The Tufts Daily - Friday, December 4 2020

THE

VOLUME LXXX, ISSUE 52

INDEPENDENT

STUDENT

N E W S PA P E R

OF

TUFTS

UNIVERSITY

E S T. 1 9 8 0

T HE T UFTS DAILY

MEDFORD/SOMERVILLE, MASS.

tuftsdaily.com

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 4, 2020

Psychology department to launch new series on anti-racism, to begin in April

NICOLE GARAY / THE TUFTS DAILY

The psychology building is pictured on Dec. 3.

by Matthew McGovern News Editor

The Department of Psychology recently established a new initiative called the Psychology of AntiRacism Series, a talk series that will be held annually. The inaugural event for this series will take place on April 9, 2021, and will feature Jennifer Richeson, professor of psychology at Yale University, as the keynote speaker.

According to Sam Sommers, professor of psychology and department chair, the new initiative emerged from the work done by the Department of Psychology’s Equity, Diversity and Inclusion committee.

Sommers expressed that the goal of the series is to provide a venue for well-regarded scientists to share their research on anti-racism with the community, and to allow students an opportunity to network with people in the field.

Chyei Vinluan, a graduate student involved in organizing the talk series, spoke to some of the driving questions for the development of the Psychology of AntiRacism Series.

“What are the other sources that we want to give the community as well as the Greater Boston community?” Vinluan said. “What resources [can we] give them to help put in a more concerted effort into addressing racism and taking a more anti-racist stance?”

Vinluan, who is a Ph.D. candidate in psychology, expressed her goals for the talk series and said she hopes it can grow every year, beyond Tufts and to the Greater Boston area.

Sommers highly praised Richeson and said that she was a logical choice for the inauguration of the series.

“Dr. Richeson is just a very well-regarded prolific and important scholar in the field,” Sommers

said. “Her work is heavily cited and very well respected, and she has honors — too many to name off the top of my head.”

University President Anthony Monaco will provide introductory remarks for the inaugural talk, Sommers said.

According to Jessica Remedios, associate professor of psychology, the talk series will serve to highlight important work and research in the field of anti-racism in psychology, and can provide the community with useful, practical findings.

“Psychology can help us understand … at the individual level the origins of prejudice and the ways in which people engage and motivate motivated reasoning, and how that affects how we treat people,” Remedios said.

Remedios further explained how she hopes people will come away from the talk series with ways to understand how individ-

uals engage with and treat others, and discuss how the research could be used to make an impact.

“Once we kind of commit to learning about that, and earnestly try to educate ourselves on that, then we have a responsibility to do something about it … to push for change, to increase equity,” Remedios said.

Vinluan spoke to the possibility of expanding these ideas to the community and shared her goals for the initiative.

“I think in order to address [these vital inequalities, we] need to first be informed of what’s going on, and I think that having this anti-racism program is a good start in that direction, but obviously, it’s just a start,” Vinluan said.

“And there’s a lot of other steps needed to make this ideal world become a reality.”

Remedios echoed these sentiments and said that she sees the series as a way to spark conver-

sations about these ideas. She noted she would like the annual talks to become a staple for the department.

Sommers agreed, and spoke to the scientific, empirical nature of the research psychologists can provide on questions of anti-racism.

“What we are hoping that [what] this series does is [contribute] to the intellectual dialogue about these issues on our campus and elsewhere, by providing some scientific data on questions that are directly relevant to these pursuits of creating an anti-racist university,” Sommers said.

While the details of the inaugural Psychology of Anti-Racism talk have not been finalized, Sommers said in a Nov. 17 email to psychology students that more information will be available in the future, and that the talk on April 9 will be accessible via Zoom to all who are interested.

of the protected categories defined by the Office of Equal Opportunity (OEO). In practice, this means that, under university rules, clubs have the ability to admit students into their organization based on their class year.

The protected categories are listed on OEO’s website in a nondiscrimination policy.

“Race; color; national or ethnic origin; age; religion; disability; sex; sexual orientation; gender; gender identity and expression; including a

transgender identity; genetics; veteran status; retaliation; and any other characteristic protected under applicable federal or state law,” the policy reads.

The one exception is the protected category of age.

Under Massachusetts law, age is only considered a protected category for those who are at least 40 years old.

Each student organization at Tufts has its own selection

Student organizations navigate recruiting new members, some consider class year when selecting

by Alicia Zou

Assistant News Editor

Tufts’ student organizations can largely determine their own criteria for selecting new members, as long as they do not interfere with any

ARTS / page 3

COVID-19 encourages businesses to think sustainably

EDITORIAL / page 6

Professors should be empathetic this finals season

SPORTS / back

A look into the next NBA season

see ORGANIZATIONS, page 2 NEWS

1

ARTS & POP CULTURE

3

FUN & GAMES

4

OPINION

6

SPORTS

BACK

2

THE TUFTS DAILY | News | Friday, December 4, 2020

THE TUFTS DAILY Alex Viveros Editor in Chief

EDITORIAL

tuftsdaily.com

Some student organizations continue recruitment despite the pandemic, others put it on hold

