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5 min readThe Fifth Hour: Like Opening a Giant Box of Crayons
The NBA dropped the hammer on the Clippers, and Ben Maller's response surprised even his own listeners. A fan named Mike emailed, upset that Maller didn't take the loss of draft picks "more personally" — that the old Maller would have ranted and attacked the league. But Maller has been around long enough to know how the sausage gets made. "I have seen things. I have lived life," he says. The Kawhi Leonard era with the Clippers, which began with so much promise, now feels like a fever dream — a Vegas bender where you wake up missing draft picks with a $30 million bill on the nightstand. Maller compares it to a mosaic of movies: The Hangover for the disorienting aftermath, Titanic for the beautiful new Intuit Dome hitting the iceberg of salary cap circumvention, The Wolf of Wall Street for the shady side deals, and Home Alone for the booby traps the NBA set on the Clippers' future for the next decade. Steve Ballmer has "FU money multiplied by FU money," but the NBA sullied his name anyway. It's a quagmire.
The Wellness Check: Why the Meet and Greet Matters
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What you'll learn
- 1 (04:04) **College Football Weekend Kickoff** - Ben introduces the final NFL-free weekend and previews the college football slate, including Fresno State vs. USC and other mismatches.
- 2 (07:10) **Clippers Penalty Reaction & Movie Magic Analogies** - Ben responds to a listener who thought he went soft on the NBA's harsh punishment of the Clippers, then compares the Kawhi era to a series of movies.
- 3 (12:13) **2026 Vegas Meet & Greet Post-Game Show** - Ben introduces the post-game segment from the Las Vegas Maller Meet & Greet held the previous Saturday at the Stakeout Bar & Grill.
- 4 (14:46) **The Gift of a Condiment** - Ben recounts the strangest gift he's ever received at a meet & greet: a bottle of Ken's honey mustard salad dressing from a listener named Kyle.
- 5 (16:58) **Karaoke, Hats, and the Feeding Frenzy** - Ben highlights Big Balls Bob's karaoke return and a "feeding frenzy" over Maller Plus hats provided by Jay Scoop and Tammy in Montana.
- 6 (17:42) **Why No Live Show from Vegas?** - Ben explains the last-minute snafu that forced him to take the night off instead of broadcasting from Las Vegas.
- 7 (19:44) **Love-Hate with Vegas & Free Parking** - Ben rants about Vegas's resort fees, parking fees, and imagined "oxygen fees," then praises his hotel for having free parking.
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Guests on this episode
Show Notes
Benny takes you behind the curtain for The Post Game show from the Great Maller Meet & Greet in Sin City! The Maller Militia assembled from parts unknown, and Benny got perhaps the strangest gift in meet-and-greet history. There was also a postgame party plan involving aquaman that died on the operating table. Plus, more yapping about Kawhi Leonard’s Clippers punishment and the hodgepodge of Hollywood cinema that defines the Kawhi era. Babushka's are studying at Maller University, a celebrity caller’s spouse gets whacked by Vegas Vic’s revenge, and she may have ridden the Vomit Comet! Plus, the sausage-making behind these grassroots Maller meet-and-greets—and why they’re radio magic.
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