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To unravel how a top college recruit’s NBA dreams ran into a sprawling federal investigation, reporter Paula Lavigne explores his early years. Billy Preston and his mom struggle to get by in L.A. An active kid, Billy finds basketball through his mom’s partner, a high school coach and former professional player. Billy’s star rises in youth leagues. He generates buzz as an NBA prospect. Top colleges vie for his talents, and his family pulls out all the stops to support his goals. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Billy’s mom Nichole lets her son focus on improving his game. Meanwhile she fields all the onlookers who want Billy on their team. To play for a top college, Billy couldn’t accept any money or he’d ruin his eligibility. Yet offers to circumvent that abound: aka, the bag game. In the college recruitment dance, Billy gets his top pick and Nicole makes a connection that promises to secure the family’s finances. But Billy’s dream is short-lived. And Nicole’s dealings later get federal investigators’ attention. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The NCAA’s amateurism rules kept schools from paying players like Billy, so money wouldn't sway their college decision. But Paula learns how the youth teams delivering top recruits could serve as a go-between, where influence could be peddled. We hear one youth coach in Florida court much-needed funding from big-time shoe companies, only to land in hot water for what he promises in return. He didn’t know he was being recorded. The bag game unravels, as the feds’ secret investigation comes to light. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Federal prosecutors tell the college sports world, “We have your playbook." As court cases begin, details come out on secret payments. Who made them and for whose benefit? Who was the victim of all this and what, exactly, was the crime? Why were no head coaches called to testify? Prosecutors break their silence and reveal their legal strategy. After playing overseas, Billy returns for the NBA draft. His name and the Kansas program have been swept into the case. Sentences come down for defendants. Billy and Nichole don’t face charges, but feel the impact of the fallout. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

ESPN and 30 for 30 Podcasts present "The Bag Game." Investigative reporter Paula Lavigne shines light on the biggest pay-to-play scandal in college basketball, through the story of Billy Preston. He was a five-star recruit set to start for Kansas, when his path crossed a sprawling federal investigation. The complex case ensnared major athletic programs, coaches, apparel executives and agents. But did it clean up corruption in college sports? And what did it mean for players like Billy? Coming April 18, 2023. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Growing up Iranian American, Shima Oliaee found her mother didn’t talk much about where she came from. Watching soccer, though, was a portal to Iran, a place that was in large part a mystery. Shima delves into the stories she didn’t hear growing up: Iran's mandated modernization and how soccer played a role, the women-led 1979 revolution, and her parents’ mistaken-identity love story. Shima and her mom meet Zeinab Sahafy, a young Iranian woman and avid soccer fan whose love of the game led to her being named an enemy of the state. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This episode starts with two questions: If women equally led the 1979 revolution, why were their rights stripped away first? How does this happen to an emboldened part of the population? At first, the women fight back, chanting “Azadi! Azadi!” [translation: “Freedom! Freedom!”] in the streets until the clerics back down. But in a story told by legendary writer and activist Mehrangiz Kar, women’s rights erode one by one – leading us to the nationwide ban on women at stadiums. This is when Iran's national soccer stadium becomes a battleground. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

One game sets off a movement. In 1997 Iran surprisingly makes the World Cup in the last three minutes of play against Australia. When Iran's national team gets helicoptered into Azadi Stadium to celebrate, women are asked to stay home. They don't listen, and thousands rush the stadium. This is the origin story of the White Scarves, a group that uses international soccer matches to defy the regime and take back their country. As the White Scarves gain international fame, they face grave danger at home. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