Rebecca Barker Hannah Harris Managing Editors Jake Freudberg Associate Editors Jilly Rolnick Alejandra Carrillo Maddie Aitken Jessica Blough Tom Guan Liza Harris Alex Janoff Matt McGovern Sara Renkert Sarah Sandlow Anton Shenk Carolina Espinal Sam Klugherz Alexander Thompson Alicia Zou

Executive News Editor Deputy News Editor News Editors

Assistant News Editors

Ryan Shaffer Executive Features Editor Sid Anand Features Editors Amelia Becker Jillian Collins Claire Fraise Evelyn McClure Kayla Butera Assistant Features Editor Megan Szostak Executive Arts Editor Devina Bhalla Arts Editors Ryan Eggers Steph Hoechst Tuna Margalit Chris Panella Yas Salon Elizabeth Sander Colette Smith Rebecca Tang Geoff Tobia Drew Weisberg Assistant Arts Editor Liz Shelbred Priya Padhye Paloma Delgado Amulya Mutnuri Mike Wilkinson Caroline Wolinsky Abhilasha Bhasin Eliza Dickson Sara Kessel Milli Lu Emily Nadler Grace Prendergast Faye Thijssen Sam Wilner Julia Baroni Carys Kong Annabel Nied Valeria Velasquez Juju Zweifach

Executive Opinion Editor Op-ed Editor Senior Editorialists

Editorialists

Editorial Cartoonists

Sruthi Kocherlakota Executive Sports Editor Tim Chiang Sports Editors Matt Goguen Jeremy Goldstein Aiden Herrod Pranav Jain Ananda Kao Delaney Tantillo Arpan Barua Assistant Sports Editors Jacob Dreyer Henry Gorelik Ethan Ling Arnav Sacheti Alex Sharp Eric Spencer Austin Clementi Executive Investigative Editor Arlo Moore-Bloom Executive Audio Editor Anne Marie Burke Executive Photo Editors Nicole Garay Aidan Chang Staff Photographers Patrick Milewski Menqi Irina Wang Austen Money Executive Video Editor

PRODUCTION Kevin Zhang Production Director Rachel Hsin Executive Layout Editors Yanqing Huang Laura Mogannam Campbell Devlin Layout Editor Tys Sweeney Executive Graphics Editor Sam Farbman Graphic Designers Freya Gupta Helen He Kristina Marchand Calisa Sana Ethan Schreiber Ethan Steinberg Colton Wolk Brendan Hartnett Julian Perry Mariel Priven Kate Seklir Abigail Zielinski Mykhaylo Chumak Justin Yu Aedan Brown Elizabeth Kenneally Makenna Law Michelle Li Tiffany Namkoong

Executive Copy Editors Deputy Copy Editors

Copy Editors Assistant Copy Editors

Executive Social Media Editors

BUSINESS Robert Kaplan Business Director Devina Bhalla Account Managers Coley Goren Sharan Bhansali Business Managers Norice Lu Evelyn McClure Patrick Milewski Luke Allocco Outreach Coordinators Sam Russo

Contact Us P.O. Box 53018, Medford, MA 02155 daily@tuftsdaily.com thetuftsdaily tuftsdaily tuftsdaily

Please rec ycle this newspaper!

NICOLE GARAY / THE TUFTS DAILY

The Mayer Campus Center is pictured on Dec. 3.

ORGANIZATIONS

continued from page 1 process for new members, with a variety of variables.

For Tufts Mock Trial, most accepted members are first-years with some sophomores also being selected.

Recruitment for the team includes tryouts that are geared toward first-years and sophomores, according to Bennett Demsky, co-president of Tufts Mock Trial.

Demsky, a junior, cites Mock Trial’s rigorous training process as a reason for the decision to accept younger members.

“There [are] just a lot of rules and procedures that people need to know,” Demsky said. “It’s pretty hard to take u p p e rc l a s s m e n because there’s just not enough time to teach them and then for them to realize their full potential, so we mostly focus on incoming freshmen.”

Andre Ching, a transfer student who is the former captain of Reed College’s mock trial team, was accepted this semester into Tufts’ mock trial team as a junior.

Ching emphasized that his acceptance was based on his ability to perform at a similar level to other juniors on the team.

“I think one of the reasons they … made the exception to allow a junior onto the team was because I showed them in the tryout and various conversations I had with the lead-

ership at Tufts Mock Trial that I have the skills of a junior,” Ching said.

He mentioned that even though he is a member of Tufts Mock Trial, junior transfer students have the most difficulty joining student organizations.

“I’ve only joined Mock Trial because I actively reached out and … pretty much went out of my way to look for ways to enter, but no other organization has reached out to me,” Ching said.

For the Amalgamates, one of Tufts’ all-gender a cappella groups, all class years besides seniors can audition. About three-quarters of the auditionees are first-years, with a quarter being sophomores and just a handful being juniors or transfer students, according to Noah Bedrosian, business manager of the Amalgamates.

Bedrosian, a junior, noted that class year is not considered when deciding which students receive a callback, and students are chosen based purely on their performance.

He added that during callbacks, the Amalgamates stress the time commitment required from their members, which may be more challenging for upperclassmen to adhere to.

“We rehearse three times a week for two and a half hours each time and we have gigs slash performances most weekends,” Bedrosian said.

“For freshmen, it’s [easier

than for upperclassmen] to block out that time.”

For other a cappella groups such as the Jackson Jills, an all female-identifying group, all class years can audition, but for logistical reasons, the group caps the number of members in each class year, according to Miley Xiao, president of the Jackson Jills.

“We try to keep the group under 16 people, so four each grade or five each grade just because of transportation purposes, because when we do performances off campus, we do have to provide our own transportation. And a larger group would make that a little bit more complicated,” Xiao, a senior, said.

Xiao said that students of all class years have similar chances of joining the group, and that class year is not considered heavily in the Jackson Jills’ selection process.

“We try to make [age level] as trivial as possible because, obviously, we want the best singers,” Xiao said. “I think [age] is definitely part of the discussion at the very end of the selection process, but we won’t eliminate someone [on that basis].”

Enchanted, Tufts’ coed Disney-themed a cappella group, accepts students regardless of their class year, but the first-year class has the highest audition turnout, according to Mitchell Shapiro-Albert, president of Enchanted.

Shapiro-Albert, a junior, stated that auditions are eval-

uated solely on singing ability, and neither age or class year are considered in Enchanted’s audition process.

Shapiro-Albert also noted that Enchanted has flexibility in determining the number of members to accept after auditions.

“Enchanted is never locked at a certain number of members, so we would always take anyone we’re excited about,” Shapiro-Albert said.

“Enchanted is a relatively young group and so our founders who wrote our constitution took pretty specific care to ensure that we never be restricted in terms of number of members.”

Due to the pandemic, Tufts Debate Society has changed the traditional selection process for new members due to online debate tournaments, Aonkon Dey, vice president of operations for the group, said.

Dey, a junior, said that the debate team previously had new member selections in the fall semester to eliminate the process of selecting teams of two to compete before each tournament. Since the tournaments had fees associated with them, a set team each year allowed for an easier budgeting process.

He noted that the team will continue without member selections until it can no longer accommodate the number of interested members.

“Hopefully by next fall, the pandemic goes away, and things return back to normal,” Dey said.

ARTS & POP CULTURE

tuftsdaily.com

Friday, December 4, 2020

Kali Uchis’ ‘Sin Miedo (del Amor y Otros Demonios) ∞’ underwhelms listeners

The cover of Kali Uchis’ album “Sin Miedo (del Amor y Otros Demonios)” (2020) is pictured.

by Maeve Hagerty Staff Writer

Ever since the release of her 2018 album “Isolation,” Kali Uchis has made a name for herself as a Colombian American singer with roots in an eclectic mix of genres. With themes of contemporary R&B, hip-hop, Latin trap and neosoul, “Isolation” was an album saturated with personality and promise. Uchis was a piano student and jazz saxophonist in her youth, and it is this musical experience that shapes and gives life to most of her successful music.

I never considered myself to be a fan of Uchis, but I have come to love some of her songs and appreciate her style. The song “Killer” off of “Isolation,” as well as her popular collaboration with Tyler, The Creator and Bootsy Collins titled “After The Storm” (2018) are both my personal favorites and left me anticipating her next album with excitement and hope.

But on Nov. 18, Uchis released her first all-Spanish language record, “Sin Miedo (del Amor y Otros Demonios) ∞.” I love a good title, and translated as “Without Fear (of Love and Other Demons),” this was to me a truly exciting concept. I began listening to Uchis’ sophomore album with high hopes and the expectation of some exciting storytelling — which

3

“Isolation” lacked — or at the very least an explosion of Uchis’ unique style.

That is not what I received at all. There are passable songs and moments throughout, but overall, “Sin Miedo” felt like a hastily prepared album lacking in the character and thematic language that made “Isolation” so noteworthy.

The album opens to a slow-moving “la luna enamorada” with ethereal choral effects, soft percussion and the rhythm of a traditional cumbia track. While I actually liked the short intro that is “la luna enamorada,” everything that came after was absent of personality, despite collaborations from some of the most charismatic musicians imaginable.

Not even Rico Nasty, the iconic reggaeton duo Jowell y Randy, PARTYNEXTDOOR or the Latin trap superstar Jhay Cortez could save “Sin Miedo” from its unimpressive, bordering on repetitive, electronic R&B/Latin trap fusion.

While I did enjoy “la luna enamorada” and “telepatía,” a later track on the album, it’s not worth listening to the rest of the album more than once unless you discover a particular song you find to be catchy.

Though the album is more cohesive than “Isolation,” it is to such an alarming extent that it feels like each song is a boring continuation of the

COURTESY WIKIPEDIA COMMONS

previous with hardly any variation. I can imagine that some Kali Uchis fans would enjoy the album regardless for her breathy voice and stable R&B rhythms, but I can’t imagine listening to this album as more than just background noise.

Additionally, I was extremely underwhelmed by the music video for her collaboration with Jhay Cortez “la luz(Fín).”

As she is openly bisexual, I anticipated that Uchis wouldn’t fall into the trap of fetishizing lesbian relationships, but the video for “la luz(Fín)” does just that. Focusing on Uchis’ physical encounter with another woman, the viewer witnesses Jhay Cortez spying through a peephole to watch the two women in bed as if it were a performance meant for him.

This kind of male-centered attitude often characterizes portrayals of lesbian sexuality in popular culture, and I was deeply ashamed of Uchis for perpetuating this offensive fetishization.

To summarize, “Sin Miedo (del Amor y Otros Demonios) ∞” was unimpressive and tedious.

Much of Uchis’ flavor seems to have been lost in the rather plain track list, and I regret wasting the hours I spent listening to “Sin Miedo” over and over again as I scoured hopelessly for any hint of charm on this bone-dry album. Listen to “Isolation” instead.

COVID-19 forces fast fashion to slow down

by Phoebe Wong

Contributing Writer

With empty malls and vacant parking lots, this year’s Black Friday was starkly different from years past. Instead of the usual long lines and frenzied crowds of shoppers, most sales this year moved online due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In fact, it was the second-largest day of online shopping in U.S. history after last year’s Cyber Monday.

Nevertheless, apparel sales are expected to decrease by as much as 28%–38% by the end of the year, making it one of the industries hit hardest by the pandemic. Thankfully, this seemingly detrimental trend may actually reflect a more positive shift away from fast fashion and its damaging effects.

Specifically, the term fast fashion refers to the incentive within the apparel industry to maximize profit by rapidly pushing out new, cheap designs.

Unfortunately, this business model harms the environment, produces terrible working conditions and fosters a frightening obsession with materialism. Like many other issues that already raised concerns before the pandemic, fast fashion is becoming an even more flagrant problem in light of COVID-19.

For instance, where the pandemic has halted certain industrial activity, the fashion industry has been an exception. Fast fashion relies on global supply chains that outsource work in order to minimize costs. As lockdowns threatened the ability for factory workers to complete orders and as retailers predicted that consumer spending would decrease, retailers tried to cut their losses by canceling orders to factories.

This left huge amounts of surplus material to waste. Groups such as the Sustainable Apparel Coalition are urging companies to recycle as much as possible, but it is still likely that even more will be incinerated or sent to landfills than in a normal year.

Furthermore, while the industry has already treated low-level garment workers as expendable, many companies have refused to pay for canceled orders despite any work already done. Even in cases where there were not mandatory lockdowns, COVID-19 put retailers in a difficult position of either laying workers off or putting them at risk of infection.

Workers have ultimately suffered the most in either situation, particularly those in lower-income countries in which there are many garment factories but a lack of health care systems and social safety nets.

On the consumer side, financial strain from the pandemic and limited in-store shopping have decreased spending, pushing consumers to reevaluate

their contribution to an industry that creates so much harm. Even as consumers started spending more on home entertainment and improvement again, there was less incentive to buy new outfits without anywhere to wear them. People were already increasingly concerned about sustainability before the virus, but recent changes to their financial situation and social life accustomed many to buying less and thinking more before purchases. It will be interesting to see if these habits stick when the economy and opportunities for face-to-face interaction eventually bounce back.

One indicator may be the industry’s response. Although consumers influence the industry, the industry’s response to the virus will inevitably influence consumers’ lasting commitment to sustainability as well. Facing decreased revenue and strained global supply chains, many apparel companies are still purely in survival mode. This might lead one to expect that they would prioritize economic gain at the expense of environmental degradation even more. However, more sustainable brands were actually better prepared to deal with COVID-19 thanks to having more local, resilient supply chains, less surplus clothing and more seasonless items.

As a result, other companies may want to shift to follow their example in the long term.

This is noteworthy because fast fashion companies normally have a significant financial advantage over more sustainable ones. The whole industry is built to reward spending as little as possible on production, designing new collections for new trends all the time and feeding on the consumerist craze for more. By contrast, slow fashion produces only as much product as it can sell, prioritizes staple items to be reworn instead of quickly discarded and often produces locally with environmentally friendly processes even if that requires raising prices. The pandemic reverses this dynamic in which companies have to go against the grain to imagine a more sustainable industry.

Instead, more sustainable brands now have the advantage in the market.

Despite the financial obstacles it creates for the apparel industry, the COVID-19 pandemic presents a unique opportunity to transform the industry for the better. Considering fast fashion’s significant implications for the environment, workers and the extreme materialist culture around which Black Friday revolves, it is imperative that both consumers and retailers capitalize on this momentum while they have the chance.

4

THE TUFTS DAILY | ARTS & POP CULTURE | Friday, December 4, 2020

Florence Almeda Livestreamed and Quarantined

Thundercat

T

here are few song intros that are as instantly recognizable as the first hit of The Isley Brothers’ iconic sampled drum line in Thundercat’s 2015 track, “Them Changes.” While I’ve only listened to a few of Thundercat’s tracks, I’ve fallen hard for his sarcastic bass lines and sweet vocals. When I stumbled across his performance of “Them Changes” featuring Ariana Grande at the virtual Adult Swim Festival a few weeks ago while aimlessly scrolling through Facebook, I stopped in my tracks and proceeded to watch it four times in a row.

