Of Hartford and talking and building the house

Good morning, kiddies.

Lovely sunny day here, and I haven't seen anyone in mourning over the demise of the Red Sox. Think I'm probably just not looking hard enough.

It'll give me something to do this afternoon, I guess.

What are we going to see tonight?

Not entirely sure but it should be at least mildly interesting.

Yes, Hedo will play, probably in the 12-14 minute area, and Jay’s promise that he’ll get the majority of those minutes with the other starters will provide a glimpse at least of what might be coming.

You’ve got three bigs – Turkoglu, Bosh and Bargnani – who all like to roam the perimeter at times and the whole spacing issue is one that’ll bear watching over the next four games.

My best guess, at least after the limited action we’ve seen so far, is that both Bosh and Bargnani are going to spend more time in the post than they have in the past.

Not to say they won’t be outside a lot – they will still look for Bosh to stick those 15-footers and there’s no way Andrea won’t hoist a three-pointer or four given the opportunity – but getting down low with their backs to the basket will also be part of their games.

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Did you folks read this, about Gilbert Arenas and the Wizards getting fined $25,000 each because he’s been refusing to talk to the media?

Way to go, M. Grange ™.

I bet Mike’s story the other day – where Arenas again said he’d “never” do media again – might have been the tipping point to get the league involved.

Now, some of you might wonder why players and coaches are mandated to do media interviews, both on game days and after practice. And why they’d be fined for not talking when they don’t want to talk.

It’s simply part of the gig. It comes with the job and while some players find it entirely distasteful, they know they have to do it and many do.

That said, there are many who don’t say anything of substance and the reliance on quotes is one of the failings of many reporters because a lot of time they add nothing to a story.

But players need to it, even if the questions may be inane or repetitive and nipping a boycott in the bud can’t be a bad thing.

Oh, and the answer he gave Mike Lee in that story – the one about “both teams played hard” – is going to land him in more hot water. And is a very punk move, anyway.

It’s the same line Rasheed Wallace used repeatedly one year when he was with Portland and he ended up getting fined for those antics.

I think Gilbert might be reaching back into his pocket again.

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Oh, the Celtics? They rested Garnett, Allen and Pierce last night in Newark against the Nets so they’ll play tonight.

Rasheed? No one’s sure. My guess is that he ends up taking the night off.

Here's some notes from their big victory.

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Oh yeah, they got the house on the floor of the ACC practice facility now.

You know, the design we wrote about up in Ottawa – a “house” extending about a foot outside the lane to the top of the free throw circle and extending to a roof-like apex just inside the three-point line at the top of the circle.

Asked a couple of players about it the last couple of days and, while it may seem a bit hokey, they’re glad it’s there as a constant reminder of where offensive players are not supposed to tread.

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Yes, we’re going to try a live blog from tonight’s big struggle – it’s a 7:30 start, by the way – if there’s a good wireless connection courtside.

Not sure what this arena’s like but it does host a lot of big-time college games so it should work.

And seeing how there’s no TV or radio, I’m it, kiddies.

See ya then.

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Ah, another reason we’re not seeing much screen and roll in the Raptors offence. As Jay mentioned in today’s dispatches, he wants to see continuity right now and some ball movement.

But …

“Plus, everybody’s scouting everybody right now. We want to go into the regular season with a little bit under our belt that people haven’t seen before.”

Hmm, I hope he doesn’t think high screen-roll action’s going to catch anyone by surprise.

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I’m not sure just how big a crowd we’re getting here tonight. Was told you could get upper level seats for $10 and there are some available.

It gets to a pet peeve of mine.

I think at least one pre-season home game for each team should be free – or at least have really, really, really cheap tickets – and taken out of the season ticket package.

That way, regular fans who couldn’t otherwise afford it could see a game, albeit a pre-season outing, it lessen the fare for season ticket holders a tiny bit and it might put some people in the place.

The crowd the other afternoon at the Air Canada Centre was scary bad, in part because it was Thanksgiving, in part because it was pre-season. I have a feeling it might have been a bit bigger if tickets were $10 in the lower bowl and $5 in the 300 level.

Got a chance of happening? Nah. But it should.

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If you’re ever in Hartford, and I’m talking to all you insurance people out there because I can’t think of anyone else who’d want to come here, I can tell you downtown isn’t, um, vibrant.

Outside of the City Steam Brewery Café and its delightful fare, I’m not entirely sure anything was open.

Rockin’ town.

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Some stories and some stuff

Seems like everyone’s settling into a routine, doesn’t it?

After the newness of the pre-season the last couple of weeks doesn’t it feel like old times now?

Note to self: Put thinking cap on, come up with nifty new stuff to change the tempo around here.

But until then …

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Hedo time is apparently upon us.

Now, they want to see how he comes through practices Monday and Tuesday before saying it’s 100 per cent that he’ll play Wednesday in Hartford but it’s sure looking that way and, frankly, it can’t come a minute too soon,

A guy who’s so integral to what they want to do, a guy who is likely to have the ball in his hands a lot, has to get on the court.

The sooner, the better.

One of the immediate concerns when he joined the team in July was that he operated in much the same space as Bargnani on offence; in the high or side screen and roll, and the question some had – including here – was how Jay would adapt an offence with two guys who liked the same areas of the court.

Having seen Bargnani operate a bit in the post – and he does look, comparatively, hugely comfortable there—it looks like Jay’s figured out a way to minimize any spacing issues.

Whether it works on the court in real time against real opponents remains to be seen which is going to at least give us something to watch intently as the final four games unfold.

One thing Jay’s really high on about Turkoglu is his ability to move the ball. There has been a distinct lack of flow to the team’s halfcourt offence so far, the ball “sticks” on one side too often; Jay figures Hedo can solve that problem.

“Just watching him in drills, he gets the ball to the second side, if it’s (with) a skip pass or if someone gets caught cheating, he’s got strong enough wrists he can throw it across the court.

“He knows how to play basketball, he knows how to find guys and move the basketball.”

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You see all kinds of scouts at pre-season games, there were reps from about five teams in Minnesota and I think nearly as many in Toronto on Sunday.

And, as always, they like to chat.

Here’s a quick conversation, not verbatim but close:

Grunt: What do you think?

Scout: Pre-season, bad game, but I really like DeRozan.

Grunt: Yeah, the kid was good today.

Scout: I liked him going into the draft, there’s something about him, no attitude, wants to learn, kind of a quiet kid who isn’t going to be any trouble.

Grunt: He’s getting better, still makes lots of mistakes.

Scout: Yeah, he’s going to lay an egg every now and then but, watch him, he’s going to be really good.

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You’ll remember last week there was a list of the three, um, least desirable neutral site games we’ve had to endure over 15 pre-seasons.

Well, I promised a list of the best and, in light of the flight tonight to wonderful Hartford (and you can go direct, I presume it’s on a Sopwith Camel and we’ll be issued goggles, leather hats and a scarves, but still, you can go direct) here we go:

(Okay, the disclaimer: Madrid and Rome are so far out in front as Nos. 1 and 2, it’s ridiculous. We will only fondly remember them and not include them here because there’s no way anything else could come close, at least not until Bryan gets us to, say, London, maybe Istanbul or Mumbai. Or back to Spain. I love Spain).

Oct. 14, 2005 at Manchester, N.H.

You want to know what it’s like to see a pop icon up close? Go to Manchester when Matt Bonner’s in the NBA and just the locals go nuts. We saw idol-worshipping like seldom seen before.

All you had to do was mention you were in town with the basketball and the first statement was, always: “Isn’t Matt just the greatest?” or some variation on that theme.

Wild times.

Oh, and I got a nifty New Hampshire Fisher Cats t-shirt and Jalen Rose bought Quag and I a cocktail the night before the game.

Oct. 16, 2000 at Chapel Hill, N.C.

Lovely campus, cute little downtown and one of the best pre-game stories of Raptors pre-season history.

Phil From Philadelphia and I are sitting in our seats as the teams came out for their pre-game layups. No Oak. No Ty Hill.

Seems on their way out for the pre-pre-game warmup, Oak smacked Ty in the head to remind of a debt owed, both got thrown out of the game long before it actually began and we had a lovely story to write. One that was like a serial for the whole season.

Nice town, too.

Oct. 15, 2003 at Moline, Ill.

There’s absolutely nothing memorable about Moline, Ill., but if the Raptors don’t go there to play, I don’t have to get there by flying to Chicago and driving and I don’t get to stop in Chicago the night before to help our baseball guy cover the post-season.

And that means I don’t get to be on Waveland Ave., perhaps in Murphy's Bleachers now that I think about it, chatting up the locals and soaking up some of the best big-game colour I’ve ever soaked up.

And that means I’m not in Wrigley Field writing when, yes, Steve Bartman tries to catch that foul ball and the Cubs cough up a trip to the World Series like nobody but the Cubs could.

Great story, great scene, great time.

Okay, about Moline.

As you know, it’s one of the Quad Cities. Now, without going to Google or Wikipedia or anywhere else, what are the other three cities?

