Kyle Kuzma Explains Why Regular Season Standings Don’t Matter

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This season is unlike any other in NBA history. Of course, the league had to deal with COVID-19 last season, although that was only for just a couple of months in the bubble. Now, the league has to go a whole season with COVID and as a result, there are no fans in the stands. This has led to a particular atmosphere that the players have yet to acclimate to.

Kyle Kuzma of the Los Angeles Lakers believes that this atmosphere makes playoff seeding useless. As he explained, home-court advantage is no longer a factor this season, and he feels like that no matter where the Lakers finish in the standings, they will be poised for a deep run.

“I don’t really know that’s it’s as imperative as past years,” Kuzma said. “There’s not really a homecourt advantage and regardless, before you get to the Finals, you’re going to play the Clippers or the Jazz, or you’re going to play somebody that’s up there. It doesn’t really matter too much. ‘Bron was a four seed in his last year in Cleveland and went to the Finals. It doesn’t matter.”

These comments come after a mini losing streak by the Lakers, who have been having a hard time in light of Anthony Davis’s absence. While Kuzma might be right, his hypothesis will come tumbling down if the league starts letting a large number of fans back in the arena. 

Kyle Kuzma

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James Harden Reveals How He’s Helping Houston Amid Storm

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James Harden’s exit from the Houston Rockets was something that was painful for all sides. Now, the superstar player is on the Brooklyn Nets, and his new team seems poised to do some big things in the NBA playoffs. 

For now, however, Harden has a lot of his energy focused on Houston, as the city is currently going through a crisis. This past week, a horrible winter storm made its way through the entire state of Texas and it left millions without power and water. Those in need have been struggling, and as Harden explained last night, he has been hard at work trying to get resources to those who need them most. Harden still loves Houston, and he felt like he needed to do something.

“I’m on calls literally every day. All-day,” Harden said. “Trying to impact the city because they showed me so much love and respect during the time I was there. I call Houston my home.”

Harden’s efforts to bring resources to the city will certainly go a long way, especially as the entire state continues to recover from what was an unexpected storm. At this point, it seems like Harden is doing more than a certain Senator, that shall remain nameless.

James Harden

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42 Dugg Updates His Condition After Shooting Scare

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The hip-hop community was faced with another scare after reports broke on Sunday night that shots were fired during a music video shoot for an upcoming song by Roddy Ricch and 42 Dugg. Three people were taken to the hospital and two others reportedly drove themselves to the same medical facility. Thankfully, it appears as though both of the rappers involved are okay as one of Roddy’s associates confirmed that the rising star is alright before 42 Dugg assured fans that he’s also doing well.

 
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Updating his Instagram Story shortly after the incident, the Detroit rapper said, “Appreciate the concerns though I did not get SHOT!!!!!!!” Information about the incident was scarce for a few hours directly following the initial reports, worrying fans of both artists who recalled all-too-similar situations that have happened recently in the rap world.

As for Roddy, the rapper hasn’t updated his own pages but DJ A-Tron said that the rapper is A-OK. “My n***a Roddy good, all the homies good,” he tweeted.

The names of the victims were not released to the public, nor have the names of the suspect(s). An investigation is currently underway and we will keep you posted with any relevant information in further updates.


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A Shooting At A Roddy Ricch And 42 Dugg Video Shoot Left Three People Injured

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The good news is it looks like Roddy Ricch and 42 Dugg have a new video on the way. The bad news is that during the production of that visual, things got dangerous and a shooting left three people injured.

According to WSB-TV Atlanta, on Sunday afternoon at a scrap yard in southwest Atlanta, Ricch and Dugg were filming a video when gunshots rang out. Two people, Antoine Blake, 25, and Vernon Moulder, 29, were shot but were able to take themselves to Grady Memorial Hospital. Atlanta police confirmed both Blake and Moulder are in stable condition. A third person, Peter Cook, 39, was hurt not by a gunshot, but by debris. Ricch and Dugg were reportedly unhurt, with Dugg himself later confirming on an Instagram Story, “Appreciate the concerns though I did not get SHOT!!!!!”

@42_dugggg/Instagram

Teresa Lakes, a medic who was on set for COVID screening purposes, said, “Everyone started running, trying to get out or take cover; lot of places to take cover in there. Anyone that was injured, I laid hands on ’em to make sure they were OK. Just glad it wasn’t a lot worse than it could have been… could have been worse.”

Roddy Ricch is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Tyler The Creator Soundtracked A New Coca-Cola Ad And Said ‘Commercials Need Sounds Like This’

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Tyler The Creator’s has been quiet since he took home a Grammy award for Best Rap Album last year. It’s not clear when he’ll release new music, though the rapper did land a pretty sweet gig with Coca-Cola recently. The beverage company shared an ad on Sunday that featured music by Tyler himself, in which a number of people are shown cracking open a bottle of Coca-Cola to drink. The first sip from the bottle causes them to dance uncontrollably and flaunt their moves in various locations, including a corner store and a soccer game.

Tyler took to Twitter to share the news. “Drums are f*cking hard the low end is shaking,” he wrote. He added, “Thats me playing the flute at the beginning,” revealing that his talents span multiple instruments. In addition to the production, Tyler’s vocals can also be heard in the ad. While the commercial is certainly a great moment for Tyler, he wasn’t all for it at first.

