Category: Worldwide

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Welcome to SNX DLX, your weekly roundup of the best sneakers to hit the internet. This week we have a nice mix of classic and future classic silhouettes. Nike leads the way with high-profile collaborations with Run the Jewels, G-Dragon, and skate legend Stefan Janoski. Jordan fans also have a lot to look forward to, whether you’re a fan of single or double digits with new colorways of the Jordan 1 and Jordan 13.

Elsewhere New Balance’s MADE in UK luxury line is dropping two new colorways of the 576 and Adidas sneaks in a super-dope collaboration with Blondey McCoy which closes the chapter on the duo’s Indoor Gazelle series. While we’re still in the midst of spring, expect the summer sneaker season to heat up early as we move into the month of May. It finally feels like the sneaker year is firing on all cylinders!

New Balance MADE in UK 576

Price: $229.99

This week the 576 gets a premium MADE in UK makeover in two new colorways. Crafted with care in New Balance’s Flimby, Cumbria factory, and features a pig suede, mesh, and synthetic upper with tip and saddle foxing over an ENCAP midsole. The sneaker is also outfitted with asymmetric CR motion control which helps to keep your fear foot in place for enhanced comfort.

The new 576 drops in your choice of Monks Robe with Coconut Milk and Whisper White or Pale Mauve with Coconut Milk and Whisper White colors, which, admittedly, are the two most ridiculous colorway names we’ve ever heard.

The New Balance Made in UK 576 is set to drop on April 20th at 10 AM PST. Pick up a pair at New Balance.

Nike x PEACEMINUSONE G-Dragon Kwondo 1

Price: $190

Made in collaboration with K-Pop superstar G-Dragon, the Kwondo 1 sits somewhere between traditional streetwear sneaker and an old-school luxury dress shoe. Featuring a leather upper with wingtips at the toe box, brogue detailing, and a removable lace shroud, the Kwondo 1 is adorned with embroidered daisies at the heel and a classy black and white colorway.

The Nike x PEACEMINUSONE G-Dragon Kwondo 1 is out now. Pick up a pair via the Nike SNKRS app.

Nike SB Janoski+ Alabaster and Chili Red

Price: $95

Pro skater Stefan Janoski’s signature Nike is getting a brand new redesign this year. Dubbed the ‘Janoski+,’ this sneaker combines the best details from the 2009 debut release and the slightly altered 2019 version for a brand new take that offers the best of both worlds. Are you thinking it looks like if Nike made their own Vans Classic? Yeah, us too.

The sneaker is enhanced with a special tread that enhances the board feel and flick-ability, a bright color block design inspired by Janoski’s love of graphic novels, and special branding at the tongue.

The Nike SB Janoski+ Alabaster and Chili Red is set to drop on April 19th at 7:00 AM PST. Pick up a pair via the Nike SNKRS app.

Nike SB Dunk High x Run The Jewels Active Pink and Black

Price: $140

El-P and Killer Mike are dropping a 4/20 special that celebrates their fourth album and every stoner’s favorite holiday, and Killer Mike’s birthday.

Featuring a black leather upper with hot pink pony hair overlays, a three-dimensional jeweled swoosh, and a dubrae that recalls the group’s hand-over-fist iconography, this SB Dunk ships with multi-color lace options so you can slightly customize the look. It looks pretty great as is though. It even conjures some of the vibe of El-P’s famous Fresh Pair shoe:

The Nike SB Dunk High x Run the Jewels Active Pink and Black is set to drop on April 20th at 7:00 AM PST. Pick up a pair via the Nike SNKRS app.

Nike Women’s Air Jordan 1 High Washed Pink

Price: $180

Just in time for spring, Nike is dropping a new washed-out pink Jordan 1 in a women’s size-only run. Featuring a soft suede build over a premium leather base, this high-top Jordan sports padded collars, a classic foam tongue, and an aged midsole for a vintage vibe.

The Nike Women’s Air Jordan High Washed Pink is set to drop on April 22nd at 7:00 AM PST. Pick up a pair via the Nike SNKRS app or aftermarket sites like GOAT.

