The underground gallery of the fortified palace, the Alcazar of Seville, known as the 'Baths of María de Padilla', was built between the 12th and 13th centuries under the design influence of the Almohad Empire and is the subject of many legends.
@albrgr: This is your periodic reminder that the US government has a program where they'll sell you $10K/year of inflation linked savings bonds, which currently yield 7%, way better than the interest rate you'll get on any bank account: https://www.treasurydirect.gov/indiv/products/prod_ibonds_glance.htm
It's terrible, but in kind of a fascinating way. It doesn't seem like anyone had any concept of setups or payoffs for any of the plot points in this film. Weird stuff happens without any prior explanation and the "major" climax events of the plot are anticlimactic because they haven't done any work to get you invested in the characters or relationships. It's also got a pretty serious/dour tone, so there's no goofy entertainment value to save it like in the Venom movies.
It does seem clear that a lot of stuff was cut out, perhaps because this movie was originally supposed to come out before Venom 2 and Spider-Man: No Way Home, but it's also pretty likely that this was always a mess.
Watched a movie I hadn't watched in decades: Atlantic City. I didn't realize it until just now, but the director Louis Malle must have been blacklisted in France after Lacome, Luicien - the realistic portrayal of French collaboration with the Nazis under occupation did not sit well with his countrymen, I guess.
Anyway, it's a worthy movie, featuring a depiction of a decaying American city and its scuffling residents. Burt Lancaster's performance was amazing - Susan Sarandon's less so.
‘Bottoms’: Rachel Sennott, Ayo Edebiri, Marshawn Lynch & More To Star In High School Sex Comedy From Orion & Brownstone; ‘Shiva Baby’s Emma Seligman Directing
Currently watching Tokyo Vice - while I've never been a fan of Ansel Elgort, acting nor his sexual abuse, he's really quite good here. And it really sounds like he learned japanese.
I would like to have seen someone make Baby Driver with not-Ansel-Elgort as I think that would have made for a better film without any other changes required
The ASUC Underground is where I spent every single lunch break the summer between my junior and senior year when I worked on campus. $5.60 lunch at the tacqueria next to the Bear's Lair - a carnitas torta and Snapple Lemon Iced tea. Then I would go downstairs and play 1 full game of NBA Jam ($4) usually with the Charlotte Hornets and then return to the library.
I saw Wayfarer this weekend at the Elbo Room in Oakland. Fantastic show. They blend western music with tinges of black metal. They played their "new" album (released in 2020) in its entirety and threw in some older stuff at the end.
it's very rough watching what's going on in Shanghai right now. The vast majority of people are doing ok - maybe a little bored and slightly hungry - but the 1% - and 1% in a city of 28 million is a TON of people - are down to like 2 potatoes, having to go to quarantine camps that look like refugee camps. People are cracking - it's been a giant clusterfuck. As a parallel - Shenzhen (yes, half the size, and much younger, tech savvy population) has weathered the same mild covid outbreak with zero panic or logistics issues.
Seems like the Chinese government backed a trash vaccine and also failed to get their older population to take it, so now they have to pretend that worked and also maintain an unworkable Zero COVID strategy against an Omicron variant that too easily defeats it.
America has plenty of problems in the other direction, but this is the kind of thing you can get with top-down authoritarian regimes. The mistakes from the top level have to be compounded, lest you admit error.
There are either conspiracy theorists who want to see chaos. . . or well connected and sourced insiders (or people who are both!) who say this is some sort of behind-the-scenes showdown between Xi and the central government and their political rivals.
Shanghai has always harbored the opposition (except for when it was in power). The Communist Party of China was founded there. Deng Xiaoping hid out from Mao and the Gang of Four there - and was protected by the Shanghai mayor. Jiang Zemin (part of the Shanghai collective, despite not being from there) rose to take central power and then empowered Hu Jintao, but Xi's faction moved into power and deposed of a lot of Shanghai and Chengdu people.
So is there some internally wrangling going on here? Probably. But there's also a ton of awful logistics and public health planning too. A lot of people - not just foreigners - with the means and ability to leave this summer are planning to.
It could very well be the case that we shouldn’t assume malice when incompetence is more likely. And lord knows we’ve proved that ourselves over the last several years
Dudes, not sure where this goes but I went to three kid bday parties yesterday, was nuts. One was at Chuck E Cheese though and I have to admit I kind of enjoyed that one. Haven’t been to an arcade in yonks!
I think I had it early on - in early March 2020 before it was widely recognized that COVID was in the Bay Area. I had no energy, slightly nauseous, and wanted to sleep all the time. Took me 5 days of that nonsense before it broke.
Warriors end the season with a five game win streak, will play the Nuggets in round 1. They went 1-3 against Denver this season, but they never played them with a full roster and always had at least one of Klay, Dray or Steph out. Should be an interesting match up, especially if Steph is ready for Game 1.
I feel like the Warriors are the only team that can legitimately challenge the Suns in the West, if all of their stars are healthy. But it's a tall order to get it together on the fly in the postseason, since Steph, Klay, and Dray haven't really gotten to play together all season.
I know I am likely the only Cubs fan on this but man this Seiya Suzuki guy is legit. 5 tools, great batting eye, no issue at all with MLB fastball. I feel like this kind of fell in our laps. More homers than Ks last year in the NPB!
I'm not a cubs fan but I am big Suzuki fan. I bought his jersey when he was only 20 years old, one year before he had a breakout season in Japan. So excited to see him hit well so far. Only wish he had come to a west coast team so I could go watch him more often.
No I've never been to Koshien. I've watched games on tv but not in the stands. I'm a big fan of Hiroshima Carp, a professional team and I would go to as many games as I can when I visit Japan. I watched the Carp play in Tokyo in 2014 when Seiya Suzuki hit his first career HR too. If I had a high school I am affiliated to, then I would be following HS baseball more closely.
I used to be a teacher in Korea and one long weekend I went to Kyoto. It was the beginning of spring, a beautiful day, cherry blossoms blooming, and on seemingly every patch of grass I came across there were kids playing baseball or pepper or doing baseball drills. It was beautiful
Weather permitting (it's supposed to be the lone non-rainy day), Seiya Suzuki is by far the guy I'm most excited to see in person tomorrow for the Cubs at Pirates game (Pirates' Opening Day)...it's kind of a big drop off after too given the rosters of these two teams.
fantastic race. Mercedes really storming back on the grid. It's starting to look like a three way battle at the top but Ferrari is clearly head and shoulders above Red Bull at the moment. and RB need to figure out the powertrain problems and quick.
I was indifferent to him until last year. His nonstop whining and reckless (but certainly not wreckless) driving pushed me over the edge. I relish his DNFs now.
I’ve never liked Verstappen - if it wasn’t for Perez, that entire team would just a bunch of arses.
A lot of people disliked Hamilton for general complaining and whatnot - also there are a lot of UK F1 fans who can’t quite bring themselves to support one of the most successful drivers ever, can’t think why not 🙄. Funnily enough it seemed like the grace with which Hamilton took the way he lost the championship last year actually endeared him to previous detractors.
some fans? have you seen the way the dutch travel to F1 events? As a newbie F1 guy, i just thought McLaren had tons fans then realized it was the goddamn dutch.
As if he is to blame for this year. Lakers need to gut the team. No way they're getting rid of Russell Westbrook. Who's going to be willing to trade for him?
LeBron, AD, and Westbrook will be around next year. Everyone else should be replaced.
Yeah, he's a total drain. Doesn't make sense for a contender, nor does he make sense for a young team. Even in a limited role, it's hard to discern what his value would be as a contributor, as he's lost a fair amount of the athleticism that compensated for his limitations and made him a plus player. He's a terrible defender, shooter and decision-maker, and he still thinks he's a top shelf contributor. He could maybe be a bunch scorer off the bench if he was to accept the role, but he's not the same scorer without all of the athleticism that allowed him to get to the basket at will and get fouled. Too much "if" to be worth rolling the dice on a bad chemistry guy trending down rapidly.
