Monthly Archives: August 2023

Team USA's Jaren Jackson Jr. protects the rim against Reuben Te Rangi of the New Zealand basketball team during the 2023 FIBA World Cup matchup Saturday. (Photo by Earvin Perias/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)

MANILA, Philippines Saturdays second-quarter sequence showcased the complete Jaren Jackson Jr. experience. His collection of rare gifts, plus the one foible the NBAs reigning Defensive Player of the Year battles on that side of the floor.

With 1:46 remaining in the first half of Team USAs victory over New Zealand in the 2023 FIBA World Cup, Jackson meandered all the way out to halfcourt, helping U.S. starting point guard Jalen Brunson trap a Kiwi ball-handler. Then Jackson, all 6-foot-11 and 242 pounds of the Memphis Grizzlies All-Star, recovered back to the baseline in no time. There are few menacing shot blockers who can handle their own on the perimeter with the agility and quickness Jackson innately possesses.

You gotta be able to switch and guard guards. It helps cause you dont want to always be in a drop, Jackson told Yahoo Sports, flipping a ball into the basket before Sunday mornings Team USA practice. You just have to sit down and get in a stance. You dont want to because youre tired, but thats the job.

Brunson, though, had also recovered to the basket, planting his feet in front of driving Tall Blacks forward Jordan Ngatai. Brunson absorbed the contact, drawing the whistle with his chest. And there was Jackson anyway, reaching for the rafters, skying above the entire play to swat Ngatais attempt. Jackson came crashing onto the hardwood, landing with an awkward thud, to the point Jackson remained on the floor for a breather, wringing his right wrist once he came back to his feet. Speaking of: the slow-motion replay revealed Jacksons massive sneaker nearly squashed Brunsons braids.

He has the ability to block everything, Team USA head coach Steve Kerr said. But sometimes he needs to dial it back a little bit.

Jackson was not called for a foul on the collision. In fact, four of Jacksons five fouls, which ultimately disqualified the Americans starting center with 5:55 to play in the fourth quarter, came on questionable positioning and loose-ball calls. And yet Jackson was limited to only 16 minutes in Team USAs tournament opener, forcing Kerr to rely on non-traditional reserve big man Paolo Banchero time and again.

If youve heard this theme regarding Jacksons development into a two-way linchpin for the Grizzlies, you also may have watched the talented 23-year-old watch much of Memphis 2022 first-round playoff matchup with Minnesota from the bench. It was an issue against the Warriors the following series as well. Jackson was then mired in an odd habit this past season, frequently finding foul trouble during nationally televised games.

Hes foul-prone in the NBA, Kerr said. So, theres always one or two plays where you just want him to let it go, because hes too important to us. So we share those clips and just remind him sometimes the best play is to just let the guy go and dont pick up the foul.

There was one classic bugaboo early in the second half against New Zealand. After Jackson shadowed the ball-handlers path under the basket out of a pick-and-roll, he rotated back to Kiwi center Yanni Wetzell and bought the shot fake as Wetzell leaped into Jacksons body for what became his third foul. Kerr quickly called on Banchero to relieve his starting center.

Jackson, though, remains unbothered by the trend. He says the Grizzlies coaches share that stance. They dont care either. Trust me, they dont. Theyre not worried about it all, Jackson said. The Grizzlies want their backline beast hunting for prey at all times. Go get it, man, Jackson said. It comes with it. If Im gonna be less aggressive, Im gonna have less blocks, Im gonna bring less rim protection, and Ima have less fouls with all that. Pick one or the other. Which one do you want? Do you want me to be great or not?

After all, he has the hardware to prove his point. Im doing something right, Jackson said of his Defensive Player of the Year honors. Like an uber-athletic wide receiver praised for his superior catch radius, Jacksons combination of 7-foot-5 wingspan and elite athleticism can reject a wider range of shots than most. I feel like I can get a lot done with my reach and my timing. I think a lot of people dont have that.

With Team USA, Jackson is playing more of a textbook center position than the two-big lineups in which hes deployed with Memphis. The Americans are running the defensive scheme that Golden State used en route to four championships over the past nine seasons, asking Jackson to play up and switch and chase pesky perimeter playmakers. Coach Kerr is using his system. Its just more or less what Draymond [Green] would have ran or [Kevon] Looney, and just with better players, Jackson said. A lot of delay actions and stuff like that.

