Ben Holcomb

I tell stories for a living, and take them apart for fun. Story Problems is where I run the numbers on stories people believe, in sports, culture, and business.

[Ben Holcomb @HeyHuckleBen]

Huckleberry is a Nashville production company that partners with pioneering brands & agencies to create digital campaigns audiences trust, remember, and share.

This is a glimpse into a few of the projects we've had the privilege of working on the past few years. Thanks to all the amazing production professionals who helped us bring these stories to life.

[Ben Holcomb @HeyHuckleBen]

Blatant @PFChangs ripoff

[DiscussingFilm @DiscussingFilm]

The 34-foot-tall Trojan Horse from Christopher Nolan’s ‘THE ODYSSEY’ is now on display at Universal Citywalk.

[Ben Holcomb @HeyHuckleBen]

@MouseInfo https://t.co/3bRwAAaR3z

[ol’ stocky ⛳️ @oldstocky]

Manifesting a summer like Hiroshi Nagai’s artwork

[V🍀 @verdedraws]

Always liked this one

[Ben Holcomb @HeyHuckleBen]

1. The top 14 teams make the playoffs.

2. The rest of the league plays a single elimination tournament.

3. The finalists of that tournament secure the #1-2 picks, and grab the 8 seed in the playoffs.

4. The tournament is seeded based on post ASG W-L record so teams tanking at the end get punished.

At best, teams would have a ~10% chance at getting the #1 pick. No team squarely in the playoffs would actually tank for this, even in the year when LeBron was the #1 pick.

It would be too hard to do. And most importantly we’re talking about 5-6 games at the end of the season. The teams in 5-8 would have too hard of a time timing the tank. Any earlier and they still have a chance at a top 4 seed. Any later and it’s out of their control. Too many variables

[Ben Holcomb @HeyHuckleBen]

A team that has the 5th seed in either conference is not convincing its roster to throw the final games of the season to finish 8th in order to win 4 straight single elimination games to secure the top pick. That suggestion is unserious.

The teams are too good and the likelihood of getting the top pick is too small for it to be a viable option. That’s a great way to alienate your fanbase though

[Ben Holcomb @HeyHuckleBen]

The Rockets are 10 games ahead of 8th in the West right now, fighting for the 3 seed. No team in the 5-6 range would purposely tank their end of season games to make this tournament, as its single elimination.

Not to mention the post ASG W-L seeding would punish teams doing that.

Your premise only works on the assumption all 30 teams prefer to tank over compete for the championship, if only the opportunity presented itself.

[Ben Holcomb @HeyHuckleBen]

@RealGarrettCarr @haralabob I wrote about the details of this plan here:

[Ben Holcomb @HeyHuckleBen]

https://t.co/ytAQD5lYUa

[Ben Holcomb @HeyHuckleBen]

The Rockets are 10 games ahead of 8th in the West right now, fighting for the 3 seed. No team in the 5-6 range would purposely tank their end of season games to make this tournament, as its single elimination.

Not to mention the post ASG W-L seeding would punish teams doing that.

Your premise only works on the assumption all 30 teams prefer to tank over compete for the championship, if only the opportunity presented itself.

[Ben Holcomb @HeyHuckleBen]

This is rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic.

If Adam Silver really thinks a minor shift in lottery percentages is going to fix the current tanking problem, the NBA needs a new commissioner.

The only solution is a single elimination tournament for the #1 pick. Seeding based on post ASG records among all non playoff teams. The finalists get the 8th seeds in each conference. Every game is guaranteed to be meaningful all season.

[Ben Holcomb @HeyHuckleBen]

Thank you A24 for incorporating my feedback so quickly.

[The Backrooms Online // BackroomsMovie.com @backroomsonline]

A24 have UPDATED the running time of Backrooms on their official website to 105 minutes!

This lines up with the 1 hr, 45 mins we had previously heard from the test screenings.

Source: https://t.co/9KR9xgZFBN

[Ben Holcomb @HeyHuckleBen]

We have to bring back the 95 minute movie.

[balta 🇦🇷 @BGarcN2]

does that shit say 2 HOURS AND 25 MINUTES!!!!

[Ben Holcomb @HeyHuckleBen]

1. Did $SOFI sell $312M in loans to itself (via SoFi Funding PL VI LLC)?

2. Did their CFO mislead investors by insinuating this was a sale to a third-party?

3. Was this “sale” actually just a debt restructuring through JPM Chase?

4. Where is this transaction located in their Sep 30, 2024 financial statement?

5. Did SoFi finance its own Skyfi loan sales, and then use that as proof of “market validation?”

6. Is SoFi’s risk retention horizontal or vertical?

7. Why is SoFi’s servicing fee ~6% when the market rate is 0.7-0.8%?

8. Does SoFi keep the origination fee on loan it sells?

9. Is SoFi’s student loan discount rate lower than the 10-year treasury bond rate? And if so, are they asserting their loans are safer than treasury bonds?

[Scott Myers @GoIntoTheStory]

2026 Writers Guild Awards Nominated Screenplays: Black Bag, If I Had Legs I’d Kick You, Marty Supreme, Sinners, Weapons, Bugonia, Frankenstein, Hamnet, Train Dreams. Download 'em. Read 'em. Study 'em. https://t.co/7VnJFRbIIH #movies #screenwriting

[Ben Holcomb @HeyHuckleBen]

This is awesome.

One thing I’ve always felt the joyful innocence of youth lacked was a tangible connection to increasing shareholder value.

[CooperBaggs 💰🍞 @edgaralandough]

I saw a post from a dad that said he does a "family presentation night" once a month.
Each kid picks a topic. Practices it. Presents it.
His 8-year-old presented on dinosaurs.
Eye contact. Q&A. The whole thing.

I will be implementing this with my kids asap. I have a 6-year-old boy and a 2-year-old girl. The 2-year-old probably can't do presentations yet, but let's see.

[Ben Holcomb @HeyHuckleBen]

@BenRitholtzNBA Besides being unserious, this doesn’t actually solve tanking. Out of contention teams will still shut down their $100M+ assets to preserve their health for the upcoming season.

The rookie draft tournament is the only solution.

[Ben Holcomb @HeyHuckleBen]

https://t.co/ytAQD5lYUa

[Ben Holcomb @HeyHuckleBen]

Yesterday I dared to ask the question: is bracketology a fake degree?

And then @ESPNLunardi put up his best performance ever, effectively dunking in my face like prime Shaq.

Nevertheless, it was a fun experiment. Results below.

[Ben Holcomb @HeyHuckleBen]

https://t.co/X6kDlRG8Yt

[Ben Holcomb @HeyHuckleBen]

We went 67/68.

[Ben Holcomb @HeyHuckleBen]

https://t.co/X6kDlRG8Yt