Tough loss means wait 'til next year for Canadian women

It’s going to take the long way for Canada to qualify for the women’s basketball tournament at the 2012 London Olympics.

Despite a furious fourth-quarter comeback, Canada surrendered a three-pointer with less than 12 seconds to go that tied the game and then gave up a basket at the buzzer in a 61-59 loss to Argentina in the semifinals of the FIBA Americas Olympic qualification tournament in Nieva, Colombia on Friday night.

It will be a bitter pill for Canada to swallow and means they will not play Saturday for the lone automatic berth in the London Games.

They have, however, already qualified for a final qualification tournament next summer to determine the last five of 16 Olympic teams.

It will be of little consolation today, however, since Canada stormed back from a late deficit to take a three-point lead in the dying seconds.

But after an Argentina three-pointer tied the game and gave Canada the ball with about 11 seconds left, a series of non-calls led to a turnover that Argentina converted into the game-winning basket at the buzzer.

“It’s unfortunate at the end of the game when they were trying to foul, the referees didn’t realize that they had two fouls to give and they were trying to foul,” said head coach Allison McNeill. “That was disappointing.”

Not as disappointing as not having a shot to play for the gold medal and an automatic berth in the 2012 Olympics, which would represent the first time the Canadian women have been to a Games since 2000.

But the secondary goal of assuring themselves a chance next summer has been realized since the second-to-fourth place teams advance to a final qualification event next year.

Canada missed nine of 16 free throws in the game and shot just 29 per cent from three-point range in losing to the 5-0 Argentines.

Chelsea Aubry of Kitchener led Canada with 14 points and Lizanne Murphy of Beaconsfield, Que., had 11.

“Unfortunately, the ball didn’t fall our way,” said Aubry. “On that last possession, we didn’t get the call we wanted, it was a tough break.”

 

Daytime TV is awful and the Raptors need to stand pat

There’s all kinds of talk – nothing concrete, mind you – that any new NBA CBA will include an amnesty clause that would allow teams to dump a player’s contract to save some money under whatever new cap/tax system there is.

And, of course, I’m getting all kinds of questions about who or what the HOTH should do if that’s indeed true.

Let’s play a hypothetical and say it is:

Dump no one.

Of course, the hue and cry is that Jose Calderon’s deal is a tough one to swallow, about $20 million left over two years but he can’t go anywhere.

Hear me out:

Aside from being a better player than a lot of you think, Jose brings one desperately needed attribute to this team: Veteran leadership.

As they are currently constructed, the Raptors are almost too young and there’s no way I’d way to hand over the reigns to a unproven point guard in Jerryd Bayless and there are other holes to fill (starting small forward, backup shooting guard) to have to worry about finding a point guard as well.

The one thing Bryan has done is get the team in a good financial situation, regardless of what the new system looks like. He’s got manageable contracts without too many long-term commitments so I don’t see any need to make a big, unnecessary move just because he can.

I guess the only other possibility would be Linas Kleiza but, for one, I’m not sure that guys on rehab would be amnesty possibilities – again, if that clause exists in a new deal – and I’d rather wait and see what he can bring, anyway.

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I used to think the best invention of the modern era was wheels on the bottom of suitcases.

Now, after several days of Drizzle Driving Down The QEW In The Dark Of Early Morning, I’m going with intermittent windshleld wipers.

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Know what sucks?

Daytime all-sports TV in this country.

Hours of the same show, canned crap. Boring.

So …

Q: Hello Doug. I thoroughly appreciated your rant - headlined even - about the women's national basketball team getting the cable coverage shaft. In fact I got more and more wound up about it as the day went on (eventually with a non-stop loop of the voice of Isaac Hayes' in the background..."but I'm talkin' about Shaft...Well, we can dig it...”

So, let's pretend you're the King of Everything at TSN. Could you describe how you would program The Perfect Day of Sports in a Cable World Ruled by Doug Smith? What would be in your "24 Hours of Must Watch TV"? Thank you.

Lorie P, London

A: Hmm, program director? Good. Unlimited budget, yet realistic plans? Done.

My major beef with the three networks is how awful and canned they are in the morning and most days so that’s where we start:

6 a.m. – 10 a.m. – LIVE. Some news show done in real time with real personalities and up-to-date issues and discussion. Think Mike and Mike only better; I don’t care if it’s simulcast with one of the radio stations the TV networks own but having live people discuss what’s going on, or what went on, has to be better than an endless loop of last night’s highlights, right?

10 a.m. – noon: Well, if I can’t find anything to do live from Europe, I’m drawing a blank here.

Noon – 3 p.m.: Sure, it’s dead time and who wants to spend money on live programming, right? So why not find a great game from the night before and replay it. Have a host to discuss it maybe with someone who was involved? No real audience but it beats darts and poker and pool, no?

3 p.m. – 6 p.m.: Find three one-hour shows that deal with issues, maybe a Canadian version of Pardon the Interruption? If you’ve got to buy programming from somewhere, well, do it.

6 p.m. – 7 p.m.: News show, more pegged to what’s coming up rather than what happened.

7 p.m. – 11 p.m.: Games, lots of games.

Overnight: I guess you have to cycle through the time zones with news shows and maybe replay a game in the middle of the night when I’m asleep.

Sound like a day?

Maybe next week if I remember we can do a perfect non-sports TV day.

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It’s been a very, very, very long time since I found this film while I’ve been flicking around the dial (does anyone say “flicking around the dial” anymore?) but since the guy died on this day back in ’55 why not look at it again for a minute?

Not sure they make actors like James Dean any more.

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Everyone loves an underdog, right?

So why wouldn’t you take Tampa Bay and Arizona in their first round baseball playoff series?

