The cover art for Pop Smoke’s new posthumous album, Shoot For The Stars, Aim For The Moon, was shared earlier this week. That reveal was a bit of a fiasco, as Virgil Abloh was widely criticized for his effort (or lack thereof), which some called “lazy.” Shortly after the art was unveiled, it was quickly announced the cover would be changed.
Sure enough, the album is out today, and the aesthetic of the new art is decidedly more minimal: This one features just a metallic rose on a black background. Notably, the new art was designed by artist Ryder Ripps, who accused Abloh of poorly ripping him off for the first version of the art. Ripps previously shared a design that’s similar to the new cover as an album announcement and explained, “The idea was to take something impermanent and put it in a fixed state, chrome flower.”
The new art is certainly a different direction than the previously revealed cover, but some fans still aren’t on board with the new design. Some accused the new art of not being much more creative or effort-intensive than the previous one, if at all.
I’m not a Virgil fan at all but they really gave him so much shit about that pop smoke cover and said he put no effort into it only to release some shit like this…. pic.twitter.com/MQ4fB88Bf8
— Autistic Aubrey Graham (@paralyzedposty_) July 3, 2020
Ultimately, though, the consensus seems to be that regardless of the album art, the quality of the music is still there.
New Pop Smoke album sounding fire hut what is this new album cover? That’s the one that was decided on? If I’m missing the meaning of it someone please help
Steven Victor, head of Victor Victor Worldwide, shared the art last night and wrote, “Pop’s music belongs to everyone. This album is a celebration of where Pop was headed and where he wanted to be. The process of working on this album with all our friends, peers and heroes has been amazing and we thank everyone for their support.”
Shoot For The Stars, Aim For The Moon is out now via Victor Victor Worldwide and Republic Records. Get it here.
The RX is Uproxx Music’s stamp of approval for the best albums, songs, and music stories throughout the year. Inclusion in this category is the highest distinction we can bestow, and signals the most important music being released throughout the year. The RX is the music you need, right now.
If you’re the sort of person who once attended rock shows packed inside sweaty clubs on a regular basis, the album Survival by the Canadian band Wares will no doubt give you an intense shot of melancholy. The record opens with a furious 80-second fuzz-punk anthem called “Hands, Skin,” in which singer-songwriter Cassia Hardy recounts an assault over a frantic riff and pulverizing blast beats, instantly evoking the greats of cathartic indie guitar pop. (Think Husker Du, Sonic Youth, and Titus Andronicus). It’s a thrilling moment that demands to be heard live, with dozens of fellow fans bopping up against each other. But sadly (for the time being at least) it won’t.
Fortunately, Survival more than compensates for this lack of visceral, in-person immediacy. Every year, there are albums that I’m surprised haven’t made a greater impact on the larger indie-rock discourse. In 2020, the biggest sleeper LP for me is the latest from Wares, which dropped Survival in April. At that time, the world was understandably distracted by the early, explosive spread of coronavirus. So many of 2020’s music releases have been swallowed up by the news, but Survival ought to stand out, because Hardy has expertly assembled one of the year’s most emotionally overpowering and melodically satisfying rock records, and also written words that explicitly address the need for outsiders and underdogs to band together and defeat corrupt systems.
Dedicated in the liner notes to “decolonial activists, anti-fascist agitators, [and] prairie queers fighting for community and a better life,” Survival could be interpreted as a political record that seems especially fitting for this precise moment. “Fight like a dying species, rejecting parasitic scum / before everyone you love / gets used up,” Hardy sings on the rousing title track, which closes the album. It sounds like a protest song, an irresistible call to arms set to insistent drums, swirling guitars, and surging synths.
For Hardy, however, Survival comes from a personal place. The 27-year-old Edmonton native transitioned into a woman in the early ’10s, and while she resists categorizing Survival strictly as a “transition” album, the album’s narrative arc “about human beings overcoming trauma, overcoming their past and the things that have hurt them” stems in part from her own feelings of alienation as a person who, for many years, didn’t feel as though she belonged. Eventually, Hardy found community in Edmonton’s politically active music scene, which lends to the feeling of hope that concludes this oft-scathing yet catchy and compulsively listenable album.
I recently phoned Hardy to discuss the album, her love of fellow Canadian rockers the New Pornographers, and how “War Pigs” by Black Sabbath was an “early radicalizing force” for her.