The issue isn't Westbrook's abilities as a "basketball player" - which are no longer what they were, but they're still sort of in the top 30 player range (maybe). but because of his style of play - inefficient, ball dominant, - he kind of needs to be the best player on the floor for his team. He doesn't mesh well with other really good players (Harden two years ago, Lebron this year) because he doesn't play as if he can take a back seat.
And he can no longer single-handedly carry a team to the playoffs . .. and bad teams don't want him either because they're trying to build for the future both on the court and in the locker room. And he has this albatross of a salary.
Two years ago he carried the Rockets to the playoffs (when Harden was suffering through a weird 3 month malaise) then Harden woke up before the playoffs and played like his normal self and Russ caught covid.
Last season, he was traded to the Wizards - and as the best player on the Wizards (including Brad Beal) he was awful for the first 3 months and then willed them - by himself - to the playoffs where they were the bottom seed and got swept out of the playoffs.
Now add on another year of aging, and its difficult to see what team would want him right now. It's not like he can become a complimentary player and help a team - like Atlanta or Charlotte become a contender. And bad teams like the Rockets or Magic are working on developing their own future stars and don't want Russ to dominate the ball and the play.
My guess is they end up waiving Westbrook, so they can pay his $47m over three years under the cap. I don't think there's a trade partner for him unless they are giving up assets. Even without his full salary hogging the cap, I still don't see how they improve the roster enough to become a contender again given the salary situation.
I wonder how far a team with LeBron and next year's Cal players could go in the Pac-12 and in the NCAAs.
If teams do the Steph double to get the ball out of his hands as soon as he crosses half court, could the remaining 4 Cal players score enough against the 3 defenders?
Injury risk aside, I think he could get us to top 4 in the Pac. It's not 4 vs 3 - he's a good enough passer, and college defenders would have no chance against him - he's passing directly to open shots. They wouldn't need to do the Draymond thing. Plus, he's scoring 30ppg against NBA defenders.
NCAA's is tougher with one-and-out - but I think at least sweet sixteen.
The A’s beat the Phillies 4-1 on Sunday at Citizens Bank Park, earning their first victory of the season and avoiding a sweep to start the year.
Oakland earned this game on both sides of the ball. They pitched well and posted a string of highlights on defense, keeping Philadelphia off the board until the 9th inning. At the plate they flexed some power, had a few hits with runners in scoring position, and hustled on the bases, offering enough run support for a comfortable margin.
Rookie starter Daulton Jefferies led the way with five scoreless frames, but the A’s lineup was quiet themselves during that time and the scoreboard remained empty. Oakland’s bats finally woke up in the 6th and continued applying pressure the rest of the day, while four different relievers came out of their bullpen to hold the lead.
From parts of that game that I saw, I would have preferred for Cal alum Daulton Jefferies to miss more bats, but he was inducing weak contacts from some really aggressive Phillies batters.
After drafting the seventeen year old in 2017, Heliot Ramos made his big league debut for the San Francisco Giants in the third game of the 2022 season on Sunday.
Ramos, who was called up earlier than most anticipated when bullpen arm John Brebbia went on the Bereavement List, started in left field and went 2 for 3 with two singles, a run scored and a strike out, in the Giants 3-2 rubber match win over the Miami Marlins.
After playing two close games, today’s series finale was more like a traditional Coors Field game in which the Dodgers found themselves on the wrong side of a 9-4 loss to the Rockies. The win gave the Rockies their first home series win against the Dodgers since August 12, 2018 when the Rockies took three of four.
Making his 2022 debut, Julio Urías did not record a out in the third inning as he left the game trailing 6-0 with two runners on base. It was his shortest outing since August 19, 2020 when he went 1.2 innings at Seattle. Also concerning is his drop in velocity from last season.