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Little news item in New York this morning says the Knicks are going to eliminate shootarounds the morning of home games.

Usually, it’s at 10 a.m., they’re moving it to 3:30 p.m. to give the guys time to rest in the morning.

It’s not revolutionary, in fact Sam Mitchell tried it here one season, going at 4 p.m. instead of 10 a.m.

But it’s a bit of a pain for us, though (and it’s all about us, isn’t it?) because if you need to get stuff to feed the beast shortly afternoon on game days (and we do), now there’s no chance to get it.

So I’m hoping Jay doesn’t read the Times and get any bright ideas.

He has made one subtle change that’s very good for us (and it’s all about us, isn’t it?).

On the road, when they generally shootaround at 11 a.m., they now fulfill their media obligations before where they used to do the required 15 minutes of availability afternoon.

From this corner, saving that hour for writing and getting stuff posted really helps.

That’s just some inside stuff you probably don’t need to know but might find marginally interesting. And we’re all about marginally interesting here.

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Davenport and Bettendorf in Iowa and Rock Island, Ill.

You’re welcome.

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If Bosh got 10 minutes on Friday in Minnesota and 18 minutes at home on Sunday, can we expect 24 minutes, maybe 26, tomorrow in Hartford?

I know that right now Amir Johnson and Reggie Evans are doing a pretty good job eating the minutes left over when Bosh can’t go but, in all honesty, it’s not what anyone wants when things get started for real.

They’ve got four games to get Bosh up to the point where he can go 32-plus at full speed. Because when games count, they need him on the court. A lot.

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In the wake of the game, we have this

Happy Thanksgiving.

Or Happy Columbus Day, depending on which side of the border you’re on.

A bit later than usual today but, what the heck, why not grab an extra 40 minutes sleep on a holiday Monday?

Here’s something to get you through until the turkey’s done.

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THREE THINGS I LEARNED

The Mark of Marco

DAVID COOPER

What's this? A Raptors wingman in the paint?

I know a lot of the chatter about DeRozan in the wake of his game Sunday but the one guy who caught my attention was Marco Belinelli.

Sure, it took him 13 shots to get his 15 points but his ability to put the ball on the floor and get by closing-out defenders, plus his overall verve for the game, is going to be huge for this team, I think.

Yes, there are inconsistencies to his shooting that are troublesome but, you have to admit, when he’s on the court, things happen.

Usually good things.

Here’s Jay on him:

“I just think he extends the defence. You have to guard him on the three-point line and when he gets it and you run at him, I don’t know if there’s a better situation in basketball than having a defender running at you.

"He’s a smart basketball player, he knows how to get into the lane and create for others.”

By my count, and I probably lost count, I had it at seven times that he put the ball on the floor on the wing and got in the paint to make something happen.

I can say with confidence that a Toronto wing didn’t do that seven times in a game all last season.

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A Wild Warmup

I’m pretty sure not many of you caught this, but the way they run the layup line this year is a wee bit different.

I noticed the other night against Philly, while watching on TV, that they all came out together far before the usual warm up and ran some agility drills as a team. They’d start on the baseline and run slide-steps, or cross-over steps, or back-pedal to the midcourt line, a team warmup drill that’s quite European, and not anything I’ve seen in an NBA game maybe ever.

Well, that’s not going to be workable in the regular season, when there are timing issues with pre-game responsibility and things like that and Jay didn’t think it’d be feasible when I asked him about this week.

So yesterday, they changed it slightly.

During the layup line, after a guy made his shot, he ran over to the corner, where strength and conditioning coach Francesco Cuzzilin was waiting. From there, he’d run ‘em up to midcourt, doing slides and crossovers and stretches to loosen up groins and hamstrings and ankles.

It’s not revolutionary, but it is a change and while it’s non-traditional, it makes a lot of sense.

A little thing, sure; but aren’t little things what you’re supposed to learn about here?

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Troubling Numbers

I know it’s pre-season but these numbers jump off the page, don’t they?

6-17

1-13

9-19

2-15

Those are Toronto’s three-point stats from the first four pre-season games.

And they are ugly.

Jarrett Jack hasn’t made one in six tries, Quincy Douby’s missed five in a row and Belinelli’s 3-13.

Yesterday, Belinelli missed all four he took.

“I’m not happy with my shot from three-point, I didn’t score today from three-points and I just have to practice every day, take lots of shots.”

He and a couple others, too.

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We now return you to our regular drivel:

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Here’s how my friend Mike Lee chronicled the Sunday extravaganza.

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How many media days does a team need? Well, if you’re these guys, you need two.

Yes, after going through the process on the day before training camp began – chatting and having pictures taken and talking to anyone who wanted to talk – they’ll be at it again this afternoon after practice.

All to satisfy the demands of their employers.

Seems all the marketing and corporate things the players and coaches have to do, like public service announcements and scoreboard thingies and the like, amount to such a production they have to set aside a second day for it.

I presume – and I don’t know this for certain but it’s the way it’s historically been done – that today is also the day they’ll do whatever schtick they need for the pre-game video.

No, I have no idea what it’ll be, and it seems to be a closely guarded secret around the team these days, but if someone whispers in my ear, I’ll be sure to let you know.

I know how big a deal it is to you.

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Let’s see:

Browns 6, Bills 3.

I bet the ticket windows at Rogers Centre are packed this morning with anxious folks forking out money to see Buffalo here in December.

Seriously, if you want bad football in Toronto, the Argos can provide it.

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Antoine Wright, of course, hasn’t played yet.

Blame Andrea.

Finally got a chance to see Wright yesterday pre-game he said it was a knee bump with Bargnani during practice a week ago that caused the injury that’s kept him sidelined.

He said it wasn’t that big a deal but there was some swelling that now seems to be gone and he should be back full speed today, maybe tomorrow.

And Jay told us before the game yesterday that he thought Wright would travel, which means he’d play in Hartford on Wednesday.

The Goods On The Game, pre-season vs. Washington

Almost too much mail to handle

You know what? This mail thing’s almost getting too out of hand. I think I have to start culling or something because it’s almost too all-encompassing.

That said, though, this has to be enough to get you through until for the in-game blog this afternoon at 3.

Oh, and Happy Thanksgiving.

See ya later.

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Q: Hey Doug, I just wanted to hear your thoughts on what you think of the upgrades done on the ACC and just how different and innovative it actually is.

Also, just to clarify, as a Kobe fan, Demar isn't the only one in the NBA wearing his shoes. Last year, on the Lakers alone, Pau, Lamar, Ariza and Fish all wore a pair. In that picture on your blog right now, Amir Johnson is wearing them as he goes for the swat on Andrea.

Also, if you've got any thoughts about the Eastern Conference playoff, please fill us in because people can't seem to get over the Boston, Cleveland, Orlando shuffle up top. Personally, I really can't see Boston being nearly as good, KG's progress is not nearly what they had hoped for and neither is his tenacity. I really don't like hearing about us being rated as the 7th or 8th best team when I feel like we addressed almost every single weakness aside from a completely proven two-guard.

Andrew K, Markham

A: The upgrades? Not at all innovative and quite like a few other arenas with wide-open atriums to welcome fans. I do think the plaza outside will be a neat place to be if either of the tenants ever do anything of consequence. Other than that, it does shift the focus from the cramped area at the entrance by Union and I guess that’s a good thing.

I’ll take your word on the shoes thing, I’ve never written a single word about it and probably won’t and I’m not ready yet to handicap either conference.

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Q: We the emergence of all this 2 way communication between the people and journalists has it changed you're job drastically? Do you ever go about you're grunt work differently ie asking questions based on the mood of you're readership or whatever crazy concerns the common people have?

JF P, Trois-Rivieres

A: Drastically? Yes. There’s more of it – like this, and in-game blogs – and it’s far more “immediate” than it used to be but as for asking questions and doing what I’ve done for the past 15 years covering this team, I don’t think so.

I have a much clearer picture now of the oft-violent mood swings of some readers and many fans but I still do what I’ve done, ask questions that have context and will hopefully lead to good stories well told.

There is a tendency among some fans to over-react, things are never as bad as they think nor as good as they seem, I think it’s part of the gig to try to bring overall context to the day-to-day aspect of covering a team.

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Q: Does Brian Colangelo value Marco Belinelli more highly than most GMs and analysts? Do you think he sees something that others are missing, or is he just off-base? I haven't seen much of Belinelli myself, so I'm curious as to how he works out._

Tim M, Kingston

A: I think Belinelli is a good, young, raw player with some skills and a feel for the game you can’t teach. I think there are probably other GMs who feel that way, they just didn’t get the opportunity to make a deal to get the player.

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Q: I remember when Jose and TJ were both still here, right after one of them did anything the camera panned to the other one sitting on the bench. Without words, the camera was constantly playing up the rivalry between the two of them.

It's not something I ever hear being talked about, how the camera influences our opinions and perceptions of reality during a sports broadcast. Can you speak to that a bit? Any other instances of propaganda?

