Month: August 2020

The first day of the 2020 NBA Playoffs included real drama, from Donovan Mitchell’s majestic 57-point performance to a hotly contested game between the Boston Celtics and the Philadelphia 76ers. In the nightcap, there were plenty of fireworks but, by the final buzzer, the L.A. Clippers nabbed a 1-0 lead over the Dallas Mavericks with a 118-110 victory.

Though the phrase is wildly overused, the first quarter on Monday evening truly embodied the notion that the NBA is a “game of runs.” The Clippers scored the first ten points of the night, taking advantage of four turnovers in the first six possessions from the Mavericks.

From there, the Clippers didn’t slow down, stretching their edge to 18-2. L.A. converted seven of their first nine shots, including four straight three-pointers, and the Clippers looked utterly spectacular on both ends.

Though Dallas clearly wavered a bit in the early going, the Mavericks responded in kind, using a 20-4 run to tie the game at 22-22.

A large portion of that damage came with Luka Doncic on the sideline, as the second-year star had his ankle re-taped in the locker room, and he played markedly better upon his return after a trio of early giveaways. In addition, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, not known for his long-range marksmanship, knocked down a pair of three-pointers and, against all odds, Dallas took a four-point lead after 12 minutes.

In addition to the surprise of the way the game flipped, the Mavericks also made a bit of history with the way they erased a 15-point deficit in the blink of an eye.

The Mavericks kept rolling as the second quarter started, extending their unexpected lead to 50-36 after a 12-2 spurt.

When Dallas (finally) slowed, the Clippers threw a counterpunch, scoring nine straight points and, eventually, coming back to tie the game. At the half, the Mavericks led by three points, thanks in part to 12-of-21 from three-point range. The 12 three-pointers set a new franchise record for most threes in one half of a playoff game, and Dallas also benefited from a 19-point, six-assist, five-rebound half from Doncic.

On the Clippers side, it was Kawhi Leonard and Paul George doing the damage, combining for 30 points on 11-of-21 shooting, and they were flanked by strong play from Marcus Morris. Overall, it was an offensively charged half, with both teams scoring more than 1.2 points per possession, and that provided high-end entertainment throughout the first 24 minutes.

The early portion of the third quarter was marked by the controversial ejection of Kristaps Porzingis, when the Mavericks big man picked up a second technical foul at the 9:10 mark. Without him available, Dallas saw their lead evaporate in short order, with the Clippers reclaiming control after a 16-7 start in the second half.

After the high-powered first half, the third quarter essentially came to a screeching halt, with the two teams combining to shoot 13-of-43 from the floor. Dallas struggled more, however, in scoring just 13 points, and the Clippers took a five-point lead to the closing period.

With Porzingis out of action and Doncic on the bench, the Mavericks closed the gap to open the fourth quarter, tying the game at 89-89 with more than nine minutes remaining. The margin would be narrow for several minutes as the two teams traded blows and, while the shotmaking never returned to the levels of the first half, the competitiveness remained on both sides.

Patrick Beverley, who struggled at times in his first game action in two weeks, buried a corner three-pointer to give the Clippers a six-point edge with fewer than three minutes remaining. While the Mavericks did answer with a quick bucket, L.A. weathered a pair of missed layups and, moments later, Morris converted another three-pointer that proved to be something of a dagger. That pushed the Clippers ahead by seven and, with a dagger from George a few seconds later, L.A. put the game away in style.

For the Mavericks, Doncic was outstanding, finishing with 42 points, nine assists and seven rebounds. He did battle turnover issues, committing 11 giveaways on the night, but the 20-year-old certainly stepped up after a shaky start to the evening, and he set a new record for the most points in a playoff debut in NBA history.

The Clippers were also led by familiar faces, with Leonard (29 points, 12 rebounds, six assists) and George (27 points) playing at a high level. Morris (19 points, six rebounds, four steals) was also crucial and, while L.A. didn’t perform at optimal capacity after the opening minutes, it was enough to secure a win and a significant advantage in the series.

The two teams will face off again on Wednesday in prime time, with the Mavericks aiming to even the series at 9:00 pm ET.

Not only was a song by Grammy Award winner Leon Bridges placed on Barack Obama’s 2020 Summer Playlist, but the singer was also invited to share his music for the Democratic National Convention. On Monday, Bridges gave a moving performance of his recent track “Sweeter” with Terrace Martin during the virtual event.

Situated with his full band atop a roof of a city building, Bridges crooned the lyrics to his poignant number. The singer penned the song from the perspective of a Black man taking his last breath and looking back on the injustices in his life. The song was originally meant for a future album, but the singer decided instead to debut the track in mid-June as a reflection on the murder of George Floyd and the racism he’s personally encountered throughout his life.

In a statement alongside the song’s release, Bridges offered insight into the track’s inspiration:

“Growing up in Texas I have personally experienced racism, my friends have experienced racism. From adolescence, we are taught how to conduct ourselves when we encounter police to avoid the consequences of being racially profiled. I have been numb for too long, calloused when it came to the issues of police brutality. The death of George Floyd was the straw that broke the camel’s back for me. It was the first time I wept for a man I never met. I am George Floyd, my brothers are George Floyd, and my sisters are George Floyd. I cannot and will not be silent any longer. Just as Abel’s blood was crying out to God, George Floyd is crying out to me. So, I present to you Sweeter.”

Watch fan-captured clips of the moving performance above.

Maggie Rogers’ debut album Heard It In A Past Life catapulted the singer into stardom upon its 2019 release. The singer was floored when Barack Obama placed her hit track “Burning” on his 2019 Summer Playlist and a year later, Rogers’ music once again made the former president’s list — this time for the 2020 iteration of his Summer Playlist. On top of that, the singer was invited to perform a track from her debut effort at the Democratic National Convention.

Kicking off the first night of the DNC Monday, Rogers gave a soaring rendition of “Back In My Body” on the coastal shores of Maine. The singer was introduced by US Senate candidate Sara Gideon, who is running to represent the state. Gideon said Rogers is “reminding all of us to keep fighting through” and is one of the politician’s favorite artists.

Poised against crashing waves and a divine sunset, Rogers’ performance stunned fans. Joe Biden’s team was also captivated by Rogers’ set, tweeting out that they are “officially” a Maggie Rogers stan account.

Watch a clip of Rogers performing “Back In My Body” for the Democratic National Convention above.

Heard It In A Past Life is out now via Debay Sounds/Universal. Get it here.

With six minutes remaining in the first half of Game 1 between the L.A. Clippers and the Dallas Mavericks, talented big man Kristaps Porzingis picked up a seemingly harmless technical foul for arguing with an official after what he believed to be a clean block

However, that play would come back to bite Porzingis and the Mavericks at the 9:10 mark of the third quarter. Porzingis became involved in a back-and-forth with Marcus Morris that netted both players technical fouls and all kinds of reaction.

Because it was Porzingis’ second technical of the night, he was ejected from the proceedings. Given his importance to the Mavericks and the lack of a significant incident, the result was highly controversial. In fact, many high-profile figures around the NBA weighed in, with LeBron James and Mavericks legend Dirk Nowitzki among them.

The reactions continued to roll in from there, with active players pushing back on the ejection amid the circumstances, including the fact that Porzingis was stepping in alongside Luka Doncic.

Porzingis exited after 20 minutes of play, and he produced 14 points and six rebounds before his ejection. In his absence, the Mavericks’ frontcourt rotation is significantly hampered, with Maxi Kleber and Boban Marjanovic thrust into larger roles. Beyond that, Dallas was in a strong position to potentially steal Game 1 after a tremendous first half response and that becomes a tougher proposition without Porzingis available.

The United States Postal Service is in dire straits right now, with new Postmaster General — and noted big-time Trump donor — Louis DeJoy accused (even by Taylor Swift) of implementing changes that slow down the mail just in time for the nation to vote in the midst of an out-of-control pandemic. The situation is so scary that only fictitious mailmen can make us feel better. So here’s John Ratzenberger, aka Cheers’ know-it-all, beer-swilling mailman Cliff Clavin, recording what’s effectively a PSA for the USPS.

The video was picked up by The Hollywood Reporter, who noted that the actor recorded it for the personalized message service Cameo.

“The post office is in a bit of a pickle right now,” Ratzenberger said. While he didn’t go into specifics, he said it was “being bounced back and forth.” So he had an idea: Do all your holiday shopping at the post office store.

“Why not translate the dollar amount you’re going to pay for Aunt Tillie’s new hat and just buy that amount of stamps?” Ratzenberger suggested. “It’s easy to carry, easy to mail, easy to ship. And it’s worth something. And it’ll be worth something for a long time. How many times is Aunt Tillie going to be wearing that hat? Once? Twice? But how many times will she be using those stamps?”

Meanwhile, Nancy Pelosi has demanded the House return from their two-week vacation early so that they can grill DeJoy, who has agreed to testify, about his actions. When you’ve pissed off Cliff Clavin — and his portrayer, who’s also, it should be noted, a longtime, outspoken Republican — you know you’ve screwed up.

(Via THR)

Fans are still mourning the death of Juice WRLD, who passed away last December at just 21-years-old. Even after the tragedy, the rapper’s music lives on. An array of his music was released after his death, including the posthumous record Legends Never Die. A video to his The Weekend collaboration “Smile” was released this week, pushing the track to eighth place on the Billboard Hot 100 charts. That marks Juice WRLD’s seventh Top Ten track this year alone, marking an impressive achievement.

With seven singles breaking the Top Ten on the Hot 100 chart, Juice WRLD has officially become the artist with the most Top Ten songs of 2020 thus far, according to Complex. This feat is thanks to Legends Never Die‘s immensely positive reception. Upon its release in July, the album generated the biggest posthumous debut in nearly 20 years, following Notorious B.I.G.’s Life After Death and 2Pac’s R U Still Down? (Remember Me), garnering 497,000 equivalent album units in its first week.

In a statement about his music, Juice WRLD’s mother, Carmela Wallace, thanked his fans for the support:

“The overwhelming love that millions of music fans clearly have for Jarad reminds us how much his poetic words, creativity, and bright light continues to shine throughout the world. This first collection of songs is a poignant reminder of his great artistic talent and emotional honesty. Music was his passion and recording gave him the outlet to share everything he was going through. […] We are incredibly grateful to the fans who continue to uplift him every single day and our hope is that his words touch your life in a way that helps you through any challenges you may be facing.”

Legends Never Die is out now via Interscope. Get it here.

While LeBron James is set to begin another quest for a championship on Tuesday night in the NBA Bubble in Orlando, his hopeful blockbuster Space Jam: A New Legacy is in the process of post-production after wrapping initial filming earlier this year.

On Sunday, TMZ offered some audio of James’ passionate speech to the cast and crew after wrapping filming, along with a photo of the apparent Tune Squad uniforms for the film’s reboot. On Monday, James confirmed the Tune Squad look in a video first released to families of his I Promise School in Akron, Ohio, and then put on Twitter by the LeBron James Family Foundation.

They are, well, certainly bright and colorful. I can’t say I’m a big fan, but then again, a new Space Jam movie is not being made for me or any other adults, and it may very well land with kids. It is, at the very least, a massive departure from the original white Space Jam uniforms and, given that this is James’ vision for the film it’s not wholly surprising that he would try something very new and different. As always, what matters is whether the kids are into it and if it works on screen, but expect plenty of groans and sighs from folks on social media about them.

While the absence of Ben Simmons looms over the series, the anticipation was still palpable for Game 1 between the Boston Celtics and the Philadelphia 76ers in Orlando. On Monday evening, the two teams matched up and, 48 minutes later, the buzz was still present for the remainder of the series after a close-fought battle. Game 1 went to the Celtics, however, with Boston outlasting Philadelphia by a final score of 109-101 behind a star-level effort from Jayson Tatum and strong contributions from Jaylen Brown and others.

The Sixers began the night in encouraging fashion, running their offense through Joel Embiid. The All-NBA center made his first five shots, scoring 11 points in the first eight minutes, and he punctuated that spurt with a wild, step-back three-pointer.

Boston hung around, however, and Philadelphia’s lack of ball security was key in allowing the Celtics to do so. From there, Brown enjoyed himself in the first quarter, leading the Celtics with ten points.

As the second quarter unfolded, the Celtics took control, leading by as many as ten points and clamping down on Philadelphia’s offense. Tatum also got loose for Boston, scoring 15 points in the second quarter (and 21 in the first half) to push the Celtics to a six-point halftime edge.

Philadelphia’s first-half offense was simultaneously encouraging and infuriating, fitting into the team’s overall ethos this season. On one hand, the Sixers shot 56 percent from the floor and flashed their upside. On the other, Philadelphia committed 13 turnovers and, after a strong start from Embiid, the offense scuffled in terms of efficiency.

