Welcome to Enthusiasms. Your reminder to always be looking forward to something. Pulltab Sports Editor-In-Chief, John King, points you in the right direction.

MY NEXT GUEST NEEDS NO INTRODUCTION SEASON 5

At some point, you reach the age where you crave more peace and a sense of Zen. If you’re lucky, you slowly drift from the Bermuda triangle of life to the triangle offense with Phil Jackson. Maybe you start paddle boarding or reading for pleasure. Besides maybe the late Bill Walton, almost no one has made this transition to the Zen third act better than David Letterman.

Letterman’s Netflix series My Next Guest Needs No Introduction is about as soulful as a celebrity interview series can be. Dave picks interesting guests, and he opens them up to find the stuff that really matters. Unlike say a podcast like Smartless which is a mutual admiration society with everyone talking and no one listening, My Next Guest Needs No Introduction cuts deep led by Dave’s emotional intelligence. Dave listens first (crazy idea!) and can really peel back the curtain on some of the world’s most interesting people.

As My Next Guest Needs No Introduction heads into its 5th season this week, Letterman has reached almost a guru level in the celeb interview space. Just like music producer Rick Rubin can get the best musicians to take off their shoes and walk barefoot on the grass of his Shangri-La studios to find their next great record, Letterman’s similar length beard, and laid-back vibe consistently lets some of the world’s most interesting people share their truth in a world full of noise.
If you want an appetizer before Season 5 comes out this Wednesday June 12th, Letterman just dropped a My Next Guest Needs No Introduction episode featuring comedian John Mulaney. Recently sober, Mulaney shares the details of his addiction with Dave while visiting his high school in Chicago, St. Ignatius Prep. Letterman, Mulaney, and Mulaney’s father even share dinner while discussing some of the scariest parts of John’s addiction. My Next Guest Needs No Introduction is a show like no other. It’s really a beautiful thing how Dave can open these folks up and create a sense of calm so they’re willing to share.

Season 5 of My Next Guest Needs No Introduction makes the list this week not only because it’s a great show you should be watching, but also because this season’s guests are going to be amazing including Miley Cyrus and Charles Barkley. I know what I’m doing Wednesday night.

HIT MAN ON NETFLIX

Director Richard Linklater is a star maker. He’s the guy who famously pulled Matthew McConaughey out of an Austin, Texas bar and turned him into David Wooderson in Dazed and Confused. Or maybe McConaughey already was Wooderson . . .Regardless, a few years back, Linklater also brought our attention to a young actor named Glen Powell. Linklater casts Powell in the “spiritual sequel” to Dazed and Confused, a baseball movie (you 100% should see) called Everybody Wants Some.

Don’t get me wrong, the ascent of Glen Powell is well underway—he was in Top Gun Maverick for God’s sake! But the new Netflix movie, Hit Man, releasing today seems to have all the star making power to continue to propel Powell to becoming the next McConaughey . . .or the first Glen Powell. Loosely based on a Texas Monthly article about Gary Johnson, a cop who posed as a contract killer in the ‘80s and ‘90s—Hit Man is the sort of vehicle capable of showing Powell’s full acting range playing multiple characters, while not taking itself too seriously so he can maintain the twinkle in his eye. As the kid’s say, Powell has “rizz,” and on paper Hit Man appears to be circuit training for charisma. With Linklater at the helm, I’d expect Hit Man to propel Powell’s his career one step closer to our living rooms. Regardless, in the era of the Road House 2024 and The Fall Guy, Hit Man looks to be a popcorn popper for your Friday night.

ROYCE BACK!

If you listen closely enough, you’ll hear shushed voice consistently comparing oft-injured Twins third basemen, Royce Lewis, to the legendary Kirby Puckett. The comparison isn’t because Royce and Kirby were similar players, it’s about their attitude. Royce Lewis is a float all boats, boundless energy guy. He’s a get on my back, let’s roll guy. He has the big smile and the infectious energy, his eye black is fun, and did we mention he hits a lot of grand slams?! Royce Lewis is basically an emoji playing baseball.

Truth is, Royce Lewis probably shouldn’t be full of optimism and positivity. His career has been a series of false starts as he’s struggled to stay on the field due to injuries. When Royce is in the lineup, he’s brilliant, but he’s missed more games than he’s played. Opening day was the perfect example as Royce start the season on fire, only to pull a quad and miss two months’ time. Lewis has played three major league games this season, and he's hit a homerun in each one of them (two against the hated Yankees).

As we sit here today, the Twins are 4 games over .500 and 7.5 games back of the Guardians in the suddenly competitive American League Central. Royce is back, or as the Timberwolves might say Royce Back! This is a good thing, let’s not look a gift horse in the mouth.

With the NBA and NHL Finals about to wrap up, we’re heading into the dog days of summer. A healthy Royce Lewis is a great gift as you sit on your front porch of listen to the Twins on the way to and from the cabin. Welcome back, Mr. Lewis. We hope you stick around . . .at least until football season.

THE VIKINGS ICY WHITES

A picture is worth a thousand words, or say they say. I’ll resist the temptation to wax too poetic on the Vikings new “Winter Warrior” alternative jerseys. The players reaction to these Game of Thrones style masterpieces says it all.

My only request is for the Vikings game ops to please find a way to turn US Bank Stadium into a giant snow globe when the Vikings debut these uniforms. Ideally, we find a way to crank Led Zeppelin’s “Immigrant Song” and give every Viking fan a white shirt on their chair that they all swing the shirts in the air like a sold out Chili Peppers or Foo Fighters rock show.

All the ingredients are here. Winter Warrior uniforms + Led Zeppelin “Immigrant Song” + buckets of artificial snow falling from the rafters + sold out U.S. Bank stadium + 68K people waving a white t-shirt = supreme football joy coming to Winnesota this Fall.

Here is the soundtrack, play loud:

SKOL!