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The Rockets won a potentially important tiebreaker over the Spurs involving their own 2023 first-round draft pick, though they finished last in a later tiebreaker involving the pick headed to Houston from the Los Angeles Clippers. The random drawings were held Monday and announced that afternoon by the NBA’s league office.

Both Houston and San Antonio finished this season at 22-60 and will have identical odds of securing one of the NBA’s top-four picks in the 2023 first round, to be determined by the May 16 draft lottery. However, the team entering the lottery in the No. 2 spot cannot fall below No. 6 overall and has a better probability of landing at No. 5, as well. The team entering at No. 3 can drop as low as No. 7 overall.

By virtue of winning the tiebreaker, Houston enters the lottery in the No. 2 position, which provides a “pick floor” — i.e. the worst-case scenario — of having its pick land at No. 6 in the first round.

Rockets WIN the tiebreaker with Spurs! The farthest the Rockets can fall is to the 6th pick. Their final lottery odds: pic.twitter.com/pv3ciMewoR

— ClutchFans (@clutchfans) April 17, 2023

On the other end of the spectrum, the pick headed from the Clippers to the Rockets as part of the Eric Gordon trade finished last in three-way tiebreaker involving the Heat and Warriors (all three finished at 44-38). After that random drawing, Miami is at No. 18, Golden State at No. 19, and Houston (via Los Angeles) at No. 20 overall.

But for the Rockets, it was still a good day on the balance, since a pick higher in the first-round order is inherently of greater importance. The complete press release from the league office, which also includes information on other tiebreakers, can be read below.

Related

Podcast: Caitlin Cooper on Frank Vogel and Rockets’ coaching search

Rockets gain more clarity on 2023 NBA draft picks, but coin flips await

From the NBA: pic.twitter.com/4KwOc7vSMs

— Mark Berman (@MarkBermanFox26) April 17, 2023

SAN ANTONIO - If you are looking for Texas home cooking with a unique, old-fashioned atmosphere - Josephine St. has all of that in-store and more.

Director of Customer Experience and Second-Generation Owner, Jake Molak shares that he started working for the family company when he was 17 years old. He started by washing dishes and doing odd-end jobs and slowly worked his way up to where he is now.

The restaurant started in 1979 and Molak's father wanted to start a Hofbrau-style steakhouse here in San Antonio at the time. He visited Hofbrau in Austin and tried the lemon butter sauce they smothered their steaks in and wanted to recreate that. After finding a building in the middle of nowhere at the time, the town grew around Josephine St. and locals continue to come back year after year.

The atmosphere is old-fashioned with comfort food served by loyal staff that has been serving at the restaurant for years.

The staff loves the customers! There aren't many places where the cooks see the customers and at Josephine St., clients will walk up to the cooks to share their thanks.

Cleanliness in the kitchen is very much needed and Josephine St. takes that role very seriously.

"Closing the night and cleaning and preparing for the morning is a cycle," says Molak. "The night crew prepares for the morning crew to be in good shape to start the day and they're not rushing to get things clean that might have been left over from the night."

When asking what the locals like to eat at Josephine St., the top three are...

Their juicy, chicken-fried chicken with a side of mashed potatoes with gravy, and a single onion ring.

The homestyle peppered filet along with green beans.

The fish of the day is always on rotation, so be sure to ask! When we went, the salmon was on the menu with a refreshing coleslaw.

If you want a dessert, the peach cobbler with vanilla ice cream was rich in flavor and the perfect finish to a hearty meal.

When you decide to visit, there is a new parking program where all clients park free of charge. Scan the QR code posted in the parking lot, connect your license plate, and let the wait staff know prior to paying for your meal.

If you decide to try Josephine St., let us know! Share photos or videos HERE of you at Josephine St.

Feel free to email us for Cleanest Kitchen nominations as well at News@KABB.com.

After more than four decades working as a stand-up comedian, Howie Mandel said taking center stage today is even more fulfilling than when he first did it back in the late 1970s.

“It's my respite,” Mandel, 67, told MySA during an interview last week. “Everything I've ever done – everything you know me from – was based on my stand-up comedy. Throughout these 40 years, I’ve done different things, but I'm always a stand-up comic first.”

From voicing animated characters in cartoons like Bobby’s World and The Muppet Babies to landing a gig as a judge on America’s Got Talent (AGT), Mandel considers stand-up comedy the “staple” of his career.

He’ll show off his talent behind the mic when he makes a stop at the Laugh Out Loud Comedy Club in San Antonio for two shows on Monday, April 17.

