Pickleball is on quite the heater of late, demanding headlines in some of the largest publications in the US, Canada and UK over the past five days alone. It's been featured on Bravo TV, NBC, Ellen, countless hit TV shows, major podcasts, massive publications and more.
Latest headlines: NYT, Front Office Sports, The Times, Vanity Fair, Bloomberg
It's everywhere. And according to some, this isn't a coincidence. It's by design.
Who is behind this relentless media blitz that seems to have no limit? Big Pickleball, of course. On the heels of all the recent press, controversial media outlet Gawker published a tongue-in-cheek (we think) piece suggesting that it's all part of a long-term plot to save the plummeting ratings of the Olympics. Or possibly a Putin-backed plot to bolster the Kremlin's - wait, what am I even typing right now?
Apparently they’re even pointing to our visit to Hollywood Producer Randall Emmett and Reality TV Star Lala Kent’s house last year as evidence of the conspiracy. Am I so weird that it’s out of the question to think that we’re actual friends? Don’t answer that…
Could pickleball be the Olympics' savior in 2024, 2026? For those of us drinking the kool-aid (and let's be honest, some of us are drinking from a firehose), the answer is, "why not?" Us kool-aid drinkers will also be the first to tell you that there's no 'big pickleball', and all the recent press and buzz is simply a product of the sport's low barrier to entry, ease-of-play and just plain addictiveness.
But that won't stop publications like Gawker and random Twitter accounts like Leftist Tennis from claiming that there's more than meets the eye here. I guess we'll just have to stay tuned and wait for Leftist Tennis' "long-form investigation into the money behind pickleball," which is set to drop today.
In the meantime, The Dink has begun its own investigation. The theory: Leftist Tennis and Gawker are drinking are on the job.
We’ll keep you updated on the latest developments and whether or not Leftist Tennis ever sobers up enough to release its findings.
This whole thing has some serious moon landing/Kennedy vibes. We’re truly in the thick of it now, pray for us as we try to avoid the crosshairs of Big Pickleball.
