A hiring, a party, and, of course, some old video

Who says the HOTH can’t make moves during the lockout?

Kind of got wrapped up in real life things Thursday and didn’t get this toy you but they’ve made – or about to make – a somewhat significant hire.

(No, they aren’t poaching for some mid six-figure, five-year contract).

Alex McKechnie, the training guru who has spent eight seasons with the Lakers and who is one of the most respected men in his field, is coming aboard as director of sports science.

He’ll oversee the whole shebang and his contribution will be huge.

I’d heard his name kicked around a little bit a month or so ago but when things to put on hold league-wide everything got a little delayed.

Funny thing is, Alex is tight with Jay Triano – they’ve known each other for years, Alex is a Vancouver guy and worked at Simon Fraser – and I’m sure having at least one familiar face in the organization helped McKechnie think seriously about coming.

If there is a shortened season – and people a lot smarter than I are predicting it more often now – keeping players healthy is going to be even more important than usual and McKechnie’s pioneering work in such training facets as core strength will be huge.

This is not to diminish the fine work of athletic trainer Scott McCullough and his staff, or even the now-departed Francesco Cuzzolin, but having McKechnie around is big move.

And rest assured it’ll resonate through the league because now they’ve made significant moves with a respected coach – Dwane Casey – and McKechnie.

Now, when Bryan decides on a front office structure and comes up with whatever he comes up with, I have a sneaking suspicion it’ll boost the reputation of the team some more.

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Hey, Argos open tomorrow, right?

Wonder if there’s a party tonight to celebrate.

But I tell you, if there is, it won’t come close to being the best in franchise history, regardless of what happens.

That’s because I was at the one that will go down as the:

Best.

Sports team.

Party.

Ever.

It was the McNall, Gretzky, Candy opener in 1991, can’t remember if it was at the Horseshoe or the Phoenix but the Blues Brothers played, there were all kinds of Hollywood stars hanging around and I remember shooting pool with Wendel Clark just before dancing with Rocket Ismail’s mom.

No, they don’t make ‘me like that any more.

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Mail, please.

Here.

Innermost thoughts.

Thank you.

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Most ridiculous thing I’ve heard this week?

Kobe Bryant may play in Turkey if the lockout drags on.

Of all the fanciful boondoggles we’ve heard, this has to rank right up with the silliest of all time.

Let’s recap:

Kobe Bryant is 33 years old.

Kobe Bryant went to Germany to have his chronically sore knee looked at this summer.

Kobe Bryant has played 1,100 or so regular season games and a couple hundred more in the playoffs, the total is somewhere approaching 50,000 NBA minutes.

Kobe Bryant has made almost $200 million in his career and has more than $80 million left on his deal, money that would be at risk the second he stepped on the floor in Europe.

Kobe Bryant is going to play in Turkey for a team that can’t pay him unless it gets some sponsor to fork over the money because the club, Besiktas, is involved in a soccer match-fixing scandal and doesn’t have the money to pay him?

Yeah, right.

Come on. Who’s kidding whom here?

I’m not sure if it’s egomaniacs running Besiktas or Bryant’s people being adversely affected by the heatwave or what but Kobe Bryant playing a regular season game in Turkey makes as much sense as you playing a regular season game in Turkey.

Let’s let this nonsense die, okay?

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Yeah, I know it was Jim Belushi that I saw back at that Argo party but you have an idea of how my mind works so why not this little trip down Musical And Theatrical Memory Lane:

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Here’s the thing on Yao, one last time.

I was having dinner with the one and only Mike Farber – a giant, a Mount Rushmore guy – and we were talking about Halls of Fame.

He brought it up, a point made by another guy and for the life of me I can’t remember who it was, who said, in so many words: “Can you write the definitive history of the sport during Player X’s time without mentioning him? If you can’t, he has to be in the Hall.”

And since Yao was the first non-North American ever chosen No. 1 overall, the face of nation, an icon, and whatever else, I don’t think you can possibly write the last 10 years of basketball without mentioning him.

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Know what would make this heat more tolerable?

This.

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Speaking of the mail:

Q: Re: Roberto Alomar best athlete to ever play in Toronto

Hi Doug, you pose an interesting question here. I'm not certain about the ramifications you're putting on this, but my only argument would have to be Hakeem Olajuwan.

When in Toronto it is obvious that he was at the end of his career, and we did not witness him in his prime, but he surely a more impressive career than Roberto's.

Again I'm not sure if there's any rules to this, but that's my argument.

Drew F, Oshawa

A: The Dream’s an interesting topic when it comes to that whole discussion because he was, simply, a shell of his former self when he got here.

A good signing – he seemed to be the kind of veteran who would help an excellent youngish team over the top – one of the bigger issues, as it turns out, was that he and Lenny Wilkens didn’t quite get along all that well, an issue that dated back to the 1996 Olympics.

Anyway, if you want to take total career achievements into consideration and not limit it to only the years in Toronto, I think you can absolutely make the case for him being the best ever.

But when it comes to what the guys actually did when in a Toronto uniform, Hakeem’s way down the list.

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Comments

[JHK]

Love how your blog is evolving with the use of video/photos.
Speaking of the photo, it ain't as beautiful as the photo but I find Long Point Beach a pretty decent place to go to if you live around this part of the province.
Collingwood (a.k.a Wassaga Beach) is a bit over rated in my books.
Sauble Beach is excellent as well, if you can handle the long drive.

[john]

@doug, from yesterdays blog, Sabonis is a horrible player to compare to Walton. He came to the NBA after playing as a pro for 15 years and being a star in the Euroleague for 10 years. His only accomplishment was rookie of the year and he was 30 years old! He may get into the HOF for his body of work, was a nice player, but of these centers, who is he better than?
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Wilt Chamberlain
Bill Russell
Shaquille O'Neal
George Mikan
Moses Malone
David Robinson
Dwight Howard
Hakeem Olajuwon
Bill Walton
Patrick Ewing

[Dave]

Doug. Great video, but that is John Belushi, not Jim Belushi. He was another great comedian who's career was cut short by drugs. I saw his grave on Martha's Vineyard when I was there eons ago.

[Phil A]

I see where you're coming from with your comment about Kobe possibly joining the Besiktas if a lockout does happen. It's a very risky move but you can also look at it from another perspective. Maybe it's more about his love for the game and less about the money at this point in his career. He's already accomplished everything in the NBA and he's earned well over $200 million over his career. It's almost like he has nothing to lose by playing overseas.

[charles]

Doug - you are hot these days! Alomar! Blues Brothers!
There can be no question.

This is best post-season/no season blogging ever.
When it comes up here's one vote for you to become the Commissioner of.....Basketball and General Culture

[Shawn]

Interesting Topic... players who played in Toronto that had the best overall career.

1. Roger Clemons (forgetting the steroid issues)
2. Hakeem Olajuwon
3. Ricky Henderson
4. Doug Flutie

(im sure im missing some great maple leafs of the distant past... but hey.. this isn't a pucks blog!)

[The J]

Phil A - From a lot of the things I've read about Kobe, he is very openly driven to win more rings. But he is also very quietly driven for personal records. He wants to climb as high up the total points standings as he can, and Phil Jackson has said overtaking Michael Jordan, is Kobe's biggest hope. So it may not be money driving, him but he wouldn't want to risk any injuries that could hurt his NBA career.

Shawn - Good list, I suppose you could add Paul Molitor and Dave Winfield as well. Maybe even Jose Canseco, but that would be pushing it. I suppose you could add to the Mahovlich and Sitters the likes of Belfour and Lindros. But in the end I prefer to make it about what they did in Toronto and no where else. I remember being excited when they signed the Dream, but that wasn't really the Dream. So can we add Alex English or Isaih Thomas to the list. Too bad we can close on adding Magic and Dr. J as well.

[doug]

@John S sorry to disappoint you but Sabonis IS in the hall, being inducted this year and not a "horrible" comparison as they both played the exact amount of games in the NBA (within 3) that was my point..and Sabonis was more then a "nice" player...anyways it is what it is...we agree to disagree I just get annoyed when people talk about numbers and overlook other elements of a players game,plus you even said it yourself he wasn't allowed to play over here until he was 30 so we will never know how good he actually was, but he was good enough to be elected into the hall.......and to me like a earlier poster said I think Kobe just wants to play basketball, I think it's refreshing to see, money is obviously irrelevant to him, it's that love for the game that has driven him...so I say go for it...

[The J]

@skiff (from yesterday) - it's funny, as soon as I had put up Yao's stats, I had a feeling someone would point out that Bosh's were about the same. Well here is another point in the debate:
http://www.basketball-reference.com/leaders/hof_prob_career.html

It's a statistical breakdown of the probability of a player making the hall of fame (based on all players - including retired ones who may already be there). So for example, Kobe Bryant has a 1.00 probability of being enshrined, just like Bill Russell or Wilt Chamberlain. Somewhat arbitrary statistics, but seems to be fairly reasonable as a predictor. Based on this Bosh ranks #100 on the all-time list. There are many players around him on the list who have gone to the HOF, but there also many who haven't. Conversely, Yao is at 125 (just behind Gilbert Arenas!), and the story is pretty much the same. Yet somehow, if you look at the less tangible elements of watching the game and what they did. It's hard to be as impressed with Bosh's 19-9 and Yao's 19-9. Bosh may make the HOF someday, but I couldn't possibly imagine it if he retired tomorrow. Perhaps, these stats would point to the idea that they may both be there someday. They are both ahead of Bill Walton (#159) I might add.

Then again, to use Doug's standard, I think you could easily write the history of the last 10 years of the NBA without Bosh, but you couldn't without Yao. Then again, you could argue that you can't write it without Ron Artest, or Tim Donaghy. Or you couldn't write Baseball's history without McGwire, Sosa, Clemons and Bonds. But that's another story.

[doug]

plus in a non-basketball related rant...what's up with all this coverage for poor Steve Williams being fired....he was and is a caddy, plain and simple, to much power and importance has been given to these guys, he made millions off Tiger, travelled the world was part of a era that will go down in golf history and he has the audacity to whine and complain....unreal...Jack and Angelo parted ways, Lee and Herman parted ways...Williams was a employee, Tiger was the talent and I am tired of caddies, instructors etc taking credit for a golfers success, in no other sport does it happen...does a shooting teacher take credit for Jordan?, a running backs coach for Sanders?/...get real, Stevie can go pound salt, maybe Tiger should have dumped him years ago..hello Stevie your a friggin caddy, if any one could complain it would be Fluff who was Tigers caddy before all the fame and fortune hit, (like Pete Best) and Fluff never said a word when he was let go....there's class...

[John S]

@ Doug

FYI - the post at 9:32 am was not me.

[Jeff]

Yao Ming in the hall of fame - maybe in a special category for bringing attention and international exposure to the game, but for playing, no. If Yao gets in how do you say no to Vince Carter? He was the focal point for media attention towards the Raptors and in Canada, and he did far more than Yao playing wise (Slam dunk, all-star, highlight reel plays).

The problem with the hall of fame in each sport is a lot of very good players are in, but they really don't belong. It should be reserved for only the elite players in each sport, not just because you have to fill up a ballot and vote at least x number each year.

[doug]

@John S my apologies...I just saw John...so again sorry...nice discussion yesterday by the way..cheers

[john]

@Doug, my point is that he is not a top 10 center of all time, top 20 maybe. Yes they played almost the exact same amount of games, but Sabonis had 15 years as a pro under his belt! I dont know how you can make that comparison with a straight face. It was also his decision to play in Europe. The Russian Federation allowed for him to play in the NBA in 1989 but he chose to play in Europe for six years. It was his choice to play in the inferior league instead of coming to the NBA. I remember him going to Portland to get his knee or hip or something repaired and then signing with a European team for another 3 years once he was healthy. It was not cool at the time.
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I am not saddened at all that he is in the HOF. I do find most sports HOF a bit self serving. The LPGA is one that I find recognizes true accomplishment as opposed to being voted on by feelings and conjecture. "he was the best player in the game in his era who never won a championship" arguments are silly. Sabonis had much the same impact as Yao with being an ambassador to the game from the old Soviet Block and for that reason he deserves recognition.

[John S]

@ Doug

No worries... I could see how that'd be confusing.

I did post a response on yesterday's blog this morning that perhaps you hadn't read. The gist of it is that I think that the HOF requires dominance AND longevity which is direct contrast to your opinion that longevity is unnecessary. I agree with Jeff @ 1:59 pm that the HOF should be reserved for the truly elite, not just the very good which is why I believe that career statistics matter. There are alot of players who can have a couple of good/great seasons... there are very few that can perform at that level for a decade or more.

Take a look at yesterday's blog to see my post which I'm sure you'll disagree with. =)

Anyways, have a great weekend all!

[doug]

@John you know what I base my opinion on players on, is one my own eyes and not stat sheets and secondly what his peers say about a player, as players know players...ironically enough here is a quote from someone that has much ink here in the last couple days about Sabonis...

Sabonis is considered one of the best big man passers as well as one of the best overall centers in the history of the game. Bill Walton once called Sabonis a 7' 3" Larry Bird due to his unique court vision, shooting range, rugged in-game mentality, and versatility.

so as I said earlier we will never know how good he could have been and the "facts" you mention are misleading as the most devastating knee injury he had was in 1988 before the Soviets allowed him to play elsewhere ..have you ever heard of a fellow named Teofilo Stevenson....again someone else no one knows how great he could have been due to political reasons,,,so I can't say about Sabonis's place on a subjective list, no one can that is the point...

[Mike D.]

Doug, I gather Alex McKechnie is originally from Glasgow. Please, please tell me that from time to time you'll be providing phonetic descriptions of his verbiage as he works with the likes of Andrea: "Och, ye great glaikit beastie, ken ye no' jump higher than tha'?"

Blogger's note: Promise

[skiff]

@ The J - Great debate and I'm totally onside with your points, and they're all really good. However, I am a natural contrarian by nature, and I do somewhat believe this, but I think I CAN write a history of the NBA for the last 10 years and NOT include Yao!! I agree, he was a great player and I'm not knocking his game at all, but what exactly did he do in the last 10 years that's utterly definitive to the game of basketball if you strip away international marketing opportunities? It has no relevance to me when I watch a game whether or not there's more fans in China now than there was 15 years ago. I refuse to enter that into the equation on a HoF PLAYER'S career (not builder, player). He didn't even put up some statistically dominant seasons that we can rally around for inclusion (which Barkley, Malone, Stockton all did). In fact, in spite of his gifts and physical stature (huge advantages one can argue), he didn't even average a double double in a lesser amount of games!!

What are the 3 definitive moments of his career that make him worthy? I think every player in there should have at least 3 definitive moments/seasons/etc. But 50 years from now when people talk about Yao, will there be anything about him that is memorable that doesn't include the line, "grew the popularity of the game in China"? If there are ones I'm not thinking of, I'm happy to hear them and change my mind. (maybe the 18 game win streak or something??)Otherwise I see a guy who was great, but couldn't pull his team to another level, and call me an old timer, but I expect that from transcendant players. MJ's pre-champ Bulls teams had a bunch of nobodies and he still had them in the playoff trading shots with some of the great teams of all time. I know I have high standards, but shouldn't I when it comes to the All Time greats?

PS - Here's my snarky side: Bogut's had a solid career and I'm sure hoops is more popular in Australia than it was before him. Is that good enough for the hall, or is Oz too small? I say that to point out the arbitrariness of birth place as a defining factor in this discussion. What matters is what happens between the lines. The rest is noise and marketing.....

(Man I've become an old grouch, no??!!)

[doug]

@John S i read it just a bit ago as I never go back and read blogs, I just read Doug's new daily input which is mind-provoking and move on but I responded....look I am not a advocate of HOF';s in any league and to me the one player that will never be admitted and to me shows the hypocrisy of any hall is this player...all he ever did was win, not allow his team to lose and yet all I hear is guys have to win, have championships, to be admitted....blah,blah,blah...well Jack Morris is the man all he did was win and a friend asked me once if you could have one pitcher in a 7th game who would you choose??...it was tough between Gibson and Morris, so believe me HOF's are not sacrosanct...well time to go golfing and 4 hours of arguing sports with my buddies, better then politics or religion....it's all good and thanks to Doug for this blog and all he offers and the effort he gives...cheers...

[Lorie]

Afternoon, Doug:
Because it's that kind of a day, and talking about sports makes me think of movement and it's still too hot for much of that, and with even MORE warm sunny weather for the weekend, I'm thinking about the Best S.W.Ontario Beaches:
* For food, it's the beach at Port Stanley. (Mackies' fries then Broderick's ice cream. Repeat until the money runs out or they close for the night...)
* For sunsets, Bayfield offers up beautiful ones. (Plus some great little boutiques that you find when you're looking for aloe for your sunburn and stumble across some sweet little sandals...)
* For a long, beautiful and quiet beach with a sandbar so large it makes you feel as though you've walked halfway across Lake Huron, it's Inverhuron. No shopping. No fancy restaurants. Or restaurants of any kind. Just the lake. The sand. The sun. Yeah, simpler is better. :)
Cheers! Summer Weekend Ones!

[Dave]

As for Kobe and all the others talking about playing overseas, remember it is simply posturing by the Union. I am sure they have been directed by the Union to say they are willing to play overseas. Let's wait and see how many actually go and ride buses again.

[J]

1. Of course Bosh shouldn't be considered in the same breath as Yao. I'd like to suggest to anyone who simply looks at numbers (especially when they arbitrarily pick just points and rebounds) to look at defensive numbers as well, or actually watch a game. I'm not a Bosh basher by any means -- I consider him as one of the top 20 players in the league -- but it's silly to suggest they had the same impact. Bosh is an average defender at his position at best; Yao was a great defender. There were seasons when he held opposing centers to a 11.6 PER. We all know how dominant Howard has been in this post-Shaq era, but take a look at how Yao played against him;

http://www.basketball-reference.com/play-index/h2h_finder.cgi?request=1&p1=mingya01&p2=howardw01

2. What's with picking every player born in a different country? If you're bringing up Bogut as a counter to Yao, you must be seriously underestimating the impact Yao had. (At the risk of offending the person who made that argument, it doesn't look very good when first you admit you don't know whether Yao's impact was more than mere fervent nationalism, and then you make the comparison to Bogut.) It's not a matter of making a sport a little more popular; he completely transformed the culture over in China. Bogut didn't transform anything, and if you have to, at least use Longley as an example!

3. Unfortunately for many dissenters (e.g. Skiff), it doesn't matter what you think the criteria should be (i.e.whether Yao should be considered a player or a
contributor). This isn't the NBA Hall of Fame; it's the Basketball Hall of Fame,
and all they care about for the players category is overall impact on the game of basketball. There are many inductees (as players, not contributors) who didn't play very long, and others who have never played a single game in the NBA.

Just a note, I couldn't care less whether or not Yao gets inducted, or anyone else for the matter. Just wanted to curb the argument a bit before it runs away entirely. The last thing we want are arguments re: Boozer's HoF credentials. Or Alabi's. Oh wait, we already went there.

[John Bastedo]

Doug,

You may not see this as it's an old blog comment now, but where is that beach? Do you know (did you take it?) or is it a random pic?

Ron Francis (4th all-time scorer in NHL history) would probably be the Pucks nomination for career athletic achievement.

If we're only talking time in Jays uniform, then I might still take Doc over Alomar even though he never so much as played a playoff game for us. Alomar had the highest payroll in baseball around him at the time, so team achievements are not a fair comparison.'

J.

Blogger's note: Not sure where the beach is/was. Random picture