Austin Rivers has been sitting at home with absolutely nothing to do, just like every other NBA player out there. It's a sad state of affairs for pretty well everyone as we are currently dealing with this Coronavirus crisis. Many players have been taking to Instagram Live as a way to connect with their fans and Rivers is no different. Yesterday, Rivers went on Live where he had a lot to say about the state of the NBA and what their plans are for when the league comes back.
According to reporter Justin Russo, Rivers noted that the NBA plans to have every team stationed in Las Vegas where they are looking at playing in the Thomas and Mack Center which just so happens to have two courts. The league would let every team have two practices before playing out a short slate of regular-season games.
Perhaps the most interesting part of the plan is that the league would make it so that the first two rounds are only best-of-three instead of seven. This would make everything go a lot quicker while also making the games count for a lot more.
These are certainly wild propositions but we are living in much wilder times, so it makes sense.
YNW Melly Tests Positive For COVID-19, Requests Prison Release
YNW Melly has reportedly tested positive for COVID-19 and will try to get a speedy release from prison in order to recover.
Just days ago, YNW Melly’s mother suggested that her son would have already been out of prison, but he’s been stuck behind bars because of the COVID-19 quarantine. Less than an hour ago, an update about the rapper’s progress was shared to his Instagram page that revealed while behind bars, YNW Melly was diagnosed with COVID-19.
“Melly has tested positive for COVID-19 today while awaiting his trial in Broward County Jail,” an Instagram caption of the rapper with his family reads. “He’ll be filing a motion for restricted release in hopes of better care due to any jails not being prepared to treat this new virus. He hopes for your support and to recover soon #prayformelly send positive energy to him please.”
YNW Melly was arrested last year after investigators claimed he and his accomplice were involved in the double homicide of two of their friends. Evidentiary details of Melly’s connection have been kept under wraps, but his former attorney reportedly stated that the rapper would surely be released due to weak evidence. We’ll have to wait and see if a judge will rule on Melly’s release following his reported COVID-19 diagnosis. Check out the post below.
LeBron James Could Lose Millions If NBA Season Canceled
LeBron James could stand to lose quite a bit of money because of the Coronavirus pandemic.
As of this moment, every single NBA player in the league is at home trying to do their part to flatten the curve and beat Coronavirus, once and for all. It’s hard to think about anything other than public health right now but at the end of the day, jobs are being affected and this crisis could last quite a long time. With this in mind, there is a real possibility that the NBA could completely cancel its season.
If this were to happen, Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James could end up losing out on quite a bit of money. According to Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report, LeBron would have to give up $400,000 USD per game lost due to the canceled season. With 19 games left, he would have to fork over $7.6 million which is a whole lot of money.
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Per Bleacher Report:
“If games are canceled, the league can deduct approximately 1.1 percent for each lost contest (including about 5.6 playoff games per team). For a high-paid All-Star like LeBron James, he’d be on the hook for over $400,000 per game.
While players typically receive their final paycheck Nov. 1, months after the season ended, a select few have accelerated pay schedules, including James. By force majeure, James would need to “promptly pay the difference directly” to the Los Angeles Lakers.”
This would certainly be a worst-case scenario for everyone involved and hopefully, it never gets that far.
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Chris Paul Describes How COVID-19 Test Kept Him From His Kids
Chris Paul had a harrowing experience after coming home in the midst of waiting for his Coronavirus test results.
Chris Paul, just like many other players in the NBA, had to get tested for the Coronavirus after it was revealed that Rudy Gobert of the Utah Jazz got it. Paul was given a clean bill of health and is currently at home resting comfortably. In fact, he was recently on the “All The Smoke” podcast with Matt Barnes and Stephen Jackson, where he spoke about his experiences.
As he says, testing was actually quite the harrowing experience. Paul was tested and then got on a flight home from Oklahoma. When he got to his house, he couldn’t even go inside because he had no clue if he was positive or negative. Paul says it took three hours before he got his results back although, in the meantime, he had to sit out in the driveway.