I am. I don’t have my Johnny Mac Diamondbacks jersey, or an old Jays one but I imagine some of you do and it’s as good a reason as any to cheer for Arizona, right?

Oh, and I like the Yankees over Tigers and, of course, the Phillies over St. Louis.

You’re welcome.

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Mail? Last shot, folks.

And be sure to tune in tomorrow, some cool stuff from you and a special added bonus thanks to the grand poobah meeting yesterday with the smart people back at the Home Office.

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Speaking of …

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I know what you won’t be doing tonight at 7.

Watching the Canadian women in the FIBA Americas semifinal down at the Olympic qualifier in Colombia.

No, if you tune into TSN2 at tip-off time, you’ll be able to see two half-hour tapes of the Border Battle 9-Ball Challenge and then some World Series of Poker.

Rivetting. Must-see TV.

Yes, it sucks. And is a shame.

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Historic collapse? Maybe. But certainly not the worst

Best.

Baseball.

Night.

Ever.

I know the allure of the game is often how it unfolds at a less-than-frenetic pace, with long, lazy games and a long, lazy season.

But those 10 or 15 minutes in the wee hours – when Longoria homered and the Red Sox finally choked the life out of themselves – were as outstanding a few hectic minutes as I can remember in decades of following the game.

And I really wish I had listened to Boston talk radio last night – or even this morning – because the historic collapse of the Red Sox would have been fodder for some of the greatest fan angst in the history of sports.

But since I have some history myself with that franchise, I am going to say this:

The slow implosion this year would be third, at best, in the litany of Red Sox Chokes that they’ve subjected themselves to over the years.

First would still have to be 1978, the one-game playoff.

I remember driving back from the University of Welland that day, stopping a saloon somewhere around Port Robinson (I should have gone to Mike Smrek’s house, in hindsight) and watching aghast as Bucky Effing Dent hit that homer, Lou Piniella bluffing a catch in right field that ultimately saved a run and Yaz – YAZ! – popping out harmlessly in foul territory at third to end it.

The ignominy of losing to the Yankees, at home, after that 14-game mid-summer lead was a crushing blow to a young man’s fandom and while My Friend Stella wasn’t around at the time, someone else kept me company right off.

The second? Has to be ’86, right?

I’m on a couch at Super Dad’s house back in the day, all by myself, a glass of nectar at the ready, on the phone with a friend about to live the glory, totally prepared to celebrate like seldom before. After all, it was destiny, right? They had to win after all those years of letting us down.

But, noooooooo.

Mookie. Buckner (who should have been out of the game for defensive purposes) and the rest, as they say, is history.

So last night, while comical for the outcry it will create and historic in its nature, was just fun to watch. It wasn’t the worst by any stretch of my imagination.

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You know me and respecting the game – any game – right?

Well, imagine the angst and utter hatred of that putz Reyes from the New York Mets for what he did yesterday.

And it’s a perfect example of the disrespect I find so galling.

Dude’s in a race with Milwaukee’s Ryan Braun for the NL batting. Reyes gets a hit – a bunt single – in his first at-bat to get his average to .337, ahead of Braun, who’s playing later.

And the guy TAKES HIMSELF OUT OF THE GAME TO PROTECT HIS LEAD!

The bum.

Sure, he wins the title when Braun goes 0-for-4 (he would have needed three hits as it turns out) but if there ever was a case for an asterisk beside an individual title, this one cries out for it.

The right thing to do is play the game, get some hits and see what happens; trust your own abilities rather than take the chicken way out and ask out of the game an inning into it.

I tell you, somewhere Ted Williams’ frozen head is spinning in its cryogenic chamber.

(Williams, of course, played an entire double-header on the final day of the 1941 season, went 6-for-8 and finished hitting .406; he would have hit .400 or better if he’d taken the day off).

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Maybe we’re evolving?

Somehow I believe every newspaper, television and radio station and website missed the glorious 39th anniversary of, well, The Goal.

Sept. 28, 1972.

Now, since we seem to dredge that moment up as the shining example of our spectacular pucks past, the fact the anniversary came and went without special sections or hour-long reminiscences tells me it’s time to maybe move on?

Oh, wait, most fans were wondering and anxiously waiting to see who’d be suspended for some head hit, no wonder they missed it.

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Since I’m bored with the minutia of the NBA labour talks – really, this weekend is big, bigger than big; a must-settle time or, if they don’t, the next one is a must-must-settle time, as my man Smitch would say – here’s a way to make a point about it:

Q: Hey Doug. Don’t you think competition and even quality of teams would improve if teams in the NBA had power to cut players loose with out paying them off? For instance, Marbury case, Curry with his contract, Arenas and the guns, even Ellis a year or two ago.

Long contracts are nice to have, but at the same time its no secret, that players tend to improve their play, or at least try harder on contract years. I understand that its nice to have a job security, and to have long 15 year NBA career, but how many players getting big bucks to sit on the bench. IMAO, this is actually what killing many teams.

Alex V, Toronto

A: What’s killing many teams is bad management, bad scouting, bad negotiating, bad coaching, bad players and bad luck.

Now, while there is no doubt the league is littered with players on bad, long-term contract, I’m not exactly who it is you think is at fault. I cannot imagine you think it’s the players’ fault for taking contract they’re being offered, do you?

The owners are simply trying to save themselves from themselves and the men they hire to put teams together and to take back things they collectively bargained in past years.

Would the league be better with shorter term, not-fully-guaranteed contracts? Probably yes. But unless the owners are prepared to give something rather than take, take, take then I don’t blame the players for staying out.

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We are way down on the mail quotient, folks.

Hate to put the pressure on you but …

It gets lonely not having fun stuff to read.

Click. Please. Send. Please. Thanks

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Okay, I’m sure you’ve all read about the women and the win over Jamaica last night that – at worst – gets them into the final London Olympics qualification thing next summer, right?

Well, if you didn’t, you can go here and then you can go here and get a true first-hand accounting of it from Kim Smith’s little blog.

Day off for the ladies, they get the surprisingly unbeaten Argentines in Friday night’s semifinal with Cuba and Brazil in the other.

All along, I figured this one would come down to Canada-Brazil for the one automatic berth and I’m sticking with that right now.

But regardless of what happens on the weekend, the women will have next summer to look forward to and that’s a rather big accomplishment.

You should pay attention to this team and this program. Really.

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Okay, after the Niagara morning there’s a big high-level confab back at the Mother Ship to see if we can’t find ways to jazz this little piece of the interweb up a bit, or at least put in some changes to make it more fun.

Stay tuned, almost time for some alterations, methinks.

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Believe it or not, there's a little basketball here; among other things

So, today’s the day?

All the reports after the short meeting between the league and union yesterday suggest the owners have made some movement on the hard cap – unsure what kind of pound of flesh they want in return – and the chat they’ll have today could be the make or break moment in these boring, drawn-out negotiations.

I love that we’re at the point where everyone’s trying to guess what’s going on by body language and dissecting snippets of quotes. I can’t imagine how mind-numbingly boring it must be to stand around Manhattan waiting for meetings to wind up so you can really be told nothing of substance.

It’s one of the worst parts of the job and I’m glad I’ve been able to avoid it.

I can recall sitting outside too many meeting rooms waiting for too many hours only to get nothing.

These are the kinds of situations that make the job more drudgery than glamorous. It’s important work and guys like Aschburner and Mahoney and Berger and Beck and Woj have done a tremendous job with it ever since the first of July.

I thank them. You should, too.

But the fact of the matter is, this might be the last day for a while that any of them have to do it.

The sense is that if they can’t get to the heart of an agreement today that some kind of nuclear negotiation winter will set it, with cancellations of the rest of the pre-season coming and serious questions about the chance of the season starting on time.

There comes a moment in every negotiation when it’s time to fish or cut bait. We’re at that moment in the NBA, it would appear. And after all we’ve heard and read and the snippets of information we’ve had to decipher, I don’t think anyone outside of the six or eight guys in the room really knows what today will bring.

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In a shocking development, I somehow missed The Great Ontario Leaders Debate last night.

Can someone catch up me up?

On second thought, I’ve seen and heard enough ads to know that no matter which way I vote, the party that obtains power will make sure the roads are paved with gold, there’s a chicken in every pot, no taxes, the sun will shine every single day for the rest of time and the Evil Doers from the other three or four or six parties will be banished forever to, oh, I dunno, to North Dakota or somewhere like that.

But you people in Ontario better vote or I’ll be dismayed and a Dismayed Doug is not a pretty sight.

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Can’t wait for the China-Tunisia men’s basketball game at the London Olympics next year.

That ought to be a cracker.

Anyway, we’ve got the men’s field set except for the three spots coming out of the final qualifier next July.

It’s United States, Spain, France, Argentina, Brazil, Tunisia, Australia, China and Great Britain.

But the cool thing is we also now know who’s going to be in that final event:

It’s Greece, Lithuania, Macedonia, Russia, Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Venezuela, Angola, Nigeria, Jordan, Korea and New Zealand and if I had to guess the three that’ll earn Olympic berths right now, I’d go all Europe with Greece, Russia and Lithuania.

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Toronto’s the worst sports city in the world, eh?

Well, if no less a global authority than ESPN says it, it must be true, right?

Anyway, Cathal’s got a nice little piece here – wonder if he consulted the Magic 8-ball for assistance? – that you should take a look at.

Me?

I’ve been in enough major American cities to know that if we’re bad, we’ve certainly got company, regardless of the criteria you use.

No, the streets haven’t been closed very often for championships parades but I’m guessing none of the Peachtrees or Peach Trees in Atlanta have bleachers up for celebrations.

And I don’t recall of late too many titles in, say, Milwaukee.

But even if you use other criteria – like fan support, quality of the facilities, concentration of media attention on pro sports – Toronto’s not that bad off, at all.

The thing that makes me laugh about these polls and lists and such is the angst and anger they cause in some circles. EPSN doesn’t think Toronto’s very good? Who gives a rat’s bum? They do those things to generate (a) conversation and (b) awareness of themselves. And it always works; shame on us.

Oh, and I will give you these two numbers:

22,820

18,772

Those were the two crowds in Tampa Bay for the final series of the major league season, against the Yankees as the Rays tried to complete one of the greatest late-season comebacks in baseball history.

22,820 and 18,722. They ought to move that franchise today.

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Man, I love my Irregulars!

I wish for chocolate beer like some people can’t wait for bacon jam and I’m told it does exist.

I (heart) you.

Well, most of you.

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Hey!!!!!!

Raptors news.

Well, not really news, but a wee bit of an update.

Talking to a couple of guys yesterday – yes, I still keep my hand in every now and then just to make sure nothing major is going on – and a couple of things came up.

There’s no movement on a front office addition – whatever the new job will entail – because there’s still some due diligence being done, calls being made, conversations being had. No timetable – there hasn’t been one since the process started way back last April or so – and there is no “front-runner” for the job.

Oh, and they might not have anything much to do but the coaches are starting to drift back into town and should all be around the first of next week.

They’ll meet to come up with practice plans and schedules, do some video work to scout their own guys and other NBAers and, hopefully, provide all kinds of news and insights to bored ex-baseball grunts.

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This was pretty disheartening news last night:

Arvydas Sabonis had a heart attack and while details were sketchy at first, late reports are he’s out of danger and should be fine.

As Irregulars know, he’s one of the guys I truly wish I’d seen play in his prime; and I wish the people in North America had been given the chance, too, because everything I hear about him is amazing.

Here’s a bit of a look:

Now, there are others, too.

I wish I’d seen Oscar Schmidt more than I did, the great Brazilian was one of the most prolific scorers in the history of the game and I only got to see him a couple of times at the tail end of his career.

Want four more and hopefully get some details from Irregulars?

Dejan Bodiroga, who I did see quite a bit of and who would have been an excellent NBA guard.

Sergie Belov, who I vaguely recall from the 1972 Munich Olympic final.

Theo Papaloukas, one of those guys from Greece who just know how to play.

And Dino Meneghin, Mr. Basketball in Italy.

Anyone got anything on them?

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May as well get started on the usual schedule, no?

Have an afternoon TOD game to sit and watch somewhere, may as well have some mail to answer while I do it, right?

Click. Tell me things. Entertain me.

Thanks.

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Blown chance in Brooklyn and more TV memories than ever

Remember back in the day when fans – not me, but others, I’m told -- would get up in the morning, or stay up at night to see or hear the hockey scores because they wanted to know who won the games?

Now it seems almost every day no one cares about the results because they’re inundated by stories about slurs, head hits, concussions, illegal checks and any manner of stuff quite disassociated from winners and losers.

It won’t make all that much difference where we live because the game is in the blood for those of a certain age it seems but for young fans just starting to grow sports allegiances, and in other parts of North America, isn’t this starting to even more marginalize the game?

No one talks about players very much. It’s who said what to whom on the ice, who got hit in the head, who got hit from behind into the boards, who’ll get suspended today and for how long.

Personally, it’s not a big deal to me, I consider myself somewhat of an anti-pucks guy and have been for years, mainly because I can’t stand the scripted fights.

But if there was a scintilla of interest, it’s waning even more because very little of what I read has to do with the actual playing of the game.

It’s the only sport in the world, it seems, with so many cloudy issues taking away from what it really is and I know there is a great big land to the south of us that they are still – unsuccessfully – trying to turn on to the game that will shrug its collective shoulders at the omnipresent stories of “other” things.

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Big fumble in Brooklyn, methinks, where that Jay Z guy (I hear he’s a crooner/businessman or something) announced yesterday that the Nets will be, um, the Nets when they move from Newark in a year or so.

Boring.

Double boring.

Didn’t they miss a grand opportunity to “re-brand” the franchise with a new name, new logo, new stuffed animal, new group of June Taylor Dancers to somehow reflect either the times or their new home?

Not suggesting they should have gone with Dodgers or anything but surely there was some nickname more exciting than Nets.

But speaking off, this Malcolm Gladwell piece (and he’s a must-read in every New Yorker) very clearly lays out what’s going on with the Nets, their ownership and why they really are where they are.

Paints NBA ownership, at least in New Jersey/Brooklyn, in a rather unflattering light if you have to listen to them squawk about finances and how much they’re struggling.

I’d presume the players association is making sure all the right people read that piece.

Fans should, too.

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Oh, man, how cool is this leftover?

Q: Doug, if the lockout isn't settled, and the entire season is wiped out, how will they determine draft order? (Haven't seen it in a while, so I thought I'd take care of it!)

Now, on to a question: How a list of top five favourite TV commercials? I know that most of them are mind-numbing, but once in a while, so of them are pretty good (until they show them 2000/week!)

Take care!

Tim H, Windsor

A: You mean people still watch commercials? Thought everyone clicked over to some other show when they came on?

Anyway, here’s the thing:

I am of a certain vintage and would like to keep this little space more old than new, more nostalgic than cutting edge.

So …

When you said commercials, these immediately flashed to mind:

Singalong?

Who doesn’t like a slinky?

Sappy?

Oh, yeah, I’d love to teach the world to sing. Off key.

Cute?

I could never get Super Brother to try the liver. Guess he was smarter than Mikey.

Cartoon?

Tell me you didn’t try this with a sibling or a neighbourhood kid back in the day?

An everyday product romanticized.

Oh, that zany Mr. Whipple. Okay, that’s a little creepy in some ways.

Now, digest those but don’t forget:

I’ve fallen and I can’t get up.

Where’s the beef?

Tastes great! Less filling!

Popeil’s pocket fisherman

Two all beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles, onions on a sesame seed bun!

There, that should get Irregulars through the day.

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Tampa Bay beats the Yankees, the Red Sox cough one up to the Orioles and it’s a dead heat for the AL wild card with two days left in the season?

We, my friends, are witnessing from afar one of the all-time greatest collapses in sports history – and this is far more about Boston choking than the Rays playing out of their heads – and I would assume everyone figures it’ll be complete and the Sox will lose one of their last two games and finish third in the division.

Worst part about it? In last night’s game, Jacoby Ellsbury, who is by far the best Boston player and a legit MVP candidate in many minds, almost makes a miraculous play at the wall in centre but can’t hang on to the ball for what turned into a three-run inside-the-park home run.

That kinda bites; it’d have been far more appropriate if one of the arsonists on the pitching staff had given up six or seven rockets in a row; Ellsbury deserves better.

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So the craft loses another giant as my friend S. Brunt over at The Paper That Doesn’t Seem To Care Much About Sports is taking leave to go to Sportsnet.

He’s one of the greats in our industry and it just got a bit lonelier over here in the newspaper/interwebs side of things.

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Small group meetings betwixt owners and union today in New York evokes more yawns.

But we are maybe two, two and a half weeks away from the date they’d have to considered canceling the start of the regular season so there is now has to be some sense of urgency.

The interesting thing to me is there seems to be a widespread suggestion there is a divide among the owners, with some insisting on sacrificing a season or part of one if they have to to get a hard cap, another group that might be amenable to a more flexible system.

Seeing how it’s usually the players who have divides or rifts – guys who need/want/can’t go without their money against those who’ll hold firm we do seem to be in uncharted waters.

But, again, wake me when there’s real news.

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They have bacon jam????

Can’t wait for the chocolate beer or sour cream and onion ice cream.

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A boring $10 million day and a TV theme question

You want to talk about sports events that have fallen off the radar?

How about the FedEx Cup?

It ended yesterday, the Haas kid won the last tournament – at least until the next tournament -- to win $10 million and, I swear, not too many people care.

It could be that we’re inured to the obscene amounts of money these golfers play for – isn’t $10 million a tad ghastly yet we don’t even seem all that impressed as a whole? – but it’s got to be more, right?

Of all the convoluted things out there, the PGA Tour’s “playoffs” might be the most ridiculous to follow and something that seems crammed down our throats by Tour officials and their complicit television “partners” to the point where it simply turns a lot of people off.

As I understand it, Haas had to win because if he’d finished second then some guy who was about tied for 20th in the final event the last time the guys I were with checked the leaderboard would have won the $10 million prize.

Get it?

No, neither do I, really.

I kind of long for the day when the golf season just sort of petered out in the late summer and early fall, they played the four majors, a couple of other significant events like the Players and the Memorial and then finished it up with one, 30-man Tour Championship that was easy to follow.

I don’t need four weeks of “playoffs” and I don’t need an entire summer of being hammered over the head with confusing FedEx Cup standings and I certainly don’t need to think of some guy finishing 20th and then celebrating ‘cause he’s won $10 million.

Maybe I’m just old, or maybe it’s the math component that I can’t quite figure out, but this whole month of tournaments and cuts and scoring by points rather that strokes leaves me entirely disinterested.

And don’t even get me started on The Chase or whatever it is the pistonheads follow in the car racing world.

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So we’re sitting around Sunday evening reliving the various bogeys (me) and birdies (the good golfers) after bringing Bridgewater to its knees and one of the TVs is showing the Steelers game.

Close up on the sidelines – and isn’t that riveting TV all the time? – and I can’t help but notice that the guy from House coaches Pittsburgh.

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Sure, you can see what I wrote about the women’s national team down in Colombia simply by clicking here but if you want more interesting stuff that I didn’t think to ask about Kim Smith’s got in her blog that you can see here.

I guess now I need to ask Allison each day whether any player was defecated on by an animal to make sure I’ve got all the bases covered for the story.

Anyway, the women are pretty much where they figured to be – 1-1 after whacking Mexico and losing to Brazil – and right on track to make it to the semifinals and early at least a berth in a final qualification event next summer.

The interesting to watch is what’s going on in the other pool that comprises Cuba, Chile, Puerto Rico, Colombia and Argentina.

The smart money would say Cuba rolls to first place and that will set up a semifinal against Canada for the right to likely face Brazil for the lone guaranteed spot at the 2012 Olympics on the line.

Canada-Cuba always seem to have dramatic, close games with a lot at stake.

I remember one back at McMaster, had to be the qualification tournament for the 2000 Sydney Games maybe, and it was one of the coolest moments in women’s basketball that I can remember.

The gym was packed with loud, screaming fans, Canada got way down, I think, and stormed back to win.

Showed me that, yes, there is an audience for the women’s game and I’m pretty sure if I took a poll of the younger players on this team from the southern Ontario area, some of them might have even been at that one.

And since Canada’s women’s program has been more successful than the men’s in the last decade – twice they’ve to the worlds – and historically – Canada was ranked in the top five in the world in the mid- to late-80s – it’s something we should probably pay more attention to.

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Holy smokes!

This is an historic day, indeed.

Two TV show debuts happened on this date way back in the day and they’ve spawned one of the hot debates of this, or any, time.

Is this a better theme song?

Or is this?

And, tell me the truth, almost every one of you of a certain age know every word of each of them and are now singing, right?

Me?

I’m kind of torn but will take Gilligan over Jethro all the time.

Now, the Ellie Mae/Ginger/Maryanne conundrum exists, of course.

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Okay, how crazy was that finish to the Bills-Pats game on Sunday?

Bills have the ball on the one with about 75 seconds left, they don’t want to score to quickly because they’re afraid of Tom Brady, as well they should have been, although he probably would have thrown a pick, the way his day was going.

Anyway, it turns into a comedy of errors and intentional failures as Ryan Fitzpatrick takes a knee while the New England defensive line lies to down let him score. There are timeouts and intentional penalties to stop the clock, Fitzpatrick ends up losing about eight yards on the “drive” and then the kicker comes out to win the game with a chip-shot field goal.

Now, I was in an establishment in Niagara Falls full of rather fervent Bills fans who feared – even if they didn’t say it out loud – that the kick would either be blocked or missed. And if had been, it would have been the greatest finish to a Bills-Pats game ever.

But you want to talk about rewarding failure? Lindell makes it, everyone’s happy where I was and they’re starting to think of playoff matchups already.

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The end of the weekend mail

Good job on short notice, folks.

And there are more than few “what if” questions and list possibilities to get us through another basketball-free week.

Won’t that be fun?

Okay, am off to make a gaggle of birdies and doubles on a lovely day.

And then to rip Magic 8-ball, the dope.

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Q: Hi Doug. Interested in your thoughts on the current bargaining positions of both the Union and the owners.

It seems to me that the NBA owners are essentially going for a "knockout" win when perhaps a winner by unanimous decision would be more appropriate.

The players seem willing to make quite a few concessions but the Owners seeking that the player's share of Basketball Related Income falls to the mid 40%range and a hard cap seems to be unfair, even to someone like me who tends to side with the owners.

Your thought?

Mike D, Cambridge

A: There’s no question the owners – well, some of them at least – are looking for fundamental, and huge, change to the current system with a hard cap, few if any exceptions and no fully guaranteed contracts.

Personally, I think they’re asking for far too much, probably emboldened by the fact every time they negotiate, they pretty much get what they want. They’ve managed to cap the highest earners while eroding the middle class and have relative control over young players for up to five years.

The players give and give and give every time they reach a new deal, I’m not surprised there are some owners trying to hit a home run. I don’t think they will but I bet they get close to what they want.

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Q: Hi Doug: Could you give us a complete (or close to complete) list of what is included in Basketball Related Income? Do the players get a share of, say, concessions? Parking? Jersey sales?

Thanks! Take care!

Tim H, Windsor

A: It runs the gamut, actually.

BRI is derived from ticket sales, national television contracts, parking, concessions (so your $14 beer at the ACC helps pay LeBron’s salary), merchandise, some stadium advertising, a portion of stadium naming-fee revenues.

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Q: Hey Doug. When do Valanciunas and Weems start playing ball? I know that they aren't on the same team but I assume they will be playing against each other at some point. Do you know when their season starts?

Also, I have a question about next year's draft. No I don't want to know how the process will go about. I wonder, if, heaven forbid, they don't have a deal in place by next June, can they even have one?

Thanks as always. Feel free to talk more basketball than baseball any day :)

Brett F, Lethbridge

A: The training camps are underway over there now and the season starts the first week of October.

And if there’s no agreement by next June, there won’t be a league again so it’s not something anyone’s considering.

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Q: Hi Doug. With your behind the scenes access, what kind of stuff are you able to get your hands on? Have you assembled a collection of memorabilia for Super Son? (i.e. Jose's socks from the game when he missed the free throw and ended the streak, etc.)

Snas H, Milton

A: Nah, I don’t do memorabilia and it would be unprofessional to use my position to try and get anything of value. In fact, even asking for something like an autograph could be grounds to revocation of a working credential.

There is one thing I do keep, though, for me, mostly. I have a lot of credentials stashed somewhere from various major events I’ve covered – Olympics, World Series, world championships – and they’ll adorn the bar I eventually construct at Casa Doug.

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Q: Hey Doug. You often remind us of your disdain for the world of pucks. You've said more than several times that if there was a hockey game in your backyard, you'd go sit on the front porch with earplugs. But alas!

While at the University of Western Ontario rec center, I picked up a rather old pucks magazine to browse through during my cardio. It was something along the lines of Post Foods Present 'Be a Player' Hockey magazine - the 1995 Playoff Edition!

I was astonished to see that this gaudy piece of hockey history had survived since publication, and that former greats such as Wendel Clark had lent their names and likeness to faux interviews spreading the goodness which is Cheez Whiz Awareness.

 

And then this bombshell:

'Hockey's Mad Masks' by Doug Smith, a sports writer for the Canadian Press (or something to that effect). A two page spread. About Hockey Masks. HOCKEY.

Do you care to elaborate on this experience/explain yourself? Are you truly a reformed Pucks aficionado, or were you just short on the hydro bill in your early years and needed to accept a few outlandish assignments (PUCKS?!)?

Hopefully I gave you something to run with here!

Cheers!

Andrew P, Toronto

A: Oh oh. I’ve been found out! Yes, back in the day I’d write almost anything to supplement a meager income and while I don’t remember that specific one – perhaps because I blocked the whole pucks thing out of my mind – if you say you saw it, I’ll take you at your word.

All I can ask is forgiveness, I was young and foolish and probably needed some extra cash for something or other.

Now, if you want to send me that publication, I can be sure to shred it so there is no longer any evidence.

But, I promise it was the best “Hockey’s Mad Masks” story you’ve ever read.

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Q: I see the new Sportsnet magazine is starting up, which I am looking forward to as I enjoy a good magazine read but to start one up in this day and age someone has cajones' over there to give it the go-ahead.

My question is this, have you been approached to submit any articles? And if so does your contract with Mother Star preclude it??

Doug B, Toronto

A: It’s a huge gamble and I wish them well, we need quality long-form sportswriting in this country, although I’m not sure a magazine will survive.

But, no, I haven’t been approached, I know they’re using a lot of crossover talent (from TV and radio) and do have a small staff in place already.

The rules at our place is we’re free to do freelance work if approached. But, if it’s a story on a subject our paper wants, we have to do it for them. For instance, I’ve done a few magazine articles on players or Raptors issues and before each one, I’ll let the bosses have first crack at it; generally it’s not “news” or anything I haven’t written before so they don’t really care.

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Q: Hello Doug, just wondering what you think of second base for the Blue Jays?

Kelly Johnson is good but doesn't impress me as above avg. Some think that Hobbs should not move to second because he just learned third. I say hogwash, he learned third in a couple of months and has already played second. He certainly seems to have the speed to be a good second baseman.

I think you can then move Escobar to third. He looks to have a good arm and is a bit taller which I think can help on the hard hit balls.

One thing AA has said is that when Hech reaches the majors it will be as a shortstop. Farrell has said that the lineup can afford to have a weak spot in the line up, being Hech.

So what is your thought, Hobbs to second or not to second?

Robert M, Charlottetown

A: My thoughts? He’s learning to play third base and is a work in progress, I think they need to put him there, leave him there and let him learn the position.

No sense disrupting one guy and having to find another; why not just look for a second baseman? And I don’t know that Johnson’s all that bad, he could very well stick.

But, I did see a note from Griff this week that said Farrell didn’t entirely dismiss a possible Hobbs move but it’s not the first choice, I don’t imagine.