Air Jordan 13 Black Flint

Price: $200

With springtime in full swing, we’re in a season of bright colorways, but that’s not everyone’s thing, and for those who want a pair of kicks that are year-round timeless, look no further than the Air Jordan 13 in Black Flint. Eagle-eyed Jordan heads will recognize this colorway as it recalls the ’98 original’s debut colorway, with a more refined and modern execution.

Featuring those iconic dimpled side panels, this premium leather 13 has a green cat’s eye emblem and a midsole design inspired by a panther’s paw. The colorway keeps things simple with a mix of white, grey, and black with a contrasting embroidered jump man logo at the tongue.

The Air Jordan 13 Black Flint is set to drop on April 22nd at 7:00 AM PST. Pick up a pair via the Nike SNKRS app or aftermarket sites like GOAT and Flight Club.

Blondey McCoy x Adidas Gazelle Indoor Gemini

Price: TBA

Blondey McCoy’s final iteration of his AB. Gazelle Indoors dubbed, the ‘Gemini,’ is set to drop this Friday. The sneaker features a white upper with black panels and a forest green three-stripe with gold foil Blondey branding.

The design first appeared on a pair of one-off custom cleats made for Blondey, following the sportswear theme of his latest Adidas team-ups, but this release will get the full rubber sole treatment, ideal for Blondey’s original passion and claim to fame — skateboarding.

The Blondey McCoy x Adidas Gazelle Indoor Gemini is set to drop on April 21st at 11 AM BST. Pick up a pair exclusively at THAMES MMXX.

Bridgerton‘s second season received some criticism due the series lowering the sex scene frequency (because that’s one way that the series did things differently with the show’s debut), but it sure looks like the prequel, Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story, will bring some steaminess back while focusing upon the courtship of young adult Queen Charlotte. That version will be portrayed by India Amarteifio, but don’t worry, the show will bounce back and forth in time, so the franchise will still have plenty of the older Charlotte, played with perfect side-eye vibes by Golda Rosheuvel.

Yes, the queen who loves to snort is receiving her origin story, and the show will include Violet Bridgerton and Lady Danbury as well. Additionally, Rosheuvel spoke with Collider and elaborated on how the show interweaves the past and present. It sounds like things will be complex in that way, but hopefully, this won’t be as confusing as time jumps in The Witcher. Also! It sounds like Lady Whistledown will appear in the past, at least in voice form:

“Shonda has been really clever in connecting the worlds, connecting the two series together … Lady Whistledown is there, the young and older Danbury are there. The universe sort of swirls round within itself, so it will be fascinating to see whether the fans notice little nuances and Easter eggs that we’ve put in both productions. It’s a fascinating way of telling the story … So where in Bridgerton I might have been at the Presentation Ball and then leave the room, in Queen Charlotte I walk straight into a scene that’s in the spin-off.”

Sadly, there has been no mention of The Duke appearing in the “present” version of Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story, which will premiere on May 5. Following that drop, however, viewers can still look forward to the flagship series’ third and fourth seasons.

(Via Collider)

Henry Winkler is best known for playing one of the most iconic TV characters of all time, Arthur “Fonzie” Fonzerelli, on “Happy Days.” But at 77, his career is still going strong as he plays acting coach Gene Cousineau on HBO Max’s critically-acclaimed “Barry.”

But success hasn’t been easy for Winkler. He had a challenging time in school as a child because he had undiagnosed dyslexia. The disorder also made it extremely difficult for him to memorize lines as an actor.

“When I was growing up in New York City, no one knew what dyslexia was,” he said, according to The Reading Well. “I was called stupid and lazy, and I was told that I was not living up to my potential. It was, without a doubt, painful. I spent most of my time covering up the fact that reading, writing, spelling, math, science—actually, every subject but lunch—was really, really difficult for me.”

At 31, after his stepson’s learning disabilities were diagnosed as dyslexia, Winkler learned that he also has the disorder. The diagnosis helped him develop strategies that make it easier for him to memorize his lines and continue his success in entertainment.

Since then, he has advocated for people with dyslexia and has written over 30 children’s books, including the “Hank Zipzer” series about a hero who has dyslexia.

