Monthly Archives: October 2023
Best Dunks of the 2022-2023 Season
One of the most widespread and popular forms of shooting is the dunk. Their are creative ways to get the perfect dunk but, they can be straightforward as well. One of the hardest parts of a dunk is forming a path to the basket in order to even make the shot. Many players excell at this and can pull off insanely throughout out plays.
A great dunk was pulled off by Joel Embiid when he was facing the Celtics. Kornet matches Joel’s height at 7 foot and 1 inch. Kornet was directly in front of Embiid guarding the net. Despite Kornets insanely defense, Embiid pushed through Kornet’s arm putting up a straight dunk by just slightly turning his body. Embiid used minimal movement to pull off a dunk that the average player could only dream of.
Harrison Barnes pulled off deviously determined dunk, against the Pacers. Harrison was dribbling the ball looking for an opening, when all of a sudden one appeared. There was an unguarded line towards the basket and he took it. He dribbled down the paint and jumped incredibly high. He lead the ball up with one hand and slammed it down. Barnes used his patience to get the better of the Pacers. He made a calculated dunk that sent the crowd roaring with excitement.
It was the Houston Rockets facing off against the Atlanta Hawks. Josh Christopher was dribbling the ball when all of a sudden he found a perfect opening. Around the free-throw line, Christopher jumps into action literally. It appeared as if he were floating through air towards the basket. He completed an astounding dunk while being guarded from both sides. This dunk took skill, athleticism, and confidence, all qualities Christopher embodies. The decision to go for the dunk was smart and well calculated, I guess you could call Christopher the Einstein of the NBA.
In a game between the Pacers and the Lakers, the pacers ran towards the basket, making a smart pass to a player at the three point line. However, when the shot was let off it bounced of the rim. With the Pacers losing this would have been a game changing shot. Luckily, Isaiah Jackson was there to save the day. After the ball hit the net, Jackson jumped and shoved the ball into the net without holding the ball, only palming it. This truly was a great move for Isaiah to make.
The NBA utilizes a variety of different ways to score. However, dunking is a great way to add points to the board while showing off skill and timing. Dunks are legendary and even being able to pull one off is an accomplishment all in it own. These players really showed hat it means to pull off a great dunk.
Ted Talk
https://www.ted.com/talks/alex_soojung_kim_pang_how_rest_can_make_you_better_at_your_job?utm_campaign=tedspread&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=tedcomshare
I really like how Pang speaks on a healthy work life balance. He talks about the importance of rest and how it affects our brain. He did great job using scientific evidence to prove his point.
For my ted talk I could speak on the shift of work culture. The older generations believe the ideology of working hard will get you a promotion and everything you need. However, this ideology changed in the younger generations. They value work relationships and believe and experience that working hard may not get you everything you need. With increases in cost while pay stays the same means hard work will not pay the bills.
Another idea is that women of todays generation are less likely to have children young or even at all. While older generations had children at a young age prioritizing family over anything else. While the younger generation seems to prioritize careers and individualism. Due to the increased notion of individualism in women, the population of newborns will decrease over the years.
The Best Playmakers in the NBA
In the sport of basketball there a many skills that can win a game. However, sure fire way to get that basket is to create a play thats unstoppable. While anyone on the court can make a play, only a few specific players can say they are the best.
In order to decide the best you would want to know what exactly is a playmaker? Some say that they are the players that lead the offensive team. However, there is more to it than leading the team. Playmakers are tasked with creating plays that allow for more than one player the opportunity to score. They use the players they have to create openings for others to get points. Many opposing teams have a tough defense to crack. It is the playmakers job to get around defensive tactics in order to win.
One of the greatest playmakers in the NBA is Chris Paul. While Paul has missed numerous games due to injury, he remains one of the best playmaker and point guards in the NBA. According to his stats, Paul ranks No. 4 in points created by assists per game, No. 16 in unassisted points per game, and No. 20 in possessions used per game. These stats prove that Paul is able to move the ball efficiently and meaningfully. He is able to get more points from each possession than 19 other players in the NBA. If this doesn’t prove why he’s a great playmaker, nothing will.