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Q: Hey Dougie. My beloved Winnipeg Jets have resumed playing after a 15 year hiatus. I don't think you've mentioned anything about it. What's up with that? I know you're not a fun of the pucks, but you can't ignore one of the biggest hockey stories of the year.

Dan C, Winnipeg

A: Um, good for them?

Welcome back?

Hope they sell every seat?

But, yes, I can quite easily ignore “one of the biggest hockey stories of the year” and have.

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Q: Hi Doug. My memory is getting hazy, but I seem to recall that Rick Carlisle was fired after the 2002-03 season. The same off-season I believe the KO Kid was hired. I don't recall Carlisle's name figuring prominently in discussions for the Raps job. Correct me if my memory fails. Also please comment as to why he wouldn't have been pursued and how the Raptors trajectory may have changed had they hired Carlisle. Cheers.

Sam C, Toronto

A: Presume the trajectory would have been quite different, especially if the Raptors had had a guy like Nowitzki, who helped Rick become a championship coach.

Not sure why his name wasn’t bandied about, I do know he took some time off to relax and might not have been actively looking immediately.

But while we’re at it, why don’t we wonder what would have happened had Toronto been able to get Phil Jackson or Doc Rivers when they were available.

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The start of the weekend mail

You fine folks have let me down a bit.

There’s these and maybe one or two leftover in the file (any maybe one that’s a list) and I’m not sure what’s going to be up for tomorrow.

So, really, last chance. Click here.

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Q: Since you talked in your blog today (Thursday) about respecting the game (and have mentioned the concept quite a few other times), can you give us a list (you decide how many) of instances where the game (any sport) was very disrespected? I'm sure you've had the unfortunate 'opportunity' in your profession to see a few.

Take care!

Tim H, Windsor

A: It’s often not an overt action that rankles me. It’s more general actions, like taking games off when you could play, loafing through long portions of games or plays, being an ungracious winner or loser. It’s teams running up the score, or not playing their best players when the other team has something to play for.

There is an unwritten code that should be followed and when it isn’t – in any sport – that kind of bugs me.

Of course, had I been at the game where Ricky Davis intentionally miss a shot on his own basket so he could get a rebound and a triple double, I may have stormed the court. That’s by far the most egregious act I can think of in my time.

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Q: Oh Mighty ex Rocky coach...Are any of the HOTHC playing/practicing as a group somewhere? I read that The Pacers are doing it.

Who would you take in an arm wrestling contest? ...David or Billy? Where would Adam Silver rank?

Okay today's music question, for all you teenagers out there...WHY DO FOOLS FALL IN LOVE?

Bob E, Kanata

A: No, there’s been nothing about a group of the HOTH getting together but I guess that’s not surprising since Jose’s in Spain, Andrea in Italy, Leandro in Brazil, Sonny in Lithuania and Jonas not even able to sign here. Toss in the fact Reggie Evans, Julian Wright and Joey Dorsey are free agents and that Amir Johnson is rehabbing after ankle surgery and they probably couldn’t get a scrimmage together if they wanted.

And while David’s stocky, he’s also 69 so I’ve got Billy; Adam would be a distant third, wiry but no mass behind him.

And if you find out why fools fall in love, find out why birds sing so gay, would you?

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Q: Long time listener, first time caller.

Quick question for this weekends multi-sampler platter.

I typically follow the blog for its basketball offerings on the HOTH, however during the recent pause in activities I have enjoyed the additions into other areas as well. This leads me to a TOD question, since Hobbs’ season is over, did he complete enough games to make him ineligible for ROY next year? I know you had pointed out a month ago that he would just miss out on the possibility if he completed the year, any idea if he crossed the barrier?

Kyle G, Reykjavik

A: He did, actually. The threshold that was the most significant was 130 at-bats and he got to 132 the night before his season end so no rookie of the year possibilities for him in 2012.

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Q: Hey Doug, thanks for the recommendation on "The Wire" great show.

I was wondering if you read anything into the TOD being 10-0 at home in extra innings? Certainly seems promising as to how they deal with pressure, or that when they are really focused they can be really good.

Is that a fair assessment or will everything even out and they will lose the next 10 extra innings games?

Robert M, Charlottetown

A: Well, it’s 11 now after Wednesday, first time in baseball history a team’s done that.

Now, as a wise person once said, there’s always a “regression to the mean” so they may not lose 11 straight but I would imagine they’ll eventually drop a few.

And there really is no explanation for it other than good fortune and not giving up on games. It’s not as if they have the best bullpen in the game that keeps them alive until the offence can scratch out a run and while they do have some clutch hitters like Bautista, it’s not a lineup littered with grizzled old veterans who know how to manufacture extra-inning runs.

I guess fans should just enjoy the ride while it lasts.

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Q: Whaddup DS. If you have done this list, forgive me. I always remember Don Baylor always getting hit by pitches in baseball. Who are your top 5 NBA'ers (past and present) who always seem to get that offensive foul call and know how to get that call almost every time.

Simone E, Toronto

A: Well, we’re walking a fine line on that, aren’t we?

Between guys who flop and guys who know how to get in position to draw an offensive foul because they’re quick and can anticipate a play.

If you’re looking for current guys who can draw a charge here are five names of pretty good ones: JJ Barea of Dallas, Manu Ginobili of San Antonio, Derek Fisher of the Lakers always seems to be among the league leaders, Andrew Bogut, when he’s healthy, might be the best big man at it, and Phoenix’s Grant Hill actually led the league last season.

All time?

Really hard to come up with a list and I can’t find the statistical data at the moment to tell you but the two best Raptors I ever saw were Morris Peterson and Oak.

