Month: May 2021

After the 2020 ceremony was delayed nearly a year, the star-studded Class of 2020 was inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame on Saturday in an emotional ceremony as Kevin Garnett, Tim Duncan, Tamika Catchings, and Kobe Bryant were all immortalized in Springfield.

On Sunday, the Hall announced the Class of 2021 which will be inducted into Springfield later this year, which sees some players make it many have felt are long overdue. Paul Pierce and Chris Bosh are the first-ballot honorees in the Class of 2021, as the modern Celtics legend and the dominant Raptors and Heat forward will be enshrined. Joining Pierce and Bosh from the ranks of modern NBA players are Ben Wallace and Chris Webber, two players whose names have been on the ballot for some time and have been considered two snubs to this point. Former Croatian and Chicago Bulls star Toni Kukoč will also go into the Hall as this year’s International Committee selection, a deserved honor for one of the first European stars to make the leap to the NBA in the 90s.

From the women’s game, seven-time All-Star and three-time WNBA MVP Lauren Jackson and seven-time WNBA All-Star Yolanda Griffith will be welcomed into the Hall. Three coaches will also go in, as Rick Adelman, Jay Wright, and Bill Russell will all be honored later this year — Russell, of course, going in for a second time as he’s already in the Hall as a player and now will go in as a coach as well.

The rest of the 2021 Class will include selections from various committees: Val Ackerman, Cotton Fitzsimmons, and Howard Garfinkel (Contributors), Clarence “Fats” Jenkings (Early African-American Pioneers), Bob Dandridge (Veterans), and Pearl Monroe (Women’s Veterans).

It’s been a busy week for J. Cole, as he dropped his latest album, The Off-Season, to rave reviews last Thursday night and on Sunday, he made his debut in the new Basketball Africa League for Patriots Basketball Club in what turned into an 83-60 win for Cole’s squad in their season opener.

Cole has made clear his desire to make it in the basketball world for some time, and not just as a friend to NBA players and someone who name-checks his superstar friends on albums — although, to be clear, he does that too. Cole wants to prove he’s a real hooper and to show his commitment he tried out for and made the Rwandan squad in the new BAL. His debut was rather unspectacular, but he did get on the board with a putback bucket on a follow in transition for his first professional points.

He finished the game with three points, three rebounds, two assists, and three turnovers, doing the little things and not trying to impose his will too much. While he’s the superstar name on the team and in the league, J. Cole seems to understand and embrace being a role player for the Patriots. He’s happy to play defense, set screens, and try to space the floor for his teammates, while creating and taking opportunities when he can. Brandon Costner, former NC State star and a journeyman who’s played in the G League, China, and elsewhere, led the way for the Patriots with 20 points while Rwandan national Dieudonne Ndizeye added 13 points and six rebounds in the win.

Cole looks like another guy out there, which should be taken as a massive compliment. He doesn’t look wildly out of place with some really, really good basketball players, and for a 36-year-old who’s never played professionally otherwise, it’s a credit to him and the work he’s put in that he’s capable of doing that.

ESPN’s The Last Dance docuseries about Michael Jordan’s final season with the Chicago Bulls became a cultural moment of its own last year, with basketball fans in lockdown reveling in the in-depth look at one of the NBA’s greatest dynasties. But a year later, Saturday Night Live focused in on one infamous scene from the show in a pitch-perfect sketch starring host Keegan-Michael Key.

The sketch has a bit of CGI wizardry in it, superimposing Key into Jordan highlights to preview what was an “extended scene” from Game 5 of the 1993 NBA Finals against the Phoenix Suns. But the action wasn’t on the court, it was in the bowels of the United Center and the game Jordan played against a security guard named John Michael Wozniak where the two tried to toss a quarter as close to the wall as possible.

You remember the one, it included this move when the security guard — played here brilliantly by Heidi Gardner — won.

“He won. I was happy for him,” Key, as Jordan, says later. “But he did that little shrug, and I took that personally.”

If you watched the clip from The Last Dance you know everything here is perfect. The outfits, the weird examples of Jordan’s legendary competitiveness, and the amount he absolutely seethed losing a very silly game to a security guard with incredible hair. Which is why, in the extended clip, the stakes go from five dollars to $1,000, and Jordan quickly gets the upper hand.

“That is financially rough for me,” Gardner’s character says as Jordan celebrates quickly taking $9,000 off a security guard.”