Winkler appeared on the April 18th episode of “The Kelly Clarkson Show,” where he comforted the host whose daughter, River Rose, 8, has dyslexia.

“She was getting bullied at school for not being able to read like all the other kids,” Clarkson said. Winkler assured Clarkson that her daughter wasn’t alone, citing the fact that 1 in 5 kids have the disorder.

“It’s more common, I didn’t know that,” Clarkson said.

“She’s in the tribe,” Winkler responded.

What’s cooler than being in the same tribe as Fonzie?

“It really empowered her that y’all are so open about it,” Clarkson said, noting that her daughter’s school had a program about dyslexia that mentioned numerous celebrities have the disorder.

Winkler then looked directly into the camera and shared some great advice for Clarkson’s daughter and the millions who struggle with dyslexia. “How you learn has nothing to do with how brilliant you are,” he said.

Winkler’s bold declaration made Clarkson well up with tears. “My makeup artist is going to kill me,” she joked.

Winkler’s simple message is something everyone should hear: Your ability to learn isn’t necessarily a sign of your intelligence.

“Many people mistakenly believe that the ability to learn is a matter of intelligence,” Ulrich Boser writes in Harvard Business Review, adding that “learning strategies can be more important than raw smarts when it comes to gaining expertise.”

Kudos to Winkler for being a tireless advocate for people with dyslexia and educating the public about the disorder. As the Harvard Business Review says, learning is about finding the right strategies. The better we understand learning disabilities, the more we can help those who struggle to find the strategies that work for them—just like The Fonz.

Politics has never been free of outrage and fearmongering, but only in recent decades have those base methods of drumming up support been shoved in our faces 24/7. Unfortunately, politicians know that fueling rage and fear gets them attention, which in turn gets them valuable media coverage, and some are shameless about capitalizing on it.

It’s how random members of Congress from tiny rural districts gain massive national name recognition while hundreds of non-inflammatory, non-extremist, non-outrage-baity lawmakers quietly go about the business of governance with few Americans able to pick them out of a lineup.

Outrage-fueled notoriety is what prompted Rep. Jeff Jackson, Democrat of North Carolina—most likely a legislator you’ve never heard of—to make a video on his 100th day in Congress, where he shared something he’s learned about his fellow elected leaders.

“I’m still brand new to Congress—I’ve only been there 100 days—and I don’t know if I’m not supposed to say this out loud, but it’s true and important. And if you don’t know this, you need to,” he said. “It’s really clear from working there for just a few months that most of the really angry voices in Congress are totally faking it. These people who have built their brands around being perpetually outraged? It’s an act.”

Perhaps this is not groundbreaking news for a lot of us, but it’s refreshing to hear from someone on the inside, especially since Jackson explains how he knows their outrage is an act—and why.

“I’ve been in committee meetings that are open to the press and committee meetings that are closed,” he said. “The same people who act like maniacs during the open meetings are suddenly calm and rational during the closed ones. Why? Because there aren’t any cameras in the closed meetings, so their incentives are different.”

Jackson goes on to explain how members of Congress are surrounded by negative incentives, with media outlets that feed off of negative emotion giving them air time because it keeps people angry.

“If they can keep you angry, they’ll hold your attention,” he said. “And they both want your attention.”

Watch:

u201cIu2019ve been in Congress for 100 days. nnMost of the really angry voices here are faking it.u201d

— Rep. Jeff Jackson (@Rep. Jeff Jackson)
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Jackson doesn’t name any particular members of Congress or even point to any particular political party in his video. In reality, politicians on both sides of the aisle are guilty of playing these kinds of games and always have been.

The problem, of course, is that the governance of a nation isn’t a game. But politics is, especially hyper-partisanized politics, and that game has only become more competitive and more winner-takes-all in the age of modern media.

When George Washington tried to warn the American people of the “rankness” of partisanship and where its “continual mischief” and “constant danger of excess” could lead us, he was spot on in his predictions. But what he couldn’t have predicted was the role that television and social media would play in elevating that mischief and excess.

