Category Archives: Yahoo

CHICAGO There was no 2020 NBA draft combine because of the coronavirus pandemic and its been 25 months since we saw players' draft stock rise, like Cameron Johnson and Grant Williams, after a strong showing in the 2019 combine.

Ten team personnel members per NBA organization were able to attend this year and watch four days filled with five-on-five scrimmages, shooting drills, measurements and conduct individual player interviews.

There were a few players who had a strong showing and got the attention of NBA executives and scouts in attendance. Below are eight players who helped their draft stock at the 2021 combine.

Houston's Quentin Grimes had a great NBA draft combine and was the best player on the court during Day 2 of five-on-five scrimmages. (Tim Nwachukwu/Getty Images)

Ht./Wt.: 6-foot-5, 210 pounds

Junior stats: 17.8 ppg, 5.7 rpg

Projected NBA draft range: Mid-to-late first round

What a week for Grimes. He was, by far, the best player on the court in Day 2 of the five-on-five scrimmages. He looked comfortable, playing with confidence, shooting the ball well and getting his teammates involved. Grimes has been here before after testing the NBA waters two years ago. He was coming off a disappointing freshman year at Kansas and learned from that experience.

Knowing it was my second year coming to the combine, I knew exactly what to do and what NBA teams are looking for, Grimes told Yahoo Sports. I just went out there and played my game and tried to shoot the ball well, play defense and play with confidence.

Grimes was the leading scorer out of all 39 players who played in the scrimmages. He had 27 points (including seven 3-pointers) in the second game and didnt miss a single shot in the first 10 minutes of the first half.

Grimes met with the Boston Celtics, New Orleans Pelicans, Milwaukee Bucks, Denver Nuggets and Dallas Mavericks.

Ht./Wt.: 6-3, 169

Sophomore stats: 19.5 ppg, 4.7 rpg

Projected NBA draft range: Late first round

Hyland played in only one scrimmage, but what scouts saw from the point guard out of Wilmington, Delaware, was impressive. He had back-to-back pull-up 3-pointers and looked a little bit like Ja Morant the way he finished at the rim and had incredible body control in the lane. VCU didnt get to play in the NCAA tournament due to multiple players testing positive for COVID-19.

Story continues

Hyland showed hes a tough competitor and what he can do with his size and speed at the NBA level.

After seeing how well Immanuel Quickley did this past year, I think a lot of teams will take a look at Bones in the first round, one NBA scout told Yahoo Sports. Theres a lot of similarities to their game and the way they read the defense. He could be the biggest riser of this draft class.

Alabama's Joshua Primo participates during a scrimmage during the NBA draft combine at Wintrust Arena in Chicago. (David Banks/USA TODAY Sports)

Ht./Wt.: 6-5, 189

Freshmen stats: 8.1 ppg, 3.4 rpg

Projected NBA draft range: Second round

Primo wont turn 19 until December and was the youngest player participating in the draft combine. He measured a wingspan of 6-foot-9 and has bigger hands than Nuggets center Bol Bol with a 10-inch measurement.

He looked comfortable on the court all week long in drills and his one game he played in during the scrimmage sessions. Primo shot the ball with confidence and found ways to score around bigger, stronger players at the rim. Primo entered the combine and kept his eligibility, but theres no way teams let him go back to college after what they saw at the combine.

Ive always loved the game, and being able to be in this position right now while Im young, I really wanna be able to learn at this level and learn to be in a winning franchise, be a part of a winning team and be at that highest level, Primo said. I wanna compete at the highest level, and thats always been a dream.

Ht./Wt.: 6-5, 215

Freshman stats: 14.3 ppg, 4.7 rpg

Projected NBA draft range: Late first round/early second round

Christopher didnt have to play in the scrimmages and could have sat out like Isaiah Todd, Luka Garza, Marcus Bagley and B.J. Boston did, but the Arizona State guard has never one to back down from competition. Christopher played confidently and was one of the most vocal players on the court. He had one of the best dunks in the scrimmages where he drove the lane and got to the rim over 7-footer Makur Maker.

Scouts were pleased to see Christopher compete, and he definitely helped his draft stock showing NBA personnel what he can do against other elite talent in this draft class. Christopher had 28 points in two games and met with a handful of teams last week, including the Philadelphia 76ers and Minnesota Timberwolves.

Ht./Wt.: 6-10, 250

Senior stats: 8.7 ppg, 6.6 rpg

Projected NBA draft range: Second round

Sims recorded the second-best vertical jump at the combine with a 44.5-inch vertical (Keon Johnson broke the record with 48 inches) and tied for the second-best mark in event history. Usually players his size dont jump that high, but he definitely put it on display during the scrimmages and played above the rim.

Sims was great at sneaking into the lane when his defender helped off the screen, and it translated to easy baskets. Sims capped off his strong week, finishing with 18 points in his second scrimmage game.

Ht./Wt.: 7-0, 248

Junior stats: 14.7 ppg, 9.9 rpg

Projected NBA draft range: Mid-to-late first round/early second round

Queta led the entire NCAA in blocked shots last season with 97, and his defensive presence was felt in the lane as his team won both games comfortably.

I feel like Im the best shot blocker in this draft class, Queta told Yahoo Sports. I dont really see it as, I played at a low-major, that other guy played at a high-major school. Its basketball, 40 minutes. And if youre coming into the lane, Im going to try to block your shot. If Im taking it to the basket, I'm going to try to score. Its that simple.

Scouts were impressed with how well he moved for his size and his pick-and-roll defense against faster guards.

Iowas Joe Wieskamp looks to shoot during the NBA draft combine at Wintrust Arena in Chicago. (David Banks/USA TODAY Sports)

Ht./Wt.: 6-7, 205

Junior stats: 15 ppg, 6.6 rpg

Projected NBA draft range: Second round

Wieskamp shot 46.2% from 3-point range during his junior year and put his sharp-shooting on full display during the second day of scrimmages. The Iowa shooting guard finished with 26 points and 10 rebounds and was deadly from deep, knocking down six 3-pointers. Wieskamp also tested off the charts with a 42-inch vertical jump and had the fourth-fastest lane agility time, clocking in at 10.7 seconds.

I believe that Im a lot more athletic than a lot of people think, so I want to continue to prove that here at the combine, Wieskamp said.

Wieskamp averaged 1.46 points per possession on catch-and-shoot jumpers, per Synergy Sports. In a shooters' league, theres definitely going to be a team that takes Wieskamp in this draft.

Ht./Wt.: 6-9, 226

Senior stats: 18 ppg, 8.1 rpg

Projected NBA draft range: Second round

Wright was named the AP ACC Player of the Year last season and was instrumental in Georgia Tech winning the ACC tournament. He is a fierce defender and did a little bit of everything on offense for his team, showing NBA scouts he can extend his game past the 3-point line. Wright had 14 points in the first scrimmage and is a player teams can plug in right away next season and give good minutes off the bench.

More from Yahoo Sports:

Follow this link:

8 players who improved their 2021 NBA draft stock - Yahoo Sports

You have roster needs, we have sensible solutions. All players featured here are available in a majority of Yahoo leagues and all can (hopefully) help your fantasy squad. Let's go prospecting...

Let's get ahead of the next buzzy call-up by getting Duran stashed today right now. Do it.

Duran has homered six times in his last 12 games, including a walk-off opposite-field bomb on Sunday:

He's up to 13 homers on the season at Triple-A along with seven steals, plus he's slashing .291/.381/.634. That level of production is juuuust a bit better than what Red Sox center-fielders have accomplished to this point. Duran has been an effective base-stealer in previous seasons (46 SB in 2019), then he used his alternate training site time to add strength and rework his swing. The end result is a potential multi-category fantasy contributor who should get a look in the big leagues very soon.

It's possible that the organization will allow him to have the Olympics experience, but team needs will presumably be the priority.

What are we even doing here, people? The starting first baseman for the Rockies is available in nearly 60 percent of Yahoo leagues? This is a complete failure of fantasy process. Cron has hit five homers in his last nine games, he's scored 30 runs and driven in 29 on the year and he's slashing .271/.372/.489. He obviously does his home hitting in the friendliest possible environment, so there are plenty more bombs ahead. If you play in a league in which you need to fill both a CI and UTIL spot, Cron needs to be rostered by someone. You shouldn't need a licensed fantasy professional to tell you that Cron can reach 30 homers in a healthy season.

Nope, I will not stop pushing Wong as a fantasy add. It's basically my brand. He's back from the DL, again leading off for the Brewers, and he's gone 6-for-18 with two homers, four runs, and four RBIs over his last four games. He's batting a respectable .281 with six homers and five steals. Wong swiped 24 bags in 2019, so he's a solid contributor in a tricky category. Ideally, you'll get your steals from players who aren't simply one-stat specialists.

Story continues

Fulmer's numbers in relief this season have been plenty good: 26.1 IP, 35 Ks, 6 BB, 2.73 ERA, 1.22 WHIP, 6 SV. He's also a closer who can be slotted at SP, which is often helpful. If you have no use for additional saves in your fantasy life ... well, wow. Most of us are not so well positioned. At this point, Fulmer deserves an active spot in nearly all mixed leagues.

Minor has maintained his K-rate from last season (92 Ks in 86.1 IP) while reducing the walks and delivering a perfectly playable 1.18 WHIP. He's throwing his fastball less often and the curve a bit more ...

... and the whole arsenal is generally working. He's issued no more than one walk in each of his last five starts, which helps the fantasy ratios in no small way. Minor has a not-too-intimidating series of starts ahead of the all-star break (at Tex, at Bos, Cin, at Cle), so he's on the approved list for streaming.

Look, you don't have to fully embrace the Bucs, but let's recognize the fact that Brubaker has been sneaky-good. He's struck out 72 batters over 71.2 innings and produced a 3.77 ERA and 1.12 WHIP. Those numbers will play. He's kept his walk rate low this season (1.88 BB/9) and given us four starts with at least seven Ks. As with Minor, stream him as needed.

