‘Ballers’ recap: Guess who’s coming to (blows at) dinner? Larry Siefert and Coach Berg

SEASON THREE, EPISODE FIVE | “MAKE BELIEVE” | AUG. 20

Larry Siefert’s face gets smushed into a plate of mashed potatoes. No, wait. Siefert, the general manager of the Miami Dolphins, gets slapped in the face, then his face gets pushed deep into a plate of brisket, between the potatoes and cornbread.

God bless the writers of Ballers for the greatest moment of the season so far. In an attempt to squash the team’s beef between Siefert (Dulé Hill) and Coach Berg (Peter Berg), which had been brewing for the first four episodes with assistant general manager Charles Greane caught in the crosshairs, Julie Greane (Jazmyn Simon) vowed to settle the feud her husband has to deal with daily over a home-cooked meal.

But when the egos at the dinner table become too much for Charles and Julie to handle, Berg bum-rushes Siefert, employing the training he received in a previous scene from legendary boxing coach Freddie Roach, to put the pompous general manager in his place. You have to wonder how Simon felt about seeing Hill, her real-life fiancé, get played in this scene.

Speaking of boxing, after punching his neighbor’s teenage son in the face last week, Ricky Jerret (John David Washington) has to call his financial and social adviser Spencer Strasmore (Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson) to bail him out of jail. While walking free from the police station — luckily, no charges were pressed — Ricky questions why Spencer is so determined to relocate the Oakland Raiders to Las Vegas when the team is flourishing in the Bay Area city for the first team in years.

Spencer tells the NFL wide receiver that the move will help him pay back the $5 million Ricky lent him to buy Anderson Sports Management. The only thing is no cash is behind the deal just yet, with Las Vegas hotel mogul Wayne Hastings Jr. (Steve Guttenberg) initially unwilling to contribute a single dime to the move despite support from the owner of the Dallas Cowboys.

Vegas, however, is the last thing the Cowboys need to worry about at the moment. The team’s star defensive player Vernon Littlefield (Donovan W. Carter) is on the brink of suspension, even after being persuaded by Spencer’s partner Joe Krutel (Rob Corddry) to divest from the marijuana business and instead sign an endorsement deal with a virtual reality company. Yet, an unexpected visit from an NFL rep to issue a random drug screening leaves Vernon sweating, with cannabinoids in his system that he took not to get high but for recovery.

With his client’s playing status in jeopardy, Spencer meets with NFL executive Candace Brewer (Emayatzy Corinealdi), who promises she will give Vernon the minimum stage two suspension of four games when he inevitably tests positive for marijuana. Candace also uses the brief meeting to warn Spencer to stick to his job of managing players’ finances, “not facilitating a billion-dollar franchise deal and stadium move.”

But, of course, Spencer doesn’t listen. He had already commissioned Vernon’s newly endorsed virtual reality company to simulate an NFL stadium experience in Las Vegas for Wayne. At the sight of the spectacle and vision through virtual reality goggles, Wayne is so impressed that he changes his mind and pledges $100 million and 600 acres of Sin City land to the effort.

The catch? He wants his name on the stadium, even though “Wayneville” doesn’t really have a ring to it.