Analysis: Donovan Mitchell was more explosive, and the Jazz have a 3-1 series lead

Utah Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell (45) shoots between Memphis Grizzlies guards Grayson Allen (3), Ja Morant and De’Anthony Melton (0) in the second half of Game 4 of an NBA basketball first-round playoff series Monday, May 31, 2021, in Memphis, Tenn. | Brandon Dill, Associated Press

The Utah Jazz beat the Memphis Grizzlies, 120-113, at FedEx Forum on Monday to take a 3-1 series lead back to Salt Lake City for a Wednesday night Game 5.

High notes

• There was a spring in Donovan Mitchell’s step on Monday that we didn’t see in Games 2 and 3. He was turning corners a little faster, getting up higher for rebounds and was more explosive on his drives. His game-high 30 points never felt forced or even overt. He quietly led the game and the Jazz.
• Mitchell is very aware of Dillon Brooks’ tendency to foul and foul often. Mitchell drew multiple fouls on Brooks and counted off the third and fourth fouls on his hand when they came against the Grizzlies’ best perimeter defender. The confidence and joy and tenacity that comes with that kind of attitude, even in a tight game, is something that Jazz fans should relish and love.

• Royce O’Neale has been aggressive, kept the ball alive, hit shots, defended well and has been instrumental in the Jazz winning three games in a row against this Grizzlies team. The thing that impresses me the most about O’Neale is that he’s faster than he looks like he might be and is a great rebounder.

“He’s always a confident player but I think his determination to be the best defenders on the floor, his determination to be the best rebounder on the floor and determination to go out there and make all the little plays...he’s a big energy booster for us on both ends of the floor.” — Donovan Mitchell on Royce O’Neale

• Jordan Clarkson hadn’t been able to start strong yet in this series but broke that streak on Monday, scoring 12 points in the first half and adding another 12 in the second half. Maybe more importantly, Clarkson was able to come alive in the third quarter and gave the Jazz a bit of a cushion that helped the Jazz withstand the final push from the Grizzlies.

“We know how Jordan plays, we know how important he is for us, what he brings to the table. Not a lot of teams have a guy that can go out there and legitimately get you 40 points in 30 minutes. He’s going to win us some games in the playoffs. We know and have trust in everything he does.” — Mike Conley

• After a Game 3 in which Joe Ingles was nearly invisible save a single 3-point shot, the Aussie looked much more intentional on Monday. Not only was he more involved and creating at a higher rate on the offensive end, he was engaged on defense. That’s the thing with Ingles, it’s excellent when he’s firing from 3-point land and hitting, but he’s such an effective creator and so valuable defensively that as long as he is playing within himself it almost doesn’t matter if he’s scoring at a high rate, the Jazz have a lot of people that can score the ball. He just can’t fall off the map like he did on Saturday.
• Mike Conley had a steal on Ja Morant and a 3-pointer on the other end that completely shifted the game in the fourth quarter. He had a bit of a quiet night but the Jazz were able to put this game away because of Conley’s fourth quarter play.
• The Jazz shot 48.6% from the 3-point line. That’s really good.
• Finally the Jazz were able to contain Memphis’ ability to generate second-chance opportunities, holding the Grizzlies to just seven offensive rebounds for the game.

Low notes

• The Jazz’s first defensive option on Monday was a lot better than it has been previously in this series. It was the secondary defense that fell off at points and was disappointing. Rudy Gobert or Derrick Favors or Conley or O’Neale had a ton of possessions where they played great defense, even Bojan Bogdanovic had a play where he completely shut down a drive by Morant, and then whoever was supposed to help from the weak side or close out on a shooter were often out of position or a step behind. It wasn’t all game but it just hurts after someone completely shuts down Morant or Brooks and then the help defender leaves Grayson Allen open at the 3-point line. There needs to be a little more trust and awareness on those second and third options.

• Gobert went up for a layup, was fouled and before he even had a chance to hear that the official behind him had whistled the play, he looked at the baseline ref, and was incensed to the point of punching the stanchion multiple times. He was headed to the free throw line but his reaction gave Memphis some free points first. Can’t do that. Just because you think the official closest to you wasn’t the one that called the foul doesn’t mean that you should lose your cool when you are leading a series and about to win to go up 3-1. That’s not the right time or the right reaction.

