3 Point Buzzer

  Well, this has been surprising, hasn't it? The Milwaukee Bucks employ the likely two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo, a two-time Coach of the Year in Mike Budenholzer, and sport the best record in the league going into the playoffs. And they're currently getting spanked. So, what gives? Ultimately, it's a confluence of events, and while the Bucks deserve their fair share of blame, the real story here is the Heat have been phenomenal. It all starts with the twin pillars of the organization, Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo. They have been the two best players in the entire series through three games, neutralizing the Bucks' stars on one end, while scoring on them with ease on the other. What's incredible about Butler and Adebayo is that all season, neither of them have been threats from beyond the arc, but now Butler is actually taking (and making) them at an efficient rate against the Bucks. He and Adebayo are strong enough to create their own shots and stifle Giannis ...

*Written in Spring of 2019 “If you hear gunshots, run back into the van immediately.” Those were the first words Belinda Felder, ACR Health’s SEP Coordinator, told her group of three peer counselors when they arrived in an abandoned parking lot on Syracuse’s westside. Once parked, Brown would stay in the van to help administer clean syringe needles to current clients while her three peer counselors, Dave Andres, Brian Allen and Gaga DePasquale, took to the streets, where they would ultimately pick up and dispose of over 300 contaminated syringes in less than two hours. Brown and her team of workers all work for ACR Health, a nonprofit organization devoted to helping people addicted to opioids through various programs such as narcan training and their syringe exchange outreach. According to their mission statement, they strive for, “a community in which every person has the opportunity to achieve optimal health and equality.” Their mission is spreading, with membership fees and donation...

The title is pretty self explanatory. 10.  Travis Scott "WHAT TO DO" feat. Don Toliver With just a few days left in 2019, Travis Scott dropped his label pack "JACKBOYS', and this song is the clear highlight. Don Toliver kills his verse, talking about going out for the night, while Travis' narcotized hook transfixes you. It feels like I'm in a dream. And the outro is truly heavenly. 9.  Gunna "Derek Fisher" feat. Lil Baby Gunna and Lil Baby are already a formidable duo, but "Derek Fisher" is much more melodic than their usual hard-hitting rap. Talking about going to great lengths to get the woman he wants, Gunna floats on the beat, alluding to Derek Fisher stealing Matt Barnes' girl. The song is so calming and catchy. 8.  Young Thug "The London" feat. J. Cole & Travis Scott Three of the biggest names in hip hop absolutely crushed this lead single for Thug's album, "So Much Fun". Travis handles hoo...

It feels so refreshing to say that basketball is officially back! We had an upside down rollercoaster ride of an offseason, with high-wattage stars such as (deep breath) Anthony Davis, Paul George, Kawhi Leonard, Kyrie Irving, Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook, Jimmy Butler, Chris Paul, Kemba Walker, Mike Conley, Al Horford, D'Angelo Russell and...Mike Muscala change teams. For the first time in what feels like decades, the race for the championship is wide-open, which sets us up for what should be an explosive and massively entertaining NBA season. With that said, every season offers an opportunity for young players to breakout into a more refined version of themselves. Last season we saw Pascal Siakam morph from a bouncy, lengthy spark plug to full blown beast and second best player on a championship team. We glimpsed Spencer Dinwiddie grow from just-another-bench-guard to possibly the best backup in the league after the Lou Will-Montrezl Harrell mind-meld in LA. We witn...

Tiffany Lucci grew up in a sprawling house on Sierra Drive in the lush flats of Beverly Hills. From an outside perspective, it was a peaceful, luxurious lifestyle. But unfortunately, this picturesque life was yet another example to not judge a book by its cover. Tiffany, along with her three other quadruplet sisters Madison, Bianca and Paris, were consistently being physically and emotionally abused by their father. The damage was horrific, including broken arms, bloody foreheads, constant bruising, starvation and emotional neglect. The situation was untenable, with the Lucci’s mother eventually abandoning her children when one day she claimed she was going out Christmas shopping, only to never return again. The Beverly Hills community was vaguely aware of the girls’ situation, but on the rare occasions people reached out to help, their father threatened them. The abuse continued, until one day, Tiffany’s sister, Madison came to Hawthorne middle school with a noticeable gash strea...

Constantly updating. Some favorites that are off the air: Breaking Bad, Game of Thrones, Entourage, The Night Of, Vice Principals Better Call Saul The hit rate of successful sequels felt like zero before Better Call Saul graced our small screens in 2015, two years after its parent show, Breaking Bad, bowed out in spectacular fashion. Saul, which was originally theorized as a half-hour comedy by creators Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould, has evolved into a fascinating show about ethics and how far a man can be dragged into the dirt before he becomes the dirt (horrible line, but stay with me). Jimmy McGill, played exquisitely by Bob Odenkirk, is a man constantly struggling to balance his inner moral compass, and usually failing to straddle the line between lawful and corrupt. His constantly evolving relationship with badass lawyer Kim Wexler (Rhea Seehorn) has out-shadowed the gang-infested aspect of the show, which is very compelling in its own right. As Jesse Pinkman once succinctly p...

When Dwyane Wade and Dirk dropped 30 points in their final home games of their storied careers, 39-year-old Jamal Crawford poured in 51 points and Paul George delivered a 3-point dagger in an exhilarating clash against the Rockets, you'd think those would be the most talked about storylines of the second to last night of the regular season. Wrong. Magic Johnson dropped the hammer last night that he was stepping down as Lakers' President of Basketball Operations. He held an impromptu press conference. He claimed he didn't have the cojones to tell Jeanie Buss to her face. He alluded that he couldn't bear himself to fire Luke Walton the next day. He dropped hints that he wasn't a big Rob Pelinka fan. He vaguely spoke of "backstabbing" that he wanted no part of. In other words, he took a Lakers organization that was already teetering on the brink collapse, and decided to light the place on fire. When I see what Magic did last night, essentially quitting ...