Kenan Thompson as Charles Barkley shows up behind the scenes as well, and the SNL cast also plays Dennis Rodman and Phil Jackson in the sketch. The stakes get raised, the security guard somehow loses his pants and it’s all yet another slightly disturbing metaphor for Jordan’s competitiveness.

“If you’re not playing to win,” Jordan says, cigar in hand after seeing a security guard give him a gun to settle a bet. “Why play?”

Vaccinations are being administered, mask mandates are lifting around the country, and movie theaters are reopening, but for the Saw franchise, it doesn’t seem like much has changed at the box office. The series started off strong back in 2004 but had diminishing returns with its annual releases until 2010 before the franchise went into hibernation. In 2017, it returned with a reboot of sorts, Jigsaw, but even with the time away, Lionsgate could squeeze very little water from that rock, as it debuted with $16 million on its way to a $38 million domestic run, or half of what the Saw franchise could earn during its heyday.

With Spiral: From The Book of Saw, Lionsgate brought back Darren Lynn Bousman — the director of Saw II-IV — and brought in some actual star power in the form of Chris Rock and Samuel L. Jackson, which is fairly unusual for a series whose biggest marquee names in 17 years have basically been Cary Elwes and Donnie Wahlberg. After being delayed for a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Spiral seemed poised to do well this weekend. The box office hasn’t had a major wide release since Mortal Kombat, and horror films typically appeal to a younger demographic, who are more inclined to return to theaters.

Alas, however, it was not to be, as Spiral crapped out with a lackluster $9 million debut, which was below even the modest expectations that Lionsgate had for the film ($10 to $15 million). Even with Rock and Jackson, however, the budget was relatively small ($20 million), so it’s likely to at least break even, although the mixed-to-poor reviews for the film didn’t exactly help matters, either (39 percent on Rotten Tomatoes). Lionsgate may want to put this franchise back under mothballs for another decade. Personally, I’m bummed, because I’ve always been fond of the series, although it’s gotten less fun over the years.

Zack Snyder’s Army of the Dead also opened this weekend, but it didn’t make much of a splash in theaters, either. Not that it was expected to. It will be out on Netflix next week (where it will probably do gangbusters), and at the moment, Netflix only has an arrangement for theatrical release in Cinemark theaters, which account for only around 600 screens. It earned around $750,000 over the three-day weekend.

Likewise, Angelina Jolie’s Those Who Wish Me Dead didn’t make a lot of waves. That said, the Taylor Sheridan film was also released on HBO Max, and unlike Godzilla vs. Kong and Mortal Kombat, it was expected to do better on the streaming service than in theaters. Mediocre reviews (63 percent on Rotten Tomatoes) didn’t help its prospects. Still, the $2.5 million gross was good for third place, behind last week’s number one film, Jason Statham’s Wrath of Man, which fell to number two with $3.7 million. If there’s one good sign at this weekend’s box office, however, it is that Spiral opened slightly better than the $8.2 million of Wrath of Man last weekend.

Demon Slayer took the fourth spot with $1.7 million, as it worked its way up to an impressive $42 million, which is huge for an anime film in or out of a pandemic. Raya and the Last Dragon, which has been a mainstay in the five spot, racked up another $1.59 million for an 11-week total of $46 million.

Alas, that’s all the excitement we expect to see in theaters for another two weeks when Memorial Day (and the official lifting of mask mandates) will give us a better idea of how the box office will perform post-pandemic with Emma Stone’s Cruella, which will be released simultaneously on Disney+ for a $30 surcharge, and A Quiet Place 2, the biggest wide opener that’s not also being released simultaneously anywhere else since Tenet.

Source: Deadline, Box Office Mojo

Statler and Waldorf are mainstays of The Muppets, and their heckling has been part of the show for decades. But on Saturday Night Live, the two’s constant interruptions were addressed in a surprisingly violent sketch starring Keegan-Michael Key.

The sketch was framed as a Disney+ show, but in reality what’s shown is a taping of the show with Statler and Waldorf in the balcony commenting on the action. Kermit is trying to chat up Lily Tomlin, but keeps getting interrupted by the odd couple upstairs. That’s when Key and Kenan Thompson, playing bouncers paid by the venue, come out to settle things down.

“Everyone here paid good money to see this little dragon and his friends do their thing,” Key’s bouncer character said. “So let them do their thing without talking.”

Key’s character says “you are more than welcome to leave” to the duo several times as they tried to argue their case. But eventually, he has to go up to the balcony and rough them up for himself. Both Key and Thompson struggle to keep it together as the two tough guys try to keep of the facade in the face of bruised and battered puppets from the legendary Jim Henson show crumple because of Key’s fists and elbows.

“Look, guys, I’m sorry,” Thompson’s bouncer says, giggling as Statler struggles to breathe and a shaken Waldorf looks off into the middle distance. “Obviously I’m not a big fan of this show either. I mean, it’s a mess backstage. Dude with orange hair just blowing things up. Penguin and chicken turds everywhere. It’s too madcap for my tastes.

“But enough of the hating,” he continues. “No more heckling, OK?”

Waldorf agrees, only to say something that gets him roughed up by Thompson as well. But the sketch ends with an exasperated Kermit telling everyone to quiet down, which gets the bouncers heckling him, too. At least he didn’t get a flying elbow for the effort from Tomlin, though.

Last week’s cold open of Saturday Night Live was a loving tribute to mothers that included most of the cast and Miley Cyrus singing Dolly Parton, but the latest episode got back to business with a rundown of the CDC’s new and somewhat confusing mask policy.

The big news of the week was, of course, that vaccinated people do not need to wear masks outside or inside in “most” situations. But as Kate McKinnon’s Anthony Fauci (“the patron saint of Purell”) explained, it’s not so cut and dry for many people.

“A lot of people had questions. Such as ‘What does that mean? What the hell are you talking about? Is this a trap?’” McKinnon’s Fauci said. “So, to clear things up I found a few doctors at the CDC who minored in theater.”

And so “the CDC players” play out various scenes where things could get confusing. Starting with “man enters a bar,” where it’s explained you don’t need to wear a mask inside said bar if you are fully vaccinated.

“Well, I’m entering a bar at 11 a.m.,” Beck Bennett said. “Did you really think I was vaxxed? Because that’s on you.”

“You’re right,” Aidy Bryant’s character says. “I deserve COVID.”

Another sketch got a bit sidetracked from the “masks are still required on airplanes” by the incessant horniness of the people involved. There’s a joke about January 6 MAGA riot at the US Capitol, and a bit of Kyle Mooney weirdness where the sketch briefly becomes a Family Guy bit.

Pete Davidson gets weird on public transportation in New York, and things continue to spiral despite the good intentions of the sketch in general.

“The real point is we have to trust each other so please be honest and respectful,” McKinnon says, as Fauci. It’s a good message for sure, and comes after a week of very good news for people who are vaccinated. But as the sketch points out, well, it’s always a bit more complicated than respect and honesty these days.

Charles Oliveira is the new lightweight king. After Khabib Nurmagomedov officially stepped away from the Octagon, Oliveira took the reins of the division TKOing Michael Chandler in the main event at UFC 262 from the Toyota Center in Houston.

Oliveira came flying out of the gate with a sweeping leg kick that sent Chandler to the ground. Chandler jumped to his feet and followed with a handful of wild shots, catching Oliveira with a big hook. Chandler took Oliveira to the ground with a guillotine, but Oliveira transitioned out and took Chandler’s back.

Chandler exploded up, waiting for Oliveira to get to his feet before hurting his opponent again with a slew of huge lefts and rights. Chandler dropped Oliveira, but couldn’t finish the job, moving into Oliveira’s guard on the ground before the end of the round.

Mere moments into the second round, Oliveira stunned Chandler with a big counter left hook that sent him stumbling backwards and finished the job with Chandler on his back.

Oliveira won his last eight bouts dating back to 2018, with his last victory coming in a decision win over Tony Ferguson in December.

Chandler is a three-time lightweight champion in Bellator, concluding his run with the promotion with back-to-back knockout wins over Sidney Outlaw and Benson Henderson before jumping into the UFC with a first-round TKO of Dan Hooker in January.

The 2020 Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame class has a case for being one of the best in the museum’s history. Legends of the game of basketball — whether they be players, coaches, or broadcasters/journalists from the NBA, WNBA, or the world of college ball — achieved immortality be getting enshrined in Springfield.