To be honest, I’m usually too caught up in Thundercat’s groove to notice what he’s singing about. But something about this performance (maybe it was the fact that I watched it four times in a row) made me truly listen to the lyrics for the first time.

“Nobody move, there’s blood on the floor / And I can’t find my heart / Where did it go? Did I leave it in the cold? / So please give it back, ’cause it’s not yours to take / It must’ve fell when I lost my mind.”

This isn’t a breakup song about a slow, drawn-out goodbye. There’s no doubt that he’s talking about a heartbreak, but to me it sounds like he’s singing about something a little more jarring and unexpected. Like keys fallen out of a pocket, his heart is something small and dear that got misplaced on the subway ride home. While a puzzled Thundercat stands on his doorstep, I imagine a fist-sized heart hopping around a snow-covered sidewalk in search of its owner.

After sitting with these lyrics for a few days, I’ve come to the conclusion that this brief and unexpected heartbreak that Thundercat sings of rings all too true for our time. With COVID-19 cases rising, and an undeniable wariness around seeing anyone outside of our cohorts, the thought of meeting someone new at this point during the pandemic not only seems scary, but utterly

exhausting. And yet, there’s a part of us that is still trying to make some semblance of a connection, whether that be friending your Marriage Pact match on Facebook, redownloading Hinge or even just private messaging your Zoom crush from class. The days are getting shorter and colder, making us crave the closeness of a relationship, physical or emotional, all the more.

I’ve had countless conversations with friends about how this virus has tossed the idea of reckless, casual meetups out the window for the indefinite future.

We now exercise extreme caution in all social activities, painfully careful with whom we choose to invest our time in. The emotional stakes are great, but the uncertainty of our futures are even greater; oftentimes it seems like the moment we finally make a connection, the end is already in sight. Maybe we decided to head home early for break, or maybe we realized we don’t have the capacity to make space for another person in our lives, but more often than not, we find that brevity defines our romances, and perhaps even more so, our farewells.

tuftsdaily.com

In his last verse, Thundercat reflects on this same theme: “I’ve been traveling so long, I don’t think I can hold on / Where were you when I needed you the most? / Now I’m sitting here with a black hole in my chest / A heartless, broken mess.”

I can’t seem to get over the irony of it all, to be living in a time where all we want is to be close to others, and yet this is exactly what we have to avoid for our own physical safety. I’m sure this interpretation strays from Thundercat’s original intention, but “Them Changes” undeniably encapsulates the feeling of navigating relationships and heartbreak during a pandemic. It’s surreal, sudden and painful in a way that we couldn’t have ever anticipated. I would’ve never thought an Adult Swim Live Stream would have me contemplating romance, but, in retrospect, who would’ve guessed we’d be in this situation in the first place.

Florence Almeda is a junior studying music and community health. Florence can be reached at florence.almeda@gmail. com

Friday, December 4, 2020 | Fun & Games | THE TUFTS DAILY

tuftsdaily.com

F& G

LATE NIGHT AT THE DAILY Megan: “My first word was ham.”

Fun & Games

SUDOKU

MY DOG: COZY

Difficulty Level: Laying out the paper after a 6 month hiatus

By Aidan Chang

Thursday’s Solutions

SEARCHING FOR HEADLINES...

CROSSWORD

5

6 Friday, December 4, 2020

Opinion

tuftsdaily.com

EDITORIAL

Tufts professors should continue empathetic approach to teaching as semester comes to a close

BY ANNABEL NIED As the end of the semester approaches, students face the usual final exams, projects and papers amid an unusual finals season. In addition to increasing academic rigor, students have endured immense personal challenges this semester, including strains on mental and physical health as a result of the pandemic. The recent rise of COVID-19 cases and close contacts on campus further compounds this stress. Thus far, many professors have displayed an understanding of these circumstances as they have adapted to hybrid platforms. As we navigate the final weeks of this semester, it is vital that faculty continue this trend of empathy and flexibility by prioritizing student well-being and adjusting class policies to reduce stress.

This semester has taken a significant toll on students’ mental health. While taking classes, students have faced financial hardship, loss, social isolation and heightened anxiety about contracting the virus. Levels of stress and anxiety were elevated by the polarized political climate

leading up to the presidential election, described by some as one of the most consequential elections in our lifetime.

On top of these considerable stressors, many have had to continue their academic careers in environments not conducive to academic success. The virtual format of some classes has made collaboration and forming study groups difficult.

Additionally, many students have expressed profound difficulty focusing on coursework and staying motivated, a notable change for Tufts’ passionate and driven student body. This experience may be exacerbated for remote students and those in quarantine, who do not have access to on-campus study spaces and thus may have trouble staying productive.