But in FIBA, where players are afforded only five fouls instead of the six in NBA competition, Jacksons weakness with the whistle is something he and the American coaches are clearly monitoring throughout the World Cup. Its why Kerr made a point early in training camp to tell Banchero of his plan to slate Banchero as a big man, rather than his natural position on the wing.

You know, you always gotta be conscious of it, Jackson said, and hopefully you can move past it.

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2023 FIBA World Cup: Jaren Jackson Jr.'s elite rim protection and defensive presence come with a price - Yahoo Sports

Hey, even the experts can have a tough time during their draft evaluations. We asked six analysts to reveal which player has been their hardest to rank for the upcoming fantasy football season.

Ranking Richardson is nearly impossible. Thursday's preseason finale offered good and bad moments, summing up what his rookie season could be. Cam Newtons debut game of 422 passing yards and three total touchdowns in 2011 is possible. Newton ended his rookie campaign at QB3, with 4,051 passing yards and 35 total touchdowns.

Or, we might get Justin Fields painful coming-out clunker in 2021, as he passed for 68 yards and got sacked nine times. Fields sat out five games later that season.

I want to rank Richardson higher than his current QB14 (120.9 overall) on Yahoo expert consensus rankings, just ahead of Aaron Rodgers. If head coach Shane Steichen turns Richardson loose on the ground like 2021 Jalen Hurts 784 rushing yards and 21.4 fantasy points per game the Colt would have a high floor. But his 53.8% accuracy at Florida last season could lead to bench time if he doesnt improve.

If you draft him, grab a safe backup like Kirk Cousins or Jared Goff to start when matchups look tough. But Richardsons ceiling is the stars. Jorge Martin

In all honesty, I have no idea what to do with Kupp, and it has nothing to do with a hamstring injury that sidelined him for a chunk of August. The 30-year-old is just two years removed from posting the highest fantasy point total ever by a WR, and last season he tallied a ridiculous 75 catches in nine games.

An optimistic ranking of Kupp puts him in the top overall pick discussion with Justin Jefferson. But I struggle to be optimistic about anyone on the Rams this season, as their roster is among the worst in football and QB Matthew Stafford enters his age-35 season after missing eight games a year ago. My raw projections have Kupp ahead of Tyreek Hill and Stefon Diggs. However, I regularly draft one of those two receivers over the Rams standout for the simple reason that I expect Los Angeles to have given up on the 2023 campaign by the time we reach the fantasy playoffs. Fred Zinkie

[2023 Fantasy Draft Rankings: QBs | RBs | WRs | TEs | DEF | K]

Once upon a time, Calvin Ridley was a special NFL player. He finished as the WR4 and a Top-20 fantasy player (per Value Based Drafting ranks) in 2020, but NFL seasons age like dog years. Consider, Alvin Kamara was the RB2 that season, Dalvin Cook charted as the RB3 and James Robinson was a Top-20 finisher. Ridley's primary offensive teammates that season were Matt Ryan, Todd Gurley and Julio Jones. It's been a long time, man. And Ridleys last regular-season snaps came 22 months ago.

The Jaguars obviously have big plans for Ridley, and maybe emerging quarterback Trevor Lawrence is going to the moon in his third season. But theres other competition for the ball here Christian Kirk, Evan Engram and Zay Jones are all coming off strong campaigns. Sure, the Jaguars would love for Ridley to take over as the featured target, but it takes time to build rapport, crispness and trust in a new city. We need to accept that Ridley carries a wide range of outcomes as he kicks off the rust and steps into his age-29 season. Scott Pianowski

If we would have drafted this season's fantasy football rosters at any point in the weeks leading up to the 2023 NFL Draft, I definitely would have considered Kenneth Walker III somewhere near the first and second-round turn. Walker is of course coming off an efficient 1,000-yard season, which he capped with three straight 100-yard rushing performances. He's awesome.