We opened with a prospect, so let's end with another. Greene just K'd six batters over 5.0 scoreless innings on Wednesday, which is a pretty standard day at the office for him. He whiffed eight over 4.0 frames in his Triple-A debut last week:

Yup, that's 104 mph. One-oh-four. Whenever he arrives in Cincinnati, he'll immediately be a must-add fantasy arm. Consider getting ahead of the mob and stashing now.

Read this article:

Fantasy Baseball Priority Pickups: Adding Jarren Duran ahead of the rush - Yahoo Sports

Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and John Kennedy (R-LA) sent a letter to a key student loan servicer CEO over "what appear to be false and misleading" statements during a congressional testimony on April 13, Yahoo Finance has learned.

We write to seek information on what appears to be false and misleading testimony that you provided at a hearing before the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Subcommittee on Economic Policy on April 13, 2021," they wrote.

Warren, the chair of the committee, and Kennedy, a ranking member, sent the letter to Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency (PHEAA) CEO James Steeley on Wednesday evening.

"This is a serious matter," the senators stressed. "Our hearing was held in part to understand the role of student loan servicers and the extent to which they bear responsibility for the myriad failures of the student loan program. But it appears that you have failed to provide accurate information about your company, undermining the Subcommittee's fact-finding role and potentially misleading committee members and the public."

Warren and Kennedy are asking Steeley to respond to their letter by July 7 and are planning a follow-up hearing on the matter.

PHEAA CEO James Steeley. (screenshot/PHEAA Facebook)

PHEAA administers the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program, which operates as FedLoan Servicing. During the April testimony, Steeley stated that he didn't believe the Department of Education (ED) had penalized or fined the company regarding its servicing.

The senators pointed to a letter from ED's Federal Student Aid from May 10, which stated that since 2016, the federal government had in fact found nine issues with how PHEAA managed the PSLF program, issued four corrective action plans, and two big fines.

"This new information provided .. by the Education Department reveals that nine Department reviews conducted since 2016 revealed problems with PHEAA's implementation of the program," resulting in multiple fines and corrective action plans, the senators stated.

Story continues

They added that if the testimony was false "knowingly and willfully," then that subjected him to fines and criminal charges. The letter added that there will also be a follow-up hearing on that matter.

"PHEAA respects the Senate subcommittees interest in ensuring the presentation of truthful and accurate testimony but categorically denies that the testimony offered by PHEAAs CEO was anything other than a truthful and good-faith effort to answer the multi-part questions posed by Senator Warren at the April 13 hearing," a PHEAA spokesperson told Yahoo Finance in a statement. "PHEAA will respond to the letter appropriately but will not engage in further public debate through the media."

Designed by Congress to help public servants from teachers to firefighters the PSLF program has been a major problem the federal government has been grappling with for years.

The PSLF program enables government and non-profit employees with federally-backed student loans to apply for forgiveness after proof of 120 monthly payments under a qualifying repayment plan.

The denial rates for the PSLF program have been steep: Recent data revealed that out of more than 390,000 PSLF forms submitted between November 2020 and April this year, only 3,458 met the requirements for PSLF 2.1%.

The data also revealed that only around 5,500 have had their loans discharged via PSLF, as of April 30.

Even though more than 175,000 active-duty service members with federal loans are eligible for PSLF, only 124 members had their applications approved, a recent report found.

Bryant Elementary School kindergarten teacher Chris Johnson sets up his classroom on April 09, 2021 in San Francisco, California. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

During the April hearing, Warren asked PHEAA's Steeley to confirm the fact that based on audits by ED since 2016, PHEAA's automated system created "errors" and "mistakenly disqualifie[d] payments."

"I do not believe that that is correct," Steeley responded, adding that he wasn't familiar with the audits.

Warren later pressed Steeley again, asking if ED had "terminated your contract or penalized your company in any way for its errors and mismanagement" of the PSLF program.

Steeley responded: "No, they have not."

Based on a letter from ED's Federal Student Aid's Richard Cordray, who heads the student loan program, between February 2016 and March 2021, PHEAA had indeed been fined and/or told to correct its behavior by the federal government.

As the CEO of the company, the letter from the senators added, it is "inexplicable that you were not aware of this series of ... findings."

Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) speaks during a Senate Finance Committee hearing on the IRS budget request on Capitol Hill in Washington,DC on June 8, 2021. (Photo by EVELYN HOCKSTEIN / POOL / AFP)

Cordray's letter to the senators, which was obtained by Yahoo Finance, found:

ED said between February and April 2016, ED found that PHEAA had made errors in counting payments of 28%. The errors were reduced to 3% in October 2016, after PHEAA implemented ED's recommendations, and the company automated payment counts.

In 2017, ED said it found problems with how PHEAA did employment certifications and again, counting qualifying payments. Both reviews found issues with how it handed consolidation loans, and found incorrect valuations for loan accounts where the borrower paid more than what was required. The government told PHEAA to correct the accounts.

In 2020, again, ED conducted three reviews, on TEPSLF and PSLF. On TEPSLF, it found issues regarding denials, resulting in the government asking PHEAA to correct its errors and "requiring FedLoan to repay $108,000 to the Department in June 2020."

On PSLF, ED found that there was a 20% error rate when it came to CARES Act denials (i.e. during this period, the government made PSLF payments on the borrowers' behalf). ED told PHEAA to fix this matter.

