New Look to NBA All-Star Weekend
By Parker Landis
Chieftain Staff
As we reach the middle of the
NBA season, players and fans are
able to fi nally sit back, relax, and
watch the best players in the world
come together to show their tal-
ents. Featuring a mixture of music,
fashion, and basketball, the 2018
All-Star Weekend will be held in
Los Angeles.
Kevin Hart, Pharrell Williams,
and N.E.R.D will headline the enter-
tainment. Starting with the Celebrity
All-Star Game, one of my favorite parts
of the weekend, we will get to watch
celebrities, such as hometown hero Kid
Rock, compete on the hardwood. We
also will be able to watch the stars of
tomorrow, such as Ben Simmons, Lonzo
Ball, and Jayson Tatum, compete in the
Rising Stars Game.
For the fi rst time in All-Star Game
history, players were drafted by cap-
tains LeBron James and Steph Curry,
because they were the top two vote-
getters. James and Curry then drafted
the remaining top eight vote-getters for
the game. Starters were chosen by fan
vote, and the reserves were chosen by
league experts.
So the teams this year are James’
and Curry’s, not East and West. To the
shock of many people, James
chose his former teammate,
Kyrie Irving, and also Curry’s
teammate, Kevin Durant. He
also chose Anthony Davis and
reigning MVP Russell West-
brook. Curry chose his team-
mates, Klay Thompson and
Draymond Green, and fi lled
out the rest of his roster with
Giannis Antetokounmpo, Joel
Embiid, and Damian Lillard.
A big part of the discussion this year
were the snubs. The Clippers’ Lou Wil-
liams, who is averaging 23 points per
game, and Houston’s Chris Paul were
both left out of the weekend. Detroit
center Andre Drummond and Oklaho-
ma City’s Paul George also weren’t cho-
sen for the game but got in after injuries
to New Orleans’ Demarcus Cousins and
Washington’s John Wall.
The Latest Great Debate
Which two of these fi ghters would you choose to defend you?
By Matthew McKay
Chieftain Staff
By now I’m sure everyone has seen
the picture (right) causing mass debate.
I fi rst heard about it on Barstool’s
podcast “Mickstape.” I then sent
it into some group chats and the
argument hasn’t stopped since.
My initial reaction was that, if
you pick the rats, then you are
a fool. But after hearing, “Don’t
sleep on the rats,” and, “Do you
know how many 10,000 is?”, my
opinion has shifted in their favor.
If you pick the human with the
gun or the seven bulls, go to the
doctor immediately to get your
brain examined. There is no way
a human lasts in this battle for
more than fi ve seconds. This guy
might be a good hunter, but how
is he going to react with fi ve gorillas
running at him? You don’t know if the
human has the clutch gene or ice in the
veins. Plus, that gun is not an automat-
ic, so he or she can’t just spray like the
noob who just picked up the legendary
scar in “Fortnite.” The bulls don’t re-
ally do much for me, either.
B R OTHE R R IC E H IG H S C H O O L C H I E F TA I N
Fifteen wolves seem vicious, but they
are pack animals, so, if the leader gets
wounded or dies early, they will go
away, rendering them useless.
The alligators and hawks both have
very intriguing characteristics. The
hawks cannot be messed with from the
air, and their talons cou ld cut deep into
the opponent, but hawks usual prey on
small rodents like rabbits and squirrels.
It is a different story going after lions
and bears and, quite frankly, I do not
P AGE 9
know how hawks can take down
gorillas, bears, and lions.
The gators are unique for several
reasons. The gator has a deadly bite
that no animal can withstand,
and their skin acts as a shield
of armor. But gators move slow
on land and cannot sustain fast
movement for a long time.
I’ve heard hundreds of combi-
nations, such as hawks and rats,
because the hawks can pick up
the rats and just carpet bomb the
other animals. Multiple people
have doubled down on the rats,
which does not follow the rules
but is still a scary thought.
In the end, I’m picking the rats
and gorillas for pretty simple rea-
sons: Five gorillas can easily take
out the human, the bears, and the
hawks. Next, they pick up the gun,
and now I’ve got Koba from “Planet
of the Apes” on my team.
It would take 100 rats to take out
one wolf, 300 for one lion, and 250
for one bull. That leaves me 5,550 rats
and about three to four gorillas to take
on 10 alligators, and I like my chances.
F E B R U A R Y 2018