But then the Seattle Seahawks went and did the thing they always seem to do, drafting a running back at least one day earlier than you thought they would. Zach Charbonnet is plainly going to be a problem for Walker. Both deserve to play. Both have been dinged in camp. Both profile as potential every-down, full-workload runners.

So now we're left with a situation in which Walker's range of potential outcomes in 2023 includes a top-five positional finish which would vault him into next year's first round and also a job-share scenario in which Charbonnet receives the most valuable touches. It's almost impossible to express your feelings for such a player in a position rank. Walker is currently my RB23, which seems pessimistic when you consider his terrific first season. Andy Behrens

The hardest player for me to rank has been Breece Hall. I want to make sure those using my ranks come out of their drafts with the exciting young back but without jumping ADP too far. Hall's draft position has fluctuated throughout summer, as questions remain both regarding his recovery from ACL surgery as well as the addition of Dalvin Cook. Making sure to rank Hall in that sweet spot (currently RB12 for me, the highest among the Yahoo crew) has been a moving target this summer. Dalton Del Don

Watson is easily the most difficult player to rank and thats only gotten more challenging over the course of the summer. Lets start with the player. My main and really only concern with Watson is that he needs to get better on base NFL routes like the slant, curl and dig to be a complete, true No. 1 wide receiver. But that is mostly offset by being a fantastic vertical route runner and special player in the open field. I do not want to be fading a guy Ive compared to Martavis Bryant since I watched his collegiate film. We know hes really good. There are questions beyond him, though, with the overall offensive transition to Jordan Love, who remains a big unknown. Also, after rookies like Luke Musgrave and Jayden Reed (Im a big fan) have emerged as full-time players and clear-starter Romeo Doubs seemingly has developed a connection with Love, the target distribution may be a little less clear. There are a lot more players here to earn targets than consensus believes.

Will Watson settle in closer to 20% or 25% of the overall team passing volume? That could be the deciding factor in whether he emerges as a consistent high-end WR2 or more of a volatile flex play in fantasy. Ive settled on having him near his ADP (79.8, WR27) in my rankings and making it clear hes my favorite of those likely weekly boom-or-bust WR3 types like Jerry Jeudy, Mike Williams, Mike Evans, George Pickens, etc. Ill take him in certain team builds, but Im not all-in or all-out. Matt Harmon

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Fantasy Football Rankings: These are the hardest players to ... - Yahoo Sports

The Dallas Cowboys may have made a move for Trey Lance, but Dak Prescott isnt sweating his future in Dallas.

Prescott is signed to the Cowboys through the end of next season, and the team has said it wants to sign him to an extension. Though Lance hasnt seen the field much during his time in the league, his presence in Dallas could impact Prescotts next contract with the team.

For now, though, hes ignoring that.

Im going to leave those talks in the office where business is handled, Prescott said Saturday night, via ESPNs Todd Archer.

The Cowboys landed Lance in a deal with the San Francisco 49ers on Friday in exchange for a fourth-round draft pick. Lance, the former No. 3 overall pick in 2021, has played in eight games and made four starts in San Francisco. He spent nearly all of his rookie season backing up Jimmy Garoppolo, and then broke his ankle during his second start last season.

Lance will now presumably be the Cowboys third-string quarterback, behind Prescott and veteran backup Cooper Rush. Its easy to see a world where Lance jumps Rush and becomes Prescotts backup in the near future, though thats unlikely to happen right away. Lance was someone the Cowboys had their eye on in the 2021 draft. Hes not just a backup quarterback upgrade, something Dallas didnt need to do this offseason.

Prescott, who threw for 2,860 yards, 23 touchdowns and a career-high 15 interceptions last season, has spent his entire career in Dallas. The 30-year-old is entering the third year of his four-year, $160 million deal this fall.

Prescott said he wasnt given any warning that the Cowboys were planning to bring in another quarterback ahead of time on Saturday, but that he wasnt surprised. It wasnt just Prescott who was in the dark, either.

"I mean obviously understand it's a business," Prescott said, via ESPN. "That's a first-round talent and you're always trying to make your team better. But that was the front office, so we're going to welcome him as we do any teammate and hopefully he just makes us better. We're going to continue to get back at it and know that we've got one goal as a team."