Flat notes

• Fans leaving a playoff game early has never made sense to me. I’ve seen it in every arena and every playoff game that I’ve covered and I just can’t wrap my head around it. This game was in single digits with less than a minute left. I understand that there are some people that have to relieve a babysitter or have other extenuating circumstances, but that’s certainly not the case with the droves of people that stream out of arenas before the final buzzer. Do yourself a favor and google Tracy McGrady’s 13 points in 33 seconds or Reggie Miller’s eight points in nine seconds. Don’t count your team out if there’s a chance.

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‘We are right there’: Grizzlies refuse to get frustrated after fading late, again, in Game 4 loss to Jazz

Utah Jazz guard Jordan Clarkson (00) shoots between Memphis Grizzlies guard Ja Morant (12) and forward Jaren Jackson Jr. (13) in the second half of Game 4 of an NBA basketball first-round playoff series Monday, May 31, 2021, in Memphis, Tenn. | Brandon Dill, Associated Press

For the second-straight game in their Western Conference first-round playoff series, the Jazz outplay the Grizzlies down the stretch to pick up a hard-fought win

Eight awful finishing minutes — four in each of the last two games.

In the Memphis Grizzlies’ minds, that’s all that is keeping them from leading their NBA playoff series with the top-seeded Utah Jazz, instead of trailing 3-1 and being on the verge of elimination.

For the second straight game at FedEx Forum, the upstarts were right there with four minutes remaining, but the veteran Jazz made the big plays down the stretch and took a 120-113 win in Game 4 on Monday night.

Second-year coach Taylor Jenkins said the deja vu-like ending provided more encouragement than frustration, as odd as that may sound.

“We are right there,” Jenkins said. “We are literally going toe-to-toe with the best team in the NBA. We are doing a lot of things great. We gotta find ways to do more.”

“We are right theree. We are literally going toe-to-toe with the best team in the NBA. We are doing a lot of things great. We gotta find ways to do more.” — Memphis coach Taylor Jenkins

As the series moves back to Salt Lake City for Game 5 on Wednesday night, Jenkins promised that his squad would play its best basketball of the season.

“This season isn’t over,” he said.

Two of Utah’s three wins weren’t over until the final few seconds, a fact that Jenkins and the players who spoke to reporters in a postgame Zoom session — De’Anthony Melton, Jaren Jackson Jr. and Ja Morant — emphasized over and over again.

“You are never going to play a perfect game,” Jenkins said. “We have to play a perfect game against this team, and we are so close. Two games in a row it comes down to the last couple of minutes. I would not say I am frustrated. I am so encouraged. All we gotta do is go and win one game on the road. We have won there before.”

In that one, Game 1, the Grizzlies took a big fourth-quarter lead and then hung on for dear life. Clearly, closing out games isn’t a strength for the young team.

It is for the Jazz.

“That’s what makes the Jazz a great team — adjustments,” Melton said.

The former USC standout carried the Grizzlies in the fourth quarter, a rare outburst from a member of Memphis’ bench for the second-straight game after Grayson Allen had 17 in Game 3. Melton rebounded his own miss and made a layup with four minutes, 14 seconds remaining to pull the home team to within three.

After Utah’s second-half hero, Rudy Gobert, made one of two free throws, the Grizzlies misfired on their next three possessions, while the Jazz got 3-pointers from Mike Conley and Bojan Bogdanovic to close it out.

“Everybody on that team loves shooting (3-pointers),” Melton said. “They are trying to make records, shooting 3s.”

The Jazz made 17 triples on Monday, after making 19 in Games 2 and 3.

Memphis came out firing 3-pointers as well, then remembered it was Memphis and reverted to Morant and Dillon Brooks attacking the basket, with mixed results. The Grizzlies made just 10 of 35 triples (28.6%) and Morant and Melton both missed wide-open ones in the final few minutes.

“We just gotta find ways to close out better,” said Morant, who was 8 of 21 from the field, including a frosty 1 of 7 from 3-point range, en route to a team-high 23 points.

Jackson Jr. and Brooks added 21 apiece and all 15 of Melton’s points came in the second half.

“They are a great team and they make you pay for mistakes,” Morant said. “It wasn’t about (lack of execution). We just missed too many shots late.”

The Jazz led by as many as nine points in the first half before a pair of Morant buckets trimmed Utah’s lead to five at the break. Utah took a 13-point lead into the fourth quarter, then missed its first nine shots of the quarter to let the Grizzlies back in it.

“Give them a lot of credit,” Jenkins said. “That’s why they are the best team in the NBA. I have said it all along. When you don’t take advantage of an opportunity, they are going to make you pay.”

Jenkins told his players to keep their heads up after another gut-busting loss at home.

“Our mentality all season long is to continue to fight, be the most competitive team, the most together team,” Jenkins said. “I have the utmost faith in this group that when we go out and get on a plane tomorrow, we will be ready for Game 5.”

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Meet the faith-based conservative group changing American politics

Then-President Donald Trump pauses as the audience applauds during a speech at the Faith and Freedom Coalition’s Road To Majority conference in Washington, Thursday, June 8, 2017. | Patrick Semansky, Associated Press

Want a preview of the Republican primaries? Or maybe to hitch your wagon to a rising conservative star? Turn your attention to grassroots groups, including the Faith and Freedom Coalition  

Although the next presidential election is still 3¹⁄₂ years away, some Republican hopefuls are already taking tentative first steps that could, eventually, lead to the White House.

Top GOP leaders will be at the Faith and Freedom Coalition’s “Road to Majority” conference, which will take place June 17-19 in Orlando, Florida, to court some of their party’s most important members — religious conservatives — and see how these voters respond to their pitch.

The list of invited speakers includes big names like former President Donald Trump — who has not yet ruled out running in 2024 — and Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley. Politicians that many see as the future of the Republican Party, like Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, are also expected to make an appearance, along with lesser known but still important figures like Mark Robinson, the lieutenant governor of North Carolina, and Rep. Madison Cawthorn, R-North Carolina, who is currently the youngest member of Congress.

Events like the Faith and Freedom Coalition’s conference offer politicians a chance to deliver unfiltered messages directly to members of the public — helping to shape the national dialogue — as well as the opportunity to connect with potential supporters and donors, experts on religion and politics say.

Attendees leave the conferences energized. Back home, they start spreading the word about different political candidates and some become early organizers for future presidential campaigns.

To some extent, the “Road to Majority” and gatherings like it can make or break a Republican candidate’s relationship with religious conservatives, who play a key role in the GOP, said Mark Rozell, dean of George Mason University’s Schar School of Policy and Government.

These events can be the start of a relationship between candidates and attendees that leads to cash donations, campaign volunteering and a supportive buzz — little things that make a big difference over time.

“It’s not the event itself — it’s the snowballing effect over time,” Rozell said, adding, “I would expect any presidential aspirant to show up.”

Susan Walsh, Associated Press

Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., speaks during a confirmation hearing for Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill in Washington on Oct. 12, 2020.

Still ‘the right hand of God?’

The Faith and Freedom Coalition was founded by Ralph Reed, a powerful religious and political leader whom Time Magazine once called “the right hand of God” in a 1995 article about his former organization, the Christian Coalition.

The Faith and Freedom Coalition, launched in 2009, aims to cast a wider net than Reed’s previous group. It seeks to serve not just Christian conservatives, but “values voters” of many stripes, Reed told The Economist in 2010.

By 2011, CNN was already calling the organization a “political powerhouse,” noting that “just about every Republican” who hoped to snag the 2012 GOP nomination would be present at the group’s annual conference that year.

However, the Faith and Freedom Coalition’s $50 million push to get out the conservative vote in 2020 failed to win Trump the reelection he was looking for. Now, they’re regrouping.

The goal of the Faith and Freedom Coalition’s conferences is not just to connect voters with Republican stars, said Tim Head, the organization’s executive director.

