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Rights to Ricky Sanchez

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The Rights to Ricky Sanchez is a fandom parody podcast about the Philadelphia 76ers, founded and hosted by former New York sports radio executive Spike Eskin and television comedy writer Michael Levin. The podcast debuted in 2013 and is named after Puerto Rican basketball player Ricky Sánchez, whose contractual rights the 76ers owned from 2007 to 2012 and focuses on making larger audiences embarrassed for genuine 76er fans.

The podcast has become one of the most popular and influential single-team podcasts in sports, with celebrity interviews, live shows, catchphrases, and fan movements that have impacted the larger 76ers and NBA culture.[1][2][3]

History

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The Rights to Ricky Sanchez podcast was launched by Spike Eskin and Michael Levin in July 2013, following the hiring of Sixers general manager Sam Hinkie. The early years of the podcast followed the team during the years of what would come to be called “The Process,” where the team was intentionally bad in order to better their draft position and long-term outlook. Eskin and Levin were among the most vocal supporters of The Process, arguing weekly on behalf of fans who wanted the team to build for the future with the goal of ultimately winning a championship.[4]

Over this period, Eskin and Levin also started the annual tradition of the Lottery Party, where Philadelphia-area fans would assemble to watch the ESPN broadcast of the NBA Draft Lottery, which would determine the Sixers’ position in the upcoming NBA draft.[5] As the podcast became more popular and the team's record began to improve in the late 2010s, the Rights to Ricky Sanchez also hosted several Philadelphia-area live podcasts, with then-current Sixers T. J. McConnell, Dario Šarić, Mike Scott, head coach Brett Brown and general manager Elton Brand as special guests.[6][7][8]

In 2018, the now-twice-a-week podcast also launched a content vertical. It featured writing from both hosts, as well as from a pool of regular writers and podcast guests, including Andrew Unterberger (“AU”), Dan Olinger ("The Danny"), Mike O’Connor (“MOC”), and newsletter writer Alonzo Jones (“Zo”).[9] Abbie Huertas was added as the site's primary illustrator in 2019. CJ Coyle was brought on as the show's primary producer in 2020, leading to the podcast also being broadcast live online over social media and the site's YouTube channel.[10] In 2023, Adam Aaronson ("SixersAdam") departed and Olinger joined as beat writer.

Format

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The podcast begins with discussion of weekly news events related to the Philadelphia 76ers, with the two hosts offering their often wildly contrasting views on recent games, personnel moves, and player updates. Then the hosts read listener letters, play listener phone messages, and rotate through a number of recurring segments unrelated to the Sixers – including “Relationship Advice,” where the two give their thoughts about romantic issues listeners are struggling with, and “Jigsaw,” where Eskin asks Levin to choose between two extremely undesirable real-life hypothetical situations. Special guests on the podcast have included national commentators, Sixers players and executives, and famous fans of the show from music and politics. (See "Notable Guests" section.)

Impact on 76ers Culture

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Trust the Process: First said publicly by 76ers guard Tony Wroten in 2015, “Trust the Process” became the unofficial motto of the Hinkie-led Sixers. Eskin and Levin were instrumental in cementing the saying as the era's go-to catchphrase, repeating it often on the podcast and printing it on t-shirts, one of which was worn on ESPN by Around the Horn panelist Pablo S. Torre.[11] While writing for the FOX comedy series The Grinder, Levin also included the line in one of his scripts, said by character Stewart (Fred Savage) in the 2016 episode “A System on Trial.”[12]

The Hinkie Billboard: After Sam Hinkie resigned as general manager in 2016, amidst rumors of league and ownership dissatisfaction over the team's direction, Eskin and Levin organized the renting of a highway billboard to pay tribute. The billboard, erected over a section of Interstate 95, read “Hinkie Forever,” with a picture of Hinkie, as well as advertisements for the 2016 Rights to Ricky Sanchez Lottery Party and Philadelphia-area jeweler (and longtime RTRS sponsor) LL Pavorsky.[13][14]

Retweet Armageddon: Early in the podcast, Eskin and Levin developed the idea of “Retweet Armageddon” as a day of reckoning for sports analysts who had made disparaging remarks about The Process over the years, once Hinkie's course of action had been properly validated. The day was finally scheduled for June 19, 2017, after a majority of the Retweet Armageddon Congress voted to approve the decision following the Sixers trading for the 2017 NBA draft’s No. 1 pick, moving into position to select top college prospect Markelle Fultz. “Retweet Armageddon” trended nationally on Twitter as 76ers fans re-shared anti-Process opinions that had aged poorly, with Sixers superstar Joel Embiid even joining in the movement.[15][16]