Lances arrival almost certainly means that Will Grier, who has been with the team for the past two seasons, will be cut.

Grier was reportedly told before the Cowboys final preseason game on Saturday night that he wouldnt be making the team. He played the entire game in Dallas 31-16 win over the Las Vegas Raiders, and went 29-of-35 for 305 yards and threw two touchdowns with Prescott calling plays.

Honestly right now, my heart and my mind is with Will, Prescott said after the game, via ESPN. So it's a tough situation, honestly. Love that guy to death over there. Plays his ass off, comes in, prepares the right way each and every day."

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Cowboys QB Dak Prescott feels for Will Grier after Trey Lance deal, not worried about future in Dallas - Yahoo Sports

Giving off major Jurassic Park vibes, a creature captured in Mississippi broke the record for the longest alligator ever captured in the state.

While its length 14 feet, 3 inches is astonishing, so too is its mass. The alligator captured on the second day of Mississippis hunting season weighed 802.5 pounds with a belly girth of 66 inches, according to the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks.

The previous record came in 2017 when a group bagged an alligator that was 14 feet, 0.75 inches and weighed 766.5 pounds, according to Super Talk Mississippi News.

The department said the record alligator was harvested Saturday, Aug. 26, by the foursome of Tanner White, Don Woods, Will Thomas and Joey Clark. Red Antler Processing said the hunters found the monster in the Yazoo River.

Nightmare material! one woman commented on Facebook.

I cant even start to imagine something out there that big, another commenter said.

It took the group seven hours to land the alligator onto their boat, Woods told the Clarion Ledger. He called the outing mentally exhausting.

We hooked him eight or nine times and he kept breaking off, Woods said, according to the outlet. He would go down, sit and then take off. He kept going under logs. He knew what he was doing. The crazy thing is he stayed in that same spot.

Alligator hunting season in public waters is from Aug. 25 to Sept. 4 in Mississippi. The state first offered alligator sport hunting in 2005.

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Massive alligator captured in Mississippi is a new state record. Nightmare material - Yahoo! Voices

Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin and his political team are devoting significant resources to gaining Republican control of the General Assembly this fall, hoping to enact a conservative agenda that would include passing new abortion legislation, according to several sources familiar with the governors plans.

Virginia is the last state in the South without significant restrictions on abortion rights, and advocates see it as the next big battleground on the issue.

Passing a ban on abortion after 15 weeks, with exceptions for rape, incest and saving the life of the mother, would be a legislative priority for Youngkin if his party succeeds in the November legislative elections, the sources familiar with his plans said. The governor and his campaign team believe that 15 weeks is a consensus limit one that many Virginians across political ideologies can agree upon. And theyre betting the measure is modest enough to avoid spikes in Democratic turnout more stringent bans have triggered in other states.

Their view is informed by the all-women focus groups they conducted on abortion throughout the summer as part of GOP efforts to hold the Virginia House and win the Senate, NBC News has learned. Zack Roday, the coordinated campaigns director, for Youngkin's state PAC Spirit of Virginia, said the women's views on abortion were "complicated" and "nuanced." But, he said, "15 weeks with exceptions, is a place where a lot of people start nodding their head."

Youngkin is eyeing new abortion limitations as elected Democrats in the commonwealth sound the alarm that the national party isn't doing enough to prevent the Republican governor and his allies from winning the state Senate or from keeping their hold on the House of Delegates.

Some Republicans in the state dont view abortion, and especially a 15-week ban, as an issue that will drive voters to the polls or give Democrats an edge as it has in other recent elections.

In a Spirit of Virginia briefing with reporters this summer, where Youngkins political team laid out its priorities for November, cost of living, safety and education were mentioned as the three issues they believe Republican voters care most about.

Abortion was not on that list. In fact, the topic didnt even come up until a reporter asked about it.

I dont think its the priority, said Republican state Sen. Siobhan Dunnavant, a practicing OB-GYN. I think that Democrats want to make it a priority.

Dunnavant, who is in a tough re-election fight, agreed with Youngkin's camp that 15 weeks seemed just about right. Its compassionate, and its consensus, she said. Fifteen weeks gives ample opportunity.

