Last week, the NBA announced the 10 players who earned the distinction of being a starter in the 2025 All-Star Game. Fast-forward to today and the league rounded out the player pools from each conference, as the Inside the NBA crew announced the reserves from both the East and the West.
Here’s how things break down:
Eastern Conference
Jaylen Brown
Pascal Siakam
Darius Garland
Cade Cunningham
Evan Mobley
Damian Lillard
Tyler Herro
Western Conference
Anthony Edwards
Anthony Davis
James Harden
Jaren Jackson Jr.
Alperen Sengun
Jalen Williams
Victor Wembanyama
This, of course, will not be the final list of players who participate in All-Star this year, as some of the names on this list will be out due to injury. There’s also the curious case of Victor Wembanyama, who was selected to the Rising Stars Challenge — because of the new format that the NBA has put together for All-Star, the winning Rising Stars team will get an invitation to play in the 4-team mini-tournament, and presumably, the team that has Wemby on it will have a pretty big advantage over everyone else, if he chooses to participate instead of doing the All-Star Game.
The 2025 NBA All-Star Game will take place on Sunday, Feb. 16 at the Chase Center in San Francisco.
Last week, FYI and Uproxx Studios, in collaboration with will.i.am’s charity, i.am. Angel Foundation, the Annenberg Foundation, and WalkGood LA raised over $250,000 for people affected by the devastating LA Wildfires in a series of livestream telethon-esque events. Dubbed the “LA Check In,” the event saw donations come in from people who live and breathe LA, but the work isn’t done just yet.
The LA Check In is set to continue this Friday, January 31st, live from the FYI Campus, opening the doors to the community to join in on the festivities.
This week’s event will include appearances from will.i.am, DJ Drama, DJ and songwriter Samantha Ronson, DJ HED, and a surprise performance by viral rap sensation Coast Contra, as well as unannounced surprise guests, and an open bar providing premium drinks for everyone in attendance.
Given the talent already in question, you’re going to want to be there, but this is also a unique opportunity to be a part of doing what LA does best — coming together to care for its community.
Space at this event is limited, but you can secure your spot with a donation here. 100% of the proceeds raised by the LA Check In will be directed to LA fire relief efforts, providing immediate financial assistance to affected families in need via organizations on the ground floor, including the LAUSD Foundation, Pasadena Educational Foundation, and Core Foundations.
Come through and come together to support LA. Reserve your ticket here.
Saturday Night Live has put together quite the lineup of musicians to celebrate the show’s 50th anniversary.
Peacock‘s SNL50: The Homecoming Concert special will feature “live from New York” (specifically, Radio City Music Hall) performances from Lady Gaga, Miley Cyrus, and Bad Bunny. The other acts, all of whom have performed on SNL before, include Arcade Fire, Backstreet Boys, Bonnie Raitt, Brandi Carlile, Brittany Howard, Chris Martin, David Byrne, DEVO, Eddie Vedder, Jack White, Jelly Roll, Mumford & Sons, Post Malone, Preservation Hall Jazz Band, Robyn, The B-52s, and The Roots. More names will be announced.
Here’s more:
Live from Radio City Music Hall, witness the concert of a lifetime with a star-studded lineup of musical performances and comedy guests. This one-night-only SNL homecoming event, executive produced by Lorne Michaels and Mark Ronson, will bring together legendary SNL hall-of-famers, iconic guests, and surprise musical performances.
SNL50: The Homecoming Concert streams live on Peacock on February 14 at 8 p.m. ET.
The special will also play at select Regal Cinemas IMAX theaters in California, Pennsylvania, Texas, New York, and Florida. Free tickets for the fan screenings will be made available for Fandango FanClub, Regal Crown Club members, and IMAX subscribers. You can find out more information here.
On Thursday, a bombshell report from the Baltimore Banner details alleged inappropriate behavior by Ravens kicker Justin Tucker towards six massage therapists in the Baltimore area at various spas from 2012-16.
Ravens kicker Justin Tucker engaged in inappropriate behavior at four high-end spas and wellness centers in the Baltimore region, according to six massage therapists, including exposing his genitals, brushing two of them with his exposed penis, and leaving what they believed to be ejaculate on the massage table after three of his treatments.
