Game Over with Max Kellerman and Rich Paul

Episode: Super Bowl Week, NBA Trade Deadline, and Back-to-School Players
Date: February 2, 2026
Host: The Ringer

Episode Overview

This episode dives into three main stories at the intersection of sports and culture: Super Bowl week and its fresh slate of contenders; the tension and intrigue around the NBA trade deadline; and the new, often controversial phenomenon of NBA players returning to college basketball. Rich Paul and Max Kellerman bring in personal anecdotes, inside perspectives from Rich’s front-row view as a super-agent, spirited debate, and plenty of history to illuminate how these stories reflect wider trends in sports.

1. Personal Style, Weekend Recaps & Music Industry Shoutouts (01:03–07:13)

• Standing on Business & Fashion:
  The show opens with playful banter about “stand on business” attire—Max in a jacket, Rich repping equestrian-inspired Ralph Lauren.

  • “There’s several ways to bring flair inside of the corporate office. And you don’t always have to have a tie on.” (Rich Paul, 01:50)

• Weekend Highlights:

  • Rich celebrates Cleveland’s Grammy wins, especially Duran Bernard and Alain Marton as hometown successes.
  • Alcaraz’s Australian Open win is briefly celebrated.
  • Max recaps the Ring Magazine Awards (Bud wins Fighter of the Year), and his favorite part—spending time with his daughter on her 11th birthday.

• Music Industry Crossovers:

  • Rich discusses music colleagues like Mike G (UTA), and Bad Bunny’s Album of the Year triumph.
  • Max and Rich reminisce about favorite teachers, sneaker facts (New Balance’s $100 shoe came first), and local high school hangouts in their youth.
  • “You were wrong about something…New Balance did have the first $100 shoe.”—Rich Paul (06:22)

2. Super Bowl 60: Fresh Narratives (08:12–12:52)

• New Faces, New Stakes:
  Both hosts are excited for a Super Bowl that feels new: Patriots vs. Seahawks, without Belichick or Brady.

  • “It’s all brand new. Love it.” (Max Kellerman, 08:27)

• Key Gameplay Analysis:
  Max highlights a pivotal moment in the NFC Championship: Sam Darnold’s maturity in key game management, and the specter of a late-game interception haunting Seattle again.

• Predictions:

  • Rich leans toward Seattle as the stronger team but expects a close game, emphasizing Patriots’ defense, Drake May’s poise, and Stefon Diggs’ reliability.
  • “I believe in Rabel. Drake May, although he’s young, he’s very poised, very polished. And the Patriots defense are strong, and they got a lot of guys playing with a chip on their shoulder.” (Rich Paul, 11:13)
  • Max notes May’s tactical patience and chain-moving ability.

3. NBA Trade Deadline: The Business and the Human Side (12:52–28:19)

• What Teams Should Watch:
  Max focuses on the Detroit Pistons as a surprise championship contender if they can add more shooting.

  • “Detroit… might win the championship this year anyway. It’s possible. They’re good, they’re young, they play together.” (Max Kellerman, 13:18)
  • Rich credits coaching: “JB does a hell of a job… They’re passionate about it.” (Rich Paul, 14:17)

• History & Impact of Trades:
  The duo recalls trades that transformed teams—a retroactive reevaluation of Pau Gasol to the Lakers and Rasheed Wallace to the Pistons, with personal anecdotes.

  • Rich shares that trades are often harder on players/families than fans realize: “It’s a tough time, man… you have to uproot your family.” (21:04)
  • They cite the J.R. Smith and Iman Shumpert trades to Cleveland as key for title runs and development.

• Agent’s Perspective on Trades:
  Rich gives insight into the role of agents in the process—most deals are known well in advance to help players prepare, but the rare surprise does happen (cites the AD/Luka deal as one exception).

• Tax & Roster Mechanics:
  They break down reasons for deadline moves: escaping luxury-tax “aprons,” collecting draft capital, or making that one piece move in the arms race of the conference.

