This week on the PicklePod: Zane Navratil and T-Dog (Erik Tice) break down the final MLP regular season event in Salt Lake City, where the Utah Black Diamonds shocked the league, Christian Alshon was mysteriously benched, and the Orlando Squeeze might’ve been playing 4D chess. Grayson Golden delivered the ultimate one-match flex, and the Lifetime Ball is officially the new PPA standard — whether you like it or not. Then, Nico “Nacho Libre” the Lefty returns to the pod to hand out the real MLP awards. Forget the MVPs — we’re talking: 🏆 The Ben Johns Teammate of the Year 🎉 The Lea Jansen “Here for a Good Time, Not a Long Time” Award 🤯 The Jericho Grollman “You Guys Are a Joke” Crashout Moment of the Year Nico and Zane debate whether MLP needs a “Thanos Snap” to cut the league in half, expose shady GM decisions, rank the best men and women in the league, and give love to glue guys like Blaine and Grayson. 👇 Drop your picks for MLP MVP and Crashout of the Year in the comments. Cycling Frog is giving away their best-selling THC seltzers for free. You just pay two bucks for shipping. That’s it. Get yours here: https://cyclingfrog.com/pages/seltzer-giveaway?utm_source=TheDink&utm_medium=TheDink&utm_campaign=TheDink Follow along with Aaron's efforts to spread the game here https://www.facebook.com/pickleballplanter Leave your voicemail for the PicklePod at (512) 200 - 4299 ------------------ Like the ep? Do us a favor: subscribe to our channel and leave a review on Apple or Spotify -Subscribe to our 'all things pickleball' *free e-newsletter* at https://www.thedink.beehiiv.com https://www.instagram.com/thedinkpickleball/ -Follow us on IG -Continue the convo in our private FB Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/thedi... -For everything else we do, visit https://linktr.ee/dinkfam -Read more about Zane and subscribe to his newsletter at https://zanenavratilpickleball.com/ -Follow Zane on IG @zanenavratilpickleball #pickleball #pickleballcourts ------------------ 0:00 Last day of school vibes 04:00 Utah Black Diamonds dominate at home, clinch playoff berth 10:30 Christian Alshon gets benched – why? 11:30 QDwins Monsoon Open in India, and no one notices 13:30 Lifetime Ball becomes official ball of the PPA 14:30 Soapbox moment: Clarifying Jim Kloss’s “official” All-MLP awards 18:00 Bristol PPA preview – does anyone care? 19:45 MLP Playoffs explained: Format, seeds, matchups, and why the rules make no sense Nico the Lefty 24:30 Nico the Lefty returns: Nacho Libre look + MLP Thanos snap theory 28:00 Do we need fewer teams in MLP? Tanking vs rebuilding 31:30 Why team loyalty doesn't exist yet in MLP 36:00 Jim Kloss vs Nico Twitter beef 39:00 All-MLP debate begins: Top 2 women of 2024 41:30 Gabe and Hayden = 1st team all-MLP? 47:00 Second Team All-MLP: ALW, Anna Bright, JW, Willie, Riley? 50:00 GM of the Year: Zane picks a surprise winner 55:00 “Here for a Good Time” Award: Grayson Golden’s ridiculous debut 59:00 Alex Walker’s Phoenix cameo, Blaine’s elite vibes 1:04:00 Ban flip-flops on court: Zane’s executive order 1:05:45 Jericho Grohlman Award: Best crashout moment of the year 1:09:00 Nico’s final takes: Is MLP still peaking or due for a reset? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices