Utah
Explaining the Jazz’s protections on draft pick that was traded to OKC
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Lauri Markkanen’s 2022 performance with the Finnish national team was an eye-opener for many in the NBA, including Utah Jazz head coach Will Hardy, who pushed Markkanen to expand his NBA game to mirror what he was doing in international competition.
Last summer, Markkanen was busy with his Finnish military requirements and it seems that this year the Jazz’s All-Star forward will have to stay sidelined rather than play with his national squad.
According to a release that was translated by eurohoops.net, Markannen expressed regret in not being able to join Finland’s squad for their summer schedule.
“Certainly, this is tough,” he said, “Representing Finland and playing for the national team is an honor for me. Along with my teammates, we have been talking all season about how sweet it would be to advance to the Olympic Games.”
The reason Markkanen is sidelined is due to the shoulder impingement that kept him out of action at the end of the Jazz’s 2023-24 regular season.
Though that might have some fans worried about the extent of the injury, team sources have indicated that Markkanen should be fine once the 2024-25 NBA training camp schedule rolls around. The Jazz have wanted to be cautious and careful with any and all injuries. As Markkanen is available to sign an extension this summer, there’s no doubt caution on both sides where injury is concerned.
Though he won’t be competing this year, Markkanen does not plan for his absence to extend beyond this summer. Finland is one of the hosts of the 2025 EuroBasket tournament and Markkanen plans on being a full participant next summer.
“Those dates are marked on my calendar,” he said.
New with the Jazz
How to pass the time in the offseason
Last year I said that I was going to learn to do something new and that thing was make pasta from scratch. Well, I didn’t do it.
I did learn how to refurbish and paint a coffee table, I did learn the mechanics of my water heater and I did learn how to take apart my washing machine in order to properly give it a good cleaning. But there has been exactly zero attempts to make pasta from scratch in this house.
I think that whenever we have extra time on our hands its not only useful, but it’s important to continue to expand our minds and what we’re able to do with our hands. And while I’m proud of the things that I learned last year, there’s always more to do and learn!
Readers, this is the offseason of fresh, homemade pasta. It’s going to happen.
From the archives
Extra points
- What, if anything, have we learned about Will Hardy through two tanking seasons? (Deseret News)
- Will Hardy losing assistant coach Chad Forcier to the Phoenix Suns (Deseret News)
- The Jazz are on the wrong side of one of the most-viewed NBA videos of all time (Deseret News)
Around the league
Up Next: NBA Finals
- June 9 | 6 p.m. MDT | Game 2 | Dallas Mavericks @ Boston Celtics | ABC
- June 12 | 6:30 p.m. MDT | Game 3 | Boston Celtics @ Dallas Mavericks | ABC
- June 14 | 6:30 p.m. MDT | Game 4 | Boston Celtics @ Dallas Mavericks | ABC
Utah
Curry helps Golden State bury Utah 140-124 behind a flurry of 3-pointers
By John Coon, The Associated Press
SALT LAKE CITY — Stephen Curry scored 27 points, Moses Moody had 26 and the Golden State Warriors beat the Utah Jazz 140-124 on Wednesday night.
Gui Santos had 16 points off the bench for the Warriors. Golden State made 23 3-pointers and never trailed over the final three quarters. Moody led the way with five 3s.
The 140 points scored by the Warriors was their season high.
Brice Sensabaugh scored 22 points off the bench for Utah. Keyonte George had 19 points and seven assists. Ace Bailey also scored 19 points for the Jazz and Lauri Markkanen had 18.
Utah trimmed a 22-point deficit to single digits entering the fourth quarter. The Jazz drew to 108-100 on a pair of free throws from Isaiah Collier with 9:52 left. Curry made back-to-back baskets to restore a double-digit lead.
Golden State used a 20-2 run to go up 136-109 with 3:29 left.
