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Despite being hailed as a hero of the common man, Tucker Carlson went on an unhinged rant against the homeless during his Fox News show on Tuesday night. In a heartless diatribe, the conservative anchor referred to America’s homeless population as “beggars,” “anti-social parasites,” and “crackheads,” which as loud of a racist dogwhistle as it gets. Bemoaning nationwide initiatives to help find housing for the homeless, Carlson blasted liberal leaders for making America look like… Calcutta?

“Everywhere, at every intersection, there are beggars,” Carlson ranted. “This is what we used to imagine India was like. But this is not Calcutta. This is New York and San Francisco and Austin, Texas. So the question is, what happened? And the short answer is our leaders did this.”

Via Mediaite:

He noted Seattle allocated just $10 million to its small business stabilization fund meant to prevent companies from going bankrupt during Covid lockdown.

“So the city’s priorities could not be clearer than that. You lavish money on the least productive, most anti-social parasites in our society and then you punish Americans who work for a living. Got it?”

After Carlson’s unhinged rant hit Twitter, the reactions were swift as people dragged the Fox News commentator for his heartless view on the homeless that many pointed out flies in the face of Carlson’s supposed Christian values. There were also numerous mentions of his callousness towards American veterans who are often among the homeless population.

You can see the reactions to Tucker below:

(Via Mediaite)

Gunna’s wave continues to crest. The Atlanta rapper’s latest album DS4EVER edged out The Weeknd’s Dawn FM to become the No.1-selling album this week after dropping the singles “Too Easy,” “Livin Wild,” and “Pushin P.” Today, he keeps the rollout rolling out with the video for “Life Of Sin,” which is presented as a moody, stripped-down live performance in a similar style to his COLORS performance of “Top Off.”

Posted up in a white-walled performance space, Gunna foregoes any fancy adornments and he stands and delivers the motivational lyrics from “Life Of Sin” wearing a vest and a beret. A chilly autumn scene is projected on the walls and ceiling behind him, and a sprinkling of fallen leaves provides a lonely pop of color in the black-and-white photography, supporting the contemplative mood of the song itself.

Part of Gunna’s strategy to get DS4EVER to the top of the albums chart was to release a reshuffled deluxe edition mid-week, adding four new songs amid the original 19. It clearly paid off, buoying him to his second no. 1 with just 2,300 sales difference between Gunna and second-place, The Weeknd.

DS4EVER is out now via 300 and Atlantic. Get it here.

Gunna is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

The 2020-21 season was encouraging for the Charlotte Hornets in myriad ways, ranging from the star potential of LaMelo Ball to a berth in the NBA’s inaugural play-in extravaganza. Though the Hornets didn’t make any gigantic moves in advance of the 2021-22 campaign, internal development led to optimistic projections, including many forecasting another postseason visit for Charlotte. After a strong start at 13-8, the Hornets experienced a swoon in late November and December, losing nine of ten games to slip below the .500 mark. Since then, however, Charlotte has found its stride, posting an 8-3 record and climbing within 1.5 games of the No. 6 seed in the Eastern Conference.

Offense has carried the Hornets throughout the season, scoring more than 1.12 points per possession. Charlotte plays at a blistering pace, the second-fastest tempo in the NBA, and James Borrego’s team leans on its youth and athleticism. Charlotte isn’t shy about hoisting from long range, ranking in the top six of the league in three-point attempts (38 per game) and accuracy (37.3 per game), and the Hornets have top five marks in assists (27.1 per game), turnovers (13 per game), and assist-to-turnover ratio (2.09).

Charlotte has several quality options on offense, but the breakout of Miles Bridges is perhaps the most prominent reason for the team’s explosion. Bridges is averaging 20 points and 7.3 rebounds per game as restricted free agency looms, and he has been able to increase usage while maintaining a strong true shooting mark of 57.5 percent this season. The former lottery pick has a career-best 14.9 percent rate with only a 9.4 percent turnover rate, and the Hornets are nine points per 100 possessions better with Bridges on the floor, the largest gap on the roster. Bridges’ early-season performance was already turning heads, but the hyper-athletic forward produced a headline-grabbing performance against the New York Knicks on Monday, putting up a career-high 38 points to go along with 12 rebounds and five assists. Elsewhere, Ball is continuing his strong trajectory, averaging 19.4 points, 7.6 assists, and 7.2 rebounds per game, and the two-man combination of Ball and Bridges has many buzzing around the league.

For the full campaign, Charlotte’s defense has been bothersome, and the team’s lack of true rim protection and interior resistance is notable for both the present and future. However, the Hornets have allowed only 106.5 points per 100 possessions in the last 11 games, creating 16.9 turnovers per contest along the way. Charlotte is in the top five of the NBA in turnover creation for the season and, while the mark from the last 11 contests almost certainly won’t sustain, the Hornets are at least taking advantage of aggressiveness and speed to minimize overall damage.

In glancing at the standings, it may be a stretch to flat-out project the Hornets as a team that will avoid the play-in tournament. After all, five of the six teams ahead of Charlotte are fully established, and the sixth (Cleveland) is playing exceedingly well in the first half. However, the No. 7 spot isn’t a bad place to be, and Charlotte has ever reason for long-term optimism.

Where do the Hornets slot in this week’s DIME power rankings? Let’s take a look.

1. Phoenix Suns (34-9, Last week — 1st)

The Suns are 4-0 on a five-game road trip, with the final game looming in Dallas on Wednesday. Phoenix is a clear No. 1 at this stage, with the best record in the league, the best recent form, and the second-best net rating (+7.9) as the halfway point moves to the rearview mirror.

2. Memphis Grizzlies (31-15, Last week — 2nd)

Memphis finally lost a game this week, falling flat in a 27-point loss to Dallas. On cue, the Grizzlies bounced back with a very nice win over the shorthanded Bulls on MLK Day, and Memphis is riding high with the third-best record in the NBA. Now, they begin this week with an intriguing road test in Milwaukee on Wednesday.

3. Golden State Warriors (31-12, Last week — 3rd)

This ranking is out of deference to the full-season profile, but the Warriors are 2-5 in the last seven games. Draymond Green will be out for a little while, Steph Curry has cooled, and Golden State’s offense is truly scuffling. It’s not at the panic point or anything, but the Warriors aren’t playing like they were in October and November.

4. Utah Jazz (29-15, Last week — 4th)

With the Warriors slowing, the Jazz were in a strong position to jump, but Utah is also battling issues. The Jazz are 1-5 in the last six games and, while Rudy Gobert’s return helps the defense immediately, Utah lost to the previously aimless Lakers on Monday.

5. Dallas Mavericks (25-19, Last week — 7th)

Right after a glowing picture in this space, the Mavs flopped in New York. Dallas did pick it up from there, though, with three straight wins and a 9-1 mark in the last 10 games. Dallas also crashed the top five of the NBA in defensive rating, allowing only 1.07 points per possession for the season.

6. Cleveland Cavaliers (27-18, Last week — 11th)

Cleveland was always going to cool off at some point, and that happened in late December and early January. In a credit to the Cavs, they’ve bounced back with five straight wins, including four on the road, and that run was capped by a nice win over Brooklyn on Monday. The Cavs have a road test against the Bulls on Wednesday, but there are friendly spots on the schedule the rest of January to keep racking up wins.

7. Miami Heat (28-16, Last week — 10th)

This might be too low for Miami with how they’ve played. The Heat are 5-1 in the last six games, sweeping a set with Atlanta and beating both Phoenix and Toronto. Miami will also benefit from the return of Bam Adebayo, and five of the next contests are at home for the Heat.

8. Philadelphia 76ers (25-18, Last week — 6th)

The Sixers are 10-3 in the last 13 games. That speaks for itself, but Joel Embiid has 31+ points in 11 of those 13 games, and he is out of his mind right now. The Ben Simmons situation still looms over everything, but Philadelphia has proven to be a good basketball team without him as long as Embiid is on the floor.

