After taking a commanding lead against the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference Finals, on Monday night, the Miami Heat faced being the first NBA team in history to lose a best-of-seven series after leading 3-0. They avoided infamy with a tenacious performance in the elimination game on the road in Boston, defeating the Celtics 104-83 and now are in Denver to open the Finals versus the Western Conference champion Nuggets beginning tonight.

Following a dominant showing in the Western Conference playoffs, including their 4-0 sweep of the Los Angeles Lakers in the conference championships led by series MVP Nikola Jokić, the Nuggets head into the Finals as the favorites. 

It is the franchise’s first ever appearance in the Finals.

The Nuggets hold home court advantage over the Heat after ending the regular season 53-39, the best record in the West and the third overall in the league behind the Milwaukee Bucks (58-24) and the Celtics (57-25). Jokic, a two-time league MVP (2021, 2022), who finished second in the voting this season to Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid, and Nuggets guard Jamal Murray, have been the best tandem in the game during this postseason. The 7-foot Jokic averaged a dominant triple-double versus the Lakers scoring 29.9 points with 13.3 rebounds and 10.3 assists.

RELATED: The Nuggets head to the Finals while the Celtics hang on versus the Heat

The 6-4 Murray averaged 32.5 points per game against the Lakers and became the first player in NBA history to to average at least 30 points per game on shooting splits of at least 50 percent from the field, 40 percent on 3-point attempts and 90 percent from the foul line. The Heat, which had a regular season record of 44-38, is only the second 8th seed – the New York Knicks in 1999 were the first – to reach the Finals.

They are led by forward Jimmy Butler, a five-time All-NBA selection, and forward/center Bam Adebayo, a two-time NBA All-Star and four-time All-NBA Defensive Team honoree. Miami has also been defined by its group of undrafted role players, notably small forward Caleb Martin, shooting guard/small forward Max Strus and point guard Gabe Vincent. They have been critical to the Heat’s success.

The Nuggets’ have also received strong contributions from players other than Jokic and Murray, including forwards Micheal Porter Jr. and Aaron Gordon, and guards Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Bruce Brown. While the Heat will play with the intensity and heart that drove them to the Finals, the pick is the Nuggets in five. 

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“She Raised Her Voice! 50 Black Women Who Sang Their Way Into Music History,” the upcoming “A Child’s Introduction to Hip-Hop: The Beats, Rhymes, and Roots of a Musical Revolution” (both by AmNews contributor Jordannah Elizabeth); and “A Child’s Introduction to Jazz: The Musicians, Culture, and Roots of the World’s Coolest Music” by Jabari Asim, are all great books to give young folks a solid grounding in hip-hop history and its relation to other genres. 

Excerpts from “She Raised Her Voice! 50 Black Women Who Sang Their Way Into Music History,” illustrated by Briana Dengoue

Excerpts from “A Child’s Introduction to Jazz,” illustrated by Jerrard K. Polk

Excerpts from “A Child’s Introduction to Hip Hop,” illustrated by Markia Jenai

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* This article was originally published here

Nikola Jokic was masterful in the Western Conference Finals. The Denver Nuggets center posted averages of 29.9 points, 13.3 rebounds and 10.3 assists in a 4-0 sweep of the Los Angeles Lakers in their best-of-seven series. Now the two-time NBA regular season MVP (2021, 2022) is four wins away from earning his first league championship as well as the first for the franchise.

His quest begins tonight when the Nuggets host the Eastern Conference champion Miami Heat in Game 1 of the National Basketball Association Finals. The Heat arrived there by defeating the Boston Celtics 4-3, ending the series with a 103-84 road victory on Sunday night. The Heat took the first three games before the Celtics stormed back to even the series and attempted to become the only team in NBA history to win a best-of-seven series after being down 0-3.

Jokic and the Nuggets were the No. 1 seed in the West entering the playoffs and knocked off the No. 8 seed Minnesota Timberwolves 4-1 in the opening round and dismissed the No. 4 seed Phoenix Suns 4-2 in the conference semifinals before sweeping the Lakers. The Heat, only the second No. 8 seed to make it to the NBA championship, 24 years after the New York Knicks became the first in 1999, are giant killers.

RELATED: The Nuggets head to the Finals while the Celtics hang on versus the Heat 

They eliminated the No. 1 seed Milwaukee Bucks––who had the league’s best regular season record at 58-24––in five games to start their postseason run. The Heat then sent the No. 5 seed New York Knicks packing 4-2 prior to their compelling series against the No. 2 seed Celtics. But Jokic, nicknamed Joker, and the Nuggets are looking to put an end to the Heat’s unforeseen playoff success.

The team’s share similar traits. Both have superstars in Jokic and the Heat’s stellar small forward Jimmy Butler and complimentary stars. In torching the Lakers, Denver guard Jamal Murray became the first player in NBA history to average at least 30 points per game (he averaged 32.5) on 50 percent shooting from the field, 40 percent on 3-point attempts and 90 percent from the foul line. Murray’s unmatched split was 52.7/40.5/95.

While the Heat’s Bam Adebayo was inconsistent against the Celtics, the 25-year-old forward/center is a two-time All-Star and four-time All-Defensive selection. The Nuggets and Heat have also heavily relied on their role players who have emerged as invaluable this postseason. Denver head coach Mike Malone and Miami’s Eric Spolestra, who currently is arguably the best in his profession and one of the most accomplished NBA head coaches ever, have shaped cohesive, symbiotic rosters.

“If you’re going to win at a high level, you can’t have distractions,” said Malone via the Associated Press ahead of the Finals. “You have to have guys that get along—on the court, off the court—and come together and share in a common goal.”

The prediction here is the Nuggets will achieve their goal with a 4-2 series win. 

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Combat sports return to New York City when Josh Taylor (19-0, 13 KOs) defends his WBO and Ring Magazine titles against former lightweight champion Teofimo Lopez (18-1, 13 KOs) Saturday, June 10 at Madison Square Garden’s Theater. 

The Brooklyn native Lopez is 7-1 inside Madison Square Garden, suffering his only defeat to George Kambosos Jr. in November 2021, relinquishing his unified titles. Taylor returns to the ring for the first time since February 2022. 

“This is a super fight on both sides of the pond, the junior welterweight king in Josh Taylor stepping up against the young, dynamic Teofimo Lopez,” said Top Rank chairman Bob Arum, the fight’s promoter. “I cannot wait for these two supreme talents to step into the Madison Square Garden ring. It’s going to be a special night.”

Puerto Rican rising star and junior middleweight Xander Zayas (15-0, 10 KOs) will challenge  Ronald Cruz (18-2-1, 12 KOs) in the co-main event. Look for domination out of Zayas, one of the brightest stars at Top Rank.

Two weeks later at the Garden, Edgar Berlanga (20-0 16 KOs), formerly of Top Rank and now with Matchroom, will face Irishman Jason Quigley (20-2 14 KOs). Berlanga is 4-0 at the Garden. 

RELATED: Haney remains undefeated with controversial victory over Lomachenko

“I’m excited to be back in my hometown and to perform at the mecca of boxing once again,” said the Brooklyn native. “I want this night to be historic for my fans and for all the people of Puerto Rico and to witness greatness. I feel like I’m reborn again in the sport, signing with Matchroom and getting back to where it all started with my old coach Marc Farrait. I promise it’ll be something big on June 24.”

Berlanga struggled in his last fight, leading to Top Rank not re-signing him. He hopes to put on a big performance under a new promoter. 

In the co-main, Reshat Mati (13-0 7 KOs) will face his toughest opponent to date when he steps in the ring against Adam Kownacki (20-3 15 KOs). 

At last, undefeated, unified welterweight champion Errol Spence Jr. and undefeated WBO welterweight champion Terence Crawford both posted to social media that they have agreed to a battle on Saturday, July 29, 2023, at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. 