The gatherings also create “synergy and momentum” and impact the GOP’s policy plans, he said, explaining that state and local politicians — who are both speakers and attendees at such conferences — pick up ideas from organized presentations to casual chats in the hallways and everywhere in between.

“It’s very common that those organic conversations and presentations end up making their way into legislation,” Head said. “A Texas legislator ends up presenting on what happened in the (state) legislature this year and then we get a call from a guy in Tennessee, ‘Hey, can you get me in touch?’ or ‘I’ve been working on a bill.’”

In this manner, policies and legislation “spread like wildfire,” he added. “Conferences are a great way for these things to jump state lines.”

The Faith and Freedom Coalition’s conferences help steer the Republican Party, Rozell said. They enable GOP leaders to see what politicians or policies animate the religious conservatives in the crowd.

Religious conservatives, he explained, “have an outsize influence on Republican nominations — not only at the national level but particularly at the state and local level.”

And conferences like the “Road to Majority,” Rozell added, “have a significant impact on many of the leaders and supporters of religious conservative organizations.”

However, other academics are less convinced about the impact of such events.

For example, Clyde Wilcox, a professor of government at Georgetown University who used to attend the Christian Coalition’s annual conferences, says that, back then, there was little correlation between which politicians appeared at the event and who ended up becoming the Republican presidential nominee.

But Rozell believes the buzz generated by these conferences can begin to translate to a groundswell that could potentially carry a candidate to the White House.

“Money follows political support,” he said. “Being able to build a grassroots network of potential supporters and being a leader in the culture wars — that’s going to bring money.”

Raising credibility and visibility among the grassroots helps deliver “significant funds to their future campaigns,” Rozell added.

Helping the ‘activists stay activated’

When the Faith and Freedom Coalition convenes in Orlando in mid-June, potential Republican candidates and conservative political activists will have a chance to feel each other out. Attendees will get a sense of the presidential hopefuls and politicians will gauge the crowd’s interest in their claims.

This far ahead of the 2024 presidential election, the “Road to Majority” conference is “probably more like a beauty contest,” Wilcox said. However, he adds that it’s not too early for attendees to start “to put emotional bets on someone.”

At least, that’s what could happen “in a normal time,” he added. This year, “you have Trump lurking in the background.”

“Everyone is standing back a little bit thinking ‘Is Donald gonna run or not?,’” Wilcox said.

Morgan Lee, Associated Press

Supporters of then-President Donald Trump stage a rally outside the New Mexico Capitol in Santa Fe, N.M., on Nov. 7, 2020.

Regardless of what happens in the future, events like these will help party officials keep religious conservatives engaged.

“They help the activists stay activated,” Wilcox said, adding that “It’s hard to keep people fired up” without events.

Conferences like the “Road to Majority,” as well as other ongoing events — like Rick Green’s biblical citizenship courses, for example — help generate the connective tissue that links religious conservatives together into a national movement, Rozell said.

“It’s all part of the networking that goes on among religious conservatives who are politically engaged,” he said. “One of the advantages they (the religious right) have as a social and political movement is that they are constantly networked.”

But Head says observers might be surprised by who shows up at the Faith and Freedom Coalition’s 11th “Road to Majority” conference. He emphasizes that some of the attendees lean left. Additionally, demographic shifts in the crowd reflect changes in American society and politics that showed up in the 2020 election and are only going to grow.

Every year, Head noted, “we’ve seen more and more diversity.” This year, he estimates that between one-fifth to one-quarter of the crowd will be Hispanic — a group that’s playing a growing role in the Republican Party.

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Presenting the world’s oldest heli-skier

Junior Bounous looks up at the mountains as he poses for photos at Snowbird Lodge on Friday, May 21, 2021. Bounous recently set a Guinness World Record for heli-skiing at the age of 95. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News

How skiing legend Junior Bounous battled grief and became a Guinness World Record holder

On a crisp, clear, blue-sky day this past April, a helicopter belonging to Powderbird Helicopter Skiing dropped Junior Bounous atop the American Fork Twin Peaks, at 11,489 feet the highest point on the Little Cottonwood Canyon ridge.

When he set off down the mountain he skied straight into a Guinness World Record.

