You read while I go for a long walk

Good week, folks.

Now, you read this, I’m off on a nice long walk to raise some much needed money for multiple sclerosis research (find the walk in your area today and make a donation, okay?) and we’ll meet back here later today so I can post the comments.

That’s if I’m not curled up in the fetal position suffering body spasms, that is.

And I’ll let you know tomorrow morning in the usual drivel what the tall foreheads and I have come up with about in-game bloggy thingies for the first round or so of the post-season.

Have a nice day.

-

Q: As a regular reader of this blog and a huge fan of yours I can’t for the life of me figure you out. This team has been covered by you in depth from the beginning and you have always indicated to us that it is your job and not admitting any passion for the team and it's success or failure during the season. How can you sit and analyze a game knowing personally the players, coaches, the behind the scenes stuff and by now some of their fan base and not jump up and cheer or feel as depressed as we do when the play and results dictate such a response. You have proven to have an emotional side and yet you are able to control it, hide it, or just don't have it when dealing with the Raptors. Is this a journalistic facade or is it the real Doug Smith? Thanks for all your insight and contributions to this great blog.

Jack L, Kingston

A: There needs to be a level of dispassionate in any reporter; it allows you to sit back and observe without being truly tied to the outcome or the events. So you need to stand back a step and perhaps look a bigger picture than others, it allows you to do your job well.

That said, while it is my job and I have to treat it as that, there is a level of interest that goes with it. Not the screaming, “oh, they’ve got to win or my day’s ruined” kind of interest but if you don’t truly love what you’re doing (and in this case it’s covering a team in a league in a sport) you don’t do it well enough to be really good so you have to kind of like what you’re seeing.

And I do.

-

Q: Hi Doug, Thanks for the amazing job this year.

Just a quick one - what do you think of Turk's apology. Was it sincere or a cop out? Personally, I feel he should have made amends on the court and not with his words at the end of a disappointing season.

Jamil B, Sydney, Aus.

A: Of course he should have made amends on the court and I’m sure late in the season he tried, and he did have many better games down the stretch. But I also know he did feel terribly bad about how the season unfolded, thought he let down his team and coaches and was genuinely sorry.

-

Q: Hello Doug. After noticing the identical records of the Grizzlies and Raptors I found it interesting to muse on how the 15 years have played out for these two semi-linked franchises. Both have had some good times and some bad times. Which franchise has been most successful? The Raptors are still in Toronto but the Grizzlies had that great run with Pau. What do you think?

Garth S, Chiliwack

A: Compared to the Grizzlies, the Raptors are the Celtics and Lakers combined, with some Spurs thrown in for good measure. Let’s see: They moved from Vancouver, can’t draw flies in Memphis, made the post-season three times in 15 season but have yet to win a playoff game, let alone a series, and have a franchise winning percentage of about .333. Oh, and yes, there was Araujo in Toronto but he was a steal compared to Big Country.

That’s what I think. And, sadly, that’s what I imagine lots of people think.

-

Q: Is it a big deal or surprising that MLSE would come out and say they will go over the luxury tax if Bosh stays and they can land someone?

Or was that news expected?? Thanks for the blog enjoyed it every day!!

Karen P, Whitby

A: It was kind of expected here; I’d heard Bryan tell me confidently enough that if he had to go to the board to get tax approval he would. He’d always couched in terms of going after one guy in one specific situation so the fact he’s got pre-approval is about the only thing marginally big.

-

Q: Hi Doug, a long and exhausting season is nearly over. Once the playoffs are finished, are you looking forward to any particular sporting event taking place before the next NBA season starts? I can tell you that in most of the world outside of North America, the anticipation for the (soccer) World Cup is already enormous. I hope you get to catch a game or two to see what all the fuss is about the biggest sporting event on the planet.

Chris D, Leeds, England

A: I am looking forward to watching some of the World Cup, that’s for sure. I have no depth of football knowledge but I appreciate the beauty of the game. But the summer event that I’m most looking forward to – quite aside from Mighty Yankee opening night – is the world basketball championships because it’s a great tournament that the world looks at as far more important than the Olympics.

-

Q: Two questions today:

How overly simplistic is it to suggest that this year's individual Raps performances could be related directly to contracts? Guys playing for one played with some fire (most games). Guys with pay cheques already protected played as "comfortably" as they cared to, or not, any particular evening.

2) With so many NBA contracts up for negotiation this summer, do you see wholesale changes in rosters – with six, seven, nine new faces for a good number of teams? (Sound familiar?) And, if so, would there maybe be an advantage, for one year anyway, to teams that make fewer deals and, instead, work to keep their cores together and developing?

Cheers. And thanks again for another season of great grunt work and lord knows how many hundreds of hours of hard blogging.

David M, Ottawa

A: It might be a bit of an oversimplification, yes, but there is no doubt the presence of guaranteed contracts do tend to make some players more “comfortable” than maybe they should be. With this team, I don’t know if that was the case, I think there were far more important other matters – the coddling of Hedo early, the ankle injury to Bosh in February – played a role.

And for this summer, with a new CBA coming after next season that could radically alter the economic outlook as well as those guaranteed contracts, I think you’re got to see a whole lot of one-year, take-it-or-leave-it offers to middling free agents because teams are wary of long-term implications of longer-term contacts.

And, yes, I agree whole-heartedly that teams should try to keep groups together to let them grow, it’s how all kinds of good teams developed.

-

Q: The Del Negro/Paxson confrontation over Noah's playing time caught my attention -- I always assumed that the medical staff simply advised the coaches on the condition of wounded players. Is it usual for team executives to tell the coach who can play for how long?

TL I, London

A: In the case of injuries to key players, everyone is involved in the rehab process and the return. And it’s not unusual for a general manager to consult with the team’s medical staff – and the coach and the player – to determine the best course of action.

This seems to be an extreme case, though, and speaks to a rocky, mistrusting relationship between the coach and his bosses, I believe.

-

Q: Hi Doug, a question in regards to attracting free agents to Toronto.

Does going through customs twice in a 24 hour period dismay players from the idea of signing here, even though it wouldn't be the same hassle playing 41 games in this city.

I recall not so long ago a Forbes article talking about how much NBA players love to visit Toronto.

Just seems like players might not be that interested in signing here.

Matthew F, Toronto

A: If that’s a deal-breaker, I wouldn’t want the guy on my team. I’ve seen the American customs process for the players going into the States and it’s ridiculously easy (private lines with private border officials) and, when they come back from trips, Canada Customs officials go to them at the charter terminal.

Trust me, if that’s too much for a player to handle and would keep them from coming to Toronto, I don’t want to know how they’d handle pressure in a game.

Wanna know what's going to happen? Read on, good people

We’ll take a break from breaking down a bad season here for a moment because it’s time for the NBA playoffs. You know that place? Where good teams get to play in late April and May? Maybe you don’t know them intimately, but you’ve heard of them I presume.

So, on we go …

EASTERN CONFERENCE

No. 1 Cleveland (61-21) vs. No. 8 Chicago (41-41)

Talking points: No question about which is the better team (there’s that little 20 game discrepancy) so forget for a minute that the Bulls won two of four over the Cavs this year. Only issue for Cleveland might be getting Shaquille O’Neal back up to speed but when the James dude is there, things seem to work pretty well, regardless. Oh, and there’s no chance LeBron rests for a game now, I don’t think.

Bulls have no plans for pre-game steel cage match between Vinny Del Degro and John Paxson but the distraction of fightin’ and fuedin’ coaches and GMs can’t be a good thing.

Question time: Can the Bulls mirror their epic first-round performance of a year ago?

Answer time: Not a chance.

And the winner is: Cavs in four.

No. 2 Orlando (59-23) vs. No. 7 Charlotte (44-38)

Talking points: For a team that almost won 60 games, the Magic went through all kinds of bumps along the way, what with Dwight Howard critical of Stan Van Gundy’s criticisms and Vince Carter slow to fit in. But it really doesn’t matter, this is when the season begins and they seem ready. Series may turn on Orlando making three-pointers because they’re going to take a lot.

Bobcats are making their playoff debut and, yes, they are athletic and defend and work hard. But experience counts wonders in the post-season and even with Larry Brown at the helm – I’m not sure there’s a better in-game coach than him – that’s too much to overcome.

Question time: When it comes down to the last second, is Vince Carter still a big-shot kind of guy?

Answer time: Sure, much to the chagrin of fans around these parts.

And the winner is: Magic in five.

No. 3 Atlanta (53-29) vs. No. 6 Milwaukee (46-36)

Talking points: All Mike Woodson’s done is coach the Hawks from a group of silly young kids into an excellent unit that has improved every year. So why are there whispers that he’s on his way out when his contract expires this year? I don’t get it either because the Hawks are really good. But, and this is a big but, do they have the discipline necessary to win two series?

The Bucks have been a huge second-half surprise, the additions of Jerry Stackhouse and John Salmons have really energized them. But, and this is a big but, they have little up front with Andrew Bogut injured. Oh, and I’m sure it’ll do Raptors fans proud to see Carlos Delfino out there.

Question time: Can Bucks coach Scott Skiles weave enough magic for his team to pull off a huge upset?