You sympathize with outsiders and underdogs in your songs. How did that influence the album thematically?
This album is the most personal thing I’ve put out. And a lot of my story is coming from this place of knowing that I was different in some way. I made the decision to shut myself up. I feel like this is true for a lot of other queer people: I lived the first part of my life as not a true representation of myself. So the real story of this record beyond anything around me transitioning, is about human beings overcoming trauma, overcoming their past and the things that have hurt them to join together and form community bonds, because that’s how the world is changed. It’s direct person to person interaction and love.
I wouldn’t call Survival a concept album exactly, but it does seem like the songs are connected, and the overall record does have a kind of dramatic arc from the first song, “Hands, Skin,” to the climactic title track. Did you conceive of Survival as a complete album, as opposed to just a collection of songs?
Yeah, for sure. I definitely wrote it as a whole album. I love listening to entire records. I’m not much of a playlist or shuffle person. The last album in 2017, I tried to have more of a melodic arc. The lyrics are personal, but they’re not as narratively driven. A few of the tunes on Survival were actually written around the same time that the first album was being recorded. I just knew I wanted to hook them back because something about them felt different to me. I think the oldest tune is from 2014, which would be “Jenny Says.” Just knowing that the little crop of songs I had going in was so personal, it really drove me to follow that lead and try and make sense of a broader narrative.
I wanted to stay outside of a traditional transition narrative. I’ve read so many trans women’s memoirs from the ’70s and onward, and they’re an important resource, but that’s not the kind of sound I wanted to make.
Why?
Because I think it’s been done. And I wanted to make something a little more timely. I think it’s more important than ever that we reject the impulse to stay isolated. Because the people in power benefit a great deal from an isolated and disorganized population. I think the most powerful thing we can do right now is sort through our own trauma and our own hurt, meet with other people with that same energy who have done the work on their end and think about the ways that we can stop that harm.
Ultimately what I love most about Survival is you have these very sensitive and thoughtful lyrics about your personal experience, and it’s also just a really satisfying and melodic rock record.
It’s what I wanted to do. As far as the melody, that pretty much always comes first to me. Often I’ll have a song fully written on guitar. “Survival” was actually like that. I was bashing my head against the wall about the title track for actual months. I didn’t figure out what it was about until this sort of auspicious day when I was uniquely angry about something that the premier of our country said. I actually wrote it a couple of days after that.
You’ve called Survival a hopeful record, and I feel like that sense of uplift comes from the music, which is beautiful and epic and rooted in this grand guitar-rock tradition. Survival has been compared to The Monitor by Titus Andronicus. I’m also reminded of albums like Siamese Dream and Daydream Nation. Are any of those albums influential for you?
I like Sonic Youth. I feel like such a newbie saying that Daydream Nation is my favorite record but it is. I feel like it stands apart as a beautiful album. I love power pop. I suppose my first really proper spate of bands that really spoke to what I wanted to accomplish musically was probably The New Pornographers. I like all the people in that band but especially Neko Case and Dan Bejar, and the way they molded that band around their existing vocal and songwriting styles. I saw them at a formative age, and The Mountain Goats opened, which was like a big, big show for me, just as far as energetic songwriting coupled with narratively driven lyrics.
You were also a teenage metalhead, right?
I was obviously, like, brutally depressed for most of my teenage years, so I was attracted to that kind of music. I guess it was the intricacy of the guitar work that was appealing to me. When I first started going to guitar lessons. that’s the kind of sound that I wanted to make. I wanted to go to college as a guitar player. And it took me a while to process the things that drew me away — the machismo and the competitive aspects of what could be played faster, as opposed to writing the song. But there’s a lot of stuff in that genre I really like. I can point to “War Pigs” as an early radicalizing force, or “Peace Sells…But Who’s Buying?”
Is that why you play a Flying V? It seems very metal.
It’s a really fun shape. I just like how it looks. It’s got a background in metal, but I think Ray Davies had one for a while. Jimi Hendrix, Albert King. I love that kind of mid-century futurist look. I love my V.
Netflix just will not stop (and thank goodness for that) with the much-needed content buffet during these quarantine times. If you’re looking for true-crime indulgence to distract from invisible threats at hand, then the revival of an iconic series has got you covered. Meanwhile, the comic-book crowd will enjoy an adaptation of a kickass manga series, and there’s a fresh stand-up special to bring some laughs.
