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Over the weekend, the Phoenix Suns prevailed over the Los Angeles Clippers in a matchup that doubled as the lowest-scoring NBA game of the 2020-21 season. Beyond the trivia of the 84-80 rock fight, the Suns also took a 3-1 series lead in the 2021 Western Conference Finals and, by proxy, placed the Clippers in a win-or-go-home position for Game 5 in Phoenix. With their backs against the wall and shorthanded without Kawhi Leonard or Ivica Zubac, the Clippers bounced back on Monday, outlasting the Suns by a 116-102 margin to keep their title hopes alive.

After an offense-challenged performance in Game 4, the Clippers came out firing on Monday. Los Angeles scored the first seven points of the game within 75 seconds and, with the help of 9-of-11 shooting, the Clippers led 20-5 at the outset.

Part of that early onslaught could be attributed to Marcus Morris. The veteran, starting at center in place of Ivica Zubac, made his first six shots in the first seven minutes and, at one point, Morris was out-scoring the Suns by a 13-12 margin by himself.

Los Angeles scored 25 points in the first seven minutes but, just as they appeared to be firing on all cylinders, Phoenix made their first run. The Suns scored nine consecutive points, cutting the deficit to four and seemingly making the Clippers uncomfortable for the first time. However, Los Angeles managed to push their advantage back up to 36-26 at the end of the first quarter, riding 13 points from Morris and 12 points from Reggie Jackson to go along with 65 percent shooting as a team.

With Zubac out, the Clippers also turned to DeMarcus Cousins, and his minutes provided positive early returns. In fact, Cousins scored 10 points in his first five minutes on the floor, keying a 12-4 run that gave Los Angeles a 44-30 lead.

In keeping with the theme of the first half, the Suns countered in short order. Phoenix scored the next 12 points, climbing within just a two-point margin at 44-42.

The remainder of the first half went toward the Clippers, though, as Los Angeles never trailed before halftime in holding a 59-52 advantage. While the visitors didn’t shoot the lights out from the perimeter, the Clippers out-scored the Suns by a 34-8 margin in the paint, and only the three-point line and some brilliant play from Devin Booker (19 points in the first half) kept Phoenix within striking distance.

Phoenix kicked off the third quarter in style, using a 10-2 run to take their first lead of the entire game at 62-61. That success was short-lived, though, as the Clippers reeled off an immediate 10-0 run to regain control, eventually pushing their edge to 82-70 after a pair of three-pointers from Paul George and Patrick Beverley. The back-and-forth nature of the quarter was intriguing but fireworks also arrived between Beverley and Chris Paul, with the former drawing a controversial Flagrant-1 foul that to a five-point possession for Phoenix.

Eventually, the Clippers threw a haymaker late in the third quarter, scoring the final seven points of the period. That gave Los Angeles a 13-point lead and George was heavily responsible, as the All-Star wing scored 20 points in the third quarter alone.

With George off the floor to begin the fourth quarter, the Suns began a comeback bid behind Booker. The talented guard scored six points in 90 seconds, flashing his shotmaking arsenal, and Paul connected on a jumper to complete an 8-0 run that trimmed the margin to 96-91.

Right as things were teetering for Los Angeles as the Suns cut it to a four-point spread, the Clippers put together arguably their best stretch of the evening. Led by eight points from Jackson and more heroics from George, the Clippers pushed their edge to 112-96 with four minutes remaining, effectively putting the game away for good.

With their season on the line, the Clippers produced a monumentally impressive performance, particularly on the offensive side. Los Angeles shot 55 percent from the floor with 58 points in the paint, and they continued to be aggressive throughout the night. George was electric with 41 points, 13 rebounds and six assists in 40 minutes, with Jackson adding 23 points and Morris scoring 22 points in support.

On the Phoenix side, Booker enjoyed a productive performance with 31 points, and Cam Johnson added 14 points and three steals in a very strong effort in reserve duty. However, Deandre Ayton and Chris Paul scuffled throughout the night and the Suns couldn’t generate enough stops to secure the Game 5 win that would have sent them to the 2021 NBA Finals.

From here, the series shifts back to Los Angeles for Game 6. While the Suns remain the favorites to advance with two chances to win one game, the Clippers once again displayed impressive resilience and they will have a chance to force a Game 7 by holding serve at Staples Center on Wednesday evening.

Donald Trump Jr. wasn’t always sure what to do with his life, but in the last five-plus years he’s found a purpose: He’s his father’s most unhinged hype man. Since his dad lost re-election in November, his videos have gone even further into the ether. Bleary-eyed, slurry, incoherent rants have become de rigueur for the 45th president’s oldest (and possibly jailbound) son, prompting much speculation about what may have inspired their ostentatious battiness. But his latest has people kind of worried about his health.

It’s not clear where it was posted, and only a 30-second clip has been making the rounds. (He did just join Cameo, incidentally.) But it finds an even more amped-up than usual Don Jr., on some kind of unfollowable nonsense about Biden and Putin and also…McDonald’s? It seems to (maybe) be about his father’s successor trying to get the Russian president to not spy on him. Or something. Hunter’s in there, too. If there was a larger, more coherent point Jr. was making, it’s not evident from this clip, which manages to meander, even in 30 seconds, all while drowning in bitter sarcasm.

People usually mock Don Jr. over these videos, but this one, people felt, was particularly off the deep end. And many thought maybe he should seek help for whatever’s wrong with him.

Others simply made jokes about you know what.

Or maybe it’s genetic.

Some advised him to maybe write it down first.

And others joked that someone may have paid a lot of money for this.

Of course, Don Jr. has reason to worry. D.C. prosecutors are coming for some of his posse, while his sister’s in trouble, too. And of course, there’s his dad, who has his own problems.

Tucker Carlson has a lot of interesting theories. The Jan. 6 insurrection was no big deal. Alternately, it was a big deal and it was cooked up by the FBI. (To say nothing of him floating actual white supremacist chatter.) On Monday he had a new whopper: He’s being spied on by the National Security Agency, and he has irrefutable proof (which he didn’t share with his viewers).

As per The Daily Beast, the Fox News superstar circled back to his FBI false flag theory, which has been roundly debunked, which means of course that he’s continued asserting its legitimacy. He softened the language a bit, now claiming the feds had “sources in that crowd, confidential sources, snitches,” adding that this is “100 percent certain.” (Ron Howard voice: It isn’t.)

He then insisted the FBI had other fish to fry, namely, him. “But it’s not just political protests that the government is spying on,” Carlson told his many viewers. “Yesterday, we heard from a whistleblower within the U.S. government who reached out to warn us that the NSA, the National Security Agency, is monitoring our electronic communications and is planning to leak them in an attempt to take this show off the air.”

It was a bewildering claim, big if true. And Carlson assured his audience that an agent definitely contacted him about something he can’t talk about.

“The whistleblower who is in a position to know repeated back to us information about a story that we are working on that could have only come directly from my texts and emails,” Carlson claimed. “There’s no other possible source for that information. Period. They did it for political reasons. The Biden administration is spying on us. We have confirmed that.”

Carlson then said he’d filed a Freedom of Information Act, to see what material the government has on him. “Only Congress can force transparency on the intelligence agencies and they should do that immediately,” Carlson said. “Spying on opposition journalists is incompatible with democracy. They are doing it to us and again, they are definitely doing it to us, they are almost certainly doing it to others. This is scary and we need to stop it right away.”

But not even rightwingers were buying it.

Nor were anti-Trump Republicans.

Some marveled at Carlson’s ignorance of how things work.

And others just thought it was yet another tall Tucker claim.

(Via The Daily Beast)

Now that the world knows how Britney Spears herself feels about her conservatorship, it’s all but impossible for anyone to stand by and not show support for the embattled pop star. Earlier today her sister, Jamie Lynn Spears, clarified why she herself hasn’t been public with her support of Britney until now, saying she wanted to let the world hear what Britney had to say first. Another of her closest peers, Christina Aguilera, was moved to speak out in support of Britney today too in a lengthy Twitter thread where she reflects on the “mental and emotional damage” that a betrayal of this level can create.

“These past few days I’ve been thinking about Britney and everything she is going through,” Aguilera began, sharing an adorable photo of the two young musicians together. “It is unacceptable that any woman, or human, wanting to be in control of their own destiny might not be allowed to live life as they wish. To be silenced, ignored, bullied or denied support by those “close” to you is the most depleting, devastating and demeaning thing imaginable. The harmful mental and emotional damage this can take on a human spirit is nothing to be taken lightly. Every woman must have the right to her own body, her own reproductive system, her own privacy, her own space, her own healing and her own happiness. While I am not behind the closed doors of this very layered & personal yet public conversation – all I can do is share from my heart on what I’ve heard, read and seen in the media. The conviction and desperation of this plea for freedom leads me to believe that this person I once knew has been living without compassion or decency from those in control. To a woman who has worked under conditions and pressure unimaginable to most, I promise you she deserves all of the freedom possible to live her happiest life. My heart goes out to Britney. She deserves all the TRUE love and support in the world.

Here’s hoping the media attention and celebrity support will lead to what seems to be the best outcome for Britney — ending this terrible saga of her life and starting fresh.

America has a major problem right now with right wing extremism. Merrick Garland, the current Attorney General, even believes that domestic terrorism is again on the rise, as it was circa the Oklahoma City bombing in 1995. But on Monday morning, Right Wing Watch — a longtime leftwing watchdog of the kind of conservative extremism Garland’s worried about — learned that they had been permanently banned from YouTube, only to be reinstated later that day.

According to The Daily Beast, the site was informed by YouTube that they’d violated “community guidelines.” No details were provided. When they appealed, they were rejected.

But later they received a message from the video streaming service, telling them they’d been “mistakenly suspended,” but that “upon further review,” their permanent suspension had been lifted.

The problem isn’t new. Right Wing Watch, senior fellow Kyle Mantyla told the Beast, has had ongoing problems with YouTube for years, forcing them to repeatedly assure them that they were reporting on extremism, not broadcasting it. They’ve even had to stress that they have disclaimers on their videos saying as much. Those issues, Mantyla says, increased over the last year, as they’ve combated COVID-19 and 2020 election misinformation.

YouTube has a three-strike, and they awarded Right Wing Watch two of them in April over videos they published. They even refrained from publishing for 90 days, when the strikes dropped. Mantyla claims they dug up “some video from eight years ago,” and flagged that as their third strike. The service took them down last week, and it wasn’t until Monday morning that they learned their appeal had been rejected. But now they’re back up.

Right Wing Watch is an off-shoot of the longtime liberal nonprofit People For the American Way, and it was launched in 2007. Since then it has posted thousands of videos, all of which were jettisoned in the since reneged upon YouTube purge. Meanwhile, many of the outlets and personalities Right Wing Watch has covered for their extremist positions are not suspended or banned, as they briefly were.

(Via The Daily Beast)

The Los Angeles Clippers are one game away from their offseason arriving earlier than they hoped for the second straight season, as they will face the Suns in Phoenix needing a Game 5 win to extend the series. L.A. has been within striking distance in all of their three losses to Phoenix, as evidenced by the Clippers actually having a positive net rating in a series they’re losing, but part of their issue has been that they are without their top closer in Kawhi Leonard.

Paul George has been terrific in Leonard’s absence, putting to rest a lot of the narrative around his playoff struggles, as have Reggie Jackson, Terance Mann, and others, but Kawhi’s absence looms large in the lack of on-ball creativity as well as having another elite defender to apply ball pressure to the Suns’ backcourt stars. Mann in particular has turned heads, bringing some much needed energy on both ends to the Clippers both as a reserve and a starter at times, filling part of the Leonard role.

Still, the takeaway from this Conference Finals for most seems to be that the Clippers are a contender that’s short a superstar at the moment due to injury. However, for the sports world’s foremost takesmith, Stephen A. Smith, he sees something different. He sees that it’s time for a changing of the guard and that L.A. should just let him walk in free agency this summer (Leonard has an opt out), citing Mann’s energy as a major reason on top of Leonard’s injury history.

It is just an incredible Stephen A. take that I’m not even sure he fully believes, but he’s still going to let it fly. Any time he starts by couching a take this hard, noting that Kawhi is still an elite, top-5 talent in the NBA, you know it’s going to be a wild ride. If you’re the Clippers, the only way you sell this is if Leonard chooses to go elsewhere and you need to spin it around, but there is no world where they’re saying “yes, we are going to build around Terance Mann instead.” For one, you don’t have to choose between the two, as Mann is under contract and next year you can just give him a bigger role.

There’s also the issue of the Clippers, at most, having $6 million in cap space even if Kawhi leaves, and most likely they’ll be over the cap even if he does. As such, it’s not like they can replace Kawhi with a different star level guy, they’d be replacing him exclusively with Mann and, like, a mid-level exception guy. I do applaud Stephen A. for being willing to not only think up this take but to fire it off on national television, but I’m going to go out on a limb here and say the Clippers won’t be listening to his advice.

Republicans are currently in the unusual position of hating the U.S. military. Last week, General Mark Milley, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, came under fire after refusing to condemn the latest GOP scare tactic, Critical Race Theory, which teaches that, well, the U.S. has had a checkered history (and present) when it comes to how it’s treated non-whites. One thing Milley said really outraged them: That he had read the works of Mao, Marx, and Lenin in order to educate himself, but “that doesn’t make me a Communist.” On Monday’s Fox & Friends, co-host Brian Kilmeade became the latest to take him down…by claiming he’d been made to read Mein Kampf in school.

“I thought general Miley totally missed the point last week,” Kilmeade told guest, Texas representative Dan Crenshaw. “He says ‘Oh I read Mao, I read Stalin’ that has nothing to do with it.” He then dropped an unexpected bombshell. “We read Mein Kampf in school, no one thought we were Nazis, that is part of the curriculum, you find out about other things and other insurgencies, we get it, that has nothing to do with Critical Race Theory.”

It was a curious comment for a number of reasons. One: Was Massapequa High School on Long Island really making its young students read Adolf Hitler’s memoir-cum-manifesto? Two: Wasn’t he making basically the same point that Milley was — that reading works we may not agree with enriches our understanding of the world?

But there was really little to do but make jokes.

Some thought this admission explained a lot.

Some questioned the claim’s veracity.

Others questioned why Kilmeade thinks it’s okay to read Hitler but not accounts of America’s racist past.

And others were drawn to Crenshaw’s “WTF” reaction.

Al Gore knows more than anyone what it’s like to have an election potentially taken from you. The results of the the 2000 race were hotly contested, leading to an epic recount in Florida. But after weeks of turmoil, Gore decided that the unity of the country was more important than his potential win, and he’s never taken issue with it since. In other words, it’s the opposite what the Donald J. Trump has done after losing the 2020 election, ranting and railing with claims even his loyal Attorney General deemed “bulls*it.” And when asked about how the 45th president continues to peddle lies, Gore had some words.

In an interview with CNN, the former vice president spoke about the “refusal of the former president to acknowledge that he lost by seven million votes — it wasn’t close, for God’s sake.” He also slammed the Republicans, saying the “majority of his party is still so enthralled to him that they still believe that the American people did not make the judgment that they clearly made. This is very damaging for our democracy.”

Gore was cautiously hopeful, though, saying, “I’m hoping this craziness fades over time.” But you better stress “cautious,” because there’s still a large portion of GOP voters who’ve been effectively brainwashed:

“We hear about AI standing for artificial intelligence. They’re putting another kind of AI out: artificial insanity. … They’re putting out messages that create an alternate reality, and people get into these echo chambers on the internet, and it’s all they hear, and they begin to believe the alternate reality.”

When asked what he would say to Trump, Gore chuckled darkly, admitting, “I’m not sure that whatever I’d say to him would have any impact whatsoever.” But, he said, “just on the off chance that it would, I would say please do the right thing. Acknowledge reality. Stop hurting this country. Stop undermining democracy. Honor the great and honorable traditions of the United States of America. This cannot go on the way it is.”

You can watch Gore’s segment in the video above.

(Via CNN)

Basketball is a sport that’s practically built for the drama of movies. The fast-paced action is perfect for montages, and the tension of last second-heroics punctuated by the sound of a buzzer are all the makings of cinematic greatness. But not all hoops films are made equal. Some, in fact, are downright mediocre and others, while originally praised as brilliant, have fared worse over time than others.

There are plenty of basketball movies — whether they follow a team’s journey or use the game as the backdrop for the larger thrust of the film. But a good basketball movie needs to be well cast with a strong story, some realistic-looking game-play and maybe some classic moments and quotes that stand out to fans years later.

Having trouble sorting it all out? We’ve got you covered.

13) Semi Pro (2008)

There has to be a straight-up comedy on here with zero appetite for drama or anything but laughs, and Semi-Pro is it. The heyday of struggling basketball teams is ripe with comedy, and this Will Ferrell movie is criminally underrated in his overall comedic cannon. Ferrell as a player/coach/owner of an American Basketball Association team is a gem. This movie is not realistic in any way — Andre Benjamin of Outkast plays a prominent role — but it doesn’t have to be. Basketball in Flint, Michigan looks like a hell of a lot of fun in this one, and its enduring legacy is the occasional Tropics jersey you’ll see at an NBA game.

12) Hoosiers (1986)

Hoosiers needs to be on this list because it is regarded as a classic basketball movie. The Indiana Pacers have a Hickory High jersey that looks very cool. And Gene Hackman in a coaching role is always something to appreciate. But there is not a movie on this list that has aged worse than Hoosiers, a film made in 1986 and a film about an all-white small-town basketball team triumphing because they got one good player. In this particular movie, they are the good guys. But three decades later, it’s hard not to view the team they beat as the far more interesting story.

11) Coach Carter (2005)

High school basketball is ripe with stories that make for good movies. And making your entire team because they violated your academic agreement is a pretty compelling way to draw an audience in, right? This is one of those basketball movies where the team grows and changes as it gets better on the floor, teaching a lesson along the way. It’s fairly formulaic, but it tells a nice story. A sneaky highlight of this film is an appearance from a very young, extremely bald Channing Tatum. Another early highlight is Samuel L. Jackson, a high school basketball coach, getting challenged by one of the team’s better players to a fight. You can imagine how that goes, but that alone is worth a look, right?

10) Glory Road (2006)

Speaking of more interesting basketball stories, there is Glory Road, a Disney-fied version of Texas Western’s run to the men’s NCAA Championship Game in 1966. The 2006 film doesn’t nearly have the cult following of Hoosiers, but the true story is far more compelling and highlights an issue that basketball in that era certainly suffered from: racism. Texas Western’s run to the title game against Kentucky is given the proper weight it should, and Josh Lucas’ turn as The Bear, coach Don Haskins, is a worthy center for this underrated film.

9) The Way Back (2020)

A heavy film whose box office fortunes were impacted by COVID shutdowns that happened right as it was coming out, The Way Back demands a lot from its lead as Ben Affleck leans on some of his own experiences with the bottle to play a damaged alcoholic trying to find a rope in the dark and a way out of the hole that his life has become after being pummeled by loss. Basketball factors in as that rope, with Affleck’s former high school standout character finding renewed purpose as a fiery and sometimes unorthodox leader of young men.

8) Teen Wolf (1985)

Michael J. Fox is a teen who is also a wolf. I’m not sure what’s not to like here. His character, Scott Howard, turns into an extremely athletic mythical beast. This is a harmless, if not ridiculous classic. And there’s something to be said for that kind of movie getting made in 1985 and still being true today. This is definitely the most “cult classic” of the films listed here, but there’s a particular affection for this movie, which actually sparked an equally-ridiculous MTV show in 2011.

7) Space Jam (1996)

Listen: Space Jam is not really a great movie. When you take away the nostalgia for it and a banger of a soundtrack, much like The Mighty Ducks, the bones of the plot are a bit bare. But it’s hard to hate a movie that puts Michael Jordan and Bugs Bunny with equal billing on a movie poster. There’s a reason LeBron James was hounded for years to make a sequel to this 1996 blockbuster (with the new one finally coming out this year): people love the idea of the best player in the game getting sucked into a cartoon vortex. If anything, it’s still the only logical explanation for Jordan deciding to play baseball for a few years.

6) Above The Rim (1994)

Above The Rim plays out as a battle for one young man’s soul, standing out as an excellent showcase for the acting talents of Tupac Shakur, whose character, Birdie, does his best to steer the film’s protagonist, Kyle (Duane Martin) off his course as a basketball prodigy with college ball in his future. The film is also a tremendous showcase for ‘90s hip-hop (due to its iconic soundtrack) and a film that aimed for authenticity when showcasing streetball culture.

