In this week's P.O. Box:

I caught up with the most slippery man in fantasy sports, Davis Mattek, on The Taekcast this week to follow up on our 2024 goals that we laid out at the end of December:

One of the things I enjoyed about that initial exercise was that it was less about the specific goal (read more books) and more about the systems we were going to put in place to help us sustainably achieve those (which is something James Clear has championed a ton in his writing).

The big system I was implementing to help me read more was no phone in the bedroom. The thought being that if I swapped out phone scrolling for Kindle reading I could establish a reading routine without any distractions.

And as of Tuesday, January 16th, I have yet to break this rule.

The positive downstream effects have been massive:

> We’re firmly on track for our reading goal (5 books down—more on that below), with the bulk of that reading done at night when I used to be dicking around on my phone..

> Somewhat related, I’ve also greatly reduced my alcohol consumption, both in frequency and in quantity. I’ve had less than ten total drinks in the last two months. I might need to save my thoughts on that scaling back experience for another post, but I hit on it in that show with Davis (38:00).

> I’m getting more (and better) sleep having eliminated drinking and blue light exposure before bed.

> I’ve made a rule for myself that the only times I’m drafting fantasy teams—something that dominated my free time last Fall and tethered me to my phone around the clock—is 1) on stream or 2) while exercising.

> Because of this, I’m finding myself reading even more throughout the day than I thought I would (getting hooked on a fast-moving story like Recursion definitely helps) since I usually fill that time with social media shit.

> Sleeping more has given me more energy for workouts. I’m doing a proper resistance training program for the first time in a few years after mostly treading water with maintenance stuff and prison workouts.

All in all, I feel really good right now. But…this is also the time of the year with the least amount of distractions and temptations. It’s been easy to get in a groove.

Once summer hits, though, and there’s more traveling, more social gatherings, and more best ball teams to draft and talk about, it’s going to get increasingly more difficult to keep these positive habits rolling.

Hopefully the systems will hold things together, otherwise I’ll be forced to binge Huberman podcasts for inspiration.

📺 2024 Rookies: dream spots for instant fantasy impact. New video up on the Deposit Kingdom channel where we slotted all of the top rookie pass catchers in the best possible location for 2024 fantasy production. Also predicted their ADPs if it were to come true. Check it out:

✏ 10 Tips For The Big Board. Last week we had the video, this week we have tips from top Underdog drafters written up on Fantasy Life for easy reference.

☣ A Crazy NBA Prop Betting Scandal. We catch up on the latest sports betting scandal involving Toronto Raptors forward Jontay Porter and also discuss the SBF prison sentence, updates on the Shoehei Ohtani investigation, Bric's MLB DFS prep, and whether the NCAA would actually ban prop betting.

🚢 2024 Dynasty Rookie Mock Draft. A wild Superflex, TE-Premium dynasty rookie mock draft with special guests Ron Stewart and Blair Andrews. Come for the insightful rookie prospect destruction, stay for THE CHAT going to war over their picks.

☕ Best Ball Breakfast: Big (& Biggest) Board Drafts. Two chaotic drafts. In the first, I eschew WRs early and tilt the chat by selecting Joe Mixon. In the second, Pat Kerrane and Davis Mattek join me to argue over virtually every selection in a $100 draft.

🏆 Fantasy Life roundup. Wrote about the Patriots bluffing with their first round pick and the Chargers trying to roll back their offense to a prehistoric era.

⏰ Big Board Draft & MLB Opening Day w/ the Badge Bros. I flex my MLB knowledge in the Badge Bros Brawl opening day contest before drafting a Big Board team. Topics discussed: how many rookies is too many, onslaughts, and dumpster diving for late QBs.

💪 The Swolecast Covers Latest NFL News w/ Lord Reebs. The one where no one wanted to answer David Kitchen’s questions.

Finished Recursion the other day and loved it. It’s fitting that both books we read in March had separate, interweaving story lines that converged into one (World’s Fair // Holmes & Barry // Helena).

I couldn’t help but think about the parallels between the memory chair and A.I. while wrapping up the book. There are so many similarities between how we currently think of A.I. as this transformational tool while also reconciling with how it could also lead to our destruction if not handled with care.

Random note: it was fun to see a scene at the end of book take place in the literal suburb I grew up in (Lakewood, Colorado). It was less fun that the scene involved nuclear destruction, but nevertheless! Also: the earlier reference in the book to the Red Sox sweeping the Rockies in the 2008 World Series is something I could have done without.

And finally, another great nugget from Historical Anomalies in the Discord about the Chicago Bears new stadium drawing inspiration from Daniel Burnham:

Now it’s time to dive into the April books…

💸 Book #6 for April (Non-Fiction): The Trading Game: A Confession by Gary Stevenson
🚂 Book #7 for April (Fiction): Everyone on This Train Is a Suspect by Benjamin Stevenson

✅ Book #5 for March (COMPLETE): Recursion by Blake Crouch
✅ Book #4 for March (COMPLETE): The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair That Changed America by Erik Larson
✅ Book #3 for February (COMPLETE): Gambler Secrets from a Life at Risk by Billy Walters
✅ Book #2 for February (COMPLETE): Chain Gang All-Stars by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah
✅ Book #1 (COMPLETE): Clear Thinking: Turning Ordinary Moments into Extraordinary Results by Shane Parris

I’ve now seen every 2023 Best Picture nomination, with Poor Things being the only exception, but this definitive list waits for no one. Here are my ranks, graded simply on the scale of how much I enjoyed them:

We got one show on tap this weekend for YouTube Members:

Underdog’s Josh Norris joins me to talk ball, hitting 100k subs on YouTube, getting married, and anything else we feel like. Become a YT member to watch live (top 2 tiers).

Need more newslettering? Check out the Fantasy Life newsletter I write regularly: