Month: June 2022

Following a four-year hiatus from the NBA Playoffs, the Chicago Bulls returned to the spotlight in 2021-22. Chicago put together a 46-36 season and, if not for injury issues that prompted a decline in the second half of the campaign, the Bulls were seemingly on the way to competing for home-court advantage in the first round of the postseason. In conjunction with another strong season from Zach LaVine, DeMar DeRozan put together a tremendously effective debut season in Chicago, and the Bulls were able to use those contributions and an uptick in backcourt defense to post improvement across the board.

LaVine is a free agent in 2022, even if most believe he will return to Chicago, and the Bulls do have interesting decisions to make for the 2022-23 season and beyond. Chicago also entered the offseason cycle with the No. 18 pick in the 2022 NBA Draft, and despite their best efforts to move it, dangling Coby White and the 18th pick on the trade market for weeks, they stood pat on what was a fairly quiet draft night overall for trades.

Roster Needs: Clarity on LaVine, defense outside of the backcourt, a leap from Patrick Williams

Dalen Terry (No. 18 Overall), B: Admittedly, Terry is one of my favorite players in the draft and I had him as a strong first-round pick before it was in vogue. Perhaps I’m in the tank as a result, but this is a good pick for Chicago. There is a question about Terry’s jump shot and his ceiling might be capped without development there. He does have real intrigue as a defender and as a creator with point guard skills at 6’7, with all reports encouraging on his mentality and competitiveness.

2022 Free Agents:
Zach LaVine (UFA)
Derrick Jones Jr (UFA)
Troy Brown Jr (RFA)
Matt Thomas (RFA)
Tristan Thompson (UFA)
Malcolm Hill (RFA)
Tyler Cook (RFA)

Roster:
DeMar DeRozan
Nikola Vucevic
Lonzo Ball
Alex Caruso
Patrick Williams
Coby White
Tony Bradley (player option)
Javonte Green
Ayo Dosunmu (non-guaranteed)
Marko Simonovic
Dalen Terry

The No. 13 pick in the 2022 NBA Draft wasn’t much of a surprise, as the center-starved Charlotte Hornets selected Jalen Duren out of Memphis. One of the top players in his recruiting class, Duren projects to be the exact kind of center who would be a great fit alongside a player like LaMelo Ball.

There’s just one problem: Duren is not going to play with Ball. Right after the pick came in, reports started circulating that Duren was on the move. It took a second to learn exactly what was going on, but Duren is on his way to Detroit, where he will play alongside Jaden Ivey, the No. 5 overall pick this year, and last year’s No. 1 overall pick, Cade Cunningham.

But the Pistons and Hornets aren’t the only team involved in the trade, as the New York Knicks got involved and jettisoned Kemba Walker to the Motor City. New York won’t get anything back other than cap space to help with their pursuit of Dallas Mavericks guard Jalen Brunson, while Charlotte will get their hands on a number of second round picks.

According to Wojnarowski, a buyout of Walker’s contract is on the way.

It’s a monster haul for the Pistons, in particular, and one has to wonder what this means for their reported interest in Deandre Ayton in free agency. But regardless, between their two acquisitions this year and their recent draft history, it’s apparent Detroit has quite the youth movement brewing.

The Atlanta Hawks put together an impressive run down the stretch of the 2021 season, eventually reaching the Eastern Conference Finals and putting a scare into the eventual champion Milwaukee Bucks. That performance raised expectations for Trae Young and company in advance of the 2021-22 campaign, but the Hawks were unable to meet the higher bar. Atlanta got off to a slow start, operating below the .500 mark for much of the season before zooming to a 26-14 mark in the final 40 games of the regular season.

That late push was enough to reach the play-in tournament and, eventually, Atlanta crashed the postseason party as the No. 8 seed. This time around, however, the Hawks were unable to summon the same playoff magic, with Young and Atlanta’s offense floundering considerably in a five-game loss to the Miami Heat. That early exit leaves the Hawks in a potential period of transition, as the “run it back” approach fell short this season. Atlanta enters the 2022 NBA Draft with the No. 16 pick and the potential to go in a number of different directions, with only Young as an “untouchable” piece on an otherwise egalitarian roster.