No one his age had ever done something like this. Bounous was 95 years and 224 days old on April 5 — 230 days older than the existing heli-skiing record-holder, a Canadian named Gordon Precious, who checked in at 94 years 306 days when he made his run in 2019.

Bounous accepted high-fives from members of his family, who made the historic run with him. It was an achievement for the ages, literally.

But in truth, chasing a world record was just an excuse to accomplish something much more grand.

In the early summer of 2020, along with everything else that was going on, Junior lost the love of his life, his wife of nearly 70 years, Maxine, who everyone called Fast Max.

The nickname was well deserved. Maxine Bounous, like her husband, could ski like the wind. She and Junior, who both grew up in Provo, were among the first certified ski instructors in the country. They pioneered the art of powder skiing, under the tutelage of no less than Alf Engen, and taught skiing at Timp Haven/Sundance, Alta, Sugar Bowl and Snowbird, where Junior was the first director of skiing when the resort opened in 1971.

Everywhere Junior went — a man who was inducted into the U.S. National Ski Hall of Fame in 1996 and the Intermountain Ski Hall of Fame in the inaugural class of 2002; a man who has been featured in numerous Warren Miller films; a man who has ski runs named after him at Sundance, Alta and Snowbird; a man who has been called “The Godfather of Powder Skiing” — Maxine was right there with him.

Losing her left a broken heart and an unfillable void. Life was not going to be easy without her.

Junior’s son Steve knew this. He knew his dad was going to need help negotiating the grief. They needed a plan. And of course the plan involved skiing.

“The idea was to give my dad something to work for and look forward to,” says Steve, a former U.S. Ski Team member, in reflecting on his effort to help his father get out and moving last fall.

As soon as the snow flew in November, just before Thanksgiving, he had Junior on the slopes at Alta.

The long summer had indeed taken its toll. A couple of runs on Sunnyside wiped the Godfather of Powder Skiing out.

But it was a start. The fresh air, the movement, the joy of skiing, it all began to methodically work its magic.

Then, shortly after 2020 turned into 2021, the idea of using a world record for extra motivation entered the picture.

Ayja Bounous, Steve and Suzanne’s daughter, was doing some research on her grandfather’s life — for a biography she’s writing about him — and discovered that such a thing as a record for “world’s oldest heli-skier” actually existed.

And grandpa was older than the man who held it.

The Bounous family contacted the Guinness people to see how one went about qualifying for the record. Turned out, there was a lot of documentation to be done. Suzanne rolled up her sleeves and waded through the red tape. It took time, the heli-skiing season was drawing to a close, but finally they were able to nail down a date to go for it.

On Tuesday, April 5, the Powderbird helicopter lifted off from its Snowbird helipad and delivered Junior, Steve, Suzanne, Ayja and her sister Tyndall, along with a few friends and photographer Sam Watson, to the top of Twin Peaks.

The hard part was getting Junior out of the chopper. At 95, his legs don’t bend like they did at 35.

“The skiing was the easy part,” he said.

After he smoothly glided his way over corn snow into the record book, the group took another run, and another, and another. As an added bonus, the chopper took the long way back, treating Junior to an up-close loop around Mount Timpanogos.

It was more than appropriate. In 1961, a mere 60 years ago, Junior and Maxine, along with Jim McConkey and Elfriede Shane, skied down the face of Mount Timpanogos for a Ski Magazine photo shoot (you can see them on the cover of the January 1962 edition) after being ferried to the summit via helicopter.

In 1961, commercial helicopters had barely come into existence. It is believed to be the first heli-skiing flight in history.

“Beyond belief,” was Junior’s description when he touched down from his record-setting flight. “I stand here and feel so sentimental that it’s almost hard to talk about it. It was such a special day that was never anticipated or expected.”

One that was far more about where he’d been than what he’d just done.

“It was the most incredible experience, to see him skiing like that after one of the most tragic events of his life,” said his granddaughter Ayja. “You could just tell he was on cloud nine. We all felt that way, just watching him.”

Ayja is sure her grandmother was there, too, and as happy as her husband.