Another exceptional playmaker is the Chicago Bulls’ very own DeMar DeRozan. Saying that he is a demon on the court is an understatement. DeRozan is known for his mid-range attacks and turnaround jumpers. He is playmaker that will create space on the court through contact. He is an aggressive player that only an assist on 21.1% of his 2-point shots. While his plays are untraditional, he always comes through for his team. As he has he uses less possessions to get unassisted points.
James Harden might be the most unique playmaker in the game. Not only does he add an additional 3.6 points of an assist than Russell Westbrook, he has the skill to fish for plays at the rim. His passing skills are subpar to no one. He creates openings for players to shoot through clever and fast paced passes. He also often creates seemingly easy openings for his teammates to knock down 3pt shots. He uses fines to dribble past the defense and always keeps an eye out for open assists and shots. Not only is his playmaking skills off the charts his two-step three point shot is almost uncontested!
Playmaking can make or break a game. If a team can’t get past the opposing defense, there is no game. Creating smart and meaningful moves in the offence can win any game. If a team were to acquire any of these players, their playmaking position would be lucky.
Rhetorical Speech reflection
I think I did a decent job with coming up with a lens to look at my artifact with. However, I could have done a better job with coming up with commonplaces and relating them to my artifact. I also could have practiced a little more as I mixed up a few words. I could have expanded on my topic more than I did. I think I did good job ordering and organizing my information.I learned how I should carry my voice from watching Cooper’s speech. He did a great job carrying his speech and I hope to be able to do the same in my future speeches.
I really liked how Cooper talked a lot about the symbolism behind the American Flag and how our lack of gun control goes against those beliefs. I also think he carried his voice very well. I thought his artifact was thoughtful and that he was thoughtful with how he presented his information. His construction of his speech was well thought out.
The Greatest Steals in NBA History
throughout NBA history there have been some amazing steals. Steals are often made by skilled defensive player. However, many players can create a grat steal no matter their position. Here are some of the NBA’s best steals.
In a round 5 playoff game between the Milwaukee Bucks and the Phoenix Suns one of the best game game winning steals of all time. It was the fourth quarter with only 20 seconds left on the clock the game close at 120 to 119, with the bucks in the lead. Devin Booker (suns star) went for the lead, attempting a two point lay-up. However, just as Booker went for the shoot, Drew Holiday got in his way. Holiday ripped the ball away from him, stopping Booker from taking the lead. This led to a game winning dunk by the Buck’s star player Giannis Antetokounmpo.
During a regular season game where the Pelicans were facing off against the Hawks, Jose Alvarado a Pelicans player showed off his defensive ability. In the first quarter a Pelican lost the ball to the Hawks after missing a lay-up. However, Alvarado wasn’t having it, he snuck up behind the Hawks player, tapping the ball out of his hands into the hands of his teammate. This led to an easy un-contested shoot by the same player who had the ball taken away. This proves that you can take the ball away from the man but, you can’t take the man from the ball. There’s no wonder they call Alvarado, “Jose ‘Grand Theft’ Alvarado.
It was a regular season game, LA Kings versus the Oakland City Thunder, only a 11 seconds left on the clock, with a tied score. The Kings had the ball but when they went to run into the paint Ace Dort dribbled the ball out of the King’s hands. He ran down the court making a massive, game winning, one-armed lay-up. The crowd went wild, cheering for the Oakland City win.
In the final seconds of the fourth quarter of a Celtics versus Pacers game, Indiana was up by one point. Indiana’s number 11 went to pass the ball by throwing it high in the air. Out of nowhere Tory Rozier came in, jumping up and stretching his arm out, in front of the Pacer, to catch the ball. He went towards the net, getting the dunk, and coming up with the one point win.
While there are many different attributes to win an NBA game, defense has to be one of the most important skills. Coming up with a well put together steal can win any game.
RCL speech outline
Start with statistic: Every 79 seconds someone is killed or injured in a drunk driving accident
Introduce south park image
Expand on the south park image
- Comedic value
- Bloody marry
Introduce campaign
- Drive. Die.
Expand campaign
Common misconceptions: buzzed is still drunk
Talk about Commonplaces: Drive responsibly, drunk driving doesn’t just kill dreams, it kills people
- Don’t drink and drive
Safety precautions
Relate safety precautions to artifacts
Conclude with question
The next time you drink would you get behind the wheel?
