Monthly Archives: July 2024

For their anniversary road trip through the West, an escape from the humid misery of a Louisiana summer, Tyson and Adeline Maddox rented a glimmering convertible.

They have kept the top on. It has been too hot to do anything else.

Reminds me of the engine room, Mr. Maddox grumbled of the weather as he left the Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas sign on Wednesday evening, when temperatures were still well into triple digits.

The heat, its just constantly coming, Ms. Maddox added later. Its like being in front of an exhaust pipe.

So it has been around the Las Vegas area this week. Pedestrians sometimes felt scarcer than jackpots. Playgrounds stood empty and silent. Merely walking through a parking lot meant squinting not at the sunlight blanketing the region, but at a heat so punishing that eyes hurt without ever actually watering.

At times, the mercurys ticks upward have come so fast that forecasters, at once awe-struck and unnerved, could hardly keep up.

Remember 20 minutes ago when hitting 117F was a big deal? the local National Weather Service office wrote on social media on Wednesday. Well, the airport hit 118F.

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Las Vegas Heat Breaks Records and Stuns Even the Forecasters - The New York Times

Just months after putting up shipwreck walls and video screen portholes, legendary tiki bar designer Ben Bassham better known in tiki circles as Bamboo Ben is back in Las Vegas, this time creating huts for a new tiki bar near Fremont Street. Glitter Gulch Tiki, which comes from the Nacho Daddy team, introduces a new style of tiki bar to Las Vegas, one with a dance floor, tropical cocktails, and blowfish lights.

At Glitter Gulch Tiki, which opens at 113 4th Street in Downtown Las Vegas next week, Bamboo Ben has created custom straw-thatched booths, bamboo-paneled bar tops, and totem-style statues. The bars space used to be occupied by Nacho Daddy, which relocated just north to 121 North 4th Street while its team ventures into the tropical with Glitter Gulch Tiki. The name Glitter Gulch has been absent from downtown Las Vegas since the Topless Girls of Glitter Gulch club closed in 2016. Glitter Gulch, the decades-old nickname for the sparkly stretch of downtown, earns its way into the tiki bar with elements of neon in the ceiling and glitter in the tables.

In 2023, Bamboo Ben worked with Stray Pirate to debut the dog-themed pirate bar in the Las Vegas Arts District. In addition to a stellar drinks menu, the bar features experiential design elements making the downtown bar feel like a sunken pirate ship. Glitter Gulch Tikis interior will take a similarly immersive approach: the bar will be dark and moody, with a row of huts at the rear crafted by Ben and his son, Blake Basshem. Other seating is furnished with leather and glitter, or flanked by carved wooden archways. The bar is performance-ready with a dance floor and stage; a nearby art window depicts aspects of Las Vegass history.

In addition to the classic tiki drinks, signature offerings include the Old Jamaican with rum, coconut liqueur, supasawa sour, bitters, and coconut flakes with a flamed lime peel. The What Happens in Vegas is a take on a daiquiri with lychee puree and dry ice. A light food menu has dishes like coconut shrimp, lumpia, spicy tuna tacos, Dole Whip desserts, and as one would hope from the Nacho Daddy team poke nachos with avocado wasabi and mango pico on crispy wonton chips.

Glitter Gulch Tiki evokes a Vegas trend that is both modern and part of the citys history. Tiki bars got their start in Las Vegas in 1960, when Aku Aku opened at the Stardust Resort and Casino. One of Aku Akus giant carved Moai-style heads is now located at Sunset Park. Other Vegas favorites included the divey Frankies Tiki Room, the Italian restaurant backyard, Tiki di Amore, the tiki-meets-punk rock bar the Red Dwarf, and the twisted adult Disneyland spectacle, the Golden Tiki. While conversations continue to be had about how the kitschy bar theme is built on the backs of commodified Polynesian culture, some bartenders are exploring ways to celebrate all things tropical without the thorny appropriation of cultural aesthetics.

Glitter Gulch Tiki will be open from 5 p.m. until late Monday through Sunday starting next week.

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A Glittery Retro-Style Tiki Bar Swings Into Las Vegas - Eater Vegas

Were in a terrible situation and no option is without risk, a group of self-described Democratic operatives wrote in an unsigned memo last week. Donors, pundits, and Democratic elites are freely slinging around wild ideas about dream tickets. The document, titled Unburdened by What Has Been: The Case for Kamala, posited that it was time to get reallike it or not, theres one realistic path out of this mess: Kamala. The memo, which is said to have circulated among Democratic donors and coalition groups, made a case for Harris as the least chaotic replacement for President Joe Biden. (The title of the document is a reference to a phrase that Harris has used repeatedly throughout the years.) Bullet-pointed action items included push the administration to stop sidelining Kamala and promote Kamala as a leader of the party and the country. The New York Times and the Wall Street Journal, whose editorial boards had called for Biden to resign the nomination, recently published articles teasing whether this might finally be Harriss moment.

It was against this backdrop that Harris travelled to Las Vegas on Tuesday for what some hoped, or at least speculated, was part of an audition tape for a candidacy of her own. Even though it was the middle of the summer, with the Democratic National Convention roughly a month away, there was a tinge of the more primal feeling of the winter primary seasonis somebody about to drop out or get pushed aside? The horse race was back on, at least for now. (In a recent CNN poll, Harris lost to Donald Trump by a smaller margin than Biden did, trailing by two points as opposed to four. Another survey saw Harris beating Trump by one point.) The Cook Political Report had just deemed Nevada, a swing state, as leaning Republican.

As Democrats in Washington, D.C., held Party meetings about Bidens viability as a candidateWe are ridin with Biden, Representative James Clyburn insisted nine times to reportersHarris touched down in Vegas. It was a hundred and fourteen degrees outside. The Clark County Republicans had planned to protest her visit to the state, but they cancelled, citing the dangers of the extreme heat. Harris dropped in on the mens Olympic basketball training camp, where Steph Curry and LeBron James were both practicing; she wished them good luck in Paris. Her motorcade continued to Resorts World, where she was the keynote speaker at a festival sponsored by the Biden campaign for the Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander communities. A large group of union members in matching purple shirts were first in line to enter the ballroom where the event would take place, right above a liquor-infused-ice-cream bar and a night club.

I walked into the event with a man named Kenneth, a Biden supporter who was skeptical of a Harris candidacy. I know theres a lot of issues with Bidens age, he said, but I dont think the electorate is ready for a female President. Right now, its old man versus old man, ideals versus ideals. If it comes down to a gender question, were fucked. When I told him that some people were talking about the event as a launching pad for Harris, he gestured around the room, baffled. This is her coming-out party, this little ballroom? Please. Rent out a theatre. Its Vegas. Anyway, he said, Biden would never step aside: Who gives up power? When I told Kenneth that I usually cover Trump, he said, So you see the difference between fanatics and realists.

There were a couple hundred people in the ballroom. As voters waited for Harris to arrive, they stood in line for matcha lattes and dumplings. Lizzo was playing on the loudspeakers; lion dancers were brought out for a performance in the ballroom, followed by a Las Vegas-based all-sibling Filipino pop-punk band. I stood with a group of supporters in front of the stage. Honestly, I believe she has to be the President now, a man named Diego said, of Harris. His wife, Carolina Avila, the president of the Chilean American Association, agreed and pointed to the empty podium where Harris was set to speak. Shes a strong lady. For me, she is perfect. Shes come here to Las Vegas every month. A man named Randy, who stood next to them, was annoyed by the talk of not just assembling behind Biden. Were voting for an ideal, Randy said. Democracy.

I dont believe Biden is going to win by himself, Diego replied. He has to step out.

Randy turned to me. Write my stuff down, too, he said. The problem with the press is they talk Biden, Biden, Biden since the debate. What about Dictator Dons lies? He added, Wed all vote for a rock before a dictator.

Then why not Harris? She has the same idea as Biden, but she has energy, shes young, Carolina said. Randys solution: Bidens not going to make it four more years, anyways. Hes eighty-one. He wont get better. So shes gonna be President. Vote for Biden to get Kamala!

The mood was insistent, controlled normalcy. At moments, it was almost the lady doth protest too much: Ron Nirenberg, the mayor of San Antonio, who was one of several speakers to introduce the Vice-President, hyped the audience up for the Biden-Harris ticket: They swept the Democratic primaries. They are the leaders of our Democratic Party.