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Rideshare workers are urging Gov. Kathy Hochul and the MTA to refrain from imposing what they deem as a double tax on them and their jobs.

The Independent Drivers Guild (IDG), which says it represents many of the city’s rideshare drivers (as well as drivers in New Jersey, Connecticut, Illinois, Massachusetts, and Florida), plans to rally in front of the governor’s offices in Manhattan on Friday, June 2. They plan to deliver a petition that calls on Hochul to recognize that the proposed Central Business District (CBD) Tolling Program would amount to a second tax on for-hire vehicle (FHV) drivers.

“Please exempt rideshare drivers from the new congestion pricing toll,” the IDG petition said. “For-hire vehicle trips were already assigned a congestion tax of $2.75 per trip by the state legislature in the first phase of congestion pricing. Adding an additional congestion tax or toll as high as $23 per trip will cost thousands of low-income, immigrant rideshare drivers their jobs and it will put rideshare costs out of reach for hardworking New Yorkers who depend on Uber, Lyft and for-hire vehicles to get around.”

The CBD Tolling Program is New York’s attempt to institute an urban congestion pricing plan that would lower traffic congestion and improve air quality in Midtown Manhattan, while increasing revenue for the MTA.

Cars that enter or remain in the CBD during peak hours would be electronically tolled—charged via E-ZPass or have toll bills mailed directly to the home address of the car’s registered owner.

The IDG says this new tax would lead to a decrease of nearly 15,000 FHV driver jobs.

“It’s outrageous and illegal to single out Uber, Lyft, and for-hire vehicle drivers with a second congestion tax. For a for-hire vehicle driver with a typical six days per week schedule, adding this second congestion tax would cost as much as $7,000 per year,” said IDG President Brendan Sexton. “That means the MTA proposes to tax FHV drivers, over 90% of whom are immigrants and people of color, over 15% of their annual take-home pay.

RELATED: Food delivery workers, rideshare drivers demand more rights

“Why would you double-tax the only group that has already been paying congestion tax for years, a group that is also protected under federal law as an economic justice population? If they move forward with this double tax, they could end up with years of delays in court.” 

The language of the IDG’s letter to Hochul points out that:

“1) The proposed double taxation of FHV rides is unfair.

“2) Singling out this economic justice community for double taxation is illegal and may lead to years of delays in court.

“3) By targeting rideshare drivers, rather than their passengers, the proposals will fail to reduce congestion in the Central Business District, one of the central goals of the policy.”

An analysis of the CBD Tolling Program by the progressive policy advocacy group the Black Institute (TBI) also determined that the plan would “economically demolish an industry that feeds tens of thousands of New Yorkers who are already struggling.” 

“The Black Institute (TBI) felt compelled to assess this issue from the lens of people of color,” TBI said in a report published this past January 2023, entitled “Just Call It a Black and Brown Toll: An analysis of the MTA’s proposed congestion pricing plan.” “While our analysis of the issue pales in length compared to the MTA’s, we have just as much to say about the issue, the EA [environmental assessment], and the MTA as any other.”

The TBI report said the higher costs of driving into Midtown Manhattan will inevitably lead to greater air pollution in parts of Black- and brown-dominated neighborhoods in the Bronx and Harlem, where commuters will begin driving so they can park their cars before hopping onto public transportation and going into the CBD. TBI found that the CBD Tolling Program “in its current form is undoubtedly a regressive tax not because of its uniformity, but by the fact that there is practically no easement whatsoever for lower-income people. Unfortunately, in our city, low income and race happen to go hand in hand…New York is one of the most unequal cities on Earth––despite now only making up around 40% of the city’s population across the five boroughs, white residents disproportionately occupy the city’s highest-paying jobs. They also have a median wage that is over 50% greater than the median wage for Black people, and over 60% greater than the median wage for Hispanic people.”
“FHV drivers are upset. How could the MTA and the governor do something so unfair?” said longtime Uber driver and IDG Organizing Director Aziz Bah. “We’re taking to the streets to fight this unfair and illegal double tax!”

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* This article was originally published here