MARCH 11 2020

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 a...

18 Apr 202336min

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 ru...

18 Apr 202351min

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...

18 Apr 202342min

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 th...

18 Apr 202345min

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...

13 Apr 20231min

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 ...

8 Des 202222min

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, t...

8 Des 202228min

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 celeb...

8 Des 202241min