“Mannnn thanks coca cola for reallll big love for the opportunity,” he wrote. “I was like ehh idk but then i f*cking ran with it. commercials need sounds like this, thanksssss.”

You can watch the Coca-Cola ad above.

Rowdy Rebel Proclaims He And Bobby Shmurda Will Appear At This Year’s Summer Jam Festival

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It looks like Rowdy Rebel and Bobby Shmurda have big plans for 2021. Of the bigger things on their docket is appearing at this year’s upcoming Summer Jam Festival. Whether it be a virtual performance or an in-person event, that banks on the status of the pandemic, but the upcoming performance should be one of the duo’s first together since the start of their prison sentence on conspiracy to commit murder and weapons charges, back in 2014. Rowdy was freed in December and it’s been reported that Bobby will get out on February 23.

“I normally wouldn’t speak on my brother’s behalf, but I know my brother ain’t gonna miss Summer Jam,” Rowdy proclaimed during an interview on Hot 97. “Some things are just mandatory, and Summer Jam is mandatory.” The announcement comes after Rowdy said Bobby’s release would happen in less than a week. “SIX DAYS LEFT […] Then all the joy gone wash away the pain, I promise you brother,” he wrote in an Instagram post from February 17, which falls in line with Bobby’s rumored February 23 release.

Rowdy kicked off his comeback with “Jesse Owens” while Bobby is sure to have plenty of new songs when he gets released.

You can watch the Hot 97 interview above.

DaBaby Name-Dropped Jojo Siwa In A Recent Freestyle And People Have No Idea Why

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DaBaby recently hopped on SpotEmGottem’s viral “Beat Box” with a braggadocios freestyle and an equally boastful video that found him showing off his own dance that accompanies the song’s TikTok trend. It was the mention of a young YouTube star on the song, however, that’s left listeners baffled as to why they were mentioned in the first place.

On the song, DaBaby raps, “Turn me up n**** / You gonna see why you a b*tch, Jojo Siwa.” The line confused many as the young influencer did not seem to do anything to warrant getting name-dropped in the song.

As a result, listeners took to Twitter to share their reactions to the song. One user joked that DaBaby may not fare well in a fight with Siwa because she stands two inches taller than him at 5’9.” Another called for a backstory on the diss because, just like the rest of us, they have no idea why DaBaby name-dropped the 17-year-old viral star.

The “Beat Box” freestyle is just one of a few contributions has made to the music world in 2021. The track joins his “Throat Baby” remix with BRS Kash and City Girls, his “Cry Baby” video with Megan Thee Stallion, and his “Masterpiece” single.

Scroll down for more reactions to the Jojo Siwa name-drop below.

Megan Thee Stallion is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Bad Bunny Played A Talking Plant In An ‘SNL’ Music Video For A ‘Loco’ Quarantine Song

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Bad Bunny is an undeniable star at this point in his career, and it’s resulted in some pretty cool opportunities for the singer that don’t always pertain to his chart-topping Latin records. The latest example of this came when he landed a role in a recent Saturday Night Live episode as a talking plant.

In the sketch that also featured Ego Nwodim, Pete Davidson, and Bridgerton star Regé-Jean Page, the group creates a song titled “Loco.” Basically, it’s about the odd feeling that nearly a year worth of social distancing in a pandemic has left them with.

Led by Nwodim, she took viewers on a journey through the odd post-quarantine interactions that take place with people, one of them being Regé-Jean. Davidson lays a verse that follows her sentiments and when the mic returns to Nwodim, she’s interrupted by her talking plant, played by Bad Bunny, who labels her as a “loco” for holding a conversation with him in the first place.

The sketch joined two performances Bad Bunny delivered on SNL, both being songs from his late-2020 album, El Ultimo Tour Del Mundo. The first was “La Noche De Anoche” with Rosalía, who performed beside the singer for the intimate set, and the second was a solo rendition of “Te Deseo Lo Mejor” which Bad Bunny performed with his WWE championship belt beside him.

You can watch the sketch above.

Bad Bunny Dazzled With Performances Of ‘La Noche De Anoche’ And ‘Te Deseo Lo Mejor’ On ‘SNL’

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As if there weren’t plenty of highlights on his resume already, Bad Bunny adds another one to the list with a dazzling performance on Saturday Night Live. Bringing his talents, to the late-night set, he kicked off the night by performing “La Noche De Anoche” with Rosalia. Thanks to the warm red, pink, and purple lighting that appeared around the stage, the rendition of the El Ultimo Tour Del Mundo song proved to be a passionate one and even ended with an intimate moment between the singers.

Next, Bad Bunny returned to the stage by himself to perform “Te Deseo Lo Mejor,” another song from his El Ultimo Tour Del Mundo album. This performance was a bit more upbeat than the previous and one of the best parts about it was it featured Bad Bunny singing the track with his WWE 24/7 championship belt draped over his leg.

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The SNL appearance comes after Bad Bunny shared a passionate video for “La Noche De Anoche” with Rosalía on Valentine’s Day. The two appeared as an inseparable couple for the visual for the El Ultimo Tour Del Mundo highlight. As for what’s next? Bad Bunny may have a Grammy award in his future thanks to Best Latin Pop Album and Best Pop/Duo Group Performance nominations for YHLQMDLG and “Un Día.”

You can watch both SNL performances above.