Tucker’s attorneys denied the allegations, and Tucker released a lengthy statement calling them “unequivocally false”. Six therapists went on record with the Banner detailing extremely similar experiences with Tucker. Two of the spas said through attorneys that they banned Tucker as a client and made him aware of that in a phone call, which Tucker’s lawyers also denied.
Per the Banner, most of the six women they spoke to had not known each other prior to being contacted for the story, but provided very consistent accounts of Tucker’s behavior. The Banner also corroborated the stories with a number of their colleagues who recalled being told of the incidents at the time — and include a screenshot of a private Facebook post by one of the therapists in 2013.
Five of the women said Tucker asked them to massage his pelvic region or inner thighs while he had an erection. Then they said he repeatedly wiggled his pelvis to remove the sheets, which fully or partially exposed his genitals. Two women said Tucker brushed them with his exposed penis. Three said, when they returned to the treatment room after Tucker left, they discovered a large wet spot on the massage table, which they strongly believed to be ejaculate.
The accounts of Tucker’s alleged behavior follow a similar pattern to that of Deshaun Watson. The defense from Tucker’s attorneys is that athletes move around due to the intensity of massages, and the wet spot could’ve been anything — sweat, water, massage oil, etc. However, the therapists make clear that his movements to uncover himself were not just normal behavior during a massage, and also state there was no confusion as to what was left on the massage table. The Banner spoke with four other massage therapists, referred to by Tucker’s attorneys, that have worked with Tucker recently and described positive experiences.
According to Guinness World Records, that feat belongs to Coldplay’s colorful Music Of The Spheres World Tour with over 10.3 million tickets sold, compared to “only” 10.1 million for Swift. The soon-to-be-retired British group will keep adding to that number, too: the tour isn’t over until September 2025.
Additionally, Coldplay recently played the “largest-ever stadium show of the 21st century” in Ahmedabad, India, with more than 223,000 fans in attendance across two nights. “Thank you Ahmedabad, thank you India,” the band’s official account wrote on X. “We’ll never forget these two weeks. Your love and kindness will stay with us forever.”
Below, you can see the other most-attended tours ever.
The Top 10 Most Attended Tours Of All Time
1. Coldplay — Music Of The Spheres World Tour (10.3 million tickets sold)
2. Taylor Swift — The Eras Tour (10.1 million)
3. Ed Sheeran — ÷ Tour (8.8 million)
4. U2 — 360° Tour (7.3 million)
5. Guns N’ Roses — Use Your Illusion Tour (7 million)
6. The Rolling Stones — Voodoo Lounge Tour (6.5 million)
7. Garth Brooks — The Garth Brooks World Tour (6.3 million)
8. Elton John — Farewell Yellow Brick Road (6 million)
9. The Rolling Stones — Steel Wheels/Urban Jungle Tour (6 million)
10. Rammstein — Rammstein Stadium Tour (6 million)
I was surprised to see Rammstein in the top 10, too.
Yesterday (January 29), Patti Smith was speaking on stage at an event in Brazil when she “collapsed,” before ultimately ending the show early, per The Associated Press.
Since then, Smith has apparently heard some inaccurate tellings of what happened, so she has decided to clear the air.
On Instagram today, Smith posted a photo of herself smiling and waving at the camera. She also shared a statement in the post’s caption, and it explains the situation:
“This is letting everyone know that I am fine. A grossly exaggerated account is being spread by the press and social media. I had some post migraine dizziness. Had a small incident, left the stage, and returned 10 minutes later and talked to the people, told them I was fine and sang them Wing and Because the night. I was checked out by an excellent Doctor and was absolutely fine. Please do not accept any other story . With all the strife in the world, this explainable incident does not merit so much attention. Thank you everyone for your concern. Trust me I am fine.”
In 2023, Smith canceled some concerts after being hospitalized due to a “sudden illness.” Smith later shared a message apologizing for the cancellations and thanking hospital staff for taking good care of her.
Life is kind of messy right now (understatement), so thank goodness that Reacher‘s third season will arrive to collectively punch some baddies.