RCL essay draft
Think first, drink later. Drinking and driving is heard throughout our lives in many different environments. For instance, maybe a speaker talked to your school, you might have had to take a seminar revolving around alcohol use, or maybe you could have personnel experiences with the topic. The article shows a popular TV show, South Park, which is known for depicting reckless shenanigans. A common theme in the show is that the character known as Kenny dies every episode for varying reasons. In this artifact it shows Kenny being runover by a drunk driver, Cartman, while his other friends Stan and Kyle repeat the phrase, “Oh my god you killed Kenny” says Stan followed by “you bastard” from Kyle. The dangers of drunk driving can be fatal not only to the driver but the surrounding pedestrians. The South Carolina Department of Public Safety (SCDPS) put out an ad campaign called Sober or Slammer. This image depicts a car slammed into a beer can while the car is smoking. The SCDPS ad campaign supports the South Park illustration, to show that drunk driving can and will ruin someone’s life.
South Park is a show that features four main characters, Cartman, Kyle, Stan, and Kenny, going about their daily lives. However, their daily lives include ridiculous shenanigans that many wouldn’t typically go through in their daily lives. The show includes comedy spoofs of celebrities, offensive humor, and life-threatening shenanigans pulled off by fourth grade children. While the show is mainly meant for comedic purposes many of the episode can be used as a learning guide. The four main characters are often caught doing life threatening activities like in the episode where they buy real weapons and attempt to fight each other. This leads to their other friend getting a throwing star stuck in his eye. These endeavors are usually led by the offensive and strong willed Cartman. While the show can be perceived as crude many of these shenanigans can represent real world issues. Many topics like racism, gender inequality, alcoholism, and more are spoken about in the show. These episodes can also point out flaws in many of the current systems in place in America.
The South Carolina Department of Health and Safety often posts advertisements against many issues that affect people on a day-to-day basis. They speak out about health concerns, inclement weather, driving safety, and more. Their mission is to “To improve the quality of life for all South Carolinians by protecting and promoting the health of the public and the environment,” (DHEC). They carry out their mission by publicizing weather and safety concerns, aiding natural disasters, sharing health and safety statistics, and more. The SCDPS uses five core values to aid in their work, embracing service, inspiring innovation, promoting teamwork, pursuing excellence, and advancing equity. These core values help them discern what issues are important to them and how they are going to handle the issues in front of them.
South Park uses the general population’s love of comedy to spread messages of anti-hate, safety, and tolerance. While the characters in the show often come off as intolerant the writers make the controversies so outrageous that the audience can see through to the legitimate message. On top of that, characters like Stan and Kyle often take the time to share the morally correct outlook on whatever situation their facing. For instance, when Cartman speaks about Jewish people it is often with ill-humored jokes and putting down the community. However, Kyle counteracts those comments by standing up to Cartman and sharing the actual culture behind the religion. The audience sees that cartman’s claims are ridiculous and hold no truth but can laugh along with the absurdity of his claims. It is also interesting to note that the main audience of the show is primarily men. While many issues are covered in the South Park series, drunk driving is a key issue that South Parks touches on.
The South Carolina Department of Health and Safety shares many laws and statistics about drunk driving. Drinking and driving heavily affects core motor functions such as judgement, reaction time, and concentration. They share that it is illegal to get behind a wheel with a BAC (blood alcohol content) of 0.08 or higher. It was also found out that if the BAC reaches 0.25 you are 25 times more likely to have a traffic collision. However, if the driver in question is a minor their limit is 0.02. Drunk Driving can occur everywhere at all hours however statistics show that it is most common at night and on the weekends. The SCDPS shares that drunk driving is also more commonly found in men than women. They found that among all crashes where a man’s BAC is 0.10 or more and the crash led to fatal injury was 34%. While in the same statistic women’s is only 18%. The SPDPS also shares that the most common drink consumed by people who are pulled over for alcohol related stops is beer. Concurrent with previous information, men seem to also statistically drink beer more often than woman. These dangers and statistics are often shown through SPDPS advertisements.
