sxx123: ence against women. She also lobbied the Oregon

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EL SEGUNDO, Calif. Hydro Flask 18 Oz Wide Mouth . -- The Lakers kicked Nick Young out of practice Thursday. He was sick -- probably from traveling across time zones recently, he suspected -- and they didnt want him getting any of his teammates sick.Would he play Friday against the San Antonio Spurs? It wasnt clear at the time, and even if he did play, Lakers coach Luke Walton said, We didnt know how much we were going to be able to get out of him.But Walton and assistant coach Brian Shaw told Young that if Michael Jordan could play well with the flu -- as Jordan famously did by scoring 38 while quite ill in Game 5 of the 1997 NBA Finals -- then so could Young. It was a message of inspiration, but they were half-kidding, of course. Young took it in stride, then he started against the Spurs.What Young achieved over the ensuing 28 minutes of floor time was stunning on many levels. He scored 22 points, hitting 7 of 12 shots, including 4 of 7 from 3-point range, one of which helped keep the Lakers within striking distance late. He continued to be one of the Lakers best defenders and even blocked a Pau Gasol hook shot, along with grabbing four rebounds. Perhaps his only flaw was that he finally missed a free throw; hes now 28-for-29 for the season.They doped me up real good with some medicine before, so I felt good, Young would later joke. I felt [sick] in the beginning, but as the game went on, I started feeling like myself a little bit.The Lakers lost 116-107 despite rallying in the fourth quarter to close a 17-point gap to just four, a comeback both surprising and impressive because they were playing against the stout Spurs without point guard and leading scorer DAngelo Russell, who was out with a sore left knee. Afterward, Walton praised Young, saying he played great and gave us a nice effort.Walton was then asked if he has come to expect such performances from Young, and if he truly grasped how shocking such a concept is considering how tumultuous Youngs past two seasons had been.I dont think its a shock, and, yes, I do expect him to play this way night in and night out, Walton said. Hes our starting shooting guard.Following that business-like, seemingly no-frills response, Walton moved on. But digest this new reality for a moment, if you can. Not only is Young on an NBA roster for the 2016-17 season, but hes starting and playing a key role. And not only that: Hes playing so well that it has become almost commonplace, even when hes playing while sick. And Young is doing all of that with the Lakers, a team that he believed just a few short months ago didnt want him.Factor it all in, and its hard to find a bigger surprise anywhere in the NBA. Indeed, Young has resurrected his career, and he tried to sum up that resurrection in October, just days before Halloween, by offering a ghoulish metaphor. I was like the hand out the grave, Young said with a laugh. Im still here. Im just going to keep fighting, keep going.Publicly, Young laughs and smiles and jokes just about all the time. His personality is often described as cartoonish, but, he admits, that personality also shields what lies beneath. And he put up that shield last season when he faced constant criticism from ex-Lakers coach Byron Scott, saw his minutes and production shrink, dealt with highly publicized off-the-court drama, then endured rumors that the Lakers would cut ties with him and that his career was ultimately in jeopardy.Its tough, Young said after practice at the Lakers facility Saturday. I had to put a facade on to stay believing and have faith.If you could go back in time to last summer and tell Young that after two subpar years hed still remain with the Lakers and be a valuable contributor, a player whom Walton has often said is their best perimeter defender, what would he say?He said hed be shocked, just like most NBA observers are now.I thought for sure come July after the championship game was over, I thought for sure they were going to make some cuts, Young said.And he believed that he would be one of those cuts.It wasnt an unrealistic expectation, after everything that had transpired. First, rewind to July 2014. The Lakers signed Young to a four-year, $21 million deal, rewarding him for averaging a career-high 17.9 points the season before. But that same month, the Lakers also hired Scott as their head coach. And from the start, Scott, with his old-school mentality, and Young, with his light-hearted approach, seemed to clash.Youngs opportunities and scoring fell in 2014-15 