(Warning: this episode includes description of a suicide). The newest generation of Iranian girl soccer fans take a bold new approach. They cross-dress as men to sneak into Azadi Stadium, documenting their rebellion live on social media - an irreverent middle finger to the government. One of those girls is Zeinab Sahafy, from Episode 1. One night four of her friends are arrested and she flees for her life. Another girl, still in the country, loses her life. In a moment described as “a miracle,” Iran’s regime relents on its ban and thousands of women enter the stadium. We end Pink Card wondering how this hard-won slice of freedom connects to the 2022 historic protests and a possible new revolution, more than 40 years after Shima’s teenage mother left home. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In Iran, women are banned from soccer stadiums. But some dare to defy that. From 30 for 30 Podcasts, Pink Card tells a story of Iranian women fighting for their rights across three generations. They use ingenious tactics and risk their lives to take back their stadiums and their joy in the game. Created by Shima Oliaee (Dolly Parton’s America, Radiolab), Pink Card will forever change how you see fandom and freedom. Available December 8th. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Baseball holds its records sacred. Most home runs, strikeouts, career wins. But what about the longest game ever? That honor goes to a 1981 AAA game, when the Pawtucket Red Sox and Rochester Red Wings slugged it out from dusk to dawn. The record-breaking 33 innings brought hope, despair and drama on and off the field. Radio Diaries and 30 for 30 Podcasts take listeners to that frigid, surreal night with the voices who lived it – including Hall of Famers Wade Boggs and Cal Ripken Jr. Most heroes of The Longest Game never made it big, but their unflagging endurance made history. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Streetball. It's a style of basketball defined by trash talk, windmill dunks, no-look passes, and broken ankles. You can find streetball at city parks and rec centers, driveways and playgrounds, pro-am leagues and even -- in spirit -- NBA arenas. Through it all, you might even call it hoops in its purest form. Drawing inspiration from hip hop mixtapes, this podcast explores how streetball – and the way it’s played around the United States – has shaped not just the game of basketball, but the country's culture. In true mixtape form, the podcast is a compilation of stories, styles, and sounds, all illuminating the essence of the game. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Nipsey’s life story lives on in his music, but only a handful of people witnessed Hussle in creation mode. Meet the brothers behind the beats and hear some of the secrets of the “slaps.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Nipsey traveled across the world, but all of his love and loyalty funneled back to the community that raised him. With the corner of Crenshaw Boulevard and Slauson Avenue as his headquarters, this episode looks at Nipsey’s devout local commitment — and how that played out in the worlds of business, philanthropy and social justice as many young Black men in the NBA began to actively engage in those areas as well. In death, Nipsey left a blueprint for this friends to follow, and through them, Nipsey’s prophetic mantra, ‘The Marathon Continues’ will do just that. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

There are a ton of descriptions that could properly summarize Nipsey Hussle’s music career. But “overnight” isn’t one of them. A decade-plus-long journey through time that weaves in the highs, lows, joys and pains of Nipsey’s voyage to his debut album ‘Victory Lap.’ And how that marathon ran parallel with the NBA players who were in awe of his every move. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Nipsey Hussle is a Los Angeles icon, but what’s the story behind that? Before the fame, he was Ermias Asghedom, a young kid coming of age in the South Crenshaw district. Life in South LA was beautiful, but it wasn’t for the weak of heart either. This episode is a look into the world that raised, bruised, and ultimately made Nipsey Hussle the man he became. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When Nipsey Hussle was murdered on March 31, 2019 in front of his South LA clothing store, the tragedy elicited immediate tributes across industries, walks of life, and international borders. One world in particular where the news resonated on a personal level — the NBA, where Hussle had long, deep and authentic ties. For the host Justin Tinsley and many young Black men in the league, like DeMar DeRozan, Isaiah Thomas, and Demarcus Cousins, Nipsey was far more than a rapper who wrote the score to their lives. Hip hop has always been woven with basketball in one way or another, but why was this particular connection so deep? What was it about Nipsey Hussle that made him so much more than a friend, but rather an inspiration and beacon of light they carry with them for the rest of their lives? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The King of Crenshaw is a four-part podcast series that will focus on how the late Nipsey Hussle’s life, death, and legacy deeply impacted the sports world. This series aims to examine how that overlap of Black male creativity, talent, and ambition will forever live on in Nipsey’s responsibility to his neighborhood. And how NBA players are vowing to continue his marathon moving forward. From 30 for 30 Podcasts and The Undefeated. Hosted by Justin Tinsley, Senior Reporter for The Undefeated. Original music for the series by 1500 or Nothin'. All four episodes available August 23, 2021. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Americans woke up on March 11 2020 in one reality and, by the time they went to sleep that night, they were living with a new one. Hear the story of the day everything changed — the day the NBA shut down and the pandemic became real — as told by those who lived it. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

There has perhaps been no greater event in recent history that has so clearly underlined how integral sports are to our culture than the coronavirus pandemic has. March 11 2020 will tell the story of a seismic day that started in one reality and ended with a new one — the day the NBA shut down and the pandemic became real — as told by those who lived it. Full episode available December 21, 2020. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices