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Jon M. Huntsman School of Business

As time runs out on Jimmer Fredette’s basketball career, this summer’s Olympic Games presents a chance — possibly his last — to go out a winner.

Jimmer admits it takes him longer to get warmed up nowadays than it did in his 20s, but once he’s ready, he’s in top condition physically. Mentally, he’s never been sharper. And most importantly: “I’m as comfortable in my own skin as I’ve ever been,” he says. “I feel like I’m playing really, really good basketball right now. As good as I’ve ever been.”

Jimmer was named to the U.S. men’s 3-on-3 Olympic basketball team. The 3-on-3 version of the game is fast-paced, physical and thrilling — the kind of inventive, competitive basketball people play in parks and gyms around the world. It’s a style that suits Jimmer’s abilities, and with the experience and maturity gained from a successful career overseas, watching him now feels like something familiar and new at once. Like the player who instigated the free-flowing, high-scoring fun of Jimmermania mixed with a seasoned, master craftsman.

At 35 years old, Jimmer might just be playing his best basketball. And if he can keep it up through the end of the Paris Games, he could finally reach a milestone that, thus far, has eluded him.

Read more about Jimmer’s path to the Olympics.

How cows are used as weed eaters — literally — to help the Great Salt Lake retain water

Caretakers of the land around the Great Salt Lake have used a variety of tools to stamp out invasive, harmful phragmites — a tall reed that outcompetes natural vegetation and gobbles up precious water. Few have proven as effective or as picturesque as the latest solution: cows.

Each summer, The Nature Conservancy unleashes around 450 cows in the Great Salt Lake Shorelands Preserve to feast on the invasive reeds. The grazing removes plant biomass and breaks up dead plant material through trampling.

“The biggest benefit for us is that it is cheap labor,” said Chris Brown, Utah stewardship director for The Nature Conservancy.

Brown said their other options are to spray or mow the phragmites, which is expensive and time-consuming. “With the cows, we can just throw them in there and let them do their dirty work.”

Read more about how cows are helping preserve areas across Utah and in other states.

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FROM OUR SPONSOR JON M. HUNTSMAN SCHOOL OF BUSINESS

What Does it Mean to Dare Mighty Things?

Dare Mighty Things: (v) the act of courageously attempting to do big and audacious things that make you uncomfortable, that stretch you, and allow you to grow, even as you experience failure and doubt along the way. Daring Mighty in little and big things is not an act but a habit toward excellence.

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