According to a recent Gallup survey, nearly 70% of Americans believe abortion should be legal during the first three months of pregnancy. And there's some evidence that Republican voters might be as satisfied with a 15-week restriction on the procedure as they are with more stringent bans that have turned off independent and Democratic voters. A recent NBC News/Des Moines Register/Mediacom poll of Iowa Republicans found close to the same percentage supported the state's six-week abortion ban (60% said it gets the issue "about right") as those who said they were more likely (54%) to support a hypothetical candidate who backed a 15-week ban.

Virginia allows abortions up to 26 weeks and six days of pregnancy through the first two trimesters with exceptions in the third trimester if three physicians find that the womans health is at risk. Earlier this year, Democrats, who control the state Senate, prevented several pieces of abortion-related legislation from moving forward, including one that would have limited abortion after 15 weeks.

Democrats are betting that any new threats to abortion rights will help them in November. State House Democrats last week launched a series of digital ads highlighting abortion restrictions in other states since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade and warned voters that Virginia could be next if Republicans gained a majority in the state legislature this year. Republicans, for their part, have fired back with an ad first shared with NBC News that paints Democrats as extreme on abortion.

They want to continue to downplay and dismiss womens rights and abortion rights, like women dont have a voice, Democratic state Sen. Aaron Rouse, focus on abortion rights helped him win a special election in the Virginia Beach area this year, said of Republicans. Women have been very loud and clear in the state of Virginia: Dont touch my rights, my freedom, when it comes to making a really tough health care decision.

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com

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Virginia Gov. Youngkin eyes a 15-week abortion ban as a 'consensus' voters would back - Yahoo News

Former President Donald Trump at a rally at the Iowa State Fair in Des Moines on Aug. 12. (Brandon Bell/Getty Images)

So far, the fact that former President Donald Trump has been criminally indicted four times this year has done little to dent his support among Republican voters.

But what if hes eventually convicted?

A new Yahoo News/YouGov poll has found that in that scenario, even some current Trump supporters could start to have second thoughts about casting their ballots for him in 2024.

The survey of 1,665 U.S. adults was conducted from Aug. 17 to 21 after the news of Trumps most recent indictment, for allegedly orchestrating a racketeering ring to overturn the 2020 election results in Georgia, had some time to sink in, but before he surrendered Thursday at the Fulton County Jail.

The results are striking.

Asked about their current preference for the 2024 GOP presidential nomination, a full 52% of potential Republican primary voters that is, voters who identify as Republicans or Republican-leaning independents select Trump. That makes him the partys undisputed frontrunner, with the next closest candidate, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, trailing by 40 percentage points.

But when the same voters are asked a new follow-up question If Trump is convicted of a serious crime in the coming months, who would you vote for in your states 2024 Republican primary? support for the former president suddenly plummets by 17 points (to just 35%). Support for DeSantis, on the other hand, rises by 8 points (to 20%). Another 17% say theyre not sure (up from 14%). No other candidate gains more than a point or two.

Asking registered voters who they would vote for in next years general election if Trump is convicted of a serious crime produces a similar (though smaller) shift. In that case, support for President Biden, the presumptive Democratic nominee, holds steady at 47%. But support for Trump falls by 3 points, from 41% to 38%, while the overall number of voters who say they're not sure (9%) or that they would not vote (6%) increases by 3 points.

That gives Biden a 9-point lead.

In 2020, Biden defeated Trump by 4.5 percentage points nationwide enough for a 306-232 Electoral College victory. If Biden were to double his previous margin in 2024, Trump would lose in a landslide. By the same token, if Trump were to shed 17 points of GOP primary support in Iowa, the first caucus state, his lead there would shrink to single digits, according to the latest polling.

For observers who have long wondered if anything could ever loosen Trumps iron grip on the GOP, such numbers offer a provisional answer: perhaps being found guilty of serious crimes and possibly even sentenced to prison on the brink of a high-stakes presidential election.

(Asked at Wednesdays GOP primary debate if they would still support the nomination of a convicted Trump, six of his eight rivals everyone except former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson said yes. DeSantis hesitated and made sure others were raising their hands before raising his.)