“Skiing and being in the mountains was what they shared from the get-go,” she said. “I’m sure she was watching from somewhere, thrilled to see him rebound the way he did, doing what they both loved so much.”

After the heli-ski, the new world record-holder kept right on going. Junior skied well into May, racking up 72 days for the year. It wasn’t the 160 ski days he used to average during his career, but he is 95.

What’s next on the horizon?

“Well, he could do it again next year,” offered Steve. “He could break his own record. Once he gets on snow, he’s 30 years younger.” At least.

from Deseret News https://ift.tt/2TriyOZ

Presenting the world’s oldest heli-skier

Junior Bounous looks up at the mountains as he poses for photos at Snowbird Lodge on Friday, May 21, 2021. Bounous recently set a Guinness World Record for heli-skiing at the age of 95. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News

How skiing legend Junior Bounous battled grief and became a Guinness World Record holder

On a crisp, clear, blue-sky day this past April, a helicopter belonging to Powderbird Helicopter Skiing dropped Junior Bounous atop the American Fork Twin Peaks, at 11,489 feet the highest point on the Little Cottonwood Canyon ridge.

When he set off down the mountain he skied straight into a Guinness World Record.

No one his age had ever done something like this. Bounous was 95 years and 224 days old on April 5 — 230 days older than the existing heli-skiing record-holder, a Canadian named Gordon Precious, who checked in at 94 years 306 days when he made his run in 2019.

Bounous accepted high-fives from members of his family, who made the historic run with him. It was an achievement for the ages, literally.

But in truth, chasing a world record was just an excuse to accomplish something much more grand.

In the early summer of 2020, along with everything else that was going on, Junior lost the love of his life, his wife of nearly 70 years, Maxine, who everyone called Fast Max.

The nickname was well deserved. Maxine Bounous, like her husband, could ski like the wind. She and Junior, who both grew up in Provo, were among the first certified ski instructors in the country. They pioneered the art of powder skiing, under the tutelage of no less than Alf Engen, and taught skiing at Timp Haven/Sundance, Alta, Sugar Bowl and Snowbird, where Junior was the first director of skiing when the resort opened in 1971.

Everywhere Junior went — a man who was inducted into the U.S. National Ski Hall of Fame in 1996 and the Intermountain Ski Hall of Fame in the inaugural class of 2002; a man who has been featured in numerous Warren Miller films; a man who has ski runs named after him at Sundance, Alta and Snowbird; a man who has been called “The Godfather of Powder Skiing” — Maxine was right there with him.

Losing her left a broken heart and an unfillable void. Life was not going to be easy without her.

Junior’s son Steve knew this. He knew his dad was going to need help negotiating the grief. They needed a plan. And of course the plan involved skiing.

“The idea was to give my dad something to work for and look forward to,” says Steve, a former U.S. Ski Team member, in reflecting on his effort to help his father get out and moving last fall.

As soon as the snow flew in November, just before Thanksgiving, he had Junior on the slopes at Alta.

The long summer had indeed taken its toll. A couple of runs on Sunnyside wiped the Godfather of Powder Skiing out.

But it was a start. The fresh air, the movement, the joy of skiing, it all began to methodically work its magic.

Then, shortly after 2020 turned into 2021, the idea of using a world record for extra motivation entered the picture.

Ayja Bounous, Steve and Suzanne’s daughter, was doing some research on her grandfather’s life — for a biography she’s writing about him — and discovered that such a thing as a record for “world’s oldest heli-skier” actually existed.

And grandpa was older than the man who held it.

The Bounous family contacted the Guinness people to see how one went about qualifying for the record. Turned out, there was a lot of documentation to be done. Suzanne rolled up her sleeves and waded through the red tape. It took time, the heli-skiing season was drawing to a close, but finally they were able to nail down a date to go for it.

On Tuesday, April 5, the Powderbird helicopter lifted off from its Snowbird helipad and delivered Junior, Steve, Suzanne, Ayja and her sister Tyndall, along with a few friends and photographer Sam Watson, to the top of Twin Peaks.

The hard part was getting Junior out of the chopper. At 95, his legs don’t bend like they did at 35.

“The skiing was the easy part,” he said.