and dropped even more last season, when the Lakers posted a franchise-worst 17-65 record. Then in March, a video surfaced, recorded by Russell, that showed Young talking about women other than his fiance, Australian rapper Iggy Azalea. (Young and Azaela would call off their engagement a few months later.)The incident created a divide in the locker room, and there were doubts about whether Young and Russell, the No. 2 overall pick in the 2015 draft, could coexist. To many, the only solution was for the Lakers to part ways with Young.You hear everything, Young said. I wont lie and say I didnt hear all the rumors and all that. It was up in the air. There was so much going on. I didnt know where I was going to be.Many believed Youngs NBA career might well be over and that his only options were to play in China, though even that didnt seem like a guarantee. Young said he wasnt thinking that far ahead, though.I just didnt think I was going to be here, Young said. I knew I was probably going to play somewhere, but I thought for sure Id probably get bought out or traded or just cut, period, and Id have to try out somewhere.As one might expect, Young is about as satisfied by his turnaround as outsiders are surprised.Its great, he said. This is home. I grew up here [in Los Angeles]. I was a little disappointed how everything ended last year, the last two years. [But] Coach has given me the ultimate confidence and [his] believing in me, it makes me want to run through a wall for him.Several Lakers have used that exact same phrase to describe their commitment to Walton.I would run through a wall for Coach right now, Lakers guard Jordan Clarkson said after a practice earlier this month. Hes doing such a good job. We want to get wins for him as well as ourselves.He wants to run through a wall for us, too, Lakers forward Julius Randle added after the same practice. He has our back. And when you have someone who truly cares about you, its a different feeling. Its an open and honest relationship. I can text him, call him, talk to him after practice or whatever. Its just an open relationship. Hes genuine. You can go up to somebody and know if they truly care about you or not.Perhaps no Laker wants to run through that metaphorical wall for Walton more than Young, who credits the 36-year-old coach for helping revive the Lakers as well as his careerIts unbelievable that a coach could come in and just change the whole mindset and the program. Its great, Young said.Young also credits Walton for his individual success, citing the coachs system and ability to relate to players, which is often mentioned as one of Waltons greatest strengths. Luke has been in situations where he knows players, Young said. Hes played against me before. He knows the game.Walton gave Young a chance, a clean slate, but Young also admits that he knew this opportunity might be his last chance in the NBA, and it couldnt be wasted.Yeah, for sure, he said. Unfortunate situations happened last year that made things worse. Once I had a chance to get past all of that, its all about basketball.Young laughed after he was asked to pick which one of those unfortunate situations marked his lowest moment.Its hard to pick one, he said. Ah, man. I had a couple. Coach didnt play me for nine games. It was tough, it was tough. He was bringing people from the D-League up and playing them over me. It was hard, it was hard. It messed up my confidence.So he put up his facade, his shield, joking and smiling and laughing even while his career crumbled around him and his confidence dwindled. He leaned on his family and friends. He didnt visit the Lakers practice facility all summer, only stepping inside in late September, just before training camp began. On the day he walked in, he looked around and noticed the different atmosphere under Walton.It was good, Young said. People were happy to see me.Young played so well in training camp and throughout the preseason, Walton was convinced to start him on opening night. Youngs strong play has only continued, so much so that Walton expects it nightly, even if outsiders are still acclimating.More and more, Youngs metaphor about a hand bursting through a grave seems especially fitting. On Saturday, Young thought about that image.You cant keep me down! he said, his ever-present smile stretching from ear to ear. Hydro Flask 21 Oz Standard Mouth . -- Golden State Warriors coach Mark Jackson asked his players a simple question during Fridays morning shootaround: How many of them had ever been on a team 14 games over . Hydro Flask Standard Mouth Bottle . After Martin Skrtel put the Reds in