Alan Ritchson’s Big Guy will touch down in Maine to adapt Lee Child’s Persuader novel, and in the process, he will stared upward at a Bigger Guy, Paul “Paulie” Masserella, who will be embodied by Oliver “The Dutch Giant” Ritchers. He’s a frightening specter even when not frowning, and Ritchers has been known to gobble 1000 calories in 3 minutes to keep his World’s Tallest Bodybuilder title going strong. Ritchson vs. Richers.
Also, Reacher will embark upon an undercover mission, and I can’t get that into my eyeballs soon enough.
When Does Reacher Season 3 Come Out?
February 20, 2025. Amazon’s synopsis lays the drama on thick:
Based on Lee Child’s novel Persuader, Reacher hurtles into the dark heart of a vast criminal enterprise when trying to rescue an undercover DEA informant whose time is running out. There, he finds a world of secrecy and violence and confronts some unfinished business from his own past.
Ritchson and Ritchers will be joined by Maria Sten in her continuing role as Frances Neagley. Additionally, Anthony Michael Hall will be onboard as the head villain of the season, and because Reacher always needs a love interest, Sonya Cassidy will portray DEA Agent Susan Duffy (tough job, someone’s gotta do it, you know the drill).
Last year, the NBA was rocked by its first major betting scandal in some time when Jontay Porter was found to have manipulated his performances as part of a gambling ring that resulted in federal charges for Porter and others. Porter was banned for life from the NBA and has plead guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud for his role, as he conspired with bettors to purposefully remove himself from games with injury to ensure the under on various player props would hit as part of a scheme to erase gambling debts he had that were unrelated to the NBA.
Recently, we learned Porter was not just in connection with the bettors prior to games, but also sent texts to the bettors during a Raptors game he was playing in. While this appeared to be an isolated incident, the Wall Street Journal brings word of another federal investigation into some irregular bets that were flagged from the same group on Terry Rozier prop unders when he was on the Hornets from a March 2023 game against the Pelicans.
In that game, Rozier started and played the first 9.5 minutes before checking out in a timeout and never returning with a foot injury. According to the Wall Street Journal, federal investigators are looking into whether he purposefully manipulated his performance to allow the under to hit on his props in that game as well.
The game in question took place on March 23, 2023, when Rozier was a member of the Charlotte Hornets. The betting on Rozier was strange enough that day to raise alarms at U.S. Integrity, a firm that works with sports entities, gambling operators and government agencies to monitor betting markets for suspicious activity.
The NBA released a statement to the Wall Street Journal about the investigation, noting they were made aware of the bets being flagged and investigated the matter and found no violations of NBA rules.
“In March 2023, the NBA was alerted to unusual betting activity related to Terry Rozier’s performance in a game between Charlotte and New Orleans,” NBA spokesman Mike Bass said. “The league conducted an investigation and did not find a violation of NBA rules. We are now aware of an investigation by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York related to this matter and have been cooperating with that investigation.”
Rozier left that game with “right foot discomfort,” per the official Hornets PR release from that night, and was doubtful to return. Going back and watching the game on League Pass, it’s understandable why federal investigators may have some questions regarding that injury designation. There’s not a clear moment where an injury occurs and he appears to be moving normally in the possessions leading into the timeout when he checks out.
On the three possessions prior, Rozier leaps to steal the ball, pushes it up the floor, and passes it to Kelly Oubre, who missed a three. He then runs back on defense, takes the ball out after a made three, brings the ball up the floor, dribbles into traffic, passes it, gets it back, and passes to Dennis Smith Jr., who misses a baseline shot. Rozier then runs back on defense, Brandon Ingram hits a three, and he walks towards the Hornets bench.
Given the vague “discomfort” designation on his injury, the lack of an obvious moment where he got hurt, and the suspicious activity on his prop unders, it’s not a surprise investigators want to look a bit deeper into the situation. What makes the Rozier situation so strange is, unlike Porter, Rozier has made $133 million in his career and would stand to gain far less from involving himself in helping gamblers win tens of thousands of dollars on prop bets than a guy with a short career playing for minimums and two-ways.
As the WSJ notes (and Tim Reynolds of the Associated Press confirmed), Rozier has not been charged with any crime or accused of any wrongdoing, but is, for now, simply under investigation. Porter’s case was open and shut thanks to an easy trail of communication via text with gamblers, and if that doesn’t exist with Rozier, then this is much more circumstantial.