In the episode Bloody Mary in South Park’s season 9 Randy, Stan’s dad, takes Stan and his friend home from karate class. During the class he went to a bar and proceeded to get behind the wheel drinking two beers, taking his kid and his friends home. This leads to Randy getting pulled over and getting a DUI. Fortunately, no one was harmed during Randy’s drunken time behind the wheel, but the dangers of the situation were evident to Stan. Stan proceeds to chastise his dad and feel humiliated by his father’s actions. The common place of the saying “don’t drink and drive” is taken to heart in this episode. This is seen when Randy is forced to attend AA meetings and go to elementary schools giving speeches about the danger of drinking and driving. The show also points out many issues with AA’s signature program, the 12-step program. Where the writers poke fun at the ideology that one must give up themselves to their disease, alcoholism. AA members told Randy that he is powerless to his addiction and must wait for divine intervention to be able to overcome his alcoholism. However, Randy was never an alcoholic, it was made apparent that Randy had only made a mistake and should have been able to get better by cutting down on his alcohol intake. This shows the commonplace that AA is more akin to a cult than it is tool to aid legitimate alcoholics. The comedic value is used to drive home the point that drinking and driving is incredibly dangerous while lightening the mood. This creates an open dialogue about the subject without coming across as judgmental and anxious.
The SCDPS releases advertisements to show the dangers of drinking and driving. One of their ads features a smushed beer can with a car crashed into it. This represents the affect alcohol has on the brain and how dangerous drinking and driving is. The advertisements utilize alliterative sentences in their phrase “Drive. Drink. Die.”. The alliterative makes the phrase more catchy and easier to remember in order to ingrain the saying into people’s minds. They also use periods after each word to emphasize each individual word. The tone of the ad shows the seriousness behind the message to help decrease the number of drunk drivers. They also use the common place of the phrase “Sober or Slammer” which is a common phrase used to dishearten the act of drinking and driving. In their campaign they pose the question: who would you leave behind if you were killed in a drunk driving collision? This question asks about the effects of drunk driving, appealing to the reader’s logos. Where the SCDPS wants to reason with their audience to understand the severity behind their choices.
Technicals Keep getting Funnier and Funnier
Technical fouls (techs) are form of punishment for unsportsmanlike behavior by coaches, players, and even entire teams. It only takes two technical fouls to be ejected from a game. While techs are usually well thought through by the referees many justs seem to be ridiculous. These are a few of the funniest technical fouls in the NBA.
When a good shot is made it is common for players to celebrate by cheering, hand movements, etc… However, in a Lakers vs. Hornets game Lance Stephenson might have taken it too far according to the referee. After scoring a three point shot in a Hornets blowout, Stephenson made a hand signal resembling playing a guitar. While, to everyone else this looked like a normal celebration, the ref called a Tech on Lance. Needless to say Stephenson and Lakers fans were not happy with the call. Many calling it a disgrace and a complete overreaction to such a simple taunt.
One of the funniest reactions to a bad call from the ref was when Ben Simmons took a seat in a courtside chair after being wrongfully called for a 3-point foul. Simmons reaction may have been a little overkill but during a game where the refs just seem to hold a grudge against the sixers, he had enough. This was the third technical foul of the game following Jimmy Butler and Embiid, all players on sixers. Simmons seemed infuriated with the call and continued to play regardless of the questionable reffing during this game.
Rustle Westbrook, a former Oakland Thunder star, made one of the worst mistakes a player can make. After being frustrated with a game he tossed the ball in a seemingly random direction. Unfortunately for him that direction led to a referee straight in the head. Without a second thought the ref called a tech and Westbrook was left apologizing, ie. music to the refs ears.
When the Phoenix Suns were playing the New York Knicks a technical foul was called on Rasheed Wallace. He was call for unnecessary roughness when he pushed a kick’s arm when he was trying to score. Rasheed was frustrated by this call but went to line up when the knicks were shooting free throws. When the first shot missed Rasheed yelled his signature phrase “ball don’t lie” the ref called another tech on the Suns player for unsportsmanlike conduct. This led to his ejection from the game. While it was inevitable that he would vacated from the court he left with some words for the ref. As he left the cout he continued to argue with the ref and looked visibly upset about the calls.
In the middle of a Golden State vs. Chargers game a player lost a shoe on the court. Demarcus Cousins, the GSW center, tossed the shoe into the crowd. While his intention was to save other players from tripping on the shoe leading to injuries, the ref immediately called a technical foul. While his intentions are good “NBA law” states that not a single thing can be thrown into the crowd.