I don't think so. Cailyn was coming off an injury, but looked promising as a freshmen as a spark plug. She was also a positive force on the team. Samb has talent and potential, and also a positive force on the team. Daniels is an impact loss.
Two years ago, the loses were completely understandable given the injuries and youth. Our two "vets" were sophomores. We had walk-ons at guard, and Coach kept the team together through a bad season.
Last year was much improved and more competitive, but the conference wins did not come so the team still finished with only one pac12 win (several games were very close).
I thought next year could be our breakout year with a veteran team and players coming off injury, plus a soph Curry.
But two last place finishes took a toll. I don't think Cal wanted to lose any of the 3 players
That was pretty much an on-brand move for Wyking…Winston was his first recruit as Cal HC, yet he forced him out after just his FR year. I mean, it happens every year at schools across the country, but still…another indication of how lost he was.
Wonder if Fox would ever do that…maybe he already did?(Klonaras)
DBD Finance
Twitter financial advice https://twitter.com/albrgr/status/1512911056183566336?s=20&t=QUiDkJJ_-CHrjsSXo7eO6A
@albrgr: This is your periodic reminder that the US government has a program where they'll sell you $10K/year of inflation linked savings bonds, which currently yield 7%, way better than the interest rate you'll get on any bank account: https://www.treasurydirect.gov/indiv/products/prod_ibonds_glance.htm
DBD AV Club
One of my fav all time movies: Breaker Morant (Australian movie based on a true story)
Morbius -
It's terrible, but in kind of a fascinating way. It doesn't seem like anyone had any concept of setups or payoffs for any of the plot points in this film. Weird stuff happens without any prior explanation and the "major" climax events of the plot are anticlimactic because they haven't done any work to get you invested in the characters or relationships. It's also got a pretty serious/dour tone, so there's no goofy entertainment value to save it like in the Venom movies.
It does seem clear that a lot of stuff was cut out, perhaps because this movie was originally supposed to come out before Venom 2 and Spider-Man: No Way Home, but it's also pretty likely that this was always a mess.
That's ridiculous.
Watched a movie I hadn't watched in decades: Atlantic City. I didn't realize it until just now, but the director Louis Malle must have been blacklisted in France after Lacome, Luicien - the realistic portrayal of French collaboration with the Nazis under occupation did not sit well with his countrymen, I guess.
Anyway, it's a worthy movie, featuring a depiction of a decaying American city and its scuffling residents. Burt Lancaster's performance was amazing - Susan Sarandon's less so.
‘Bottoms’: Rachel Sennott, Ayo Edebiri, Marshawn Lynch & More To Star In High School Sex Comedy From Orion & Brownstone; ‘Shiva Baby’s Emma Seligman Directing
https://deadline.com/2022/04/bottoms-casts-rachel-sennott-ayo-edebiri-marshawn-lynch-more-1234999993/
Please find a way to watch Severance. Sail the high seas if you have to.
And have patience with the first few eps...the payoff is worth it! (Unlike Invasion on ATV+)
Afterparty was great!
the last season of dickinson you can rip through in a lazy afternoon
Currently watching Slow Horses on Apple TV - fun British spy show about a bunch of misfit MI5 agents
Currently watching Tokyo Vice - while I've never been a fan of Ansel Elgort, acting nor his sexual abuse, he's really quite good here. And it really sounds like he learned japanese.
I would like to have seen someone make Baby Driver with not-Ansel-Elgort as I think that would have made for a better film without any other changes required
For All Mankind Season 3 starts June 10
so soon?!? yes!!!!!
Yay!
My wife made a lot of the cool set dressing for S3, excited to see it on the big small screen
Ha! I recognized one of the chairs from season one - I have one - from Room and Board.
cool!