As problematic as the political arena has been in the past, it’s nothing compared to how fear and outrage have been wielded as weapons in the technological age. We have 24-hour cable channels funneling hate and fear-based prejudice into our psyches, and social media algorithms that fuel negative attention grabs. Demonizing the “other side” of the political spectrum to the point of describing one’s fellow Americans as “the enemy” is outright bonkers—but it’ll practically guarantee you an interview on prime-time television, and therefore a seat at powerful tables.

We—all of us—need to not only recognize manufactured outrage and fearmongering, but we need to learn to truly ignore it. Ignoring it won’t necessarily make it go away, but for people who seek power above all else, all attention is good attention. When we give attention seekers what they want, we only feed the beast. Even when we give them attention to complain about them, we’re still giving them oxygen.

Instead, let’s try something different, like focusing our energies on the people who are actually doing the hard work of governance and genuinely serving their constituencies in a spirit of public service. As Jackson said, “If you don’t have to yell to be heard, the whole conversation changes.” Perhaps we can stop listening to the yellers and start engaging with the talkers who understand how to discuss and negotiate intelligently, in ways that make sense. These are, after all, the people who actually get things done behind closed doors.

The concept of possessions isn’t rare across the animal kingdom. Anyone who has ever had a dog knows they have their favorite bones or chew toys they like to hide so no one steals them. Chimpanzees are known to craft tools for specific uses and keep them together in a kit.

But man is probably the only creature on Earth that dares to think they own a tree—an organism that’s usually a lot taller and lives much longer than the average homo sapiens.

That’s why the story of a tree in Athens, Georgia, is so touching. In the 19th century, a colonel loved a white oak so much that he liberated it from human possession and declared that it owns itself. The tree sits in downtown Athens on the corner of Dearning and Finley Streets.

Colonel William H. Jackson, the son of former Georgia Governor James Jackson, had fond childhood memories of a white oak on his family’s property. So he wrote up a will that gave it self-ownership. The will read, in part:

I, W. H. Jackson, of the county of Clarke, of the one part, and the oak tree … of the county of Clarke, of the other part: Witnesseth, That the said W. H. Jackson for and in consideration of the great affection which he bears said tree, and his great desire to see it protected has conveyed, and by these presents do convey unto the said oak tree entire possession of itself and of all land within eight feet [2.4 m] of it on all sides.

The first printed reports of the tree owning itself were published in a local newspaper on August 12, 1890. The article stated that Col. Jackson deeded possession of the tree to itself as well as the land within 8 feet of its trunk.

The tree is adorned with a famous plaque that reads:

FOR AND IN CONSIDERATION

OF THE GREAT LOVE I BEAR

THIS TREE AND THE GREAT DESIRE

I HAVE FOR ITS PROTECTION

FOR ALL TIME, I CONVEY ENTIRE

POSSESSION OF ITSELF AND

ALL LAND WITHIN EIGHT FEET

OF THE TREE ON ALL SIDES

– WILLIAM H. JACKSON (c. 1832)

Sadly, in 1942, the tree fell over in a windstorm. To keep the tradition alive, members of the Junior Ladies Garden Club of Athens planted acorns from the original tree and began growing a second-generation white oak.

On December 4, 1946, the Junior Ladies Garden Club of Athens planted the sapling, which is often referred to as the Son of the Tree That Owns Itself. Today, it stands as tall as its father, rising 70 feet tall, and according to local tradition, it also owns itself.

u201cThe story behind the Tree That Owns Itself in Athens, Georgia: https://t.co/fDskRNbAzqu201d

— Garden & Gun (@Garden & Gun)
1606920004

However, according to U.S. law, the tree has no legal rights.

“Trees have not been recognized as having legal rights in the U.S.,” Mari Margil, associate director for Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund (CELDF) told How Stuff Works. “Some (trees) may have a certain level of protection that is different from other tree species, but that is not the same as having a legal right.”

But that hasn’t stopped the Athens community from caring for the Son of the Tree That Owns Itself.

“We … like our quirky objects,” says Steven Brown of the Athens Historical Society. “I think most Athenians genuinely love their city and love anything that stands out as symbolizing it.”

Garth Hudson, 85, made a name for himself being a quiet presence in a raucous band … The Band, that is. Hudson played organ, accordion, and the occasional saxophone in an outfit initially known as The Hawks, which became known as The Band after backing Bob Dylan in the mid-’60s when he controversially went electric.