During our interview, Mandel talked about going back on the road after the pandemic as someone diagnosed with obsessive-compulsive disorder and how he views his current role as a stand-up comedian. We also talked about lending his voice to Gizmo in Gremlins, cancel culture, and how he thinks he would’ve done as a contestant on AGT if it was around earlier in his career.

When was the last time you were in San Antonio?

A few years right before COVID. I go there a lot. I like it. I like the River Walk. Usually, I like to do one night of shows in a city as opposed to staying for a week. That's what I've been doing for the last 40 years. Sometimes I stay in a city for a couple of days.

How has it been for you coming out of lockdown and getting back on the road?

I'm trying to make it a good feeling. But the truth is … I have OCD – mental health issues. So, as much as the world got locked down, I got locked down twice as much. Three years ago, I was doing 200 live dates a year and then I shut down completely. So, coming to San Antonio … it’s fresh for me, which makes it exciting, scary, and fun. The hardest part is just being outside amongst people.

I'm in my early 40s, so I used to hear your voice on my TV every morning as a kid when I watched Bobby's World before school. When people share those kinds of anecdotes with you, what goes through your mind?

That I'm old. Any time I talk to somebody, that’s how they usually start the conversation, which makes me feel kind of old. When my career was just starting, people would start conversations with, “Who are you?” Then, it went to, “Oh, I just saw you in …” and now it’s, “When I was a kid …”

Nobody ever says, “Oh, it’s you again?!” since you’re doing so many different things nowadays?

(Laughs) Just my wife. That’s what marriage is.

So, with all the projects you're involved in these days, what does stand-up comedy still give you that these other platforms do not?

More freedom. I don't have to watch my language. I don't have to hit a mark. You know where I stand. I just tell people who are fans of America's Got Talent or Deal or No Deal or even Bobby's World not to bring their kids to the club.

What do you talk about these days from the stage?

Whatever is happening in my life at the moment or in that room or on that day. Obviously, I have material, but I look to be taken off the path by anybody. It’s very interactive. I look at it like a giant party, and I'm just trying to be the center of attention.

Something you don't do from the stage is get political and talk about things that might alienate audiences.

No, I have no interest in that. Comedy is the antithesis of that. That’s a hot point for a lot of people right now. Some people will laugh at that but just as many people will hate it. I'm there to escape all that. I just want people to have a good time. If you want to have a good time at a party, you’re not going to talk about anything serious.

What drew you to a talent show like AGT?

What I love about AGT is that it’s a variety show. If you don't like [an act], wait three minutes and you're going to see something completely different. If you don't like somebody singing, wait a couple of minutes and there will be somebody hanging upside down or doing something silly.

How would Howie Mandel have done on a show like AGT if it was around in the 1980s?

I don't know. I guess it would depend on who was judging it. If I was judging it, I would have loved me. I would have given myself a Golden Buzzer.

How did you come up with the voice of Gizmo for Gremlins?

Oh, it's the same as Bobby [from Bobby’s World] and Skeeter [from Muppet Babies]. One day, I was choking on a piece of cake at a birthday party and that sound came out. Instead of dying, I was entertaining. So, it was an accident. Everything in my whole life and career has been an accident.

Do you like that there are so many platforms today where a comedian can get discovered?

I think of it as just more opportunity. When I started out, you either had to go to the Comedy Store or the Improv. Or you had to be on The Tonight Show. That was it. Now, you can do whatever you need to do in a plethora of different places.

Are you ever surprised about the talent you see on AGT now that you’ve been judging for more than a decade?

I am. You’d think I would be jaded and wouldn't be, but I couldn’t tell you how many times I've been surprised. It's crazy. You see [an act] and you think, “I can do that,” but then they do it hanging upside down. You get someone juggling, but then they light themselves on fire.

What about the stand-up comedians?

This season, we’re going to have lots of stand-up comedy. I feel there is a resurgence in stand-up comedy right now. For the last few years, I think that it was kind of a canceled culture. Now, there’s the anti-canceled culture where these [comedians] are pushing it in another direction. I'm excited about that.

When you say “pushing,” do you mean pushing back against cancel culture?

Yeah, that means the freedom of being able to say whatever you want to say. In the context of stand-up comedy, it shouldn't be offensive because it's comedy. It's supposed to be funny. Nobody means anything derogatory. They're just trying to entertain and make you laugh.

Name: Brian West

Job: Founder of Taste of the Republic, restaurant consultant

Age: 51

Birthplace: Alamo, Texas

Experience: West has worked in the food industry for 34 years, including stints as a restaurant owner, chef and culinary instructor.

