NBA Q&A: Bill Simmons

Courtesy of Richard Deitsch

SI.com: Why will NBA Countdown be a better show this year?

Simmons: That's a loaded question! You're supposed to butter me up first before you try to get me to say something dumb. Come on, Deitsch.

SI.com: Deadspin reported last Thursday, via unnamed sources, that you were responsible for Magic Johnson being removed from Countdown. What is your response to that assertion?

Simmons: Those unnamed "sources" are liars. Someone planted a fake story to try to make me look bad, and there's a 99.3 percent chance it came from someone in Bristol (which presents its own set of concerns). I was upset; I can't lie. Maybe this happens to people more often than I realize, and maybe it comes with the territory, but man ... I can't properly explain how fantastic it was to watch basketball with Magic for nine months. I brought my dad to our show for the whole day once and he absolutely loved it. He just couldn't believe they paid me to watch hoops with Magic. One of Magic's best qualities is that he always makes an outsider like that feel special and [feel as if] they connected with him -- I probably watched him do it with 50 people last year. To see Magic do that for my father was something else.

He's just an amazing person. When [Johnson's agent] Lon [Rosen] told me Magic was leaving, I actually got pissed at myself that I didn't appreciate those nine months more. Our interview with LeBron after Game 7 [of the NBA Finals] -- seeing the affection that LeBron and Magic had for one another, getting LeBron to open up a little, and being part of that moment in NBA history -- was one of the five or six highlights of my career. Jimmy Kimmel wanted me to write a book about a season watching basketball with Magic -- he was endlessly fascinated that I spent 8-12 hours a week with someone like that. Magic is a story jukebox. We'd be bored sitting there watching some sh-- game and I'd liven things up by asking, "Magic, what was the best fight you ever saw in a game?" and he'd pause dramatically, then he'd launch into some awesome five-minute story and do all the voices and everything. Remember, Magic's life intersected with just about every relevant NBA player and celebrity from the past 40 years. He has an endless well of stories. I probably heard two percent of them. My wife had a running joke -- I'd come home from doing a show, walk through the front door and she'd immediately mock me in my voice (not hard to do), "I can't believe I get to work with Magic Johnson" before I even said anything.

I don't know if our show will be better or worse without Magic, but he certainly made the show feel bigger. He's one of the most famous people on the planet -- and the weight he carried with current players is just something we'll never be able to match. We'll never have a moment on our show again as special as that LeBron moment. Big picture, I know I'll be better on TV this season. I learned a ton last year and felt like I was coming at this season from a position of strength. I knew the Dodgers were becoming Magic's life; you could see it happening last spring. He loves being part of a team again. So I knew he'd leave, just not this soon. I wanted one more year with him.

Anyway, that's why the "report" upset me so much -- it wasn't just that someone made it up (and how disturbing that is), but how I felt in real life was the exact opposite of what that "report" portrayed. I felt blindsided when Magic left. I thought he was quitting on the show, and I guess on me, too. I took it personally. But then I thought about the whole Dodgers thing (and how into those games he was), and it made more sense and I got over it. Regardless, I will miss spending time with him every week. Jalen and I nicknamed him "Mogul" for "Hall of Fame Mogul." We were like little kids around him. In retrospect, maybe that wasn't the ideal dynamic for a studio show, but I thought we were getting better at challenging him while also respecting him and everything he accomplished. Year 2 would have been better than Year 1.

SI.com: How much influence, if any, did you have in NBA Countdown's on-air talent comings and goings?

Simmons: Zero. I didn't think I was coming back. I wasn't happy during the last two playoff rounds; I didn't feel like they cared about the show enough and had some other issues that I won't rehash. And I felt like I had done a lousy job with my family and with Grantland in April-May-June. So I decided to wait a month or so before I told them officially, but in my head, I was gone. They probably thought I was leaving, too. They weren't going to listen to someone who wasn't coming back -- and besides, Bristol doesn't listen to on-air talent about on-air talent decisions, anyway. That's a point of pride for them. Ask anyone.

But as I decompressed during the summer and started feeling like a normal person again, I realized that my schedule burned me out. And, in the irony of ironies, I didn't want to give up working with Magic yet. So I asked to do Fridays and Sundays during the season, and I asked if we could stay in L.A. for the conference finals (so I wasn't on the road for six straight weeks, including the draft). They agreed and then I had to spend the next few days convincing my wife to let me do it. She's still not totally convinced, by the way. If I end up getting divorced, I'm just going to move in with Jalen and we'll sell the ensuing sitcom to ABC.

SI.com: Why do you like being on NBA Countdown?

Simmons: Last year's reasons were because I wanted to get better on TV, because it was good for Grantland and because I wanted to be on the show that came on right after an iconic NBA game. This year's reason: I want Countdown to be a consistently creative show that doesn't look like every other Bristol show. I also like being in the house for the biggest games, and I like reaching all different types of people. My mailman didn't say anything to me for six years other than hello -- after the 2013 Finals, he was like, "Heyyyyyyyyy!" It made me remember how many people are out there, and that it's a much bigger challenge to entertain 10 million people instead of, say, 750,000. I love challenges. I love the fact that people think we can't have as consistently good of a show as "Inside the NBA" -- that it's not humanly possible. It motivates me. I am also dumb enough to think we can be as consistently good as "Inside the NBA," so that helps, too.

SI.com: How much power and influence do you have at ESPN?

Simmons: I don't know. I pitched them two interesting ideas (30 for 30 and Grantland); they greenlit them and they worked. But I can't do anything at ESPN unless someone else wants to do it. The people who run the company creatively are [ESPN president] John Skipper (obviously), [executive editor] John Walsh, [executive vice president of production] John Wildhack, [executive vice president, programming & acquisition] Norby Williamson, [executive vice president, ESPN digital and print media] John Kosner, [senior vice president, editorial, ESPN digital and print media], Rob King, [senior vice president, global strategy, business development and business affairs] Marie Donoghue and at least one person I mistakenly left out who's probably pissed off right now. Nothing happens unless they're on board. Some of those aforementioned people respect me and will always listen to a good idea. If I feel strongly about something, I know someone smart will at least consider it -- so that's been beneficial for me. But if I had real power at ESPN, then our next NBA Countdown host would be Brian Austin Green.