  • Rich: “It always takes two to tangle. In my position, I’m in the middle of it all, but it’s always a surprise every year.” (25:10)

• Psychology of Contention:
  Max suggests that in a wide-open East, teams can’t get complacent:

  • “It’s always dangerous to think, oh, it don’t matter, we’ll just get back here next year. That doesn’t happen like that.” (Rich Paul, 26:31)

4. Player Returns to College: Navigating the New Landscape (29:24–41:35)

• Contemporary Debate:
  • The hosts tackle the growing trend of pro players returning to college, spurred by NIL deals.
  • Max: “Who cares if an NBA player goes back to college? …If LeBron James wants to go back to school… Go to college. If you, once you are in college, want to play basketball, why should you not be allowed to play basketball?” (38:53)
• Rich’s Nuanced View:
  While acknowledging that NIL deals have changed incentives, Rich worries about the “ecosystem,” fears of stalling new talent, and the immense peer/family pressure on prospects to go pro too quickly.
  • “The worst thing you can be is athletic because you become so dependent on your athleticism that you don’t learn the other parts of the game.” (Rich Paul, 41:09)
• Developmental Concerns:
  They discuss how, in past decades, longer college stays produced stars and better development, while now the path is more pressure-filled and transactional.
  • Max: “The star system, the American college star-making machine, once upon a time, which with NIL might come back...”
  • NCAA’s diminished “traditional” role, to its new, quasi-professional reality—“It’s no more college basketball. It’s basically semi or pro basketball within a student athlete ecosystem.” (Rich Paul, 32:33)

5. Marketability, the Future of the NBA, and American Stars (41:35–48:59)

• Who Will Carry the NBA?
  • Max: NBA’s shot to surpass MLB in American popularity depends on marketing an American-born star (like Anthony Edwards) rather than solely on international superstars (e.g., Jokic).
  • “I think in order for that [NBA overtaking MLB] to happen in this country, you have to have an American born player as the face of the league.” (Max Kellerman, 47:43)
  • Rich welcomes the rise of global talent, advocating for developing the U.S. youth system to maintain balance in homegrown stars.

6. NBA All-Star Discussion: Starters, Snubs & Format Changes (52:38–61:06)

• All-Star Selections:

  • Starters: Luka, Steph, Jokic, Shai, Wemby (West); Giannis, Jalen Brown, Brunson, Cade, Maxey (East).
  • Max and Rich agree on deserving players but debate snubs—Sengun missing out, Kawhi getting edged out for a spot.
    • “Kawhi’s been better than LeBron this year. Like, he should be on the team.” (Max Kellerman, 57:06)

• All-Star Format:

  • Both are open to USA vs. World or a return to East vs. West.
  • Rich: “I’m down to try it. Why not?” (58:39)
  • Max wants a more competitive game, Rich stands by the tradition of All-Star as fun more than fierce competition.

7. Prize Moments & Quotes

• On trade logistics:
  • “You have to uproot your family... It is a major thing. And for us, it has to be business as usual. And it’s business.” (Rich Paul, 21:04)
• On player development:
  • “The worst thing you can be is athletic because you become so dependent on your athleticism that you don’t learn the other parts of the game.” (Rich Paul, 41:09)
• On All-Star game tradition:
  • “All-Star games have always been played the same way. We have this revisionist history.” (Rich Paul, 60:52)
• On NBA’s chance to surpass MLB:
  • “I think in order for that to happen in this country, you have to have an American born player as the face of the league.” (Max Kellerman, 47:43)

8. Noteworthy Timestamps

• 01:03 — Personal style, weekend highlights, and Grammy wins
• 08:26 — Super Bowl 60 preview, Patriots vs. Seahawks
• 12:52 — NBA Trade Deadline: team strategies and historical impact
• 21:04 — The human cost of trades for players and families
• 29:24 — College returnees in the NIL era: cultural and competitive factors
• 41:43 — American vs. international stars and the future of NBA popularity
• 52:38 — NBA All-Star debate: snubs, fairness, and potential format tweaks

Conclusion

Max and Rich wrap their conversation with a look ahead to Super Bowl predictions and a commitment to following the trade deadline’s surprises, emphasizing the ongoing evolution of player agency and the sport’s business landscape. The episode’s exchanges balance analysis, humor, nostalgia, and candor—an invitation for fans to see sports as both spectacle and deeply human endeavor.