The Band would also back Dylan on his famous “Basement Tapes” sessions in 1967 that were eventually released in 1975.

After being introduced to the world through Dylan, The Band made a name for itself as one of the most talented ensembles in rock history, recording classic songs including “The Weight,” “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down,” and “Up on Cripple Creek.”

Hudson changed rock history by being one of the first few to play a Hammond organ on stage. He was known as the “mad scientist” in the band who joined only if he could give music lessons to fellow members Levon Helm, Rick Danko, Richard Manuel and Robbie Robertson.

u201cOn this day in 1976, The Band played their final concert at the Winterland Ballroom in San Francisco. It was filmed by Martin Scorsese for The Last Waltz, including this phenomenal version of The Weight with The Staple Singersu201d

— Birmingham 81 (@Birmingham 81)
1669363601

Hudson also composed music that appeared in Martin Scorsese’s masterpieces “Raging Bull” and “The King of Comedy.”

Today, Hudson lives in an assisted living facility, and recently fans started an online campaign to show appreciation by sending him cards. But even though Hudson is in the last chapter of his life, he recently revealed that he’s far from finished. On Sunday, April 16, he surprised the rock world by performing at a house show hosted by musician Sarah Perrotta in Kingston, New York.

He performed Duke Ellington’s “Sophisticated Lady” on piano during the show. The footage shows that although Hudson is frail, the music in him is still as strong as ever.

u201cGarth Hudson played a surprise set last night at a house concert in Kingston, NY, hosted by the musician Sarah Perrotta. It was his first public performance in many years, and Perrotta has kindly shared the video. Beautiful.u201d

— HarryHew (@HarryHew)
1681766284

There are few people who don’t remember the tragedy of Sandy Hook, an elementary school in Newtown, Connecticut, that lost 20 children and six adults to a school shooter. The school name has become synonymous with the shooting in 2012, but some of the survivors are growing up and hoping to work towards a bright future.

Isaiah Márquez-Greene is one of those students. He was 8 years old at the time of the shooting and lost his younger sister who was 6. Now at the age of 18, Márquez-Greene has dreams of going off to college to become a lawyer, and that dream just got a little bit closer.

While the teen was attending a hockey game for the Rangers, he was expecting the opportunity to get one of his favorite players’ jerseys. What happened next floored him.

Márquez-Greene stood on the ice at Madison Square Garden holding a sign that read “Trouba 8,” which is the last name and number of team captain Jacob Trouba. After the announcer said his name, Trouba skated over to the teen who was wearing a purple Rangers jersey and introduced himself before taking the jersey off of his back to give to Márquez-Greene.

The future lawyer told Trouba that he’d been a fan for a while before the hockey player asked him to come to the bench with him so he could sign the jersey. But when they got to the bench, Trouba asked Márquez-Greene to sit down.

“Take a seat. I gotta talk to ya,” Trouba said. “I know your story, I feel for you. You’re an amazing human.”

Trouba then pulled out a folder with a scholarship from the Garden of Dreams Foundation to help cover the tuition at the University of Connecticut’s Special Program in Law, where Márquez-Greene will be attending this fall, according to CBS News.

The entire moment between Trouba and Márquez-Greene can be seen below:

u201cIsaiah: Youu2019re our inspiration. nnWe canu2019t wait to see you right back here after Troubs watches you graduate law school.u201d

— New York Rangers (@New York Rangers)
1681441346

After taunting Ron DeSantis with an ad featuring his alleged predilection for eating pudding with his fingers, the team behind Donald Trump‘s 2024 campaign is reportedly engaged in full-blown psychological warfare with the Florida governor.

On Tuesday, Team Trump unveiled a series of key endorsements in DeSantis’ own state in an effort to drive him out of the Republican primary. There was reportedly heavy debate over when to reveal the endorsements, which would undermine DeSantis in the eyes of the Florida GOP, and at one point Trump was personally overseeing the rollout in a gleeful effort to stick it to the governor.

