#Driving Miss Mobley

[ausetkmt]

A statue of Emmett Till is unveiled in Mississippi : NPR

Emmett Till's statue reflects the afternoon sun, during its unveiling on Friday in Greenwood, Miss.

Rogelio V. Solis/AP

GREENWOOD, Miss. — Hundreds of people applauded — and some wiped away tears — as a Mississippi community unveiled a larger-than-life statue of Emmett Till on Friday, not far from where white men kidnapped and killed the Black teenager over accusations he had flirted with a white woman in a country store.

"Change has come, and it will continue to happen," Madison Harper, a senior at Leflore County High School, told a racially diverse audience at the statue's dedication. "Decades ago, our parents and grandparents could not envision that a moment like today would transpire."

The 1955 lynching became a catalyst for the civil rights movement. Till's mother, Mamie Till-Mobley, insisted on an open-casket funeral in Chicago so the world could see the horrors inflicted on her 14-year-old son. Jet magazine published photos of his mutilated body, which was pulled from the Tallahatchie River in Mississippi.

The 9-foot (2.7-meter) tall bronze statue in Greenwood's Rail Spike Park is a jaunty depiction of the living Till in slacks, dress shirt and tie with one hand on the brim of a hat.

The rhythm and blues song, "Wake Up, Everybody" played as workers pulled a tarp off the figure. Dozens of people surged forward, shooting photos and video on cellphones.

Anna-Maria Webster of Rochester, New York, had tears running down her face.

"It's beautiful to be here," said Webster, attending the ceremony on a sunny afternoon during a visit with Mississippi relatives. Speaking of Till's mother she said: "Just to imagine the torment she went through — all over a lie."

This undated portrait shows Emmett Louis Till, who was kidnapped, tortured and killed in the Mississippi Delta in August 1955 after witnesses said he whistled at a white woman working in a store. AP Photo/AP hide caption

"But you, know, change has a way of becoming slower and slower," said Thompson, the only Black member of Mississippi's current congressional delegation. "What we have to do in dedicating this monument to Emmett Till is recommit ourselves to the spirit of making a difference in our community."

The statue is a short drive from an elaborate Confederate monument outside the Leflore County Courthouse and about 10 miles (16 kilometers) from the crumbling remains of the store, Bryant's Grocery & Meat Market, in Money.

The statue's unveiling coincided with the release this month of "Till," a movie exploring Till-Mobley's private trauma over her son's death and her transformation into a civil rights activist.

The Rev. Wheeler Parker Jr., the last living witness to his cousin's kidnapping, wasn't able to travel from Illinois for Friday's dedication. But he told The Associated Press on Wednesday: "We just thank God someone is keeping his name out there."

He said some wrongly thought Till got what he deserved for breaking the taboo of flirting with a white woman, adding many people didn't want to talk about the case for decades.

"Now there's interest in it, and that's a godsend," Parker said. "You know what his mother said: 'I hope he didn't die in vain.'"

Greenwood and Leflore County are both more than 70% Black and officials have worked for years to bring the Till statue to reality. Democratic state Sen. David Jordan of Greenwood secured $150,000 in state funding and a Utah artist, Matt Glenn, was commissioned to create the statue.

Jordan said he hopes it will draw tourists to learn more about the area's history. "Hopefully, it will bring all of us together," he said.

Till and Parker had traveled from Chicago to spend the summer of 1955 with relatives in the deeply segregated Mississippi Delta. On Aug. 24, the two teens took a short trip with other young people to the store in Money. Parker said he heard Till whistle at shopkeeper Carolyn Bryant.

Four days later, Till was abducted in the middle of the night from his uncle's home. The kidnappers tortured and shot him, weighted his body down with a cotton gin fan and dumped him into the river.

Jordan, who is Black, was a college student in 1955 when he drove to the Tallahatchie County Courthouse in Sumner to watch the murder trial of two white men charged with killing Till — Carolyn's husband Roy Bryant and his half brother, J.W. Milam.

An all-white, all-male jury acquitted the two men, who later confessed to Look magazine that they killed Till.

Nobody has ever been convicted in the lynching. The U.S. Justice Department has opened multiple investigations starting in 2004 after receiving inquiries about whether charges could be brought against anyone still living.

In 2007, a Mississippi prosecutor presented evidence to a grand jury of Black and white Leflore County residents after investigators spent three years re-examining the killing. The grand jury declined to issue indictments.

The Justice Department reopened an investigation in 2018 after a 2017 book quoted Carolyn Bryant — now remarried and named Carolyn Bryant Donham — saying she lied when she claimed Till grabbed her, whistled and made sexual advances. Relatives have publicly denied Donham, who is in her 80s, recanted her allegations. The department closed that investigation in late 2021 without bringing charges.

This year, a group searching the Leflore County Courthouse basement found an unserved 1955 arrest warrant for "Mrs. Roy Bryant." In August, another Mississippi grand jury found insufficient evidence to indict Donham, causing consternation for Till relatives and activists.

Although Mississippi has dozens of Confederate monuments, some have been moved in recent years, including one relocated in 2020 from the University of Mississippi campus to a cemetery where Confederate soldiers are buried.

The state has a few monuments to Black historical figures, including one honoring civil rights activist Fannie Lou Hamer in Ruleville.

A historical marker outside Bryant's Grocery has been knocked down and vandalized. Another marker near where Till's body was pulled from the Tallahatchie River has been vandalized and shot. The Till statue in Greenwood will be watched by security cameras.

Jordan won applause when he said Friday: "If some idiot tears it down, we're going to put it right back up."

[news4usonline]

Postseason lay ahead for comeback Clippers

LOS ANGELES (News4usonline) - The Clippers pulled off a 26-point comeback win over the Cavaliers despite being without Kawhi Leonard. It is the fourth straight game Los Angeles has played without their best player, and it is unclear exactly when he will return to the starting lineup. "I'm not sure," said Tyronn Lue when asked if Leonard will be available for their next game. "I don't have any level of concern," added Lue.

Los Angeles Clippers guard Paul George scored 39 points in a 120-118 win against the Cleveland Cavaliers at Crypto.com Arena on April 7, 2024. Photo credit: Dennis J. Freeman/News4usonline The organization is likely being cautious with a player who has had multiple postseason knee injuries during his tenure in Los Angeles. However, it is still concerning that Leonard has missed this much time right before what they hope will be a deep playoff run. In the middle of the season, the Clippers easily looked like one of the best teams in the NBA, and there were a number of reasons to believe they might break through and win their first championship. If Leonard is not feeling right, the Clippers' expectations plummet. "We are still fighting for that four seed. We understand that we have a chance to clinch it, or we don't have a chance to clinch it. Right now, our focus is on playing better basketball, continuing to get better, and getting up as far as we can in terms of seeding," said Lue. The Clippers' biggest weakness has become a glaring problem that could be difficult to overcome when the level of competition is heightened. The Clippers simply have no answer for teams with top-tier big men. Even though they pulled off the win against Cleveland, the Clippers allowed Even Mobley and Jarrett Allen to combine for 37 points. Mobley had double figures in the first quarter, helping the Cavaliers build the early lead. Their last loss came at the hands of Sacramento when the Clippers allowed Domantas Sabonis to grab 20 rebounds, seven on the offensive end. Luckily, it looks like the Clippers will face the Mavericks in their first-round matchup. Dallas's offense is heavily dominated by guards, with Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving running the show. They lack the ability to get production from their post players consistently. A series with the Mavericks brings back into play the health of Kawhi Leonard. If he is not able to give maximum effort on the defensive side of the floor Doncic and Irving will have their way scoring the basketball.

Los Angeles Clippers guard Russell Westbrook (0) drives to the basket in a 120-118 win against the Cleveland Cavaliers at Crypto.com Arena on April 7, 2024. Photo credit: Dennis J. Freeman/News4usonline "These situations aren't ideal, but it is nice when we find a way to kind of just rally together. I thought this was a game where we really just dug down, and that second half was special," said Paul George. With Leonard out and James Harden not playing at all in the fourth quarter, George put the team on his back down the stretch. He scored 39 points, including the game-winning basket, while also grabbing 11 boards and dishing out seven assists. The win is a huge positive for the team, as it shows that they can beat quality opponents when they are not at their best. The goal is a championship, though, and the Clippers will need to be at their best to compete for one. Read the full article

[sempervirens117]

The Golden State Wine Chronicles : An Update for 01.29.21

The Golden State Wine Chronicles : An Update for 01.29.21

A 2011 bottle of Paloma’s legendary Spring Mountain estate Merlot. The final scene of “Driving Miss Mobley” will soon be available on Medium (sempervirens117.medium.com) later today. Once posted, it will join the other scenes from all 4 previous acts, plus the prologue, to form a completed screenplay. Next up? Submitting an edited version to screenwriting fellowship competitions this…

[truecrimecrystals]

San Antonio authorities are searching for Christina Powell (39), who has been missing since July 5th, 2022. The mother-of-two was last seen leaving her home for her job as a paralegal. Christina lives in her San Antonio, Texas residence with her oldest son and her mother, Claudia Mobley. According to Claudia, Christina was running late to work that morning and left the house in a hurry. In her rush to get out the door, Christina left her cell phone and her Apple Watch behind. She never made it to work and has not been seen or heard from again.

After Christina did not show up at her job at the law firm, a co-worker drove to her house to check on her. The co-worker knocked on the door and was greeted by Christina's 12-year-old son, who said that Christina was not home. He believed that she was at work. However, once the co-worker showed up to inquire about Christina's whereabouts, it became clear that she never arrived. Since Christina left her phone at home, there was no way to get in touch with her. This was inevitably concerning for Christina's loved ones. Police were later contacted after Christina did not return home.

According to Christina's mother Claudia, the night before Christina's disappearance was a lowkey night. It was the 4th of July, and the holiday reportedly marked a sad milestone for Christina. By Claudia's account, Christina's ex-boyfriend left and took their young child with him on July 4th in 2021. The date was reportedly tough for Christina, so she decided to stay in the evening before she vanished. Claudia also said that Christina and the ex-boyfriend got into an argument via text message on July 3rd-- just two days before Christina's disappearance. Still, Claudia does not believe said ex-boyfriend is involved in Christina's case. According to investigators, he is cooperating and is not considered a person of interest at this time. Christina was driving a Nissan when she left her residence, which is missing along with her. Additionally, Christina's missing persons poster states that she has a medical condition that requires daily medication that was not in her possession when she left. Her loved ones are very concerned for her safety. If you have any information that could lead to Christina's whereabouts, please call the SAPD Missing Persons Unit at 210-207-7660.

[junker-town]

9 Ben Simmons trade packages that might actually make sense for both sides

If the 76ers are really going to trade Ben Simmons soon, we have nine trade packages both sides should consider.

Ben Simmons’ days in Philadelphia have felt numbered ever since his woeful offensive performance contributed to the 76ers’ surprising second round loss to the Atlanta Hawks in 2021 NBA Playoffs. It was painful to watch Simmons at times during the series as he consistently bricked free throws and refused to attempt almost any fourth quarter shot — even a wide open dunk. As the Hawks finished off Philly in six games, head coach Doc Rivers and superstar teammate Joel Embiid essentially threw Simmons under the bus in the final postgame press conference.

The NBA waited for Simmons to be traded all summer, but it never happened. 76ers GM Daryl Morey reportedly asked for the moon for the 25-year-old All-Star, and no team was willing to meet his demands. It was easy to speculate that Morey wanted to hold on to Simmons as long as possible to see if a superstar guard like Damian Lillard would eventually hit the trade market.

Simmons has now taken matters into his own hands. He wants to be traded to a new team, and he’s threatening to hold out of training camp until it happens. With Simmons’ trade request hanging over the start of the season, we came up with nine possible deals and asked the corresponding SB Nation NBA communities how they felt about the proposed trade. These were the parameters for the deals:

I came up with each potential trade. They had to work on ESPN’s trade machine

The SB Nation communities gave their feedback on each deal. Sometimes that meant a thumbs up, sometimes it meant a thumbs down, sometimes it meant a counteroffer.

Every trade includes draft compensation of some kind. Since that’s where most of the negotiation on these deals will take place, we chose to keep it vague rather than come up with specific pick protections.

At the bottom of this story, Paul Hudrick from our 76ers community Liberty Ballers ranked his favorite proposed trade packages.

This was a fun exercise when we did it with James Harden a year ago, but the polarizing nature of Simmons’ game made this an even bigger challenge. As we learned, it isn’t easy to find a deal that satisfies the 76ers’ win-now desires while also making sense for the other side.

Here are nine deals we thought could make sense.

Pacers

Framework of the deal: Malcolm Brogdon and T.J. Warren + a pick for Simmons.

Why it might work: The Pacers finished ninth in the Eastern Conference last year, and their big addition of the offseason was head coach Rick Carlisle. This team is positioned to “win-now” with most of the rotation in its prime, but their ceiling isn’t all that high. Simmons is the type of player a franchise like the Pacers would be unlikely to land in free agency. It could be worth it to cash in a few pieces for a 25-year-old All-Star who is under contract long term, and then figure out the rest of the roster around him later. While the Pacers get a new foundational star, the 76ers get a starting point guard who can shoot and a wing bucket-getter who can immediately help Embiid in the playoffs.

What Indy Cornrows says:

This is so tough because A.) I love what this does for Philadelphia B.) Ben Simmons is the most talented player in the deal, the youngest, and on a long term contract; all things that would behoove the Pacers’ braintrust to make this trade. While I normally am talent over everything, the fit is just so wonky with a frontcourt of Sabonis/Turner/Simmons. If there were a subsequent deal with one of the bigs to bring in more perimeter talent, I think it makes sense, but the team can already struggle in halfcourt or late clock scoring situations. On top of that, Brogdon and Warren are both sub All-Star talents who the Pacers have no real replacement for. Again, it’s wonky, but worth thinking about.

As dynamic and good of a player as Ben is, he isn’t an elite driver at the moment (11.4 drives per 75) and Malcolm Brogdon is (15.2 drives per 75). We don’t talk about the rim finishing. But, in all seriousness, the Pacers would really struggle without Malcolm’s consistent ability to get to the rim. Getting there causes the defense to tilt even if you’re not finishing at an elite rate, so you’re banking a great deal on Ben and Caris LeVert getting to the cup with more consistency.

Simmons and Sabonis operate from similar spaces as high or mid post playmakers using their height and court vision to pick apart a defense. What does that look like with two players who aren’t being respected past the free throw line? Playmaking is probably the most important offensive skill in the league, you can never have enough, but the fit is certainly odd.

I would ultimately be in on this for Indiana, but admit that the team would probably not feel similarly. They view themselves as a win now team, and I think it would require a one step back two steps forward approach trying to restructure a younger team around Simmons after trading two of the three best perimeter options in the organization, while knowing more moves are happening in conjunction here.

If I could, I would counter with something involving the same players, but adding in Tyrese Maxey and a conglomeration of Pacers picks to make that trade worthwhile for the Sixers. Maxey would provide another building block towards a younger team with a brighter future and the Sixers would acquire more draft capital for subsequent moves to tweak the roster. It’s not perfect and I wouldn’t want to part with Maxey if I’m Daryl Morey, but I would certainly try and make it happen. — Mark Schindler

Spurs

Framework of the deal: Dejounte Murray, Derrick White, Devin Vassell + a pick for Simmons.

Why it might work: The Spurs finished No. 10 in the Western Conference last year, and lost their best player in free agency when DeMar DeRozan went to the Bulls. San Antonio has collected some solid young pieces in recent years, but no true star. Simmons would immediately become the face of the franchise, and his long-term deal would give the Spurs a few years to try to add talent around him. In return, Philly would get a dynamic offensive guard in White, an awesome defensive wing with shooting ability in Vassell, and a capable point guard in Murray.

What Pounding the Rock says:

Parting with their presumptive starting backcourt, in addition to the promising Vassell, is a hard pill to swallow for a team that’s invested so much in their development. But the Spurs have entered asset acquisition mode this summer for a reason: the roster as constructed probably doesn’t top out as a world-beater. Simmons doesn’t get them all the way there, but he should raise their ceiling and complement many of the remaining pieces’ strengths and weaknesses. — Bruno Passos

Cavaliers

Framework of the deal: Darius Garland, Isaac Okoro, and Ricky Rubio + a pick for Simmons.

Why it might work: The Cavs have been collecting top-five lottery picks ever since LeBron James bounced to LA, but the team is still far away from contention. Evan Mobley could be the face of the franchise moving forward, but it’s hard to tell exactly how good Cleveland’s other young players are. Like the Pacers, Simmons is the type of player the Cavs likely would never get in free agency. A team with Mobley and Simmons could have incredible defensive potential. The Cavs would have a log jam in the front court, but Simmons is under contract long enough for the team to reshape the rest of the roster around him in coming years. The 76ers would get an exciting young point guard in Garland who could be set for a breakout third year. Okoro is an awesome young wing defender who needs to improve offensively, and Rubio could help Philly at point guard right now.

What Fear the Sword says:

Maybe the Cavs do this as a talent play because Ben Simmons is no doubt better than anyone the Cavs currently have. But this is also a tricky deal because Garland is their best young creator and would fit well with Simmons. Okoro, meanwhile, is a standout defender just starting and they got Rubio. Simmons is also a tricky fit with a Evan Mobley-Jarrett Allen frontcourt. In reality, I think the Cavs probably do this because it’s a talent play and they have to take those. But I don’t really know why the 76ers would do this?

I also think the Cavs would want to try and move off of Kevin Love in any trade they make here, but that wouldn’t seem to fit with what the 76ers would want to do here. Simmons to Cleveland might just be too complicated to do unless a third team gets involved. — Chris Manning

Trail Blazers

Framework of the deal: C.J. McCollum and Robert Covington + a pick for Simmons and Thybulle.

Why it might work: The Sixers might dream of trading Simmons for Lillard, but it’s possible his backcourt mate is the best they can do right now. The 30-year-old McCollum would give the team a new lead guard in the backcourt who can score from all three levels and pairs well with Embiid. Covington is already a fan favorite for starting his career in Philly. Losing Thybulle in this might be a tough for the Sixers, but seems necessary for the contracts to match. From Portland’s perspective, an all-in move for Simmons could keep Lillard around long-term and give the Blazers the defensive stopper they’ve been missing.