Roster Needs: Perimeter defense, secondary creation

AJ Griffin (No. 16 Overall), A: Griffin has an extensive injury history, which could explain a bit of his fall. However, this is a heist for the Hawks from a value standpoint. Griffin is a top-10 talent that slipped to No. 16 overall, and he is a dynamite shooter that was once the No. 1 player in his high school class. His physical burst has diminished, perhaps from injuries, but if Griffin can hold up defensively, the fit in Atlanta is logical.

2022 Free Agents:
Sharife Cooper (RFA)
Gorgui Dieng (UFA)
Kevin Knox (RFA)
Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot (UFA)
Skylar Mays (RFA)
Lou Williams (UFA)
Delon Wright (UFA)

Roster:
Trae Young
John Collins
Danilo Gallinari
Clint Capela
Bogdan Bogdanovic
Kevin Huerter
De’Andre Hunter
Onyeka Okongwu
Jalen Johnson
Chaundee Brown (two-way)
AJ Griffin

The Charlotte Hornets are on the rise. In 2021-22, the Hornets posted their best win-loss record (43-39) since the 2015-16 season, and Charlotte reached the postseason before exiting with a play-in loss to the Atlanta Hawks. The presence of LaMelo Ball brings the shot-creation upside that any franchise desires, and the Hornets are exceedingly difficult to stop. Charlotte ranked near the top of the NBA in offense and, on the right evening, the Hornets can be tremendous to watch.

On the other side, Charlotte’s defense is not in the best place, with the franchise desperately needing an anchor to protect the rim in the short term and long term. The addition of a new head coach also brings a new era to the table, and the Hornets enter the offseason with intriguing flexibility and a pair of top-15 draft picks.

Roster Needs: Center, overall defensive talent

Mark Williams (No. 15 Overall), B: After a wild trade with No. 13 that saw Jalen Duren get taken by Charlotte and then traded to the Pistons (via New York) in a three-team deal, the Hornets were back on the clock in short order and made a pick many anticipated. Outside of the top three picks, Williams-to-Charlotte was perhaps the most popular mock draft pick on the board. Williams projects as a very good rim protector who can finish around the rim on offense. The Hornets need an anchor on defense at the position. It makes sense.

2022 Free Agents:
Montrezl Harrell (UFA)
Miles Bridges (RFA)
Cody Martin (RFA)
Isaiah Thomas (UFA)
Scottie Lewis (RFA)
Arnoldas Kulboka (RFA)

Roster:
Gordon Hayward
Terry Rozier
Kelly Oubre Jr.
Mason Plumlee
LaMelo Ball
PJ Washington
James Bouknight
Kai Jones
Jalen McDaniels (team option)
JT Thor
Nick Richards (non-guaranteed)
Mark Williams

Though it did not end particularly well, the 2021-22 season was encouraging and positive for the Cleveland Cavaliers. Cleveland fell short in the play-in after slipping down the stretch, but most of that downturn can be traced to injuries and, overall, the Cavaliers clearly took a step forward. Darius Garland made a leap as a potential star in the backcourt, Jarrett Allen established a high level as the team’s anchor at center, and Evan Mobley returned value in a hurry with the upside to be a cornerstone in the future.

With that said, the Cavaliers do have some roster shortcomings and interesting decisions as the franchise attempts to make the arguably more difficult leap from solid team to potential home-court advantage squad in the East. One of the positives of the way things ended this season was the “award” of a late lottery pick and Cleveland used that to add more perimeter help.

Roster Needs: More shooting, ball-handling, and shot creation

Ochai Agbaji (No. 14 Overall), B-: Agbaji is one of the more “boring” players in the draft, but that isn’t a bad thing. He projects to be an above-average three-point shooter, and Agbaji knows how to cut off the ball. He’s very limited with the ball in his hands, but that’s not a big issue for a 3-and-D role player. Agbaji might simply be an adequate defender, which limits his ceiling, but the Cavs needing shooting and competence. Agbaji has both.

2022 Free Agents:
Collin Sexton (RFA)
Ed Davis (UFA)
Rajon Rondo (UFA)
Brandon Goodwin (UFA)
Moses Brown (RFA)
RJ Nembhard (RFA)

Roster:
Kevin Love
Jarrett Allen
Caris LeVert
Lauri Markkanen
Darius Garland
Evan Mobley
Cedi Osman
Isaac Okoro
Dylan Windler
Dean Wade (team option, non-guaranteed)
Lamar Stevens (non-guaranteed)
Ochai Agbaji

The top of the 2022 NBA Draft was did not include wave after wave of big trades like some predicted. Instead, teams held onto their picks, right up until the New York Knicks came on the board at No. 11. While there, the Knicks decided to take Ousmane Dieng, a 19-year-old forward from France who spent last year playing for the New Zealand Breakers of the NBL.

And then, we got our first trade of the night, as the Knicks reportedly struck a deal with the Oklahoma City Thunder. Dieng, according to reports, was sent to the Thunder for a package that included multiple first round picks.

Despite this, the Knicks were unable to acquire the pick immediately following their own — Oklahoma City boasted the 12th pick and used it on Santa Clara guard Jalen Williams. It is unclear exactly which picks the Knicks were able to acquire in this deal, but the Thunder have spent the last few years building up quite the war chest of picks, so several first rounders is assuredly not too high of a price for them to pay.

For the Thunder, Dieng and Williams are their second and third players acquired on Thursday evening along with No. 2 overall pick Chet Holmgren.

Ever since the release of her fourth album 30 last fall, fans of Adele have been looking for opportunities to watch the singer perform records from the projects in the US. She was set to hold a Las Vegas residency, but that was postponed due to COVID delays. It remains to be seen when that residency will make its return, and whether or not Adele will have shows in the states beforehand. With that being said, folks across the pond are gearing up for her pair of performances at London’s BST Hype Park, both of which are set to go down on July 1 and 2.

Ahead of the shows, Adele announced an all-female lineup that will join her onstage. In the announcement, Adele revealed that Kacey Musgraves, Gabrielle, Mahalia, Self Esteem, Nilüfer Yanya, Tiana Major9, Chrissi, Bonnie Kemplay, Ruti, and Tamzene will perform with her during the shows at BST Hyde Park. It’s unknown if the lineup will be split in half between the two days or if all women will appear during both shows.

“The line up for my Hyde Park shows next week is going to blow your socks off!” Adele wrote with her announcement about the show. “An all female bill, from new artists that I’m obsessed with to the heavenly @KaceyMusgraves to one of my favorite artists of all time @GabrielleUk who I’ve loved since I was 4!!”

She continued, “It’s going to be incredible, there’s a whole host of us performing all day, I can’t wait to share the main stage with you ladies.”

BST — or British Summer Time — Hyde Park takes place every year across two weekends in London. This year, it began on June 24 with Elton John as a headliner and it will end on July 10 with Duran Duran closing things out. In between it all, Eagles, Pearl Jam, and The Rolling Stones join Adele as headliners on different days while Phoebe Bridgers, Rina Sawayama, Robert Plant & Alison Krauss, Little Big Town, and more have or will perform.

A minor surprise came with the fourth pick in the 2022 NBA Draft when the Sacramento Kings opted to draft Iowa’s Keegan Murray over Purdue’s Jaden Ivey. While Ivey was viewed as the better prospect, Murray theoretically fits better on a team that already has De’Aaron Fox as its established point guard and used a lottery pick on Davion Mitchell last year.

As such, Ivey fell to the Detroit Pistons at No. 5, but there were questions about whether or not he’d stick around. There were rumors before the pick that teams were calling the Pistons, and in the aftermath, a number of reports indicated that the New York Knicks, in particular, were interested in making a move if they were able to acquire Memphis center Jalen Duren with the No. 11 pick.

But according to James Edwards of The Athletic, these efforts are going to be for naught, as Detroit decided that it wanted to hold onto Ivey after all.

Ivey is a dynamic option in the backcourt and is, in theory, a sensational fit next to last year’s No. 1 overall pick, Cade Cunningham. While it is totally sensible that teams would want to bring him on board — particularly New York, which can use a point guard and an injection of star power — Detroit instead has its backcourt of the future solidified.

Sheridan Steelman started teaching high school English when she was just 22. After a a fifty-year career, she was finally ready to step into retirement – but not without receiving a standing ovation from the entire school and faculty. Here’s how it went:

Dr. Steelman prepared herself for an emotional exit – it would be her finally time, leaving Kent County School in Grand Rapids, Michigan, after a fifty year career. Her daughter Katherine, had come to help her celebrate her last day and there was no doubt that it would be emotional. But she never expected a send-off like this.

