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Jason Kidd pleads guilty to leading the Mavs to the NBA Finals a year after a chaotic ending

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DALLAS (AP) – Jason Kidd is not fond of non-public debt collection.

Leading the Dallas Mavericks to the NBA Finals as their coach 13 years after he was the point guard on the franchise’s only championship team means more to Kidd than proving he was right about Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving needing time to grow into tandem competing for the title.

There is a a part of the 51-year-old, a Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame playerwho thinks he doesn’t have much to prove.

“I know how to win,” Kidd said. “I’ve been doing it since grade school, at the highest level. I won gold medals. I won the championship. I also won the championship as a coach and assistant coach. Now I even have the opportunity to try this as a head coach. “

When the Mavericks face the Boston Celtics in Game 1 on Thursday night, they will probably be overlooked of a 1-6 tie that has experts once more wondering how long Kidd will coach in Dallas.

The Mavs will probably be faraway from Kidd for nearly 14 months amid questions on his job security and the club’s strange decision to walk away two games before the end of the season while still retaining a likelihood to play in the postseason.

The Doncic-Irving pairing has deteriorated in the two months since the blockbuster trade that brought Irving from Brooklyn in 2023. Never mind that just a year earlier, Kidd’s coaching debut in Dallas resulted in Doncic’s first trip to the Western Conference Finals.

“I guess you have to go through a few losses to really believe that you can do it,” said Kidd, whose assistant title he won with the Los Angeles Lakers in the 2020 playoffs. “We weren’t very good. But it’s ok. Even though people feel like they should be sold or fired because of their failures, sometimes it’s sad. We had to get through it.”

Now Kidd will try to grow to be the eighth person to win the title as a player and coach on the same team. Seven more did so under different franchises.

Kidd achieved this by giving a mixture of perennial All-Stars Irving and Doncic time to marinate and convincing the offensive wizards to play defense.

“He understands mine and Kyrie’s role because he’s played it himself,” Doncic said of the two-time Olympic gold medal winner. “That’s why he helps us a lot. But everyone. He kept everyone together. We were often weak, especially during the season. There were at all times ups and downs, but he kept us together.

Kidd and his staff made changes midseason, trading PJ Washington, a 3-and-D wing, and Daniel Gafford, a pick-and-roll rim protector to add depth at center with rookie Dereck Lively II.

The team that began the season repeating Kidd’s mantra that “our offense is our defense” has transformed into a defense-first group, very similar to his first season in 2021-2022.

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Here’s the summary.

In the 10 seasons from the 2011 championship until Kidd took over as coach, the Mavs didn’t win a playoff series. They won five in his three seasons, losing to Golden State in the West in the finals two years ago.

“It’s not very often that you go from the lottery to the final round,” Kidd said, referring to the draft pick the Mavs retained – and traded for Lively – by tanking at the end of the 2022-23 season. “But we actually believed we had the pieces. Sometimes you’re taking a step back to see what you’ve got.

Even when the Mavs felt that they had found the right combination, their seven-game winning streak dropped to 1-6. They were over .500 in six games and were flirting with the play-in tournament, which might put Dallas liable to missing one other playoffs after such a promising start under Kidd.

What followed was a 16-2 run that put the Mavericks in fifth place in the West. Now they’ve won three series without home advantage and can try to repeat that. Houston, which finished sixth in 1995, is the only minor leaguer to win the championship.

“I think at one point in the season everyone thought the world was ending,” Kidd said. “But we still came to work. We were positive and everything changed for the better. I think that’s just who we are. It’s just about trust, about working and having fun at the same time.”

The Mavericks are a reflection of their coach, stoic in the face of criticism and questions from a year ago, with possibly a little vitriol thrown in when there’s a sense of, “Enough is enough.”

Kidd has long preached that it’s OK to fail, which has impressed Lively as the 20-year-old has quickly emerged as an influential player the club didn’t necessarily expect so quickly.

“He puts me in situations where he expects me to fail, and even if I fail, he leaves me there to learn,” Lively said. “He comes into the locker room and asks, what do we predict? To find a way to have a coach like that who gets the players talking, talking to one another after which saying what they think is a tremendous process.

Last year, Kidd threw an expletive at a reporter when asked about the vote of confidence he received from then-owner Mark Cuban as the season ended, essentially saying those questions weren’t asked during the 2022 West Finals.

A ten-time All-Star and second in profession assists behind only John Stockton, Kidd shrugs as he looks back on the chaos.

“You ask all the hard questions. These are difficult questions,” Kidd said. “You’re doing all of your job. As the head coach of the Mavericks, I do my job. Last year these were tough questions, tough questions that will probably be a part of this series. I’ll offer you the answer. Some people may like this. Some may not.

Either way, Kidd prolonged his contract. He did it on the heels of the first of three series wins this spring.

This article was originally published on : thegrio.com
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Melania slammed Donald Trump with third prenup change, fueling rumors of marital drama after she dodged his kiss and claim resurfaced

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For years, there was speculation concerning the authenticity of the love between President-elect Donald Trump and his wife, Melania Trump. The theories intensified after Melania was caught repeatedly hiding from her husband’s public displays of affection for years.

Some imagine their relationship is solely business-related, a view that gained popularity when the New York Post reported in September 2023 that its alleged insider claimed that Melania had renegotiated her prenuptial agreement with the forty fifth president for the third time. The move followed Trump’s confirmation of his intention to hunt a second term as president after announcing his re-election campaign on November 15, 2022.

When the couple married in 2005, the initial prenuptial agreement reportedly significantly favored Donald Trump. However, since then the contract has been renegotiated not less than 3 times, with the primary renegotiation going down in 2017 and one other in 2020, when she served as apparently delayed moving to the White House – not less than that is what the New York Post claims in its unconfirmed reports. It is unclear why the thrice-married Trump would conform to loosen up his protections as part of such an arrangement.

In 2023, an alleged insider told the Post’s Page Six gossip column: “Over the past yr, Melania and her team have been quietly negotiating a brand new deal following the suspension of her contract with Donald Trump. This is not less than the third time Melania has renegotiated the terms of her marriage contract.

WASHINGTON – JULY 4: President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump attend an event on the South Lawn of the White House on July 4, 2020 in Washington, DC. President Trump hosts a "Salute to America" ​​celebration that includes a flyover of military planes and a large fireworks display. (Photo: Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON – JULY 4: President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump attend an event on the South Lawn of the White House on July 4, 2020 in Washington, DC. President Trump hosts a “Salute to America” ​​celebration that features a flyover of military planes and a big fireworks display. (Photo: Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images)

It continued to be claimed that Melania can be increasingly concerned about Trump’s mounting legal problems. Last yr, he was convicted of 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in connection with making secret payments to adult film star Stormy Daniels. That same yr, Trump was also found liable in a civil suit for sexual abuse and defamation of author E. Jean Carroll. More than a yr ago, Trump was also charged in Atlanta with attempting to overturn the presidential vote within the 2020 elections in Georgia. Trump ultimately faced federal criminal charges related to his mishandling of classified documents after leaving office and the January 6 rebel.

With all this happening against Trump, Melania obviously desired to be certain she can be secure.

“This agreement was necessary due to ongoing legal disputes that (…) (Donald) has suffered,” the source said.

However, the insider also told Page Six that the postnuptial agreement doesn’t mean Melania plans to depart Trump.

They said the revised deal would also provide money for his or her 18-year-old son, Barron Trump.

“Melania is most concerned with maintaining and increasing the considerable trust she has in her son, Barron.”

Another source backed up this statement, saying, “I know she wanted this to provide her with more money, and also – from what I understand – there is at least a set amount that Barron is expected to get.”

Fans shared their thoughts on Melania renegotiating her prenup with The Daily Beast’s. side.

One person said: “Thanks to her we managed to save him. After filing for bankruptcy five times, he will be living on Melany’s benefits.”

The second wrote: “He must secure Barron’s future before the non-existent money disappears.”

A third commenter advised: “Honey, take the money and run.”

CNN is preparing for Trump’s second visit to the White House reported that his wife doesn’t plan to live in Washington full time. Sources told the news outlet that while Melania plans to attend essential events, she will spend loads of time living between New York City – as her son Barron attends NYU there – and Palm Beach, Florida, where many of her friends live.

Her reported impending absence from the White House has sparked whispers about whether Melania is serious about her responsibilities and priorities as first lady, but that is not all. It also sparked more speculation about whether she and Trump have a blissful marriage.

Even during Trump’s victory speech, a smiling Melania avoided being kissed by her husband as he sang her praises on stage. After thanking her and expressing his appreciation for her “best-selling book in the country,” Trump moves to hug and kiss his wife, then places her hand on her cheek as she turns her head barely.

Still, Melania assures doubters that every little thing is effective in her marriage to Trump. In September, she even tried to disclaim the rumors during an interview on “Fox & Friends.”

When asked what she liked about her husband, she replied: “His essence. His humor. His personality. His kindness,” he added later. “It’s very special. His positivity. His energy. It’s unbelievable. Yes, so we’ve got a fantastic relationship.

This article was originally published on : atlantablackstar.com
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Jussie Smollett’s 2019 Self-Attack Conviction Overturned – Andscape

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SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — The Illinois Supreme Court on Thursday overturned the choice to fireside an actor Jussie Smollett conviction on charges of organizing a racist and anti-gay attack on himself in downtown Chicago in 2019 and lying to police.