What Blazer’s Edge says:

For the trade in question, the BE staff would accept that trade. Our only counter would be to make this trade less noisy. Let’s remove all the additional pieces and make this a straight CJ-for-Ben swap.

Simmons might not love the idea of Portland, but Klutch would unite one of their marquee players when one of their top coaching clients. With Larry Nance Jr. and Simmons in the fold, the Blazers’ defense would finally have the tools to compete with true contenders. — Steven Dewald

Grizzlies

Framework of the deal: Steven Adams, Dillon Brooks, and DeAnthony Melton + Jazz and Lakers 2022 first round picks for Simmons.

Why it might work: The Grizzlies have a great young foundation led by Ja Morant, but the team still has a long way to go before they reach contender status even after sneaking into the playoffs last year. Acquiring a blue chip talent like Simmons while keeping Morant, Jaren Jackson Jr., and a solid young complementary shooter in Desmond Bane would be a major boon. For the Sixers, Brooks could be an immediate starter on the wing, Melton is one of the more underrated players in the league, and Adams would be an elite backup center. The picks could come in handy for a future trade, too.

What Grizzly Bear Blues says:

If the Grizzlies could acquire a player that’s 25 years old and has been a 3-time All-Star, without giving up Ja Morant or Jaren Jackson Jr., they should pull the trigger - even for the oft-criticized Ben Simmons. Grizzlies followers would be reluctant to give up Dillon Brooks, but Simmons would serve as a defensive and playmaking upgrade. Brooks, Kyle Anderson, and De’Anthony Melton sound like a good framework for the deal, and guys like Brandon Clarke or Desmond Bane could replace one of the guys in this deal. The rest will likely revolve around draft compensation, primarily the first-round picks from the Lakers and the Jazz in 2022 and maybe one of their own.

The allure of Ben Simmons is transforming him into a super-charged Draymond Green. What better duo for him to do that with than the electric Ja Morant and the sweet-shooting Jaren Jackson Jr.? — Parker Fleming

Timberwolves

Framework of the deal: D’Angelo Russell, Malik Beasley, Jaden McDaniels + a pick for Simmons, Tybulle, and Isaiah Joe.

Why it might work: Minnesota reportedly has heavy interest in Simmons, and there are some pathways to a deal. This package would give the Sixers a starting guard in Russell, a high volume shooter in Beasley, and high-upside, young defensive forward in McDaniels. Russell may be a negative team value on his current deal, but Philly could also flip him down the line. For the Wolves, Simmons’ elite defense is a perfect match next to Karl-Anthony Towns in the front court. This trade might come down to what Philly thinks of McDaniels after a promising rookie year.

What Canis Hoopus says:

As a Wolves fan/writer, I wouldn’t do this trade. DLo and Beasly are the two best perimeter shooters on the team and Jaden McDaniels looks like the steal of the 2020 draft. I also don’t think the Sixers are interested in Russell. I think the Wolves big plan is to win with Simmons AND Russell together so I’ll propose this. The Timberwolves trade Malik Beasley, Jaden McDaniels, Taurean Prince, 2022 FRP, and 2024 FRP for Ben Simmons and Isaiah Joe.

The Wolves keep Russell, meanwhile the Sixers get extra pieces they can include in a trade once another star becomes available like Dame or Beal. Prince also cannot be traded until September 27th but teams could agree in principle. — Cooper Carlson

Raptors

Framework of the deal: Goran Dragic, OG Anunoby, Chris Boucher, and Malachi Flynn for Simmons, Thybulle, and Isaiah Joe.

Why it might work: The Raptors are embarking on a new era without Kyle Lowry, and it sure feels like they want a full team of big, athletic forwards with multi-dimensional skill sets. Simmons would fit. While a 1-for-1 swap with Pascal Siakam is possible, Raptors HQ chose to talk about this deal centered around OG Anunoby instead. Anunoby is a tremendous young wing who would be a plug-and-play starter for the 76ers. Boucher is a stretch big off the bench, Flynn is a promising young point guard, and Dragic could play a role right now in the last year of his deal. For the Raptors, a core of Simmons, Siakam, VanVleet, and Scottie Barnes could be the start of something big.

What Raptors HQ says:

This is definitely one of the more creative Raptors-76ers trade ideas that I’ve seen! Here, you’re moving two players who clearly want to be moved in Ben Simmons and Goran Dragic, and that’s a good starting point. The 76ers also need a point guard, and I think Dragic would quickly become a fan-favourite in Philly, assuming he hasn’t lost a step.

Beyond that? Well, OG Anunoby becomes the real sticky point here. Yes, I realize that Anunoby is more highly valued by Raptors fans, including me, than he is anywhere else. But that doesn’t mean it isn’t deserved. For an example of that, look no further than… Matisse Thybulle, who made all-defence last year over the more deserving Anunoby last season!

Still — if we remove the Klutch factor here (Anunoby is a Klutch client) — if you had to move OG to get Simmons, getting Thybulle in return to fill OG’s spot is not a bad thing. Imagine fielding a lineup of Simmons, Thybulle, Pascal Siakam, Scottie Barnes and Precious Achiuwa? I bet Masai Ujiri, Bobby Webster and Nick Nurse would give that one some serious thought. — Josh Kern

Kings

Framework of the deal: Tyrese Haliburton and Buddy Hield for Simmons.

Why it might work: The Kings are already reportedly out on this deal, and it makes sense. Haliburton was awesome as a rookie. He might be the most appealing piece in any of the packages we mention in this article. Still, there’s a case for why the Kings should consider this. Simmons is a young All-Star signed long-term. Trading for arguably the best defensive player in the game is a great way to address what was the league’s worst defense last year. The Kings also have a promising rookie guard in Davion Mitchell who could take Haliburton’s place in the lineup. It’s totally fair if the Kings and their fans don’t like this deal, but it’s at least worth considering.

What Sactown Royalty says:

This is a highly-risky move for the Kings that I would not want to see come to fruition.

Tyrese Haliburton is an essential piece of the young core Sacramento is trying to build around alongside De’Aaron Fox. The Kings would essentially be trading Haliburton, who finished third in Rookie of the Year voting last season, and Buddy Hield, the best 3-point shooter in the league, in return for good defense.

The way this is set up, Kings undoubtedly lose the deal. Instead, I would offer Buddy Hield and Marvin Bagley III and a future pick in return for Ben Simmons. The relationship between Bagley and Kings brass isn’t quite as hostile as Simmons and the Sixers, but it’s no secret they both want out of their respective markets. Philly would acquire a young wing who wants a fresh start while Sacramento would do the same. — Marina Drab

Warriors

Framework of the deal: Andrew Wiggins, James Wiseman, Moses Moody + a pick for Simmons.

Why it might work: The Warriors are trying to augment their aging championship core with young, unproven talent taken at the top of the draft. It sounds like a good plan in theory, but Golden State also can’t afford to waste time while Stephen Curry is still playing at an MVP level. Trading young pieces for Simmons would be a major boost in the short-term for Golden State, and immediately improve their chances at coming out of the West this year. For the Sixers, Wiggins could contribute on the wing right away, while Moody and Wiseman are nice long-term pieces. This deal may not give the Sixers the immediate talent infusion they’re looking to add, but the young pieces could be flipped in another deal down the road.

What Golden State of Mind says:

The main concern with Simmons on the Warriors seems to be whether the team can make a non-shooter work next to Draymond Green. But the Warriors have built elite offenses in the past with frontcourts of Green and Kevon Looney, Green and JaVale McGee, Green and Zaza Pachulia, and so on and so forth. The Warriors would have to eschew having a traditional center for it to work, but Simmons is bigger than many traditional centers (including Looney). With Simmons and Green, the Warriors would have a frontcourt starring two of last year’s Defensive Player of the Year finalists, and two of the top 12 assists per game leaders, who would be passing the ball to Steph Curry and Klay Thompson. You have to be mighty high on Wiggins to think this does anything but dramatically increase the team’s title odds in the next few years, and that’s before mentioning how perfect of a fit Thybulle is on the Warriors. Maximizing a title window around a 33-year old Curry is more important than hoping that two draft lottery tickets in Wiseman and Moody pan out. It’s an easy yes for me, though it’s worth noting that Golden State’s front office is reportedly split on Simmons, so it may not be an easy yes for them. — Brady Klopfer

Liberty Ballers ranks the Ben Simmons trade packages

Paul Hudrick from our 76ers community Liberty Ballers stopped by with his thoughts on his favorite potential deals.

1. San Antonio - Murray, White, Vassell + a pick

The reason I like this deal better than most is the addition of Murray. Say what you want about Simmons, but he was the runner-up for Defensive Player of the Year and is arguably the most versatile defender in the league. Getting a player like Murray that already has an All-Defensive Team nod would help mitigate the loss of Simmons on that end. At 25, you could talk yourself into Murray’s potential offensive upside — despite him not being a perfect fit playing next to Embiid — while also seeing a big role in helping the Sixers win now.

White would immediately become the Sixers’ sixth man and would be a damn good one. The Sixers’ bench has talent and potential but is awfully young. At 27, White adds maturity and experience. I love Vassell, but he is a tough fit here with wings like Matisse Thybulle, Furkan Korkmaz and Isaiah Joe that fit a similar mold. You can never have enough good, young wings, but I might prefer another pick or someone like Keldon Johnson, who offers more perimeter shot-creation potential, something the Sixers desperately need. — Paul Hudrick

2. Indiana - Brogdon, Warren + a pick

You could argue this deal makes more sense with the Sixers looking to maximize Embiid’s prime. Brogdon gives the Sixers a traditional point guard that can help space the floor even more for Embiid while also providing solid defense. I love the idea of Warren — especially the bubble version that destroyed the Sixers — as either the team’s starting three or a flamethrower off the bench. Both players offer more perimeter creation than what’s on the current roster.

The reason I like the Spurs deal better is trepidation over the health of both Indiana players. Brogdon, who isn’t the most explosive player to begin with, has missed time with various injuries over the last three seasons. Warren missed all but four games last season after having foot surgery. Both players are 28 and have proven NBA track records — which aligns with what the Sixers want — but their injury histories would make me want more draft compensation. — Paul Hudrick

3. Sacramento - Hield, Haliburton

Adding more shooting in Hield makes a ton of sense. The more shooting around Embiid the better. My only concern is that I’d imagine Hield would come here with the expectation to start. That would mean one of Danny Green or Seth Curry — who were both excellent last season — would have to move to the bench, something I’m not sure Doc Rivers wants to do.

While Haliburton doesn’t necessarily fit the mold of a win-now acquisition, that’d be a strong return. Haliburton replaces Simmons as a big playmaker but with the ability to shoot. Would he be ready for the moment in the postseason? I think it’s 100 percent worth finding out … if Sacramento is willing to move him. — Paul Hudrick

[wemythings]

2020 NBA Draft prospects to watch for

After the 2019 draft ended a few months ago the excitement for the next draft has risen as another crop of young players look to emerge. Many with more athleticism and overall talent than the last. Here is a look at what could be an outstanding group of NBA prospects in the 2020 NBA draft. These players aren’t listed in numerical order or based on a mock draft format. The reason for this is because a number of the players listed could be in play to be drafted number 1 depending on the needs of a team. 

1) Lamelo Ball

Height: 6′7.5 Weight: 175

Spire Academy Averages: 21.8ppgs 8.8rpg 8.5apg

NBA Comparison: Jalen Rose/Steve Nash

“It’s Balling Season” 

The youngest of three basketball prodigies Lamelo Ball at only 17 has shown the most latent potential to be an NBA star. Standing at a little over 6′7 Lamelo Ball has come a long way from being considered just the “little brother”  to a legitimate NBA prospect. 

From his time as a 5′7 freshmen playing along side his older brothers at Chino Hills high school, to being a 6′2 15 year old playing in Lithuania, to growing to 6′6 and playing with division 1 prospects such as Mark “Rocket” Watts, Myron Gardner and Isaiah Jackson. Lamelo Ball has become a player that scouts should pay attention to in 2020. 

The Positives: Lamelo Ball is 6′7.5 and looks to still be growing at 17 years of age. Height is something that can’t be taught especially in basketball. Lamelo has already learned how to run a basketball team at the point guard position at a very young age. Lamelo understands where players are supposed to be on the floor and looks like he can make any pass at the point guard position. 

Lamelo sees the court on the offensive side of the ball better than most NBA guards right now. Lamelo Ball’s handle is very smooth and controlled as if he has the ball on a string which is necessary for an NBA caliber guard. From the UCLA Rico Hines footage he made the game of basketball look very easy. 

He routinely made the right passes and some very difficult passes successfully against NBA caliber talent. As a scorer Lamelo Ball is great at creating his own shot using a tricky handle and hesitation dribbles to get to the basket. Lamelo Ball is also a crafty finisher around the rim. Ball has shown shot making ability all the way out to 25 feet. 

The Critique: After his time in Lithuania the coach of his team Prienai-Birstonas Vytautas  called Lamelo and Liangelo “Lazy” claiming they had no inner drive to get better. This could be a one off considering both of the brothers indeed became much better players after leaving Lithuania, despite the fact that Liangelo Ball went undrafted in 2018. Lamelo Ball has gotten so much better that he is being considered as a lottery selection. 

As a basketball player Lamelo excels on the offensive end as a passer and a scorer but gives little to no effort on the defensive end. While Lamelo played for spire academy at times he would try to play good help defense when trapping opponents and going for help-side blocks and sometimes steals. The issue is Lamelo doesn’t move his feet defensively in one on one situations. He would often gamble defensively and shows a lack of lateral quickness to stop his defender from getting to the basket. 

Due to his small upper body; Bigger, Stronger, athletes are going to be able to not only drive past Lamelo but go right through him. In today’s NBA defense is at a bare minimum at every position, but the point. Almost all of today’s starting point guards are big,strong, elite scorers on the offensive end. And the NBA is not like Spire Academy or Australia where he will have teammates that are bigger, stronger, and faster than everyone else to erase his mistakes. Once he gets to the NBA everybody to the 12th man is bigger, stronger and faster. 

To the credit of most NBA defensive sets guards are routinely left on an island by themselves to defend their position. So, will he be able to stay in front of Russel Westbrook, Kyrie Irving, Damian Lilliard, His older brother Lonzo Ball, James Harden, Kyle Lowery, Ben Simmons, Stephen Curry, Rajon Rondo and many others? Being able to answer that question will determine if he will start.  And if Lamelo can’t stay in front of these guys, they are going to view him as a deer in headlights and tee off on him until he can stop them. 

While Lamelo Ball has improved as an athlete being able to not only dunk but go between his legs , he doesn’t show the ability to finish at the rim consistently. Lamelo Ball doesn’t look like he has an elite first step or the blow by speed that his older brother lonzo has nor does he have the big strong frame of Liangelo Ball to over power smaller guards. 

His shot selection has gotten much better but due to wonky shot mechanics, Lamelo can find himself missing open jumpers. When rising up to shoot, the ball can be seen cocked back towards his face and he will shoot what looks like a butterfly like push shot. At times instead of going straight up with his feet facing the basket he will fade away. Also when Lamelo doesn’t have the ball in his hands he is relatively inactive on the offensive side at times. He needs to do a better job at demanding the ball, moving without the ball and asserting himself offensively on a consistent basis.

All in all nobody knows if his game will translate and if he will be any good or not against NBA players. He still hasn’t proven that he can play against and dominate elite talent on a nightly basis. In all the summer games he has played from the Drew league to the Rico Hines runs he has shined. If Lamelo’s game translates to the NBA he could be an All-star caliber guard but nobody knows for sure, frankly nobody knows if his game will translate to Australia right now. 

2.) Anthony Edwards

Height: 6′5 Weight: 215

Holy Spirit Averages: 25.2ppg, 9.6rpg 2.5 apg, and 1.3spg. 

NBA Comparison: Eric Gordon before the injuries 

“Ant-man going to UGA”

The Positives: From a talent and skill standpoint Anthony Edwards is being regarded as a once and a generation athlete. Similar to how freakish 6′11 monster in Dwight Howard was viewed in 2004 before he was drafted number 1. The scary thing is Edwards is a guard and from all indications wants to be the best basketball player in the world. Edwards’ athleticism and skills are worlds apart from every other player in his class. He can do whatever he wants and looks to have little opposition at the high school level. He already has NBA athleticism and is able to get to the basket and finish above the rim with ease. 

Though his three point shooting can go through hot and cold droughts, he is more hot than cold. Edwards plays with an incredible motor and already has the size and strength of an NBA guard. Edwards has shown that he can guard three positions at the high school level. It can be argued that if the one and done rule didn’t exist Edwards would be able to start and contribute in the NBA right now.

The Critique: Most of the world hasn’t seen enough of Anthony Edwards. Outside of the coveted Mcdonalds-all American game and a couple of mix-tapes nobody outside of Atlanta, Georgia has really seen Edwards play. Many players had great mixtapes in high school and were called the next thing and didn’t make it to the NBA. Though to Edwards credit unlike those players scouts actually view Edwards as a potential franchise changing star. Like all prospects we will have to take a wait and see approach with this one, though to his credit he looks the part. 

3.) James Wiseman 

Height: 7′1 Weight: 230

Memphis East Averages: 25.8ppg, 14.6rpg.

NBA Comparison: More explosive Tim Duncan/Chris Bosh

“Abnormal potential”  

The Positive: As demonstrated in the 2019 Mcdonalds All-American dunk contest James Wiseman is nothing short of a freak of nature. At 7′1 to be able to dunk from the free-throw line on only 4-5 steps is unheard of. Instances like this are a very telling sign of how much more athletic today’s 7′1 center is as opposed to yesterdays center that was celebrated simply for being able to run and chew gum at the same time. James Wiseman is extremely mobile at 7′1 able to get up and down the floor like a small forward. Wiseman has soft hands that allows him to catch lobs and many difficult passes in the paint and convert around the rim.

He hasn’t shown the ability to score in the post consistently but the ability to do so is there. At 7′1 Wiseman is able to stretch the floor out to the three point line with his shooting range. This isn’t a player that an opposing team would expect to take the ball the length of the court but Wiseman definitely has shown the ability to handle the ball. At 7′1 he has a very smooth one dribble step back jumper. Against the twin towers known as the Mobley brothers in Evan and Isaiah, Wiseman held his own. Wiseman could potentially be a number 1 selection because of his abnormal size and skill. 

The Critique: Has a good offensive game that still needs to be polished in a few minor areas. Wismeman is a very good to possible elite defender but struggled with the physicality of similarly sized players such as the Mobley Brothers. Wiseman like most other big-men just needs to continue to polish his offensive skill set which is already pretty solid. It’s a toss up if he will live up to the hype or not but you can’t teach athleticism, and skills at that height. 

4.) Cole Anthony 

Height: 6′3 Weight: 185

Oakhill Academy Averages: 18ppg 9.8rpg 9.5apg

NBA Comparison: Deron WIlliams 

“On his head!!” 

The Positive: The son of former NBA player Greg Anthony looks like he’s already way better than his father ever was. At around 6′3 Cole is the prototype of today’s NBA point guard. He is extremely athletic with the ability to score at a high level. He’s becoming a solid jump shooter but Anthony is more of a scorer than a shooter. 

Anthony is able to use his speed and athleticism to get to the basket. On the defensive end Anthony has proven to be a physical  defender that will try to stay in front of his man. Despite Anthony being a pretty good scorer in high school he was very unselfish to a fault and found ways to get his teammates the basketball. From a talent standpoint everything points to Cole being an elite player in college and the NBA. 

The Critique: At 19 years old Cole Anthony is older than a lot of players in his class and most likely will be 20 years old by the 2020 NBA draft. Scouts wonder if Cole can truly dominate at an elite level. Though Anthony is listed at 6′3, he looks closer to 6′2. Anthony is a good shooter by high school standard but needs to become great in order to survive in the NBA. Anthony also needs to cut down on turnovers. Also because Anthony is an elite athlete even by NBA standards he often finds himself being out of control. Cole like many of today’s player he needs to continue to develop his fundamentals and polish his skills. 

Honorable Mention 

5.) Shareef O’neal 

Height: 6′10 Weight: 220

UCLA Averages: No Stats Accumulated; Red shirted due to heart surgery

NBA Comparison: Jermaine O’neal

“The Son of Superman Kalel”   

The Positive: The son of the most dominate center I have ever seen in Shaquille O’neal, is showing great promise. At around 6′10 Shareef shows the ability to handle the ball very well for a player his size. O’neal has the ability to score inside and out. Like his father Shareef possesses elite athleticism even by NBA standards. O’neal has shown the ability to shoot the basketball very well for his size. He also has the ability to put the ball on the floor and drive by his defender. Shareef has terrific size and athleticism to play the 3 or the 4 at the NBA level. 

The Critique: Shareef is good at a lot of things but isn’t truly great yet. Shareef is a tweener in the true sense that he is big enough to play the three but somewhat not truly skilled enough on the perimeter. O’neal has the size of a 4 but doesn’t like to play in the post enough. O’neal has a good post game but doesn’t utilize it enough.

In the past Shareef has fashioned his game after a Kevin Durant or Tracy Mcgrady type of talent. He is more athletic than the two but doesn’t have the perimeter skills of those players. He struggles to create off the dribble against smaller defenders, including using his handle to break a full court press. O’neal has shown the ability to handle the basketball well for a forward. 

The issue is that his handle pales in comparison to most guards/forwards at the same position and style of play that he would like to embody in the NBA. He couldn’t hold a candle to players such as Paul George or a Carmelo Anthony type. The issue is he has the potential to do so. Though Shareef has come along way as a prospect he needs to continue to develop his handle and ball skills to become the player he wants to be. Whats scary about O’neal is that he has more talent than he does skill. 

O’neal also had a heart surgery and many scouts might be scared of the fact that he might have lingering issues. From a potential standpoint Shareef O’neal can become a very good NBA player, but he may never be what his father was. The issue now is seeing if his talent will translate over to UCLA and than to the NBA. 

6.) Kenyon Martin Jr

Height 6′7.5 Weight 210

Sierra Canyon Averages: 20ppg 9.4rpg

NBA Comparison: Kenyon Martin Sr. /Shawn Marion

“Like Father Like Son” 

The Positive: KJ embodies everything his father was as a player. Kenyon Martin Jr is an incredible run and jump athlete that can finish lob plays and put back dunks. KJ is working on becoming an adept 3 point shooter and demonstrate more skills like taking the ball off the dribble. KJ takes the game seriously and plays with a mean streak just like his father who was an absolute monster during his playing days. 

The Critique: Just being a great athlete at 6′7 and only an athlete would have sufficed 10-15 years ago, but today this will not even get looks in today’s NBA. Right now as a prospect KJ would be considered a project as he has yet to develop an offensive game other than a dunk or put-back.

In a televised basketball game in which Sierra Canyon was absolutely crushed by Montverde Academy KJ struggled to shoot the ball and score the basketball in the paint against bigger, stronger players in Montverde Academy. In fact though KJ had the most potential and led the team in scoring, it can be argued that Scotty Pippen jr and Cassius Stanley were the better D1 prospects on that team. 

To KJ’s credit he demonstrated the ability to take the ball off the dribble and shoot the three point shot in the drew league. KJ needs at least 2-3 years of college seasoning before he can even think about playing in the pros at this point. For nostalgia sake I hope KJ can become just as good or better than his father was down the line. 

[withickmire]

hands so bloody

Fandom: Deltora Quest Summary: Unbeknownst to its intended victims, the Shadow Lord begins the Conversion Project. Characters: Barda, Jasmine, Lief, mentions of others. Notes: This is for @anniebogoni​ who requested Barda and Jasmine between series 1 and 2. Thanks for the prompt! AO3 Content Warning: A suicide that is referenced in The Isle of Illusion makes an appearance here.  

Weak sunlight cast the palace in a watery, washed-out glow. Barda squinted through the light to peer at the massive structure before him. It had been two months since he had called it home again, and yet it felt so terribly strange to walk up the wide steps.

He looked back at his companion, trailing just behind him. Without an official title or position, and with Lief and Doom almost always preoccupied, Jasmine would occasionally shadow Barda on his rounds. He did not discourage this habit, for otherwise she spent her time alone, and besides, she was the best kind of company.

“There is a place for you in the palace guards, should you wish it,” Barda had told her the week before, doing his best to keep his voice unaffected. “You would not need to apply.”

Jasmine had stared blankly ahead. Months earlier, he would have thought that the girl’s face was unreadable like this. But he could see the thought behind her sharp eyes, and the way her lips pulled downwards when she concentrated.

“Thank you,” she had said awkwardly. “But I would not want it.”

He had meant his words, but so had she, and so Barda had never offered again.

“Are you finished, already?” Jasmine asked, pulling him from the memory.

“My shift has ended, but I wish to look in on how the meetings are going. Mobley has only been my deputy for a few weeks, and I have left him in charge of guarding them.”

Jasmine grimaced. "I do not understand why all those people crowd into that room just for a chance to speak to Lief or Sharn. They all want food and money. As if Lief would not give it to them if he had any to give at all!”

“It is better that he listens to them say the same things, than ignore them and fall back into the old ways,” he said darkly, as if Jasmine’s thoughts had not crossed his own mind.

They reached the top of the stairs and Kree took flight from Jasmine’s shoulder, choosing the open air rather than the confines of the palace. Barda did not miss the wistful look that Jasmine followed him with.

The huge doors were splayed open in what was meant to be a sign of welcome. Barda had always thought they made the great hall appear cavernous, but he did not feel the need to say so. The line to speak to the king and his mother nearly spilled out of the entrance.

A young woman stood just outside of the doors. She was awfully thin, and the rough brown dress she wore did little to shield her from the cool morning air. She trembled and swayed as she gazed up at the massive palace, and Barda softened, despite himself. He had learned in his years as a beggar that looking upon the palace with hate and fear had been a ritual etched into the bones of the citizens of Del for generations. As he and Jasmine drew closer, he realized the woman was trembling. He recalled how he had shaken, when he fled the palace the night of the Shadowlord’s invasion. How he had stumbled away from the monstrous structure, gasping to catch hold of his panicked breath, clutching his sword with a sweat-slicked hand. But that had been so long ago, and there was no evil left to drive from inside the palace walls.

“You need not fear it any longer,” he said gently. The woman flinched, and turned to him, staring up with wide blue eyes framed by brown curls. A flash of recognition passed over her face; he and Jasmine had become as recognizable as Lief. Her eyes looked far away, but she gave him a brief smile, and darted away into the hall.

They went in after her, but the woman had already been swallowed by the crowd. Barda could see Lief and Sharn from where he stood. Lief was listening intently to a man surrounded by three children who clutched their father’s patched coat and stared at the king with undisguised awe. Lief had grown taller and broader during their journey, but he had only just turned seventeen. His face was still very much that of a boy.

Suddenly, Jasmine stiffened beside Barda, and placed a hand on his arm. Something was wrong, he realized. Jasmine’s instincts had never failed them before.

Screams suddenly rose like a symphony, starting near where they stood, and spreading through the crowd. Swifter than lightning, Barda and Jasmine swung around, pulling their weapons from their sheaths. Filli wailed from under Jasmine’s scarf, his thin voice joining the others.

“Get out of the way!” Barda boomed, but the people before him did not need to be told. The crowd parted as a figure barrelled through. It was the woman he had only just seen, but she had shed all of her fear. She was shockingly fast, and clenched a wicked knife in her hands. Mobley and Dale were at Lief and Sharn’s sides, but they could not see the source that was causing such panic. Lief had drawn his own sword and was searching for the culprit in vain, for she was shielded by the crowd.

“Son of Adin! Son of Endon!” The woman shrieked; a terrible cry of hate and rage. “Little Lief, come to me! We must away together, you and I! Do you not tire of playing a king? Does the game not grow old? I know a game that is much more fun!”

Jasmine dodged through the people, sweeping nimbly through the crowd as she had once darted between the trees in the Forests of Silence. Barda followed a little behind, keeping his eyes carefully placed on Jasmine’s back. After what seemed like an eternity, she reached the woman and hooked her foot underneath her legs, causing her to stagger and fall to the floor. Jasmine had the flat of her dagger pressed against the woman’s heaving throat when Barda arrived. He pressed his mighty hands against the woman’s slim shoulders, pinning her to the cold stone floor. She wailed and spat in his face.

“Do that again, and die,” Jasmine hissed. The woman turned her savage eyes to the girl and bared her teeth.

Barda used the woman’s distraction and tried to pull the knife from her hand. Her grip was of iron, and her fingers were white-knuckled. She flailed her free hand, catching Jasmine hard on her cheek, and grasped at the knife with both hands. Barda’s own hand slid down the hilt, and the blade bit into his palm. He gritted his teeth and tried to pry her fingers from the weapon, but the woman was relentless. Jasmine pulled her own knife away to give him room.

“No, no, no, no,” the woman sobbed hysterically. Blood ringed her arms in delicate trails; she had cut her own hands on the blade. It streamed onto Barda’s hand, and his fingers skidded down her arm for just a moment. It was all she needed. As her sobs turned to wordless screams, she raised the blade high and plunged it into her own heart. Her eyes rolled and her lips opened and closed like a fish out water, as she laboured toward the death she had chosen. Barda did not look away as her blood pooled under his legs. Finally she was still, and her empty eyes stared dully at the high ceiling.

Jasmine did not hesitate before pulling the knife from the dead woman’s ruined hands, as if she feared someone might pick it up and finish what had been started. She knelt beside him, and stared at the body with eyes of unflinching stone.  

Barda finally raised his head. The silence in the room was deafening. Many of the people had fled the palace in the scuffle, but still more were staring at the body on the floor. His face was wet with the woman’s saliva and blood. He reached a hand out to Jasmine and together they staggered to their feet.

“We will reconvene tomorrow,” Lief’s voiced echoed through the massive room. One by one, the remaining people turned from the body to face their king. “I ask you to return to your homes for your own safety. Please.”

Slowly, as if recovering from an enchantment, they found their voices. Whispers and murmurs rose high, but they did as they were told, trickling from the palace achingly slow. Many eyes lingered on the body, and the two blood-splattered people that stood beside it, but Barda and Jasmine stared them all down.

“Get the king away,” Barda bellowed at Mobley and Dale when the crowd had finally left. “And find Doom.”

The guards nodded and followed Sharn as she steered Lief out of the hall, ignoring his protests and the desperate looks he shot back at his friends. A wave of exhaustion hit Barda like a blow.

“They failed him,” Jasmine said fiercely, watching the guards go. “They are supposed to protect Lief, are they not?”

“They did not leave his side, and he is alive,” Barda said firmly. “For now, that is enough.”

“And so protecting Lief falls to us?” Jasmine snapped. She let the dead woman’s knife clatter to the floor, and sheathed her own.

“Just as it has before. You knew that,” Barda said, just as angrily. “That, at least, has not changed.”

Still, he could not help but admit to himself that she was half-right. Had we not been here…

Jasmine’s brow was smeared with the woman’s blood, but her own trickled from the cut on her cheek left by desperate fingernails.

“You should bandage that,” he said gruffly.

She shrugged. “Yours is worse.”

Barda looked down. The battle-heat was wearing away and the nasty gash on his palm was beginning to throb. It would need to be sewn.

He looked at the dead woman, a thousand questions swirling in his mind.

“No one will claim her now,” was all he said aloud. “If she had any family, they will not come forward. Not when the Lief’s rule is so new. No one will want that kind of mark.”

Jasmine crouched by the body. She slipped her hands into the bloodstained pockets of the woman’s dress, and ran her hands along the seams. Barda looked away.

“She has nothing,” Jasmine said finally. “Nothing at all.”

Barda looked at the woman’s spindly wrists and hollow cheeks. Jasmine was not wrong. He cursed harshly.

Jasmine rose to her feet, pressing a ginger finger to her cut. Despite her anger with the guards, she appeared satisfied at least with the conclusion. But Barda’s dread only increased the longer he stared at the body.

It has only been two months, he thought grimly. This is not a good omen.

As the woman’s blood began to tighten against his skin where it dried, Barda could not help but think that something much worse was still to come.

-----------------------------

I wanted to write something pre-series 2 before things started to go poorly with Lief and Jasmine, and Lief and the people. I imagine there was tension even before it became apparent that there were lies and secrets. I think it’s interesting how the attempted assassination attempts via the Conversion Project were really the catalyst for Lief very nearly losing the people’s faith. The Enemy is sly, indeed…

[sempervirens117]

I am going to self publish my awesome and highly scandalous feature length California wine 🍷 country road trip Platonic romance on @amazon @amazonkindle tomorrow. It’s called Driving Miss Mobley and is a Sideways/ Driving Miss Daisy mashup featuring a fictional Esther Mobley from the @sfchronicle and a fictional me before my Two Spirit transition and my Second Coming Out social media message on @youtube which is affiliated with @google who tried to arrest me under fake news pretense but I evaded The Google and will write about it on @medium soon. The screenplay can be optioned by @amazonstudios since it will be on @amazon tomorrow, Jeff. So get it before @netflix or @hbo outbids you. #jeffbezos (at Kings Mountain, California) https://www.instagram.com/p/CfgLENfueJk/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[its-just-like-the-movies]

The Help (11, C+)

There is a lot, a lot, a lot going on in The Help. We know this because this movie is two and a half hours long, though it doesn’t feel like it when you watch it on TV. Or, if it does, you blame the network for breaking it up into such a long sit, the way Freeform can make any Harry Potter film a four-hour experience. There is a lot going on in The Help, but probably too much. For sure, thinking back to the film before I rewatched it, Viola Davis’ performance was the only part I had any real memory of, and even that was somewhat fuzzy. Especially after the 2016 Oscar season saw such a great year for Davis, Octavia Spencer, and Emma Stone, not to mention Bryce Dallas Howard’s great work on Black Mirror and whatever groove Jessica Chastain’s been in for some time, seemingly on the edge of another nomination with A Most Violent Year (better than the nominated slate, but she and Arquette deserve a rewatch) and Miss Sloane (nice haircut, but feh) yet always on the outside looking in (I had also recently seen Zero Dark Thirty and was surprisingly unimpressed with her performance, and was eager to get her again), it felt like I owed it another look-through. What I saw was Viola Davis giving a truly wonderful central performance, surrounded by a lot of performers ably serving the piece without complicating it, deepening it, or keeping up with Davis. No one is really abetted here by writer/director Tate Taylor, whose direction doesn’t do anything to help or guide his actresses, and whose screenplay betrays a lot of shaky politics by giving Emma Stone’s Skeeter so much focus. The Help really tries to do a lot of things politically, but encourages too much broad playing from its interpreters in a film that lives and dies by how well they can play their parts. But what we end up having is a breezy film, pretty entertainingly played, with one heroic performance a lot of political brouhaha to sort through. So reader, let’s get sorting!

Ostensibly, there are two women leading The Help’s crusade, though one of them seems ripe to get shoved to the sidelines. I am, of course, talking about the bizarrely forefronted Skeeter Phelan, the ambitious and racially aware white woman whose attempts to write a book about the black maids in her home town, is the narrative backbone of The Help. Like Jack in Room, or so many other stories where a fascinating central character is observed by a less compelling audience surrogate, The Help does not have the good sense to actually hand over the film to the characters its story is actually about, and it suffers for it. Nevermind that Stone is perhaps the film’s least compelling performer (Bryce Dallas Howard isn’t good, but she’s not boring either), but her career aspirations and romantic journey are so tangential to the conversation every other facet of the film is having that its inclusion is genuinely unnecessary. I’m all for long films if the story requires it, but a lot of her story feels like padding on a film that doesn’t need it. I’d have admired a more self-effacing performance, but Stone seems to flail with giving her castmates or us any kind of characterization to interact with. I’d have loved to see her take on Hilly Holbrook, but instead we just have an idea about Skeeter Phelan, and that’s a shame for everyone involved.

