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The Orlando Magic are so deep into a youth movement that one of the team’s veterans in soon-to-be 28-year-old Gary Harris. Outside of Terrence Ross, no player on the roster has been in the league longer than Harris, who is about to enter his eighth year in the NBA and his second full year with the Magic, who acquired him at the trade deadline in 2021 from the Denver Nuggets.

Unfortunately for the Magic, it sounds like they won’t have Harris’ services for a period of time. According to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, Harris suffered a torn meniscus in his left knee. The team is still in the process of gathering information on how long he will be sidelined, with Harris set to “undergo further evaluation.”

While losing Harris is a tough pill to swallow, Orlando has a number of young guards who could benefit from more playing time. That’s especially the case for second-year guard Jalen Suggs, who the team selected with the fifth overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft and had his growing pains during his rookie campaign. Orlando also has Markelle Fultz, Cole Anthony, and R.J. Hampton among its core of younger players in the backcourt.

Harris averaged 11.1 points in 28.4 minutes per game last season and connected on 38.4 percent of his attempts from three. He agreed to a 2-year contract extension with the team this offseason.

Is Donald Trump about to belatedly get his comeuppance? That’s what a lot of people think. The former president’s attempts to spin his latest potentially criminal act — absconding with highly classified government documents, lying about returning them all, and storing them in places like magazines — hasn’t been going so well, and it might even be worse than believed. While there are plenty of op-eds about this one finally being curtains for the big guy, add Jon Stewart to the list of skeptics.

The former Daily Show host and current star of The Problem with Jon Stewart used part of his most recent show to effectively say “I’ll believe it when I see it.”

“What blows my mind about this whole thing is: Everybody’s got that thing that’s like, ‘Is this it? Is this the thing?’ And I keep trying to explain to people, ‘No. It’s not,’” Stewart said to his younger co-hosts. “Why does anybody believe that there will be accountability in this man’s life on this Earth?”

Stewart laid out just a couple of the deeds that should have gotten him busted but unaccountably didn’t. “He f*cked a porn star while his wife was giving birth. He paid the porn star $130,000 to keep it quiet. His wife is like, ‘Boys will be boys!’ And his lawyer goes to jail for it,” Stewart said. “His accountant is going to jail. Everyone around him goes to jail. He’s like the Mr. Magoo of absolved sins.”

He then compared everyone to those parents who always threaten to discipline their misbehaving child but can’t — the ones who say they’re counting to three but only get so far as two-and-a-half. “That’s who we are now,” he said.

Stewart also pointed out how he keeps trying to use evidence of his guilt as evidence of his innocence, as he’s done with the newly released affidavit that makes him look bad, even with all the redactions. “It’s like O.J. Simpson saying, ‘Look at this knife. It’s got a little blood on it, but c’mon!’” he joked.

You can watch Stewart talk Trump’s fate in the video above. That subject begins in earnest around the 4:45 mark.

Anthony Edwards is among the NBA’s most physical and explosive players. The Minnesota Timberwolves’ guard’s ability to both out-muscle opponents and blow by them is rare, and it’s part of the reason why he is viewed as one of the league’s most promising youngsters.

Edwards has received a ton of praise over the course of his professional career, and during a recent appearance on Andre Iguodala and Evan Turner’s “Point Forward” podcast, Dwyane Wade gave him quite the compliment. Wade guessed, just off of seeing how physically imposing he is, that the 6’4 Edwards is actually 6’8, and was stunned to learn that isn’t the case.

“I’m 6’4, he’s about what, 6’7, 6’8?” Wade asked.

“He’s not that tall, he’s only about 6’3 and a half,” Iguodala responded, which made Wade scream “WHAT?”

“When I played him in the season, I heard he grew again,” Iguodala said while Wade had a stunned look on his face. “So, I’m expecting to see a kid that’s looking me eye-to-eye or above. And I’m looking down on him, and I’m [like], ‘Bro, you’re only 6’4, you didn’t grow that much.’ He was like, ‘Nah, who said I grew?’”

Iguodala went on to say this is part of what makes Edwards such an impressive young player, and recalled a story of being on the receiving end of an Edwards in-and-out dribble that he was completely helpless against, going as far as to say that “it’s time for me to wrap it up” and comparing his ability to do some things on the floor to Wade.