In September 2020, ED started looking into how PHEAA was handling qualifying payments for consolidation loans.

In October 2020, ED fined PHEAA $136,000 and asked the company to fix its errors for "failure to properly apply automatic forbearance for income-driven repayment ... applications, affecting over 65,000 borrowers."

In March 2021, ED found a 20% error rate in how PHEAA handled military PSLF applications.

Finally, ED also revealed that it is looking at drafting new corrective action plans to address recent issues, such as the CARES Act and PSLF denials.

Former Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Richard Cordray testifies before House Financial Services Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee hearing in Washington, July 30, 2014. REUTERS/Yuri Gripas

Some lawmakers and advocates have long blamed servicers for poor implementation.

"Rampant breakdowns across the student loan market harm every type of borrower, with every type of loan, at every stage of repayment," former Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) official Seth Frotman said in a testimony in Congress in September 2019. "Lost paperwork, mishandled payments, deceptive disclosures, and the routine denial of borrowers repayment rights all add up to billions of dollars in additional debt for millions of borrowers."

In an interview with Yahoo Finance in April, Warren said: "Weve got these middlemen, these student loan debt servicers that were with us today, who cant seem to keep straight."

Warren has also called on ED to stop working with Navient and PHEAA.

"These student loan debt servicers, theyre making buckets of money to help their bottom line but not to help the students who are really in trouble trying to repay their loans," she said.

Aarthi is a reporter for Yahoo Finance. She can be reached at aarthi@yahoofinance.com. Follow her on Twitter @aarthiswami.

Read more:

Follow Yahoo Finance on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Flipboard, SmartNews, LinkedIn, YouTube, and reddit.

More here:

Student loan servicer censured over 'what appears to be false' congressional testimony - Yahoo Finance

Digital Advertising Veteran to Support and Expand National Sales as Company Grows Rapidly

MIAMI BEACH, FL / ACCESSWIRE / June 23, 2021 /Alfi, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALF) ("Alfi" or the "Company"), an AI enterprise SaaS platform powering computer vision with machine learning models to allow content publishers and brand owners to deliver interactive, intelligent information without violating user privacy, announced today the appointment of Christopher Whalen as Vice President of National Sales.

In his new role, Whalen will be responsible for executing the company's advertising sales growth strategies, as well as driving and expanding Alfi's sales operations nationally. He will report directly to Ron Spears, Alfi Chief Revenue Officer, who joined the Company in March and comes from Google Ventures-backed Firefly, which provides street-level digital media on taxis and rideshare vehicles.

"Chris brings with him a wealth of DOOH industry knowledge and highly-regarded agency and client contacts," said Ron Spears, CRO, Alfi. "Having helped grow local and national networks across airport, transit, and mall media networks, his diverse skills and valuable experience are exactly what we need to lead our fast-growing sales team."

Alfi is changing the way consumers interact with DOOH displays. The Company's software makes digital screens instantly intelligent by using computer vision and AI to understand the demographics of who is in front of the screen, and then serves targeted advertisements based on real-time emotion, gender, age, and geo-location via dynamic creative video. Alfi's technology also offers immediate audience metrics and precise post-campaign attribution reporting in a privacy compliant manner, without the use of cookies.

Today, Alfi's technology is integrated into major retail and rideshare experiences around the world including AI-enabled digital advertising screen pilot programs with NEOOH of Brazil and American Eagle, as well as AI-enabled tablets in value cabs in Belfast and rideshares in Miami.

Story continues

Prior to joining Alfi, Whalen served as the Vice President of National Sales for Starlite Media, a leading shopper marketing and out of home advertising company. Before that, he developed and executed revenue-generating growth strategies at leading DOOH companies such as JCDecaux, Vector Media, and Westfield Media Group.

"Alfi is building an intelligent network' that will change how brands connect with consumers in real-life, OOH environments," said Christopher Whalen, VP of National Sales, Alfi. "Having spent 15 years serving this market, I look forward to bringing this groundbreaking technology and media to advertisers, and working with my new team to reach impactful milestones.''

"Christopher's outstanding track-record, paired with the tremendous demand for Alfi among advertisers, sets us up for exponential growth this year alone," said Paul Pereira, CEO, Alfi. "We are certain Christopher will be instrumental in helping Alfi achieve our goals."

Christopher is an active member of multiple professional LinkedIn groups in the OOH industry, including: Out-of-Home Advertising Professionals, Out of Home Specialist Association, OOH Media Professionals Collaboration, and Mall Advertising.

About Alfi Inc.

Alfi, Inc. provides solutions that bring transparency and accountability to the digital out of home advertising marketplace. Since 2018, Alfi, Inc. has been developing its artificial intelligence advertising platform to deliver targeted advertising in an ethical and privacy-conscious manner.

For more information, please visit: https://www.getalfi.com.

Alfi Inc. Media ContactDanielle DeVoren / Laura SchoolerKCSA Strategic CommunicationsAlfi@kcsa.com

Alfi Inc. Company ContactDennis McIntoshChief Financial Officerd.mcintosh@getalfi.com

Alfi Inc. Investor RelationsTraDigital IRKevin McGrath+1-646-418-7002kevin@tradigitalir.com

SOURCE: Alfi, Inc.

View source version on accesswire.com: https://www.accesswire.com/652682/Intelligent-Digital-Out-Of-Home-DOOH-Software-Company-Alfi-Bolsters-National-Sales-Team-with-Addition-of-Christopher-Whalen-as-Vice-President

Read more here:

Intelligent Digital Out Of Home (DOOH) Software Company Alfi Bolsters National Sales Team with Addition of Christopher Whalen as Vice President -...

There were many reactions to the news that the Boston Celtics were hiring Ime Udoka, currently a Brooklyn Nets assistant, as their next head coach. The most curious came from the Twitter account of Jay Williams.

The former Duke basketball star and current ESPN analyst appeared to react to Udoka's hire on Wednesday with praise for the man's talent and resume. Udoka has been an NBA assistant since 2012, working for the Nets as well as the San Antonio Spurs and Philadelphia 76ers.

However, the tweet in question led with a rather curious claim, that Udoka is the first head coach of color in Celtics history. The tweet was quickly deleted.

Now, as well-meaning as that tweet appears to be, it is also wrong. Extraordinarily wrong.

Udoka is in fact not the first head coach of color in Celtics history. Or the second. Or the third. He is the sixth, behind Bill Russell, K.C. Jones, Tom Sanders, M.L. Carr and Doc Rivers. The Celtics were actually the first team in NBA history to have a Black head coach via Russell.

The tweet was so wrong that even LeBron James had to weigh in, theorizing that the screencaps have to be photoshopped:

Unfortunately for Williams, the tweet was apparently quite real, and the reaction on Twitter was about what you would imagine. Hours later, he confirmed that the Celtics tweet came from his account, but then used a well-known defense by claiming he had been hacked.

There's obviously no way to confirm whether or not Williams is lying for what would be an embarrassing mistake, but let's just maintain some perspective here.

We've all seen what Twitter hacks look like, and they usually contain some combination of foul language, random product pushing, questionable direct messages and absolute gibberish. In this case, we're talking about a tweet that went to great lengths to not just push forward a clearly wrong bit of analysis, but even managed to mimic Williams' Twitter cadence (the man is a fan of ellipses and emojis).

Story continues

If we're looking at the work of a hacker, we are not looking at the work of a normal hacker. It would have to be a person committed to degrading Williams and/or ESPN in every phase of the operation and having the talent and subtlety to do it. After all, what's a more nefarious hacker than the one people won't even believe intervened in the first place?

More from Yahoo Sports:

Continued here:

ESPN's Jay Williams claims hacker used his Twitter account to post extremely wrong Celtics reaction - Yahoo Sports

(Bloomberg) -- Tesla Inc. shares are back in vogue.

The electric vehicle makers stock is up nearly 10% in three sessions, leaving them poised to erase the losses that piled up this year as investors moved out of growth stocks and sentiment shifted against the company.

The latest surge reversed nearly two months of lackluster trading, when investors soured on the company amid growing competition threats from traditional automakers, signs of a potential sales slowdown in China and an ongoing semiconductor shortage.

Those concerns may have taken a backseat this week as optimism about surging growth buoyed the broader market and President Joe Biden reached a deal with a group of Republican and Democratic senators on a $559 billion infrastructure plan. That package proposes investing heavily into developing the electric vehicle ecosystem in the U.S., promising to bolster Tesla and its competitors.

Tesla shares rose as much as 6.3% to $697.62 on Thursday, and closed up 3.5% at $679.82. The shares ended 2020 at $705.67. The stock is now down just 3.7% this year.

Some of the strength in the stock on Thursday could also be attributed to a tweet from Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk, who said he will try to do his best to give long-term Tesla shareholders preference in any future IPO of the Starlink unit of SpaceX.

(Updates stock move in second and fifth paragraphs.)

More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com

Subscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.

2021 Bloomberg L.P.

More here:

Tesla Rallies So Much That This Years Loss Is Set to Disappear - Yahoo Finance

Yahoo Sports is previewing all 32 teams as we get ready for the NFL season, counting down the teams one per weekday in reverse order of our initial 2021 power rankings. No. 1 will be revealed on Aug. 4, the day before the Hall of Fame Game.

(Yahoo Sports graphics by Amber Matsumoto)

Hard as it is to believe, the Houston Texans haven't been the NFLs biggest joke for that long.

The league moves fast. Before giving away future Hall of Famers DeAndre Hopkins and J.J. Watt, turning over the franchise to an overmatched team development figure, trading away any draft pick not nailed down and having their star quarterback in the news for all the wrong reasons, the Texans were soundly beating the Kansas City Chiefs in a divisional round playoff game.

This moment was Jan. 12, 2020. Houston led 24-7. The Texans win probability peaked at 91.3 percent. Barring a collapse, they were going to the AFC championship game.

That moment was less than a year-and-a-half ago. Crazy.

Of course, the Texans did collapse and lost that game. Nothing has gone right since. Usually it takes many years for a franchise to sink to the absolute bottom. Not the Texans.

