A Welcome Distraction
Slam|June 2017

As we endure a divisive, troublesome shift in American politics, basketball is a solace. And, appropriately, nowhere has that been truer this season than in Washington, DC. 

Dave Zirin
A Welcome Distraction

As the playoffs—aka the second season, aka 40 Games in 40 Nights, aka “where legends are born”— get set to begin, it’s worth looking back on the most unique NBA season in recent memory, if not ever. I’m not talking about the deluge of monster statlines, upstart teams and emerging superstars. I’m not talking about how Russell Westbrook and James Harden are closer to true forces of nature than NBA players. I’m not talking about the fact that the greatest player on earth, LeBron Raymone James, almost averaged a triple double, led the League in minutes and was somehow still an MVP afterthought.

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The SUMMER THAT WASN'T

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METAMORPHOSIS

The sport of basketball speaks to so many people in so many ways. Dan Peterson, the founder of Project Backboard, has teamed up with artists to use the beauty of the sport to turn local courts into works of art that are accessible to all.

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WHERE THERE'S SMOKE, THERE'S Fire

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Now What?

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ONE STEP AT A Time

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THE GARDEN Blooms

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CITIZEN OF THE World

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STRONG Island

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KICK IN THE Door

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Can't YOU SEE

It ain't hard to tell that supernatural vision has established Nuggets star Nikola Jokic as a clear candidate for the 2021 MVP Award.

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