Show Notes: Pete and Grant have a fun conversation about the marriage of writing and sports. They discuss Grant's fandom as a child, as well as his fandom as an adult that has been changed so thoroughly by his job writing about basketball. They also riff on Grant's admiration for Cormac McCarthy, Sports Illustrated for Kids as an writing inspiration (yes, we shout out Buzz Beamer!), how his work in the field of law informs his writing style, the writing life, and the business of sports writing, NBA analytics, why Grant doesn't read website comments about his writing, trends in writing and reading and in the NBA, and the balance between writing for the mainstream and writing for art's sake.
Grant also is put on the spot to predict the winner of Game Five of the Lakers/Heat (the episode was recorded the morning of the game) and the winner of the series. He wraps up the episode with a cool explanation of LeBron James versus Michael Jordan and their respective places in the Pantheon, by way of Chuck Klosterman.
Grant Hughes grew up in San Jose and graduated from Santa Clara University with a BA in English. He went on to earn his law degree from SCU, and worked as Deputy DA before pivoting into sports writing in 2012.
He has written about the NBA for Bleacher Report and other outlets for eight years. He is now a National NBA Featured Columnist with Bleacher Report.
Selected Articles by Grant:
"EVOLUTION of the STEP-BACK" from 2016
Trades That Would Unleash Potential NBA Superstars" from October 2020 Ranking the Best NBA Defenders of the 2000s from July 2020Episode 234 with Sasha Vasilyuk, Author of Your Presence is Mandatory, and Master Chronicler of Fiction that Parallels and Expands Upon Real-Life Secrecy, Grief, Trauma, and Shared Humanity
Episode 233 with Jazmina Barrera Velázquez, Author of Cross-Stitch/Punto de Cruz, and Wise Chronicler of the Vagaries of Friendship and History and their Effects on the World
Episode 232 with Kate Brody, Author of Rabbit Hole and Master of Writing Intriguing and Flawed Characters and Crackling Plotlines
Episode 231-April 13, 2024 Live Event to Launch Jose Vadi's Chipped, a reflective, creative, subtly brilliant essay collection
Episode 230 with Chelsea T. Hicks, Author of the Story Collection, A Calm & Normal Heart, Revitalizer and Student of the Osage Language, and Crafter of Poetic, Timely, and Timeless Stories
Episode 229 with Will Sommer, Author of Trust the Plan: The Rise of QAnon and the Conspiracy That Reshaped America, and Keen and Thorough Chronicler of the QAnon Movement Through The Washington Post
Episode 228 with Jennifer Croft, Author of The Extinction of Irena Rey and Award-Winning Translator, and Master of Worldbuilding, Highly-Allegorical Yet Masterfully-Plotted Fiction, and Nuance
Episode 227 with Gina Chung, Author of Green Frog, a Dazzling Collection of Poignant, Offbeat, Chillingly-Realistic and Fantastical Stories
Episode 226 with Priscilla Gilman, Author of The Critic's Daughter and Skilled and Thoughtful Chronicler of the Universal and the Intimately Personal
Episode 225 with Andrés N Ordorica, Author of How We Named the Stars and Generous Creator of Poignant, Resonant "Love and Loss" Scenes and Utterly Memorable Characters
Episode 224 with Peter Coviello, Enthusiastic and Deeply Knowledgeable Critic and Celebrator of Moving Art, and Author of the Essay Collection, Is There God After Prince
Episode 223 with Sarah Rose Etter, Master Balancer of Surrealism, Realism, Dark Humor, and Themes of Grief and Anxiety that are Timely and Timeless
Episode 222 with Andrew Leland, Author of The Country of the Blind: A Memoir at the End of Sight, and Masterful Chronicler of His and Other Journeys with Blindness and its Intersections with our World
Episode 221 with Martha Anne Toll, Renaissance Woman, Book Reviewer, Creative, and Award-Winning Writer of the Moving, Contemplative Three Muses
Episode 220 with Aniefiok Epoudom: Keen Chronicler of Hip-Hop, Football Culture and Pop Culture in the UK, and Savvy and Nuanced Master of Telling Personal Stories; Author of
Episode 219 with Roxanna Asgarian, Principled and Dogged Reporter, Caring and Clear-Eyed Journalist and Author of We Were Once a Family: A Story of Love, Death, and Child Removal in America
Episode 218 with Melissa Rivero, Author of Flores and Miss Paula, Keen Observer of Modern Corporate Life and Nuanced Chronicler of Grief’s Many Permutations
Episode 217 with Jeff Sharlet, Author of The Undertow: Scenes from a Slow Civil War, and Sharp-Eyed Chronicler of Impending Fascism and Previous Fighters in The Movements
Episode 216 with Kate Maruyama: Author of Bleak Houses, Master Worldbuilder, and Skilled Observer and Chronicler of Family Traumas, Class and Privilege, and Psychological Horrors Modern and Timeless
Episode 215 with Nick Fuller Googins, Reflective and Dynamic Worldbuilder, Educator, and Creator of the ”Hopeful” Climate Crisis Novel, The Great Transition
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