David S, Toronto

A: I’m sure the camera influences the opinion of fans and I’m sure it sometimes makes for good television but it does nothing for the people who really matter – the coaches and other players.

But I also know some teams in some sports and their broadcasters are cognizant of not riling up the paying customers with what they show, or talk about. For instance, there was an edict in Phoenix – and I believe it still holds – that the local Suns broadcasters could not have Bryan Colangelo on as a guest once he left.

But as for shaping opinion of decision-makers, it doesn’t happen.

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Q: I was at that game in 1995,in Saint John and was thrilled to have a Toronto Raptors game in our city. I also realized then that pre-season games are not to be taken seriously by fans, as you so rightly pointed out.

You cannot believe the number of times people have been put on flights to Newfoundland, instead of NB by less than knowledgeable travel agents. We had the World Junior Figure Skating championships here a few years back, and an entire team from some east European country landed in St. John's, NFLD and tried to get a taxi to drive them to Saint John, NB. A distance like from here to Montreal.

Anyway, glad you're back._

Peter G, Saint John

A: There is no question here but it’s a great story I figured I’d share.

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Q: Wednesday night's game seemed to show a huge inability of a number of the Raptors to sink a free throw. Why don't they make each guy who misses a free throw in a game do half an hour of free throws after practice for a week. Free throws are a gift and decide a number of close games.

Jim A, Cambridge

A: What if I told you they do shoot free throws for half an hour or so after each practice? And that they shoot several times during practice, like after they run a drill, they’ll stop and shoot FTs, they’ll stop scrimmages to shoot free throws when they’re tired.

Yes, many games may be decided when a team misses – or makes – a large number of foul shots; yes, they do work on them. No, they are all not as prolific as, say, Jose.

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Q: Is Sonny Weems a D League candidate for us?

Steven S, Ajax

A: Well, as a second year player he’s eligible but it’s not something they’re thinking about at all at the moment. And I highly doubt they’d send him away; he’d get more out of getting good coaching and going against NBAers in practice every day than he’d get in the D League.

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Q: Thank you for all your work with Basketball and the Raptors. You got me through university. When I wasn't studying, which may have been the majority of the time, I was catching up on your blog. Again, thank you.

I have two questions. First, what kinds of PR training do players receive? During CB4's first couple of years he wasn't very articulate. "Ya know..." was redundant in his speech.

My second question: what kind of leash is put on rookies? I remember watching a interview with Barg and it was cut by some pissy lady who said it was over._

Chris L, Waterford

A: Most teams have seminars early each season on media relations and how to conduct oneself. The Raptors usually do it in November on the road where it’s easier for a consultant to get to them. And there is no “leash” at all, actually. I don’t know who “some pissy lady” was but this team hasn’t employed a female who’d be in a position to do that in Andrea’s four years with the team. Not sure what you’re referring to.

All this about that

Okay, if my memory serves – and when you get to this advanced age, that’s not a given – this is how we do stuff the morning after games.

If it’s not, let me know.

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Three Things I Learned

Bosh is bigger

I know we all knew that he’d put on some bulk, most noticeably in the upper body, but it was striking to see him on the court mixing it up with guys.

Now, he did wear down quickly – he couldn’t get to six minutes in the first quarter without getting winded – but he battled on the boards and shook off Kevin Love and Al Jefferson a couple of times to grab offensive boards.

And the funny thing? He was right, he still had some quicks on the perimeter, didn’t look slow and plodding at all.

I have no idea how this translates into the long, long regular season but it’s a bit of a promising sign.

And I will tell you this: When he was in there, the ball did move more crisply on offence. That’s not an entire slight against Reggie Evans, who seems to bog down the offence every now and then, but more of a comment on Bosh’s willingness to swing the ball quickly from the high post when a shot’s not there right away.

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Still experimenting offensively

When I saw a bit of Wednesday’s game on TV, and in the few minutes of scrimmages we saw in camp, there was a glaring absence of the high screen-and-roll in the team’s halfcourt offence.

I had wondered if I just wasn’t paying close attention – especially to the TV game ‘cause there were some distractions – but it was the same thing last night.

More flashes up the lane by the bigs and offence initiated from there, more dribble handoffs around the perimeter and some diversity.

Which was good.

But the simple fact is, high screen and roll or side screen and roll, has to be this team’s bread and butter offence.

When they get Bosh, Bargnani and Turkoglu on the court with Bargnani, that’s the play they have to run the majority of the time to take advantage of everyone’s skills.

Look for it to emerge more and more as the pre-season drones on.

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An understated game

I think this might be a theme we develop more fully in the next couple of days but there is something about Jarrett Jack that’s oddly calming when he’s on the court.

He’s not super fast, he’s not the greatest shooter, he’s not the biggest guy out there.

But things just seem to run smoothly most of the time.

I think he’s going to a very valuable piece of this team, especially on a second unit that will be relatively young – with Belinelli, Wright and, at times Amir Johnson.

His numbers last night weren’t spectacular – five points, five assists and four rebounds in 28 minutes – but I don’t think you’re going to be able to judge his game by stats at all.

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And now, the fun stuff:

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Perhaps you’ve noticed that I’m hardly a fan of these replacement refs.

But I have to tell you, if one of the regular refs showed up for a season as badly out of shape as Lamont Simpson, the dude wearing No. 146 last night, he would be summarily fired.

With cause.

If your going to use scabs, use scabs who don’t embarrass the profession physically.

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I know, I know.

Phoenix beats Indy and I’m a bit bummed by that.

But I guess LifeLock becomes the first corporation to win a North American pro sports title.

Congrats.

Helluva game from TSB, though.

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Oh, the snow on the car hoods and roofs this morning here was a startling development.

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Here’s how the titanic struggle played in the local paper.

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Okay, it’s one thing for silly kids to wear Halloween masks into the locker room at a morning shootaround, trying to lighten the mood, I guess.

But it is entirely out of place, and simply wrong, for Amir Johnson to show up courtside 90 minutes before tip-off, wearing it.

Not funny, not respectful of the game or the job and a far cry from the professionalism they want to establish around the team.

I guarantee it won’t happen again and I guarantee there were coaches and teammates who noticed and were quite unimpressed.

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Talk about a dark day.

Fever loses, Twins get absolutely jobbed by The Evil Empire and Josh Beckett can’t get The Other Izturis out in a crucial at-bat?

Yikes.

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Relaxing with a plate of quesadillas and my friend Stella after the game while watching the Red Sox, it strikes me that Buck Martinez is a rather chatty fellow.

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That’ll be it for now, gotta catch a flight home and get to the mailbag for the morning.

Happy Halfway Through The Thanksgiving Weekend.

The Goods On The Game, pre-season at Minnesota

Unmasking the news at shootaround (you'll get the pun in a minute)

Okay, here’s what we’re planning to do these game-days as the season unfolds. A wee bit of a post-shootaround update that may contain news, may contain matchup information, may contain the kind of esoteric entertainment you’ve come to expect for this corner of the world.

So …

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I’m pretty sure the coach knows precisely how he’s going to use Chris Bosh tonight – and unless something untoward happens this afternoon in the hotel, Bosh will indeed be in uniform – but Jay’s not sharing it at the moment.

“As coaches, we debated whether he plays a few minutes in the first half and a few minutes in the second or if he goes the first and second quarters. It won’t be a significant amount of minutes either way.”

My best guess? Bosh plays about 13 minutes total in the first half and gets the rest of the night off. Now, I’ve been wrong before so don’t hold me to it.

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Oh, those zany kiddies.

Here come the Raptors into the hallway outside their locker room at the Target Centre.

There’s the relatively old guys, like Reggie Evans and Bosh, Jose, Rasho and Bargnani.

And then two guys wearing goofy Halloween masks – a bit early, don’t you think? – one a fright mask, the other just some silly face-covering apparatus.

Counting heads, it’s Sonny Weems and DeMar DeRozan under them.

So, Reggie, where’s yours?

“You’re kidding, right?”

And, Chris, yours is …

“Um, at home?”

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You know how we mentioned this morning that’ll be interesting to see how DeRozan responds after finding himself out-of-favour – for a minute, but still out-of-favour – with his coach the other night?

Well, Jay does, too. Here’s what he said at shootaround a little while ago:

“We want him to play with a high intensity all the time. We haven’t played him a significant amount of minutes but he has to play high intensity minutes for as long as can and then have that grow.

“We don’t want him to float and we don’t want him to take possessions off.”

That, as history has proved, is one of the big dangers facing kids. What came so easily in college or high school or wherever, doesn’t come quite as easily playing against men. The good ones get it and thrive, the ones not-so-good become Rafael Araujo or Patrick O’Bryant.

Sayeth Jay:

“I think for rookies, the speed of the game is overwhelming at times and the endurance with which they have to play is a little bit more maybe than they’ve had to endure in the past.

“Because of that, they look for shortcuts here and there and as soon as you do that in this league, you get exploited.”