 Our real hero, of course, is Aibileen Clark, though certainly more characters could be considered equal drivers in the story. Minny Jackson, Celia Foote, and Hilly Holbrook have almost equal narrative import as Aibileen, and the story certainly shifts between letting each of them drive it for long stretches of time. The inclusion of Skeeter’s separate arc keeps these strands from mingling entirely gracefully, and disrupts the film’s most interesting ideas about the relationship between the black maids who raise the white babies that will grow up and continue mistreating them as adults. You can feel how much this version wants to have a structure like Howards End, which so artfully allows all of its characters to work as engines that drive the story’s narrative and its political ideas, but Tate Taylor’s comedic bent in interpreting The Help undermines this idea from the get go. The cast, too, is almost uniformly limited by Taylor’s direction, asking too little of a fine ensemble that seem completely ready to do more. Not one actor is asked to complicate or deepen their characters the way that the actors of Howards End do, breathing specific life into each of its characters and giving each one plenty of ideas and actions for the audience to respond to, even as the political ideas that power the whole project are present at all times. Here, the limited scope of what Taylor is doing simplifies everything The Help is earnestly trying to be. Bryce Dallas Howard doesn’t just make Hilly Holbrook a flatly antagonistic presence, flaunting her nastiness, but works hard to make us aware that she as much as anyone is disgusted by Hilly by way of turning the woman into a joke as much as she does a threat. Jessica Chastain, easily turning in the best performance among the cast’s white women, makes Celia a welcome, giddy presence, committing deeply to the character’s goodness and her sadness in appropriate moments, but doesn’t seem in any way like a woman who could ever be friends with Hilly and her crew. And as lovely as Octavia Spencer’s Academy Award win is, it’s still a pretty broad performance that seems ripe for a deeper read, and more decision-making on Spencer’s part. I wish it resembled her wonderfully underplayed Hidden Figures performance, especially since her face is so remarkably open and expressive that it often feels like she’s mugging for effect in scenes that just don’t call for it. No one embarrasses themselves or the picture, and it hums along fine, but it’s almost too easy to see the deeper, more complicated picture, one with a more outwardly cozy Hilly, a pricklier Celia, a more reserved Minny, that’s hiding in this film.

What is it about Tate Taylor that he can so capably stymy all but the most committed actors? Davis somehow finds room to thrive in The Help and Emily Blunt manages to turn in a full characterization in The Girl on the Train, but they are palpable exceptions to what both films wind up turning out. The Girl on the Train’s cast seem like they all showed up to set between other projects and haven’t bothered trying in the slightest, outside the remarkably committed Blunt. No one in The Help, thankfully, is dull, but it’s astounding how Taylor managed to get the two sleepiest performances I’ve ever seen Allison Janney give. She makes more of an impact in the two minutes she appears in Margaret, so much more alive on the brink of death than Janney’s cancer-ridden mother ever appears to be. Cicely Tyson has almost nothing to do as Skeeter’s long-gone maid, never mind the walk-on cameo of Tony winner LaChanze as her daughter, though I appreciate the seeming revitalization it gave to public interest in Tyson’s career. At least Sissy Spacek and Mary Steenburgen seem like they’re having a ball, but Spacek especially doesn’t look like she’s trying.

 If Taylor doesn’t seem to have coached his actresses in any meaningful way (I’m saying nothing about Chris Lowell’s unworthy suitor), his own staging of the film’s events seem completely uninspired, banking entirely on the strength of actresses has hasn’t tried in any way to coax out more intricate, surprising performances than the ones they end up giving. The comedic tone leaves the film alarmingly without any complication, and the uncomfortably entangled relationships between the white and black women of Jackson, Mississippi are wholly underserved as all the white women fall so neatly under the “unbearably cruel racist” or “fundamentally good liberal” categories. In art like this there’s no way for the maids not to be wholly sympathetic figures, and they should be, but we’re treated to far less time with the maids as a whole to the white society ladies. There’s not one maid that isn’t a cuddly presence to the audience, not one who could confuse a stupid liberal into abandoning racial equality through being too thorny or unapproachable or mean, as is occasionally a thing stupid liberals do nowadays with progressive causes. The broadness of Minny Jackson seems especially symptomatic of making her and Aibileen likable above all else, and I wish that Spencer had made the character a truly bitter woman who sees no way to change her situation except through this white redhead, instead of finding a comedic register for her sourness and her anger. Taylor’s own, scripted insistence on giving so much for Skeeter to do belies his own fundamental misunderstanding of what The Help is about, of what it could be, and the whole piece suffers for it.

 For all that Taylor’s decision-making seems to impede most of what The Help is trying to be, there is still enough fertile soil for Viola Davis to craft a wizardly performance of Aibileen Clark. Working within the film’s tone, she makes Aibileen a figure of audience sympathy without into the bathos the role more than accommodates in the slightest. In fact, Davis is delightfully indulgent in the moments of joy in Aibileen’s life without editorializing how sporadic these moments of happiness are, highlighting their rarity by giving in completely to them when they appear. Gossiping with Minny at parties in the kitchens; earnestly caring for Mae Mobley and fondly recalling the other white babies she has taken care of; so touched and grateful and delighted by the recognition she gets from her fellow parishioners once the book is finally published. Her whole first scene is a brilliant introduction to the character, responding to a recollection with a full-mouthed and toothy grin, so visibly responsive and impressed with Skeeter asking what it’s like to raise white babies but not her own child in such a way that you know she’s never been asked anything that personal (at least by a white woman) in her whole life, the way her face tightens into a mask as she looks out the window after glancing at the portrait of the son she knows is long dead without boldfacing it to us. I knocked the character of Minny and Spencer’s interpretation of her as being an easy mark for audience sympathy, and there’s certainly plenty of potential for that kind of manufactured likability that short-shrifts character depth or complexity in Aibi. But at no point does Davis milk Aibileen’s sadness for easy sympathy, asking for empathy instead of pity as she tells the story of how her son died and what telling her stories will mean to her, and to his memory. She cannot seem to stop her tears but never stops to cry. Even in the face of the dehumanizing bathroom laws from Hilly, or the absolute terror she feels running home at night after Medgar Evers is assassinated, she telegraphs the indignities Aibileen faces every day and the ones that are new, shameful lows for her to experience. There’s a bone-deep tiredness to her, but her body is just as active in her joys (laughing at Elizabeth Leefoot’s dress with Minny during the ball), her triumphs (jumping for joy at receiving the check from the book), her shame (that run home), her care (every scene she has with Mae Mobley, earnestly doting on her but worried about who this girl will become), her rage (that gut-wrenching last scene).

I tried ending the introductory paragraph with the phrase “Viola Davis does not a movie make” but in this case, at least, that’s debatable. Her performance is the only reservoir of depth and emotion anywhere in The Help, the most vivid part of the film I could remember before this rewatch and surely what I will remember best about it after (I did in fact spend my entire 4:00-10:30 dishwashing shift on Tuesday reminiscing on her performance, and planning the outline of this piece). I’ve already spent a lot of time thinking about revisiting her performances in Solaris, Far From Heaven, Doubt, Blackhat, Prisoners, and Fences - glorious Fences - and wondering what else I’ll get out of seeing these for second or third times. The Help was so unexpectedly rich to see again specifically on her account, and it’s perfectly fair to remember this film only on terms of her heroics. “You is kind, you is smart, you is important” already seems like it’s permeated the culture so perfectly, perhaps more so than the gifs of Jessica Chastain practically hurtling her coke bottle in joy or the look Octavia Spencer gives once she reveals the secret ingredient in her pie (lord, why are all the biggest insults hurtled at Hilly so scatological?). The Help is a fine film, perfectly acceptable on its own turns even as it belies a lot of wasted opportunity in its script, its cast, and its direction. But we have one unimpeachable feat of acting, given by one of the most powerful and imaginative actresses working today. I am happy to hear a deeper read on this film from someone who loves it, and morbidly interested in hearing the problems someone would have with Viola Davis’s leading performance.

 As it currently sits, I am perfectly fine with the mediocrity of The Help, though I wish so much that it had more in it than I got. I also wonder the degree I’m underestimating how well it gets the intraracial environments instead of the interracial environments. Is it that difficult, though, to grasp the social hierarchies of rich, politically stunted white women? Or the inherent terror, without editorializing, that black women felt at that time? Jim Crow is mentioned about once, though he hangs over the proceedings. I still think it’s a massive liability than “the help” are not given the communal screen time wasted by a lot of what Skeeter’s up to, and that easy reversal could’ve done wonders for the film to see how these women react to the opportunity to have their stories published instead of hearing it relayed to us through Aibileen and Minny. And I really wonder what having any real male presence in this affair, to see how white and black men feel about the codependent relationship between the black and white women of The South, would’ve transformed the blueprint of the whole project. Okay, so maybe I’m not perfectly fine with it, but the degree to which Viola Davis is so immensely rewarding in this film makes me forgiving of anything that made room for her genius performance. There is a lot, a lot going on in The Help, and a lot of ways all of that could’ve been made better. Especially with a project that is so politically ambitious, it is disheartening that the film seemingly clubs itself so easily. Yes, there is room in there for Viola Davis to Do That, but it’s independent of her director, and as undeniably sterling as she is in this film, she cannot be used as an excuse to cop for the film’s flaws. Aibileen Clark is a tremendous creation, and one that could surely exist in a better version of The Help. I hope we get a better version of this kind of film soon, but Viola and Aibileen give us the story and the protagonist we deserve, and I am happy to applaud her for it as often as I can.

[the-record-obituaries]

May 9, 2018

Ruth Mathis, 81

Mrs. Ruth Lorraine Shumate Mathis, age 81 of Wilkesboro, died Friday, May 4, 2018 at the State Employees Credit Union Hospice of Yadkinville.               Graveside services were  May 9, at Mountlawn Memorial Park with the Rev. Ken Pardue officiating.                 Mrs. Mathis was born October 29, 1936 in Wilkes County to Ira Raymond and Lorene Adams Shumate.                 She was preceded in death by her parents and one son, Troy Lynn Mathis.               She is survived by her husband, Troy Mathis, of the home; one son, Charles "Chuck" Mathis and wife, RoseMary, of Millers Creek; one brother, Tom Shumate of North Wilkesboro; and a nephew, Jeff Shumate.               A special thank you is being extended to Bart Mathis, Mrs. Louise Mathis, and Mrs. Maggie Mathis.               Flowers will be accepted.  

Skyler Roberts

Skyler Christie Roberts, infant daughter of Charles and Christie Roberts, died Saturday, April 28, 2018, at Hugh Chatham Memorial Hospital. No service will be held

 William Goforth, 76

William Clyde Goforth, 76, of Ferguson, passed away on Saturday May 5, 2018 at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center after a brief illness.

               Funeral services were held  May 8,   at Lewis Fork Baptist Church with the Rev. Dwayne Andrews and Rev. Sherrill Wellborn officiating.   Burial   followed at Lewis Fork Baptist Church Cemetery.  

               Clyde was born in Wilkes County to Percy Lee Goforth, Sr. and Clara Bumgarner Goforth on June 20, 1941.  He worked as a mechanic for Payne Power Equipment for 35 years. His hobbies included RC planes and helicopters, woodworking, and motorcycles. He loved spending time with his great-grandchildren. He was involved in the RC Club of Roaring River.

               Clyde is preceded in death by parents, Percy Lee Goforth, Sr. and Clara Bumgarner Goforth, and a sister, Patricia Diane Goforth.

               Clyde is survived by his wife of 57 years, Patsy Goforth; children, Diane Marion (Tony, Jr.) of Millers Creek, Rebecca Harris (Barry) of Statesville, and Ricky Triplett of Morganton; siblings Jane Caudill of North Wilkesboro, Shirley Eller (Jerry) of Ferguson, Rosie Burchette (Kent) of North Wilkesboro; Junior Goforth (Donna) of North Wilkesboro, Mikeal Goforth (Pam) of North Wilkesboro, Randall Goforth (Crystal) of Ferguson; grandchildren, Tiffany Cayton (Brandon) of Millers Creek, Erica Marion of Millers Creek, McKenzie Harris of Millers Creek, Shanna Triplett of Morganton, and Brittney Mileton (Hunter) of Morganton; and great-grandchildren Micah, Ryker,  Braylon and Remi.

               Pallbearers will be his nephews: Adam Burchette, Logan Eller, Dalton Goforth, Jordan Goforth, Justin Goforth, Shore Goforth,  William Mobley and Cameron Whaley.

               Flowers will be accepted or memorials may be made to Lewis Fork Baptist Church Cemetery Fund, 395 Lewis Fork Baptist Church Road, Purlear NC 28665 or to the donor's choice.

   Robert Myers, 76 

Mr. Robert Earl "Jackie" Myers, age 76 of Hays, passed away Thursday, May 3, 2018 at Forsyth Medical Center.

Funeral services were held   May 7,   at Reins Sturdivant Chapel with Rev. Tim Pruitt officiating.  Burial was in Rose of Sharon Baptist Church cemetery.  

               Mr. Myers was born May 19, 1941 in Wilkes County to June Stroud and Ruth Wiles Myers. Jackie served in the United States Army and National Guard. He was retired from Wilkes Telephone and was a member of Rose of Sharon Baptist Church. Jackie was a loving husband, father, grandfather and brother.

               He was preceded in death by his parents.

               Jackie is survived by his wife Linda Reavis Myers of the home, a daughter; Janet Pettigrew and husband, George of Statesville,  two sons; Eric Myers and wife Debbie of Mocksville and Aaron Myers and wife, Melinda of Hays, five grandchildren; Sarah Pettigrew, Olivia Pettigrew, Megan Myers, Cole Myers and Tyler Myers, two brothers; Frank Myers and wife Shelby of North Wilkesboro and Johnny Myers  and wife Sharon "Rusty" of State Road.

               Flowers will be accepted.

 Raydiance Howell, 21

Miss Raydiance Allahia Howell, age 21 of Millers Creek passed away Tuesday, May 2, 2018 at Wake Forest Baptist-Wilkes Medical Center.

               Funeral services was  held   May 6, 2018 at Millers Creek United Methodist Church with Rev. Cokie Bristol and Rev. Billy Ervin officiating.  Burial will be in the church cemetery.  

               Miss Howell was born March 29, 1997 in Caldwell County to Darrell Larvin Howell and Brandy Sides.  She worked as a CNA at Wake Forest Baptist-Wilkes Medical Center and was currently enrolled in the Respiratory Program at Wilkes Community College and was a member of Millers Creek United Methodist Church.

               She is survived by her parents; Brandy and Joseph Neal, Jr. of Millers Creek and Darrell Larvin Howell of Lenoir, a brother; Brandon Neal of Millers Creek, grandparents; Greg Sides and Jody Berkshire of Lenoir, Randy and Debra Hollar of Collettsville, Dallas Howell of Lenoir, and several aunts and uncles.

               Flowers will be accepted or memorials may be made to Millers Creek United Methodist Church, 3260 North NC Hwy 16, Millers Creek, NC  28651.

 Annie Hamby, 90

Mrs. Annie Childress Hamby, age 90 of North Wilkesboro, passed away Wednesday, May 2, 2018 at her home.

               Graveside services were held   May 4,  at Mt. Pleasant Baptist Church cemetery with Pastor Kevin Brown and Rev. Mike Hamby officiating.  .

               Ann was born September 21, 1927 in Wilkes County to Matthew and Fannie Johnson Childress. She was a member of Mt. Pleasant Baptist Church.

               Mrs. Hamby was preceded in death by her parents, four sisters and seven brothers.

               She is survived by her husband; A.E. Hamby of the home, three daughters; Lynn Hamby of Moravian Falls, Annette Hamby and Lisa Church both of North Wilkesboro, two sons; Rev. Mike Hamby and wife Sherri of Wilkesboro and Robert "Bobby" Childress and wife Debbie of North Wilkesboro, nine grandchildren and four great grandchildren.

               Flowers will be accepted or memorials may be made to Gideons International Wilkes North Camp PO Box 1791 North Wilkesboro, NC 28659.

Maxie  Mabe, 82

Mrs. Maxie Mae Wayne Mabe, 82, of North Wilkesboro, passed away on Tuesday, May 1, 2018 at her residence.

               She was born Thursday, November 21, 1935 in Ashe County to the late Rufus Hix Wayne and Zola Mae Sheets Wayne.

               Maxie graduated from Jefferson High in 1954. She had worked the lunch counter at Eckerd Drug Store and in the floral department at Kmart.

               She was a member of the Friendship Church of the Brethren. She was active in VBS, Sunday school, and mission work.

               Maxie "Mom" had many passions including arranging flowers for special occasions, directing events within her church and weddings. Maxie "Mom" had a special talent in culinary arts. Many can attest to her fine foods and ability to come up with new recipes from scratch.

               Maxie is survived by her husband of 63 years, Hoke Mabe; sons,  Leon Mabe (Darlene) of Salisbury, Steven Mabe( Lisa) of Millers Creek; grandchildren, Jessica Barker (Jake) of Roaring River, Dawn Holcombe ( Jimmy), Cody Mabe; great grandchild, Josh Holcombe, all of Salisbury.

               The funeral service was held May 7, at Adams Funeral Home of Wilkes Chapel in Moravian Falls. Burial will follow the funeral at Sheets Cemetery in Laurel Springs. Pastor Gary Benesh will be officiating.

Visitation will be held at 2:00-2:45 pm, prior to the Funeral Service at the Adams Funeral Home of Wilkes Chapel.

               Flowers will be appreciated and memorial donations may be given to Friendship Church of the Brethren Youth, c/o Ronnie Sheets, 179 Pads Road, Wilkesboro, N.C. 28697 or Sheets Gap Cemetery c/o Keith Wayne, 6326 Box Chase Drive, Davidson, NC 28036.

               The family would like to thank Pruitt Hospice, Friendship Church of the Brethren and everyone for their love, support and the many letters and cards Maxie received which she was unable to respond too.

   John Harrold, Sr., 88

Elder John A. Harrold, Sr., age 88 of North Wilkesboro passed away Tuesday, May 1, 2018 at his home.

               Funeral services were held May 4, at Zion Baptist Church with Elder Dean Roten, Elder Tommy Dollar  and Elder Wayne Overcast officiating.  Burial was in the church cemetery.  

               Elder Harrold was born September 27, 1929 in Wilkes County to James Calvin (JC) and Mary Shumate Harrold.   He was owner/operator of an automotive repair shop and was a Baptist Minister for 59 years and was a member of Zion Baptist Church in Hays.

               In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by a son; James Calvin Harrold, three sisters; Dana Holland, Carrie Bell Grimes, Betty Jo Michael and two brothers; Andrew Harrold and Bill Harrold.  

               He is survived by his wife of 68 years Rachel M. Robinson Harrold of the home, one daughter; Linda Ellington and husband Ronald of Eden, one son; John A. Harrold, Jr. of Hays, three grandchildren; Matthew Harrold, Rodney Pruitt, Ritchie Pruitt and three great grandchildren; Kyle Pruitt, Halden Pruitt and Ben Pruitt.

The family requests no flowers.

 Harlem Howell, 23

Mr. Harlem Zechariah Howell, age 23 of Ferguson, passed away Monday, April 30, 2018 at his home.