9. Charlotte Hornets (24-20, Last week — 13th)

Charlotte is rolling, and the Hornets have a chance to showcase that on national TV in Boston on Wednesday. After that, Charlotte has some home games against Oklahoma City and Atlanta, and the Hornets don’t play a top-tier team (at least by record) until February.

10. Chicago Bulls (27-15, Last week — 5th)

Injuries have played a part, but the Bulls are on a four-game losing streak. Granted, all four losses came against quality opponents, but three came by double digits and a couple weren’t competitive at all. One of the themes this week is good teams scuffling, and that applies to the Bulls.

11. Brooklyn Nets (27-16, Last week — 9th)

Kevin Durant is going to be out for a few weeks with a knee issue, and that might spell trouble. The majority of the next couple weeks is on the road for Brooklyn, paving the way for Kyrie Irving to play, but the Nets are a different (read: worse) team without Durant and they’ll need to be in the mode to simply stay afloat while he’s out.

12. Milwaukee Bucks (27-19, Last week — 8th)

Jrue Holiday has missed the last six games and the Bucks are 2-4 in that stretch. He may return on Wednesday but, with Brook Lopez already out, Milwaukee isn’t its full-strength self, and the results have wobbled a bit. There is a level of respect the Bucks command as the reigning champs, especially when Giannis Antetokounmpo is firing on all cylinders, but they haven’t dominated.

13. Boston Celtics (23-22, Last week — 16th)

As noted above, the Celtics have a national showcase on Wednesday against Charlotte. Prior to that game, the Celtics are 5-1 in the last six games, and a win over the Hornets could put the Celtics in a better position in the play-in chase.

14. Toronto Raptors (21-20, Last week — 12th)

Toronto is 1-3 in the last four games, but they are also 7-3 in their last ten. You can see what you want to see, but the Raptors did knock off Milwaukee on the road this week.

15. Minnesota Timberwolves (22-22, Last week — 15th)

The .500 mark isn’t a huge deal for a lot of franchises, but the Wolves being 22-22 in mid-January is a big deal. Minnesota’s defense remains in the top ten for the season, and they are frisky, if nothing else.

16. Denver Nuggets (22-20, Last week — 19th)

Denver beat Los Angeles so badly that LeBron James had to apologize for the Lakers’ effort. The Nuggets couldn’t rise too much in the rankings after losing the next night to Utah, but that was a heck of a performance.

17. Los Angeles Lakers (22-22, Last week — 14th)

Frank Vogel may have saved his job with a win over the Utah Jazz. That doesn’t make a ton of sense when you look at the way the Lakers were constructed from a roster standpoint, but the existence of reporting that he is really on the hot seat paints a dire picture.

18. L.A. Clippers (22-23, Last week — 18th)

Word broke this week that the Clippers are “open for business” on the trade market. That makes sense as they navigate this stretch without Paul George and, with Kawhi Leonard still on the sideline, it’s tough to project L.A. to make a huge run. Still, they are hanging around.

19. Washington Wizards (23-21, Last week — 20th)

Washington is 4-1 in the last five games, and that helps a lot. Three of the wins came over Orlando and Oklahoma City, which won’t impress anyone, but they walloped the Sixers on Monday in an encouraging performance.

20. New York Knicks (22-23, Last week — 17th)

Tom Thibodeau’s team went 2-2 this week, beating Atlanta and Dallas and losing to Charlotte and Minnesota. That feels like an embodiment of the Knicks this season.

21. Atlanta Hawks (18-25, Last week — 21st)

The Hawks somehow lost 10 (yes, 10) straight home games before finally winning on Monday. It was a nice victory over the Bucks, but Atlanta is one of the more disappointing teams in the league to this point. Fortunately for Nate McMillan and company, the Hawks have the talent to right the ship as they did last season.