I bought an album the first day it dropped on Friday - Wet Leg
We are seeing them at This Ain't No Picnic, I've seen a few of their live performances online and they look awesome
FET my knowledge of French is non-existent, but I still felt pretty silly after looking up what "chaise longue" translates to
I’ve been enjoying it - I’d heard some of the singles so that wasn’t a surprise
Everything Everywhere All At Once: extremely silly, wildly creative, and properly heartfelt. Definitely lives up to the hype 18/19 WBA
only in theaters?
I had a few quibbles, but yeah it's very good.
Paddington 2 is excellent
I still think Hugh Grant deserved some kind of award for that performance
he got the reward of working with Paddington!
I hope Florence Pugh gets cast as the villain for Paddington 3
Florence Pugh
@Florence_Pugh
Paddington, do you want to make sandwiches with me?
You can have a spare jar btw..
Underground
Velvet ~
The ASUC Underground is where I spent every single lunch break the summer between my junior and senior year when I worked on campus. $5.60 lunch at the tacqueria next to the Bear's Lair - a carnitas torta and Snapple Lemon Iced tea. Then I would go downstairs and play 1 full game of NBA Jam ($4) usually with the Charlotte Hornets and then return to the library.
I used to get the nachos with my ex. That and the smoothies next door.
- Metal
I saw Wayfarer this weekend at the Elbo Room in Oakland. Fantastic show. They blend western music with tinges of black metal. They played their "new" album (released in 2020) in its entirety and threw in some older stuff at the end.
Seville
Rabbit of
*ahem* Bunny of Seville
I guess my memory conflates Bugs Bunny with the title.
Government Ineptitude
it's very rough watching what's going on in Shanghai right now. The vast majority of people are doing ok - maybe a little bored and slightly hungry - but the 1% - and 1% in a city of 28 million is a TON of people - are down to like 2 potatoes, having to go to quarantine camps that look like refugee camps. People are cracking - it's been a giant clusterfuck. As a parallel - Shenzhen (yes, half the size, and much younger, tech savvy population) has weathered the same mild covid outbreak with zero panic or logistics issues.
Seems like the Chinese government backed a trash vaccine and also failed to get their older population to take it, so now they have to pretend that worked and also maintain an unworkable Zero COVID strategy against an Omicron variant that too easily defeats it.
America has plenty of problems in the other direction, but this is the kind of thing you can get with top-down authoritarian regimes. The mistakes from the top level have to be compounded, lest you admit error.
It’s not the sort of thing that prompts trust among the governed, though I doubt that will amount to much of anything in the long haul.
It's probably true.
There are either conspiracy theorists who want to see chaos. . . or well connected and sourced insiders (or people who are both!) who say this is some sort of behind-the-scenes showdown between Xi and the central government and their political rivals.
Shanghai has always harbored the opposition (except for when it was in power). The Communist Party of China was founded there. Deng Xiaoping hid out from Mao and the Gang of Four there - and was protected by the Shanghai mayor. Jiang Zemin (part of the Shanghai collective, despite not being from there) rose to take central power and then empowered Hu Jintao, but Xi's faction moved into power and deposed of a lot of Shanghai and Chengdu people.
So is there some internally wrangling going on here? Probably. But there's also a ton of awful logistics and public health planning too. A lot of people - not just foreigners - with the means and ability to leave this summer are planning to.
It could very well be the case that we shouldn’t assume malice when incompetence is more likely. And lord knows we’ve proved that ourselves over the last several years
You rang?
I can be helpful here, too.
Today in Covid
Dudes, not sure where this goes but I went to three kid bday parties yesterday, was nuts. One was at Chuck E Cheese though and I have to admit I kind of enjoyed that one. Haven’t been to an arcade in yonks!
All hail antioch the birthday spider!
*garbled noises
Day 4. Still feel like total crap.
I was on days 8 and 9 (days after 2nd booster) over the weekend and slept a lot. Feeling a bit better today though.
Take care, Scoots <3
I empathize. Hope it breaks soon.