Notable Guests

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See also

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Citations

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  1. ^ Weitzman, Yaron (2020-03-17). Tanking to the Top: The Philadelphia 76ers and the Most Audacious Process in the History of Professional Sports. Grand Central Publishing. pp. 93–101. ISBN 978-1-5387-4974-6.
  2. ^ Herbert, James (13 April 2018). "With the 76ers in the NBA Playoffs, The Process' preeminent podcast must learn how to win". CBS NBA.
  3. ^ Arnovitz, Kevin (10 May 2018). "The future is bright for the 76ers, but was The Process worth it?". ESPN.
  4. ^ Weitzman, Yaron (2020-03-17). Tanking to the Top: The Philadelphia 76ers and the Most Audacious Process in the History of Professional Sports. Grand Central Publishing. pp. 93–101. ISBN 978-1-5387-4974-6.
  5. ^ Peebles, Maurice. "An NBA Lottery Mega-Party with the Weirdest Fans in the League". Bleacher Report. Retrieved 2023-07-11.
  6. ^ "[10.07.17] Live Ricky With TJ McConnell, Derek Bodner, and John Gonzalez". Rights To Ricky Sanchez. 2017-10-07. Retrieved 2023-07-11.
  7. ^ "[09.24.18] Dario Saric And Elton Brand Interviews, Process Hall Of Fame Speeches On Live Ricky III". Rights To Ricky Sanchez. 2018-09-24. Retrieved 2023-07-11.
  8. ^ "Brett Brown, Mike Scott, Process Hall of Fame in Live Ricky IV". Rights To Ricky Sanchez. 2019-09-28. Retrieved 2023-07-11.
  9. ^ "The Rights To Ricky Sanchez - The Only Sixers Podcast". Rights To Ricky Sanchez. Retrieved 2023-07-11.
  10. ^ "Rights To Ricky Sanchez: The Sixers Podcast - YouTube". www.youtube.com. Retrieved 2023-07-11.
  11. ^ Rappaport, Max. "The Definitive History of 'Trust the Process'". Bleacher Report. Retrieved 2023-07-11.
  12. ^ Neubeck, Kyle (2016-04-12). "Rob Lowe Trusts The Process on 'The Grinder'". Liberty Ballers. Retrieved 2023-07-11.
  13. ^ "There's A Sam Hinkie Billboard On I-95 - CBS Philadelphia". www.cbsnews.com. 2016-04-25. Retrieved 2023-07-11.
  14. ^ "Sad Sixers fans put Sam Hinkie on a billboard". NBC Sports Philadelphia. 2016-04-25. Retrieved 2023-07-11.
  15. ^ "#RTArmageddon To Happen When 76ers Announce Trade - CBS Philadelphia". www.cbsnews.com. 2017-06-19. Retrieved 2023-07-11.
  16. ^ "76ers fans have launched the pettiest NBA Draft celebration ever on Twitter". For The Win. 2017-06-19. Retrieved 2023-07-11.
  17. ^ Rights To Ricky Sanchez: Sixers GM Sam F'n Hinkie, 2013-10-03, retrieved 2023-07-11
  18. ^ The Brett Brown Interview, 2022-07-05, retrieved 2023-07-11
  19. ^ Embiid's Vibes, Sixers Most Hated, The War On Drugs Returns, 2022-12-05, retrieved 2023-07-11
  20. ^ Andrew Yang On The Knicks, Hinkie and America, Plus Ben Simmons Empty Gym Threes Confidence Level, 2020-07-20, retrieved 2023-07-11
  21. ^ Josh Harris' Playground, Jay Wright, Jimmy Butler, and Guest Helen Gym of Philly City Council, 2020-09-03, retrieved 2023-08-09
  22. ^ Zach Lowe Returns To Preview The Sixers Season, 2022-09-29, retrieved 2023-07-11
  23. ^ Daryl Morey Is Back On The Ricky, 2022-10-12, retrieved 2023-07-11
  24. ^ Amos Lee and Mutlu On Sixers, Musicians At Home, TV Theme Songs, Sports Talk and Tony T and Tommy, 2020-05-07, retrieved 2023-07-11
  25. ^ Amos Lee & Tony T Return, Time To Win, Cauley-Stein 10-Day, 2022-02-23, retrieved 2023-07-16
  26. ^ Joel Embiid Finally Comes On The Ricky and Sixers Bubble Predictions, 2020-07-30, retrieved 2023-07-11
  27. ^ Tobias Harris Joins The Ricky, 2023-01-02, retrieved 2023-07-11
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