22. Portland Trail Blazers (18-25, Last week — 24th)

Credit to the Blazers. With Damian Lillard sidelined, it felt like doomsday, but Portland is 4-1 in the last five games. Anfernee Simons is having a heck of a stretch, and Portland would be in the play-in if the season ended today.

23. New Orleans Pelicans (16-28, Last week — 22nd)

New Orleans has been better than most of the play-in adjacent teams in the last couple of months. They are basically just hanging around the .500 mark since they were 3-16, but they’ll need a run to crash the party in a serious way.

24. San Antonio Spurs (16-28, Last week — 23rd)

The Spurs are 2-10 in the last 12 games, giving back the gains they made earlier in the year. Perhaps that is why the notoriously conservative Spurs made an in-season trade on Tuesday evening.

25. Sacramento Kings (18-28, Last week — 26th)

It was a winning week (2-1) for the Kings. Of course, Sacramento did lose at home to Houston, but they’ll trade that loss for a win or two. Much of the attention on the Kings has been on the trade market, but the Kings badly want to make the play-in by all accounts, so the standings still matter to them.

26. Indiana Pacers (15-29, Last week — 25th)

The Pacers just keep losing. Indiana is 1-10 in the last 11 games and on a four-game losing streak. Most of the losses have been at least somewhat competitive, but it feels rudderless in Indianapolis. Making matters worse, Myles Turner will miss a couple of weeks, right as the trade deadline approaches.

27. Detroit Pistons (10-33, Last week — 27th)

Detroit had a nice win over Toronto this week, but the headline-making event of the last few days was Cade Cunningham getting ejected against Phoenix. It was definitely a ref show, but it also says a lot that it was the most notable happening for the Pistons.

28. Houston Rockets (13-32, Last week — 29th)

The Rockets picked up two nice wins this week. Houston may sell in the next couple of weeks, as they probably should, and Eric Gordon is a name to watch. The veteran is shooting more than 49 percent from three in his last 14 games, including 31 points on 10 (!) field goal attempts in a win over San Antonio.

29. Oklahoma City Thunder (14-29, Last week — 28th)

For a team with unsightly peripherals, Oklahoma City does have some nice wins. The Thunder went 1-2 this week, but OKC did throttle Brooklyn on the road. The Nets weren’t at full strength, but James Harden played and the Thunder looked good in that spot.

30. Orlando Magic (8-37, Last week — 30th)

In the last two months, the Magic are 4-26. Orlando actually beat the red-hot Hornets this week, but followed that up with double-digit losses to Dallas and Portland. Ho hum.

Vic Mensa is no stranger to being arrested. Before yesterday’s arrest for felony narcotics possession — LCD and mushrooms — he was previously arrested for both felony gun possession in 2017 and for toting a set of brass knuckles in 2020 (this one’s a “wobbler,” meaning either a felony or misdemeanor depending on the judge and other factors). So, his nonchalance about the whole situation now that he’s been released is understandable — he’s been here before.

Vic casually updated his fans on his release yesterday afternoon, tweeting, “Wow what a trip.” A couple of hours later, he expanded on that tweet, writing, “i’m freeeeeee. love you all. god works in mysterious ways.” All in all, he seemed unfazed by his latest adventure in the legal system, which saw customs agents at Washington DC’s Dulles International Airport grab a plethora of goodies, including Psilocybin capsules, Psilocybin gummies, and liquid Lysergic Acid Diethylamide (LSD).

Vic was apparently returning from a trip to Ghana (his father is Ghanaian) with his fellow Chicago MC Chance The Rapper, during which they met the president, Nana Akufo-Addo, and promoted local tourism. Chance also posted about Vic’s release, writing, “Thanks for all the prayers. My boy back out here.”

Machine Gun Kelly and Megan Fox’s relationship is probably best described as intense. The two took things to a new level recently when they got engaged, and in a new Vogue interview, the pair discussed the proposal. They also talked about Fox’s ring, which was designed to be painful when removed.