The the state’s highest court ruled that the special prosecutor shouldn’t have been allowed to intervene after the Cook County state’s attorney initially dropped charges against Smollett in exchange for waiving $10,000 bail and performing community service. The ruling and appeal didn’t address Smollett’s continued claim of innocence.

Smollett, who’s black and gay, claims two men attacked him, hurled racist and anti-gay slurs and placed a noose around his neck, resulting in an enormous seek for suspects by Chicago police and sparking a world uproar. Smollett was starring in a television drama that was filmed in Chicago, and prosecutors alleged that he organized the attack because he was unhappy with the studio’s response to hate mail he received.

“We are aware that this case has generated significant public interest and that many people were dissatisfied with the resolution of the original case and considered it unfair,” Justice Elizabeth Rochford wrote in a 5-0 decision. “Nevertheless, more unfair than the resolution of any single criminal case would be for this court to find that the state is not obliged to honor agreements on which people have relied to their detriment.”

Smollett’s attorneys argued that the case ended with Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx’s office dropped initially 16 counts of disorderly conduct. A grand jury reinstated the fees after a special prosecutor took over the case. The jury convicted Smollett of five counts of disorderly conduct in 2021

Emails searching for comment were sent Thursday to Foxx’s office and Smollett’s attorney, who argued that Smollett was the victim of a racist and politicized justice system.

Testimony at trial showed that Smollett paid $3,500 to 2 men he knew to perform the attack. Prosecutors said he told them what insults to shout and shout that Smollett was in “MAGA country,” an apparent reference to Donald Trump’s presidential campaign slogan.

Smollett testified that “there was no fraud” and that he was the victim of a hate crime in his downtown Chicago neighborhood.

He was sentenced to 150 days in prison, six of which he had already served released pending further notice — 30 ​​months probation and ordered to pay roughly $130,000 in restitution.

The state appeals court’s ruling upheld Smollett’s conviction, declaring that nobody promised Smollett that he would not face a brand new charge after accepting the unique deal.

Illinois Supreme Court Justice Mary Jane Theis and Justice Joy Cunningham didn’t take part in Thursday’s decision.

This article was originally published on : andscape.com
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Lil Baby didn’t just rap about change – he went to Harvard to achieve it – Essence

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LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – JUNE 27: Songwriter of the Year Award winner Lil Baby speaks on stage on the ASCAP R&S Music Celebration on the London Hotel on June 27, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Lester Cohen/Getty Images for ASCAP)

Lil Baby will not be only considered one of the most important names in hip-hop – he can also be an aspiring entrepreneur who’s serious about taking his business knowledge to the subsequent level.

The GRAMMY Award-winning rapper recently participated in Harvard Business School’s “Launching New Ventures” program, a prestigious short course designed to help entrepreneurs grow their ventures through modern strategies. The program, which will not be a level-granting initiative, focuses on key entrepreneurial tools, including opportunity assessment, competitive evaluation and developing sustainable business models, – we read on this system’s website.

For Lil Baby, born Dominique Armani Jones, the move was greater than just earning bragging rights. Known for hits like and , the Atlanta native has all the time been open about his desire to construct a legacy beyond music. As head of his record label 4PF (Four Pockets Full), he is committed to creating opportunities for artists and running a business that will not be only profitable, but in addition influential. However, he realized that running a successful label required honing his skills, and Harvard was the right place for this.

Movie shared on X On Wednesday, we got to see Lil Baby participating within the show. The clip ended on a touching note as he was presented together with his certificate of completion, followed by a surprise ceremony organized by his family.

While critics were quick to indicate that he didn’t “graduate” from Harvard – despite misleading headlines – his decision to commit to this system is critical in itself. Shows like “Launching New Ventures” offer insights that may transform corporations and help entrepreneurs overcome challenges, and Lil Baby’s presence signals his commitment to constructing a legacy that goes far beyond music. For Lil Baby, the move is an element of a broader commitment to securing his position not only as a rapper, but in addition as a mogul. His commitment to self-improvement reflects the values ​​he promotes through his music: perseverance, resilience and development.

It’s also value noting that Lil Baby’s decision to attend Harvard sends a powerful message to his community, especially Black entrepreneurs. In a world where barriers to business education still exist, his decision to pursue higher education shows that it’s never too late – or too unconventional – to take what you are promoting seriously.

As Lil Baby grows, one thing is obvious: his diligence knows no limits. Whether he’s behind the microphone or within the classroom, he proves that the important thing to success is to continually strive for more.

This article was originally published on : www.essence.com
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