the hearts and wallets of vulnerable Americans, the wrong people can get rich and powerful off sports…
- The Golden Age of Scams · 45 minA.I. valuations make sports franchise valuations look like chump change and the disconnect between American voters and the tech billionaires with a batphone to the White House…
- The Moment of Troops, the Power Couple and the Clippers' Everything Connection: Kawhi-Gate, Part XVII · 1 h 1 minAs Kawhi Leonard distances himself from scandal, Pablo uncovers internal financials, government records and new sources on the "no-show job" that the silent superstar... actually…
- Share & Krang & Tell with Michael Cruz Kayne and Katie Nolan · 52 minHow did the trans-athlete debate rear its oligarchic head in Donald Trump Jr.'s wedding? What messes up young athletes more: private equity... or being on a Kardashian reality…
- We Investigated the Christian "Scam" Fronted by Tim Tebow · 1 h 17 minTim Tebow is one of the most trusted voices in America. But the former star quarterback is also the face of a Christian roadshow that is accused of preying upon their followers'…
- The Rules of Kawhi Engagement: A Visit to Los Angeles, with Clippers Super-Fan Paul Scheer · 56 minThe comedian has been living rent-free in Pablo's head for a year — and now he's got folders of his own, while asking questions on behalf of Clipper Nation: Who knew the truth on…
- Share & Rot & Tell with Mina Kimes · 52 minHow do football and social media combust into the mainstreaming of old-school racism? Is sports media worse for women than ever? And should our brains go on strike? Plus: woke…
- Steve Ballmer's Sword, the DOJ's Probe and a "Road to Jail Time": Kawhi-Gate, Part XVI · 53 minAs the Clippers accept the NBA's historic punishment, a "criminal dimension" looms over the fallout. Pablo talks to owners, league officials and the commissioner himself, then…
- The Revolution of Stavros Halkias Will Be Vindicated · 43 minThe foul-mouthed comedian, actor and podcaster is everywhere — including, but not limited to, wielding a T-shirt cannon on the football sidelines. He might also represent the…
- The Sporting Class: Private Equity, Salary Caps and Whether Players Should Want a Piece · 46 minFranchise valuations are booming. How can labor benefit? David Samson and Domonique Foxworth consider the everyday union worker — from Aaron Rodgers and Kawhi Leonard to a…
- Inside the Billionaire Shadow League Funding American Tennis · 47 minIf you thought U.S. Open prices were bad, wait until you learn how much titans of Wall Street will pay to play with the pros. The Athletic's Matthew Futterman reports — from the…
- Washing Up the Clippers' Punishment, with Henry Abbott · 47 minDid ESPN get sold fake news? How much did Steve Ballmer lie? What did Kawhi really know? And what's NOT in the NBA's report? A punch-drunk Pablo calibrates his cynicism to…
- We Investigated Magic Johnson, Mark Walter... and Your Nest Egg · 1 h 1 minA mysterious billionaire sold the Lakers, as the feds closed in. But how Mark Walter bought the Dodgers — while enriching himself with the money of everyday Americans, and his…
- Clippers Judgment Day, the NBA's Hammer and the Investigation That Never Ends: Kawhi-Gate, Part XV · 1 h 41 minAs Steve Ballmer and Kawhi Leonard face historic punishments, Pablo reacts live with Amin Elhassan and David Samson to the NBA's findings — new C-suite emails, Aspiration texts…
- The Voice of Looney Tunes on the Horrors of Corporate Greed · 36 minKawhi Leonard fan Eric Bauza plays Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck AND Elmer Fudd. (Really.) He can become Donald Trump. (Subconsciously, at least.) And he inhabits (at last) Wile E…
- The Best Streaker Ever Bares All (PTFO Vault) · 49 minHe's stripped at tennis tournaments, the Super Bowl and the Olympics. But Mark Roberts is more than the world's most notorious streaker. Because his memories of mischief contain…