It is Week 0 of the college football season. While there aren’t a ton of games happening, there are a few choice options on the schedule, with the most prominent of the bunch being the Big Ten West battle between the Northwestern Wildcats and the Nebraska Cornhuskers. The game isn’t taking place in Evanston or Lincoln — instead, the two teams hopped on some planes and flew across the pond to Dublin for the latest college football game to happen in Ireland.

The game did take a very interesting turn at one point, and it had absolutely nothing to do with the football game. Apparently, the computers went down at Aviva Stadium, which meant that no one could buy beer. Instead of preventing people from getting something to drink, however, the solution to this problem was apparently to just hand out free cups of beer.

As it turns out, people like when they are offered free beer. Video recorded in the stadium of insanely long lines and packed concession areas, as fans, well, imagine you were told “hey the computers are down and they’re giving everyone free beer, wanna go grab one?”

An earnest congratulations to everyone who paid thousands of dollars to fly to Ireland for this game and got a free beer out of it.

Shaquille O’Neal is a flat earther. Well, he’s either a flat earth person or he has a lot of fun doing a bit, but here is what he said about the matter back in 2017 when Kyrie Irving made headlines for expressing his belief that the world is flat.

“It’s true. The Earth is flat,” O’Neal said. “There’s three ways to manipulate the mind: What you read, what you see, and what you hear. In school, first thing they teach us, ‘Oh, Columbus discovered America.’ But when you got there, it was some fair-skinned people with long hair smoking on peace pipes. So what does that tell you?”

Anyway, Shaq is decidedly at it again, as he appeared on an Australian radio show this week and got asked about this. When asked if it was real or a joke, Shaq said “it’s a theory” before diving into why, exactly, he posited this theory. It involves flying, and also, he has a bonus theory involving a lake.

“For example, I flew 20 hours today, not once did I go this way, I didn’t go straight,” Shaq said. “I didn’t tip over, I didn’t go upside-down.

“It’s still a straight line, you don’t go under,” Shaq said. “Another theory, how they said the world is spinning? I’ve been living in a house on a lake for 30 years, not once did the lake rotate to the left or rotate to the right.”

The most important thing here is this clip gives us reason to post the funniest moment in Inside the NBA history, which is the time Shaq asked how long of a flight it is to the moon.

If you think The Righteous Gemstones is too far-fetched, you obviously forgot about the Jerry Falwell Jr. sex scandal. In 2020, a pool boy for the son of the infamous evangelist revealed he spent six years being one-third of a throuple with Jr. and his wife, Becki. The furor was such that he resigned from Liberty University, his dad’s school, where he had been president. Now he’s inspired what may become the next big Hulu documentary.

As per Variety, the streamer has set a Nov. 1 date for God Forbid: The Sex Scandal That Brought Down a Dynasty, which is being made by Adam McKay and Cocaine Cowboys’ Billy Corben. Giancarlo Granda, said pool boy, is said to be closely involved in the film, which will reportedly take his point of view. The film comes on the heels of another much-discussed Hulu doc, Victoria’s Secret: Angels and Demons.

Earlier this year, Falwell Jr. attempted to rescue his reputation, blaming some of his weirder antics during his throuple years on one thing: the testosterone supplements he’d been taking in an effort to win his lonely wife back from the hunky pool boy with whom she’d have sex while he watched. It’s not the only not-exactly-Christ-like behavior Falwell Jr. has gotten up to. Back in 2016, after dozens of women came forward, claiming then-presidential candidate Donald Trump had engaged in sexual misconduct, Jr. said he’d still vote for him, even if they were true. Just as God intended.

God Forbid: The Sex Scandal That Brought Down a Dynasty will be released on Hulu on Nov. 1.

(Via Variety)

This article originally appeared on 07.11.22

Ever look at your parents’ high school yearbooks and think people looked so much older back then? All of the teenagers look like they’re in their mid-30s and the teachers who are 50 look like they’re 80.

When we watch older movies, even those from the 1980s, the teenagers appear to be a lot older as well.