Here’s everything coming to (and leaving) Netflix this week of July 3.
Unsolved Mysteries (Netflix series streaming 7/1)
This revival should satisfy fans of the original and newcomers alike. Yes, there are some key differences between the show that ran for 14 years, but it feels fresh while still maintaining familiarity. That is to say, these cases will still thrill and chill and captivate the true crime-buff audience, so enjoy this six-episode batch with more to come.
This manga-comic-book adaptation does indeed contain warrior-ing and nunn-ing, but it’s much more than that, including a superhero origin story, a coming-of-age tale, and an often-schlocky creation that arrives with certain expectations from the title itself. The action takes some breaks, but when it’s on, expect some serious butt kicking of demons.
Somehow, this is Lopez’s first Netflix comedy special despite his storied stand-up roots. In one hour, Lopez dives into lessons that he’s learned from the Latino community, along with issues related to emotional support animals, gender reveal parties, and elevator etiquette.
Here’s a full list of what’s been added in the last week:
Avail. 6/26 Amar y vivir (Netflix Original) Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga (Netflix Film) Home Game (Netflix Documentary) Straight Up
Avail. 6/29 Bratz: The Movie
Avail. 6/30 Adú (Netflix Film) BNA (Netflix Anime) George Lopez: We’ll Do It for Half (Netflix Comedy)
Avail. 7/1 AnneFrank: Parallel Stories A Bridge Too Far A Thousand Words A Touch of Green: Season 1 A Walk to Remember Abby Hatcher: Season 1 Airplane! Ali Batman: Mask of the Phantasm Charlotte’s Web Clash of the Titans (1981) Cleo & Cuquin: Season 2 Cloud Atlas David Foster: Off the Record Definitely, Maybe Delta Farce Donnie Brasco Double Jeopardy Fiddler on the Roof Frida I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry Killing Hasselhoff Kingdom: Season 1-3 Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events Mean Streets Million Dollar Baby Paranormal Activity Red Riding Hood (2011) Schindler’s List Sleepless in Seattle Sleepy Hollow Spaceballs Splice Stand and Deliver Stardust Starsky & Hutch Sucker Punch Swordfish The Art of War The Devil’s Advocate The F–k-It List The Firm The Karate Kid The Karate Kid Part II The Karate Kid Part III The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad! The Town The Witches This Christmas Total Recall (1990) Trotro Winchester Chico Bon Bon: Monkey with a Tool Belt: Season 2 Deadwind: Season 2 Say I Do (Netflix Original) Under the Riccione Sun (Netflix Film) Unsolved Mysteries (Netflix Documentary)
While 2020 only produced one project that he admitted was not his best effort, 2020 has been one hell of a year for Tory Lanez. The Toronto act kicked off the year saving the world from quarantine boredom with his Quarantine Radio show via Instagram Live. While the activities that took place on the livestream got his Instagram account suspended, the show proved to be a huge boost to Tory and it helped semi-promote his most recent project, The New Toronto 3. The project would also be his last with Interscope, allowing him to embark on independence after its release. Continuing work on his next body of work, Tory supplies a track to the soundtrack of the upcoming Fast & Furious 9 film.
Sliding through with Kevin Gates by his side, the two rappers rev their engines for the latest single off the Fast & Furious 9 soundtrack. Opting against a hook, Tory and Kevin put their bars up to bat as the two artists drop lengthy verses on the song. Tory kicks off his verse with sheer confidence rapping, “I cannot stress this bitch no more / 50 racks came outside from the mall / Still come kick down your door.” Lending the mic to Gates follows suit with his own braggadocios bars, “Lifestyle of the rich and the famous / Close quarters in a whip and a gangster / Pipe down up in here ‘fore I spank you.”
The new collaboration arrives weeks after Tory Lanez shared his most recent single, “Temperature Rising.”
Press play on the video above to hear “Convertible Burt.”
Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
Following years of disappointment and dissatisfaction with her former label, Tinashe broke free and claimed her independence in 2019 and quickly began to lay the foundation for her fourth album. Nine months later, backed by managerial support from Roc Nation, she delivered her fourth album Songs For You with help from 6lack, G-Eazy, and more. The album was received well and signaled that Tinashe would thrive with her newfound independence. Months after the album’s arrival, the “2 On” singer heads back to her fourth album for a new remix.