               Funeral services were held  May 6th, at Reins Sturdivant Chapel with Rev. Fred Howell, Rev. Roger Horton, Rev. Terry Hunt, Rev. Juanita Melton and Evangelist Stephanie Shade officiating.  Burial will be in the Harley Lipford Cemetery.                  Mr. Howell was born October 12, 1994 in Wilkes County to Rev.  Fredrick "Fred" Lee and Patty Regina Lipford Howell. He was a member of Life of God Christian Outreach in Lenoir.

               He was preceded in death by his grandfathers; Harlie Lipford and Ray Howell.

               He is survived by his parents of the home, a sister; Kayla Howell and a brother; Solomon Howell both of Ferguson, his grandmothers; Annie V. Lipford of Ferguson and Wilma D. Howell of Taylorsville, a host of Aunts and Uncles and many cousins.

               Flowers will be accepted or memorials may be made to Care Net Counseling PO Box 1656 North Wilkesboro, NC 28659.

 Geneva Miller, 76

Mrs. Geneva Maxine Staley Miller, age 76, of Charlotte, NC, died Tuesday, May 1, 2018 at CMC Northeast. Maxine was born December 8, 1941 in Wilkes County, NC to Enoch R. and Mary E. Staley.

               Before retiring, she was the Office Manager for the Intramural Department at UNCC. Maxine was a member of Sugaw Creek Presbyterian Church, but in recent years, she attended Mallard Creek Presbyterian Church with her husband, Terry.

               Maxine was preceded in death by her parents Enoch and Mary Staley. She is survived by: her husband, Terry, two daughters: Ashley Marston and husband, Tim of Fortson, GA, Mary Anne Snyder and husband, Randy of Niceville, FL, grandchildren: Rebecca Marston, Hannah Marston, William Marston, and Chase Snyder, a brother, Mike Staley and wife, Arlene of North Wilkesboro, NC and a sister, Jane Pardue and husband, Fred of Clemson, SC., a sister-in-law, Dorothy Miller Sabella and husband Ralph of Oceanside, CA., and many nieces and nephews.

 The family will receive friends Monday, May 7, 2018 from 2:00 pm to 3:00 pm at Mallard Creek Presbyterian Church, 1600  W. Mallard Creek Church Rd, Charlotte, NC 28262 with the funeral service to follow at 3:00 pm with Rev. Laura Rasmussen officiating.  Interment will be at Forest Lawn West, 4601 Freedom Drive, Charlotte, NC 28208.

 In lieu of flowers, contributions in Maxine's honor can be made to The Humane Society of Charlotte,  2700 Toomey Ave., Charlotte, NC 28203 or The Humane Society of Oconee County, 1925 Sandifer Blvd., Seneca, SC 29678.

  Geraldine Beshears, 88

Geraldine "Gerry" Clark Beshears, 88 entered Heaven's glory on April 30, 2018.  Her faith became sight after a lifetime of loving and serving her Lord and those whom He placed in her life.

               Gerry was born on May 24, 1929 in Hinton, WV to the late Albert Ross Clark and Emma Ruth Harvey Clark.  She moved to Baltimore, MD, as an adult where she met and married Charles Beshears with whom she would live and faithfully love for fifty-eight years. Together, Gerry and charles served the Lord, built a home, reared three children, and spoiled their grandchildren.

               Gerry and Charles relocated to Purlear, NC where their home was a gathering place for family celebrations for the next forty-five years.  It was there that love for the Lord, family, and others was passed to future generations.  Mamaw, as she was known to family, made everyone feel special with home cooked meals, delicious desserts, and the gentle spirit that was her hallmark.  Her life epitomized the words from Proverbs 31: Her children rise up and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her:  "Many women have done excellently, but you surpass them all." Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a women who fears the Lord is to be praised.  Give her of the fruit of her hands, and let her works praise her in the gates.  

While in Purlear, Gerry was an active and humble servant in New Hope Baptist church.  She served in many capacities, but is most beloved as a GA (Girls in Action) leader and Sunday school teacher - roles that she filled for more than forty years.  Her selfless service and love were examples to all who kne3w her.  Many have been blessed by her visits, phone calls, cards and letters, and rides to doctor appointments when they were going through difficult times.

Her own difficult times necessitates a move to Cross Rose Retirement community in Asheboro, NC, where both her own and Charles' health needs could be met.  For the next five years, her life continued to shine the light of Christ on new friends. Her absence leaves an emptiness in the hears of those who cherished her; howver, the ones who share her faith in Christ know her will live with her in eternity.  

Gerry is survived by her daughter Cheryl Benton and husband Mike of Morganton, daughter Cindy McManus and husband Harold of Archdale and daughter-in-law Gaynell Beshears of Purlear.  Her beloved grandchildren are Emily Benton, Hannah Benton Penley and husband Ryan, Michael Benton, Benjamin McManus and wife Jenny, Joseph McManus, Jared and Jonathan Beshears.  She is also surved by a brother, Ralph Clark and wife Jane of Hickory, a sister-in-law, Betty Beshears of Purlear, a niece, Kay Karminski and husband Lee of Woolford, MD and niece Janet Ahmad and husband Ahmad of Texas and many other well-loved nieces and nephews.  She was preceded in death by her parents, her husband Charles, her son, Danny Beshears, her grandson, Aaron McManus, three brothers and two sisters.

  A service celebrating her life and faith was held New Hope Baptist Church fellowship hall sanctuary in Purlear. Following the service, Gerry will be buried at Yellow Hill cemetery beside her beloved Charles.  Reverend Mike Stamper will officiate the service and Pastor Dan Qurollo will officiate at the graveside..

Flowers will be accepted or memorials may be made to Samaritan's Purse Ministries, PO Box 3000, Boone, NC 28607.

  Hayden Cleary, 83

Mr. Hayden Baxter Cleary, age 83 of Wilkesboro returned to his heavenly home on April 29, 2018.  He was an amazing husband, father, grandfather, brother and friend.

 A casual celebration of life was held   May 5,  at Reins-Sturdivant Chapel with Mr. Larry Baity officiating.  The family will receive friends immediately following the service. Please wear your jeans and a Duke shirt (even if you are a Carolina fan).

 Mr. Cleary was born on June 2, 1934 to Ed and Clara Jones Cleary in Wilkes County, NC.  He graduated from Wilkes Central High School and Clevenger College. Hayden worked for Modern Globe for 33 years as a purchasing agent where he had a close family of friends.

 Hayden proudly served in the United States Army, where he met his beloved wife Norma.

 Mr. Cleary was preceded in death by his wife Norma, a son; Ashby, his parents, brothers; Raymond Cleary and Ralph Jones and sisters; Marie Baity and Bethel Smithey.

 He is survived by his daughter; Bridgett and husband Doug of North Wilkesboro, brother; Tom Cleary of Winston Salem, sister; June Adams of Wilkesboro, #1 granddaughter; Lindsay Gardner of North Wilkesboro and granddaughter; Amy Dickert and husband Chip of Easley, SC, grandson; Allender Gardner and wife Holly of Greenville, SC and four great grandchildren.   He also has some very special 'kids' - Kaye Fletcher, David Combs and Katrina Fletcher. His cousin and partner in crime Ronnie Jones, two very special cousins; Larry Baity and Marty Laws, nieces; Carol Owens and Kathy Jones and a great golfing buddy and friend Booty Billings.

 In lieu of flowers memorials may be made to Ebenezer Christian Children's Home, PO Box 2777, North Wilkesboro, NC 28659

   Carolyn Harris, 73

Mrs. Carolyn Ann Jones Harris, age 73 of Moravian Falls, passed away Friday, April 27, 2018 at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center in Winston-Salem, NC.

 Funeral services were held   Wednesday at Reins-Sturdivant Chapel with Bishop C.O. Reid officiating.  

 Mrs. Harris was born November 15, 1944 in Wilkes County to Sam and Ruth Kelly Jones. She was a homemaker and a member Wings of Healing Church.

 She was preceded in death by her parents.

 Mrs. Harris is survived by a daughter; Linda Renee Harris of North Wilkesboro, four sons; Frank Harris, David Harris, Monoletto Harris and wife Jeania and Antonio Harris and wife Ashley all of North Wilkesboro, eight grandchildren; Tamara Poole, Carolyn Lowe, Anna Tilley, Monty Harris, Dashon Harris, Jasmine Harris, Stormie Harris and Janiya Harris, a great grandchild; Wyatt Swaim, three sisters; Bronda Horne and Patty Jones both of New Trenton, NJ and Margie Little of North Wilkesboro and two brothers; Billy Jones of New York City, NY and Bobby Jones of California.

[enappartet]

Florida AP Broadcasters contest award winners

Photo source: Channel 3’s Jasmine Anderson

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) —

Winners of the Florida Associated Press Broadcasters contest were announced Saturday in Orlando.

Thirty-seven television and radio stations submitted 597 entries in the contest. A list of winners can be found here.

WEAR ABC 3 took home three awards in the 2017 Florida Associated Press Broadcasters contest:

General Assignment: #1, Christina Leavenworth and Tristan Turner, WEAR-TV, Pensacola, “Woman Accused of Burying Body in Grandmother’s Backyard”Photojournalist: #2, WEAR-TV, Pensacola, “Anchor Wars.”Website: #2, Website / Digital

The Associated Press is a not-for-profit news cooperative representing 1,400 newspapers and 5,000 broadcast stations in the United States.

Winners in the 2017 Florida Associated Press Broadcasters contest:

LEGACY AWARDS

TV: Tom Wills, WJXT-TV

RADIO: Ronald Ebben, WFSU-FM

WINNERS LIST IN TV I / LARGE MARKET:

Feature ? Hard News: 1, Emerald Morrow and Heather Bailey, WTSP-TV, St. Petersburg, “Who Helps the Hero?“; 2, Dalia Dangerfield and Jonathan Haas, Bay News 9, St. Petersburg, “Hurricane Maria: A Student’s Transition.”

Feature ? Light News: 1, Matt Austin and Paul Giorgio, WKMG-TV, Orlando, “Getting Results Award: Cemetery Restoration”; 2, Gaston Toledo and Felix Castro, WSCV-TV, Miami, “Bailarina en la Oscuridad.”

Feature ? Cultural / Historical: 1, Veronica Cintron and Bobby Collins, Bay News 9, St. Petersburg, “Immigration in America: Field of Fear”; 2, Kathryn Bursch, WTSP-TV, St. Petersburg, “Violins of Hope.”

General Assignment: 1, Jeff Joiner and Holly Gregory, Bay News 9, St. Petersburg, “WWII Bomber Squadron Reunion”; 2, Julie Gargotta and Tony Rojek, Florida News 13, Orlando, “Before The Storm.”

Non-Breaking Newscast: 1, WKMG-TV, Orlando; 2, WTSP-TV, St. Petersburg, “Brightside: The Morning After the NYC Truck Attack.”

Breaking News ? Station: 1, WFLA-TV, Tampa, “Emergency Landing”; 2, Bay News 9, St. Petersburg, “Seminole Heights Murderer Caught.”

Breaking News ? Individual: 1, Nadeen Yanes, WKMG-TV, Orlando, “The Capture of an Accused Cop Killer”; 2, Valerie Boey and Brad Flanagan, WOFL-TV, Orlando, “Markeith Loyd Captured.”

Breaking News ? Long Format: 1, Erik Sandoval, WKMG-TV, Orlando, “Orlando Airport Gunman”; 2, Laurie Davison, Bay News 9, St. Petersburg, “Hurricane Irma Live.”

Continuing Coverage: 1, Bay News 9, St. Petersburg, “Pulse Remembered”; 2, Matt Austin and Donovan Myrie, WKMG-TV, Orlando, “Driving Change: Push For Texting Law.”

Investigative: 1, Jarrod Holbrook and Randy Wright, WFTS-TV, Tampa, “Substituting The Truth”; 2, Greg Fox and Mike Kirby, WESH-TV, Winter Park, “Red Light Camera Countermeasures.”

Investigative Series: 1, Katie LaGrone and Matthew Apthorp, WFTS-TV, Tampa, “Florida Teachers, Failing & Frustrated”; 2, Adam Walser and Randy Wright, WFTS-TV, Tampa, “Falling Through the Cracks – Sinkhole Investigation.”

Series / Franchise Reporting: 1, Matt Austin and Paul Giorgio, WKMG-TV, Orlando; 2, WSCV-TV, Miami, “Mujeres Fuera de Serie.”

Public Affairs / Documentary / TV Magazine: 1, Bay News 9, St. Petersburg, “Hurricane Maria: Mainland Impact”; 2, John Handiboe and Gary Darling, Florida News 13, Orlando, “Hurricane Irma: Your Stories.”

Weather Reporting: 1, Myrt Price and Tom Zylowski, WFTV-TV, Orlando, “RV Park Destroyed by Hurricane Irma”; 2, Christian Bruey and Ulen Hodges, WFTV-TV, Orlando, “Hurricane Irma Coverage.”

Sports Feature: 1, Justin Granit and Angela Clooney, WTSP-TV, St. Petersburg, “Golfing with the Tampa Bay Bucs”; 2, Michael Wash Jr. and Andy Wontor, Florida News 13, Orlando, “The Number 42.”

Website / Digital: 1, WSCV-TV, Miami, “Mujeres Fuera de Serie”; 2, Daniel Dahm, WKMG-TV, Orlando.

Editor: 1, Matthew Apthorp, WFTS-TV, Tampa; 2, Joe Wagener, WFTV-TV, Orlando.

Photojournalist: 1, Timothy F. Kania, Bay News 9, St. Petersburg; 2, Michael Wash Jr., Florida News 13, Orlando.

Weathercaster: 1, Bryan Karrick, Florida News 13, Orlando, “Florida: Staying Calm in the Eye of the Storm”; 2, Amy Sweezey, WESH-TV, Winter Park, “Hurricane Irma: Impacts & Aftermath.”

Sportscaster: 1, Christian Bruey, WFTV-TV, Orlando.

Multi-Media Reporter (MMJ): 1, James Sparvero, WKMG-TV, Orlando.

Reporter: 1, Laurie Davison, Bay News 9, St. Petersburg; 2, Jarrod Holbrook, WFTS-TV, Tampa.

Producer: 1, Adriana Mocciola, WSCV-TV, Miami, ” ?; 2, Sakina Bowser, WTSP-TV, St. Petersburg, ” .

News Anchor or Anchor Team: 1, Jason Guy and Michelle Imperato, WESH-TV, Winter Park; 2, Sheli Muniz, WTVJ-TV, Miami.

Television Newscast ? Morning / Midday: 1, WKMG-TV, Orlando; 2, Sakina Bowser and Bethany Rhodes, WTSP-TV, St. Petersburg, “Las Vegas Shooting.”

Television Newscast ? Evening / Night: 1, WKMG-TV, Orlando; 2, Bay News 9, St. Petersburg.

Overall ? Station of the Year: 1, WKMG-TV, Orlando; 2, WESH-TV, Winter Park.

WINNERS LIST IN TV II / MEDIUM MARKET:

Feature ? Hard News: 1, Merris Badcock and Jennifer Tintner, WPTV-TV, West Palm Beach, “Death Row Decisions: Sentencing Killers to Death May be Harder Under New Florida Law”; 2, Melanie Lawson and Jodi Mohrmann, WJXT-TV, Jacksonville, “Thinking of Suicide.”

Feature ? Light News: 1, Stephanie Susskind and Maurice Moran, WPTV-TV, West Palm Beach, “Officer Crowder’s K9s”; 2, Derek Kemp and Rachel Polansky, WBBH-TV, Fort Myers, “Best Hurricane Ever.”

Feature ? Cultural / Historical: 1, WJXT-TV, Jacksonville, “Hometown Boys: A Southern Rock Tragedy.”

General Assignment: 1, Christina Leavenworth and Tristan Turner, WEAR-TV, Pensacola, “Woman Accused of Burying Body in Grandmother’s Backyard”; 2, Peter Busch and Josh Kappers, WBBH-TV, Fort Myers, “Trump in Naples.”

General Assignment ? Long Format: 1, Jennifer Waugh and Travis Anthony, WJXT-TV, Jacksonville, “The Hunt for a Fugitive”; 2, Jim Piggott, WJXT-TV, Jacksonville, “Body Cam Video.”

Non-Breaking Newscast: 1, WJAX/WFOX-TV, Jacksonville; 2, Lenny Smith, WINK-TV, Fort Myers.

Breaking News ? Station: 1, WINK-TV, Fort Myers; 2, WJAX/WFOX-TV, Jacksonville, “Kamiyah Mobley Found.”

Breaking News ? Individual: 1, Mike Magnoli and Christopher Jones, WPEC-TV, West Palm Beach, “Ft. Lauderdale Mass Shooting”; 2, Chris Lovingood and Derek Kemp, WBBH-TV, Fort Myers, “Chicos Plane Crash.”

Breaking News ? Long Format: 1, Crystal Moyer, WJXT-TV, Jacksonville, “Rescue During Hurricane Irma”; 2, Lindsey Sablan, WINK-TV, Fort Myers, “SWFL on Fire.”

Continuing Coverage: 1, WJXT-TV, Jacksonville, “Congresswoman’s Corruption Case”; 2, WINK-TV, Fort Myers, “Reporting on Irma.”

Investigative: 1, Lauren Sweeney and Justin Cubbage, WINK-TV, Fort Myers, “In Custody Deaths”; 2, Michelle Kingston, WINK-TV, Fort Myers, “High School Bathroom Sex Scandal.”

Investigative Series: 1, Rachel Polansky and Derek Kemp, WBBH-TV, Fort Myers, “9-1-1 Fatal Flaw”; 2, WPTV-TV, West Palm Beach, “Riviera Beach Investigative Series.”

Series / Franchise Reporting: 1, Jenna Bourne and Mike Dorfman, WJAX/WFOX-TV, Jacksonville, “ADA Lawsuits: Social Justice or Shakedown?“; 2, Michelle Kingston and Katie Cribbs, WINK-TV, Fort Myers, “Custom Comfort for an Uncomfortable Price.”

Public Affairs / Documentary / TV Magazine: 1, Staci Spanos, WJXT-TV, Jacksonville, “A Disaster Named Matthew”; 2, Todd Ofenbeck and Tiffany Myers, WBBH-TV, Fort Myers, “Irma Special.”