“When I left Oklahoma to come [home], I hadn’t gotten my [COVID-19 test] results back. So I got back to my house, I hadn’t seen my kids since All-Star Weekend. Couldn’t go in the house, though,” Paul said. “I sat in the driveway for three hours because I hadn’t gotten my test back. I could see my kids, but I couldn’t go touch them…That was tough in itself.”
Paul went on to say that everything that’s going on is crazy and that he hopes to be back on the court sooner rather than later, if possible, of course.
NBA players are going through a hard time right now and Paul is no different. As fans, we are feeling that itch for sports, as well.
Gunna Reveals Plans For New Album Amid Coronavirus Crisis
Gunna has been having some issues dropping his album due to the Coronavirus.
Gunna has consistently been one of the best up and coming artists over the last little while and has been teasing his latest project, Wunna, for quite some time now. In fact, Gunna dropped the single “Sky Box” as a way to give some fans some music to tide them over before the official drop. Unfortunately, it seems as though things have been pushed back for Gunna due to the spread of the Coronavirus.
There are a lot of different elements that go into an album. You need it mixed and mastered but you also need to be able to do a press run in order to drum up hype. Because of the Coronavirus and the closing of numerous businesses and studios, Gunna is stuck in an impossible position. He explained all of this and more in a recent interview with XXL.
Don’t fret though, as Gunna explains, things will eventually clear up and he will be able to drop his album. It’s just that for now, he can’t do as much as he would like. In the video above, Gunna even explains that he isn’t letting people in his house right now and that it’s making it hard for him to work with producers and the like.
Hopefully, Gunna will be able to get things back up and running, sooner rather than later. We are all going through tough times right now and some fresh music would certainly help lift the mood.
Jeff Bezos Puts Wealth To Good Use With Humongous Donation
Jeff Bezos’ donation is going to help a lot of starving families during this public health crisis.
Jeff Bezos is the richest man in the world and has a net worth of over $100 billion. While not all of that money comes in the form of liquid assets, there is no denying that he has the money to end world hunger ten times over. Okay, sure, that’s definitely not an exaggeration and it certainly isn’t one man’s responsibility to take on such a lofty goal, although by now you probably get the point.
With the Coronavirus pandemic ravaging the United States, there are now numerous families who don’t know where their next meal is going to come from. Millions of people have lost their jobs and we could very well be in for an economic depression. Jeff Bezos is looking to help aid this crisis and today, he announced that he was donating $100 million to Feeding America which helps provide food to those in need.
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As Bezos noted in a statement, Feeding America typically receives donations from restaurants but now, those establishments are closed. Bezos says his contribution will help relieve this stress for the foreseeable future.
Needless to say, it’s good to see someone putting their massive wealth to good use. While $100 million won’t solve everything, it will certainly help during what will prove to be some incredibly hard months.
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Georgia Governor Didn’t Know Asymptomatic People Could Spread Coronavirus
Georgia Governor Brian Kemp admitted that he was not actually aware that asymptomatic people could spread coronavirus to others until recently.
Georgia Governor Brian Kemp confessed that he had only just recently learned that people who haven't shown symptoms of coronavirus could still spread the disease to others. During a press conference on Wednesday, Kemp revealed that he had just been informed earlier this week "that this virus is now transmitting before people see signs," despite medical professionals stressing this possibility for quite awhile.
"So what we've been telling people from directives from the CDC for weeks now," he continued, "that if you start feeling bad stay home, those individuals could have been infecting people before they ever felt bad." However, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention had definitely already made it abundantly clear that the incubation period for coronavirus is anywhere between 2-4 days, meaning asymptomatic carriers could absolutely unknowingly spread the virus to others. While the CDC only explicitly stated that asymptomatic individuals were capable of infecting others on Monday (March 30th), Dr. Anthony Fauci had already confirmed that "asymptomatic transmission" was a real threat way back in January.
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"Well we didn't know that until the last 24 hours," Kemp confessed. "This is a game-changer for us." Kemp initiated a shelter-in-place order for the state of Georgia during this press conference, which will go into effect on Friday (April 3rd) and last until at least April 13th. He explained that Georgia is preparing hospitals for an expected increase of coronavirus-infected patients, as the state's numbers rose to 4,700 confirmed cases and 154 deaths this week.