Via Rolling Stone:

Previously, the idea was to release the endorsements at once, likely Thursday or Friday of this week. However, by the weekend, plans had changed: It was decided that the Trump campaign would drip them out at different points in the coming days — including on Tuesday when DeSantis would be on the ground in Washington, D.C., trying to lock down his own endorsements from the Florida delegation. The ploy was part of a deliberate effort to, in the words of one of the sources familiar with the matter, “embarrass and mindf*ck DeSantis” as much as possible, via a steady drip.

To add insult to injury, the Trump endorsements arrived on the heels of Disney firing another successful shot at DeSantis in their ongoing war. After DeSantis threatened to build a state prison next to Walt Disney World on Monday, the House of Mouse announced a massive Pride event hours later in a sign that Disney is not the least bit intimidated by the Florida governor’s tough guy act.

(Via Rolling Stone)

The Sacramento Kings leave their home stand at Golden One Center up 2-0 on the Golden State Warriors, a widely unexpected result. Making the matter even more unexpected is that the Kings have largely been catapulted by a strong defensive performance.

This series has provided a remarkable inflection point of the elasticity of spacing, unbridled pace, and determined freneticism. During the earlier game on Monday, the Philadelphia 76ers turned the tide against Brooklyn’s ball screens by sitting back in a 2-3 zone, all 5 players planted inside the arc.

There are few more disparate images then the one provided by Philadelphia’s defense sitting back and what we routinely saw in Sacramento from both the Kings and Warriors, trying to combat each’s high-octane attack.

Shotmaking defined the first game in spite of incredibly active defense from both sides. Game 2 levied opposing results, as many of the “in your face” shots were further off the target. Per Cleaning the Glass, the Kings held the Warriors to 104 points per 100 possessions in Game 2, staunchly below their 116.6 mark across the regular season. That kind of improvement on the defensive end begs the question: How’d they do it?

For starters, Davion Mitchell played just over 28 minutes in the game, well above his season average and by far the most he’s played in a game in which Fox was healthy. Per Cleaning the Glass, the Kings have employed lineups featuring Mitchell and Fox for 67 possessions in their first two playoff games, which accounts for 13.2 percent of their total possessions played together this season.

Mitchell and Fox took turns pressing Curry full court, the first and perhaps most important staple in Mike Brown’s gameplan against his old team. After every make, Mitchell or Fox picked up Curry, and all the more interestingly, the Kings played a near full court man. To take away some of the gaps that the Warriors take advantage of with their quick passing, razor sharp cutting, and crips ball movement, the Kings opted to work to take away most kick-ahead opportunities and outlet passes, rather than simply sprinting back to designated spots on the floor.

The results were stunning. The Warriors were able to slip through the cracks at times to get into their quick-hitter sets, but the Kings were by and large able to ramp up the pace while also trimming the margins that higher pace can provide an offense. With tight rotations and frankly, the highest level of intensity we’ve seen from them all year, as cliche as it sounds, their pressure gave Golden State consistent trouble.

The Warriors attempted to set ball screens higher and higher, a fascinating problem-solving effort in real time, but the Kings were game. The further the Warriors tried to stretch out, the further out the Kings were willing to apply pressure. It’s not often you see a team playing out at the level of the screen at halfcourt.

Every player deserves praise for what Sacramento put forth defensively, and Domantas Sabonis was pivotal. He played extremely well out on an island, occupying on late switches if a guard got screened out of the picture, hedged onto ball-handlers, prevented middle penetration, and showed with active hands and quick feet a the level of the screen to deter actions. Fox was key as a point of attack pressure point, but his off-ball defense was huge, including a massive block at the rim late in the fourth. He often played as the main back line tagger and was huge covering ground.

Mitchell, in particular, has been essential to unlocking their entire defensive plan, starting with the aforementioned 94 feet of hell. Every straight up ball-screen for Curry against Sacramento’s bigs received a show or hedge with Mitchell running overtop the screen in rear pursuit. The two-man game to contain Curry was executed as well as one could hope against a first ballot Hall of Famer. Pressure and aggression on defense unlocks the ability to cause havoc and force turnovers, but also opens the door to create easy looks if the positioning and timing are off. If that game played out 50 times, I’m not sure the Kings could recreate that level of performance without a drop off in intensity, timing, and rotations as a whole.