front from close range at Stamford Bridge after only four minutes, Hazard hit back in the 17th with a superb strike. Etoo gave Jose Mourinhos team a decisive lead from Oscars back pass in the 34th. www.hydroflaskcoffeesale.com/hydro-flask-wine-tumbler-sale.html . Halifax beat the Saint John Sea Dogs 7-5 on the strength of two goals apiece from Nikolaj Ehlers, Matt Murphy and Brent Andrews. Jonathan Drouin also scored and had three assists while Zachary Fucale made 17 saves for the Mooseheads (16-8-0), who led 6-1 after two periods. Brenda Tracy, the survivor of an alleged 1998 gang-rape involving two Oregon State football players, has accepted an invitation to speak to the Baylor football program about her experiences.?In late May, Baylor released the findings of a Pepper Hamilton report that stated the school failed to take appropriate action to respond to reports of sexual assault and dating violence reportedly committed by football players. A few days later, Tracy told CBSSports.com that Baylor should get rid of everybody and shut down the football program for one year.She told ESPN and other media on Thursday that acting football coach Jim Grobe has invited her to Waco, Texas, to talk to his players on July 25.He definitely seems like he has his heart in the right place and wants to help, Tracy said. It doesnt seem like its a stunt. Regardless if people believe its a PR stunt or not, Im there and Im in front of these kids, planting a seed.Baylor has been at the center of nationwide attention over its handling of sexual assault allegations and investigations, including several that have involved athletes. In the past two months, Baylor has dealt with the fallout from that negative attention: the demotion and then resignation of former university president and chancellor Kenneth Starr; the firing of football coach Art Briles; the suspension and then resignation of athletic director Ian McCaw; and the firings of multiple athletic department employees.Tracy alleges she was gang-raped in 1998 by four men, including two Oregon State football players. The case didnt go to trial. I dropped the criminal charges and left it up to Oregon State University to discipline my attackers, Tracy wrote in a June 1 open letter to the?Baylor Board of Regents.Mike Riley was the Oregon State coach in 1998. He suspended the two players one game apiece for making a bad choice. At the time, Riley said he only knew that the players had been arrested and released after criminal charges were dropped. He admitted to Tracy he didnt read the police report and ddidnt know many details about the incident. 12 Oz Hydro Flask Kids. .Riley is now the head coach at Nebraska. Last month, Tracy met privately with Riley and athletic director Shawn Eichorst, and then spoke with members of the Cornhuskers football team about her ordeal 18 years ago.Tracy said Grobe reached out to Riley and asked if having her speak to Baylors players would be beneficial.Coach Riley told him he felt like one of the most impactful things he could do for his team was to have me speak to his players, Tracy said. I think my hope is the same as it was at Nebraska. I really want to put a face to this crime and put a face to sexual assault.I hope every one of the players who hears me speak will realize that its not only devastating for the victim, but also devastating for the family and everyone around them. It has a lasting effect.Tracys son, Darius Adams, who played basketball last year at Tacoma Community College in Washington, last month published a letter to the NCAA on Change.org titled, Dear NCAA: My Mom Is a Rape Survivor and You Can Help. Tracy and her son have asked the NCAA to ban athletes who commit acts of violence, especially sexual assault.The petition had more than 144,000 signatures as of Wednesday.Last week, Tracy spoke with NCAA president Mark Emmert about her experience. Shes scheduled to meet with key members of the NCAA staff in Chicago on July 21 to talk about sexual assault and violence against women. She also lobbied the Oregon state legislature to lengthen the statute of limitations on sexual assault, and, with the help of Oregon State president Ed Ray, successfully lobbied the Pac-12 to restrict players with serious misconduct issues from transferring to another school in the conference.Sexual violence is a mens issue, Tracy said. If women could stop it, we already would have. Hopefully, men will start to step up and put an end to this senseless violence. Cheap NFL Gear Wholesale Black NFL Jerseys Stitched NFL Jerseys China Jerseys Cheap Jerseys Wholesale China Jerseys Cheap Jerseys 2019 ' ' '