It's somewhat of a toss-up between Tom Chambers and Byron Scott for the NBA king of Utah, but we think it's fair to say that Byron Scott's impact and name rings more of a bell with basketball fans than Chambers does. Hailing from Ogden, Utah, Byron Scott and his family relocated to Inglewood, California, which had to an intense culture shock. He played his collegiate ball at Arizona State for three years before declaring himself to the NBA Draft where he was selected fourth overall by the San Diego Clippers in 1983.
The Clippers went on to trade Byron to the Lakers for Norm Nixon and Scott instantaneously became a contributing member of the Showtime Era LA Lakers. Byron played a full decade with the Lakers racking up three NBA Championships (1985, 1987, 1988) before having stints as an Indiana Pacer and Vancouver Grizzlie before returning to the Lakers in 1996. In 1998, Byron hung up his sneakers for good and has made a career as an NBA head coach coaching for teams like the New Jersey Nets, New Orleans Hornets, Cleveland Cavaliers, and his former team Lakers from 2014-2016.
Chefs made their way into celebrity land a while ago. But how many celebrities that weren’t trained as professional cooks are actually whizzes in the kitchen? Here are several that come to mind.
Actress Julia Roberts is confident about her cooking skills. “I’m quite a good cook,” she told E! News. “I’m like a closet home ec teacher…I can really cook anything.” Roberts has said she often cooks fish for herself and her kids. And speaking of her three children, “They think that I’m a good cook,” Roberts told People. “They actually told me that I should open a restaurant.” She also relishes cooking for the holidays, particularly shredded Brussel sprouts. Roberts hasn’t published a cookbook, but we did find recipes attributed to her for peach crisp and banana hemp muffins. Or you can make the same summer salad the actress supposedly eats.
Chrissy Teigen started off as a supermodel. Then her love of cooking filtered into her professional life too. At this point, she’s created recipes for a limited Blue Apron release and also just launched her own home and cooking line at Target named “Cravings,” after the two cookbooks she’s released. Teigen describes cooking as “a time of peace” for herself. So maybe peace out to her tuna melt sandwich or the fried chicken wings that are a favorite of her husband, John Legend.
Lady Gaga, whose real name is Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta, comes from a cooking Italian family. Her father started his own restaurant in New York and also published a cookbook. And apparently, Lady Gaga has inherited the family’s cooking genes. Her Instagram account occasionally features photos of her culinary activities. Sure, sometimes it’s topless cooking. But other times it’s more poignant like in the post she shared about her bringing food to the family of her dear friend who passed away. Want to try a Gaga/Germanotta family favorite? Check out her recipe for whole wheat pasta with a sweet fennel sauce.