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The Philadelphia 76ers drubbed the Mavericks on Monday night, as Joel Embiid dominated with 36 points and seven rebounds, setting up a massive showdown with the Brooklyn Nets on Wednesday, where the winner will grab hold of the top spot in the Eastern Conference. The Nets may enter that game on an unplanned back-to-back, as their game in Minnesota was postponed on Monday, with Tuesday emerging as a potential replacement date.

Either way, a Sixers-Nets showdown could very well be a conference finals preview — although Milwaukee will almost certainly have something to say about that — and given the two teams have their core groups locked up for some time, it could become a great rivalry in the East. Ben Simmons, who had eight points, seven assists, and six rebounds on Monday while playing his usual sensational defense, was asked about that Nets matchup and just his thoughts in general on Brooklyn as Philly’s rivals and wasn’t shy about offering his assessment, (h/t Jackson Frank).

“Rivalry? I mean if they keep that same team, definitely, but it’s going to be hard to do that,” Simmons said. “We’re going for the past champs — the Lakers. They were the ones that won the championship so you got to give respect to them. Obviously Brooklyn has a lot of talent, but at the end of the day, there’s only one ball and you got to play defense. We have to come out prepared mentally and physically.”

It’s certainly spicy, if nothing else, although the “one ball” critique has been lobbed at super teams for a long time and the Nets have already shown that their three stars are capable of sharing and dominating when they’re all healthy and on the floor. Still, the defensive critique is certainly the big question mark about Brooklyn, who have struggled with consistency on that end, something they’ll need in seven game series against the top teams. As Simmons noted, they are immensely talented, and while he’s right that they probably can’t keep Blake Griffin or LaMarcus Aldridge long term, any team with Kyrie, KD, and Harden will be a perennial contender, so I don’t think he has to worry too much about whether this can become a rivalry.

In case Brooklyn didn’t have enough motivation with the 1-seed on the line on Wednesday, Simmons certainly gave them reason to get up for this regular season matchup. In a season where we haven’t had many of those big games with both teams mostly at full strength and with something to play for, we should be thankful that Simmons has ensured there’s some added pride on the line for this one.

Last week Tucker Carlson came under fire for going too far — or even farther than he has on too many occasions to count. He used his top-rated Fox News show to float a theory that’s a favorite of white supremacists. It’s called “white replacement,” and the gist is that immigrants, or even just non-whites, are increasing in such numbers that white people will be outnumbered. It’s blatantly racist, and when the idea found its way onto Fox News’ biggest show, people, including the Anti-Defamation League, called for him to finally be shown the door.

According to CNN, that ain’t happening. Fox Coporation CEO Lachlan Murdoch responded to the ADL’s request with a firm no, claiming they did a “full review” of the Carlson episode in question and declared that he’d “decried and rejected” the racist theory. Murdoch also praised the organization, saying he “shares” their values and “abhors anti-semitism, white supremacy and racism of any kind.”

But the ADL wasn’t accepting Murdoch’s take. They responded with a statement, pointing out that while Carlson appeared to reject the idea, he then, “in the very next breath,” repeated the theory, but under a new name, dubbing it a “voting rights question.”

“In fact,” Greenblatt wrote, “it’s worse, because he’s using a straw man — voting rights — to give an underhanded endorsement of white supremacist beliefs while ironically suggesting it’s not really white supremacism. While your response references a ‘full review’ of the interview, it seems the reviewers missed the essential point here.”

Murdoch had also pointed out that the ADL had previously given an award to his father, Rupert Murdoch, for his services. “As you noted in your letter, ADL honored your father over a decade ago,” Greenblatt noted, “but let me be clear that we would not do so today, and it does not absolve you, him, the network, or its board from the moral failure of not taking action against Mr. Carlson.”

Mere hours later Carlson himself responded…by doubling down.

“Demographic change is the key to the Democratic party’s political ambitions,” Carlson said, careful not to once again use the term “white replacement.” “In order to win and maintain power, Democrats plan to change the population of the country. They’re no longer trying to win you over with their program. They’re obviously not trying to improve your life. They don’t really care about your vote anymore. Their goal is to make you irrelevant.”

Though he said all this immigrant fearmongering was “provably true,” others were quick to call bull.

But at least Fox News has Tucker’s back.

(Via CNN)

The nation’s movie theaters have been in trouble since they hit these shores, and though the major chains may get through this after all, smaller ones have had been in even more trouble. Here’s one that it looks like won’t make it after all: According to Deadline, Decurion, which owns Los Angeles-based Pacific Theatres as well as the legendary ArcLight Hollywood, won’t be reopening its theaters.

The ArcLight, which opened in 2002, is one of the highest grossing movie theaters in the country, but it also has a major piece of history attached to it. It’s the home of the Cinerama Dome, which opened in 1963 with a geodesic shape, equipped for the curved widescreen process that bears its name. Located in the heart of the Hollywood neighborhood, the Dome has for decades been the place to see gigantic, 70mm extravaganzas. When Quentin Tarantino shot Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, he made sure to give it prime real estate during one of his many loving montages glorifying 1969.

Before this, the ArcLight was set to reopen over Memorial Day weekend, with A Quiet Place Part II and Cruella helping it make its splashy return. But no more. A press release issued by Decurion said that “despite a huge effort that exhausted all potential options, the company does not have a viable way forward.”

Deadline reports that the company may not be bankrupt; they’ve simply handed the keys back to their landlords, who may always put it up for sale. There’s still hope online that someone may come to the chain’s rescue, or at least save the ArcLight and its 58-year-old dome.

Many reminisced about the countless amazing experiences they had there over the years.

But for now, here’s to the ArcLight, one of the greatest.

(Via Deadline)

On Monday, the Minnesota Twins elected to postpone a home game following the tragic death of 20-year-old Daunte Wright on Sunday, and the Minnesota Timberwolves followed suit shortly thereafter. Wright was shot and killed during a traffic stop by a police officer in Brooklyn Center, and protests and demonstrations emerged in Minnesota in the aftermath.

Just hours later, both Philadelphia 76ers head coach and San Antonio Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich delivered powerful statements in addressing the media before scheduled games. Rivers spoke first before a matchup with the Dallas Mavericks, expressing that the discussion should be framed as “frustrating for Black Americans,” but rather that frustration should emerge for all.

Later, Popovich spoke before his team’s game in Orlando and indicated that the events “make you sick to your stomach,” later asking “how many young black kids have to be killed for no freaking reason?” From there, he took many to task, including Texas governor Greg Abbott.

It goes without saying, but Rivers and Popovich certainly do not stand alone, as many have already shared similar sentiments and that likely will continue in the coming days. Still, both head coaches have powerful voices that extend well beyond the sports world, and their words carry considerable weight.

It’s one thing to see a little kid skateboarding. It’s another to see a stereotype-defying little girl skateboarding. And it’s entirely another to see Paige Tobin.

Paige is a 6-year-old skateboarding wonder from Australia. A recent video of her dropping into a 12-foot bowl on her has gone viral, both for the feat itself and for the style with which she does it. Decked out in a pink party dress, a leopard-print helmet, and rainbow socks, she looks nothing like you’d expect a skater dropping into a 12-foot bowl to look. And yet, here she is, blowing people’s minds all over the place.

For those who may not fully appreciate the impressiveness of this feat, here’s some perspective. My adrenaline junkie brother, who has been skateboarding since childhood and who races down rugged mountain faces on a bike for fun, shared this video and commented, “If I dropped in to a bowl twice as deep as my age it would be my first and last time doing so…this fearless kid has a bright future!”

It’s scarier than it looks, and it looks pretty darn scary.

Paige doesn’t always dress like a princess when she skates, not that it matters. Her talent and skill with the board are what gets people’s attention. (The rainbow socks are kind of her signature, however.)

Her Instagram feed is filled with photos and videos of her skateboarding and surfing, and the body coordination she’s gained at such a young age is truly something.

Here she was at three years old:

And here she is at age four:

So, if she dropped into a 6-foot bowl at age three and a 12-foot bowl at age six—is there such a thing as an 18-foot bowl for her to tackle when she’s nine?

Paige clearly enjoys skating and has high ambitions in the skating world. “I want to go to the Olympics, and I want to be a pro skater,” she told Power of Positivity when she was five. She already seems to be well on her way toward that goal.

How did she get so good? Well, Paige’s mom gave her a skateboard when she wasn’t even preschool age yet, and she loved it. Her mom got her lessons, and she’s spent the past three years skating almost daily. She practices at local skate parks and competes in local competitions.

She also naturally has her fair share of spills, some of which you can see on her Instagram channel. Falling is part of the sport—you can’t learn if you don’t fall. Conquering the fear of falling is the key, and the thing that’s hardest for most people to get over.

Perhaps Paige started too young to let fear override her desire to skate. Perhaps she’s been taught to manage her fears, or maybe she’s just naturally less afraid than other people. Or maybe there’s something magical about the rainbow socks. Whatever it is, it’s clear that this girl doesn’t let fear get in the way of her doing what she wants to do. An admirable quality in anyone, but particularly striking to see in someone so young.

Way to go, Paige. Your perseverance and courage are inspiring, as is your unique fashion sense. Can’t wait to see what you do next.

Hideki Matsuyama won his first major championship on Sunday, holding on just long enough at the Masters to get into the clubhouse with a final round 73 to post 10-under for the tournament and take home a green jacket. It was a momentous occasion, as Matsuyama became Japan’s first men’s major champion in golf, a sport the country has a great affection for but had never seen a man climb to the pinnacle of the sport.

The call from Jim Nantz and Nick Faldo on the CBS Sports broadcast was simple, as Matsuyama tapped in for a two-putt bogey on 18 to win by one.

It was to the point, and then the two stepped out and let it breathe, allowing the cheers from the crowd and Matsuyama’s celebration with his caddie to tell the story for itself. It is the same manner in which they handled the incredible Tiger Woods win in 2019, when he likewise cleaned up a bogey on 18 and after a quick call of the win, Nantz and Faldo went silent for 2 minutes and 45 seconds to allow the celebration greenside to say everything that needed to be said.

This was apparently unacceptable this time around to some, however, as Bill Simmons went on a bizarre cancel culture rant on his podcast about how Nantz was somehow scared of making a cheeky pun (which he has been known to do at times in the past) as Matsuyama won (h/t BroBible).

“We were hoping for one of his classic pre-baked one-liners when Matsuyama won The Masters. I think he was scared off,” Simmons said. “He felt nervous to me the last twenty minutes, um, cancel culture, I don’t think Nantz wanted to go near anything. He kept kind of throwing it to Faldo and then when Matsuyama hit the…Nantz basically said, ‘Hideki Matsuyama, the first Japanese golfer to win The Masters.’ I’ve never heard him put less thought, energy, creativity, anything into one of his calls and it was a scared Jim Nantz, let’s be honest.”

He then went on to offer his own suggestion, which unsurprisingly was a 1980s pop culture reference that definitely would’ve gotten the people going (h/t The Big Lead).

“So I had it. I had the savvy one. ‘Heat of the Moment,’ which was a song that won like five Grammys by a band called Asia in the 80’s. I think Nantz could have gone stealth and done, It was the heat of the moment, Hideki Matsui is our Masters champion. Something like that and then it just would have been really underground. Nobody really would have gotten it. But he just played it chalk. You know what? You just signed a new contract Jim Nantz. We don’t want a scared Jim Nantz. Come up with some sort of line. Anything? Disappointing.”

If nothing else, Simmons’ best effort at a clever quip being a reference to a 40-year-old song by the band Asia might be the best argument for why Nantz didn’t dial up a pun in this situation because, well, there wasn’t a really easy one to do — also confusing Matsuyama with former Yankees outfielder Hideki Matsui really puts the icing on the cake.

Nantz simply pointed out the history of the moment and let it breathe, which is never a bad idea. Also, the thought that Jim Nantz, who as Simmons notes just inked a monster new deal with CBS and is arguably the most powerful play-by-play announcer in all of sports given how he bounces from NFL to NCAA to The Masters each year, would be scared in this moment is rather incredible.

On top of all of that, making sure you don’t do some casual racism is probably a good way for everyone to operate and isn’t a cancel culture thing so much as a respect thing. This was a massive moment for golf and particularly golf in Japan, and Nantz is certainly aware of that and wanted to be respectful of the moment and what it meant. He did all the traditional Jim Nantz things on the call, there was nerves talk as things started moving quickly for Matsuyama on 15 and the win became in doubt, as always he nailed the family tree on the walk up 18 once it was clear the win was there, and when there wasn’t an exclamation point on the round as he just got it over the line with a bogey, Nantz gave it a solid call and stepped out.

Would you venture through dense untamed jungles, harsh deserts, and freezing temperatures in a race to a random buoy in the middle of the ocean with a group of your adventure-seeking buddies in the hopes of winning a cool $1 million? While the idea of a globe-spanning adventure (and a freaking million dollars) sounds endlessly appealing after a year in which the most exciting journey most of us have taken was to the kitchen for more snacks, NatGeo’s newest competition series, Race To The Center Of The Earth, reminds us that epic quests are rarely easy.

Race To The Center Of The Earth is a new seven-part series created by the same producing duo that brought us The Amazing Race and pits four teams of three friends each against one another in a nonstop race for the $1 million prize. What makes each episode of Race to the Center of The Earth unique is that the four teams are each starting from four different corners of the planet — South America, Russia, Canada, and Southeast Asia — which helps to ensure that every scene following each team offers something new, interesting, and totally unique.

There’s a lot to like about the series, but our favorite part of the show has to be watching how each team struggles to keep things civil as their friends become literal roadblocks on the path to winning. The moment featured above reveals one such moment from the series’ third episode (of seven), showing Team Russia as they struggle to board a train to Kuanda all because Chris (freaking Chris) oversold his ability to speak the language.

“I won’t say he inflated how well he speaks Russian when he talked to Angie and I about it, but certainly my expectations were higher,” says teammate Jeremy. This is all after the team is already running behind schedule after suffering a flat tire.

Chris, Jeremy, and Angie are all members of the Anchorage Alaska police force. The trio fishes and hunts together, fight crime together, and even attended each other’s weddings. But after this? Chris might be spending some lonely lunch hours when the crew gets back to Anchorage.

“I think we have tickets that are going where we want to go, we’ll see when the train stops on the other end.” Yeah, let’s hope, Chris!

Check out the exclusive clip for Race To The Center Of The Earth above. The full episode when it airs tonight at 10 pm ET/PT on NatGeo.

For much of his career, Sylvester Stallone has been one of the more openly Republican members of Hollywood. He’s never been a James Woods or a Jon Voight, mostly keeping quiet when it comes to politics. So when Page Six reported that the actor had joined Mar-a-Lago, Trump’s longtime resort and post-presidency home, people couldn’t help but be disappointed, even if they weren’t surprised.

Perhaps everyone should have known. Stallone attended a 2016 New Years party at the beachside getaway, not long after its owner had won his first and only presidential election. Perhaps one reason he shelled out hundreds of thousands of dollars for a membership is because he recently bought a lavish compound in nearby Palm Beach, Florida. Since then he’s been posing with Mar-a-Lago guests, flashing his customarily boxing pose.

The news comes less than a week after it was revealed Stallone wouldn’t be returning as Rocky Balboa for the third go in the spin-off series Creed. Michael B. Jordan, the threequel’s star and director, recently said the series would focus exclusively on his character, Adonis, who had been trained and mentored by Rocky. It looks like this is one way the legendary actor and filmmaker will spend his time not shooting on the streets of Philadelphia.

When news broke of his new membership, people couldn’t help but feel let down that Stallone would go the full-Trump.

Some weren’t exactly surprised.

He quickly lost some Philadelphians.

There were jokes.

And speculation about Rocky IV and its depiction of the Soviet Union.

Others pondered his retirement.

And some put into plain words what he was doing.

At least Arnold Schwarzenegger, one of his big ‘80s rivals, knows not to give Trump any money.

(Via Page Six)

As the early March NBA All-Star break approached, the Atlanta Hawks sat at 14-20 and had just fired head coach Lloyd Pierce as they sat at the bottom of the play-in picture, a far cry from where expectations had been set in the offseason after some big spending in free agency.

Injuries played a significant role in the Hawks early struggles, as they were without many of those big signings, with Bogdan Bogdanovic, Danilo Gallinari, Rajon Rondo, and Kris Dunn all missing significant time (and Dunn having yet to make his debut), as well as some of their young core pieces, most notably De’Andre Hunter and Cam Reddish. All of that, coupled with being one of the league’s worst fourth quarter teams, spelled disaster and eventually led to Nate McMillan being elevated to interim head coach. Given the way the team has responded to the former Blazers and Pacers coach, one would think he will have a great chance of having the interim tag removed at the end of the season and be given a contract as the full-time head coach.

The Hawks are 15-5 since the coaching change, and while some of that is the result of a soft schedule early in his tenure, the recent results prove this is more than a team taking advantage of lesser opponents. Atlanta has won 7 of their last 10 to climb to fourth in the East, a half game clear of the division rival Heat for homecourt advantage in a first round series.

Getting healthier has been a big help, with Bogdanovic providing a significant lift over the last month-plus as he’s been the sharpshooter they hoped they were getting when they inked him to an $18 million a year deal in free agency. The former King is now shooting 40.1 percent from three on the season, including a preposterous 51.7 percent so far in seven games in April, as he finally looks fully healthy. Bogdanovic gives the Hawks a much-needed go-to scorer when Trae Young isn’t in the game — as was the case in their win without the star guard on Sunday in Charlotte — and while the two are still working out exactly how to work best together, you can see how Bogdanovic’s presence can take advantage of the gravity Young creates.

Their other big signing who is still in town, Danilo Gallinari, has also come to life over the last two months. After a dreadful February, the veteran forward has likewise morphed back into a lethal offensive weapon (16.1 points per game on 46/43.4/93.5 shooting since March 1), and the Hawks are bludgeoning opponents when he’s on the floor. Since McMillan took over, the Hawks have a +12.6 net rating when Gallinari is on the court (114.9 ORtg/102.3 DRtg) compared to a +0.4 net rating when he sits (115.8/115.4). Given Gallinari looked awful defensively early on, it’s rather stunning to see how much better they’ve been with him on the floor, but he’s moving much better than he was early on when he had nagging injuries and seems to be much more comfortable with what he’s being asked to do.

On offense, he’s doing exactly what the Hawks need him to do, which is to put immense stress on defenses in pick-and-pop action, particularly with Young and Bogdanovic. When defenses overcommit to Young or Bogdanovic, Gallinari ends up with a wide open three and now that he’s hitting those at well over 40 percent, it makes life incredibly hard for opponents.

Maybe most importantly, the improved play of their veterans — which also must include other less-heralded offseason additions like Tony Snell (the NBA’s best three-point shooter this season at 57.1 percent) and Solomon Hill — has allowed the Hawks to succeed even when Young doesn’t play, something that hasn’t been the case since the third-year guard arrived in Atlanta. Young has always been the sun, moon, and stars for the Hawks, and when he sat, the team often bottomed out. Their desperation for a capable offense when Young wasn’t playing was one of the chief reasons for the moves they made this past offseason, and also why Rondo was flipped for Lou Williams at the deadline after his early struggles in Atlanta. Over the last 20 games, that’s paid off as the Hawks, for the first time ever, boast a positive net rating even when Young leaves the floor. The offense gets worse, no doubt (119.5 to 108.3) but the defensive improvement makes up for that (113.1 to 104.0) to allow the Hawks to hold on to any advantage they build when their star isn’t playing.

However, no one has had a bigger impact on the Hawks recent run than Clint Capela, who has been nothing short of sensational for the Hawks all season. He has been the defensive anchor for the Hawks all season, and the way he elevates lineups loaded with offensive talent into being not just passable bout downright good defensive lineups is incredible. Hawks fans have, rightfully, called on Capela to be in the Defensive Player of the Year conversation, and while he may not earn those honors his work on the defensive end of the floor, particularly during this run has been nothing short of terrific. His instincts on when to rotate and contest are among the best in the league, illustrated beautifully by this denial of a lob to Zion Williamson, a man few are successful at deterring at the rim.

