The writers of the Showtime series "Billions" have an unwritten rule when it comes to sports references: the more obscure, the better.
So for every mention of Scottie Pippen, there's a line such as: "I'm gonna stick to you like Lester Hayes."
For every Nick Saban reference, there's this: "You're gonna be our Brian Doyle."
I happen to know who Brian Doyle is and what he represents, having grown up with the Billy Martin/Reggie Jackson Yankees. But how many of the show's 4.2 million (across all platforms) weekly viewers know that Doyle subbed for the injured Willie Randolph in the 1978 World Series and batted .438?
Guess that's what Wikipedia is for. Or better yet, thebillionscompanion.net, which was an invaluable source.
"We don't test them out," David Levien said. "If we think it's right, we'll do it. In some ways, if it's more obscure, it's even better."
Levien created "Billions" with Brian Koppelman and Andrew Ross Sorkin. The Season 4 finale airs Sunday, and Showtime has ordered a fifth season.
Mark Teixeira, Maria Sharapova and Kevin Durant have made cameos, with Durant soliciting $100,000 for his foundation in exchange for making a five-second Happy Bar Mitzvah call.
The drama debuted with billionaire hedge fund manager Bobby Axelrod (Damian Lewis) dueling Chuck Rhoades (Paul Giamatti), the ruthless U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York. Think Bill Belichick versus the NFL. Eventually they joined forces, like LeBron James and Dwyane Wade. The show moves as fast as Usain Bolt in Beijing.
OK, I'll stop. The best sports analogies come from the minds of the professional scriptwriters, Levien and Koppelman. Here's their analysis of five of my favorites:
