Month: June 2024

In December 2022, Gunna “entered a negotiated plea, known as an Alford plea, in which a defendant doesn’t admit he committed the crime but acknowledges that it is in his best interest to plead guilty,” as initially reported by WSB-TV. Gunna and Young Thug had been among 28 YSL members arrested in May 2022 and charged with in a 56-count grand injury indictment, including Racketeer Influenced And Corrupt Organizations (RICO) allegations. Gunna’s decision to take a plea deal sparked scrutiny with many calling Gunna a “snitch,” especially considering Young Thug is facing nine charges in the ongoing YSL RICO trial.

Is Gunna Still Signed To YSL Records?

On Wednesday, June 26, a video shared by Complex showed Gunna reiterating his loyalty to YSL.

“I’m still signed to YSL,” he said. “I’m still providing. We still pushin’. No paperwork has been changed. So, it’s like, whatever’s been getting and how we’ve been pushin’ this sh*t, it’s still going.”

It’s unclear when the video was shot and for whom, but Gunna expressed a similar sentiment about Young Thug for his XXL Magazine cover story in April: “It’s the same. It’s love, always. Our relationship is our relationship.”

Earlier this month, Jeffrey Williams Sr., Young Thug’s father, was dancing front row at Gunna’s The Bittersweet Tour finale at State Farm Arena in Atlanta, Georgia. Williams Sr. has been an ardent defender of Gunna.

Team Needs: Shooting, Defense, Wing Depth, Frontcourt Depth

The Detroit Pistons weren’t anticipating to be the worst team in the NBA this season, not with Cade Cunningham back healthy and Monty Williams being brought in as one of the league’s highest paid coaches. However, the Pistons finished with the league’s worst record and entered the 2024 offseason with plenty of uncertainty about how they will proceed.

They started by firing Troy Weaver and bringing in Trajan Langdon to run their front office, who then let go of Williams after one year and they still have yet to hire his replacement. That said, the Pistons will have ample cap space this summer to try and upgrade their roster around Cunningham, Jaden Ivey, Ausar Thompson, and Jalen Duren. They also landed at No. 5 in the Draft (again) after some lottery balls bounced the wrong way, and had a number of options for which way they could go on Draft night after the first four picks went mostly chalk.

They decided to stick with the fifth pick and take the first big swing of the Draft, going with the hyper-athletic Ron Holland out of the G-League Ignite to add more youth to Cunningham and Ivey in the backcourt.

Ron Holland (No. 5 Overall), A-: I’m higher on Holland than most, but there are several people I trust that had Holland firmly in the top three coming into the draft. He’s quite polarizing, largely because of his shooting questions, but Holland is the type of athletic, physical, competitive wing that can pop if things come together. The overall fit in Detroit isn’t the best because they need shooting and Holland won’t bring it anytime soon. But he does fit snugly with Cade Cunningham, and Holland is a true upside bet for a new front office.

Team Needs: Point Guard, Shooting, Center Depth, General Talent Upgrades

The San Antonio Spurs finished with the fifth-worst record in the NBA last season, but optimism is as high as ever that the franchise is on the path back to being a contender thanks to last year’s No. 1 overall pick, Victor Wembanyama.

Despite coming in with huge expectations, Wembanyama exceeded them, taking home Rookie of the Year honors and coming in second for Defensive Player of the Year. He looks the part of a generational talent, and the Spurs will spend this summer (and the next decade) looking to build the best possible team around his unique skillset. They need better guard play, especially in terms of playmaking and having someone who can get the ball to Wembanyama when and where he needs it. They need more three-point threats to open up the floor for the French sensation. They need more frontcourt depth to provide support for Wemby. Everything revolves around him, but the big question for this year is how fast do they want to accelerate their plans to try and put veteran talent around him.

They entered the 2024 NBA Draft with a pair of top 10 picks (4 and 8), and have the kind of cap space and stable of assets to acquire a veteran star if they want. The Spurs are expected to remain patient and build smartly, but it will be extremely tempting to bring in some established NBA talent to see just how good he is right now. They started by staying at 4 and taking an upside swing on Stephon Castle out of UConn.

Stephon Castle (No. 4 Overall), B+: This would’ve been a bit of a curve ball a little while ago, but Castle has fans in the league to be sure. His defensive potential is excellent, and while he was in a small role at UConn, Castle impressed by buying into what the Huskies needed and playing winning basketball. The biggest question, by far, is his perimeter shooting, but Castle is an upside swing for a team that can afford that given San Antonio’s own picks and a stockpile coming from Atlanta.

Team Needs: A Star Upgrade, Shooting, Point guard depth

The Houston Rockets made some big moves last summer to take a step forward after hiring Ime Udoka as their head coach. The Rockets used their cap space to sign Fred VanVleet and Dillon Brooks, bringing in two defensive-minded veterans to help guide their young core.

That effort worked to push Houston out of the NBA’s cellar, but didn’t quite close the gap on the playoff teams out West, as they finished 11th, one spot out of the Play-In, at 41-41. Now, the Rockets are looking to take that next step into playoff contention, and have some decisions to make regarding their bevy of young talent, and which players they view as cornerstones of a contender. Houston has a handful of needs, but what they have to determine is which of those need to be acquired and what can be taken care of by internal development.

They also found themselves near the top of the 2024 Draft thanks to the Brooklyn Nets, landing at No. 3 in the lottery, giving them a number of options come Draft night. They could look to add some more young talent to their roster, or look to trade the pick in their quest to bolster their roster for a run next year, depending on how the first two picks shook out. Ultimately, they stuck at 3 and took the best shooter in the Draft in Reed Sheppard out of Kentucky.

Reed Sheppard (No. 3 Overall), A: This is a very, very fun fit that also checks the “best available” box. While the Rockets do have Fred VanVleet, Sheppard can play both guard spots and, most importantly, provide dead-eye shooting. His statistical translations are off the charts and, long-term, he pairs quite well with Amen Thompson.

Post Malone recently announced F-1 Trillion, his first-ever country album, will be released on August 16, and he’ll spend September and October on his F-1 Trillion Tour. Malone hasn’t revealed the official tracklist, but it’s probably safe to assume that it will include “I Had Some Help,” his and Morgan Wallen’s No. 1 Billboard Hot 100 smash, and “Pour Me A Drink” featuring Blake Shelton.

Add Chris Stapleton to the list.

On Wednesday, June 26, Malone posted a video showing his extremely giddy reaction while listening to an unreleased song with Stapleton. “This one’s with @chrisstapleton,” he captioned the video. “She said, ‘Baby, give me one more kiss before I kiss your ass goodbye,’” Malone sings in what seems to be the song’s hook.

Malone’s F-1 Trillion Tour will begin at Utah First Credit Union Amphitheatre in Salt Lake City, Utah on September 8 and snake through North America before appropriately wrapping at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tennessee on October 19. Find ticketing information here, and check out all of Malone’s upcoming tour dates below.

09/08 — Salt Lake City, UT @ Utah First Credit Union Amphitheatre
09/12 — Noblesville, IN @ Ruoff Music Center
09/14 — Syracuse, NY @ Empower Federal Credit Union Amphitheater at Lakeview
09/16 — Bangor, ME @ Maine Savings Amphitheatre
09/18 — Boston, MA @ Fenway Park
09/20 — Hershey, PA @ Hersheypark Stadium
09/21 — Hartford, CT @ The XFINITY Theatre
09/23 — Saratoga Springs, NY @ Broadview Stage at SPAC
09/25 — Scranton, PA @ The Pavilion at Montage Mountain
09/29 — Wantagh, NY @ Northwell at Jones Beach Theatre
10/01 — Cuyahoga Falls, OH @ Blossom Music Center
10/04 — Virginia Beach, VA @ Veterans United Home Loans Amphitheater at Virginia Beach
10/05 — Raleigh, NC @ Coastal Credit Union Music Park
10/07 — Charlotte, NC @ PNC Music Pavilion
10/09 — Charleston, SC @ Credit One Stadium
10/11 — Atlanta, GA @ Lakewood Amphitheatre
10/13 — Rogers, AR @ Walmart AMP
10/15 — Pelham, AL @ Oak Mountain Amphitheatre
10/17 — Orange Beach, AL @ The Wharf Amphitheater
10/19 — Nashville, TN @ Nissan Stadium

F-1 Trillion is out 8/16 via Republic. Find more information here.

Team Needs: Frontcourt Depth, Defense, Shooting, Talent Upgrades, Point Guard

The Washington Wizards finally began their rebuild last season and, as expected, they finished near the bottom of the standings, going 15-67 to finish with the NBA’s second worst record. There still may be moves yet to be made in service of a youth movement in the nation’s capital, as Kyle Kuzma is a highly regarded wing for playoff contenders and doesn’t exactly fit the Wizards timeline.

As such, there’s not really a position on the floor that the Wizards won’t consider in terms of seeking out young talent, but with the No. 2 overall pick there wasn’t an awful lot of drama surrounding who they would be taking. French big man Alex Sarr made it clear early on that he was not interested in going to the Atlanta Hawks with the No. 1 overall pick, and every indicator pointed to him landing in Washington where he’d immediately slot into the starting lineup. The Wizards certainly have a need in the frontcourt after trading away Daniel Gafford to the Mavericks at the deadline, and Sarr is considered by many to be the best prospect in this year’s Draft.

What was more intriguing was how they’d approach the No. 14 pick they got by trading Deni Avdija to Portland on Draft night and the No. 26 overall pick they owned from the Clippers. While most of the teams picking at the back end of the Draft figured to be looking for a plug-and-play option on a contender, the Wizards would have a choice to make between one of those more polished prospects or taking a swing on a high-upside player with more risk, particularly if someone found themselves sliding down the board.

Alex Sarr (No. 2 Overall), A: Washington sticks at No. 2 and grabs the No. 1 overall player on my draft board. As noted extensively at No. 1, Sarr isn’t kind of “Tier 1” player you might expect at No. 1, but the Wizards add one of the most talented players in the draft. Sarr’s defensive potential is vast with a 7’4 wingspan and real mobility, and he projects as a potential anchor of a five-out approach in the future.

Team Needs: Roster Clarity, Perimeter Defense, Shooting, Center Depth

The Atlanta Hawks once again found themselves in the Eastern Conference Play-In this past season, but after playing their way to the 8-seed in 2022 and 2023, the Hawks got bounced in the 9-10 game by the Bulls and entered an offseason of uncertainty. All year there were rumors the Hawks were looking to trade Dejounte Murray, but as the season wore on and they held onto him at the deadline, some rumblings emerged that Trae Young could end up being the star guard on the move soon.

In any case, Atlanta is expected to break up the Murray-Young backcourt this summer, with others like Clint Capela and De’Andre Hunter also still very much available for other teams. Adding intrigue to the Hawks summer was the stunning results of the Draft Lottery that saw them jump up to the No. 1 pick. Without a consensus top prospect, the Hawks would have to identify who they felt was the best player available, while also considering fit with whatever core they view they have. That mostly means whichever of Young or Murray they plan to keep and Jalen Johnson, with Onyeka Okongwu also likely part of their long-term plans.

With Alex Sarr making clear his desire to end up in Washington and not Atlanta, the Hawks seemed to have three options with the top pick: Zaccharie Risacher, Donovan Clingan, or trading the pick. Ultimately, they chose the French wing and now all eyes are on how they proceed with their summer.

Zaccharie Risacher (No. 1 Overall), B: In a draft that doesn’t feature a traditional No. 1 overall talent, someone had to go at No. 1, and it is Risacher. He has clear appeal as a 6’9 wing who can both shoot and defend, with a clear step forward this season as a perimeter threat. Risacher doesn’t bring tremendous star equity typically associated with this draft slot, but he provides Atlanta with a two-way wing in a league that can’t find enough two-way wings.

The first round of the 2024 NBA Draft takes place on Wednesday night. While this is the first year the league decided to break things up into two rounds, the very top prospects in this year’s class made their way to the Barclays Center in Brooklyn to see who will hear Adam Silver read their names to the basketball watching world.

While we will have to wait and see when guys are going to go in the draft, we got a glimpse at what the players in attendance are wearing to the biggest day of their lives. And for some of the players, the NBA gave them a chance to break down their fits on the official NBA Draft Twitter account. Alex Sarr, the French big man who is expected to hear his name called early, appeared on ESPN’s red carpet special and walked the crew through what he had on.

Duke big man Kyle Filipowski talked up the “gold accents” on his suit, while G League Ignite wing loved some of the jewelry he wore, saying “I don’t wanna be basic for the draft.”

Stephon Castle also loved the chain he had on, but hinted that he has something special inside the suit.

Kentucky guard Rob Dillingham, who has a keen eye for fashion, pulled up to the Draft in a suit he helped design himself.

Filipowski’s college teammate, sharpshooting guard Jared McCain, loved how “colorful” his jewelry is, particularly against a “plain, simple black fit.”

And for Tristan da Silva, a forward from Colorado, getting to pay homage to his heritage on the inside of his suit was his favorite part.

The first round of the draft beginds at 8 p.m. EST, where all of these young men will learn where they’ll continue their NBA careers — and look sharp doing it.

The wheeling and dealing that the Brooklyn Nets have done in the last day has sure made it look like they’re prioritizing a rebuild. That means everyone on the roster’s future is in question to one extent or another, whether they are already under contract or are slated to hit free agency this summer.

Nic Claxton fell into the latter camp, as the athletic big man was slated to become an unrestricted free agent. Instead, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN and Shams Charania of The Athletic reported that Claxton and the Nets agreed to a new deal that will keep him from hitting the open market, as he’s slated to return to Brooklyn on a 4-year deal worth $100 million.

The 31st overall pick in the 2019 NBA Draft, Claxton has turned into a rock solid big man during his time in Brooklyn. Last season was his best as a pro, as he averaged 11.8 points, 9.9 rebounds, and 2.1 blocks in 29.8 minutes per game while shooting 62.9 percent from the field.

With Mikal Bridges in Manhattan now and a few of the older players on the team’s roster being appealing to teams throughout the league, it would make sense if the Nets start making moves and prioritizing young players. And if they end up doing that, it’s safe to say that Claxton will be part of whatever they’re building.

This spring, Diany Dior delivered an “On The Radar” freestyle — featuring a cameo from Cash Cobain — and stayed to chat with On The Radar Radio. She teased “a surprise” with Cobain, a fellow Bronx-bred rapper, and she was presumably talking about her and Nav’s “Favorite Lady” remix featuring Cobain.

With On The Radar Radio, Dior shared that she had signed “a major label deal” with GoodTalk in January. CEO Slo contacted her through Instagram after her “Drewski Freestyle” from May 2023. She also teased collaborations with Skilla Baby and Fivio Foreign, and she returned to On The Radar to perform “Sexy Drill” with Fivio in late April.

“[In] 2021, it started,” Dior said. “I got myself into this little independent label, and I was in the studio working every day. I was outside doing shows by myself, getting my name out there. Being outside just led me to knowing mad people. By the time I did ‘Drewski,’ I knew the whole New York, but they just ain’t really respect me that much until I did that. Then, I got my respect.”

Since “Drewski,” Dior has released singles “Too P,” “Pack Came In,” “Not My Fault,” and “Favorite Lady.” She initially released “Favorite Lady” in April before Nav and Cobain hopped on the remix.

Most recently, A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie brought Dior out during his Better Off Alone Tour stop at New York City’s Madison Square Garden on June 24.

“MADISON SQUARE GARDEN?!!!!!” Dior captioned an Instagram carousel about the show. “IM CRYING WHILE TYPING THIS WOW SMH THANK YOU NYC FOR SHOWING ME LOVE LAST NIGHT WOW!!! THANK YOU @aboogievsartist FOR BRINGING ME OUT!!! I COULD TAKE THIS TIME TO TELL EVERYONE WHO SLEPT ON ME SOMETHING BUT I RATHER JUST TELL EVERYONE WHO STOOD 10 W ME THAT I LOVE YA SO MUCHHHH MAMA LOOK OH YEA EVERYONE I GREW UP LISTENING TO, NOW LISTENING TO ME & I CANT THANK GOD ENOUGH!!! BX STAND UPPP.”