Why is it that they looked so much older? Was life harder? Did people act more mature? Did they spend more time outdoors and less time playing video games? Is it their sense of fashion? Were they all smokers?

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Educator Michael Stevens, who runs the super-popular Vsauce YouTube channel, explains the phenomenon in a new video called, “Did people used to look older?” In the video, he explains that people in the past appear a lot older due to a phenomenon known as retrospective aging.

When we see people in the past, they are wearing outdated styles that we associate with older people; therefore, we think they have aged rapidly. For example, a teenager in the 1950s may have been in fashion while wearing thick Buddy Holly-style glasses.

But as people age, they tend to cling to the fashion of their youth. So many people of that generation continued to wear the Buddy Holly-style glasses into their 50s. So when younger people see those glasses they see them as old people’s glasses and not a hip kid from the ’50s.

So in the photo from the ’50s, the teen appears to look a lot older because our perspective has been tainted by time.

But it isn’t all just an illusion. Stevens also points out that people did age faster back in the day due to differences in nutrition, lifestyle and medicine.

This article originally appeared on 01.28.22

Kids might say the darnedest things, but occasionally they also give sage advice.

A teacher in the United Kingdom by the name of George Pointon has made a name for himself by tweeting his 6-year-old students’ comical, candid and sometimes profound answers to weekly questions.

Or, as he humorously writes in his Twitter bio, “exploiting children’s imagination for likes.”

One of my favorite threads so far is when Pointon asked his students to create a “mantra to help us through life.” The teacher posted each student’s response, along with some commentary.

It’s all some noteworthy food for thought, if not harmless, wholesome entertainment.

Best of all, the genuine affection Pointon has for his students is undeniable.

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Rory: “Don’t stop running”

Pointon: “The other day I grunted when picking up my keys from the table. If I didn’t stop running, I’d die. Rory has gone for the Forrest Gump approach here. It seemed to work for him. Forrest that is. I’ve seen Rory run into multiple trees. Persistent tho.”

Rory might be running into trees, but some spot-on perspectives on life as well.

JJ: “Only be friends with people who you want to be friends with”

Pointon: “This gets forgotten about in adults. Sometimes we are friends with people out of convenience or history. Look around and ask yourself, “does this person positively impact my life?”. JJ has his head screwed on.”

JJ understands the value of authentic friendship. And, as Pointon reflected, setting boundaries and letting go is something so many adults struggle with, though there are countless sources noting its importance.

Jack: “You might [get] told off but sometimes you’re not doing anything wrong”

Pointon: “His anti-authority attitude is refreshing as it is scary. He’s right tho. Fight for what you believe in and it’s never wrong. Although Jack believes he can back flip over a lorry, so I don’t know.”

What’s a lorry, you may ask? Turns out it’s a British term for an 18-wheeler. I didn’t know either.

Ravi: “Some people don’t have anything so be happy you have everything”

Pointon: “We truly are in the presence of greatness. There are world leaders without this clarity. Step back and look at what we take for granted, you’ll be amazed. Ravi elevates people around him. He’s a special lad.”

I believe this was a major theme that “Don’t Look Up” was trying to convey. Well done, Ravi.

Lola: “You can’t swim in a sink but a bath is just a big sink”

Pointon: “I believe she’s talking about perspective. One person’s baby step is another’s giant leap. Lola moves at her pace and is proud of the people around her moving at theirs. Otherwise you’ll lose a one horse race.”

I’m gonna assume Lola is also a proponent of the “just keep swimming” mentality.

Emma: “The people who don’t talk, still have something to say”

Pointon: “Empty vessels makes the most noise. Emma is quiet and has grown in confidence since I’ve known her. She is an advocate for letting people be themselves. A true woman of her time. She’ll make an excellent leader.”

Hear, hear for quiet confidence, Emma.

Belle: “Flowers live in the ground, we live in a house. Everyone lives somewhere.”

Pointon: “It’s a huge, overwhelming concept to think every individual lives an equally complex and rich life as you. Knowing that everyone is coming from something make[s] you see we’re all the same. One team.”

A lesson in empathy, taught by Belle.

Mikey: “Mud hills are fun but also muddy”

Pointon: “I’d never heard of the term “mud hill” but I assumed it’s a hill, that is muddy. I was wrong. It’s basically a pile of mud mashed up and used to throw at cars or people…So if you see a boy holding a mud ball with a devilish grin, run.”