Tom Brady Reveals His Plan To Help During Coronavirus Pandemic
Tom Brady is making sure millions of families don't go hungry during this time of need.
With the Coronavirus pandemic in full swing, millions of families have been left with caretakers and breadwinners who have lost their jobs. People have bills to pay and now, they are unable to because of the circumstances. This is leaving millions of Americans with tough decisions to make as to how they will pay for their food. Many people are going to go hungry because of the pandemic and numerous celebrities are now banding together to shift their resources to those in desperate need.
Today, Tom Brady announced what he will be doing to help those impacted by the virus. As he explained in the tweet below, Brady will be teaming up with the good folks over at Wheels Up to help provide 10 million meals to Feeding America. This pledge will help millions of people who are struggling to make ends meet and don't know where their next meal will come from.
Brady recently signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and he is already showing his new team just how charitable he can be. This is a time of need for many people and it's cool to see those who are wealthier, step up and help out.
This latest donation is going to change a lot of lives for the better in the coming months.
Taxstone Shares Disheartening Message Describing Riker’s Island During COVID-19
Taxstone is currently locked up in Riker's Island, and fearful of what might happen there with COVID-19.
"I'm currently in my grave, with my eyes open, dirt up to my neck, getting dizzy as the world turns," Taxstone writes on a note he shared with his Twitter followers today. The former podcast host of Tax Season is currently locked up in Riker's Island, stemming back to a 2016 shooting in New York that left Troy Ave's bodyguard dead. It was an unfortunate series of events that happened just as Taxstone's star was starting to take off, and the New York native was building a name for himself with his long-form conversations on Tax Season.
Taxstone is no longer someone we hear from on the daily, but every now and then he delivers fans a message by way of social media. This particular message though, is disheartening. Tax shares with his followers how conditions have been for the prisoners of Riker's Island. "For a month now, we haven't been allowed visits, legal or social. Understandable, considering what's going on. But what I don't understand is how the only people we have contact with on the outside, the correctional officers and civilians, have no protective gear and they aren't giving us anything to protect ourselves." He goes on to write how he's been aware that certain people are being released from prison because of the pandemic -- however "I see head of corrections stating not to release people charged with murder, rape or robbery...like it's ok for THEM die."
"The moral code that they have written and are now breaking, goes against all codes of humanity, in the middle of a global pandemic," Taxstone continues in his heartfelt message. "We're being raped of our rights of being innocent until proven guilty, and being left on an island to be murdered by this uncontrolled serial killer called Covid-19. They don't even care about the correctional officers. We're all just a check at the end of the day, in one of the industries that are still intact during this global pandemic. The correction officers have families too, you think they want to catch something and bring it home to their families? Of course not!"
From there, he details how an inmate in the cell beside his just found out his mother passed away due to Coronavirus. This same inmate was in for a 3 month parole violation, but was held in the jail for an extra month because of the virus.
Read his full message below. It couldn't be a more appropriate time to use Taxstone's own phrase: Be safe though.
Stephen A. Smith Goes Off On Those Not Practicing "Social Distancing"
Stephen A. Smith had some words for those who won't listen to the medical professionals out there.
"Social Distancing" has become the new thing everyone is talking about and rightfully so. We are currently going through a horrible pandemic and we are all being told to isolate ourselves as a means to slow down the spread of the Coronavirus. When we do have to leave the house, we must remain at least two meters apart from everyone as a means to make sure we don't come in contact with germs and potentially, the virus.
Stephen A. Smith and numerous ESPN reporters came through with a PSA the other day about staying home and helping to flatten the curve. Now, Smith is giving a PSA all on his own where he angrily ripped those who are still leaving their houses despite being told to do otherwise. You can tell Smith is passionate about this and doesn't seem impressed that after all this time, he still has to give such lofty warnings.
Cases in the United States continue to rise and by the middle of April, we could see close to one million people in the country infected. With this in mind, it is important that everyone act now so we can get back to normal life, sooner rather than later.
Hopefully, Smith's words don't fall on deaf ears.