Answer time: Nah, not a chance. But he’ll look intense trying to do it.

And the winner is: Hawks in seven.

No. 4 Boston (50-32) vs. No. 5 Miami (47-35)

Talking points: So, I’m watching the Bulls-Celtics earlier this week as part of my professional duties and I had to shake my head at how old the Celtics looked. I mean, old. Very old. But with age comes wisdom and they know that they don’t have many kicks at the can left. Trouble is, can they summon the energy seven times?

The Heat are mystifying. They seem to be Dwyane Wade and a bunch of guys and all of sudden they’ve won 47 games? At times, it doesn’t look like Michael Beasley and guard a stool, I have no idea how they get production out of the PG spot – which might be the key to this series – but they just keep on winning. Oh, right, Wade. Dwyane Wade.

Question time: How come Rasheed Wallace didn’t tell anyone he’d retired before he signed in Boston?

Answer time: Because then we wouldn’t have as much about the Celtics to mock.

And the winner is: Heat in seven.

WESTERN CONFERENCE

No. 1 Los Angeles (57-25) vs. No. 8 Oklahoma City (50-32)

Talking points: So Kobe Bryant got all kinds of rest down the stretch so he’d be ready for a good, long playoff run and what’s he get right out of the box: The crazily athletic Thunders. Lucky fellow. Oh, and we’ll once again be treated to tales of Pau Gasol’s softness right up until he wins a title or something. The dude is good. Scary good. As are the Lakers, who will need bench production somewhere, though, to win it all.

Kind of a storybook season for the Thunder, Kevin Durant emerged as The Next Big Thing and the rest of the kids got better in every facet of the game. But, you get the sense there’s a Just Happy To Be Here sentiment and that gets you your headed handed to you on a platter in the post season.

Question time: How do you think they feel in Seattle?

Answer time: Ouch.

And the winner is: Lakers in five.

No. 2 Dallas (55-27) vs. No. 7 San Antonio (50-32)

Talking points: How energized did Dallas get after the acquisition of Caron Butler, who takes some of the stress and attention away from Dirk Nowitzki? The Mavs really don’t do anything pretty (how can any team with a Shawn Marion jump shot in its highlights be considered pretty anyway?) but they do win and Jason Kidd still does have some magic left in his game.

The Spurs are this year’s enigma. Took them about 60 games to really figure it out and are finally getting what they need from Richard Jefferson and Manu looks like Manu again. Tim Duncan? He looks somewhat aged but something makes me think he’s got something left in the tank for now.

Question time: Who looks more dour on the sidelines: Rick Carlisle or Gregg Popovich?

Answer time: Let’s just say neither will win Jolly Coach of the Year honors.

And the winner is: Mavs in six.

No. 3 Phoenix (54-28) vs. No. 6 Portland (50-32)

Talking points: I’ll say this again, I think this might have been the best season of Steve Nash’s career. The 23-6 run that Phoenix finished the regular season on was mightily impressive and came about after the annual Amar’e Stoudemire Is Getting Traded Any Second rumours went away and he became arguably the best centre in the NBA over the second half. I’m told he’s even defending.

From the department of cruel and unusual punishment, the injury-riddled Blazers have now lost Brandon Roy for the series and you know the best fans in the NBA up in Portland have to be wondering if their team is cursed. But it means one really good thing: More Rudy Fernandez and he’s a hoot to watch. Too bad we won’t see a lot him in short post-season for Portland.

Question time: Can Marcus Camby have a huge impact against the high-powered Phoenix offence?

Answer time: Sadly, no, but he’s still one of the best interior defenders in the game.

And the winner is: Suns in five.

No. 4 Denver (53-29) vs. No. 5 Utah (53-29)

Talking points: This one could be ugly in the kind of grind-it-out-hit-‘em-hard-defend-‘til-you-die kind of old school basketball some of you love. The biggest loss the Nuggets are going to feel isn’t the pain in Kenyon Martin’s knee but the absence of coach George Karl, who’s probably going to miss the entire series because of cancer treatments. That’s a shame because it would have been a truly great story and just the tonic the somewhat listing, and still overly-emotional Nuggets need.

There is nothing pretty about the Jazz but I don’t imagine anyone out there cares a lot because they just keep on winning. But, Carlos Boozer is banged up and that could be a crippling blow. Oh, and Deron Williams vs. Chauncey Billups should be a treat to watch.

Question time: Do these two teams like each other even a little bit?

Answer time: Nope, that could make this series a doozy.

And the winner is: Jazz in six.

-

So, there you have it. Don’t hold me to any of the predictions unless they come true.