I think I had it early on - in early March 2020 before it was widely recognized that COVID was in the Bay Area. I had no energy, slightly nauseous, and wanted to sleep all the time. Took me 5 days of that nonsense before it broke.
Ugh, that's unfortunate. Hopefully you recover soon
Gross, hope you’re feeling better soon
Yeah, and I still don't want to catch this bug.
My best friend got it on Tuesday and is still laid out as well. Though his kids recovered very quickly
I wonder if you have something other than Omicron. Is the new variant supposed to be worse?
no, its milder
Maybe Scootie got Flu-rona. I know my mom did as the tests for both showed positive.
Pro
Warriors end the season with a five game win streak, will play the Nuggets in round 1. They went 1-3 against Denver this season, but they never played them with a full roster and always had at least one of Klay, Dray or Steph out. Should be an interesting match up, especially if Steph is ready for Game 1.
If Steph is back and effective I think we can get out of first round, but 2nd round against Grizz would be tough if they have Ja
I feel like the Warriors are the only team that can legitimately challenge the Suns in the West, if all of their stars are healthy. But it's a tall order to get it together on the fly in the postseason, since Steph, Klay, and Dray haven't really gotten to play together all season.
Well they have 11min together this season so far, sooooooo
I know I am likely the only Cubs fan on this but man this Seiya Suzuki guy is legit. 5 tools, great batting eye, no issue at all with MLB fastball. I feel like this kind of fell in our laps. More homers than Ks last year in the NPB!
Madrigal’s gonna have a solid year.
I'm not a cubs fan but I am big Suzuki fan. I bought his jersey when he was only 20 years old, one year before he had a breakout season in Japan. So excited to see him hit well so far. Only wish he had come to a west coast team so I could go watch him more often.
The Hoshien (sp?) tournament is a bucket list item for me. Have you ever been?
No I've never been to Koshien. I've watched games on tv but not in the stands. I'm a big fan of Hiroshima Carp, a professional team and I would go to as many games as I can when I visit Japan. I watched the Carp play in Tokyo in 2014 when Seiya Suzuki hit his first career HR too. If I had a high school I am affiliated to, then I would be following HS baseball more closely.
I used to be a teacher in Korea and one long weekend I went to Kyoto. It was the beginning of spring, a beautiful day, cherry blossoms blooming, and on seemingly every patch of grass I came across there were kids playing baseball or pepper or doing baseball drills. It was beautiful
Sadly baseball is losing popularity to soccer, but I hope the Ohtani sensation has re-enrrgized Japanese baseball fandom.
Weather permitting (it's supposed to be the lone non-rainy day), Seiya Suzuki is by far the guy I'm most excited to see in person tomorrow for the Cubs at Pirates game (Pirates' Opening Day)...it's kind of a big drop off after too given the rosters of these two teams.
Yeah dude, the only problem with Suzuki is the guy batting behind him is Frank Schwindel, a 4A bozo. Why pitch to Suzuki if you are the opponent?
Ferrari's Charles Leclerc takes a wire-to-wire win in front of over 400,000(!) fans at the Australia Gran Prix
https://twitter.com/F1/status/1513056435856367621
1.5 day later, I kind of regret staying up late to watch this race now. I guess this is why coffee exists.
I didn't even bother. I recorded it and watched after I woke up.
same. a nice 8am sunday morning with coffee in hand
fantastic race. Mercedes really storming back on the grid. It's starting to look like a three way battle at the top but Ferrari is clearly head and shoulders above Red Bull at the moment. and RB need to figure out the powertrain problems and quick.
I’m a big fan of Verstappen not finishing races.
Do fans not like Verstappen now? I thought Hamilton was the hated one.
I was indifferent to him until last year. His nonstop whining and reckless (but certainly not wreckless) driving pushed me over the edge. I relish his DNFs now.
I’ve never liked Verstappen - if it wasn’t for Perez, that entire team would just a bunch of arses.
A lot of people disliked Hamilton for general complaining and whatnot - also there are a lot of UK F1 fans who can’t quite bring themselves to support one of the most successful drivers ever, can’t think why not 🙄. Funnily enough it seemed like the grace with which Hamilton took the way he lost the championship last year actually endeared him to previous detractors.
My mexicanness will not allow me to completely root against Red Bull bc Checo's there. But I do root for Checo to do better than Max
Yeah I figured that was the reason many Brits didn't like him. Just something about him that's different...
Verstappen has some fans, but is pretty much largely hated for being such a whiny bitch, and causing accidents.
some fans? have you seen the way the dutch travel to F1 events? As a newbie F1 guy, i just thought McLaren had tons fans then realized it was the goddamn dutch.
Frank Vogel, Out.
As if he is to blame for this year. Lakers need to gut the team. No way they're getting rid of Russell Westbrook. Who's going to be willing to trade for him?
LeBron, AD, and Westbrook will be around next year. Everyone else should be replaced.
Maybe they can get Harden. :)
Hooray. The Lakers would never win the championship then.
If the Lakers are willing to eat some of Westbrook's salary they might be able to find a trade partner. Westbrook isn't a total stiff, is he?
He’s useless.
Yeah, he's a total drain. Doesn't make sense for a contender, nor does he make sense for a young team. Even in a limited role, it's hard to discern what his value would be as a contributor, as he's lost a fair amount of the athleticism that compensated for his limitations and made him a plus player. He's a terrible defender, shooter and decision-maker, and he still thinks he's a top shelf contributor. He could maybe be a bunch scorer off the bench if he was to accept the role, but he's not the same scorer without all of the athleticism that allowed him to get to the basket at will and get fouled. Too much "if" to be worth rolling the dice on a bad chemistry guy trending down rapidly.
The issue isn't Westbrook's abilities as a "basketball player" - which are no longer what they were, but they're still sort of in the top 30 player range (maybe). but because of his style of play - inefficient, ball dominant, - he kind of needs to be the best player on the floor for his team. He doesn't mesh well with other really good players (Harden two years ago, Lebron this year) because he doesn't play as if he can take a back seat.
And he can no longer single-handedly carry a team to the playoffs . .. and bad teams don't want him either because they're trying to build for the future both on the court and in the locker room. And he has this albatross of a salary.
Two years ago he carried the Rockets to the playoffs (when Harden was suffering through a weird 3 month malaise) then Harden woke up before the playoffs and played like his normal self and Russ caught covid.
Last season, he was traded to the Wizards - and as the best player on the Wizards (including Brad Beal) he was awful for the first 3 months and then willed them - by himself - to the playoffs where they were the bottom seed and got swept out of the playoffs.
Now add on another year of aging, and its difficult to see what team would want him right now. It's not like he can become a complimentary player and help a team - like Atlanta or Charlotte become a contender. And bad teams like the Rockets or Magic are working on developing their own future stars and don't want Russ to dominate the ball and the play.
his ego will not allow him to be a complimentary player
Agree - can they buy him out? Either that or just park him on the bench. Sunk cost fallacy …
My guess is they end up waiving Westbrook, so they can pay his $47m over three years under the cap. I don't think there's a trade partner for him unless they are giving up assets. Even without his full salary hogging the cap, I still don't see how they improve the roster enough to become a contender again given the salary situation.
He's got eligibility left . .. let him play for us.
I wonder how far a team with LeBron and next year's Cal players could go in the Pac-12 and in the NCAAs.
If teams do the Steph double to get the ball out of his hands as soon as he crosses half court, could the remaining 4 Cal players score enough against the 3 defenders?
Injury risk aside, I think he could get us to top 4 in the Pac. It's not 4 vs 3 - he's a good enough passer, and college defenders would have no chance against him - he's passing directly to open shots. They wouldn't need to do the Draymond thing. Plus, he's scoring 30ppg against NBA defenders.
NCAA's is tougher with one-and-out - but I think at least sweet sixteen.