Kelly said of the ring:

“It’s a thoroughbred Colombian emerald, with no treatment. It was just carved into the teardrop, straight out of the mine. And the diamond was directly from Stephen [Webster]. The concept is that the ring can come apart to make two rings. When it’s together, it’s held in place by a magnet. So you see how it snaps together? And then it forms an obscure heart. And you see this right here? The bands are actually thorns. So if she tries to take it off, it hurts… Love is pain!”

He also explained why he and Fox decided to release the video of their proposal, saying, “We released it to control the narrative. As opposed to someone just catching a weird cell phone picture of a ring on our hand and being like, ‘Whoa!’ But yeah, I didn’t expect it. I just recorded it on my cell phone. And it wasn’t like we had photographers or anything. It was just like me setting my phone against a cup.”

Check out the full interview here.

Amazon’s Lord of the Rings is being touted as the “largest television series ever made” with a reported budget of $465 million — for one season. For comparison’s sake, the final season of Game of Thrones cost only (“only”) $90 million. You can barely buy Lembas bread for $90 million these days. Anticipation is high for Lord of the Rings, to the point where Amazon revealed the title in an epic (and pricey) announcement video.

Amazon’s Lord of the Rings is officially The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power.

“This is a title that we imagine could live on the spine of a book next to J.R.R. Tolkien’s other classics. The Rings of Power unites all the major stories of Middle-earth’s Second Age: the forging of the rings, the rise of the Dark Lord Sauron, the epic tale of Númenor, and the Last Alliance of Elves and Men,” showrunners J.D. Payne & Patrick McKay said in a statement. “Until now, audiences have only seen on-screen the story of the One Ring — but before there was one, there were many… and we’re excited to share the epic story of them all.” In other words, the multi-season series is set thousands of years before the events of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings trilogy.

The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power premieres on September 2 with new episodes released weekly. The ensemble cast includes Cynthia Addai-Robinson, Robert Aramayo, Owain Arthur, Maxim Baldry, Nazanin Boniadi, Morfydd Clark, Ismael Cruz Córdova, Charles Edwards, Trystan Gravelle, Sir Lenny Henry, Ema Horvath, Markella Kavenagh, Joseph Mawle, Tyroe Muhafidin, Sophia Nomvete, Lloyd Owen, Megan Richards, Dylan Smith, Charlie Vickers, Leon Wadham, Benjamin Walker, Daniel Weyman and Sara Zwangobani.

In the wake of the recent building fire that killed 17 people in the Bronx, New York, noted Bronx native Cardi B wants to help out by covering funeral costs for the victims. Cardi told TMZ, “I cannot begin to imagine the pain and anguish that the families of the victims are experiencing, but I hope that not having to worry about the costs associated with burying their loved ones will help as they move forward and heal.”

She also said, “I send my prayers and condolences to everyone affected by this horrific tragedy.” Cardi will partner with The Mayor’s Fund to Advance New York City to ensure that families’ wishes are met and the full costs are covered.

Cardi has become noted for her acts of charity in recent years, particularly during the coronavirus pandemic when she donated 20,000 meal supplements to New York medical workers and gave away $1,000,000 in partnership with Fashion Nova to families in need.

She isn’t the only Bronx rapper stepping up, either. Last week, Fat Joe started a relief fund for the residents of the building, garnering contributions from longtime friends and collaborators like Jay-Z and DJ Khaled. “I need all my people world wide to come together for the families devastated by the fire in the Bronx,” he wrote. “I’m donating and I’m asking everyone that has a Heart to donate. these people are mostly immigrants that have no where to go they lost everything. it’s 10 degrees in the Bronx today!”

Ricky Gervais hosted the Golden Globes in 2010, 2011, 2012, 2016, and 2020, which was also his final time hosting the Globes. “I don’t care anymore. I’m joking. I never did,” The Office and Extras creator said in his monologue, sounding like someone who cares. “NBC clearly don’t care either — fifth time. I mean, Kevin Hart was fired from the Oscars for some offensive tweets… Lucky for me, the Hollywood Foreign Press can barely speak English and they’ve no idea what Twitter is, so I got offered this gig by fax.”