Trae Young gets completely taken out of the play by a great screen from Zion, left in chase mode as he scrambles back to Bledsoe who draws Solomon Hill on the rotation and tosses a lob to Williamson who has no one between he and the rim on the baseline. At the moment the lob goes up, Capela has his foot on the far side of the restricted area, preventing a lob to Adams from the dunker’s spot. This is, against most teams, a thunderous Zion dunk.

However, Capela rotates over with an efficiency of movement to take one step across the restricted area and jump off two feet, with near perfect verticality, to stuff Zion before he can cleanly make the catch and go for a dunk. That ability to erase mistakes made on the perimeter at the rim is something the Hawks were banking on when they went out and signed offense-first players this offseason, and Capela is making good on the promise he showed in Houston prior to his heel injury. His help defense has always been a known commodity, but where he really helps the Hawks is in the pick-and-roll game, where he’s agile and quick enough to play higher in drop coverage to at least present himself to the ball-handler and long enough to drift back to his man to take away the lob while also being capable of protecting the rim should the ball-handler go for a layup. This play against Zach LaVine illustrates that ability beautifully.

Capela is, simply put, putting forth a sensational defensive effort this season, leading the team with 2.2 blocks per game. However, he’s not just lording over the paint on the defensive end, but giving the Hawks terrific two-way play as well. On offense, the vertical spacing he provides as a roll man and lob threat fits perfectly with the Hawks perimeter options. When Capela shares the floor with any two of the Hawks’ best, healthy perimeter players — Young, Bogdanovic, Gallinari, and Huerter — the Hawks boast an offensive rating of at least 120, which is stupendous. He’s an excellent screener, creating space for Young to get downhill where he is a nightmare for opponents because of his ability to finish floaters, toss lobs, pass to almost anywhere outside the arc, or create contact to get to the free throw line.

On top of being an elite lob threat, Capela also is the league’s best offensive rebounder at 4.7 per game, extending possessions and converting putback opportunities at a great clip.

Those three are the new additions to this year’s Hawks having the greatest impact, and it’s allowed Trae Young and John Collins to continue to do what they do best. Collins’ fit with the new-look Hawks was a question mark entering the season and led to trade rumors up to the deadline, but throughout the uncertainty about his future in Atlanta as he heads into restricted free agency summer, he’s plodded along playing great basketball. He’s currently sidelined with an ankle injury and has missed the last seven games, but prior to that he was still shooting from the perimeter at a great clip (38 percent from three) and while Capela eats up some of his space at the rim, thus dropping his two-point efficiency, he adjusted well to a different role and continues producing (18.2 ppg).

Young is also posting nearly identical numbers to last year in everything but points and shots, as he’s ceded a few shots (and thus points) each game to Bogdanovic and Gallinari for the betterment of the team. He is almost the exact same offensive player as a year ago, just with a better supporting cast and, shockingly, that makes both he and the Hawks look suddenly much better. Young’s abilities as a facilitator open up opportunities for everyone else, and the attention he receives necessitates that he be quick in his decision-making to find the open man when teams double. Happily for the Hawks, he’s tremendous at that and often gets his teammates high percentage looks both inside and out.

Take these two passes against hard doubles, one to Capela at the rim and the other to Gallinari behind the three-point line, both from the same game against the Bulls.

On the first, Young stretches the defense as far as he can, drawing three defenders towards him and pulling Nikola Vucevic out beyond the three-point line, but has the strength (maybe the biggest upgrade we’ve seen from Young this season) to push past Vucevic to create the angle to rifle a pass to Capela, as Lauri Markkanen has to stick at the top of the key to prevent a pass to a shooter. The next play, which came shortly after the first, shows why you have to protect against that, as Patrick Williams and Markkanen double Young off the pick-and-pop on the elbow and he fires a perfect behind the back dime to the popping Gallinari.

