Bill Simmons hasn’t put up a podcast since...

Bill Simmons hasn’t put up a podcast since Thursday of last week. It’s an odd time for the arguably the world’s most popular sports columnist to go quiet. We’re right smack dab in the middle of the NBA Finals and the man who made his name on writing about basketball is curiously absent. Now, I know why.

He was launching a website.

Grantland went live today, complete with a (very) long introduction from Simmons, its editor. He explains its goals thusly:

The first was to find writers we liked and let them do their thing. The second was to find sponsors we liked and integrate them within the site — so readers didn’t have to pay for content, and also, so we didn’t have to gravitate toward quantity over quality just to chase page views. The third was to take advantage of a little extra creative leeway for the right reasons and not the wrong ones. And the fourth was to hire the right blend of people — mostly young, mostly up-and-comers, all good people with good ideas who aren’t afraid to share them.

All admirable. Good luck to you as you figure this all out, Simmons.

Bill, if I may? One suggestion. Tighten that homepage. Your first story doesn’t show up until 660 px down the page—that’s almost below the fold territory. That photo at the top is great, but it’s static (I assume). It’s dead air and it will suck the life out of your homepage. In your next iteration (and I’m sure there will be many), tighten up that header and get those stories firmly above the fold where they belong.