Speaking of the Oscars, now that Pete Davidson is out, the Academy is looking for a host for the 2022 ceremony in March: would Gervais be interested if he was offered the gig? Hoda Kotb and Jenna Bush Hager attempted to ask him that question on Today, but before they could finish speaking, Gervais started shaking his head.

“They’d never let me do what I wanted,” he said. “I mean that’s why the Globes got me. They said I could write my own jokes and say what I wanted, no rehearsals.” If the Oscars gave Gervais the same no-notes offer, “I’d do it,” he explained, “but that would never happen. I’d be canceled halfway through.”

Maybe Gervais and the Academy can reach a compromise: he won’t host, but he will reprise his role as Dominic Badguy from Muppets Most Wanted during the show. This is step one in my plan to get the Muppets to host the Oscars.

You can watch Gervais’ interview on Today here.

(Via Today)

Fargo alum Allison Tolman’s managed an impressively varied array of TV roles in recent years. She dove into action mode in ABC’s Emergence, bopped into housewife mode for Why Women Kill, and she will soon appear in the Gaslit miniseries alongside Sean Penn, Julia Roberts, Patton Oswalt, Dan Stevens, Hamish Linklater, and Betty Giplin. Still, Tolman makes time to be active on Twitter, where she offered a piece of her mind on TV shows that can’t quit with the weight jokes.

Yep, these scripts are still popping up, and although some TV shows are more blatant in their approach, many others offer subtler, more insidious jokes about weight. Tolman’s now appealing for this tired approach to end. “Writers and showrunners- take the jokes about weight out of your scripts. I promise they aren’t funny,” she tweeted. “And even if they were, they won’t hold up well. And even if they did, they’re unkind-either to your characters and actors or someone in your audience or crew. It’s not worth it.”

From there, Tolman offered tips on how these jokes aren’t always forthright and directly about a character’s bod. They can also revolve around food, exercise, clothing, and so on. From there, she explained how character descriptions shouldn’t default to using descriptors like “Fat Lady In Theater” when “Annoying Lady In Theater” works better and is, frankly, much more useful to inform the character.

You can read the rest of Tolman’s thread below. Her replies are mostly positive and yep, it’s high time for Hollywood to move past defaulting to weight as a punchline, especially when the world offers to many more opportunities for humor that are, you know, actually funny.

In a hilarious new parody commercial, The Late Show with Stephen Colbert takes aim at the recent rash of anti-vaccine protestors who staged a sit-in at an Olive Garden in Times Square last week. After yelling at employees and storming the bar area, the group refused to leave in an effort to defy New York City’s indoor dining mandate that requires proof of vaccination before entering a restaurant. The ruckus eventually resulted in arrests as the NYPD cleared the protestors out and loaded them into police vans waiting outside. Via The New York Post:

Three men and a woman were expected to be charged with trespassing, according to officials. Their names were not immediately released.

“Wake up New York! Wake the f— up!,” one of the suspect yelled while being led into a police van in the heart of Times Square, according to video on social media.

“I got arrested. They arrested me for trying to eat at Olive Garden, that’s what happened,” another protester said, claiming his civil rights were violated.

Sensing that these people need a restaurant that caters to their complete disregard for public health, The Late Show welcomed to the Covid Garden. Here, shirtless cooks who don’t believe in washing their hands will expertly prepare such delicious dishes as Spinach & Artichoke Diphtheria, Fried Mozzarubella Sticks, Spaghetti Carbonanthrax, and Chicken Malaria. As the commercial ends, it puts a spin on the classic Olive Garden logo: “When you’re here, you’re family — is in danger.”

Unfortunately, there’s no mention of bottomless breadsticks, but then again, you’d have to live long enough to eat them, so why bother?