Weather Reporting: 1, Vic Micolucci and Chris O’Rourke, WJXT-TV, Jacksonville, “Crisis in Puerto Rico”; 2, WINK-TV, Fort Myers, “Defeating the Deadly Hurricane.”

Sports Feature: 1, Kent Justice and Jodi Mohrmann, WJXT-TV, Jacksonville, “Jumbo Shrimp”; 2, Jodi Mohrmann and Sam Kouvaris, WJXT-TV, Jacksonville, “Jacksonville’s Hole in One.”

Breaking Sports News : 1, Lynnsey Gardner and Jodi Mohrmann, WJXT-TV, Jacksonville, “Privileged?.”

Website / Digital: 1, WJXT-TV, Jacksonville; 2, WEAR-TV, Pensacola.

Editor: 1, Wally Lurz, WPEC-TV, West Palm Beach, “Irma Lingers”; 2, Scott Reilly, WBBH-TV, Fort Myers.

Photojournalist: 1, Wally Lurz, WPEC-TV, West Palm Beach, “Irma Lingers”; 2, WEAR-TV, Pensacola, “Anchor Wars.”

Weathercaster: 1, Jim Farrell, WINK-TV, Fort Myers, “Forecasting the Unpredictable: Irma Hits Southwest Florida”; 2, Mike Buresh, WJAX/WFOX-TV, Jacksonville, “Jacksonville’s Chief Meteorologist.”

Multi-Media Reporter (MMJ): 1, Channing Frampton, WINK-TV, Fort Myers.

Reporter: 1, Jenna Bourne, WJAX/WFOX-TV, Jacksonville; 2, Lynda Figueredo, WPEC-TV, West Palm Beach.

Producer: 1, Leah Carr, WBBH-TV, Fort Myers, “Chicos Plane Crash”; 2, Vanessa Bein, WBBH-TV, Fort Myers, “Irma Aftermath.”

News Anchor or Anchor Team: 1, Jennifer Waugh, WJXT-TV, Jacksonville; 2, Tenikka Smith Hughes, WJAX/WFOX-TV, Jacksonville.

Television Newscast ? Morning / Midday: 1, WJXT-TV, Jacksonville, “After Hurricane Irma”; 2, WBBH-TV, Fort Myers, “Trump in Naples.”

Television Newscast ? Evening / Night: 1, Will Stewart and Lenny Smith, WINK-TV, Fort Myers; 2, WJXT-TV, Jacksonville, “After Irma.”

Overall ? Station of the Year: 1, WJAX/WFOX-TV, Jacksonville; 2, WBBH-TV, Fort Myers.

WINNERS LIST IN TV III / SMALL MARKET:

Feature ? Hard News: 1, Kayla Gaskins, WJHG-TV, Panama City Beach, “Family Searching for Missing Sister”; 2, Julie Montanaro and Ryan Kelly, WCTV-TV, Tallahassee, “Football Fears.”

Feature ? Light News: 1, Neysa Wilkins, WJHG-TV, Panama City Beach, “Making Mats for the Homeless Out of Plastic Bags”; 2, Haley Wade, WCJB-TV, Gainesville, “Men Find Friendship During Richard Spencer Rally.”

Feature ? Cultural / Historical: 1, Mariel Carbone, WCTV-TV, Tallahassee, “49 Days in Leon County Jail”; 2, Jennifer Holton, WJHG-TV, Panama City Beach, “Father’s Body Found Years After Pearl Harbor Attack.”

General Assignment: 1, Erika Fernandez , WCTV-TV, Tallahassee, “Southwood American Flag Controversy”; 2, Byron Khalil, WJHG-TV, Panama City Beach, “Man Wants Safer Biking Options After Crash.”

General Assignment ? Long Format: 1, Byron Khalil, WJHG-TV, Panama City Beach, “Cleaning Up The Beach.”

Non-Breaking Newscast: 1, Shannah Bober, WJHG-TV, Panama City Beach.

Breaking News ? Station: 1, WCTV-TV, Tallahassee, “Hurricane Irma Live Coverage”; 2, WTXL-TV, Midway.

Breaking News ? Individual: 1, Lanetra Bennett, WCTV-TV, Tallahassee, “Search For Missing Boy in Lake Talquin”; 2, Mariel Carbone, WCTV-TV, Tallahassee, “Subpoenas Issued in the FBI Investigation Into Tallahassee.”

Breaking News ? Long Format: 1, Kayla Gaskins, WJHG-TV, Panama City Beach, “Hurricane Irma Coverage.”

Continuing Coverage: 1, WCTV-TV, Tallahassee, “Fraternity Pledge Death Investigation”; 2, WJHG-TV, Panama City Beach, “The Lucky 7.”

Investigative: 1, Alicia Turner, WCTV-TV, Tallahassee, “Cellphones in Prison”; 2, Ashley Richmond, WTXL-TV, Midway, “Insiders: Mistrust in Midway.”

Series ? Franchise Reporting: 1, Jennifer Holton, WJHG-TV, Panama City Beach, “9/11 Suspects Pretrial Hearings at Guantanamo Bay”; 2, Crystal Bailey and Ron Bates, WCJB-TV, Gainesville, “The Power Behind the Hashtag: #MeToo.”

Public Affairs / Documentary / TV Magazine: 1, WCTV-TV, Tallahassee, “Eclipse Special”; 2, Jessica Foster, WJHG-TV, Panama City Beach, “Breast Cancer Awareness.”

Weather Reporting: 1, WJHG-TV, Panama City Beach, “Hurricane Irma Coverage”; 2, Charles Roop, WCTV-TV, Tallahassee, “South Georgia Tornado Drill.”

Sports Feature: 1, Ben Kaplan and Allison Perry, WCTV-TV, Tallahassee, “Young Athlete Uses Golf to Overcome Cancer”; 2, Joel Sebastianelli, WJHG-TV, Panama City Beach, “Father and Son Boxing Duo.”

Breaking Sports News: 1, WCTV-TV, Tallahassee, “Jimbo Fisher Leaves FSU.”

Website / Digital: 1, WJHG-TV, Panama City Beach.

Weathercaster: 1, Ryan Michaels, WJHG-TV, Panama City Beach; 2, Alexander Calamia, WCJB-TV, Gainesville.

Sportscaster: 1, Jamie Hale, WJHG-TV, Panama City Beach.

Multi-Media Reporter (MMJ): 1, Byron Khalil, WJHG-TV, Panama City Beach; 2, Mariel Carbone, WCTV-TV, Tallahassee.

Reporter: 1, Erin Lisch, WCTV-TV, Tallahassee.

Producer: 1, Shannon O’Keefe, WCTV-TV, Tallahassee; 2, Darling Hill, WCJB-TV, Gainesville.

News Anchor or Anchor Team: 1, Malcolm Hornsby, WTXL-TV, Midway; 2, Paris Janos and Jessica Foster, WJHG-TV, Panama City Beach.

Television Newscast ? Morning / Midday: 1, Laura Peavler, WJHG-TV, Panama City Beach; 2, WTXL-TV, Midway.

Television Newscast ? Evening / Night: 1, Shannah Bober, WJHG-TV, Panama City Beach; 2, WTXL-TV, Midway.

Overall ? Station of the Year: 1, WJHG-TV, Panama City Beach; 2, WCTV-TV, Tallahassee.

WINNERS LIST IN RADIO I:

Feature ? Hard News: 1, Abe Aboraya, WMFE-FM, Orlando, “PTSD Lingers in First Responders After Pulse”; 2, Bobbie O’Brien, WUSF-FM, Tampa, “An Unknown Future for Military Caregivers of Post-9/11 Veterans.”

Feature ? Light News: 1, Amy Green, WMFE-FM, Orlando, “Florida’s Ghosts Forests a Sign of Sea Level Rise”; 2, Brendan Byrne, WMFE-FM, Orlando, “Meet the Everyday Astronaut.”

Feature ? Cultural / Historical: 1, Robin Sussingham, WUSF-FM, Tampa, “Violins of Hope Give Voice to Voiceless of Holocaust”; 2, Alicia Zuckerman, WLRN-FM, Miami, “The Cassettes Of Hurricane Andrew.”

General Assignment: 1, Cathy Carter, WUSF-FM, Tampa, “20,000 Join Women’s March in St. Petersburg”; 2, Peter Haden, WLRN-FM, Miami, “Sounds From The South Florida Fair: Youth Livestock Auction.”

General Assignment ? Long Format: 1, Peter Haden, WLRN-FM, Miami, “It Sounded Like a Thousand Demons’: Caribbean Evacuees Arriving in Florida Recount Hurricanes”; 2, Nadege Green, WLRN-FM, Miami, “Black Women On Being Called ‘Girl’ In The Workplace.”

Breaking News: 1, WDBO-FM, Orlando, “OPD Officer Shooting, OCSO Deputy Death, Manhunt for Suspect”; 2, WOKV-FM, Jacksonville.

Continuing Coverage: 1, Peter Haden, WLRN-FM, Miami, “Sunny Daze: Inside South Florida’s Opioid Crisis”; 2, Roberto Roldan and Steve Newborn, WUSF-FM, Tampa, “Seminole Heights Shooting Spree.”

Investigative: 1, Ryan Benk, WJCT-FM, Jacksonville, “Florida Patients Stranded By State-Contracted Ride Service”; 2, Rowan Moore Gerety, WLRN-FM, Miami, “Questionable Records of Miami-Dade’s School Discipline Overhaul.”

Series / Franchise Reporting: 1, WLRN-FM, Miami, “Young Survivors: The Unspoken Trauma of Gun Violence”; 2, Stephanie Colombini and Daylina Miller, WUSF-FM, Tampa, “Art Populi: Live Music In Tampa Bay.”

Public Affairs: 1, Wilson Sayre and Alicia Zuckerman, WLRN-FM, Miami, “Cell 1: Florida’s Death Penalty in Limbo”; 2, Nicole Darden-Creston, WMFE-FM, Orlando, “Pulse: One Year Later.”

Weather Reporting: 1, WOKV-FM, Jacksonville, “Irma Tornado Warning.”

Sports Feature: 1, Mark Schreiner, WUSF-FM, Tampa, “Jose Fernandez Celebrates 300 Wins as USF Women’s Basketball Coach.”

Use of Sound For Radio: 1, Peter Haden, WLRN-FM, Miami, “Dime a Dozen, Overdose Crisis Rages in South Florida”; 2, Sammy Mack, WLRN-FM, Miami, “Overnight: Inside a Trauma Center Where Specialists Work to Help Young Victims Survive.”

Website / Digital: 1, Teresa Frontado, WLRN-FM, Miami; 2, WOKV-FM, Jacksonville.

Digital Programming: 1, Teresa Frontado and Katie Lepri, WLRN-FM, Miami; 2, WMFE-FM, Orlando, “Life After Pulse/Orlando Un Año Después.”

Reporter: 1, Steven Ponson, WOKV-FM, Jacksonville; 2, Darrell Moody, WDBO-FM, Orlando.

News Anchor or Anchor Team: 1, Gene Wexler, WDBO-FM, Orlando.

Radio Newscast: 1, WOKV-FM, Jacksonville, “Hurricane Irma Aftermath”; 2, Christine DiMattei, WLRN-FM, Miami.

Overall ? Station of the Year: 1, WOKV-FM, Jacksonville; 2, WLRN-FM, Miami.

WINNERS LIST IN RADIO II:

Feature ? Hard News: 1, Jessica Meszaros, WGCU-FM, Fort Myers, “After Protest, Manatee County Votes to Remove Confederate Statue.”

Feature ? Light News: 1, Jessica Meszaros, WGCU-FM, Fort Myers, “Experience a “Dark Sky Park” in Florida.”

Feature ? Cultural / Historical: 1, Grace King, WUFT-FM, Gainesville, “Cuban Ballet Shoes”; 2, Rachel Iacovone, WGCU-FM, Fort Myers, “Immokalee HS Graduation Rate is Up 5 Years in a Row.”

General Assignment: 1, Rachel Iacovone, WGCU-FM, Fort Myers, “Gov. Scott Visits Everglades City, Still Without Power.”

General Assignment ? Long Format: 1, Jessica Meszaros, WGCU-FM, Fort Myers, “Everglades City Residents Still Without Temporary Housing After Hurricane Irma Storm Surge”; 2, Luke Sullivan, WUFT-FM, Gainesville, “When the Lights Go Out and Stay Out.”

Continuing Coverage: 1, WUFT-FM, Gainesville, “Richard Spencer Rally”; 2, Quincy Walters, WGCU-FM, Fort Myers, “City Dumps Toxic Sludge in Dunbar Neighborhood.”

Investigative: 1, Jessica Meszaros, WGCU-FM, Fort Myers, “High Arsenic Levels on Pine Island Ignored by DEP, Lee County”; 2, Ethan Magoc, WUFT-FM, Gainesville, “Find Out Florida: Why do Schools Still Collect Social Security Numbers?.”

Public Affairs: 1, Ryan Vasquez, WUFT-FM, Gainesville, “After Irma: What’s Next for Florida”; 2, Julie Glenn and Matt Smith, WGCU-FM, Fort Myers, “Trump’s Immigration Orders Hit Home in South Florida.”

Weather Reporting: 1, WUFT-FM, Gainesville, “Irma Aftermath.”

Sports Feature: 1, Rachel Iacovone, WGCU-FM, Fort Myers, “Bonita Springs YMCA Spends $300,000 on Pickleball”; 2, Caitie Switalski, WUFT-FM, Gainesville, “A Cuban Woman Who Wants To Box.”

Reporter: 1, Alexa Lorenzo, WUFT-FM, Gainesville; 2, Grace King, WUFT-FM, Gainesville.

Overall ? Station of the Year: 1, WGCU-FM, Fort Myers; 2, WUFT-FM, Gainesville.

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The Miss America Emails: How The Pageant’s CEO Really Talks About The Winners

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The Miss America Emails: How The Pageant’s CEO Really Talks About The Winners

In late August 2014, the CEO of the Miss America Organization, Sam Haskell, sent an email to the lead writer of the Miss America pageant telecast, Lewis Friedman, informing him of a change he wanted to make in the script: “I have decided that when referring to a woman who was once Miss America, we are no longer going to call them Forever Miss Americas….please change all script copy to reflect that they are Former Miss Americas!”

Friedman replied, “I’d already changed “Forevers” to “Cunts.” Does that work for you?”

Haskell’s short reply came quickly: “Perfect…bahahaha.”

At that point, Haskell had been the leader of Miss America for nine years, after rising through the ranks at a top Hollywood talent agency. Many prior winners, or as they’re called, “formers,” consider the pageant a wonderful, wholesome activity for young women. But Haskell’s behavior behind closed doors shows he regularly maligned, fat-shamed and slut-shamed the former Miss Americas, calling them shocking names and in one case laughing at the suggestion that one of the women should die.

When it came to one particular former, Haskell took his efforts so far that she lost her pageant coaching business.

Two Miss America board members served as a virtual rubber stamp for Haskell’s behavior: Tammy Haddad, a media consultant and D.C. power connector; and Lynn Weidner, a Las Vegas socialite. And though Friedman was never a board member, he regularly sent offensive and sexist messages to Haskell, which Haskell often responded to by indicating he thought Friedman was funny or endorsed what Friedman was saying. 

For this story, HuffPost reviewed nearly three years of internal emails provided by two sources. They reveal a CEO who regularly wrote and responded to unprofessional, offensive emails about the women who poured their hearts into the pageants and the organization he was leading.

Improving A Struggling American Institution 

Sam Haskell joined Miss America’s board in 2005 after retiring from the William Morris Agency (now called WME), where he was the worldwide head of television.

Most everyone agrees that to a certain extent, Haskell helped the organization get back on its feet. Miss America has returned to broadcast television, airing on ABC after being relegated to basic cable. It has also come back to its original home of Atlantic City, New Jersey, from Las Vegas, where the pageant took place in a smaller venue. In 2014, the Miss America Organization and Dick Clark Productions announced a one-year deal (later extended to three years) for the storied entertainment company to produce and cover the cost of the annual pageant telecast, in addition to paying a fee to the Miss America Organization for the rights to produce the telecast. As part of the deal, Dick Clark Productions received two seats on the Miss America Organization board.

Over the past 12 years, Haskell has gone from a board member to a well-compensated CEO. He makes $500,000 a year, which has been a source of internal and external controversy.

But despite his success at growing the pageant, internal emails show a different story.

In some cases, Haskell was professional. In an August 2013 email exchange, one month before Mallory Hagan, 2013’s winner, would crown the new Miss America in Atlantic City, Haskell exchanged emails with his daughter and one of his top employees, Brent Adams, about Hagan.

His daughter, Mary Lane, said, “Here’s hoping you get another good one!”

Haskell replied to Mary Lane, “It’s going to be hard to replace Mallory, but I’m hopeful!”

But in other cases, Haskell and Haddad routinely maligned the former Miss Americas, calling them “malcontents” and treating them as embarrassing inconveniences rather than honored alumnae.

In May 2014, Haskell forwarded one of Haddad’s emails to a Miss America executive. In it, Haddad had referred to some former Miss Americas as a “pile of malcontents and has beens who blame the program for not getting them where they think they can go.”

She added, “80% of the winners do not have the class, smarts and model for success.”

She then encouraged Haskell to try to avoid getting riled up by the “formers,” saying, “YOU have to let them go. You don’t need them. They need you. We also have to punish them when they don’t appreciate what we do for them.”

In his forward, Haskell called the advice wise.

In response to email questions sent to Haskell and Haddad, HuffPost received a response from a Miss America Organization spokesman. He said Friedman had been let go from the organization after an investigation.

“The Miss America Organization Board of Directors was notified about the concern of inappropriate language in email communications several months ago. Consequently, the organization’s Board of Directors took the allegations of inappropriate comments very seriously and formed an investigative committee,” he wrote. “As a result of the investigation, the Board directed the organization terminate the relationship with most egregious author of inappropriate comments. In addition, the Board has started the process of instituting additional policies and procedures for communication.”

“The Board has full confidence in the Miss America Organization leadership team,” he added.

In a reply to an email with questions about his statements, Friedman said, “Before commenting to correct your information and provide context, I’ll speak to my attorney as this matter is the subject of pending litigation.” It is not clear what litigation he was referencing.

‘It Should Have Been Kate Shindle’

Haskell sometimes focused on Kate Shindle, who was crowned in 1998. The former Miss Illinois is now a successful actor and singer, and serves as president of the Actors’ Equity Association, the union representing more than 51,000 American stage actors and stage managers.