Remember, mail tomorrow and Monday we’ll know just what we’re doing for any in-game stuff for the first of the week. Lots of love for Phoenix-Portland, although the games are all stupid late; and the Orlando-Charlotte series has a lot of you interested. I’m thinking maybe we follow one of those? Whaddya think?

It's end of the year report card time, right?

That was a looooooong day.

Arrive at arena about 10, stand around waiting to talk to players, drift out of there around 5. Total time actually listening and talking: Maybe 40 minutes. Worst day of the year. By far.

But, it does yield some things.

Like these:

-

Not once in the seven years I’ve covered him has Chris Bosh knowingly mislead anyone. Ever.

So I take him at his word that he’s still entirely unsure what he’ll do next year but I do know his shot across the bow at Bryan Colangelo should be taken seriously.

You know the one, about having to get some roster tweaking done over the next three months for a better player or two, even if it costs tax dollars to do it.

And, as Dave wrote today, the GM had already been working the board to get salaries approved that’ll take the team into the tax.

That means we may see more flurries of movement this spring and early summer – this all has to be done before free agency issues are dealt with in July – which kind of turns things on its ear, doesn’t it?

We’ve long expected that nothing else could happen until the Bosh situation was resolved, he’s kind of saying now that things have to happen before he makes up his mind.

Wacky months ahead, folks.

-

Yesterday, I told you we’d do some kind of player-by-player thing. Well, some folks are always looking for grades, so let’s do grades. It’s all relative, with C being an average year, okay?

Have at it

Chris Bosh

Had best statistical year of his career and was the best power forward in the game early in the season. Pesky ankle injury sure set him – and the team – back. Needs to work on ball movement in the post but his skills are really quite extraordinary.

A minus.

Andrea Bargnani

We saw post moves, we saw some aggressive offence, we saw some spotty nights. No, he’s not a good rebounder and he knows it. But he’s a very good on-the-ball defender and if ever figures out how to give good weak side defensive help, those rebounding numbers are going to go up.

C

Jose Calderon

Everything was down, offence, defence, minutes, shooting stats across the board. And, yes, he gets blown by too often and needs to get with some sprint coach to become quicker. But, no, he’s not the worst defender you’ve ever seen, and that’s an opinion offered privately by his coaches, too.

D

Hedo Turkoglu

All kinds of team insiders tell me he knows how bad he was and he really does care about making amends. No one likes to bear the brunt of that kind of criticism. That said, he brought it on himself, even if he did get some help by an organization that coddled him too much.

E

DeMar DeRozan

Kid got better, no question about it. He’s got to go home and work on ball-handling skills above all else because if he can beat his man off the dribble, he could be really good. Oh and learning how to guard his man and trail around screens would be really good, too.

C

Sonny Weems

Quite simply: He came in as something of a punk and grew up as a player but most important, as a man. If he continues to be serious about his work, he could really become a valuable player to a team.

C

Jarrett Jack

Yes, he did well in both roles, as a starter and a backup and played with fire. But insiders will tell you he’s prone to mood swings when things don’t go well and that can drag teammates down.

C

Antoine Wright

Was emerging as some kind of leader and was the team’s best defender. But he was also slowed by injuries more times than I can count almost and that kept him from being all that he could have been. Too bad he’s a virtual lock to leave as a free agent.

C plus

Amir Johnson

If they don’t lock this kid up, they should be shot. Coaches love him because he’s really a good young man who works hard and we saw a lot improvement in his game. Heck, he was making jump shots at the season ends. Made about $4 million this year, I’m thinking a 3-year, $15 million deal might get it done.

B

Reggie Evans

How’d that whole “tough guy brings defence, rebounding and intensity” thing work out for you? Not so well, eh? They couldn’t play him in close games because teams just fouled him and he seemed to play something akin to a one-man zone.

D

Marco Belinelli

I wonder if he’s like a young Andrea, that if you let him play through mistakes and give him some confidence he’d do well? Think so? But I don’t know if they can given Weems and DeRozan and Turk play pretty much the same spots. Kind of a lost year for him.

D

Marcus Banks

Yes, he did okay in very, very limited minutes; yes, he was professional in his demeanour and contribution. No, he is not being counted on as anything more than an expiring contract to be dangled this summer.

C

Rasho Nesterovic, Patrick O’Bryant

Since they were never expected to play much and didn’t, let’s lump them together, give ‘em an average grade and thank them for being around this season. Good guys who’ll be gone.

C

Jay Triano

No, he probably wasn’t tough enough with some guys and, yes, he and his bosses realize it. But he’s a good tactician and has the respect of the men he’s in charge of. To use his conversational tactic: Could he be better? Yes. Will he? I’m pretty sure.

C

Bryan Colangelo

Didn’t really do much over the course of the season, trade-wise, which is a good thing because he’s got a tendency to over-react emotionally sometime and I think the group he put together needs time to simmer before it’s done.

Tough to grade a GM on a regular season since his work is done in the summer.

C

-

Okay, this has been far too serious; we’ll get back to hijinks and stuff tomorrow.

Oh, we still need to figure out what we’re doing, if anything, on in-game blogs. Want to follow one team? Do two or three nights a week? Stay in the east or venture west even if that means late nights?

Decisions, decisions, decisions.

Guess we gotta make ‘em before Monday, when I think it’s best to start.

-

Oh, last thing before I go and do some NBA playoff preview stuff for the paper and spend an afternoon somewhere goofing around on the full mail bag. You’ve got one more kick at the mail bag can, send the queries here.

-

Enjoy the day.

The morning after the season before

I don’t know about the usual Three Pointers thing that we do here because, really, who cares?

So let’s do A Bunch of Pointers and see where it takes us.

Sound okay? Cool.

-

Bye, Rasho.

See ya, Patrick.

I can say with pretty much certainty that those are two fellows – both good guys who’ll be missed in the whole ‘hey, what’s happening’ conversational vein – who will have walked off the Air Canada Centre court last night for the last time as Raptors but it begs the question, who else is gone?

Of course, Chris Bosh is the big question and we all know there’ll be more than enough speculation about him for the next little while that it’s not worth getting into it today.

But how about a couple of others? As I watched Antoine Wright walk to the elevator on crutches after it was all over, I figure that might the last time I see him around the Raptors locker room because he’s a free agent and I’m not sure there’s room for him, as I’ve mentioned a few times before.

But what about Turk? Or one of the point guards? Or Reggie Evans?

Think they’ll all be back?

If I had to guess, and that’s all it is right now, I would think Bryan would want to give Turk another year to redeem himself but I do think he’ll move one of his point guards and I am pretty certain he’ll try hard to move Reggie sometime this summer.

So that’d make another five guys at least gone from the roster and if Bosh goes, that’ll make six. And let’s say they can’t find a contract number that suits Amir Johnson, also a free agent, and that promising young big moves, too.

That’s seven guys gone, almost half the roster, and here we go again with the blowing up.

-

Quite aside from the fact it’ll get some of you all riled up and that’s never a bad thing (I keed, I keed), I am going to say this:

They should not make a move on Jay.

I think he’s a good coach, an excellent guy at Xs and Os and deserves another year. No, he’s not fiery and he’s not the greatest quote in the world and sometimes he comes across as unwilling to publicly criticize his players, to the point where he mouths platitudes that aren’t exactly true.

But there’s some promise there and at some point, you have to let a guy grow into his job rather than pull the rug out from under him too quickly.

I don’t know about his assistants – maybe they need to find some grizzled old screamer to sit next to him – but I do feel that Jay deserves the chance to take another new group and see what he can do. That’s not popular opinion – it was even debated heatedly at our Annual Last Game Of The Year Grunt-o-rama after last night’s game – but it’s what I think.

As perhaps I’ve mentioned a time or two, I think coaches get too much credit when things are going good and too much blame when they’re going bad and to make a change here for little more than change’s sake doesn’t work.

Although, I think I’d find it hugely entertaining to see how long it would take some of you to turn on the new saviour they brought it.

-

One of the more telling things about Wednesday night?

Attendance: 18,333.

Last game of the regular season, kind of important in a ‘man, they better win’ kind of way, perhaps the last game for some players and still they can’t sell out?

That has to be troubling to the suits upstairs, doesn’t it?

And I found it kind of odd, after all the disappointments over the course of 41 games and the non-playoff end to the year that when the final buzzer went, the fans stood and applauded.

Good on them, actually. Odd, though. Quite.

-

So Toronto’s 40-42, Memphis is 40-42 and the No. 12 pick in June’s draft is far from a thing.

What happens now is the league – or someone who works for the league – flips a coin to see who’s No. 12 and who’s No. 13 going into the draft.

That’ll be exciting, won’t it?

-

What’s up now? Well, just to keep you up to speed, and to make sure you know what’s coming, here’s how the next few days will unfold.

After I get Super Dog all walked, watered and fed, it’s time to head down to the ACC for clean-up day. What they do is, after the players get their end-of-season physicals and have their exit meetings with Bryan and Jay, they parade select ones through the post-game interview room so we can grill them.

I’m pretty sure we’ll talk to Bosh, Turk, Jarrett, Jose, DeMar and perhaps even Andrea.

Oh, and Jay, too.

The whole process takes about three or four hours in a mind-numbingly boring day and then we figure out what the story is.

But getting words of wisdom and the state of the franchise opinion from Bryan will have to wait until at least Monday; he’s off at NBA board meetings today and can’t talk to us.

-

They’re dancing in the streets of Chicago now that the Bulls have made it. Or John Paxson and Vinny Del Negro are having a steel cage match.

I’m not sure.

But whatever it is, let’s make one final check with my boy K.C. and see what’s going on.

-

I will point you now in the direction of Rick down in Charlotte where we once again hear from Larry Brown, who I still quite like and respect.

-

Here’s a kind of verbatim conversation I had with a fellow before last night’s game. Him first.

“What about Bosh?”

“I think he’s gone but six week ago I thought he was staying so who knows.”

“Sign-and-trade?" “That’s what they want.”

“David Lee?”

“Sure, and something really good with him. That seems to be what the people want.”

“Makes sense.”

“Tell me about Lee.”

“If you put him out there with Bargnani and Turkoglu it might be the worst defensive front court in the history of basketball. But he’s a good guy.”

“Hmm. That might be enough.”

-

Oh, what’s up here?

Well, the plan is to have a little player-by-player look at the roster in this space tomorrow, maybe a GruntTV wrapup today if I’ve got time or tomorrow at the latest and we’ll keep doing our usual good stuff each morning.

And if you’ve got questions, you can click here and send ‘em because I’ll have some time Friday and Saturday to perhaps sit on a stool and answer them.

-

The Goods On The Game, Knicks at Raptors

Game 82 of 82!

Everyone tired?

Anxious?

Sit back and let it unfold

It's baaaaaack!!!

You asked

You got

Raptors pre-game chat

Doug held a live Q&A as the Raptors got ready to take on the New York Knicks.

Who should be there and who should win (the game and the awards)

Join Doug Smith at 1 p.m. Wednesday for a live basketball Q&A, as the Raptors get ready to take on the New York Knicks.

Good morning Bobcats, er, I mean Raptors fans.

How’s things?

There’s really not a lot to say today that hasn’t already been said. So, I’ll say a lot.

-

What I will say is, as I did in the paper today, this is no one’s fault but the Raptors, whose freefall in the second half has been stunning.

I have no idea what’s going to transpire tonight (these two teams have defied logic too often for me to fall into that trap) but it’s going to fun, that’s for sure.

So, because there’s no need to be too serious until this all unfold however it does, why should we be? So …

I’m often asked whether it’s better for us Grunts to have them in the post-season rather than out and, on the whole of it, I’m not entirely sure which side I fall on.

Let’s see what happens if they don’t make it:

I have to care about the draft

And, trust me, a couple of weeks of covering kids coming in for pre-draft workouts is like a couple of weeks of a migraine.

Bosh is about 1,000 per cent sure to leave

Now, that may be the case anyway but the thought of five weeks or so of sign-and-trade questions is at some level quite horrifying.

Do we need to worry about a coach?

I don’t think so – the vibe I’m getting doesn’t suggest there’s any move afoot to replace Jay if they don’t get in – but it’s something that’ll be in discussion and, if it happens, that’s whole other layer of work.

Let’s see what happens if they make it:

I have to go to Cleveland (sorry, Cleveland)

Not to mention we’ll probably have to drive back and forth between Games 1 and 2 because they’ll practice back in Toronto most likely.

The whole “inevitably losing” thing

Finishing the season after a four-game sweep kinda takes the fun of covering the intensity of the post-season and, trust me, it’s kinda fun to cover a series.

Bosh is about 999 per cent sure to leave

And all the extra work of covering a series just leads into five weeks or so of sign-and-trade questions.

So, let’s call it a tie and I’ll comfortably sit back and watch tonight.

-

But if there’s one thing I really want to see tonight, it’s Bosh in the arena.

I don’t care if he speaks to us or waits until tomorrow morning to do it; I think he’s got to be there just for support. And appearances.

Now, I don’t know how he’s feeling physically, I don’t know how anyone would be feeling a week removed from nose surgery and I can never assume to know someone else’s pain threshold.

But this might be the last night he’s with this group and it might be the last night he’s with this organization and I think it’s important that he be there.

-

Questions?

Okay.

Answers?

I’ll try my best.

But we have to back it up a bit today, to 1 p.m. from noon for some scheduling matters over here. But guess it’s okay, the game’s an hour later so it won’t screw things up too badly, I don’t think.

-

One easy, two hard.

At least that’s how I saw the three NBA awards ballots I got last week and which I will dutifully submit to the head office today.

The easy one’s easy to figure out, right.

MVP

There was a time mid-season when I figured it was Kobe and I said that a few times. But, as we know, times change. So, the five in order

LeBron James, Cleveland; Kevin Durant, Oklahoma City; Kobe Bryant, Lakers; Dwyane Wade, Miami; Steve Nash, Phoenix.

Yes, it’s hard to leave Carmelo and Howard off but someone had to do it.

Now the hard ones

Coach of the year

It’s hard because you could probably have six guys in consideration and they only let you do three. And they are:

Scott Brooks, Oklahoma City; Scott Skiles, Milwaukee; Jerry Sloan, Utah.

That’s leaving off the likes of Alvin Gentry in Phoenix, Nate McMillan in Portland, Eric Spoelstra in Miami and that wasn’t easy to do. I’m sure you could make a case for a couple of others, too, but I didn’t.

Rookie of the year

Man, this might have been the hardest one of them all. Lots of good candidates, most from very bad teams, mind you. But still, lots to choose from. And I chose:

Stephen Curry, Golden State; Tyreke Evans, Sacramento; Brandon Jennings, Milwaukee.

That leaves out Darren Collison, who probably will finish a strong fourth and I’m sure there are a couple of others.

Why Curry over Evans? I just think he does more; shoots it better from distance, handles an offence extremely well. He’s far more athletic than you’d think at first glance and I just think he’s had a better year.

And, please, don’t give me Evans’s 20-5-5 crap, either. You know me and stats to begin with (they don’t really mean a lot standing on their own) and read my friend Jonathan’s blog post about how they were achieve.

Besides, it makes my fingers twitch to have to write Tyreke Evans in the same sentence as Oscar Robertson, Michael Jordan and LeBron James because, frankly, that’s a slight at Oscar, Michael and LeBron. Evans may one day be great, I can say with absolute certainty he will not be in the same class as those three.

And I’m also sure that if you parsed the numbers deep enough, you could find out that Curry, or Jennings, or Collison, or, heck, even DeMar DeRozan put some kind of statistical thing that few others in the game have ever done.

-

Never mind how my man KC wrote the game story last night (it’s full of “we’ve fought adversity all year” and “glad we control our own destiny” clichés) the story out of Chicago is an alleged physical confrontation between GM John Paxson and coach Vinny Del Negro.

Here’s the story and I’ll just say this, this makes that whole fabricated Vince Carter-Sam Mitchell piece of crap we had to deal with look like nothing.

I never thought Del Negro would be back as the head coach next year; now I’m 100 per cent certain of that and I would certainly hope Paxson gets run, too.

-

When I was watching Bulls-Celtics last night, one thing did catch my attention a bit more than anything else.

No, it was not Craig Sager’s sportscoat.

It was when he was doing one of his sideline hits and the topic was players taking nights off to rest down the stretch of the season.

He mentioned that he’d spoken to someone at the league office and was told that, yes, the league was quite aware of the impact sitting players for no reason other than rest has on other playoff races and the paying customers.

Stern apparently said in the statement the league’s board of governors would discuss the matter when it meets this week for its annual pre-playoff gabfest.

I have no idea what – if anything – the league might do except hammer home the need to respect the game and the integrity of races when deciding when to give guys nights off.

But I think it’s a good step that they’ll talk about it.

-

Let’s get the first request for mail out of the way, even though I imagine there’ll be all kinds of end-of-season or prepare-for-playoffs questions to come in the next couple of days.

Click here to send what you’ve got on your mind.

Now how do you feel about the Celtics?

Good morning Celtics, er, I mean Raptors fans.

How’s things?

Much better than yesterday morning, I imagine.

And this will make it even better. Really, it will.

-

THREE POINTERS

Sign of things to come?

I’m sure you all noticed that the Raptors used Hedo Turkoglu at power forward for a big chunk of last night and, you have to admit, it worked pretty well.

Eight more rebounds, eight more points (on six shots) and four assists but, most important, it created matchup problems that allowed Andrea and Amir to get going as well. There just seems to be more space for the bigs to operate when Turk takes a four out to the top to run pick-and-roll stuff.

I know it’s only being done because Bosh isn’t around and they are concerned about putting Reggie out for extended minutes because sometimes the offence bogs down when he’s on the court.

But it has looked good and I’m sure you’ll see more of it tomorrow night when the Knicks go with one of their unorthodox lineups at times.

-

Strong finish

You know these Raptors aren’t among the greatest of teams at finishing quarters, right? Sometimes concentration wanes in the final couple of minutes and what was a comfortable lead shrinks, the other guys get some momentum and games change.

