Kevin Johnson’s Shitbaggery, Explained

Over the past year, our Dave McKenna has reported on a number of sordid scandals surrounding former NBA All-Star and current Sacramento mayor Kevin Johnson, culminating in this painful account from a woman who has accused Johnson of sexually abusing her when she was a teenager. Even by the standards of a politician, Johnson has managed to cram an awful lot of shady, repugnant behavior into a relatively short career frame. He makes Isiah Thomas’s post-basketball career look like a fucking gig for UNICEF by comparison.

In fact the numerous and complicated accusations surrounding Johnson have made it very easy to lose track of just what he’s done and how it has affected a great many people, which works to Johnson’s advantage. Ask any banker: you can get away with a lot so long as your crime is difficult to understand. So it’s worth looking back on Johnson’s resume and explaining his shenanigans in broad terms, which is the subject of this week’s Deadcast.

But there’s more! We also dig deep into the Jonathan Papelbon-Bryce Harper takes, which are arguably the greatest thing this baseball season has given us. If you have anything you’d like to hear discussed on the podcast, just send it in to tips@deadspin.com with the subject line DEADCAST. You can listen to the show here or download it over at the iTunes store.

Photo via Getty