In 2014, Shindle released a book in which she questioned the Miss America board’s decision to pay Haskell a $500,000 consulting fee, during a year the organization was over $400,000 in the red. (The board said the money was back-pay for Haskell.)

Shindle was not revealing new information; press accounts had already exposed the payment. In her book, she also alleged Haskell blacklisted those who dissented against his leadership, with the national organization calling state-level pageants and giving those groups names of people they could not associate with. 

In December 2014, Friedman emailed Haskell to offer his condolences on the death of former Miss America Mary Ann Mobley, writing, “So sorry to hear about Mary Ann Mobley”

The subject line of Friedman’s email read: “It should have been Kate Shindle.”

Haskell replied, “Thanks so much Coach…even in my sadness you can make me laugh…how was the Kennedy Center Honors? Love you and appreciate you! Sam.”

Shindle declined to comment for this article.

‘Drive Gretchen Insane’

Haskell and Haddad also appeared to dislike Gretchen Carlson, who won the Miss America title in 1989 and was on the organization’s board of directors for many years. The root cause of their disdain, according to three sources, was Carlson’s push to modernize the organization and her refusal to attack former Miss Americas.

Haskell told Carlson not to have Hagan on her program, according to three sources familiar with the conversation. Carlson refused.

On Aug. 15, 2014, Weidner sent an email to a group of former Miss Americas, including Carlson, about Shindle’s book, saying, “Is it possible for each of you to speak out in defense of Sam and the organization?”

Carlson replied, “It’s one thing to talk about your own personal experience as Miss America … but totally different to attack people individually.”

Haskell forwarded Carlson’s response to Haddad, who replied to Haskell, “Snake but now u have not doubts as to her loyalty. Makes it easy not to respond. Right?”

Just before Shindle’s book came out, Haddad emailed Haskell and said, “Why don’t u read susan POWELL’s [former Miss America] email on the board call and say it’s a shame that only one miss america who has come forward to offer help in any way.” Haddad was referring to an email Powell had written that was supportive of Haskell.

Haskell replied, “Brilliant…..fucking Brilliant!!!! That will drive Gretchen INFUCKINGSANE.”

After the email exchange, Haskell did not feature Carlson in the next Miss America broadcast ― an unusual decision given her prominence.

In a statement sent by email, Haddad said, “I have the highest regard and gratitude for Gretchen and her extraordinary leadership in fighting for women.”

Carlson later resigned from the Miss America board. Haskell and other board members were telling people Carlson couldn’t be trusted, which she felt was maligning her integrity, according to a source familiar with her thinking at the time.

Carlson responded to HuffPost on Thursday, “As a proud former Miss America and former member of the Board of the Miss America Organization, I am shocked and deeply saddened by the disgusting statements about women attributed to the leadership of the MAO. No woman should be demeaned with such vulgar slurs. As I’ve learned, harassment and shaming of women is never acceptable and should never be tolerated. Every MAO executive and board member who engaged in such crude behavior and signed off on it like it was no big deal should resign immediately. The Miss America Organization, which is tasked to uphold an almost 100 year old tradition of female empowerment and scholarship, deserves better. I hope all former Miss Americas, state and local titleholders and volunteers will join me in a collective effort to fight for the dignity of this great institution.”

In 2016, Carlson rocked the media world when she sued former Fox News Chairman Roger Ailes for sexual harassment. Carlson’s suit led to Ailes being pushed out, and she later received a settlement. She has since focused on bringing attention to the epidemic of sexual harassment in the workplace and is working with members of Congress to approve legislation to protect women’s rights in the workplace.

Focused Attacks

Haskell also appeared to have special disdain for Hagan. In January 2013, she was crowned Miss America at the pageant in Las Vegas.

But just three months later, she was publicly fat-shamed for a bikini photo that surfaced. Haskell said nothing publicly about the images at the time. Later, though, he did internally.

As the reigning champion, Hagan spent time in Oxford, Mississippi, at Haskell and his wife’s home. It was there Hagan got to know Adams, whose official title was director of development at Haskell’s production company, which had a television deal with Warner Brothers. Adams essentially acted as a chief of staff, overseeing the various elements of Haskell’s business and personal life, including Miss America.

Adams and Hagan realized they had a connection after spending time together, but, fearful that professional entanglements could complicate a romantic relationship, the two decided if they were going to date it would be best to wait until Hagan’s reign was over.

Shortly after Hagan crowned the new Miss America in September 2013, she and Adams started dating. According to Adams, Haskell wanted Adams to date his daughter, not Hagan, and was open about this request.

Adams recalled an encounter with Haskell at his home in which Haskell attempted to convince Adams to break up with Hagan and instead date his daughter. Haskell stretched out his arms and told Adams, “All of this can be yours,” ostensibly referring to his Oxford mansion and the family’s money.

“You don’t need a piece of trash like Mallory. You need someone with class and money like my daughter,” he said, according to Adams.

When Adams was in New York with the Haskell family, Haskell accidentally sent a text message to a group chat that suggested his daughter try to hold Adams’ hand. Adams described the text in a phone interview.

Once, when Hagan made a payment for dinner to Adams via the peer-to-peer payment app Venmo (which shows payments between friends), Haskell confronted Adams about it, asking why he was still in touch with Hagan.

‘Are We Four The Only Ones Not To Have Fucked Mallory?’

In August 2014, Haskell received an email from someone he knew, who said Hagan’s hairdresser in New York had been commenting on Hagan’s sex life while Hagan was living in Los Angeles, as well as her recent weight gain.

Haskell forwarded the email to Friedman saying, “Not a single day passes that I am not told some horrible story about Mallory.”

Friedman replied, “Mallory’s preparing for her new career … as a blimp in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade As she continues to destroy her own credibility, her voice will attract less and less notice while she continues her descent to an unhappy pathetic footnote.”

Friedman ended the email with, “Ps. Are we four the only ones not to have fucked Mallory?”

Haskell replied and said, “It appears we are the only ones!”

He then wrote Hagan had slept with someone he knew, and he told the man’s mother “he needs to have a blood test because we lost count of the number of men she slept with at 25.”

A source close to Hagan says the accusations about her hairdresser and having sex with the man in question are not true.

′Why Does He Want That?′

On Jan. 25, 2015, Weidner sent Haskell a photo of Hagan with three other former Miss Americas. Weidner did not comment on the photo in her email.

Haskell replied, saying, “OMG she is huge…and gross…why does he want that?????” Haskell did not name Adams specifically, but it appears he was discussing his employee, who was still dating Hagan at the time.

Haskell then forwarded the email to Josh Randle, who now serves as president of the Miss America Organization, and added, “Look at MH in this photo…OMG…Why does he want that?”

Randle said, “She’s a healthy one!! Hahaha.”

Haskill said, “Look at this photo from the Former Retreat!!! Shindle was there too and I was told she made everyone sign an NDA as she rolled out her plan of attack…evil lurks.”

Haddad said, “Mallory is barely recognizable”

Haskell said, “It is unreal.”

Haddad replied, and said, in part, “U think he left u for that? Don’t believe it. It makes NO sense.”

Haskell also forwarded the email to Friedman, who said, “My screen just cracked! What happened?”

Hagan declined to comment for this article. A Miss America Organization spokesman replied to questions sent to Randle with the same statement he gave for Haskell and Haddad. That statement said Friedman had been let go and the board was instituting new guidelines for internal communication.

Consequences For Hagan

At the end of December 2015, emails suggest Haskell felt Hagan was personally maligning him. In an email to Haddad, Weidner and Randle, among others, Haskell asked for help, saying Hagan was “viciously and cruelly” attacking him and his family “every day.”

It’s unclear what Hagan was doing or saying at the time, but a comb of her social media posts doesn’t reveal anything egregious. She continued to be critical of Haskell’s leadership and the direction of the organization, but not in a way that would warrant what was suggested next by Haddad in response to Haskell’s urgent plea.

Haddad said, “Hi. I am so sorry. It is ridiculous but she is not going to stop. She has no control. I think u should hire an investigator to get something on her.”

Haskell said, “Thoughts on Tammy’s note below? Threatening her won’t work and we already have ‘enough info on her’ to shut down Ft. Knox…..ugh. I really think the best way is to shut down her social media, and convince the Formers to ostracize her”

Weidner said, “I wish I had an easy answer to this dilemma. If we can prove a direct connection between MH and specific instances of cyber bullying, we could at least threaten her with a lawsuit right? I do believe that our anti coaching initiatives are already impacting her business. And that our policy of ignoring her is driving her crazy!”

I do believe that our anti coaching initiatives are already impacting her business. an email from Lynn Weidner about Mallory Hagan’s pageant coaching business

“I pray none of you ever experience anything like this….It is finally clear that I am on my own,” Haskell replied.

In response to list of questions sent via email, specifically if it was appropriate for nonprofit resources to be used to investigate former Miss Americas, Haddad said in an email, “This was a terrible, highly divisive time in the Miss America Organization, fueled by inflammatory character attacks. I along with the Board worked to stop the damage that was being inflicted on the organization and members of its community.”

In a statement, Weidner called Haskell “one of the most outstanding individuals I have ever had the pleasure of knowing.”

“Sam had led us to becoming a nationally recognized and positive force for the education and the empowerment of young women,” she wrote. “The fact that he would be so ruthlessly attacked by a handful of disgruntled malcontents is disgraceful. I am very proud of the way he has kept above the fray and always conducted himself in a way that does honor to this program.”

Opportunities Lost

After winning the pageant, Hagan signed with a WME agent in Los Angeles, Lee White, whom Haskell introduced her to.

But within months, a source close to Hagan says White started to withdraw and decline requests to meet with her.

In one email from White to Haskell described verbally by a source, White suggests he shouldn’t have drinks with Hagan based on something Haskell told him. Haskell replies, saying White made the right judgment.

A few months later, Hagan dropped White as her agent. She moved back to New York and joined a friend training contestants for the all-important interview portion of the pageant.

But within months, the national Miss America Organization told contestants they couldn’t have coaches ― specifically, interview coaches. The national organization also said that anyone wanting to use a coach would have to seek approval from the executive director of their local organization.

The national organization had an informal list of coaches contestants couldn’t use, which contestants found out about through their local and state pageant directors. Hagan was on the list.

Soon after, Hagan’s lucrative coaching business fell apart.

In August 2016, Hagan moved back home to Alabama, where she had to rebuild her career. Today, she is the evening anchor of a small NBC affiliate in Columbus, Georgia.

Cease And Desist

In August 2017, Adams and a former Miss America board member, Regina Hopper, flew to Los Angeles to talk to Dick Clark Productions about Haskell’s behavior. They had copies of egregious emails from Haskell, some of which are included in this article.

The duo expected that Dick Clark Productions, a large entertainment company, would be horrified by the messages. In the meeting, Amy Thurlow and Mark Bracco, both executives at Dick Clark Productions who held the two Miss America board seats, thanked Hopper and Adams for providing the emails and told them Dick Clark Productions would conduct its own investigation.

A month later, Adams received a cease-and-desist letter from a law firm representing the Miss America Organization. It read, “Your deliberate actions constitute a clear violation of the Non-disclosure Agreement you knowingly and willfully entered into….the letter directed to the Chairman of the Board from Dick Clark Productions, dated September 13, 2017, noticed us of your illegal disclosure of information, which includes several internal email communications.”

The two Dick Clark executives presented the emails to the board, hoping it would lead to a change in leadership, according to two well-placed sources who are familiar with the executives’ thinking at the time.

But, the sources said, no change took place. In fact, last September, knowing full well the kind of language Friedman used in his emails about former Miss Americas, the board allowed him to continue to write for the Miss America pageant telecast.

Based on the board’s refusal to take action in response to the disturbing emails, Dick Clark Productions decided to end its agreement with the Miss America Organization, the sources said. Several prominent Miss America supporters were stunned at the news. The agreement was a lifeline to Miss America ― the production company covered the costs of producing the telecast; paid the Miss America Organization a fee as part of the agreement; and featured, among other things, the current Miss America on the various awards telecasts it produces, like the Billboard Awards.

In a statement Thursday to HuffPost, Dick Clark Productions explained its decision: “Several months ago, dick clark productions was made aware of a portion of the emails that were referenced in the December 21 Huffington Post article. We were appalled by their unacceptable content and insisted, in the strongest possible terms, that the Miss America Organization (MAO) board of directors conduct a comprehensive investigation and take appropriate action to address the situation. Shortly thereafter, we resigned our board positions and notified MAO that we were terminating our relationship with them.” 

The same prominent Miss America supporters said they found it unfathomable that the board would side with Haskell and Friedman over Dick Clark Productions.

‘These Young Women Put Their Heart And Soul Into Being the Best They Can Be’ 

Unsurprisingly, the email that angered the people who spoke to HuffPost for this article the most was the one referring to former Miss Americas as “cunts.” In particular, sources found it offensive that Haskell appeared to think that was funny.

Hopper recounted how she reacted to the email by sharing what she experienced at the last Miss Arkansas pageant, when the reigning Miss America Savvy Shields, who is from the state, made an appearance.

“I sat in the audience and watched her [Miss America] walk out on stage, and the young women and those in the audience all wanted to see and hear her. And that email floated into my head, and tears started running down my face,” she said. “Across this country, there are parents who are sitting in audiences who put their young daughters into this system with the trust that they’re going to walk away from participating with something good. These young women put their heart and soul into being the best they can be. That the CEO of this organization would agree that word is the perfect characterization of Miss Americas and then laugh ― it’s heartbreaking.”

This article has been updated with comment from Gretchen Carlson and Dick Clark Productions.

Follow Yashar — or send him a tip — on Twitter: @yashar

[sempervirens117]

@adele to @danielcraigofflcial_ Adele: Bradley’s efforts to be a 007 agent yesterday were rather entertaining. Daniel Craig: And Bradley loves Emily Blunt as an actress. So, there’s that. Adele: And Bradley plays my songs on @amazonmusic all the time, like SKYFALL. I also relate to his compelling life story and eclectic tastes in music. DC: And as an actor, I like the fact that he is a total cinephile and has written a screenplay called Driving Miss Mobley that is fantastic. Adele: And I laughed so much reading The Wizard of Ir that I wee’d a little and had to use the loo. DC: I do not find Bradley funny in the least. Adele: That is dry English wit, right? Because Bradley is a good writer. DC: Well they are no Shakespeare. Adele: Or J.K. Rowling. DC: Or Tolkien. Adele: Or Virginia Woolf. DC: Or Robert Burns. Adele: Or Mary Shelley. DC: Or the bloke who wrote James Bond. Prince William: Dudes, we get it. (at London, United Kingdom) https://www.instagram.com/p/Cfd-uFFr7lR/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[junker-town]

The latest 2021 NBA mock draft has 3 prospects separating from the pack

Our latest projection of the first round of the 2021 NBA Draft.

How much can you really take away from basketball played during a global pandemic? It’s a question scouts and GMs will be asking themselves on the road to the 2021 NBA Draft.

The virus has hung over season since it started with players and coaches getting sick and games getting canceled. The mental toll of the pandemic also can’t be discounted as thousands of people are still dying from the virus every day while we wait for the vaccines to be widely distributed.

As basketball has continued around the world, the top prospects for the next draft are starting to establish themselves. Oklahoma State guard Cade Cunningham, USC big man Evan Mobley, and Gonzaga guard Jalen Suggs are currently a step ahead of their peers, but the debut of Jalen Green and Jonathan Kuminga in the the G League bubble later this month will add further competition for the top spots around the No. 1 pick.

This mock doesn’t really take team needs into account. Instead, it’s our first updated outlook at the 2021 draft class since our preseason mock the day after the 2020 draft. Let’s get into it.

1. Washington Wizards - Cade Cunningham, G, Oklahoma State

Cunningham emerged as the top player in his class during a breakout grassroots season with the Texas Titans as a rising senior, and he’s done enough at Oklahoma State to maintain his status as the presumptive No. 1 pick. The 6’8 guard is made for modern basketball: he’s blessed with tremendous vision as a pick-and-roll passer, has the strength and touch to finish inside, and is becoming better and better as a shooter both off the dribble and from spot-ups. That doesn’t even mention Cunningham’s versatile defense and flashes of vertical rim protection, which is becoming one one of the most tantalizing aspects of his skill set.

While Cunningham’s numbers as a freshman do feel slightly underwhelming given his pre-college hype, it’s worth noting that his supporting cast fails to maximize his talent. Oklahoma State has no shooters — they rank No. 286 in DI in three-point rate — and few finishers. Cunningham is still the best future building block in this draft class.

2. Minnesota Timberwolves - Evan Mobley, C, USC

Mobley’s talent leaps off the screen whenever you watch USC. The 7-foot freshman is oozing with natural ability and is just starting to grow into a skill set that feels like everything today’s NBA demands out of a big. The skinny 7-foot center projects as a terrific defensive prospect with a 7’5 wingspan, refined shot blocking instincts (9.4 percent block rate), and the lateral quickness to hold his own on switches. Offensively, Mobley’s best attribute is his feel for the game as a passer. He has a striking ability to process defensive coverages, which should make him a deadly short roll passer in the league. His three-point stroke is making progress (7-for-22 on the season), too.

Like Cunningham, Mobley suffers from a major lack of spacing playing in a two-big lineup alongside his older brother Isaiah Mobley at USC. There’s an argument that he’s the best big prospect to hit the draft since Karl-Anthony Towns, but teams will want to see him prove he can be a volume scorer if they are going to invest a top-two pick in him. Even if Mobley never averages 25 points per game, he can still held make an offense sing with his passing while anchoring a defense.

3. Detroit Pistons - Jalen Suggs, G, Gonzaga

Suggs is the engine of the best team in college basketball, but he’s far from a one-man show. Unlike Cunningham and Mobley, Suggs has an ideal supporting cast around him to maximize his talent, which has aided his jump into a top-three overall prospect. Regardless, Suggs is worthy of the hype as a 6’3 guard who dominates in transition and wrecks havoc as a help defender.

Suggs is often playing in the open court with the Zags, partially because he’s posting one of the best steal rates (4.6 percent) in college basketball right now. The most eye opening development in his game has been his shooting. Suggs is 18-of-47 (38.3 percent) from three so far this year. There will be questions about his ball handling and ability to dust NBA defenders off the dribble, but he has a high floor as a versatile guard who can play on or off the ball. He should get plenty of opportunities to prove he’s a top three prospect as Gonzaga chases a perfect season.