The optimism in the room might have been more persuasive had it not been so carefully calibrated. I missed the entrance of Padma Lakshmi, the Indian American author and chef, who was speaking at the event, because I was watching a newspaper reporter confront campaign staff about how journalists were not permitted to leave the enclosed press pen. He was saying it was abnormal to be so confined from voters, as the crowd cheered for Lakshmi saying Trump is trash. Theyre in panic mode, another reporter said, of the campaign. (Over the weekend, at a soccer watch party sponsored by the Biden campaign, a press aide sat in on and recorded all interviews with voters; the week before, a pool reporter described the deputy communications director for the Biden campaign in Nevada swooping in to stop interviews when voters turned critical of the President.)

In the late afternoon, Harris came onstage in a light-blue suit, to loud applause. She spoke for exactly fifteen minutes, affirming the Administrations commitment to inclusivity and countering hate, before moving on to topics such as the impact of medical debt on credit scores, and student-loan forgiveness. For many of the people in the room, this was their first real introduction to Harris. We dont know much about her, Swadeep Nigam, an older man who is on the Nevada State Board of Osteopathic Medicine, told me. Shes not Dick Cheney. Shes not visible.

Many of the attendees said that the media was too fixated on Bidens age, and that publications would be better served focussing on the dangers of Trump and of Project 2025, an effort by the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank, to reshape the U.S. with right-wing policies. In front of the ballroom, Harris, too, suggested it was time for the news cycle to return its focus to Trump: There is so much at stake in this moment, includlyincluding, sadly, that there are some issues that require, I think, a lot more attention from the press. And there are some issues that, sadly and most recently, have not been covered to the extent that they should, commensurate with the seriousness of the matter. The Biden campaign, she said, still firmly believes that democracy is on the lineand who would dare draw the country into a sideshow about switching candidates to run against a man whom Democrats have deemed the Xenophobe-in-Chief? Trump wants to turn our democracy into a dictatorship, Harris said. What kind of country do we want to live in: a country of freedom, compassion, and rule of law, or a country of chaos, fear, and hate?

I asked two twentysomethings what it was like to hear Harris speak. Louder? More volume, one said. I found Nigam again as the crowd dispersed. Nigam has participated in local Republican politics, but he wouldnt say whether he would vote for Biden, Harris, or Trump. It was the same repetitive talk, he said, of Harriss speech. Reminds me of Walter Mondale in 1984, or Reagan. Its nothing different. Its nothing in particular. The talking points were just to ignite the crowd. Even Mrs. Clinton talked about this stuff. When I asked him how the event could have been better, he replied, Padma Lakshmi should have been cooking some food. He told me that he thought the D.N.C. in August would be a repeat of the 1968 Convention in Chicago. We have good institutions, so we will survive as a country, he said. In the ballroom, a trio of friends drank matcha lattes. Two favored Kamala; one stuck with Biden. Were all in no matter who it is, one told me. Honestly, I dont particularly care. With Trump on the other side, he added, I would vote for a corpse.

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The Controlled Normalcy of Kamala Harriss Trip to Las Vegas - The New Yorker

LAS VEGAS Robert F. Kennedy Jr. promised a FreedomFest audience an America Strong unity government that would aim to end decades of division.

I pledge to appoint a cabinet comprising members of the Democratic Party, Republican Party, Libertarian Party, and people from the Green Party and other parties and parties outside the political process, the environmental lawyer and anti-vax activist told the crowd at Caesars Forum.

He said he would convene a cross-partisan advisory committee to propose and select Supreme Court justices and pardon or commute the sentences of any people who have been politically prosecuted, [and] this includes Ross Ulbricht, creator of the Silk Road darknet website, currently serving a life sentence without the possibility of parole.

Kennedy promised a real full and unconditional pardon to Wikileaks founder Julian Assange, who escaped prison by pleading guilty to one felony count in a plea deal, and that he would also weigh pardons or commutations of any past president or members of their families if I find that any of the charges still pending against them were politically motivated.

On day one as President, Kennedy said, the first thing that Im going to do on my first day in office is to issue an executive order declaring that any federal official who tells a lie in conjunction with his official duties will lose his job.

Also, he said, Im going to order the intelligence agencies to cease propagandizing the American public.

Kennedy vowed to use AI and blockchain technology to make all government actions and interactions transparent to the public, though he did not offer details on how that would work.

He said neither President Biden nor former President Donald Trump can solve the crisis of division.

Neither President Trump or President Biden is prepared to unify our nation. In fact, their rhetoric and their actions will only divide us further and they dont even contest that, Kennedy said

Speaking Friday afternoon at the annual event, the son of the slain New York Senator and 1968 Democratic presidential candidate impressed many with his Sin City stump speech.

But if several attendees at the venue where he delivered his rousing remarks are any indication, he won few converts to his electoral cause.

Our country faces some steep challenges right now in its history, and we cannot hope to meet them if were all at each others throats, Kennedy said. What do we need to do to make America strong again from the inside out? We need truth and we need unity.

Kennedy said a lack of civics education in schools is partly responsible for the division.

We need to raise a generation of children that understands that they need to fight for these constitutional rights to the death, he said. They need to fight for them to the gates of hell and if hell freezes over they need to fight for them on the ice.

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Julie Lynch from Pittsburg, California, said Kennedys speech was impressive, but not enough to make her leave the Trump camp.

I felt that he knew the crowd he was addressing, and he stayed on a message that the crowd would want to hear, she said. Im a Trump supporter, so I know I wouldnt vote for Robert Kennedy. I think that he, at heart, is quite liberal, perhaps even socialist. I agree with bits and pieces of things that he said, but I think his overall philosophy is not the same America First philosophy that I think Trump would espouse.

Amanda Ishmael from Sioux Falls, South Dakota, said shes not voting for Kennedy.

I dont know a lot about him. You know what hes campaigning on, but yeah, I did like his speech, she said. I will be voting libertarian, and I have to do the rebellious protest vote.

William Shaw, a transplant to Austin, Texas, from northern Connecticut, said Kennedys message might have been miscast for the FreedomFest crowd.

I like the messaging around, you know, trying to form a unity administration, he said. I do think it was kind of an odd match for this audience, given like the strong, kind of, you know, Libertarian Party, at least adjacent character of the event.

Shaw said he would likely vote Libertarian in Texas, but might cast a ballot for RFK Jr. to add a number to the tally.

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RFK Jr. gets cheers in Vegas as he pledges to unify the nation, but wins over few converts - New York Post

The Las Vegas Sphere has been wowing the public with its dazzling computer-generated imagery. It turns out over a hundred Nvidia GPUs are helping to render the effects.

In a blog post, Nvidia said the company behind the Sphere is harnessing around 150 RTX A6000 graphics cards to power the visuals both inside and outside the dome-like venue, which cost $2.3 billion to build.

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In December 2020, Nvidia launched the RTX A6000, which currently cost about $4,500 a piece. The workstation GPU is now being used to render content for the 16k by 16K displays across the Spheres interior, as well as 1.2 million programmable LED pucks on the venues exterior, the company said.

(Photo by Eliot J. Schechter/NHLI via Getty Images)

The results have helped the Sphere display all kinds of imagery, often to promote concerts or special events at the venue. To do so, Sphere Studios, which is based in Burbank, California, will develop custom video content for the venues massive displays.

Nvidias blog post didnt go into details about how the A6000 GPUs are powering the visuals at the Sphere. However, the company noted the visuals are streamed in real time to rack-mounted workstations equipped with Nvidia RTX A6000 GPUs, achieving unprecedented performance capable of delivering three layers of 16K resolution at 60 frames per second.

In addition, the Sphere has been using Nvidias networking technology to eliminate any stuttering to the content streaming. This includes using the companys Bluefield data processing units and the Nvidia Rivermax software, which is focused on media streaming.

Nvidias blog post goes on to say the Sphere has been captivating the public. But all that technology isnt cheap, with some estimates projecting the Sphere might use enough electricity to power 21,000 homes during its peak usage.

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Las Vegas Sphere Uses 150 Nvidia A6000 GPUs to Power Its Massive Display - PCMag

LAS VEGAS Basketball fans got a first look at many of the top NBA draft picks during the first day of Las Vegas Summer League. The Thomas & Mack Center sold out for the two marquee games as 19,000 fans packed the gym for Lakers vs. Rockets to see Bronny James in action. But it was Reed Sheppard, the No. 3 pick, who stole the show and helped Houston get the win, 99-80.

"It was good to get out again and start to compete and play with different guys," Sheppard said after the game. "We had a good week in practice, so just to get out and go against another team was a lot of fun."