After he smoothly glided his way over corn snow into the record book, the group took another run, and another, and another. As an added bonus, the chopper took the long way back, treating Junior to an up-close loop around Mount Timpanogos.

It was more than appropriate. In 1961, a mere 60 years ago, Junior and Maxine, along with Jim McConkey and Elfriede Shane, skied down the face of Mount Timpanogos for a Ski Magazine photo shoot (you can see them on the cover of the January 1962 edition) after being ferried to the summit via helicopter.

In 1961, commercial helicopters had barely come into existence. It is believed to be the first heli-skiing flight in history.

“Beyond belief,” was Junior’s description when he touched down from his record-setting flight. “I stand here and feel so sentimental that it’s almost hard to talk about it. It was such a special day that was never anticipated or expected.”

One that was far more about where he’d been than what he’d just done.

“It was the most incredible experience, to see him skiing like that after one of the most tragic events of his life,” said his granddaughter Ayja. “You could just tell he was on cloud nine. We all felt that way, just watching him.”

Ayja is sure her grandmother was there, too, and as happy as her husband.

“Skiing and being in the mountains was what they shared from the get-go,” she said. “I’m sure she was watching from somewhere, thrilled to see him rebound the way he did, doing what they both loved so much.”

After the heli-ski, the new world record-holder kept right on going. Junior skied well into May, racking up 72 days for the year. It wasn’t the 160 ski days he used to average during his career, but he is 95.

What’s next on the horizon?

“Well, he could do it again next year,” offered Steve. “He could break his own record. Once he gets on snow, he’s 30 years younger.” At least.

from Deseret News https://ift.tt/2TriyOZ

Presenting the world’s oldest heli-skier

Junior Bounous looks up at the mountains as he poses for photos at Snowbird Lodge on Friday, May 21, 2021. Bounous recently set a Guinness World Record for heli-skiing at the age of 95. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News

How skiing legend Junior Bounous battled grief and became a Guinness World Record holder

On a crisp, clear, blue-sky day this past April, a helicopter belonging to Powderbird Helicopter Skiing dropped Junior Bounous atop the American Fork Twin Peaks, at 11,489 feet the highest point on the Little Cottonwood Canyon ridge.

When he set off down the mountain he skied straight into a Guinness World Record.

No one his age had ever done something like this. Bounous was 95 years and 224 days old on April 5 — 230 days older than the existing heli-skiing record-holder, a Canadian named Gordon Precious, who checked in at 94 years 306 days when he made his run in 2019.

Bounous accepted high-fives from members of his family, who made the historic run with him. It was an achievement for the ages, literally.

But in truth, chasing a world record was just an excuse to accomplish something much more grand.

In the early summer of 2020, along with everything else that was going on, Junior lost the love of his life, his wife of nearly 70 years, Maxine, who everyone called Fast Max.

The nickname was well deserved. Maxine Bounous, like her husband, could ski like the wind. She and Junior, who both grew up in Provo, were among the first certified ski instructors in the country. They pioneered the art of powder skiing, under the tutelage of no less than Alf Engen, and taught skiing at Timp Haven/Sundance, Alta, Sugar Bowl and Snowbird, where Junior was the first director of skiing when the resort opened in 1971.

Everywhere Junior went — a man who was inducted into the U.S. National Ski Hall of Fame in 1996 and the Intermountain Ski Hall of Fame in the inaugural class of 2002; a man who has been featured in numerous Warren Miller films; a man who has ski runs named after him at Sundance, Alta and Snowbird; a man who has been called “The Godfather of Powder Skiing” — Maxine was right there with him.

Losing her left a broken heart and an unfillable void. Life was not going to be easy without her.

Junior’s son Steve knew this. He knew his dad was going to need help negotiating the grief. They needed a plan. And of course the plan involved skiing.

“The idea was to give my dad something to work for and look forward to,” says Steve, a former U.S. Ski Team member, in reflecting on his effort to help his father get out and moving last fall.

As soon as the snow flew in November, just before Thanksgiving, he had Junior on the slopes at Alta.

The long summer had indeed taken its toll. A couple of runs on Sunnyside wiped the Godfather of Powder Skiing out.