Photo by Noah Graham/NBAE via Getty Images

4. Oklahoma City Thunder (via Heat) - Jalen Green, G, G League Ignite

Green was a mega-hyped high school player who decided to bypass college basketball to pioneer the G League’s new developmental initiative. Before his Ignite team begins a 15-game schedule in February, he already feels like a certain top-five pick based off his physical tools alone. The word ‘elite’ gets thrown around too often in draft evaluations, but Green’s explosiveness as a leaper around the basket absolutely deserves the descriptor. He is possibly this draft’s best pure scorer, a three-level bucket-getter who can stockpile easy points on drives to the rim or difficult ones in the half-court with his shot-making ability.

How well can Green read the floor as a passer? How good will he be defensively? Will he be able to consistently get to the free throw line? These are the questions scouts will be watching when the Ignite take the floor.

5. New Orleans Pelicans - Jonathan Kuminga, F, G League Ignite

Kuminga was the top-ranked junior in the high school class before skipping his senior year to join the Ignite squad. Like Green, Kuminga is a potential top-three pick because of his physical tools. A 6’8 combo forward, Kuminga potentially offers intriguing downhill attacking ability and a mid-range pull-up game. He averaged 22.7 points, 5.4 rebounds and 3.3 assists in 19 games on the EYBL circuit with the NY Rens.

Scouts will want to see how well he reads the floor as a passer, exactly where his three-point shooting is at, and see how impactful he is on defense.

6. New York Knicks (via Mavericks) - Ziaire Williams, F, Stanford

It’s been an up-and-down freshman season for Williams as he’s battled injuries and inconsistency with the Cardinal. When he’s on, Williams is a 6’8 wing with terrific shot-making ability and solid court vision. When he’s off, he looks physically weak going to the basket and feels like an inefficient volume shooter. A pro strength program would do wonders for Williams. The skill level is already there. After going through some great games and some tough ones at start his freshman year, scouts will be very interested to see how he finishes the season into March.

Photo by Wesley Hitt/Getty Images

7. Orlando Magic - Sharife Cooper, PG, Auburn

Cooper has instantly become one of the best players in college basketball since debuting for Auburn on Jan. 9 after eligibility issues. Listed at 6’1, 180 pounds, Cooper is dazzling with the ball with the ball in his hands. He has a special gift for finding creases in the defense to create opportunities for his teammates. His assist rate of 53.4 percent would lead the nation if he met the minimum number of games. Cooper has also become incredible at forcing his way to the foul line, posting a nearly 70 percent free throw rate thus far.

Cooper might remind you a little bit of Trae Young but with one major difference: he struggles to shoot from three (7-of-34 on the year). Cooper makes up for some of that by being bigger and more active defensively than Young, though it’s hard to project him as a plus on that end in the NBA given his stature. If the shot comes around, he should be an excellent offensive player in the league.

8. Toronto Raptors - Jaden Springer, G, Tennessee

Springer is a bully of a 6’4 guard who thrives overpowering his opponents on both ends of the floor. The Tennessee freshman is a bulldozer going to the basket with the ball in his hands, where he can create space for himself by absorbing contact and dishing out body blows near the rim. Springer has always been impressive defensively dating back to his days at Florida prep powerhouse IMG Academy, showing a lockdown ability on opposing guards in isolation situations and also good help instincts off the ball. He is a big part of a suffocating Vols defense that ranks No. 2 in the country and is posting a solid 2.9 steal rate so far.

There remain questions about Springer as a shooter even after starting the season 9-of-16 (56.2 percent) from three. Scouts will want to see if he can turn up the volume from deep this season, and if his jumper extend to NBA range. While it’s been tough to evaluate Springer’s offense in Rick Barnes’ unimaginative system, he is one of the youngest players in this draft — not turning 19 years old until September 25 — and has plenty of physical tools to bet on.

9. New York Knicks - Jalen Johnson, F, Duke

The Duke freshman is a big 6’9, 220 pound forward with great vertical explosiveness off, impressive vision and creativity as a passer, and tantalizing ability in transition. Surrounding Johnson with shooters and letting him create with the ball in his hands is intriguing, but there have been times where he’s struggled to separate against defenders as a driver. Most of his concerns in the halfcourt will be focused on his shooting, where’s he’s reluctant to fire and typically off the mark (4-of-13 on the year). If a team thinks they can fix his jump shot, Johnson’s provides some nice playmaking ability on both ends of the floor.

10. Oklahoma City Thunder - Kai Jones, F, Texas

Jones is the lottery ticket in this year’s draft. The Texas sophomore didn’t start playing organized basketball until he was 15 years old, but he’s blossomed into a 6’11 forward with tantalizing flashes of long-term potential his short time with the Longhorns. Jones still doesn’t start for his college team, but it’s impossible to miss his talent when he is on the floor. Oozing with elite physical tools, Jones as a combination of length and quickness that can’t be taught. He spent the offseason trying to become more of a catch-and-shoot threat, and he’s hit 8-of-18 (44 percent) shots from deep so far. His best basketball remains far in front of him, but Jones’ natural talent could have some team gambling on him in the lottery.

Photo by Wesley Hitt/Getty Images

11. Chicago Bulls - Moses Moody, G, Arkansas

Moody is a well-rounded 6’6 wing who will make his living hitting shots, attacking closeouts, and being a pest defensively with a 7’1 wingspan. The Arkansas freshman is a solid shooter (29-for-81 or 35.8 percent on the year) who can also hit one or two dribble pull-ups or get to the foul line inside the arc. He’s currently in the 90th percentile for halfcourt scoring in DI, per Synergy Sports. It will be interesting to see if Moody has any extra juice on the ball, because he’s currently in the 99th percentile in efficiency as a pick-and-roll handler on limited attempts. In general, he’s a wing who wins with skill rather than raw athletic traits.

Moody has had some truly excellent games in SEC play this year, dropping 26 points on Vanderbilt, 28 points on Alabama, and 25 points on Georgia all in January. He’s also had some down performances. With so many top prospects ineligible for the NCAA tournament, Moody could boost his stock significantly in March to lock in his top-10 status.

12. Sacramento Kings - Franz Wagner, F, Michigan

Wagner is looking bigger and stronger in his sophomore season at Michigan, and it could make him the first multi-year college player off the board. The younger brother of Wizards 7-footer Moe Wagner, Franz is a 6’8 wing who should provide value on both ends of the floor at the next level. Wagner’s defense has been electric at times this year on a Wolverines’ unit that ranks top-five in the nation in efficiency. Wagner is their best stopper, currently posting a 4.1 block rate and 2.8 steal rate.

Wagner has also looked good offensively. He ranks in the 87th percentile in transition opportunities, and in the 79th percentile in the half court. He’s making 59 percent of his two-pointers right now with impressive scoring versatility inside the arc. He’s 14-for-44 (31.8 percent) from three-point range right now. He’ll need to be able to hit outside shots in the league to be taken this high, but his size and ability to on both ends of the court should be appealing.

13. San Antonio Spurs - Keon Johnson, F, Tennessee

One of the best pure athletes in the class, Johnson is an explosive leaper and high-upside defensive prospect who is still learning how to pick his spots on the floor. Johnson is mostly an off-ball player for Tennessee as a freshman, looking for cutting lanes to the basket and attacking closeouts off spot-ups. Johnson’s above the rim finishing will be his offensive calling card, and it’s helped him make more than 50 percent of his two-point field goals so far. Strangely, he’s ranking only in the 14th percentile in transition opportunities, which is curious for a player with his physical gifts. Like Springer, Johnson is a big part of Tennessee elite defense. The NBA team that takes him will have to work to develop his outside shot.

14. Portland Trail Blazers - Scottie Barnes, F, Florida State

Barnes has been a staple near the top of class rankings for years after a stellar high school career that included three gold medals with USA Basketball. After spending his senior year playing alongside Cunningham and Moody on Montverde’s super team, Barnes has been a seamless fit as a do-it-all forward on Florida State. A long-and-strong 6’9, 230-pound wing, Barnes is most comfortable playing with the ball in his hands where he does a good job reading the defense and making passes to the open man. Barnes’ defense will be his main selling point early in his career. He has the physicality to match up with a variety of different offensive players and shows good instincts forcing turnovers. As has always been the case, Barnes’ biggest weakness is his outside shooting ability and general lack of touch. If he can score at all in the league, he brings so much else to the table that he should have a long and fruitful career.

Photo by Matthew Visinsky/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

15. Cleveland Cavaliers - James Bouknight, SG, UConn

Bouknight is one of the best pure bucket-getters in this class. After putting himself on NBA radars with a solid freshman season, Bouknight soared up draft boards after dropping 40 points on Creighton in December. He’ll be at his best as an off-ball scorer attacking closeouts, running around screens, and finding advantage situations in dribble-handoffs. There aren’t many players better in this class at creating separation and leveraging angles to score. His package of dribble crossovers and step-backs is already pro-ready.

16. Charlotte Hornets- Usman Garuba, F, Real Madrid

Petit Binge Watching Euroleague d'Usman Garuba (Real Madrid) L'argument de vente de l'espagnol, c'est sa polyvalence défensive. Incroyable envergure, bon QI et de belles lectures pour toujours être en bonne position. Grosses qualités à la protection de cercle notamment pic.twitter.com/dYw4IHlWy4

— Guillou Alan (@Alan_Guillou96) January 30, 2021

Garuba is only 18 years old but he’s already been getting minutes in Euroleague for two seasons with Real Madrid. A strong and long 6’8 big man, Garuba is a defense-first prospect who’s ability to guard the pick-and-roll makes him so intriguing. Garuba has quick feet, the frame to absorb contact, the length to challenge shots, and the discipline to defend until the play is over. He isn’t much of a scorer at this stage, but has flashed intriguing passing chops in the short roll.

17. Atlanta Hawks - Corey Kispert, F, Gonzaga

Kispert is a 6’6 knockdown shooter who is already playing in a pro-style offense on Gonzaga. As the Zags devastate opponents with an onslaught of weapons on the country’s most efficient unit, Kispert has established himself as the rare senior with a shot at getting drafted in the lottery. Kispert is a high volume, highly accurate shooter who is hitting 48.6 percent of his attempts from deep this year after hitting 43.8 percent of his threes last year. He has a quick trigger and deep range, which should fit in any modern offense. Scouts will wonder if he’s closer to Joe Harris or Doug McDermott in terms of four-year college players with dynamic long range shooting ability.

18. Houston Rockets - B.J. Boston, G, Kentucky

Boston’s flashes of tight ball handling and impressive pull-up shooting off the dribble at the high school level looked so tantalizing that we put him at No. 2 overall in our preseason mock. His freshman season at Kentucky has proven that hype was premature on our part. Boston has struggled badly trying to find consistency as a scorer, posting just 43.5 percent true shooting to start the season. The threat of his jump shot has pretty much disappeared as he’s started the year 9-of-50 (18 percent) from three-point range. Boston’s biggest issue might be his narrow frame and lack of strength. Still only 19 years old, a team that focuses on getting him stronger could have a talented offensive wing down the line.

19. Indiana Pacers - Terrence Shannon Jr., G, Texas Tech

Shannon is a 6’6 wing who has emerged as the second leading scorer and best all-around player on Texas Tech during his sophomore season. Shannon is at his best near the basket where he can use his athleticism to finish, ranking in the 91st percentile on cuts. Defensively he leads the Red Raiders with a three percent steal rate, showing off impressive instincts as a help defender. While Shannon has improved his outside shot some this season — he’s at 32 percent from deep after hitting 26 percent of his threes last year — it remains his biggest area of improvement and ultimately the swing factor that could determine how successful he can be in the league.

20. Golden State Warriors - Roko Prkacin, F, Cibona

One of the top prospects for the 2021 NBA Draft, Roko Prkačin played a fantastic game against KK Krka Novo Mesto. 20 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists in 38 minutes. 5/7 2PTS, 2/2 3 PTS, 4/9 FT pic.twitter.com/VsKg455x8w

— Kuzey Kılıç (@Kuzeykg) January 31, 2021

The 6’9 Croatian forward is putting up nice numbers for Cibona this season at 18 years old. Prkacin is intriguing for his ability to play on the perimeter at his size, showcasing straight-line drives to the basket and good floor spacing potential. He’s also shown an ability to finish through contact down low against pro competition. He’s averaging 13 points per game on about average efficiency at 55.5 percent true shooting.

21. Boston Celtics - Jared Butler, G, Baylor

Butler has been arguably the best player in college basketball and on one of the two best teams in college basketball so far this season. The 6’3 junior guard has made massive improvements as an outside shooter over his three-year career, and has hit 42-of-93 (45.2 percent) deep shots to start his career. He’s having the best playmaking season of his career (31.5 percent assist rate) and is scoring more efficiently inside the arc than ever before by making 52.4 percent of his two-point attempts. Butler’s size may limit him to a one-position defender in the league, but he’s been wrecking havoc in the passing lanes all year with a monstrous 4.5 percent steal rate for the No. 3 ranked unit in the country.

22. Phoenix Suns - David Johnson, G, Louisville

Johnson is a big 6’5 guard with impressive playmaking chops who has taken major strides as an outside shooter this year. The Louisville sophomore isn’t going to dust defenders off the dribble with an ultra quick first-step, but he thrives as a facilitator because he does a good job reading the floor, has the size to see over the defense, and can throw some really creative passes. While his scoring efficiency hasn’t improved much this year — he’s at 53 percent true shooting — the work Johnson put in as a three-point shooter is paying off. After going only 5-of-23 from three as a freshman, Johnson is 23-of-57 (40.4 percent) from deep this year.

23. Brooklyn Nets - Ariel Hukporti, C, Kedainiai Nevezis

18-year old Ariel Hukporti of @nevezis_optibet just did this VS Joffrey Lauvergne. @betsafeLKL pic.twitter.com/vlwNwD4BLY

— Rob Karaznevic (@dogtheballer) February 2, 2021

The 18-year-old German center was named MVP of the Basketball Without Boarders camp during the last All-Star Weekend and has shown flashes of his towering physicality during the start to his season in the Lithuanian League. At 7-foot, 250 pounds, Hukporti is a powerful rim runner and forceful finisher near the basket. He’s even started hitting a couple threes this season.

24. Milwaukee Bucks - Daishen Nix, PG, G League Ignite

Nix is the third best NBA prospect on the G League Ignite team behind Jalen Green and Jonathan Kuminga, and it feels like he has a lot more on the upcoming 15-game schedule than either of his teammates. The 6’5 point guard has impressive vision and creativity as a passer who manufactures transition opportunities every chance he gets. He isn’t a consistent and efficient scorer yet, but there are have been some compelling examples of outside shooting. Nix has a massive frame for a lead guard and will have to prove he’s able to keep up with faster and quicker guards at both ends.

25. Denver Nuggets - Scotty Lewis, G, Florida

Lewis was a McDonald’s All-American and five-star recruit who couldn’t quite live up to his one-and-done projections as a freshman. He looks much more comfortable this season as a sophomore, flashing the physical tools and competitive mindset that always made him appealing while slowly learning to become a more efficient scorer. Lewis has been scoring in the 90th percentile in transition and in the 80th percentile in the halfcourt this year. He’s grown as a shooter and is hitting his threes at 42 percent on a low volume of attempts (19 all season). His best attribute will continue to be his defense thanks to his quick-twitch athleticism and leaping ability.

26. Memphis Grizzlies - Josh Giddey, PG, Adelaide

2021 draft prospect Josh Giddey had another big game today with 13 points, 10 rebounds, and 8 assists in a big win over the Breakers. He's now averaging 9.8/8/5.5 through the first four games of the season. pic.twitter.com/RikQAOQOHG

— ID Prospects (@idprospects) January 27, 2021

Giddey has gone from a breakout star on Australia’s youth clubs to shining at the Basketball Without Boarders Camp on All-Star Weekend to impressing this season as an 18-year-old in the NBL. The 6’8 point guard deserves to get looks in the first round as a young playmaker with good vision, the size to see over defenses, and an ability to contribute as a rebounder. Giddey will have to prove he can be an efficient scorer and respectable outside shooter after posting 44 percent true shooting and making only 2-of-13 attempts from three to start the season.

27. Philadelphia 76ers - Charles Bassey, C, Western Kentucky

It was weird that Bassey ever went to Western Kentucky in the first place as a five-star recruit (something, something Rick Stansbury), and it’s even weirder that he’s stayed three years. After missing most of his sophomore year following surgery on a tibial plateau fracture in his left leg, Bassey has come back better than ever as a junior. He’s dominating the paint as a shot blocker (13 percent block rate) and rebounder (No. 5 defensive rebound rank in American, No. 38 offensive rebound rate) while scoring efficiently with 63 percent true shooting. If Bassey can continue to improve as a shooter — he’s 9-of-31 from three this year — he should have a long career.

28. Los Angeles Lakers - Greg Brown, F, Texas

Brown has some special athletic gifts even by NBA standards. Now he just needs to learn how to use them. The 6’9, 220-pound freshman has absurd bounce which aids him as a shot-blocker (5.9 percent block rate), rebounder, and lob catcher. His physical tools can’t be taught, but the team that drafts him will have to be committed to developing the rest of his game. That Brown only recorded one assist in his first 13 games with Texas speaks to how much he needs to grown in terms of processing the game. At least he’s shooting a little better than anticipated at 17-of-56 (30 percent) from deep on the season.

29. Utah Jazz- Ron Harper Jr., F, Rutgers

It’s hard to miss Harper as the huge 6’6, 245-pound wing at the center of Rutgers’ resurgence this season. As he was stringing together 20-point performances against quality competition throughout December, Harper was showcasing microwave scoring ability, deep range on his jumper, and an impressive avoidance of turnovers. He currently grades out as ‘excellent’ on a points per possession basis in both halfcourt and transition situations, according to Synergy Sports.

30. Los Angeles Clippers - Ayo Dosunmu, G, Illinois

Dosunmu will have a chance to prove he deserves a first round grade in Illinois’ first trip to the NCAA tournament in nine years. While he doesn’t have a standout skill from an NBA perspective, Dosunmu is a big 6’5 guard who has been one of the most productive players in the country all season. He ranks in the 87th percentile in transition opportunities this season, according to Synergy Sports.