Calling on Zhu, Tinashe shares an enchanting remix of her Songs For You cut, “Die A Little Bit.” Adding on to the song’s original version, which features British rapper Ms. Banks and presents a dark house track that promotes nighttime fun in an elevated state, the updated take brings a bit more rhythm to the mix thanks to the addition of Zhu. The track marks the second collaboration between Tinashe and Zhu, as the two artists connected for “Only” earlier this year. The “Die A Little Bit” remix also marks the second remix to arrive from Songs For You. The first came last week as Tinashe collaborated with THEY., a producer-singer duo comprised of Dante Jones and Drew Love, for a remix of “Hopscotch.”
Listen to the “Die A Little Bit” remix in the video above.
The NBA return is right around the corner, and scores of players have been traveling from far and wide to rejoin their teams in preparation for the games in Orlando this summer. One question that’s been on everyone’s minds is just what level of conditioning we can reasonably expect from the players after a more than four-month absence.
The answer is that it will likely be a mixed bag, even for those who have been diligent about their diet and exercise regimens. The diaspora that happened in the wake of the pandemic meant that some players found themselves in situations where they didn’t necessarily enjoy the same access to the type of state-of-the-art exercise equipment that they are normally accustomed to.
Take Steven Adams, for instance, who left Oklahoma City soon after the hiatus and returned to his farm in New Zealand so he could be close to family. In a recent Zoom call with Thunder beat reporters, Adams talked about how he’s been spending his free time during the shutdown, joking that he’s turned to his farm animals to mimic the conditions in the post.
While at home, Adams took a break from wrestling Western Conference centers and joked that he stayed in basketball shape by “boxing out cows” on his farm.
Adams and the rest of his Thunder teammates are participating in mandatory individual workouts at the team’s practice facility before they fly to Disney World next week for training camp. The Thunder (40-24) will resume the season Aug. 1 against the Utah Jazz.
The Thunder, with Chris Paul at the helm, had been one of the NBA’s most pleasant surprises before the season shut down. They head into Orlando having clinched a playoff spot as they sit at No. 5 in the Western Conference standings.
It was less than five months ago that the hip-hop community took a huge blow as Pop Smoke was tragically murdered in the wee hours of the morning. Murdered in his Los Angeles home, his death arrived just days after he shared the deluxe version of his Meet The Woo 2 mixtape. His death was mourned by many in the hip-hop community including Lil Tjay, Joey Badass, and more. Granting the world one last opportunity to hear what was and what could have been in the life and career of Pop Smoke, the Brooklyn rapper’s posthumous debut album, Shoot For The Stars, Aim For The Moon has arrived as promised.
Shortly after the untimely passing of Pop Smoke, 50 Cent vowed to finish the deceased rapper’s debut album. While it was never confirmed whether or not 50 Cent played an executive role on the album, he does appear on the album alongside Pop Smoke and Roddy Ricch for their collaboration “The Woo.” A phrase that became a trademark saying in Pop Smoke’s music, the track is a well-meshed collaboration of the past and the present. Pop Smoke was often compared to 50 Cent due to their similar sound as well as a “Many Men” remix that was released earlier this year. On the other hand, Roddy stands as one of the most popular newcomers in the music industry and he and Pop could have very well held that title together if things had played out differently.
As for the rest of his album, Shoot For The Stars, Aim For The Moon clocks in with 19 songs including “Dior” and “Make It Rain” and sees appearances from Lil Baby, DaBaby, Future, Polo G, Quavo, Swae Lee, and more. The album also arrives with a new cover after the original design, created by Virgil Abloh, was ripped apart by fans on social media.
Shoot For The Stars, Aim For The Moon is out now via Victor Victor Worldwide and Republic Records. Get it here.
Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
For well over a decade, Gucci Mane has put on an absolute clinic when it comes to releasing projects. It was just last summer that he shared his 100th project with his Delusions of Grandeur album. That said, it was rather unusual that the Guwop Records head honcho waited nearly six months to share his first single of 2020, never mind his first project. Coming through just in time for summer’s peak, Gucci Mane shared his umpteenth album, So Icy Summer, and boy did his get a lot of help on it.
A standout on the lengthy tracklist comes with the help of fellow Atlanta rap star, Young Thug. The two rappers work their magic quickly into the album on “Rain Shower” as they two obsess about the diamonds and other jewels they own in their lives. While the song extends a long list of collaborations between Thug and Gucci, which includes their 2014 tape Young Thugger Mane La Flare, the song is one of three collaborations between Young Thug and Gucci Mane on So Icy Summer.