To be sure, these Trump conviction scenarios are all very hypothetical. The former president's trials havent started yet, and they might not conclude before voters go to the polls, either in key primary states or in the general election. He may be acquitted in the end. Unless the rest of the GOP can coalesce around a single alternative, 35% of the primary vote could still be enough to secure Trump the nomination.

And even if the former president is found guilty of serious crimes in the coming months, supporters who currently express hesitation about backing a convicted felon or say theyd skip voting altogether might find a way to rationalize returning to the fold when primary day or Election Day actually arrives.

Yet for Trump and for the party poised to nominate him again real signs of danger remain.

For one thing, large majorities of Americans say the crimes hes been accused of are, in fact, serious:

Falsifying business records to conceal hush money payments to a porn star: 54% serious crime, 34% not a serious crime

Taking highly classified documents from the White House and obstructing efforts to retrieve them: 66% serious crime, 20% not a serious crime

Conspiring to overturn the results of a presidential election: 70% serious crime, 17% not a serious crime

Attempting to obstruct the certification of a presidential election: 70% serious crime, 17% not a serious crime

For the last two offenses Trumps alleged election crimes even Republicans are more likely to consider them serious (47%) than not (32-33%).

Second, just 27% of Americans believe there should be no criminal cases against Trump at all. A combined 56% say either that there should be more criminal cases against Trump (28%); that the number of cases is appropriate (18%); or that there should be some charges against Trump even if four cases is too many (10%). Indictment fatigue is not a big issue, at least not yet.

Finally, most Americans already think Trump should be found guilty on some or all charges in the election cases, both at the federal level (54%) and in Georgia (52%). Less than a third (32% and 31%, respectively) say he should not be convicted.

As usual, the new Yahoo News/YouGov poll found a clear and consistent pattern of partisan polarization around the Trump indictments. Across the board, slightly less than half of Americans (48% on average) approved of the decision to indict him in each separate case, while slightly more than a third (35% on average) disapproved.

The problem for the former president is that 35% or even 38%, his head-to-head number against Biden if convicted is not enough to win.

In 2020, Trump received nearly 47% of the national popular vote; he still lost by 7 million ballots. To mount a successful comeback in 2024, he will need to expand his support, not shed it. Getting convicted of a serious crime between now and then is likely to be a step in the wrong direction.

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The Yahoo News survey was conducted by YouGov using a nationally representative sample of 1,665 U.S. adults interviewed online from Aug. 17 to 21, 2023. The sample was weighted according to gender, age, race, education, 2020 election turnout and presidential vote, baseline party identification and current voter registration status. Demographic weighting targets come from the 2019 American Community Survey. Baseline party identification is the respondents most recent answer given prior to March 15, 2022, and is weighted to the estimated distribution at that time (32% Democratic, 27% Republican). Respondents were selected from YouGovs opt-in panel to be representative of all U.S. adults. The margin of error is approximately 2.8%.

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Poll: Trump could be in big trouble for 2024 if convicted of crimes - Yahoo News

Tatiana Maslany faced down her fears of heights and cold in Running Wild with Bear Grylls. (National Geographic)

Actress Tatiana Maslany has played some pretty tough characters on hit shows like Orphan Black and She-Hulk: Attorney at Law, but it turns out she has a few major fears in real life that she was able to face head-on during Sundays Running Wild with Bear Grylls: The Challenge.

Host Grylls invited Maslany to the Laramie Mountains in Wyoming during winter for what was an up-and-down adventure literally. And it started by going down, as in the two of them rappelling down a 150-foot cliff. Right away, Maslany had her reservations.

Its so steep, I cant even see the bottom. And Im mild to moderately to maximumly afraid of heights. So this is gonna be very fun, she said with a nervous laugh.

The actress reiterated her fear of heights and admitted to having jelly legs before finally bringing herself to go over the edge. Slowly and steadily she made her way down, with comments from Grylls along the way like, have a look down and youre looking like a pro.

Maslany was speechless for a moment after she reached the bottom, and then Grylls asked about her legs.

More like a jelly spine at this point. That was insane, Maslany said, later adding: I feel elated, and I might cry in two seconds cuz thats Im riding that emotion. I feel very proud. That was super fun.

