Harrison Barnes, sportswriting search firm?

Well, it was something like that when I saw the former Warrior at Oracle Arena in February during a visit by the Mavericks, shook his hand, and told him I'd changed jobs and joined The Athletic.

I guess I wasn't too stunned when Barnes' first words to me were about somebody else, entirely.

“Hire Ethan!” Barnes said.

So ordered. And, while Barnes was surely the only person with an NBA max contract to make such a forthright suggestion, he was not alone in the very sensible thinking that Ethan Sherwood Strauss would be a perfect addition to The Athletic Bay Area and to the company overall.

Ethan obviously became a star writing incredibly well-reported and beautifully written pieces as an ESPN staff writer and has written for various other publications over the years, not at all limited to sports. Mostly, I remember when Ethan was coming up through the ranks and asking then-Warriors coach Mark Jackson questions that made me think and sometimes (or almost always) made Jackson chuckle.

Fast-forward to last spring when he was let go by ESPN … but the contract details were such that it was difficult for us to maneuver around this issue until a certain point in time.

In summary: Marcus Thompson and I have always wanted Ethan with us, it was just such a natural fit, but we had to bide our time.

I am just thankful that the founders of this company kept to it, kept patient, and finally the timing was right: We've hired Ethan to write about the NBA (obviously plenty on the Warriors) and any other interesting issue that he finds, not limited to the Bay Area.

One further schedule issue: As he can explain, Ethan won't start writing until May 15, which is when the NBA conference finals are set to begin. But as Barnes and others will surely point out, Ethan is absolutely worth the wait. Steph Curry is out for the first round, probably, then we've got to wait another full round for Ethan.

To bide the time a bit, and to officially welcome him into the fold, I figured it would be good just to ask him a few questions and get some ESS back in our lives …

Tim Kawakami: I know you've just made an announcement about your future, but let's just get it down officially here: What's your announcement and what are some of the reasons that led to it?

Ethan Sherwood Strauss: I'm joining The Athletic because it's damned exciting to join The Athletic. More on that later, but first why you'll see me in a month. My wonderful wife and podcast co-host had an emergency C-Section that, to put it vaguely and mildly, went suboptimally. All is OK, we have a healthy and happy baby, but she needs my help over the next month. So I'll be writing here starting May 15.

Anyway, back to The Athletic. At a time when so many in our industry are bemoaning the demise of sports journalism, it's thriving. Not only is it thriving, but it's doing so on the basis of quality — not on its ability to trick readers into disappointing click-bait moments.

Marcus' recent article is a prime example of what has me enthused. He wrote about Golden State's head of physical performance and sports medicine, Chelsea Lane, a little-known figure to so many fans. That's what he advertised to readers and that's what they got — with a little something extra. At the end of Marcus' feature, we were treated to a highly tantalizing, perhaps newsworthy Steph Curry quote. At places I've worked, Marcus would have had to run that bit of information into the ground, ditch the Lane feature, and have his day revolve around the amplification of a quote. Instead, it stood as a reward for readers. The implication is that, at The Athletic, if you pay for quality, we'll give you quality, minus the standard cheap ploys. Based on early results, it looks like many readers are appreciative of that tradeoff.

I don't think readers are the only ones enjoying this tradeoff. It's a mutually beneficial dynamic, one writers have long wanted, as well. I want to serve the interest of readers as honestly as I can. It's much easier to do this when the expectation is quality, as opposed to dopamine-seeking distraction. Put another way, I'm thrilled to write about the NBA, sans concern about who's being faithful to Khloe Kardashian.

TK: This is going to be great. What kinds of stories are you planning to write at The Athletic?

Strauss: I want to do more feature-length stories, with original reporting. At my old job, I was writing off nearly every game, with a deadline coming five minutes after the buzzer. I was fortunate to do what I did back then, but my heart is in a more considered kind of approach. I want the thinking and planning that goes into a more creative kind of coverage. It's what I try to do on my podcast (Shout out House of Strauss!), and what I miss doing with prose.

TK: You've got a bit of a lead-up until your first story. A few rounds of playoff basketball between now and then. What are a few things that interest you about the start of this Warriors playoff run?

Strauss: Mostly Kevon Looney. I'm not even sure if I'm kidding on that one. But in all seriousness, all roads lead to Steph. It looks like he's more optimistic about his prognosis than anyone else in the organization. How this gets managed could very well decide the championship. Return too hastily and risk compromised play, if not serious injury. Return too late and a series could already be over. This puts a lot of pressure on Steve Kerr and company. For all the talent they've added, the Warriors have never quite shaken free of Steph's centrality.

TK: What did you think of the Warriors' regular-season experience? Did anything surprise you about it?

Strauss: I was surprised by how anemic the bench was compared to my personal expectations. I certainly expected more from now former Warrior Omri Casspi, who can shoot with range, if only he'd shoot. Not everyone can be burgeoning future 10-time MVP Quinn Cook, I suppose. Overall, it's hard to be too disappointed in a team that deeply knows the relative low stakes of regular-season success, but it wasn't entirely fun to watch. Here's to viewing a theoretically more galvanized Golden State team at playoff time.

TK: Finally, I've heard the questions, I'm sure you heard the questions and comments for months: When is Ethan coming to The Athletic? Hire Ethan! (From your associate Harrison Barnes.) What did you think of all that buzz for all that time and is there anything you want to tell all those people now?

Strauss: I'd tell them that, not only am I appreciative, but they changed my perspective. If you cover sports, or really, do anything online, you'll get some negative responses. It's tempting to then define the audience by that negativity, since we're more likely to remember attacks than anything else. I'm not saying I did that, but I will say that I underestimated the amount of goodwill out there. Getting fired was, paradoxically, one of the most positive experiences of my life. I was introduced to readers who may never have emailed otherwise. Even people who had previously hated me extended well wishes and copped to, perhaps, only hating 35 percent of me. Beyond the ego boost, it was just nice to see that side of readers. It made me feel all the better about serving an audience to the best of my ability.



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(Top photo includes Ethan Sherwood Strauss, second from left:

Noah Graham/NBAE via Getty Images)