Young can be an exceedingly frustrating player for opponents, as no one is better at getting themselves to the foul line — and as such, opposing fans have soured on him — but he has grown more trusting in his teammates as he’s logged more time with them. Young is averaging three points fewer per game under McMillan than he did under Pierce, due in large part to having his co-stars healthy, and having more options around Young has provided a much needed boost to the Hawks fourth quarter production.

Since March 1, the Hawks have a +16.2 net rating in the fourth quarter, a dramatic turnaround from the -8.2 net rating they had in the first half of the season. That improvement is, in part, because in the fourth quarters of the last 20 games, Atlanta is shooting 42 percent from three-point range, up from 34.8 percent from deep in the fourth quarter over the first 34 games. Their hot shooting late in games understandably garners the most interest, but they have the second best fourth quarter defense since March 1 (103.6 DRtg), trailing only the Sixers, as they have figured things out on that end. Where Pierce had seemed to be tuned out by the Hawks by the time he was let go, McMillan has their full attention and is getting them to play with maximum effort on that end. Part of that comes with simply getting more time on the court together and a comfort in rotations and knowing who will be where and how to execute the defense, but sometimes having a different voice, even if what they’re being asked to do isn’t wildly different, can make a big difference.

The answer to “how are the Hawks doing this?” isn’t one thing, but the combination of a lot of players finally being healthy, comfortable in their roles, and playing their best basketball.

The adjustments for veterans like Bogdanovic and Gallinari to playing with someone like Young are pretty big, but they’re showing now how they can all fit together in this puzzle — and most impressively, doing so on both ends of the floor. The depth they had created this offseason but was stripped away due to injuries is finally showing up, and allowing them to be much more consistent no matter what group is on the floor. They have a legit offensive superstar in Young, a defensive centerpiece in Capela, and plenty of capable, talented players learning how to orbit those two one each end of the floor.

The Hawks won’t be favored whenever they match up with one of the East’s top 3 squads, but after an offseason of hype and the first half of disappointment, this is a team that suddenly looks dangerous. They have the pieces to make anyone sweat in a series, and if the shots keep going in, who knows how far they can go.

Monday night starts the second week of Aaron Rodgers guest hosting Jeopardy! and the first five shows were any indication, there will be plenty to keep an eye on while the Green Bay Packers quarterback has control of the board. Rodgers is a serious student of the game, and he’s even said he wants to be in the running for hosting the show full-time. And if you believe the people at Jeopardy! that’s far from impossible.

Deep into Peter King’s Football Morning In America column is an interview that details a bit more about Rodgers’ time guest hosting the legendary game show. We’ve already heard a lot about what Rodgers did to get ready for the gig. But as executive producer Mike Richards told King, no matter how much you prepare for the role, the “real game is totally different.”

“The intensity goes up in the real game, which Aaron found out,” Richards told me from California on Friday night. “You can see, even with the second show, his voice got better, his command got better, he started to enjoy it and have fun. But the truth is, you never truly relax. You’ve got the open, introducing the categories, 15 questions, the short interviews with the players, 15 more questions, 30 questions in Double Jeopardy, sum up, introduce Final Jeopardy, then do that, and through it all, you’re the arbiter of every question.

“And,” said Richards, “there’s no huddle.”

Richards would know, as he pulled guest hosting duties after Ken Jennings’ run finished earlier in the year. The interview also detailed a bit more about the schedule Rodgers would need to sustain if he actually wanted to pull double-duty and both play football and host the show. The shoot for two weeks-worth of shows took three days, with a rehearsal and then five shows filmed a day after that. Richards said that Rogers was “exhausted” after the grind of the show’s schedule, but noted how complimentary he was to everyone on the show and that “we hated to see him go.”

It will be Richards that plays a part in picking who the next permanent host is once Rodgers and the other guest hosts finish up. And Rodgers told King that, whether the Packers quarterback gets the job or not, the future is bright for his TV career if he’s interested.

“What I find fascinating about Aaron,” said Richards, “is his second career could be better than his first.”

Richards also teased another fun Packers-related moment for Rodgers sometime in this week’s episodes. Hopefully it’s not something about the way last season ended and is a bit more fun for the quarterback to think about over the long, but eventful, offseason.