And so continues the continuing education of DeMar DeRozan.

Of Sonny and the cold and a surefire non-sellout

All right, my first game day of the season. The anticipation for another pre-season game is at fever pitch. Or not.

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I don’t really want to be the guy who throws cold water on good stories but, please, I beseech you to take a step back from the beatification of Sonny Weems.

Yes, he had a couple of very nice dunks the other night against Philly and, yes, he is quite athletic.

But, and this is where the whole context of the pre-season has to be taken into consideration, it means nothing.

Zip. Nada.

Let’s see a body of work like, oh, maybe even six more pre-season games before we start talking about rotation spots and contributions for the young fella.

Now, I like Sonny, he seems to be a nice enough kid and there has to be some skill in him.

But he’s also 23-year-old who’s played a grand total of a dozen NBA games and one okay outing in the second of an exhibition back-to-back is what it is.

When I talk to the coaches, they like his work ethic; they don’t think he’s done anything yet to crack the rotation that seems to be pretty set.

A good pre-season story, that’s what it is right now; to make it out to be anything bigger is, frankly, silly.

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Hmm.

Twins at Yankees, 5 p.m. here, crucial Game 2 of the American League division series.

Raptors at Timberwolves, 7 p.m. here, entirely inconsequential NBA exhibition game.

Yeah, I imagine there’ll be more than a few empty seats in the Target Center tonight.

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Yes, we’re going to try a live blog during the game tonight, just like we did all those games last season when we first started the endeavour.

No other tricks or changes for our coverage yet, we’re saving those for the regular season whenever it starts.

Oh, and since there is absolutely no TV of this game, I’m guessing the little conversation’s the best way to keep up with the action.

And I’ve had more than a few disgruntled fans wondering why there isn’t a broadcast of this game.

Aside from being quite perplexed about the concern over missing a pre-season game on the Friday of the long weekend, I will point out that no one has shown a road exhibition game that’s played outside of Canada in years and years.

It’s a money issue, mainly, but I also imagine the viewing numbers wouldn’t make it feasible to put on a show.

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As much I hate to say this, it’s hard to think the Mercury lose Game 5 at home tonight.

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So what do we expect from Bosh tonight? I’d say very, very, very little.

I’d guess between 12 and maybe 18 minutes – at the start of the game and maybe the start of the third quarter, or maybe Jay runs him out for 12 to start the same and then sits him down or the rest of the night.

On the court?

One thing that’s been apparent during the practices and scrimmages we’ve seen and the one game I paid marginal attention to, they are working on a lot of things that aren’t high screen-and-roll and it’s going to take some getting used to.

If you’re looking for smooth execution, you will be sorely disappointed, I fear.

Yes, the high screen will be an integral part of the offence. Eventually. Until now, look for Bosh in odd places, as he pointed out yesterday.

"It’s pretty much going to be the same thing. He (Jay) hasn’t put that many new sets in that I’m not used to, it’s just that if I’m outside, eventually I’m inside at the end of the play.

There’s a lot of misdirection.”

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If you give yourself enough time, you can find this Timberwolves story in the local fishwrap this morning.

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In a total digression, it’s me and a few hundred conventioning Rotarians in this hotel. It’s an occupational hazard, running into conventions and their hijinks; do this gig long enough and you see more than a few.

A couple of favourites come to mind: One year, we were somewhere at the same time as a convention of tattoo artists and that was rather, um, colourful.

So was the time in L.A. that we were in the LAX Marriott at the same time as a weekend conference of some science fiction readers and lifestyle types. Let me tell you, an entire weekend of seeing people throughout a hotel wearing sci-fi costumes can mess with your mind.

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Speaking of the Raptors, and I guess we should, here are three things I think I’d like to see tonight:

Can Marco Belinelli shoot with consistency?

He looks very, very streaky and yes, he has a flair for the game, but if he’s not making shots, that flair doesn’t mean much.

Can Amir Johnson not foul?

Some of his six in 25 minutes the other night against Philly at home may have been attributable to the replacement refs but a lot of ‘em were ticky-tack fouls that big men shouldn’t pick up.

Did DeMar DeRozan learn his lesson?

You saw Jay hook him minutes after he went back into Wednesday’s game and immediately hoist a three-pointer and then miss an easy post-up. He was given a rather stern talking to, I wonder if it sunk in.

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Mail, please, kids. A guy’s gotta have something to do on the flight home.

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Dude in the elevator just told me they expect some flurries and a “hard freeze” here today and tonight.

Guess summer’s over.

And I would imagine they’re rethinking the decision to go on the cheap and not put a retractable roof on the nifty little outdoor ballpark they’re building right behind the Target Center.

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Okay, that’ll be it for now; shootaround’s at 11 your time, not sure what will come of it but if there’s news or even tidbits, we’ll be back this afternoon with them.

If not, maybe I’ll see some of you back here just before 8 to get this pre-season officially started.

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Hey, remember me?

All right, time for some uncharacteristic sappiness.

I cannot really express how nice it was to see and read so many notes of condolence and support over the past couple of days.

It was a trying, emotional time, to tell you the truth, and reading them really made me appreciate what’s going on in this little corner of the world.

Trust me when I tell you that Super Wife and Super Son know all about them and now all about you and, from the bottom of our hearts, we say thanks.

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Now, a disclaimer:

I didn’t see a minute of the Tuesday game and while I saw a lot of Wednesday’s the concentration level may not have been what it should have.

So take that into consideration when reading any comments about the first two games.

I will say this, my attention level did perk up when I looked up during the second quarter last night and saw Quincy Douby, Marcus Banks, Sonny Weems, Amir Johnson and Rasho on the floor at the same time.

That, my friends, is so pre-season it’s not even funny. It will be a frosty day in Hades before we see that collection on the court again with the game not decided.

So, please, when you’re putting any stock in these games, remember moments like that.

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Is tomorrow’s game a “must win?”

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Yeesh, a guy takes a week off and finds out the personal fave Deby Mazar’s toast on DWTS.

So much for my “cutting the rug” expertise.

Now I’ve got to come up with another winner.

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The TV folks are panning media row (and I’m trying to see who’s sitting where) and I noticed a familiar sight sitting smack dab in the middle of the front row.

You might not know him but he’s pretty important in the whole scheme of things.

He’s Ronnie Nunn, the league’s director of officials, and you can be sure he wasn’t in town to check out Gate 5 Live.

The league has to be taking a huge interest in how its pretend (I mean, replacement) officials handle games and hands-on observation has to be the key.

Not sure precisely how often a grand poobah from the Ivory Tower will be in town to check up on the replacements and help them through these trying times but every night might be a good idea.

As perhaps I’ve mentioned, I wasn’t actually at last night’s game so this is only an observation off viewing a TV set, but the refs did seem a bit over-matched and a big over-zealous.

I presume Ronnie brought that to their attention.

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Speaking of a return to normalcy, we’re going to give a live, in-game blog a shot from Minneapolis on Friday night.

So all you folks with some time in your hands on the Friday before a holiday weekend will have something to do.

See you then.

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Now this, my friends, is a true dilemma:

When I’m sitting courtside in Minneapolis on Friday night (and seeing it’s a pre-season game up against Game 2 of the ALDS involving the Twins, I presume there’ll be room to stretch out) what do I pay attention to? Do I watch Raptors-Timberwolves closely or do I see if the TV monitors have cable capability so I can flip over to – yikes – Deciding Game 5 Of The WNBA Final?

Yep, Mercury win last night sets up a one-gamer for all the marbles on Friday, starting about an hour after Toronto-Minnesota.

Here are the details on how they got where they are.

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They’re not ready to start planning the parade in Philly after two pre-season wins but, as this story shows, they are quite satisfied with their trip to the north.

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Speaking of Philly and a trip to the north, here’s a good pre-season tale. I may have used it before but what the heck.

It’s 1995 and the first two exhibitions in franchise history are in Halifax and then Saint John a couple of nights later.

Two Philly scribblers are in a cab from downtown Halifax to the airport to get up to Saint John.

The conversation, or a reasonable facsimile:

“How long’s this flight?”

“Ah, it’s like half an hour.”

“Hang on, my ticket says it’s like 90 minutes!”

“No way, 30, 45, tops.”

“There couldn’t be a difference between Saint John and St. John’s, could there?”

A frantic phone call to a travel agent later and the offending visitor was headed to the right city.

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A thing I wish I’d been able to see over the past two nights:

The number of times The Gangster got himself in front of the scoring table to stretch so that all the folks in the crowd could see him.

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This is more anecdotal than anything but through the first two games, there seems to be far less reliance on high screen-and-roll in the Raptors offence.

Of course, that has a lot to do with the absence of Bosh and Turkoglu, both of whom should thrive in it, but I didn’t even see Jose and Andrea run it all that often.

What I did see is a lot more cutting to the rim from the wings rather than having them stand in the corner or on the perimeter waiting to take a jumper.

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I could use some mail for the weekend, folks. Send ‘em here and I’ll see what I can do.