Out of the halftime break, Tatum picked up where he left off, getting to his spots and finishing effectively, even when challenged.

After the Celtics built a 75-66 lead, the Sixers clawed back and they did so in a hurry. Philadelphia scored the final 13 points of the third quarter, fully erasing the deficit and taking the lead with 12 minutes remaining.

Embiid connected on a three-pointer to open the fourth quarter, giving Philadelphia their largest lead of the evening at 81-75. In short order, however, the Celtics knotted the game at 86-86, setting up for what promised to be a hotly contested stretch run.

In less than a minute, though, the Celtics zoomed ahead, scoring nine straight points with the help of a flagrant-1 foul assessed to Al Horford. When that run came to a close, Boston led by a 92-86 margin, and the pressure swung back to Philadelphia. While the Sixers did stabilize things, the Celtics scored five quick points, capped by a three-pointer from Brown, to grab an eight-point edge with 4:28 to play.

With the help of offensive struggles from the Sixers, Boston increased its advantage to ten points, but Philadelphia wasn’t ready to roll over. The Sixers scored six straight points, slashing the margin to four with two minutes to go and putting the pressure back on Boston. After an errant mid-ranger from Tobias Harris, Kemba Walked poured in a pair of free throws to make it a six-point game but, right on cue, Josh Richardson buried a triple to bring Philly back within 103-100 with a minute remaining.

Tatum and Alec Burks then traded trips to the free throw line, but Burks missed one of his attempts, leaving Boston with a four-point edge and 31.1 seconds to go. After a timeout, Walker calmly made two more free throws, increasing the margin to six with 16.1 seconds left, and another empty trip from Philadelphia essentially ended the competitive portion of the evening.

For Boston, this was a solid showing, especially from Tatum (32 points, 13 rebounds) and Brown (29 points, six rebounds). Unfortunately, the stretch run was marred by a right ankle sprain for Gordon Hayward, putting his status in doubt moving forward, but the Celtics were able to snag the advantage in the series and take care of business as the favorite in a high-profile match-up.

The Boston Celtics found themselves in a dogfight with the Sixers in Game 1 of their first round series, but midway through the fourth quarter began to pull away, opening up a 10-point advantage with just over three minutes to play.

Right as they were looking to put the hopeful finishing touches on a win, they saw Gordon Hayward leave the game with a sprained ankle. Hayward landed on Daniel Theis’ foot as he was coming down after going for a rebound under the Sixers basket and rolled his ankle pretty badly. He would limp off the floor and was quickly ruled out for the remainder of the game with what is initially determined to be a sprained right ankle.

For those who, like many, immediately thought back to his gruesome ankle injury that sidelined him for more than a year, that was a left ankle injury so this is not the same one. What remains to be seen is how long he’ll miss with the injury, as the Bubble playoffs mean games are contested every other day, making it tougher to get players who suffer injuries extended rest without missing a significant number of games. Hayward had 12 points, four rebounds, and three assists in Game 1, and for a Boston team whose greatest strength is their wing depth, they’ll hope he can get back relatively soon.

Along with being the former president, Barack Obama is an expert playlist curator. Each year, America’s previous commander-in-chief puts together a number of playlists featuring some of his favorite songs from recent months. Inclusion on Obama’s list is oftentimes a dream for musicians, including Maggie Rogers, who screamed upon seeing her song on last year’s list. On Monday, Obama dropped his 2020 Summer Playlist, which included a few artists who are gearing up to perform at this year’s Democratic National Convention.

Sharing the playlist to social media, Obama said he’s been spending “a lot of time” listening to music with his family. “I wanted to share some of my favorites from the summer,” he wrote. The 53-track playlist includes an eclectic mix of songs new and old, including Billie Eilish’s “My Future,” Megan Thee Stallion’s “Savage (Remix)” featuring Beyonce, Leon Bridges and Khruangbin’s “Texas Sun,” Rihanna’s “Work” with Drake, Jorja Smith’s “Be Honest” with Burna Boy, and many more.

A number of artists have already shared their excitement about landing a spot on the coveted list. Megan Thee Stallion and The Chicks called attention to their songs while Princess Nokia praised Obama as “forever our president.”

Check out Obama’s full 2020 Summer Playlist and see artists’ reactions above.

Some of the artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.