Tuesday Recap: Kawhi needed 26 shots to reach 26 points and we lost by the hook. On the East Coast, the Nets played “too well” and it forced Joe Harris to get rest for most of the second half. Mind you he had 6 points after the first quarter and finished with 10 — a bucket shy of his over.
I just want to preface these picks with a quick mention that I had amazing reasons to play Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s O22.5 points tonight against the Rockets, including an excuse to use a “Hamilton” gif and the Rockets ruined this opportunity.
First Pick: Domantas Sabonis O18.5 Pts (-121) vs NYK
Fact #1: Sabonis faced the Knicks 3x last season totaling 19, 25 and 24 points respectively.
Fact #2: The Knicks’ front court is returning both Julius Randle and Mitchell Robinson, which are matchups that Sabonis took advantage of last season.
Second Pick: Rudy Gobert O13.5 Pts (-117) vs POR
Fact #1: In three meeting last season, Gobert totaled 16, 6 and 16 respectively.
Fact #2: Subtract: Hassan Whiteside (Sac-Town)… Add: Enes Kanter back in Portland and you have a recipe for success
Fact #3: Jusuf Nurkić will reportedly be a minutes restriction (20), which means more Kanter, which means Gobert should get easy looks at the rim.
I understand most athletes don’t want to talk to the media and I get that Kevin Durant probably hates Charles Barkley, especially for saying things like the reason Durant left Golden State is because he was a bus rider, not a bus driver on a championship team and he wouldn’t be a “made man” until he was the No. 1 guy on a championship team. I get that. But to act like a mopey 16-year-old with a handful of one word answers when the TNT guys are asking him pure softball questions is just silly. Especially when you’re a guy who LOVES to talk and had his own documentary about himself and has his own podcast. Especially after Kyrie just had his own shit storm and refused to talk to the media until the fines piled up and he relented (and Barkley bashed Kyrie’s meandering explanation behind that).
So it’s well within Durant’s rights to fulfill his media obligations and say nothing (I’ve watched Belichick do it for 20 years), but I also love the NBA on TNT guys just absolutely roasting KD for it. Can you imagine any other pre-game/post-game crew in any other sport doing this? No shot. The NFL, MLB, and the NHL are pretty straight laced at best and at worst are just playing grab ass with all the players. It’s the reason why this is one of the few pre-game broadcasts that I actually will tune into. When the Patriots are on I put the game on just in time for kickoff and not a minute earlier. It helps that TNT give these guys the leeway to screw around and speak their minds, but it also helps that guys like Barkley do not give a single shit about being friends with these players.
Charles Barkley's reaction to Kevin Durant's one word answer to his question.loooooool pic.twitter.com/KEHnG0wGa3
By now the joke of how much of a shitshow the year of our lord 2020 has been played out fifty times over. So I’m not going to dive into it too much beyond saying that living 3/4 of the year on the business end of a global pandemic was not very fun.
The unique nature of such a year did come with an interesting side effect. Forced to stay inside and isolate ourselves, or at least hopefully more than we normally would, we saw the world unfold through our screens more than any other year in memory. I guess it is a bit sad to say it this way, but as we missed out on actually going out and experiencing life, we watched it happen. Through social media, the world wide web, and if you’re anything like apparently 86 year old friend of the blog Patty B, the news, we ingested second hand the major stories of 2020, from the bizarre to the sad to the tragic to an election. And we all saw it in basically real time.
So to put a stamp on this year I’m going to write a few blogs waxing poetic on some of the more major headlines as well as broader topics that caught our attention. In keeping with the tradition of the shit I normally write about, I’m going to skew boring old mainstream topics in favor of the odder, less obvious corners of pop culture. You are not going to read about the NBA rigging the title for it’s biggest cash cow (again) here. You aren’t going to read about your favorite pop star because I probably don’t know who they are. (Editor’s note: Read Joe’s blog on Taylor Swift’s new album here) You aren’t going to read about baseball because I don’t know if it’s still being played (is it?).
However, sports, TV, movies, music, and the like will all be touched in some capacity. I should note that I in no way intend to stick to a chronological order. I have a few things picked out and a few will probably come to me but whether it happened in May or February or two weeks ago I’m going to write it as fingers hit keys. Some of these will be short. Some of them long. All of them proof read at least .5 times. Let’s go.
The British Invasion
I have been teased for awhile now in my group of friends as the guy who watches British TV. To be more accurate I am teased for watching way too much British TV. But to present to you my argument I usually present to everyone else, it’s just better. Depending on the show it’s either highly realistic and reflective of real life or depicts life as a complete caricature of itself, there is no in between. Comedy-wise, There aren’t really any cheesy laugh tracks or bad one liners or tags. The acting is always sublime. When the characters hurt, they hurt, when they love, they love, when they laugh, they laugh. Whether the show is set in a real place or a fictional one, the universe is fully created, from local establishments to barely seen but fully fleshed fringe characters/townspeople. It’s grade A stuff.
Mid-pandemic, the streaming services (at least Netflix and Hulu) were starving for content. American productions had been shut down. I’m sure Netflix at least was suddenly regretting cancelling a number of fan favorites such as The Punisher and The OA. Hulu you could say was almost doubly fucked because they rely now rely on a mixture of views from a smaller but solid slate of originally programming and then the rights to currently airing network shows. Ya, the network shows that were also shut down. So what were they to do? They made a call across the pond.
It’s hard to really pinpoint when Americans became so enamored with British TV, as a novelty even. I remember my grandmother watching super old British “soaps” on the ancient tv in their kitchen growing up, There has always been, as it is true around the world, an American cult following of Doctor Who. But when did we become fully fledged fans? Again, hard to say. Luther came out in 2010 and made it’s way to Netflix not too long after. Teen shows like Skins and The Inbetweeners also found some popularity stateside around that time. Either way, American streaming services and premium providers needed to fill the gaps in their programming in 2020 and boy howdy, did they find the plug.
In a role reversal from the two previous world wars, the Brits were here to save the day. On the Netflix end, they leaned on, for the most part, promoting what they already had. Stalwarts like Marcella and new comers like Sex Education and The End of the Fucking World had put out new seasons within six months of the beginning of quarantine. They, along with less viewed series like Afterlife were given a huge push at the top of the Netflix dashboard/on the “you might like” banners. It was the freshest or fresh-ish content Netflix could provide and they leaned right into it.
On the Hulu side, things were a little more drastic. This summer they promoted and executed a massive upload of new British content to go along with offerings like Four Weddings and a Funeral and Killing Eve. Shows like Brassic and Boyhood were fairly well received and if nothing else, provided a binge worthy arc or two for a rainy, quarantined afternoon.
The premium networks also got into the British game. Debutante network AMC+ bought the rights to Gangs of London, which is now on most best of 2020 lists. They also have the US rights to Baptiste, a spinoff of The Missing featuring the eponymous French detective. HBO came on even stronger, releasing The Third Day while also utilizing the broadcasting rights to the rave reviewed and award winning I May Destroy You as well as investment banking world newcomer The Industry. All of this I find interesting as it is a tangible proof that the premiums are not just going to lie down in their battle with streaming services.
This past month(ish) Netflix put out The Queen’s Gambit, a show about chess of all things, to rave reviews, cementing British TV’s place in American culture. Whether it was always going to be this way or was a byproduct of being stuck inside and having to watch more TV, we’ll never know. I do know, however, in what is a sort of US-centric world pop culture -ise it has been nice to get a glimpse into how other entertainment industries view the every day lives of their countrymen. Hats off to the streaming services and premium channels for finally taking us along for the ride.
Breaking news animation: Jimmy Lips aka Big Game James knows hoops as well!
Normally, I’d wait to a few games in order to be able to draw from a sample size bigger than two preseason games, but these two picks seem too good to pass up.
First Pick: Joe Harris O11.5 points (-121) vs GSW
Fact #1: In the bubble, which seems like ages ago, Joe Harris averaged 19.1 points per game?.
“But James, that was without Kyrie, KD and Dinwiddie!”
I know, it’s called making a point that he can get buckets.
Fact #2: In the limited two-game sample size, the second of which the Nets treated like a real game, Harris went for 4 and 14 respectively. The 14 matters because the Nets treated the Celtics game like a regular-season tuneup.
Fact #3: There’s no Draymond and no Klay, which rids Joe Harris of potentially be guarded by two of the league’s best on the perimeter.
Fact #4: Harris averaged career bests in FGs Made (5.5) and attempted (11.4). With Kyrie and KD on the floor, he should rarely face a contested jumper/3-pointer.
Second pick: Kawhi Leonard O26.5 points (+112) vs LAK
Fact #1: There’s no convincing me that Kawhi and PG13 aren’t pissed off that A) Their arena mates won the title and B) All those questionable leadership and behavioral traits leaked to the public.
Fact #2: In 4 games against the Lakers last season, Leonard notched totals of 30 (opening night), 35, 27 and 28 — an average of 30 flat per contest.
Fact #3: There’s no way Bron guards Kawhi all game and when that duty is left to the combination of Matthews and KCP, the Board Man will have an easier time reaching his over points total.
A side note, I’m rootin’ for you, I use these bars and start recruitin’ for you But treat her right And just remember, on your lonely nights this mic will be your friend You tell it all your secrets that you keepin’ deep within Your fantasies, regrets, your happy moments and your sins And if he doesn’t comprehend, at least he can pretend Let’s begin to be the men we never seen
J. Cole really is a one man murderers’ row of guest spots, including this 2018 feature on Cozz’s “Zendaya” track. Cozz is a member of Cole’s record label, Dreamville, and has been featured throughout Cole’s Revenge of the Dreamers series that’s essentially acted as a spotlight for his up and coming artists. Cole has spoken extensively about how he intentionally got on as many other artist’s tracks as possible to show people what he can really do when he’s in his bag. So much so that he even rapped on “A Lot” how nobody even wants him on their song anymore because he’s that good.
I never was one for the bragging and boasting I guess I was hoping the music would speak for itself, but the people want everything else Okay, no problem, I’ll show up on everyone album You know what the outcome will be I’m batting a thousand It’s got to the point that these rappers don’t even like rappin’ with me
I cannot believe Samuel L. Jackson is 72-years-old, the man doesn’t look a day over 55. Granted, Samuel L. has been around forever and has been in pretty much everything (IMDB calls him a “highly prolific actor”) having appeared in over 100 films in his career. With that being said what are his Top 5 roles ever? A couple of rules here, I’m obviously only including the movies I’ve personally seen, but I must admit I am not a completionist so I have not seen every single one of Jackson’s movies. Also, I left off any roles where he is barely in the movie, as much as I wanted to include the smooth piano player Rufus from Kill Bill 2 who gets 43 seconds of screen time… Jackson talked about his favorite roles a couple years back, but let’s break down what we think his Top 5 roles of all time are below.
No. 5 – Coach Carter Ken Carter
Before these kinds of sad sack sports flicks turned into a genre of Made For TV movies, Jackson took a film that probably would have went straight to DVD if not for his performance. The biggest name in this movie besides him was Ashanti and a pre-“Step Up” Channing Tatum. So yea this movie was destined to be an MTV2 rerun, but Jackson turns it into a pretty legit movie about redemption, work ethic (or at the very least doing the bare minimum in school to pass), and triumph in the face of adversity.
No. 4 – Star Wars Mace Windu
Mace Windu is on this list almost entirely because of the story that the only reason he randomly has a purple light saber is because Samuel L. Jackson told George Lucas to do it. But seriously, Jackson brought an aura of cool that Star Wars, specifically the Jedi, lacked before him. Star Wars created groundbreaking characters like Darth Vader that became literal film archetypes, but aside from Han Solo who could you say was actually cool? Samuel L. Jackson reminded people that oh yea not every Jedi is a goodie two shoes, some of them are badass warriors. It’s just a shame Lucas didn’t let him drop some MF-bombs on Emperor Palpatine.
No. 3 – Django Unchained Stephen
Django Unchained is another excellent Tarantino movie in a long line of them, but it’s one that is absolutely gobbled up by the likes of Christoph Waltz, Jamie Foxx, and Leonardo DiCaprio. I wouldn’t fault you for forgetting Samuel L. Jackson was even in this movie if you haven’t seen it in a while. But upon closer review, I found Jackson’s role of Stephen higher on my list than I would have originally thought and it’s because he plays, as Entertainment Weekly dubbed it, an “unrepentant monster.” Something you don’t see Jackson, or any actor really, do a lot of. Back when the movie came out EW asked him about potential Academy Award hype and Jackson’s answer is why this role is so high on my list.
“Well, the point of that award is that you were an actor in a film who made a dynamic impact on the story with a memorable character. And would anyone else playing the part have been as impactful? That should be the question — did you do your job? Yes. Did I make you hate me? Yes. Did I inhabit the character full enough to make you believe that, and make you uncomfortable enough to make you hate me? Yes. And you feel guilty because then you want to see me die. I did what I was supposed to do for that film, which should be the criteria for voting or not voting.“
No. 2 – The Avengers (and every other Marvel movie) Nick Fury
You could argue that Nick Fury was basically just Samuel L. Jackson playing himself with an eye patch and a leather duster jacket, but that ignores the fact that he helped tie together the entire Marvel Cinematic Universe before the first movie was even off the ground. When he appears after the credits of Iron Man 1 it’s a complete shock that draws you in and gave you a sense that something very big was happening, even if you didn’t know what that was. Nick Fury has acted as the godfather of the whole Avengers team and the bonding agent in movies with lesser known characters and story lines like Captain Marvel. Nick Fury is the constant in the largest example of cinematic world building ever created.
No. 1 – Pulp Fiction Jules Winnfield
Jules Winnfield is one of the most quotable characters in any movie ever. Period. Full stop. Jules’ is so memorable for his unique internal conflict of being a gangster’s muscle/hitman while also having recently found God and trying to walk the righteous path. Jackson’s work here provides some all time acting like the diner standoff where he legitimately spawned an entire generation of Etsy businesses creating Bad Ass Motherfucker leather wallets. Then of course there’s the Bonnie Situation scene with Quentin Tarantino dropping in for a cameo before they call The Wolf, but most notably the biblical speech Jackson gives quoting Ezekiel 25:17 right before blowing some poor guy’s head off with his hand cannon. That’s why Pulp Fiction is our No. 1.
Recap: Missing the Lock prop by 2 completions is infuriating when you realize that they ran the clock out with 3 straight runs to end the game. Tonyan had 2 catches in the first quarter and just one over the final three, but the TD prop did cash.
Today’s Pick: DeAndre Hopkins O87.5 receiving yards (-112) and O7.5 catches (+106) vs PHI
Fact #1: Eagles top corner Darius Slay is out today… not like that has appeared to matter the past couple of weeks
Fact #2: The Eagles have allowed the 3rd-most receiving yards to WRs over the last five weeks (943)
Fact #3: Hopkins has 24 targets (8 and 9 catches, respectively) over the last two games
Fact #4: The Eagles have surrendered 8+ catches to DK Metcalf (10), Davante Adams (10) and Michael Thomas (8) over their last three games
2nd Pick: Rashard Higgins O51.5 receiving yards (+100) vs NYG
Fact #1: I hate picking props against my team
Fact #2: Higgins has 95 and 68 yards, respectively over his last two games while also seeing his snap % increase over each of the past five games
Fact #3: The Giants will be without top cornerback James Bradberry, who is on the Covid list
Highlight the Highs: David Montgomery is in a groove right now and no one plays catch-up football like Kirk Cousins
Loathe the Lows: The Chargers continue to play funk 4th quarter football as last week’s game vs ATL and now Thursday’s tilt against the Raiders showed. Also, Mike Glennon was well on his way to reaching his completion total until he was benched due to his defense not tackling Derrick Henry.
But today is a special day. Why? Because we get NFL games + it’s Saturday!
And now that you’ve been all in your feelings about how awesome 2001 music was, I bring you today’s first pick:
Drew Lock O21.5 completions (-118) vs BUF
Fact #1: Lock is coming off his best game of the season last week against the Panthers (280 and 4 scores)
Fact #2: Buffalo is allowing an average of 24 completions per game on the road compared to 22.9 at home
Fact #3: Buffalo has allowed four of its last five opponents to complete at least 22 completions, including Russell Wilson (28), Kyler Murray (22), Justin Herbert (31) and Nick Mullens (26).
Robert Tonyan O3.5 receptions (-124) vs CAR
Fact #1: The Panthers have allowed 27 catches to TE over the past 5 weeks — T-5th-most in the NFL over that span — despite only playing 4 games (Avg: 6.75)
Fact #2: Tonyan has 4+ catches in four straight games, including a TD in each of those contests
Fact #3: Since Week 8, Hayden Hurst (5), Travis Kelce (10), T.J. Hockenson (4), Kyle Rudolph (7) and both Nick Vannett (4) and Troy Fumagalli (4) have all caught at least four passes against Carolina.
TLDR: Every TE except Gronk (Bucs) has reached at least 4 receptions against the Panthers since Week 8.
Bonus: Panthers have allowed 3 TE TDs over their last four games, which when combined with Tonyan’s current TD streak, makes it worth a sprinkle at the very least (+160 anytime TD)
Is Kyrie gonna read some horoscopes and tarot cards like your earthy crunchy ex-girlfriend after the game too?
I understand this probably comes off as sour grapes to anyone that hasn’t had to listen to Kyrie’s bizarre press conferences and media appearances on a daily basis (buckle up Nets fans), but I swear the Celtics dodged a bullet when this guy decided to skip town. I’m not a very religious or spiritual person so I’m not here to dump on anyone’s beliefs, but seriously what in the hell is Kyrie doing here? He is legit every girl I went to school with that uses crystals and what position the moon is in to guide their life decisions.
If there’s one thing I give credit for it’s for just not giving a shit how out to lunch you appear to be to just about everyone because this little act came just hours after Charles Barkley roasted Kyrie for his media act.
"Stop acting like you’re the smartest person in the world.”
Charles Barkley had some thoughts on Kyrie Irving's recent comments about the media.
As others on the internet have already pointed out, Barkley came dangerously close to “shut up and dribble” here, but that’s not what he’s saying. Speak your mind, say what you feel, but stop acting like the kid that talks down to everyone because he took Philosophy 101. Agree with Chuck or not, “you only went to college for six months” is a laugh out loud funny line.
The Nets better win 65 games this year and get off to a fast start because I’ve seen the media begin to circle when things are going poorly and Kyrie does not handle it well. Nothing like moving to the biggest media market in the world to help with that.
Emergency edition of #RushHourRap this morning as Eminem dropped SIXTEEN new songs in the middle of the night! Music To Be Murdered By – Side B is another vehicle for Em, now 48-years-old, to show off his unmatched lyrical prowess and the elite ability to play with flow and cadence all while delivering rapid fire rhymes.
It’s packaged as a continuation of Music To Be Murdered By, which Em dropped back in January pre-pandemic. Marshall’s late career blitz continues as this is his 4th album in the last four years and his 7th in the last 11, which kicked off with Relapse way back in 2009. That came after a five year hiatus following Encore and I remember that felt like the end of Eminem, which is crazy to say 16 years and seven albums later. Em’s work over the past decade has been hit or miss with massive, massive success like Recovery, some well received albums like Marshall Mathers LP 2 that featured some A+ tracks like “Rap God.” Then of course came some misses like Revival and Kamikaze, both of which I enjoy as an Eminem stan (“Lucky You” still BANGS), but were not all that well received critically or commercially. We’ll see how MTBMB – Side B is received by fans and critics, but any time Eminem blesses the eardrums with new music I am all in.
The 300s 