The other big game of the night was Wizards vs. Hawks, featuring the No. 1 pick in the draft, Zaccharie Risacher, squaring off with the No. 2 pick, Alex Sarr. The Wizards edged out the Hawks in the closing minutes, securing the win, 94-86.

"It was a nice first game and we got the win so I'm happy," Sarr said after the game.

The first night of Summer League did not disappoint and there's plenty more action to come during the 11-day tournament. Yahoo Sports breaks down the notable performers from Day 1.

Reed Sheppard, Rockets Sheppard had six points in the first half, then came alive in the third quarter, hitting deep 3s and taking players off the dribble. Defensively he was incredibly active, deflecting passes and blocking shots off the switch. Sheppard finished with 23 points, five assists, four rebounds and three blocks in the win.

"As the game went on, I just got more and more comfortable," Sheppard said. "My coaches and teammates were telling me to keep being aggressive. They told me when you come off ball screens, look for your shot. A lot of that was them putting confidence in me."

Dalton Knecht, Lakers Knecht led the Lakers in scoring, pouring in 25 points in the loss. He struggled a bit off the bounce but was deadly in catch-and-shoot situations, hitting 5 of 11 from 3. He also added six rebounds and four assists and played both on and off the ball throughout the game. The fifth-year senior out of Tennessee fell to the Lakers with the 17th pick in what could be the steal of the draft.

Bronny James, Lakers James finished with eight points, with six of those coming in the first quarter. He couldn't find his rhythm from deep, going 0 for 8 from 3-point range. "My shot wasnt falling today, but I just need to continue to get the reps in and get better," James said postgame.

The 6-2 guard was visibly upset with the loss after the game but is being patient with the process and learning as much as he can from game to game. "Im just running the film and looking at things I always do and whatever open looks I get, Im going to take it," James said. "Im getting more comfortable and letting the game come to me, but we just need to get better."

James, the 55th pick in the draft, added five rebounds and two steals.

Cam Whitmore, Rockets Last year's Summer League MVP was the best player on the court Friday night, finishing with 20 points, 10 rebounds, four assists and four steals. He was confident off the dribble and had some good looks in transition. At one point during a half-court set, he cut for one of the best dunks of the night.

In the second quarter, Whitmore also pulled Sheppard aside to give him a few pointers on what he was seeing.

"That was just a defensive thing he was talking about and that's what so great about Cam is he played last year and he knows the smaller things that I don't know yet," Sheppard said. "He's just taking the initiative and helping me and teaching me and giving me advice and it's been very helpful."

Zaccharie Risacher, Hawks Risacher, the No. 1 pick in the draft, was fairly quiet until halfway through the third. He struggled from behind the arc to start the game, going 1 for 5, before finding his rhythm and finishing 3 for 9 from 3 for 18 points.

When his shot wasn't falling, he used his footwork to seal in the mismatch and score off the block. The 6-foot-8 wing played more games than any college player in the draft with his season extending into May for the LNB Pro A playoffs in France. In his first NBA game, he showed more versatility on the perimeter and is proving to be more than just a designated shooter.

"Honestly, that was a great experience," Risacher said. "Just to step out on an NBA court, and I felt good. I know we lost, but that's a part of the game and I'm ready to do whatever the coach asks me to do."

Alex Sarr, Wizards Sarr was known for his rim protection coming into the draft and capped off his first NBA game with four blocks. He held down the paint defensively. The spacing in the NBA also benefits the 7-1 mobile center and he was utilized in the pick-and-pop regularly, comfortably stepping outside to the perimeter.

Sarr still needs to get stronger but didn't shy away from contact. He was physical in the lane and zipped passes when he felt the help-side defense drop. The No. 2 pick finished with 12 points (including two 3s), seven rebounds and four assists.

"I was just taking what the game was giving me and trying to make good reads out there," Sarr said. "This time right now is just about getting better and adjusting to the pace of the game. Our team is position-less and they want everyone to play in every spot, so they really put an emphasis on that."

Bub Carrington, Wizards Carrington was the 14th pick in the draft and showed off his versatile playmaking in his first game on the court. The 18-year-old didn't shy away from any open shots off screens and was comfortable getting downhill. He finished with 19 points, nine rebounds and eight assists in the win.

The Wizards might have drafted two building blocks for the franchise in Sarr and Carrington, who looked confident as the primary ball-handler. The team could give him the freedom to get reps as its future starting point guard this upcoming season.

"I felt great out there," Carrington said. "Just playing the game I love and connecting with my teammates. We kind of got stagnant and started playing iso-ball so we just had to regroup and trust each other."

Nikola Djurisic, Hawks The Serbian guard finished with only seven points, but his first NBA basket came on a poster dunk over Sarr in the opening minutes of the game. The Hawks drafted Djurisic with the 43rd pick and he added two assists and two rebounds in the close loss.

Terrence Shannon Jr., the No. 27 pick out of Illinois, looked comfortable in his first game with Minnesota. He finished with 25 points, three rebounds and two blocks in 27 minutes. He scored mostly off the dribble and favored finishing on the left side of the rim. His pace was great and he played well alongside Rob Dillingham, who finished with five assists.

"I'm known as a scorer, but I'm really trying to set up my teammates because during the season I'm going to be playing with Anthony Edwards, Karl-Anthony Towns, guys that score," Dillingham said after the game. "I've just been watching a lot of film of Mike [Conley] and how he sets up guys in the offense."

The Orlando Magic got a commanding win over the Cleveland Cavaliers, 106-79. They were led by last year's lottery picks, Anthony Black and Jett Howard, who combined for 42 points, but Tristen da Silva (this year's No. 18 pick) was the glue guy along the wing, posting 13 points, five rebounds and four assists.

Meanwhile, the Pacers' frontcourt of Jarace Walker and Oscar Tshiebwe combined for 42 of the team's 95 points in a two-point loss to the Nets. Walker was a lottery pick last year and Tshiebwe (who had 19 rebounds) went undrafted last year. Brooklyn's Jalen Wilson drained five 3-pointers and led all players with 25 points in the win.

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NBA Summer League, Day 1: Reed Sheppard steals the show vs. Bronny James in Las Vegas - Yahoo Sports

LAS VEGAS If there's ever a place where you can turn your luck in the blink of an eye, for better or for worse, it's Las Vegas. And while things had not been going Dalton Knechts way for the Lakers this summer, that changed as quickly as hitting a jackpot on the slot machines on Friday.

The Thomas & Mack Center was rambunctious when the Lakers stepped onto the court Friday night with the vast majority of the attention landing on Bronny James shoulders.

From warmups until the final buzzer, everything he did was overvalued. Fans stood up as if the national anthem was playing when he took to the floor. There were cheers for his dunks pregame and jeers during his 0-8 performance from deep.

In the end, the Lakers' performance as a Summer League team in Vegas was more of the same as in San Francisco: flashes of quality, droughts with no scoring and another blowout loss.

Bronny may have been the main character as the night began, but Knecht had the kind of Friday night in Vegas that people dream of.

The result was irrelevant. Knecht's performance was not as he was the Lakers' best player on the floor and demonstrated why they made the right move by drafting him.

He started for the team, just like he did in all three California Classic games, but this time, his performance wasn't up-and-down; he was, in a word, sensational.

This game was the intersection where his promise and potential met with his current state.

He set ball screens, found his position on the wing and converted his shots, whether contested or not. He was known in college as a sharpshooter and brought that range to Las Vegas, hitting on five of his eight 3-point attempts.

"It just fell, Knecht said postgame. "I always stay confident in my shot and I know my teammates got my back, as well as the coaching staff. No matter what, I'm just gonna let it fly."

Tonight, Knecht's confidence never wavered. He took 18 shots more than any player on either team and converted on nine of them, tying with Houston Rockets rookie guard Reed Sheppard for the most makes.

Late in the game, he took more and more responsibility, handling the ball at the top of the key. Confidence oozed from him as he drove and dished out four assists.

It is encouraging to see Knecht continuously improving with each Summer League minute he plays. Fans want to see signs of growth and a willingness to absorb as much as possible and apply it like a sponge.

When looking at Knecht's flaws, the defensive side is an area where improvement is not only desired but required.

Knecht spoke about the work he has to do on that aspect of his game following the defeat.

"Just learning the concepts; everyone is from different colleges, and some are from overseas," Knecht said. "Just learning the coverages and keep communicating on the defensive end."

He was destroyed by Sheppard early in the second half.