The class included three of the greatest NBA players of all time, all of whom competed against one another in their careers: Kevin Garnett, Tim Duncan, and the late Kobe Bryant. Garnett led off the evening with a terrific speech, while Duncan’s was just as good, particularly when he spoke about the influence longtime San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich had on his life.

But the main event was Bryant’s induction, with his wife, Vanessa, giving a moving tribute to the Los Angeles Lakers star whose passing in a helicopter crash in January of 2020 is still impossible to comprehend. With Michael Jordan standing by her side, Vanessa’s speech was perhaps the best of the night, a poignant recollection of memories about a life taken far too soon. It was funny, heartfelt, celebratory, and just about everything you want out of a speech like this.

If you haven’t yet seen it, or if you’d just like to check it out again, check out the video at the top of this post.

The late Kobe Bryant is officially in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. During Saturday night’s induction ceremony, Bryant became immortalized in Springfield, as his wife, Vanessa, gave the speech of the night to celebrate his life and legacy while the great Michael Jordan, who considered Kobe a younger brother, stood by her side.

Vanessa made it a point say that while she did not know exactly what he’d say on that stage, Kobe would thank those who played a role in helping him get here, including one major group: his detractors.

“I do know that he would thank everyone that helped him get here,” Vanessa said. “Including the people that doubted him, and the people that worked against him, and told him he couldn’t obtain his goals. He would thank all of them for motivating him to be here. After all, he proved you wrong.”

One of the most powerful moments of the speech came when she listed off a number of the injuries that Kobe, who was known for playing through major bumps and bruises, suffered throughout his career. As she explained, all of it stemmed from a desire to make sure he was giving his all for the fans who paid money to see him, particularly those who would never get that opportunity again.

Her speech was a perfect encapsulation of Kobe, as it discussed the life and legacy of an athlete who truly was one of a kind. She closed it with a beautiful address directly to her husband, letting him know that he may not be here now, but their love is forever.

“Congratulations, baby,” Vanessa said. “All of your hard work and sacrifice has paid off. You once told me, ‘If you’re going to bet on someone, bet on yourself.’ I’m glad you bet on yourself, you overachiever. You did it, you’re in the Hall of Fame now. You’re a true champ. You’re not just an MVP, you’re an all-time great. I’m so proud of you. I love you forever and always, Kobe Bean Bryant.”

Bryant’s induction in the class of 2020 was a formality ever since it was revealed he would retire following the 2015-16 season. His playing career was nothing short of spectacular, as Bryant was a five-time champion with the Los Angeles Lakers and an 18-time All-Star selection. Bryant spent the entirety of his basketball career in L.A., averaging 25 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 4.7 assists per game while earning praise for his tenacity on the defensive end of the floor.

Of course, this celebration doubles as a heartbreaking reminder of the accident that took his life and the lives of eight others, including his daughter, Gianna. But Saturday was still a reminder of his unique brand of excellence, and considering their relationship, there was no one better than Vanessa to induct him into Springfield.

The greatest power forward in history is officially in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. San Antonio Spurs great Tim Duncan was among the headliners of Saturday night’s ceremony in which inductees from the 2020 class were forever enshrined, an inevitable honor for The Big Fundamental coming to fruition following a sensational career.

Duncan’s speech was a celebration of all the people who played a role in getting him to this point, whether they were in the world of basketball or in his personal life. He made it a point to praise his parents, who despite their lack of knowledge about the basketball “taught me more about the game than anyone else.”

From there, Duncan went through the list of people who played an important role in his journey, with two of the most prominent individuals who were by his side along the way sitting in the crowd.

And while he joked he did not want to say anything about him, Duncan spoke beautifully about the importance Gregg Popovich played in his life.

“The standard you set,” Duncan said. “You showed up after I got drafted, you came to my island, you sat with my friends, my family, you talked with my dad. I thought that was normal. It’s not. You are an exceptional person, thank you for teaching me about basketball, but even beyond that, teaching me that it’s not all about basketball — it’s about what’s going on in the world, about your family. Just, for everything, thank you for being the amazing human being that you are.”

Duncan’s one of the greatest winners in NBA history. A five-time champion and two-time league MVP, Duncan spent his entire 19-year career with the Spurs, averaging 19 points, 10.8 rebounds, and 2.2 blocks per game. When the lights shined the brightest, Duncan was revered for consistently bringing his game to another level, anchoring an oftentimes indomitable Spurs defense and baffling opponents with his fundamentally sound game on the other.