5) He Got Game (1998)

Spike Lee’s ode to basketball is a classic. Denzel Washington’s turn as Jake Shuttlesworth is a great performance and a dynamic role, and an appearance from Ray Allen as his son, Jesus, is a fun surprise for those coming to the film for the first time. This is another movie that settles on a plot involving a five-star high school recruit, but the tale of Shuttlesworth coming to grips with his father’s incarceration for killing his mother is compelling and well-executed here. It’s not the apex of Lee’s or Washington’s career in cinema, but it’s certainly worthy of this list.

4) Blue Chips (1994)

Nick Nolte is a conflicted college basketball coach in this 1994 film that has some legendary performances from actual NBA players. Shaq and Penny Hardaway appear as players here, while Rick Pitino and Larry Bird pop up as well. Compared to the kind of scandals that have engulfed college athletics these days, getting a tractor pales in comparison. But the story here is strong, and it’s got some of the best actual basketball scenes out of any movie on this list.

3) Love And Basketball (2000)

Basketball is the thing that brings Sanaa Lathan and Omar Epps’ characters together and the thing that tears them apart in this smartly-executed, years-spanning love story from writer-director Gina Prince-Bythewood. Impeccably cast with familiar faces sprinkled in throughout, the film is careful to really examine the strains and isolation of both being a heralded athlete and someone who feels like no one else believes in their dreams. The pressures of living up to both your parent’s expectations and legacies is also explored, but while it sounds like a lot is going on, Love And Basketball doesn’t get bogged down, injecting enough gentle and intimate moments of connection that you never lose sight of the point or find yourself not rooting for the pair at the center of this story to get out of their own way and into each other’s arms.

2) Hoop Dreams (1994)

Maybe the best basketball documentary ever, filmmaker Steve James tells the story of two basketball prospects — William Gates and Arthur Agee — trying to launch basketball careers to get themselves out of inner-city Chicago. The movie follows both players for four years as they go through high school hoops, recruiting and school issues and try to stay on track despite the outside pressures of their lives. This film got an Oscar nod for best film editing, and pouring over all the footage of their stories to weave this one together into a cohesive picture certainly seems worthy. This is a must-see.

1) White Men Can’t Jump (1992)

This is a great basketball film that happens to be a lot of fun, playing around in the worlds of trash talk and pick-up ball while leaning heavily on the strength of the uneasy partnership between Wesley Snipes and Woody Harrelson’s characters (with Rosie Perez thrown into the mix to steal every scene she’s in, as per her usual) and the grift at the heart of that partnership. Everyone loves a film about a good grift and White Men Can’t Jump certainly delivers. Written and directed by sports movie master Ron Shelton, White Men Can’t Jump furthers the truth he also highlights in Bull Durham: that sports can be the foundation for truly great relationships, but the trick is in making those relationships interesting and entertaining.

There are a lot of people in the fourth Matrix. Even Christina Ricci’s in it! But while a good chunk of the old gang is getting back together, not all of them will be there. Laurence Fishburne, who played rebel leader Morpheus, not only won’t appear. He wasn’t even invited to the party. He’s talked about it before, and in a new interview about something he is in — namely the latest Liam Neeson thriller The Ice Road — he says he’s cool with people asking about it. He just doesn’t have a good answer.

In a new interview with Collider (in a bit picked up by IndieWire), the Oscar-nominated actor was asked about not getting to reunite with the likes of Keanu Reeves, Carrie-Anne Moss, Jada Pinkett Smith, and Lambert Wilson. Specifically he was asked if he didn’t mind people bugging him with that question.

“No, I completely understand that. That makes sense. It would make sense that people would ask me that, so it doesn’t get old,” Fishburne said, offering a good-natured chuckle. “I am not in the next Matrix movie, and you’d have to ask [director] Lana Wachowski why, because I don’t have an answer for that.”

In the past, as in an interview with Vulture late last summer, Fishburne said he was “fine” with not being asked back, while saying that maybe, with the free time, he’ll “write another play.” He then wished them well, adding, “I hope it’s great.”

Mind you, a lot of people from the original Matrix trilogy aren’t coming back. Hugo Weaving, aka fearsome Agent Smith, is AWOL, as is Monica Bellucci, Harold Perrineau, Harry Lennix, as well as philosopher/professor Cornel West, who semi-randomly popped up in Reloaded. In other words, he’s in august company.

The as-yet-untitled fourquel is set to be released on Dec. 16.

(Via Collider and IndieWire)