As for the rest of So Icy Summer, Gucci supplies 24 tracks despite being the lead artist on only 12 of them. Holding it down for the top half with help from Lil Baby, 21 Savage, Young Nudy, Future, Key Glock, and more, the attention shifts to Big Scarr, Foogiano, and Pooh Shiesty who lead the way to close out the album. So Icy Summer also arrives after a few weeks of tension between Gucci and Atlantic Records. The ATL rap star accused the label of being “polite racist,” but recently apologized for him comments and promised to “do better.”
Press play on the video above to hear “Rain Shower.”
Gucci Mane is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
So Icy Summer is out now via Guwop and Atlantic. Get it here.
Eurovision Song Contest: The Story Of Fire Saga, may be a comedy starring Will Ferrell and Rachel McAdams as an Icelandic pop duo with dreams of dominating on the global stage, but the bops in this quirky musical romp are no joke. From EDM anthems about volcanic guardians to innuendo-laced folk songs and sentimental ballads sung in the Icelandic mother tongue, we’ve ranked the film’s best bangers (but there’s no shame in jamming out to any one of these guaranteed hits).
11. “Hit My Itch”
Dalibor Jinksy from San Marino: You performed a song called “Hit My Itch” and you cried through the whole thing. You know why you’re here.
10. “Coolin Wit Da Homies”
Look, would Johnny John John’s angster-rap “Cooling With Da Homies” do well with the Tik Tok crowd? Yes. But there’s something carelessly dismissive in his boasting about his abusive treatment of his parents. Your dad just asked you to mow the lawn, Vanilla Ice. You don’t need to be a d*ck to him via song.
9. “In The Mirror”
While the film admirably committed to a hilariously dark gag that ended with the charred ghost of Demi Lovato warning Will Ferrell’s Lars that his life was in danger because of this singing competition, the joke worked better than the song Lovato sang as Katiana, Iceland’s best hope for winning Eurovision. The most we can gleam from this ballad is that she really likes looking in the mirror, and who wants to bop along with a narcissist like that? Did the elves really go too far in blowing up this diva? We’re just not sure.
8. “Fool Moon”
Unfortunately for Finland’s Wonderfour, they also wrote a song about the moon and it just didn’t slap the same as the next tune on this list. We’re not saying we wouldn’t sway to this bubble-pop beat if it came across the radio – although we would assume it was a new Dua Lipa track – but if you’re going to compete in Eurovision, you’ll need more than a glittery spandex suit and Sia wig to get our vote.
7. “Running with the Wolves”
This performance might’ve given us nightmares — the prosthetics were… a choice — but this song, which blends the best guttural screams of a Slipknot-inspired heavy metal artist with the haunting lilt of an Evanescence wannabe to give us a darker love song, one that equates the stages of romance with moonlit romps through the woods. If howling at the moon is your thing well then, hey, we’re not here to judge kinks. Just songs.
6. “Come and Play”
A severely underrated, Broadway-infused sex party invitation, this entry from Greece is the kind of naughty ditty that we were hoping to see more of during the competition. Performed by actress Melissanthi Mahut and sung by Petra Nielsen, this felt like a cross between a Cabaret joint and the opening number to an erotic space-themed circus. It dips and twists and suggestively bends in all the right places and it speaks to the innermost desires of everyone suffering during this months-long quarantine — we do live in a world of madness, there is too much fear and sadness, we do want freedom. Maybe giant hanging jellyfish sculptures can get us there.
5. “Ja Ja Ding Dong”
I know, I know. Fifth place feels a bit insulting for this particular tune but we’re not here to reward mediocrity folks. Is this folksy jingle catchy as hell? Of course. We even got pop-culture tastemaker Brian Grubb to devise a scientifically proven method for extracting it from your brain cells. But, when compared to some others on this list, it feels a bit… generic. It’s fun, it’s an easy group sing, but I come from a Southern state whose residents lose their sh*t every time Neil Diamond’s “Sweet Caroline” comes through the speakers, so I can 100% confirm that just because it had an audience sing-along portion, it doesn’t mean it’s a timeless classic.