Now, as students prepare for final exams amid increased COVID-19 restrictions and a general sense of anxiety about traveling home for the semester, it is especially important that professors support their students.

After months spent staring at screens with little chance for

respite, some students may be experiencing academic burnout. While Thanksgiving provided students with a momentary break from classes, some still opted to stay on campus for the remainder of the semester. Between an atypical holiday and the diminishing social outlets available during colder months, many students have been unable to get a truly relaxing break.

Furthermore, as a result of the rise of cases on campus and in the surrounding Medford and Somerville communities, there are now more students who will have to take their classes while in isolation. Professors must take these old and new stressors into account when assigning final projects and exams to students.

It should also be acknowledged that professors — not just students — face challenges as well. Conducting engaging classes during a pandemic is not an easy task, and professors’ hard work should be applauded. In addition, faculty and administration have maintained an empathetic approach in designing

academic policies, including implementing an Exceptional Pass/Fail policy (EP/F) for the fall semester and offering students the option to take classes remotely.

While still praising these accommodations, we urge professors to recognize that conditions are constantly changing, and students continue to face new challenges.

Looking toward the end of this semester and beyond, there are a number of ways that professors can alleviate stress and support their students.

Faculty can offer flexible due dates and extensions for assignments, alleviating some of the pressure on students who may be dealing with difficult personal circumstances.

Professors should also give students additional opportunities to improve their grades as the semester closes, such as extra credit assignments.

This will offer students who might have struggled earlier in the semester a chance to redeem their grades and end the semester on a strong note. Additionally, professors should work to give students a rough estimate of their grades

before Dec. 11, the deadline for students to opt into EP/F grading.

Perhaps most importantly, professors should make sure to regularly check in with their students about their well-being. Using anonymous surveys, professors can gather student feedback to understand how they’re faring and field suggestions. Even setting aside five minutes at the beginning of a lecture to ask students about how their week is going can foster a sense of community during a time when many feel isolated.

Employing an empathetic approach to academic work in these last few weeks of the semester will prove critical to ensuring student well-being and academic success. Not only is this approach important this semester, but it will continue to be until the pandemic subsides. When designing course materials and policies for the spring semester, Tufts faculty and administration must learn from the hardship our community faced in the past eight months and work to actively support students in the future.

The Tufts Daily is a nonprofit, independent newspaper, published Monday through Friday during the academic year, and distributed free to the Tufts community.

The content of letters, advertisements, signed columns, cartoons and graphics does not necessarily reflect the opinion of The Tufts Daily editorial board.

EDITORIALS Editorials represent the position of The Tufts Daily. Individual editors are not necessarily responsible for, or in agreement with, the policies and editorials of The Tufts Daily.

OP-EDS The Op-Ed section of The Tufts Daily, an open forum for campus editorial commentary, is printed Monday through Thursday. The Daily welcomes submissions from all members of the Tufts community; the opinions expressed in the Op-Ed section do not necessarily represent the opinions of the Daily itself. Opinion articles on campus, national and international issues should be 600 to 1,200 words in length and submitted to opinion@tuftsdaily.com. The editors reserve the right to edit letters for clarity, space and length. All material is subject to editorial discretion and is not guaranteed to appear in the Daily. Authors must submit their telephone numbers and day-of availability for editing questions.

ADVERTISING All advertising copy is subject to the approval of the Editor in Chief, Executive Board and Business Director.

Sport s

Friday, December 4, 2020 | Sports | THE TUFTS DAILY

Which NBA teams will contend in the 2020-21 season?

NBA

continued from page 8 Adebayo in order to save room for a possible Antetokounmpo signing when he enters free agency. Instead, they prioritized the versatile big man and gave Adebayo the maximum extension, committing him for the next five years. With this move, the Heat seem to distance themselves from the acrimony of the Antetokounmpo pursuit, which makes sense considering Miami just made the finals. Resigning Goran Dragić to a two-year deal and keeping Kelly Olynyk, who opted into the final year of his contract, strengthens a rotation that has proven it can defeat most teams in the East. They also got a steal in the draft in Precious Achiuwa, a rangy forward who should help fill the void left by Jae Crowder and Derrick Jones Jr.

No. 8: Portland Trail Blazers The Blazers caught fire in the bubble, seeding games where they went 6–2. The bane for Portland was their defense, which ranked 27th and allowed superior teams to crush them (for example, the Lakers in the first round). On a positive note, their front court has remained top-notch as CJ McCollum and Damian Lillard remain in their primes. The Blazers fell drastically short of expectations last season and general manager Neil Olshey focused on bolstering the defense. The trade for Robert Covington, a 3 & D wing, establishes a balanced starting five.

Moreover, signing Enes Kanter, Derrick Jones Jr. and Harry Giles, while retaining Carmelo Anthony and Rodney Hood adds depth in scoring and athleticism. The Blazers have a talented nucleus, but their success comes down to whether Covington produces and Jusuf Nurkić stays healthy.

No. 9: Boston Celtics General manager Danny Ainge has been criticized for

Arnav Sacheti Hoops Traveler

Morality or expediency?