Even if we remove the Deshaun Watson situation for a moment, the Texans don't have a lot to feel good about. The roster is shockingly bad. Not counting Watson, the Texans best player is offensive tackle Laremy Tunsil? Well-traveled receiver Brandin Cooks? Safety Justin Reid? Yikes. And somehow, someway, it's also the oldest roster in the NFL.

Poor David Culley. He is 65, a football lifer who has been an assistant all the way back to 1978 at Austin Peay. This is his first chance to be a head coach. He gets to lead the worst team in the NFL, and inherits the Watson mess on top of it all.

The details of Watsons alleged sexual misconduct are voluminous. Nobody knows how the NFL will handle it. Nobody knows if the Texans will trade Watson when it is settled. (Hey, remember when possibly trading Watson was the big controversial headline of the offseason?) The Houston media seems to believe that Watson will not be back, one way or another. Its a horrible situation, for everyone. Nobody wins.

Story continues

Football-wise, even if Watson plays 17 games it's hard to imagine he does so with a clear head. Hes a magical player but this is not a situation conducive to a normal season. Even when Watson played last year and played very well, the Texans were 4-12. If Tyrod Taylor or rookie Davis Mills starts for the Texans, they arent winning 25 percent of their games.

The Texans are a cautionary example of how fast things can fall apart in the NFL. A bad coach in Bill OBrien is given too much power and makes an all-time bad trade with Hopkins. Incompetent ownership doesnt know how to right the ship. Bad moves lead to more bad moves. Before you know it, the team is pouring too many resources into signing three mediocre running backs like thats a viable solution in the modern NFL.

With Watson the Texans are still probably the worst team in the NFL, which is nearly impossible to do with an elite QB. Without Watson, the Texans could be one of the worst teams weve seen in a while. The Texans should be projected to have the worst offense (if no Watson) and worst defense in the NFL.

It took dysfunctional teams like Washington and the New York Jets decades to get to this level of hilarity. The Texans sunk to the bottom and never even had time to take a deep breath on the way down.

David Johnson is one of the few Texans who will return in 2021 (Photo by Bob Levey/Getty Images)

-

We'll just leave Deshaun Watson out of this because who knows how it'll end up. Though it seems fair to note that if Watson is traded, it will be for a lot less than the Texans could have gotten when the offseason started. J.J. Watt was cut, which was a charitable move for a franchise icon but it didn't help the Texans in any way. Will Fuller also left in free agency. The Texans' biggest move, in terms of money per year, was signing quarterback Tyrod Taylor at $5.5 million. Then the Texans used their first draft pick and only top 100 pick, in the third round, on Stanford quarterback Davis Mills. If Watson does return, that means the Texans' two biggest moves of the offseason were on their second- and third-string quarterbacks. The Texans also traded a sixth-round pick to the Cincinnati Bengals for quarterback Ryan Finley and a seventh-round pick in March ... then cut Finley in May. The Texans signed running backs Phillip Lindsay and Mark Ingram when they already had David Johnson, who was infamously acquired in the DeAndre Hopkins trade. The Texans made a ton of moves. New general manager Nick Caserio made 79 transactions from Jan. 7 when he was hired through late May. At that point Houston had 27 new offensive players, 22 new defensive players and one new special teams player on the 90-man offseason roster, according to John McClain of the Houston Chronicle. Yet, it's hard to say the roster is better. This is a statement we've all gotten used to: There's no apparent plan in Houston.

GRADE: D-

-

The Texans signed Tyrod Taylor, drafted Davis Mills when they had limited picks and also added Jeff Driskel. Those are the moves of a team that doesn't plan to have Deshaun Watson, or the moves of a team that doesn't know what it's doing. Either answer is acceptable. Let's assume Watson moves on, since it seems that's what Houston is telling us. Watson dragged a horrible Texans team to four wins and a lot of close losses last season. He was so good, on such a bad team, he should have gotten MVP consideration. The only good news for the Texans is if Watson is cleared by the NFL and then traded, they are a practical lock for the first pick in 2022 and can start over at quarterback. Thankfully, Bill O'Brien didn't trade away that pick before he was fired. It's very unlikely that whoever the Texans draft in 2022 would be as good as Watson, but this franchise is a debacle and hitting the factory reset button might be for the best.

-

Houston's win total at BetMGM opened at 4.5 and was bet down to 4. If Watson plays all season (that still has to be among the potential outcomes in this crazy story), then getting to 4-13 is possible. Watson is that good. If the Texans' quarterback is Tyrod Taylor or Davis Mills, how could you ever predict them to get four wins? This roster is as bad as you'll ever find in the NFL. Take the under, which might be in play even if Watson plays for Houston. It seems like a near lock without Watson.

-

From Yahoo's Scott Pianowski: "The Texans are getting ignored at most fantasy tables, in part because of Deshaun Watson's uncertain status, but also because of a glaring lack of talent on the roster and a stunning lack of common sense in the front office. David Johnson is the only player sneaking into the Top 100, slotting right at the century mark in early Yahoo drafts.

"Johnson quietly played solid football last year, posting his career-best YPC and checking in as fantasy's RB19 despite missing four games. Hes a long way from the player that dominated fantasy back in 2016, but running backs commonly have very short runs of relevance.

