This week’s slate of “Podcast Picks” includes Clippers owner Steve Ballmer bringing his frenetic energy to Clippers F Paul George’s podcast where he talked all things Microsoft and basketball, followed by the Rays actually seeing the light of finally having an agreement to build a new ballpark in St. Petersburg and finally, the man leading Mercedes driver development program downshifts to speak about bringing in new talent to the sport amidst a season of dominance from one team and their star driver.
Ballmer took his low-key energy to the “Podcast P with Paul George” where he discussed his early days at Microsoft, meeting George for the first time and how he originally tried to purchase the Kings back in 2013. Ballmer said he wanted to relocate the team to Seattle but the “problem is the league doesn’t want to move them to Seattle.” But the league “accepts our bid ... and the commissioner basically says, ‘Hey, you can buy the team if you want to, but you’re keeping it in Sacramento.’” Ballmer: “I say something I probably shouldn’t say: ‘You think I’m going to fly to Sacramento, California for a game? I’m not doing it!’ He said, ‘Then you shouldn’t buy the Kings.’”
HAPPY ENDING: The “Locked On Rays” co-hosts discussed the Rays often painful saga of securing a new stadium in Tampa Bay is seemingly coming to an end as the team is unveiling a new agreement to build a downtown ballpark in St. Petersburg. Co-host Kevin Weiss: “We have been talking about a new stadium for the Rays since we were together as freshman at USF a long, long time ago.” Co-host Ulises Sambrano said the “first goal was obtained by staying in the Tampa Bay region” which is a “huge, huge positive.” Weiss: “There were a myriad sites to pick and choose from, the issue is private land and red tape associated with that.”
TRACKING TALENT: With growing talk about the lack of competitiveness on the track in F1 as Red Bull Racing and driver Max Verstappen have dominated this season, Mercedes Benz Driver Development Advisor Gwen Lagrue took the pole position on “F1: Beyond The Grid” to discuss how to bring new talented drivers into the sport. Lagrue said he sees a driver that could “become a world champion” come along once “every 10, 12 years” but every driver “I sign in go-cart I believe will” eventually compete in F1. Lagrue: “You need to believe about what you are doing and the target is to bring them into Formula One.”
Know of a podcast we should keep tabs on? Send an email to mboylan@sportsbusinessjournal.com. Also, check out SBJ's podcast home.