As she walked toward the exit she was greeted by the entire school and faculty who stood an applauded her. Like the millions who watched her daughter’s video afterward, it brought tears to her eyes and theirs!

As Dr. Steelman left school for the very last time she waved to her students and hugged her coworkers, even twirling down the aisle of applauding pupils. After five decades, the now 72-year-old left a legacy of thousands of students who matriculated through her classes.

One of them, Jake Kooyler, commented on Katherine’s viral video saying:

“I was her student 5 years ago, she is a wonderful woman with so much passion for her work and love for her students. Send my best to your mom :)”.

Dr. Steelman taught both advanced placement English and English 11. She was very involved in her school and departments and was a Curriculum Teacher Leader, Department Chairperson, a Co-Chair of the District Language Arts Committee, and the facilitator of the West Michigan AP Language and AP Literature Networking Group.

While teaching has no doubt filled a large portion of her life, Dr. Steelman also raised six children during her career. At 67, she earned her PhD to “enhance [her] own learning to better prepare [her] students for today’s world”, according to an interview she gave to Western Michigan University’s Bronco Spotlight column.

As for how she’s managed a career in teaching for fifty years, Dr. Steelman had this to say about her greatest challenges, successes and her advice to future teachers hoping to achieve a similarly longevous career:

“My students are by far the most rewarding and the most challenging part of the job. It takes passion, dedication, motivation, compassion, and a sense of humor to stay in teaching and to remain current. Today’s students are connected to the outside world and savvy enough to use technology in both their personal and academic lives. Teachers who learn to facilitate learning in today’s world with the demands placed upon our young people will be the most challenged and the most fulfilled.”

As for what’s next in Dr. Steelman’s retirement plans there’s still some things we don’t know. We do know, however, that the 72-year-old is publishing her first book this year! Which leaves us thinking that maybe, just maybe, there’s still a few things she’d like to teach us…

Zero proof. Zero calories. Zero regrets. Ritual Zero Proof blew the cork off the non-alcoholic spirit game with their whiskey, gin, tequila and rum alternatives. To the three best friends that began this company, non-alcoholic spirits weren’t intended to be an “or” but an “and” – an addition to their bar and an arsenal in their cocktail kit. Ritual Zero Proof makes alcohol alternatives so that people don’t have to sacrifice their night cap, their celebratory toast or their pitcher of margaritas on the beach. But how do they make it taste so… real?

The *zero* proof is in the pudding. Unlike many non-alcoholic spirits that have a small percentage of alcohol in them, Ritual Zero Proof truly has 0% alcohol. The reason: they aren’t an “alcohol removed” spirit. Each bottle is crafted from the ground up and made with love.

It took GG, Marcus and David over 500 different recipes and a year before they were satisfied with their truly zero proof alcohol. The three are foodies who care deeply about what’s in their glass, and while they could do without their nightcap, they found that it was this ritual that was missed most.

So, they tasted Madagascar vanilla against Chinese vanilla. They extracted the essence of Mexican blue agave, American oak and Siberian pine to replicate the tastes of the spirits they love. It took a year and over 500 different recipes that were tasted by masterchefs and Chicago’s top bartenders before they had a spirit they were proud of.

Now, each of their batches are microfiltered and date-stamped to ensure freshness. By using botanicals and all natural ingredients (organic ones when possible), Ritual Zero ensures that their alcohol alternatives are worth making the switch for… and they even captured that classic alcohol “burn”. They blend complex botanicals that both rein in your taste buds and give them a little heat so that each bottle truly packs a punch.

They’re also gluten-free and don’t have any allergens (like tree nuts). The tequila and gin alternatives have 0 calories and their whisky and rum each have less 10. Because these spirits are traditionally more sweet, their Ritual Zero Proof alternatives use natural sugars to replicate the same tastes, with significantly less.

For many, making a drink is not about alcohol. It’s about the ritual behind it. Ritual Zero Proof is there for expecting women who want to have a pitcher of margaritas on the beach with their friends this summer. They’re for the person who’s training for a marathon and needs to get up a 4am for their run but still wants to come over for a nightcap. They’re for the couples that want to toast on their wedding night, but not get carried away. They’re for those trying to lose weight or those that want to see what a non-alcohol lifestyle could look like.

Because the truth it, they’re for almost everybody. Check them out today and see how much your ritual can change.