And while Maslany was feeling good about herself, Grylls was also impressed from his point of view.

For Tatiana to do that as her first rappel, someone whos scared of heights, respect, he said. No surprise that at the bottom is a bit of emotion, thats why the wild is beautiful. It shakes us like rag dolls but leaves us smiling in the end. Its magical.

Later, after pulling bone marrow from the limbs of a rotting elk for dinner that night, Grylls broke the news to Maslany that she was going to have to be submerged in freezing cold water the next day before she could be extracted from the location. And after practicing with just her hand in icy cold water, Maslany was somewhat hesitant.

There was definitely a point where I was like, Im just gonna, like, tap out here. So I'm freaking out about tomorrow, I gotta be honest. Uh, totally different level of fear, she said.

Maslany later admitted while the bone marrow was coming to a boil that along with heights she is also afraid of the cold and of being sick and throwing up, hence the reason she wasnt super stoked about the bone marrow, either.

But Maslany ate her dinner and when it came time to do the cold water plunge the next day, she was ready. After getting in, her gasp reflex quickly took over, and Grylls was there to help her get it under control. After a few moments, it was time to get back out and dry off she did it.

I am totally buzzing, Maslany said afterward. I was in a different state in my body than I've ever experienced before. And to have this, like, euphoria afterward is amazing.

Grylls said her ability to do the survival stunt was amazing and was happy to see that she picked up a few lessons to take with her back to the real world.

Shes learned that vital thing, that the only way to get over the things that were scared of in life is by doing them, Grylls said. Thats her real superpower.

Running Wild with Bear Grylls airs Sundays at 9 p.m. on National Geographic.

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'She-Hulk' star Tatiana Maslany nearly brought to tears after overcoming fears of heights and cold with the help of Bear Grylls - Yahoo Entertainment

Experts say being lazy and chilling out can be good for us -- within reason. Photo illustration: Yahoo News; photo: Getty Images

There is a joy to being lazy. And believe it or not, some health benefits too. Whether youre cruising through episodes of your favorite show so you can trade notes on the finale with friends or indulging in that comfort flick youve seen a million times, youve inevitably found yourself prioritizing chill time on the couch over time spent ticking to-dos off your list. Estimates show that in 2023, the majority of Americans spend two hours and 33 minutes per day watching TV.

Taking a break to do something you find pleasurable can trigger the release of neurotransmitters like dopamine, which are associated with feelings of pleasure and happiness, Sanam Hafeez, a licensed psychologist and director of Comprehend the Mind in New York City, tells Yahoo Life. Theres also a case for leaning on loafing whether youre watching TV, getting lost in a book you cant put down or simply scrolling through cat memes on Instagram to recharge and reduce burnout. But, as with anything, moderation is key.

Heres what Hafeez, other experts and science have to say about the psychological benefits of chilling out on the couch sometimes.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warns that the majority of Americans are too sedentary, given that more than 60 percent of U.S. adults are struggling to hit the recommended amount of daily activity. At the same time, hustle culture which centers on work above all else cant help but affect how we feel about finding time to chill out. Slowing down and spending time catching up on episodes of Succession may actually feel more like a guilty pleasure than something you can easily accept as part of your routine. Weve been so socialized from a young age that achievement needs to be a top value, Lauren Cook, a Pasadena-based psychologist, tells Yahoo Life. We equate productivity with worth, and we think that if were not producing, then were a failure. This is a systemic issue that so many people are struggling with.

Colleen Marshall, a licensed marriage and family therapist and vice president of clinical care at Two Chairs, agrees, telling Yahoo Life that if youre not spending time on an activity thats connected to making progress on your goals, youre letting yourself down. The problem with that, though, is that all of us need to have some way of de-stressing and [taking] breaks from that constant flow, she explains, equating chill-out time for most people to rest days for athletes. They have a leg day, and then they dont work on legs for a while. Thats how you actually build muscle to work and then have a break.

Marshall acknowledges that de-stressing activities, like watching TV or reading a book, may seem unproductive or as though youre wasting time, but theyre actually helping you rest and recharge.