Golden State made it rain from the perimeter early, going 15 of 31 from long distance before halftime. Eight different players made an outside basket for the Warriors in the first half. Buddy Hield and Moody accounted for three apiece before halftime.
Hield buried back-to-back 3s a minute into the second quarter to cap a 19-8 run that gave Golden State a 40-24 lead. The Warriors built a 16-point lead three other times in the second quarter — the final time when Quinten Post made a 3-pointer to make it 64-48.
Golden State expanded its lead to 22 points in the third quarter, going up 91-69 on a pair of free throws from Curry.
Up Next
Warriors: Host Detroit on Saturday night.
Utah
Inmates create first‑of‑its‑kind documentary inside Utah State prison – KSLTV.com
SALT LAKE CITY — A groundbreaking documentary — conceived, filmed, and produced entirely by inmates at the Utah State Prison—is giving the public an unprecedented look at life behind bars.
The film, Breaking Chains, follows six incarcerated men and women as they confront their pasts, reflect on their choices, and work toward rebuilding their lives.
The Utah Department of Corrections collaborated with the One Kind Act a Day initiative to secure funding and equipment for the inmates. The result is a raw, emotional film that highlights a little‑known educational program operating inside the prison.
The documentary opens with a stark confession from participant Casey Vanderhoef.
“When I was incarcerated in 2021, I had no more answers,” Vanderhoef says in the film. “I knew I was broken in a way I couldn’t fix.”
Vanderhoef, now living in a halfway house as he completes his sentence, says revisiting his past on camera wasn’t easy.
“There are certainly regretful decisions—and sometimes embarrassing ones—that are definitely part of my story,” he explains.
The project was coordinated from outside the prison by filmmaker and educator Bo Landin, who says the decision to have inmates interview one another created a level of honesty he didn’t expect.
“It’s authentic. It’s raw. It’s emotional,” Landin says. He admits he became emotional himself while transcribing the conversations. “I think it’s important because it is their voice. They are telling us a story.”
The program began with roughly 18 to 20 students learning the fundamentals of filmmaking, storytelling, and production.
The One Kind Act a Day initiative—created by philanthropist Khosrow Semnani—donated the professional equipment used to make the documentary. The Semnani Family Foundation will now support an ongoing media program integrated into the prison’s career‑training and productive‑time initiatives. Semnani hopes the effort encourages compassion in a place where it can be hard to find.
“Human nature is born with kindness,” Semnani says. “But in prison, it’s not there.”
For Vanderhoef, the experience has been transformative.
“As I look back at the mistakes that were made, I have some regret and embarrassment,” he says. “But I have a lot more gratitude.”
Semnani says he recently spoke with U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi about expanding the program nationally, potentially bringing similar opportunities to prisons across the country.
Breaking Chains debuted at the Utah International Film Festival and won the Audience Choice Award. Landin now hopes to promote it at film festivals worldwide in hopes of getting it in theaters for the public to see.
Utah
Nina Dobrev Wears a Bathrobe While in Utah for Sundance Film Festival
Nina Dobrev‘s bathrobe photo has fans checking in from Park City, Utah, during Sundance weekend. She posted it 18 hours ago, tagged Park City, and wrote, “Final Sundance in Park City, Utah? bittersweet doesn’t begin to describe it…” Nina’s carousel from the Sundance Film Festival reads like downtime between screenings. The post shows about 480.8K likes and 888 comments.
Nina Dobrev shares a bathrobe photo from Utah during Sundance Film Festival
Have a look at Nina Dobrev in a bathrobe:
The “Vampire Diaries” alum wears a plush white hotel robe, loosely cinched at the waist. It falls open at the neckline. Her hair looks half-done, pinned up at the crown, with loose lengths down.
The warm bathroom lighting highlights marble counters and polished wood doors. The photos also landed after she discussed recovering from a dirt bike injury. Fans replied fast, with one writing, “Such a cutie,” another said, “Gorgeous,” and a third added, “THE DIVA”.
Originally reported by Santanu Das on Reality Tea
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