That’s why it was it was quite unusual to see how the final 2:30 of he first half ended last night.

A Charlie V bucket had cut a 15-point deficit to nine, the Pistons seemed to have some life (and that’s a relative term because they really didn’t play with any intensity at all) and it was “oh, oh” time for Toronto.

Well, Jay calls a timeout, they get an open look for Turk to knock down a three on the ensuing possession, Andrea hits one the next trip and they end up finishing the half with a 12-point lead.

Might have saved an awful lot of angst and, perhaps, the game.

-

Shudder at the thought

There was a moment in the third quarter when the Pistons were trying to junk up the game a little bit by pressing and trapping and swarming the Raptors for 94 feet.

And when I looked up at one point and saw DeMar dribbling against the pressure in the backcourt, my immediate reaction was to close my eyes.

Now, the kid might eventually be very good, I don’t know for sure, but right now he is hardly Meadowlark DeRozan and the last thing he should be doing is dribbling against pressure.

-

A wee bit more? If you insist.

-

And this, courtesy of my good friend Mr. Bonnell, is why I respect Larry Brown:

“The Chicago game is going to be different. If that game means something to Chicago and Toronto, I think for the integrity of the league, we’ve got to have all our players available.”

Brown’s Bobcats didn’t use everyone in their win Monday in New Jersey because, as Brown said:

“I know New Jersey is not going to be in the playoffs so I don’t feel as bad not playing everybody.”

-

You know I’m not the biggest fan of the extraneous, um, stuff that goes on at NBA games, the in-host screamers, the zany contests, the sponsored this and the sponsored that.

Well, I saw one schtick last night that was hilarious. And should be mimicked in Toronto somehow.

During one of the late breaks, the played Journey’s Don’t Stop Believing at somewhere near ear-splitting decibels as part of a “singing bee” where they scroll the words on the bottom of the scoreboard screen, flash a camera on fans, who have to sing. But while they do it, a huge majority of the fans are singing, too.

It was great.

I know it’s not original (bless my Sweet Caroline-warbling Red Sox fans) but it’s really funny if the crowd plays along. Now, maybe that’d be an issue in Toronto, I don’t know. But they should try it with some song that’s got a catchy tune and that you can dance to.

Oh, and when they put the camera on Jack and Matt, I almost laughed out loud.

-

How are the Bulls feeling?

Let’s ask KC.

-

Okay, so you’ve had the defensive players and all-defensive team and the three post-season all-star teams.

Here’s how one ballot would fill out a few other categories

(and I’m saving MVP, rookie and coach until tomorrow because that might be a slow day)

Most improved

Marc Gasol, Memphis; Aaron Brooks, Houston; George Hill, San Antonio

This is a tough one because it’s so nebulous. Does a guy get better because he gets more minutes? Or does he get better because he improves his game in every facet? I think Gasol did the latter.

Sixth man

Jamal Crawford, Atlanta; Manu Ginobili, San Antonio; Jason Terry, Dallas.

Not particularly difficult, in my opinion; this one could be a landslide.

Executive of the year

John Hammond, Milwaukee; Steve Kerr, Phoenix; Donnie Nelson, Dallas.

This is actually voted on by NBA GMs but we know they need all the help they can get.

-

Hey, the folks at Canada Basketball need your help still. Remember a few weeks back, I mentioned they were doing this easy-for-you fund-raising gig where you text a number and make an automatic $5 donation?

How easy is that?

Well, it’s still going on, they’ve got a lot of world championship mouths to feed this summer and every little bit helps.

Click here. Do it. You’ll feel good about it. Promise.

-

I have a new favourite NBA broadcaster, hands down.

Brent Barry of NBA TV.

No question about.

I did a little hit with him, Eric Snow and Matt Viner before the game and before they even starting grilling me about the Raptors and Bosh and all things Toronto, Brent says he loves Grunt TV!

How could you not love the guy? Seriously.

And, by (semi) popular demand, it’ll return tomorrow for giggles.

-

You’ll note, by reading this story out of today’s Boston Globe, that they’re talking a good game around the Celtics about everybody playing and playing hard and needing to finish strong because they’re still in a tight race with Atlanta for third and fourth in the conference.

We, as they say, shall see because last week when the Cs were in town one of the bigwigs I was talking to suggested it was hard to get ‘em motivated because they were waiting for the post-season and, despite what they say, weren’t all the concerned whether they finished third or fourth.

-

Okay, long drive, lots of scribbling to do once I get back, have yourselves a fine day.

-

The Goods On The Game, Raptors at Pistons

Hi to Penultimate Night.

Everyone pumped?

I bet you are.