Sheppard executed a right crossover that took Knecht out of position and then put the exclamation point on the play with a hesi floater that will undoubtedly make the young Rockets' highlight reel from the summer.

Later in the game, Knecht improved defensively.

He held his ground inside the paint, fighting for rebounds. Players tried to post him up a couple of times, but he used his size to stand to stay planted and avoided getting scored on.

Progress isn't linear. There have been and will continue to be bumps along the way as Knecht adjusts to the NBA life under the microscope of being a Laker. Still, so far, he's shown flashes of brilliance and a propensity to adapt and evolve under the leadership of his coaches.

"Both JJ (Redick) and (Dane) Johnson said the same thing: 'Just keep getting aggressive, lead the team, and keep getting better every single day," Knecht said postgame.

He'll have another opportunity to improve and attempt to pass the ultimate Lakers test by beating the Celtics on Monday.

Even if the result wont matter in the long run, Knechts performances will. And the Lakers are hoping theyve found themselves a high roller they can bank on moving forward.

You can follow Edwin on Twitter at @ECreates88.

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Dalton Knecht shows hes NBA-ready in Las Vegas debut for Lakers - Silver Screen and Roll

Who knows what Aaron Rodgers is thinking?

And he likes it that way.

Rodgers, once again, said something curios while at the American Country Celebrity Golf Tournament according to Vegas Sports Today.

Rodgers was asked about the Raiders who new Las Vegas offensive coordinator Luke Getsy will use top wide receiver Davante Adams. Rodgers, Adams and Getsy were all together with the Green Bay Packers.

Rodgers said I love Luke Getsy. He then, without prompting said I love Davante Adams. I cant wait to play with him again.

OK, then.

Rodgers seems pretty confident he and Adams will reunite. Its been no secret that Rodgers would like his New York Jets to acquire Adams. But the Raiders have not been interested in dealing him. Adams said this week Rodgers remains in his ear about joining the Jets, but Rodgers knows hes a Raider.

So, if it doesnt happen in New York, maybe somewhere in Rodgers interesting mind the thought of him joining Adams in Las Vegas is the way to a reunion. After all, he he said he loves Getsy. And the Raiders were reportedly a team that interested Rodgers a few years ago when there were trade rumors.

This, of course, is something for the future to think about and theres a lot to shake out in both Las Vegas and in New York at the position before any changes occur.

But Rodgers is thinking about something.

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Raiders quarterback: Is Aaron Rodgers playing chess? - Silver And Black Pride

When the Las Vegas Raiders fell 3-0 to the Minnesota Vikings in Week 14 last season, there was a sense of depletion among Raider Nation.

The Raiders were fresh off a bye week heading into the matchup, a much-needed break after dropping back-to-back games that evened Coach Antonio Pierce's start as interim head coach.

With an opportunity to get back on track at home, Las Vegas was unable to score a single point.

Instead of hanging their heads, though, the Raiders bounced back the following week to drop a franchise-record 63 points on the Chargers. The effort started with their leaders.

Raiders wide receiver Davante Adams, who had come off an underwhelming 53-yard receiving game, finished with 101 yards and a touchdown on eight receptions, just his second of what would be three 100-plus-yard receiving outings.

In the sixth episode of the new Netflix documentary, "Receiver," Coach Pierce expressed his appreciation for the veteran wideout and the approach he took to that contest.

"Your star player, right?" Pierce said. "What are we playing for? Probably out the playoffs, got this interim head coach, he'll probably will get fired at the end of the season, I got money in the bank. Why he needs to do it? He could've easily just tapped out on me and be like, 'I'm good.' He didn't. For me, to be honest, that moment was like, 'I can fool with Davante.' Totally different approach now with Davante from that point on for me."

Ironically, Adams said it was because of Pierce that the team was able to rebound from the Minnesota loss.

"[Pierce is a] really open communicator and doesn't let his pride get in the way," Adams said when he joined the "Up & Adams Show" earlier this week, "and it makes it really easy to work with him and figure out solutions, which is why we were able to bounce back after putting up a goose egg against the Vikings and then, play a few days later and go up and put up 60-some-odd points. So, when you have a coach like that that's willing to listen and work with you, it makes everything a lot better."

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Why Raiders' Pierce's View of Adams Changed After 2024 Win Over Chargers - Sports Illustrated