The tagger was always there to catch the slipping roller, arms were always up with hands out, the physicality straddled a fine line, and off-ball defenders remained alert. It takes all five players in tune to stifle an action, and in Game 2, Sacramento’s defense was “on a string” as coaches and players love to call it.

We’ve seen it time and time again against the Warriors how they take advantage of lapses as a defense’s focus begins to wane. No, this isn’t the same team that won a title, but the principles are still there alongside the top end talent. It is so easy to get burned by a minute mistake and get exploited for a run, and the Kings deserve an immense amount of praise for 48 minutes of being stupidly locked in in a way that would draw a grin from Jimmy Butler.

In the final 5 minutes of the game, the Warriors went to their bread and butter, running staggered screens for Curry with Klay Thompson as one of the screeners. In back to back possessions, the principles we witnessed all game bore out for the Kings.

On the first play, Mitchell picks up Steph off a make and mirrors him full court. Kevon Looney and Thompson set up in staggered screens with Curry dribbling middle to set up the flare screen for Thompson to take advantage of how the Kings are defending Steph.

By having Looney as the first screener and Klay as the second, it adds a small gray area the Warriors exploit. Sabonis is staying home because he isn’t the immediate defender on the latter screen, denying the roll. Monk bumps out and switches onto Curry as Mitchell chases in pursuit. The problem is, this abandons Klay, who flares out into the slot for the open pitchback; cash.

Play 2, Mitchell once again picks up Curry full court. This time however, the Warriors angle their staggers up to open up Klay ghosting under Looney to the slot. Looney angled higher and stepping back could put Curry on an island against Malik Monk, or open up Klay Thompson again. As soon as Looney steps back, Mitchell calls out for Monk to switch, recovering back to and taking away any open pass to Klay. Monk holds his own and immediately gets a hand on Curry, keeping a wide base and not giving an angle. Curry calls for the re-screen from Looney and Sabonis shows as Monk gets caught by the screen.

Curry dragging the play as far as he can to the slot makes the recovery harder and a further distance to cover, so Fox flies up to take away the Looney roll and Sabonis extends his recovery back to Gary Payton II. The action is stifled and Andrew Wiggins sets an impromptu screen to open up Curry curling to the corner as the clock winds and he misses a contested pull-up.

It seems small, but the read and react from the Kings on the fly after getting burned the play before by a similar look was remarkably impressive. It was made more impressive by the multiple efforts and reactions to stifle the Warriors multiple times in the same possession to string them out into deep waters late in the clock.

Multiple impressive, intense, intuitive, and planned out efforts won the game for the Sacramento Kings as they put together arguably their best defensive performance of the season considering the moment. For a team that faced understandable questions about how their defense would hold up in the postseason, they’ve shown through two games that intense effort and full commitment to a gameplan can make up for what they lack in individual defensive prowess. I can’t wait to see how Golden State tries to counter and what the Kings have in store as the series wanes on. As evidenced by the double drag set, they’ll have some tricks up their sleeves for the Sacramento pressure, testing the young Kings’ commitment to their principles.

Beau is afraid, but Joaquin Phoenix isn’t afraid of looking “f*cking stupid.”

While appearing on The A24 Podcast with Beau Is Afraid writer and director Ari Aster, the Joker star discussed how he prepared himself for a scene.

“It got me spinning in a panic,” Phoenix told Aster. “[I’m a] little reluctant to say this, but because it sounds so f*cking stupid and just like actor sh*t, but I remember, and I was thinking, what I did before was I did a scene, but I wasn’t really volatile. I didn’t really put myself out there. I was still nervous. In some way, I was controlling a little bit. I was controlling what people thought about me. I didn’t want to let people down.”

Phoenix remembers “realizing I had to do something that was f*cking stupid, and I just so didn’t want to do it, but I just knew. And I just started screaming, just the most intense guttural pain scream that I could before we were shooting sitting there because I had to just fully humiliate myself.” That’s when he realized that he couldn’t “look any more stupid than you do now.”

You can listen to the podcast below.

Beau Is Afraid is out in theaters now.

(Via IndieWire)