There's no job in the restaurant industry that chef Brian West hasn't held, from busing tables to owning restaurants. Along the way, he's served as a chef-instructor at the Culinary Institute of America and even worked behind the scenes on chef Robert Irvine's reality show Restaurant: Impossible. These days, West is an evangelist for authentic Texas cuisine by way of Fiesta event Taste of the Republic, which he founded in 2017. On April 20, Taste of the Republic will take place at the Alamo for the first time.

The origins of Taste of the Republic event began when you were an instructor at the Culinary Institute of America. Tell me a bit about that.

As a chef-instructor, I noticed there was a void in the American cuisine programs with Texas culture. Later investigating this with the dean, it came to my knowledge that there was little research done on the cuisines of Texas. During my tenure, I made it my mission to define Texas cuisine as we know it today.

The Taste of the Republic Fiesta event reminds me of a Disney theme park in that one can experience multiple cultures in a central location. Was that always your intention? How has the event evolved since 2017?

In my research to better understand Texas cuisine, I found that because of the number of cultural influences, the overall idea of this cuisine was far too extensive to focus on. This problem eventually led me to the solution and idea of creating six geographical points of Texas cuisine. As a child, I was always a fan of Disney and the joy it brought to so many people, so I made the connection early on about how a place is able to bring joy to people simply through the experience of introducing them to a new culture. In the beginning of this event, there were simply wine pairings with food, but as we have now grown exponentially, the relationship between food and beverage has changed. We now have incorporated spirits into the event and have further [explored] the endless possibilities of culinary mixtures pertaining to the six food regions.

You've said that your "Manifesto of Texas Cuisine" was intended to stoke revolution for Texas food. Your event now takes place at the Alamo, one of the state's most iconic locations. How does that feel?

I feel truly amazed about it, and in my heart, I have always felt that this would happen naturally with no resistance. I feel extremely fortunate for the opportunity.

How has your perspective on Fiesta changed now that you and your concept are such a fixture for the event?

I have always felt that Fiesta is one of the pillars of our city, but thanks to the creation of Taste of the Republic I feel more connected than ever. I take personal ownership of the integrity and future of Fiesta now.

I know all these regions of cuisine are equally meaningful to you. However, if you could only eat from one of the regions for the rest of your days, which would it be and why?

Every single one of these regional cuisines has a meaning to me, but being from South Texas, I would have to say I would more than likely choose the Tex-Mex region.

San Antonio is a UNESCO City of Gastronomy. What does that mean to you and the mission of the Taste of The Republic?

I feel that anytime San Antonio is appreciated to be a diverse, cultural center we can all come together to achieve excellence in the culinary field. This guides me in my mission to further expand the knowledge people have on Texas cuisine and to truly highlight the components that went into it to lead the cuisine where it is today. I would be extremely interested in working with the UNESCO Foundation to truly understand the cuisine of Texas.

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SAN ANTONIO — Like a lot of twin brothers, Delontae and Michael Scott were always teammates on the gridiron.

“Our favorite play was 41 stretch and 42 stretch,” Michael Scott said. “He’ll block for me on one play. I’ll block for him on another.”

The duo used to do everything together growing up in Dallas. They are now reunited on the San Antonio Brahmas defensive line in the XFL.

“I finally get to prove that I’m better than him. That’s the truth,” said Michael Scott with a smile.

The brothers originally planned to play together in college at SMU after graduating from Nimitz High School in Irving. But Michael Scott was kicked out of school, throwing a wrench into those plans.

“I was a big knucklehead and learned my lessons,” Michael Scott said. “You really think you know it all, but you don’t.”

Michael Scott left the Hilltop for a junior college, and Delontae Scott stayed with the Mustangs.

“It was hard not being with my brother after 19 years,” Michael Scott said. “We’ve always been in each other’s space, fighting, bickering and loving each other.”

“It was like your shadow just went missing,” Delontae Scott said. “Because I’m used to turning around and hearing my brother’s voice.”

With their separation came independence, and with independence came introspection.

“We are two different individuals at the end of the day,” Delontae Scott said. “One thing I did learn was that I’m an introverted kind of guy. I like to be by myself. I didn’t really have an opportunity to see that because I had Michael.”

“I noticed how I leaned on him a lot,” Michael Scott said. “I used to ask him for so much and not having that guy ... I had to step up to the plate.”

The childhood chemistry returned on the football field this spring.

“We didn’t imagine ourselves being here at all in the first place,” Delontae Scott said. “I’m super excited. I missed my brother, miss playing with each other, because we have a lot of fun.”

The twins are cherishing their time together after spending some time apart.

“I love it. I love being around my brother and flying around,” Michael Scott said. “It’s like we know what we’re gonna do without even thinking about it.”