Rozier did not play for the Hornets for the remainder of the season, as Charlotte was looking to chase lottery odds at that point, finishing the season 27-55. Given that, another possibility is that the gamblers could have gotten insight into organizational plans to shut down top veterans, rather than any contact with Rozier himself. If they became aware of a plan from the team to have Rozier play and exit with an injury designation that allowed them to shut him down for the rest of the season, that could also lead to irregular betting patterns that Rozier had nothing to do with.
We will have to wait for the full findings of this probe, which apparently extends to college basketball as well. The two Porter games and this one Rozier game are the only three NBA games flagged by U.S. Integrity for irregular betting patterns over the past two seasons, per the WSJ.
Earlier this month, Will.i.am and co. came through for Los Angeles with “LA Check-In,” a livestream event to benefit LA wildfire relief efforts. Now, they’re running it back: Ahead of the Grammys, “LA Check-In” returns for another fundraiser (an in-person event this time), on Friday, January 31 from 8 p.m. to midnight PT.
“LA Check-In” will include a performance from Coast Contra and special appearances from DJ Drama, DJ Hed, Samantha Ronson, Will.i.am, and more.
Uproxx
The event is presented by Uproxx and the i.am Angel Foundation, and it goes down at Will.i.am’s FYI Campus in LA. A limited number of tickets for the 21+ event are available via DICE. 100 percent of proceeds will go to the i.am Angel Foundation’s emergency fund; Donations will be distributed to the LAUSD Foundation, Pasadena Educational Foundation, and Core Foundations.
Will.i.am previously said of the initial event in a statement:
“Families and students across the city urgently need our support as many lives have been disrupted, including losing everything in the fires. Teaming up with fellow musicians […] for fire relief is what the community needs right now to connect us and activate those who wish to donate and volunteer.”
“LA Check-In” helps to kick off the 2025 Grammys weekend, as the awards show is set for February 2 at 8 p.m. ET.
Will.i.am is a partner and investor in Uproxx Studios.
Each week our staff of film and television experts surveys the entertainment landscape to select the ten best new/newish shows available for you to stream at home. We put a lot of thought into our selections, and our debates on what to include and what not to include can sometimes get a little heated and feelings may get hurt, but so be it, this is an important service for you, our readers. With that said, here are our selections for this week.
Stephanie Hsu, who really should have won the Oscar over her Everything Everywhere All at Once co-star, is joined by Zosia Mamet in the new series Laid. The “f*cked up rom-com” is about a woman who finds out that her former lovers are dying in unusual ways, and must go back through her “sex timeline” to figure out what the heck is going on.
Netflix’s most-watched show ever is back. Squid Game season 2 sees the return of Gi-hun (played by Lee Jung-jae), a.k.a. Player 456, who has only one goal: to end the horrifying competition for good. This time, Gi-hun finds himself “locked in a tense battle” with the Front Man (Lee Byung-hun), as well as trying to survive against the other competitors. Squid Game is the rare water-cooler show in the “death of the monoculture” era. Keep up if you want to know what your co-workers are talking about.
Written and directed by Hirokazu Kore-eda (Shoplifters), Asura is a family drama set in 1979 about about four sisters — Tsunako (Rie Miyazawa), Makiko (Machiko Ono), Takiko (Yu Aoi), and Sakiko (Suzu Hirose) — who discover that their dad is having an affair. It’s being called 2025’s “first great new TV show.”
Noah Wyle? As a doctor? It’s crazy enough to work. This time, the ER star works in a hospital in Pittsburgh, and the show is “a realistic examination of the challenges facing healthcare workers in today’s America as seen through the lens of the frontline heroes.” The entire 15-episode first season takes place over the course of one 15-hour emergency room shift, not unlike 24.
Now in its fifth season, Harley Quinn shakes things up by moving the action from Gotham to Metropolis, which means the introductions of characters like Lena Luthor, Brainiac, and Red X. But one thing that hasn’t changed is the excellent voice cast, including Kaley Cuoco as Harley Quinn, Lake Bell as Poison Ivy, Alan Tudyk as Joker and Clayface, Ron Funches as King Shark, J.B. Smoove as Frank, and James Adomian as scene stealer Bane.