"In simplest terms, I'm likely to fade Johnson, along with his teammates. The Texans have brought in layers of backfield competition, both young (Phillip Lindsay) and old (Mark Ingram). And it's generally a bad idea to invest in a fantasy back if you don't believe in his team as a whole; game script is unlikely to be your friend. Johnson was considered a dynamic receiver early in his career, but we haven't seen that player recently. I can't in good faith pitch any of the Texans to you."

-

Three teams in NFL history have intercepted three or fewer passes in a season. The 1982 Houston Oilers, who played nine games due to a strike, had three. The 2018 San Francisco 49ers intercepted only two. And the Texans last season had just three picks on 541 opponent passing attempts. One was by defensive end J.J. Watt, who isn't around anymore. The Texans have very few playmakers on defense, and it won't get better without Watt disrupting opponents up front. The Texans' defense ranked 30th in Football Outsiders' DVOA last season, and it could drop two spots this season unless new coordinator Lovie Smith can pull off a miracle.

-

Who is David Culley?

Culley was a surprise hire, and is a great story.

Culley, 65, is the oldest first-time head coach in NFL history. He worked for 27 years as an NFL assistant, with a few more years in college, but never got a shot to be a head coach or even an offensive coordinator. Culley spent the past two seasons as assistant head coach/pass coordinator/receivers coach with the Baltimore Ravens. The Texans were impressed with Culley's character and his positive attitude, which could come in handy this season.

"When you listen to people talk about David Culley, there are themes that continually repeat themselves," Texans GM Nick Caserio said at Culley's introductory news conference. "Themes such as what a special person he is, how much positive energy he emanates, a prime example of an individual that believes in servant leadership, someone who conducts himself in a way that brings out the best in others, and an outstanding communicator and teacher."

Culley has a hard job ahead of him. During his introductory news conference, most of the questions were about Deshaun Watson, and that was long before any of the accusations were made against the quarterback. But he has a shot, finally.

Guys are going to rally behind him and support him, and theyll want to play their best for him, running back Mark Ingram said, according to the Houston Chronicle. Thats the type of guy he is. Hes going to be a players coach whos real and will support his players and his team. You want to go hard for a guy like that.

-

Maybe David Culley's positive attitude rubs off, the Deshaun Watson situation gets settled and the Texans don't finish in last place of the AFC South. It's hard to expect anything more than that. The biggest win this year would be finding some solid young pieces, Culley proving he was the right hire and getting an answer to the future at quarterback whether it's Watson, Davis Mills or the first pick of the 2022 draft. Any positive news in Houston would be welcomed.

-

It's hard to predict an 0-17 season for any team, but it can't be ruled out. If Deshaun Watson doesn't play for Houston, the Texans could have the worst offense and the worst defense in the NFL, with a first-time head coach and one of the hardest schedules in the NFL. And if Watson is traded it could be for far less than a team should get for an elite QB, for reasons we all understand. This season could be historically ugly.

-

I'd like to offer some prediction on what will happen with Deshaun Watson, but I have no idea how it turns out. No matter if Watson plays all season, some of the season, none of the season or for another team, I can't figure out how the Texans win more than four games. They went 4-12 last season with a quarterback playing at an elite level; what would they have been without him? And the roster as a whole is worse this season. This is a long-term rebuild, and Texans fans would probably be happy with any signs the franchise knows how to dig out of this mess.

More from Yahoo Sports:

View post:

2021 NFL Preview: Texans' fall to the bottom of the NFL was swift and complete - Yahoo Sports

Jeff Bezos is set to launch aboard the New Shepard rocket on July 20. Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images; Blue Origin

Petitions to stop Jeff Bezos' Earth reentry collected more than 70,000 signatures combined.

The one with the most signatures is titled "Do not allow Jeff Bezos to return to Earth."

Bezos plans to enter space July 20 on the first human flight of Blue Origin's New Shepard rocket.

Sign up for the 10 Things in Tech daily newsletter.

More than 70,000 people have signed petitions calling to stop Jeff Bezos from returning to Earth after he blasts into space next month.

Bezos, the founder of the space-exploration firm Blue Origin, said earlier this month that he and his brother, Mark Bezos, would fly into space aboard the company's New Shepard rocket on July 20 in its first flight carrying people.

Three days after Bezos' announcement, two petitions were launched to try to prevent the billionaire's reentry to Earth. Each had garnered thousands of followers in just 10 days.

More than 50,000 people have signed a Change.org petition titled "Do not allow Jeff Bezos to return to Earth."

Read more: Amazon Prime employees say women get few promotions and there's a culture of aggressive male-dominated management

"Billionaires should not exist...on earth, or in space, but should they decide the latter they should stay there," the petition's description said.

Some signatories gave a reason for signing the petition, which included comments such as "being let back into Earth is a privilege - not a right," and "Earth don't want people like Jeff, Bill, Elon and other such billionaires" (presumably referring to Bill Gates and Elon Musk).

Another petition, called "Petition To Not Allow Jeff Bezos Re-Entry To Earth," has accumulated more than 20,000 signatures.