No such thing as good, clean fun, according to Mikey.

Zahra: “Some things are cool and some things aren’t”

Pointon: “There is no messing about with Zahra. A woman of precision. She wanted to add that if you find things cool, then it is. Which in itself is a pretty cool thing to say. If you enjoy something, don’t let other[s] bring you down.”

Zahra is clearly the Queen of Cool.

Susanna: “Don’t start a fire in a forrest”

Pointon: “I take this as, understanding your situation and objectively being able to know what is benefitting you and what isn’t. But Susanna confirmed that there is no subtext. Just don’t start fires in forrests because it goes whoosh, okay.”

I also love how Pointon was loyal to Susanna’s spelling of the word “forrest.” That dedication right there.

According to indy100, Pointon protects the identity of his young pupils by using made-up aliases. But reassured, the answers provided are all too real.

Pointon told indy100, “School can sometimes make you think quite linear, like there are only right or wrong answers but, especially with them being so young, their thoughts are actually really abstract.”

Passion, purpose, and a dash of social media stardom have allowed Pointon to help raise awareness around children’s issues. Last November he worked with the Anti-Bullying Alliance, asking the question “what makes you unique?”

For Zahra, it was her two different eye colors. For Susanna, it was the fact that she could fit 100 grapes in her mouth (Pointon isn’t so sure, but encouraging nonetheless).

Pointon hopes to work with even more charities, using his platform to “have conversations with children about things that need to be spoken about, or things that are going on in the world and get their point of view on things.”

In the meantime, you can catch all of Pointon’s thoughtful questions, along with his students’ endearing and brilliant answers, on Twitter.

How hard is to make a fourquel in a popular film franchise? If it’s Star Trek, then apparently it ain’t easy. It’s been six years since Star Trek Beyond, a more stripped-down entry in the big screen wing of the franchise. Since then, there’s been questions over whether there would even be fourth film. At one point, Quentin Tarantino even threatened to get on board. Finally, last summer, they seemed to find a director and order was restored. Or was it?

As per The Hollywood Reporter, WandaVision Matt Shakman, who had been tasked with getting the Chris Pine-led crew back on the USS Enterprise, is out. The reason? He’s jumping to another franchise. Shakman, a TV vet who attracted attention for helming all nine episodes of the genre-blending Marvel show, is now in talks to helm their latest attempt at a Fantastic Four movie — the one that may or may not feature a Doctor Doom played by no less than Howard Stern.

That means Shakman had to ditch Captain Kirk and team due to scheduling reasons. Presumably he can’t pull a James Gunn and direct two big different franchise movies, one after another. And mind you, Shakman has never directed a big screen movie before. In any case, looks like the Star Trek films need a new J.J. Abrams.

(Via THR)

Few sons are as dedicated to their fathers as Don Jr. is to his, and no wonder: He’s not really employable as anything other than a Trump cheerleader anyway. (Or as a steak hawker.) For the record, he’s thrown himself into that gig with relish. But sometimes he does the job far too well. On Friday, after a heavily redacted — and no matter what the big guy says, pretty damning — copy of the FBI affidavit was made public, Trump’s oldest son made the kind of gross joke none of us ever deserved to see.

Don Jr. took to Instagram, posting one of those highly, disturbingly unflattering pictures of his dad during the controversial golf Saudi tournament he hosted at his Bedminster, New Jersey course. But Don Jr. had added a little flourish: a long, vertical black strip running over his crotch, extending down to his knees. The caption? “Redact this!!!”

For the record, Don Jr. is far from the only Trump crony who’s recently obsessed over his nether regions. News anchor-turned-MAGA candidate Kari Lake recently talked about Trump and Ron DeSantis’ “BDE,” or Big Dick Energy. Trump himself has made hyperbolic claims about his Malcolm Gladwell, including on television during a primary debate back in 2016. And then there’s Stormy Daniels’ colorful, also unflattering description of…anyway, there is no worse topic than Trump’s withering member. Let’s never speak of it again and may this be the last time it ever comes up.

(Via The Daily Beast)