Sebastian Stan received career-best reviews for his performance in A Different Man, in which he plays Edward, an inspiring actor who undergoes a radical medical procedure to transform his appearance. But his dream turns into a nightmare when he loses out on the role he was born to play to the uber-confident Oswald (Adam Pearson), who has the same genetic condition he once had. A Different Man is a surreal, thought provoking, and inventive film.
A Real Pain — which appeared on numerous Best Movies of 2024 lists — finds cousins David (played by Jesse Eisenberg) and Benji (Oscar nominee Kieran Culkin) reuniting for a tour through Poland to honor their beloved grandmother. But the journey takes a turn when old tensions resurface.
After a long, long break, one of the best shows on TV is back. Severance picks up where season 1 left off, with Mark (Adam Scott), Helly (Helly Riggs), Dylan (Dylan), and Irving (Irving Bailiff) trifling with the severance barrier, “leading them further down a path of woe,” according to the cryptic Apple TV Plus synopsis. There are so many mysteries left to answer: what’s the deal with Ms. Casey (Dichen Lachman)? What’s the deal with Seth Milchick (series MVP Tramell Tillman)? And seriously, what’s the deal with the freaking goats?
Best Animated Feature at the 2025 Oscars is unusually stacked. Inside Out 2 is the frontrunner considering how much money it made, but honestly, it’s probably the weakest of the nominees. Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl is a delight, obviously, while the beautiful and heartbreaking Flow is my personal favorite. But don’t sleep on The Wild Robot, a charming critical and commercial hit from Lilo & Stitch co-director Chris Sanders about a robot learning to adapt to their surroundings in the great outdoors. It’s very good.
The Night Agent season 1 premiered in 2023 and quickly became one of Netflix’s biggest shows ever. Now it’s back for season 2, which picks up with Peter Sutherland (played by Gabriel Basso) as a certified Night Agent. Per Netflix: “But working in the secretive organization [will] propel Peter into a world where danger is everywhere and trust is in short supply.” You can check out the exciting trailer here.
Mike Judge and Greg Daniels have been attached to some of the best TV comedies of the last 30 years, including Parks and Recreation, The Simpsons, and The Office for Daniels and Beavis and Butt-Head and Silicon Valley for Judge. They also co-created King of the Hill. Their latest collaboration is producing Common Side Effects, a surreal Adult Swim animated series about the “world’s greatest medicine” from creators Joseph Bennett (Scavengers Reign) and Steve Hely (30 Rock). Episodes will stream the next day on Max.
Will Ferrell and Reese Witherspoon star in You’re Cordially Invited, a big-hearted romantic-comedy about two weddings being booked on the same day at the same venue. The father (Ferrell) of one bride and the sister (Witherspoon) of the other go “head-to-head as they stop at nothing to uphold an unforgettable celebration for their loved ones.” Beyond Witherspoon, You’re Cordially Invited has a strong rom-com pedigree with writer and director Nicholas Stoller, who previously made Forgetting Sarah Marshall.
3. Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man (Disney Plus)
disney plus
Spider-Man: you know him, you love him (unless you’re J. Jonah Jameson, then you want more pictures of him). Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man is an animated throwback to a time when the web-slinging superhero was as concerned with his high school studies as he was saving the citizens of New York. Hopefully there are fewer galaxy-threatening portals than in the MCU movies.
Mo is a special series. The Netflix comedy-drama follows Mo Najjar (played by creator Mo Amer), a Palestinian refugee living in Houston, Texas, as he attempts to secure asylum. In season 2, Mo is stranded across the border in Mexico, and he’ll need “all the hustle and charm he can muster” to return to the States. Mo is timely, hilarious, and heartbreaking.
A new season of It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia is coming later this year, but don’t forget about Rob McElhenney’s other excellent comedy series. Mythic Quest season 4 (also the show’s final season) brings everyone — including McElhenney’s Ian, Charlotte Nicdao’s Poppy, and Danny Pudi’s Brad — back together at Mythic Quest HQ, where they’ll confront “new challenges amongst a changing video game landscape as stars rise, egos clash, relationships bloom and everyone tries to have a little more work life balance.” I’ll miss Ian and Poppy’s Don and Peggy-like fraught yet platonic relationship the most.
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