In other words, as Cook points out, rest is productive. We have to be boundaried with our rest time and say to ourselves, I am going to take this time and I do not need to choose to buy into the guilt that may come with that. Im taking the rest of the night off, she says.

Loafing isnt only a way to step back from work to rest and recharge. In moderation, its also an opportunity to enjoy a variety of psychological benefits, points out Hafeez.

Several perks of taking time to cuddle up and catch up on your favorite show:

Rest and relaxation allow your brain to wander and make new connections, explains Hafeez. This can foster creativity and innovative thinking. For example, in a 2022 study, watching nature videos was associated with the promotion of alpha brain waves, which are linked to relaxation, daydreaming and creativity.

A 2020 study published in the journal Psychology and Agingfound that older adults who spent more time sitting excelled at knowledge-based activities like vocabulary, reading comprehension and reasoning tasks. The researchers concluded that this may be owed to the fact that sedentary time is often also time spent on brain-stimulating activities, whether thats reading a nonfiction book or doing a crossword puzzle.

Whether youre carving out time to get caught up on And Just Like That... or that buzzy new celebrity autobiography, youll benefit from chilling out in a way that ultimately fuels connection with others, whether in real time or down the road.

Binge-watching can be an entryway for conversation, Jamie Schenk DeWitt, a licensed marriage and family therapist in private practice in Los Angeles, tells Yahoo Life. You may see somebody the next day, and you say, Did you watch the recent episode of Succession? It was so good, she notes. And you start talking, and you both get really excited. And you may ask them, What did you make of it?

In turn, discussing your shared experience can lead to a surge of oxytocin, the bonding neurotransmitter, says DeWitt, which has anti-stress effects like reducing blood pressure and cortisol levels. In that way, it can be a positive experience for your whole body, she says.

Consistently working without taking breaks can lead to burnout, points out Hafeez. On the other hand, finding time to disconnect from work-related stressors makes it possible to recharge your mental and emotional energy. That way, once you do get back to traditionally productive tasks, you can tackle them with renewed vigor.

Just as overwork takes a toll on your overall well-being, the same is true for carving out too much time for loafing. For instance, research has shown that moderate or severe depression is associated with more TV watching and other screen time.

And an abundance of sedentary behavior can also heighten a variety of health risks. For example, the CDC points out that not getting enough physical activity can lead to heart disease, even for people who have no other risk factors, and can boost the chances of developing other heart disease risk factors, including obesity, high blood pressure, high blood cholesterol and type 2 diabetes. The CDC adds that recommended physical activity can also reduce the risk of many cancers, like cancers of the breast, colon and uterus.

In short, its a must to ask yourself if youre chilling out to the point that youre forgoing behaviors that are integral to your overall health and well-being. DeWitt advises asking yourself the following questions:

Are you binge-watching at the deficit of doing physical exercise, connecting with friends, getting enough sleep?

Is it impeding your daily functioning and your ability to thrive?

Are you using it as a tool or a mechanism to avoid things in your life that you dont want to deal with?

If any of the answers is yes, it is likely advisable to cut back. When it comes to knowing the ideal amount of time to spend loafing, know that its not one-size-fits-all, explains DeWitt. [Theres a difference between] somebody who has a busy week and is so productive and may say to themselves, Sunday, I am binge-watching that show, and I feel great about it versus somebody else whos really been avoiding confronting [challenges] in their life, and things are piling up, and they havent gotten their mail all week, and then, Sunday, they say the same thing, she says.

No matter which restful activity to opt to dive into when youre loafing, youll do well to truly embrace it, says Marshall. If Im going to watch an hour of Gilmore Girls, I should do it fully, she recommends. I should be fully present in the moment, enjoying the show instead of thinking about my meeting tomorrow or the laundry I need to finish.

In turn, youll be practicing mindfulness, which can improve physical health, reduce stress and bring more joy and happiness into your life, she says. Ultimately, opting to engage entirely with whichever de-stressing activity appeals the most can leave you feeling fulfilled and better than you did before you watched your favorite show or read your current, go-to book, says Marshall. She concludes, When we feel better, were more productive and successful.

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Don't feel guilty about being lazy. Experts say there are some health benefits. - Yahoo Life