- Uncovering China's Secret War for Athlete Brainwaves (PTFO Vault) · 1 h 3 minSuperstars like Jannik Sinner wear a headset to get in the zone. But a six-month investigation revealed the technology's funding by entities linked to the Chinese government…
- Behind the Scenes of the Yankee Wife-Swap Scandal (PTFO Vault) · 36 minIn the early 1970s, two pitchers for the Yankees agreed to the wildest trade in sports history: They switched wives. And children. And furniture. And pets. David Mandel laments…
- Bird-Watching Will Blow Your Mind (PTFO Vault) · 52 minParties. Orgasms. Adventure. Transcendence. Is there a sexier "sport" on planet Earth than birding? Correspondent Mickey Duzyj introduces Pablo to a nemesis, to the GOAT, to…
- The Case of the Stolen Dinosaur Bones (PTFO Vault) · 42 minHow did a federal prosecutor end up suing a 70-million-year-old tyrannosaurus, looted from the Gobi Desert? By teaming up with The Babe Ruth of Forfeiture and a personal injury…
- The Billionaire, the Billboards and the Star of the Worst Ad in Sports History (PTFO Vault) · 47 minThe viral commercial has a mysteriously simple message: sportsmanship. The child actor has gotten dunked on by NBA Twitter for more than a decade. Correspondent Zach Schwartz…
- The Jumbotron Emails, the Courtside Cabana and Ballmer's "Highest Integrity": Kawhi-Gate, Part XIV · 55 minAs Kawhi Leonard resurfaces, Pablo shakes loose written proof of the Clippers trying to help make their star do something — anything — for a scoreboard company. David Samson…
- The Truth Behind the 49ers' Electromagnetic Injury Conspiracy · 57 minIs a mysterious substation — looming over an NFL practice facility "like The Eye of Sauron" — really causing a wave of injuries? Pablo teams up with Wendy Zukerman of the…
- "Take the Keys Away": Bill Belichick, His Exiled Consigliere and a "Sabotaging" at Carolina · 37 minThe 25-year-old girlfriend is one thing. But as the greatest football coach of all time attempts to salvage his final act, the University of North Carolina is now investigating…
- Share & Vore & Tell with Katie Nolan and Michael Cruz Kayne · 41 minSophie Cunningham brought the Riley Gaines School of Victimhood to the WNBA, and then attempted to walk it back — but not before protests, counter-protests, and all the…
- The Halo, Ballmer's Bowl and a New Crisis in the Super-System: Kawhi-Gate, Part XIII · 1 h 2 minHow high up did Kawhi Leonard's silent deals go? Pablo ties a larger-than-life scoop to Steve Ballmer's "seemingly impossible aspirations," as Hunterbrook Media's Sam Koppelman…
- What Is Riley Gaines Hiding? (PTFO Vault) · 1 h 19 minShe notoriously parlayed a tie for fifth into a star turn on Fox News. Now, as MAGA's top sports troll takes the WNBA's Sophie Cunningham under her wing in the trans-athlete…
- How FIFA Tried (and Failed) to Sell the Soul of Football · 41 minThe World Cup was a $15 billion jackpot. Then FIFA president Gianni Infantino overplayed his hand, with a secret plot to allegedly enrich the extended Trump family — and himself…
- Searching for a "Good" Sports Billionaire, with Henry Abbott · 40 minFans want a "smoking gun" with Kawhi Leonard. Portland doesn't want its new owner to move the team. Even Vegas is looking to fill a C-suite. TrueHoop's Henry Abbott — the…
- RIFC, the Impossible Deal and Life After Aspiration: Kawhi-Gate, Part XII · 1 h 16 minJust when you thought the Kawhi Leonard scandal was almost over, Pablo peels off another branch of the saga, with stacks of new documents and a group of reporters in tow. Amin…
- Share & Call the President & Tell with Brace Belden and Liz Franczak · 40 minThe hosts of TrueAnon and Pablo Torre obtain Trump’s personal cell number and debate what to ask him. Plus: “FreddyLA7,” Nicholas Adamopoulos, special presidential envoys…