OK, but can our guys hit the open shot?
So, no, our guys struggled to hit jumpers last year.
He's going to create layups.
(Actually my initial thought, but I realize I didn't make it clear at all, but it was getting Russ to play for Cal. Lebron would be even better)
Game #3: A’s earn first win of 2022 season!
https://www.athleticsnation.com/2022/4/10/23019384/game-3-oakland-as-philadelphia-phillies-score-result
The 2022 Oakland A’s won a game!
The A’s beat the Phillies 4-1 on Sunday at Citizens Bank Park, earning their first victory of the season and avoiding a sweep to start the year.
Oakland earned this game on both sides of the ball. They pitched well and posted a string of highlights on defense, keeping Philadelphia off the board until the 9th inning. At the plate they flexed some power, had a few hits with runners in scoring position, and hustled on the bases, offering enough run support for a comfortable margin.
Rookie starter Daulton Jefferies led the way with five scoreless frames, but the A’s lineup was quiet themselves during that time and the scoreboard remained empty. Oakland’s bats finally woke up in the 6th and continued applying pressure the rest of the day, while four different relievers came out of their bullpen to hold the lead.
From parts of that game that I saw, I would have preferred for Cal alum Daulton Jefferies to miss more bats, but he was inducing weak contacts from some really aggressive Phillies batters.
Jeffries gets 1st win of the season.
Heliot Ramos collects first Major League hits in Giants 3-2 win over the Marlins
https://www.mccoveychronicles.com/2022/4/10/23019610/san-francisco-giants-miami-marlins-mlb-game-recap-heliot-ramos-anthony-desclafini
After drafting the seventeen year old in 2017, Heliot Ramos made his big league debut for the San Francisco Giants in the third game of the 2022 season on Sunday.
Ramos, who was called up earlier than most anticipated when bullpen arm John Brebbia went on the Bereavement List, started in left field and went 2 for 3 with two singles, a run scored and a strike out, in the Giants 3-2 rubber match win over the Miami Marlins.
Dodgers disappoint in all departments in 9-4 loss
https://www.truebluela.com/2022/4/10/23019282/dodgers-rockies-julio-urias-errors-no-offense-coors-field
After playing two close games, today’s series finale was more like a traditional Coors Field game in which the Dodgers found themselves on the wrong side of a 9-4 loss to the Rockies. The win gave the Rockies their first home series win against the Dodgers since August 12, 2018 when the Rockies took three of four.
Making his 2022 debut, Julio Urías did not record a out in the third inning as he left the game trailing 6-0 with two runners on base. It was his shortest outing since August 19, 2020 when he went 1.2 innings at Seattle. Also concerning is his drop in velocity from last season.
Ugly day yesterday - wind was brutal.
Cal
Fatou Samb third member of Cal's women's basketball team to enter the transfer portal. As with Cailyn Crocker, it's a chance for an upgrade.
Do we think these players were told in no uncertain terms that there was no longer a spot for them....like...Deschon Winston...
I don't think so. Cailyn was coming off an injury, but looked promising as a freshmen as a spark plug. She was also a positive force on the team. Samb has talent and potential, and also a positive force on the team. Daniels is an impact loss.
Two years ago, the loses were completely understandable given the injuries and youth. Our two "vets" were sophomores. We had walk-ons at guard, and Coach kept the team together through a bad season.
Last year was much improved and more competitive, but the conference wins did not come so the team still finished with only one pac12 win (several games were very close).
I thought next year could be our breakout year with a veteran team and players coming off injury, plus a soph Curry.
But two last place finishes took a toll. I don't think Cal wanted to lose any of the 3 players
No idea, but it would make sense.
That was pretty much an on-brand move for Wyking…Winston was his first recruit as Cal HC, yet he forced him out after just his FR year. I mean, it happens every year at schools across the country, but still…another indication of how lost he was.
Wonder if Fox would ever do that…maybe he already did?(Klonaras)
Go Bears!