4. “Husavik”
Unless there’s a scene with a dog dying, or Meryl Streep belting out an ABBA tune, I rarely get emotional over movies. World War II epics, doomed love stories, that one with Cameron Diaz where the oldest sister has cancer and Abigail Breslin doesn’t want to lend her a kidney? These do nothing for me. It feels important to preface this with some form of proof of my black soul because not only did the film’s final ballad leave me absolutely verklempt, it also pulled a lone tear from my dusty-dry eye. I can’t say I relate to loving my hometown, but if I lived in a place where the mountains sang and the whales were gentle people and the Northern lights burst their colors, I just might. Add to that the fact that Sigrit finally finds her Speorg note and sings in her native Icelandic, and this song feels like the go-to melody for every sappy, end-of-year slideshow your graduating class sits through before collecting their diplomas.
3. “Double Trouble”
Even though “Double Trouble” is the song that wins Fire Saga a spot in the Eurovision competition (that and the accidental fiery death of all of Iceland’s most promising talent), it’s easy to forget how mindlessly catchy this pop cover truly is. We hear it throughout the film in bits and pieces, always serving as background music to some on-stage disaster — falling from an unsecured harness, getting a miles-long scarf stuck in a giant hamster wheel, etc. But if you take a second to just vibe with this love song, you’ll see it’s got real potential. A campy chorus, an anticipatory build-up, and a tune that literally bores a hole through your brain, “Double Trouble” could’ve won Fire Saga the competition.. if it hadn’t been for that damn wind machine.
2. “Lion of Love”
Unfortunately, as an American, I admittedly know little of music’s annual European Hunger Games, but from what I can gather, the competition is about three things: inclusivity, over-the-top performances, and glitter. This song has all three. Even if we ignore the tour-de-force that is Dan Stevens suggestively groping bare-chested men and wielding a whip like some queer, Russian Indiana Jones (and really, why would we do that?) the song itself feels completely harmonious with the ideals represented at Eurovision. This song — about a man who can’t be tamed, who wanders the savannah hunting gazelle with his flirtatious smile — is clearly an LGBTQ-empowering anthem, one that uses double entendre to allude to forbidden romance and sexual conquests, and it’s powered by the earth-shaking baritones of opera sing Erik Mjönes. It doesn’t just tickle your ear-drums, it tickles your loins as well.
1. “Volcano Man”
We’re courting controversy by robbing “Ja Ja Ding Dong” of this number one spot, but hear us out. There are earworms, and then there are straight-up bops. “Volcano Man” is the latter. A 21st-century punk-Viking-fantasy track, infused with synth beats and ambient whale calls, and it tells the story of a timeless hero just searching for love. He protects volcanoes, he guards the land. He’s an environmentalist, and it’s clear why Rachel McAdams would dub an ode to this immortal Nordic dreamboat using Swedish singer, Molly Sandén’s angelic pipes. Will Ferrell adds a percussive element that elevates this to a thumping club banger that you’d want to sweat it out to in an abandoned warehouse with dangerously sticky floors and white girls beating glow-in-the-dark-paint-covered drum sets. This should’ve been Fire Saga’s Eurovision entry, and we won’t hear any differently.
When the NBA resumes the season at the end of the month in Orlando, it will have been four and a half months without any real form of organized basketball. Translation: there’s going to be plenty of rust to shake off, ideally in the small handful of exhibition games prior to the eight-game slate that will determine playoff seeding.
During this time, we also realized that many of us were under the false impression that all NBA players have regulation basketball courts and world-class workout facilities at their homes, after learning that Steph Curry and others had to order (and assemble) basketball hoops online just so they could safely get some shots up.
Nevertheless, it’s hard not to imagine that some of the older players or those recovering from injuries might actually benefit from all this time off. That’s what Anthony Davis thinks, at least. As he, LeBron, and other teammates reconvened at the practice facility in preparation for Orlando, Davis speculated that the Lakers may have increased their chances of winning the title this year, thanks to the additional rest.
“Obviously we’re missing a key piece in AB, but I think our chances are the same,” Davis said. “Our chances are higher just because we’re all rested and we’re all ready to go. If anything, our chances got higher and it’s going to be about just who wants it more. Everybody kind of had a decompression of the season and obviously with stuff going on, but it’s about what team wants it more and which team can stay healthy.”
To bolster their roster, they recently added J.R. Smith, a former teammate of LeBron on the Cavs, as well as Dion Waiters and Markieff Morris. When the season shut down, the Lakers held the No. 1 spot in the Western Conference, 5.5 games ahead of the second-place Clippers.
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