Jose Ortiz, who set up the petition, said in the description that Bezos was "an evil overlord hellbent on global domination."

"The fate of humanity is in your hands," Ortiz also wrote.

Both petitions had been seeking 25,000 to 50,000 signatures, which would make them two of the top-signed petitions on Change.org, according to the website.

Story continues

Bezos plans to take an 11-minute flight to the edge of space in New Shepard alongside his brother and an unnamed auction winner who paid $28 million for a seat. They'll be strapped into a dome-shaped capsule, which sits on top of the rocket booster.

Once New Shepard reaches the Krmn line - an imaginary boundary 100 kilometers, or 62 miles, above the Earth's surface - the capsule is designed to separate from the booster, reenter the atmosphere, and float back down to Earth with the help of parachutes.

"I want to go on this flight because it's a thing I wanted to do all my life," Bezos said in a video posted to Instagram on June 7. "It's an adventure - it's a big deal for me."

Read the original article on Business Insider

View original post here:

More than 70,000 people have signed petitions to stop Jeff Bezos from returning to Earth after his trip to space next month - Yahoo! Voices

Sundial Growers Inc. (SNDL) shares surged 12.1% on June 23. Over the past month, the stock has surged 38.9%, which is huge enough to draw the attention of investors.

This Canada-based company operates as a pharmaceutical company. It produces and grows cannabis strains. It has gained 112.8% over the past six months and 81.8% on a year-to-date basis.

Though there are no concrete reasons for the surge in the stock price, there are few interesting facts which might have sent SNDL prices soaring.

For one, the positive mention of the Sundial Growers on Reddit and other social media platforms is expected to have sparked enthusiasm among the traders, leading to a surge in the share price. (See Sundial Growers stock chart on TipRanks)

Cannabis Market to Grow

If we go by numbers, per a study from MarketsandMarkets, the cannabis market is projected to reach $90.4 billion in value by 2026. This represents a CAGR of 28% from 2020 through 2026.

This market is witnessing significant growth due to the increasing legalization of cannabis across various regions. Not only that, but the growing application of cannabis in the medical field and awareness among consumers regarding its health benefits are driving growth.

Given the strong market projections, Sundial Growers is well poised to capitalize on it and come out as a winner.

Analyst Rating

The stock has picked up a rating from one analyst in the past three months. Canaccord Genuity analyst Shaan Mir upgraded the rating to Hold from Sell and maintained a price target of $0.7 (30% downside potential).

Sundial Growers scores a 5 of 10 from TipRanks Smart Score rating system, indicating that the stock is likely to perform in line with market averages.

Related News :Will Cleveland-Cliffs Stock Fall from its Cliff?Why Is Raven Industries (RAVN) Stock Up 49% Today?Alset EHome Partnering with Tesla to Develop eHomes in Texas

Excerpt from:

Why is Sundial Growers Trading to the Moon? - Yahoo Finance

And here comes the return of the digital dividend check.

S&P 500 dividends will grow by 4.5% per year on average for the next decade, Goldman Sachs chief U.S. equity strategist David Kostin forecasts in a new note Thursday. Dividends are seen growing 6% this year and again in 2022, Kostin predicts, as companies look to put rebuilt cash positions to work for shareholders beyond the pandemic.

Annual dividend growth has averaged 3.5% for S&P 500 companies since 2005, Goldman's work shows.

"At the company level, dividend actions year-to-date support our view that the post-pandemic year will see substantial dividend growth," Kostin says.

Some of the biggest dividend increases are expected to be seen in the health care, information technology, consumer discretionary and financial sectors. These four sectors made up 52% of dividends in 2020, and Kostin envisions them contributing 71% of S&P 500 dividend growth through 2022.

Apple has already gotten things kicked off on the right foot on the dividend front. The tech giant raised its dividend by 7% in April.

So far in 2021, there have only been two dividend decreases Healthpeak Properties (20% dividend cut) and Xilinx (dividend suspended as it closes its sale to AMD). In 2020, 69 companies from the S&P 500 cut their dividends as they sought to protect cash with the pandemic raging.

With the pandemic having rounded the corner, Kostin believes the stage is set for dividend hikes.

"Many companies that decreased their dividends in 2020 have yet to announce increases in 2021, suggesting that the post-pandemic rebound still has room to run. Of the 57 companies that decreased or suspended their dividends in 2020, 22 have resumed or increased their dividends. Consensus expects that 19 others will increase dividends by year-end 2021," Kostin notes.

One way investors are positioning for the return of dividends is through dividend-focused ETFs.

Story continues

The SPDR Portfolio S&P 500 High Dividend ETF and the Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF are up 21.7% and 16.2% this year, easily outperforming the S&P 500.

Brian Sozzi is an editor-at-large and anchor at Yahoo Finance. Follow Sozzi on Twitter @BrianSozzi and on LinkedIn.

Whats hot from Sozzi:

Watch Yahoo Finances live programming on Verizon FIOS channel 604, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, Roku, Samsung TV, Pluto TV, and YouTube. Online catch Yahoo Finance on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Flipboard, SmartNews, and LinkedIn.

Read the original post:

Here come the dividends - Yahoo Finance