But it was a start. The fresh air, the movement, the joy of skiing, it all began to methodically work its magic.

Then, shortly after 2020 turned into 2021, the idea of using a world record for extra motivation entered the picture.

Ayja Bounous, Steve and Suzanne’s daughter, was doing some research on her grandfather’s life — for a biography she’s writing about him — and discovered that such a thing as a record for “world’s oldest heli-skier” actually existed.

And grandpa was older than the man who held it.

The Bounous family contacted the Guinness people to see how one went about qualifying for the record. Turned out, there was a lot of documentation to be done. Suzanne rolled up her sleeves and waded through the red tape. It took time, the heli-skiing season was drawing to a close, but finally they were able to nail down a date to go for it.

On Tuesday, April 5, the Powderbird helicopter lifted off from its Snowbird helipad and delivered Junior, Steve, Suzanne, Ayja and her sister Tyndall, along with a few friends and photographer Sam Watson, to the top of Twin Peaks.

The hard part was getting Junior out of the chopper. At 95, his legs don’t bend like they did at 35.

“The skiing was the easy part,” he said.

After he smoothly glided his way over corn snow into the record book, the group took another run, and another, and another. As an added bonus, the chopper took the long way back, treating Junior to an up-close loop around Mount Timpanogos.

It was more than appropriate. In 1961, a mere 60 years ago, Junior and Maxine, along with Jim McConkey and Elfriede Shane, skied down the face of Mount Timpanogos for a Ski Magazine photo shoot (you can see them on the cover of the January 1962 edition) after being ferried to the summit via helicopter.

In 1961, commercial helicopters had barely come into existence. It is believed to be the first heli-skiing flight in history.

“Beyond belief,” was Junior’s description when he touched down from his record-setting flight. “I stand here and feel so sentimental that it’s almost hard to talk about it. It was such a special day that was never anticipated or expected.”

One that was far more about where he’d been than what he’d just done.

“It was the most incredible experience, to see him skiing like that after one of the most tragic events of his life,” said his granddaughter Ayja. “You could just tell he was on cloud nine. We all felt that way, just watching him.”

Ayja is sure her grandmother was there, too, and as happy as her husband.

“Skiing and being in the mountains was what they shared from the get-go,” she said. “I’m sure she was watching from somewhere, thrilled to see him rebound the way he did, doing what they both loved so much.”

After the heli-ski, the new world record-holder kept right on going. Junior skied well into May, racking up 72 days for the year. It wasn’t the 160 ski days he used to average during his career, but he is 95.

What’s next on the horizon?

“Well, he could do it again next year,” offered Steve. “He could break his own record. Once he gets on snow, he’s 30 years younger.” At least.

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Live coverage: Utah Jazz lead Memphis Grizzlies by 3 after 1st quarter of Game 4

Utah Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell (45) tries to fend off Memphis Grizzlies guard Grayson Allen after Mitchell slapped the ball away during the second half of Game 3 of an NBA basketball first-round playoff series Saturday, May 29, 2021, in Memphis, Tenn. Utah won 121-111. (AP Photo/John Amis) | AP

Monday night’s contest between the Utah Jazz and Memphis Grizzlies in Memphis is going to be a big swing game regardless of the outcome.

With Utah leading the teams’ first round playoff series two games to one, Game 4 will either see the Jazz move to within one win of clinching the series or see the Grizzlies tie things up again, with the series then becoming a best-of-three affair as the squads head back to Salt Lake City for Game 5.

Utah used a late surge last Saturday to fend off feisty Memphis in Game 3 after winning Game 2 to tie the series.

Game 4 is scheduled to tip off at 7:30 p.m. MT and the contest will air on TNT. Follow along here for in-game updates and observations.

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First quarter: Jazz 34, Grizzlies 31

The Jazz got off to a blazing hot start before cooling down as the Grizzlies upped their defensive pressure. Both teams shot very well from the field and had balanced scoring, with a Jazz 3-pointer being the difference in the game.

Tried and true Ingles-Favors PNR still works

— Sarah Todd (@NBASarah) June 1, 2021

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