I

n October 2019, a tweet was sent out. It was simple and well-intentioned: “Fight for freedom, stand with Hong Kong.”

If it was written by you or me, it would have been praised by our peers and quickly gotten lost in the sea of millions of tweets within the hour. But when you are Daryl Morey, the then-general manager of the Houston Rockets of the NBA, your words can affect markets, shift billions of dollars and create political precedence.

Today, I will touch on an aspect of the internation-

his stasis in this free agency. Besides his unremarkable draft, the Celtics actually made some solid moves that exhibit Ainge’s refusal to plunge in on a mediocre player. The Celtics signed Tristan Thompson, who came off a good year with the lowly Cavaliers, averaging 12 points and 10 rebounds. With the addition of veteran point guard Jeff Teague, the Celtics’ new duo will bring experience and leadership that should help the young stars Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown continue their development and make deeper playoff runs.

Ainge also managed to dispense with Gordon Hayward and his cumbersome contract in a complicated sign and trade with the Charlotte Hornets that resulted in a $28.5 million trade exception for Boston. With this space, they could make a plethora of meaningful moves, possibly adding someone like Victor Oladipo while still reserving space for another impactful player.

No. 10: Golden State Warriors The loss of All-Star guard Klay Thompson hampers the Warriors’ championship hopes, but they remain a highly competitive team in the West after an injury-plagued season. The Dubs drafted the 7-foot-1-inch James Wiseman second overall. Moreover, general manager Bob Myers traded for Kelly Oubre Jr. to replace Thompson.

Oubre had a breakout season for Phoenix last year averaging 18.7 points and 6.4 rebounds while shooting 35% from the 3. Golden State also strengthened their backcourt depth by adding Kent Bazemore and Brad Wanamaker, who will provide meaningful minutes when Stephen Curry sits. The championship run for the Dubs has come to an end, but they still pose a threat as an offensive juggernaut.

al nature of basketball that, although it is less appetizing, is still necessary to discuss.

Since 1984, China and Hong Kong have had the “one country, two systems” framework.

Mainland China has a communist, one-party government, while Hong Kong has a democracy. China has continually attempted to impose restrictions on Hong Kong; however, one of these attempts erupted into a flurry of often violent protests in the summer of 2019 by Hong Kong residents attempting to fight for their autonomy.

Morey’s tweet was in support of these protests, and indirectly, China became involved.

China and the United States have always had a great basketball relationship. It picked up steam when Chinese-born Yao

7

SURE, AT FIRST I WAS A LITTLE TAKEN ABACK

BY THE WHOLE PEEING STANDING UP THING. BUT I TAUGHT HIM TO THROW A STICK AND NOW HANGING OUT WITH HIM IS THE BEST PART OF MY DAY. — EINSTEIN adopted 12-09-10

Ming was drafted first overall to the NBA in 2002. This caused the popularity of basketball in China to skyrocket, and it opened a potential multibillion-dollar market for the NBA due to China’s sheer population size. This meant more sold shoes and jerseys, more viewership and a diversification of the game that could transcend political differences.

With this budding relationship, the NBA started to play preseason games in China as well. In fact, during the time of this tweet, the Los Angeles Lakers and the Brooklyn Nets were getting set to play in Shanghai.

What ensued after the tweet was a relationship with China that stood to lose a lot. The Chinese Central Television network, which is the main pro-

vider of NBA games, immediately suspended showing them. In addition, the Chinese Basketball Association, which is headed by Ming, suspended its relationship with the Rockets. What makes this worse is that Ming used to play for the Rockets, and for that reason, it is the most popular NBA team in China to this day.

The potential lost revenue share from Chinese viewership for the NBA as a result of the situation has been estimated to be about $400 million. In addition, many partnerships and sponsorships with other Chinese companies such as Tenecent are worth more than a billion dollars.

Afraid to lose a large market and a good relationship with China, Morey deleted his tweet, and the league and the Rockets

apologized. In addition, the Rockets’ James Harden apologized and the Lakers’ LeBron James cited Morey’s lack of knowledge as a reason to gloss over his tweet.

On the one hand, basketball’s ability to derive equal passion from people of different cultures and creeds is its single most powerful gift, something that I have shown repeatedly in this column. At what point do you need to stay firm in your values and take a stand?

That is a question the NBA needs to think long and hard about if they want to continue to be considered a defender of human rights.

Arnav Sacheti is a sophomore studying quantatative economics. Arnav can be reached at arnav.sacheti@tufts.edu

8 Friday, December 4, 2020

Sports

tuftsdaily.com

Cleaning up the mess: The top 10 NBA teams after free agency, draft

by Isaac Karp

Contributing Writer

No. 1: Los Angeles Lakers The Lakers replenished their front court by acquiring last season’s Sixth Man of the Year Montrezl Harrell and NBA champion Marc Gasol. They also added guard Dennis Schröder to replace Rajon Rondo, and useful wing Wesley Matthews to fill Danny Green’s role. While the Lakers improved slightly, they also shifted from a dominant interior defensive style to a focused scoring game that will benefit the team when LeBron James has to sit. Schröder and Harrell were first and second, respectively, in bench scoring a year ago, and they also provide youthful grit that the organization hopes will add urgency. The Lakers also retained Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, who enjoyed somewhat of an unlikely hero story in the playoffs and is important to the team’s chemistry, especially due to his 3-point shooting. As long as age has not withered James, the Lakers are still favorites to repeat.

