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It’s Not The Story You’ve Been Told | Scott Flansburg From #241 | The Way I Heard It

2026-04-07 Entertainment
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Mike Rowe
Mike Rowe
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Description

Tonight, after weeks of March Madness, a national champion will be crowned. As you settle in to watch the final game, you might want to ask yourself a simple question: What if the story of basketball itself… isn’t true? In this episode, I sat down with Scott Flansburg—also known as the “Human Calculator”—who stumbled into something he never saw coming: a 130-year-old mystery that calls the origin story of basketball into serious question. And I do mean serious. What began as a harmless curiosity about Dr. James Naismith quickly turned into something far more unsettling—conflicting timelines, rewritten narratives, and a small village in upstate New York that may have been written out of history altogether. We’re talking about Herkimer, a place most people have never heard of. A place that, according to Scott, may be the real birthplace of basketball—complete with the first game, the first rim, the first net… and a teenager named Lambert Will who never got the credit. So, while millions tune in to watch the championship, this conversation asks a different kind of question: What if we’ve been cheering for a story that was wrong from the start? If you like your sports with a side of mystery—and your history with a few loose threads—this one’s worth your time. #podcast #basketball #history My foundation is awarding millions of dollars in work ethic scholarships to men and women willing to learn a skilled trade. Apply now at: https://bit.ly/mrwscholarships If you like me, and even if you don't, subscribe to my channels and follow me. Much obliged. https://www.youtube.com/@therealmikerowe https://www.youtube.com/@therealmikeroweshorts https://www.youtube.com/@PYSKshow http://instagram.com/mikerowe http://facebook.com/TheRealMikeRowe https://twitter.com/mikeroweworks

Top Comments (10)

@michaellowe3665 2026-04-07

Mike Rowe is such a great interviewer, I was 5 minutes in before I remembered that I just don't care about this subject.😂

18 1 replies
@yourUserNameHere2 2026-04-07

Well, the NBA trashed it tbh. No one is allowed to play defense anymore. The officiating is questionable at best on a good day and that's made even more questionable when you consider how many casinos sponsor the league.

13 1 replies
@CarlHungus-du2zb 2026-04-07

I went to school with a dude named Nathan Naismith. He always claimed his grandpa invented basketball or something like that. Guess he wasn’t lying.

11
@RJvidmoto 2026-04-07

Always love these shows. I think you need to interview the guys over at Origin… they just put out a video regarding why it took them 10 years to make a T-shirt in the US

4
@shedrattv2512 2026-04-07

Me watching this from an actual village of 500 people thinking 10,000 is a city lol

4
@8stringswildoo 2026-04-07

Great story Mike, thank you, Go Herkimer!

3
@MS-gs2ex 2026-04-07

What a journey of truth

3
@bkp1283 2026-04-07

SPFLD MASS in the house.Home Sweet Home.

3
@onliwankannoli 2026-04-07

Folks at the University of Kansas will never accept this. Dr. Naismith is the legendary first basketball coach there, there are buildings and streets named after him.

3
@workingcountry1776 2026-04-08

Guy starts taking; hey, he sounds local; oh because he is. Love hearing a story from the CNY area

0

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