No. 2: Brooklyn Nets The Nets finally have the opportunity to make their run for glory with Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, two of the best and most controversial NBA players. After suffering an Achilles tendon tear in the 2019 NBA Finals, Durant’s rehab has been long and arduous, but he’s on a team that has enough talent to make up for any rust. Brooklyn brought back sharpshooter Joe Harris, who should have his best season yet with the new-look Nets, and signed Detroit Pistons guard Bruce Brown, an underrated combo guard with decent playmaking ability. Caris LeVert should continue to develop after surging throughout the last couple of seasons, while Irving has hopefully had enough rest to stay healthy. In addition, they shipped some of their draft picks for another dependable shooter in Landry Shamet, who could come off the bench and give them immediate scoring.

In a league where star power is king, the Nets should pursue this opportunity, which if successful would make them clear title favorites, great chemistry or not.

No. 3: Los Angeles Clippers After dropping a 3–1 series lead to the Denver Nuggets in the playoffs, the Clippers’ season was dramatically cut short.

Heading into the offseason, the team needed to find a ball distributor and playmaker at point guard to complement the duo of Kawhi Leonard and Paul George. They found no such player, but they retained Reggie Jackson, Marcus Morris and Patrick Patterson. The trade

Boston Celtics player Jaylen Brown is pictured during a game against the Washington Wizards on April 10, 2018 for Luke Kennard, who averaged 15.8 points, 4.1 assists and 3.5 rebounds and shot 40% from deep with the Pistons last year, adds some playmaking.

Meanwhile, they signed Serge Ibaka who provides size, scoring, rim protection and the ability to stretch the floor. The Clippers also drafted center Daniel Oturu, another player well equipped to bolster their interior defense. The Clippers have a deadly crunch time offense and a potent defense, but if George doesn’t show up in the playoffs, which seems to be a trend, then the Clippers will fall short again.

The Clippers have the third best duo in the league, which places them third on the list.

No. 4: Milwaukee Bucks The Bucks had the best regular season record for the last two seasons, but their playoff shortcomings continue to haunt them.

With Giannis Antetokounmpo’s future in Milwaukee up in the air, the Bucks had to make a choice this offseason. Small market teams never seem to keep the superstars in the long

term, but the Bucks plunged in anyway by trading an enormous amount of capital for one of the most effective two-way guards in the league in Jrue Holiday. This move will bolster a team that already ranked first in defense, while burnishing the offense in a way that Eric Bledsoe could not. The Bucks also added D.J. Augustin, Bobby Portis, Bryn Forbes, Torrey Craig and Nik Stauskas. But the really valuable move here is Torrey Craig, another body that they can throw at wing players to allow Antetokounmpo to focus on offense. Unfortunately, Milwaukee failed to complete the Bogdan Bogdanović trade, which is a debacle in its own right. Milwaukee’s fragility is palpable, and it seems this is their last-ditch effort to keep Antetokounmpo. It might work in the regular season, but reaching the finals will be another matter altogether.

No. 5: Denver Nuggets The Nuggets continued to exhibit their draft excellence by picking guard R.J. Hampton and

forward Zeke Nnaji, two players who dropped lower than expected. However, this was the apex of their offseason as their free agency moves proved unimpressive. Signing JaMychal Green in order to replace Jerami Grant and Torrey Craig is not sufficient — especially on the defensive end. On the bright side, more minutes have been freed up for younger players to blossom like Michael Porter Jr. and Bol Bol. The likely path for the Nuggets is to maintain their core and develop their prospects into a team that can actually compete for a title in two-to-three years.

Jamal Murray may have emerged as a superstar in the bubble, but we have yet to see him prolong that success over the course of a regular season. Denver has considerable potential, but they still rank a tier behind the Los Angeles teams.

No. 6: Dallas Mavericks The Mavericks will have a tremendous ceiling this season once Kristaps Porziņģis returns from injury. They drafted two swingmen in Josh Green and

COURTESY WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

Tyler Bey and traded for Josh Richardson, which will fortify their two-way consistency. The Mavs ranked first in offensive rating, and needed to address their defense and toughness, which they mostly accomplished. Yet Dončić still needs to work on his defensive shortcomings and up his poor 31.6 3-point percentage in order for this team to reach its potential. Luckily, the Slovenian now has a protector in tenacious forward James Johnson, and they resigned Trey Burke to provide offense off the bench. Overall, Dallas has become a dangerous playoff team with its eyes on the future.

No .7: Miami Heat With additions such as defensive guard Avery Bradley and forward Maurice Harkless, the Heat dialed up their defensive intensity without adding much to their offense. Nonetheless, many expected Miami to stall the contract extension for Bam see NBA, page 7