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Q: Hey Doug! So, I've nothing deep nor probing... yet!(Also, this feels too early for questions; I really work much better under the pressure of your Last Desperate Call for Scintillating Reading Material that comes on Saturday.) It's not deep; but it is a nitpicky, finicky sort of question that's taken root in my brain. In fact, I sat bolt upright at 3AM this morning and it was even my first thought: (And my second thought had to do with cursing you two: @doug because he brought it up in the first place and you because you didn't weigh in on what was correct!) So, Doug - please help me sleep tonight - what, oh what, is the plural of Runs Batted In? As Buck Martinez says: 116 RBI or as @doug says it should be: 116 RBI's? With grateful, sleepy thanks

Lorie P, London

A: Ah, here we go. An age-old debate right up there with “Miami Heat is” or “Miami Heat are” and stuff like that.

Now, normally, I’m all for correct grammar and punctuation and the like but in this case …

Obviously, the plural of a run batted in is two runs batted in so, technically, I guess the correct spoken phrase would be 116 RBI.

But for the ease of being understood, I always say “116 RBIs” or whatever the number is and think everyone else should do it, too.

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Q: Hi Doug: Since we are all over the place, sportwise, until the NBA billionaires and millionaries decide end their haggling, a baseball related question for you. Is it some unwritten rule that when a pitcher (unintentionally) beans a hitter and that hitter is really hurt, that said pitcher does not go over to the hitter - who may be laying on the ground in obvious pain - and show some concern? It just seems so unsportsmanlike, yet it is something I see from time to time. Thank you.

Colin W, Toronto

A: Nah, there really is no unwritten rule, even on those unintentional plunks that leave guys writhing on the ground in pain. I imagine most pitchers just want a guy to be tended to by his own while they collect their thoughts. What you’ll see sometimes – not often but every now and then – is a little nod from one guy to the other as the hitter goes down to first to acknowledge the accidental nature of the HPB.

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Women's hoops gets the shaft and TV sitcom memories

So the word everywhere you look since late Thursday afternoon is that we’ll get word sometime today of the postponement of the opening of NBA training camps and the cancellation of a week or so of exhibition games.

Big whoop.

Not entirely unexpected at all, is it? We always knew the pressure point to get a deal done was mid- to late-September and we’re at it now.

In one story I read – think it was at My Man Sheridan’s site – Billy Hunter called the move to postpone camps and cancel games “playing semantics” by the league and he’s probably right.

Missing a week of camp is entirely ho-hum, even whacking a few pre-season games isn’t going to hurt too many people, although I do feel badly for the concession workers and arena staffs who’ll miss a night’s work, and therefore pay.

(As an aside, it might deny me a trip the garden spot that is Grand Rapids, Mich., but I guess we all have to sacrifice).

But the larger issue is, of course, the start of the regular season and we’re not near the postponement of that, won’t be for at least a couple of weeks, maybe three.

I do think it’s entirely predictable that a late Friday announcement will come from the league. If there’s one thing they teach you at “breaking bad news school” it’s that an announcement near the end of the work week, or better yet on a Saturday – is the way to go.

Trouble is, if it gets leak a day or so early, it gives all kinds of people time to react and makes it even worse when the official proclamation comes.

I wonder why people in positions of power don’t wait until, say, Monday. It may make some people squirm knowing the thing they said was going to happen won’t for a couple of days.

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I think a walk-off homer in the final home game of a major league season is a particularly nice way to end things for TOD, no?

And I can’t remember a year when even friends who are casual seamheads were more optimistic going into the winter.

Now it’s up to Alex Anthopoulos to work some off-season magic because a lot of people who normally wouldn’t be are watching closely.

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It’s all well and good that TSN2 has some kind of interest in the women’s Olympic qualifier that starts Saturday – although I’m sure it’s just a piggyback on the contract they have to do the men’s games – but what they’re doing is a bit shameful.

None of the first round games – Saturday, Sunday, Monday, Wednesday – are being shown live, which is tough in the first place.

But then you go to the interwebs to find out what hockey extravaganza might be causing them to ignore a live broadcast (maybe a monkey picking games, highlights of the 1972 Summit Series, a fantasy draft) and …

Well, Saturday it’s two hours of the Canadian Karting Championships and since the first hour is Day 1 and the second hour is Day 2, I’m guessing it’s not live.

Sunday? F1 Singapore Grand Prix at 5:45 p.m. and unless they’re racing early Monday morning over there, it’s taped.

Monday? Game’s at 3:30 p.m., they have taped rugby between Wales and Namibia until 4 p.m. and them something called Numbers Never Lie.

Wednesday: An ages-old ESPN 30 at 30 documentary.

There you go, your cable money, which TSN gets a bit of, goes to waste.

Shameful.

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Speaking of the TOD, let’s get to one from the mail.

And if you good folks want a couple of days of weekend mail, you better get those fingers working because we’re way down on the question count.

Do it here, please.

Q: Doug, what's the talk around the ballyard over whether Mike McCoy has earned next year's 25th spot or whether Johnny Mac still holds the position for next year? I'm a big Johnny Mac fan, but McCoy's opening my eyes with his ability to hold down SS in the short term.

Gary M, Brampton

A: There’s been noting said about next year, although John Farrell was quite complimentary – unsolicited, too – about McCoy’s play one day when I was there this week.

As you know, there seemed to have been a wink-and-nod thing with McDonald the day of his trade and I will say this without doubt, Alex Anthopoulos is a man of his word and if there was any solid indication that something was up next year with McDonald, he will stick by it.

On the other hand, if there hasn’t been, the fact that McCoy can play either side of the middle infield as well as centre field in a pinch makes him quite valuable as a utility guy.

It’ll be interesting to see how that plays out but, right now, my gut says McDonald is back.

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Finish with a list?

Sure, why not.

Remember the other day when we did the missed old TV shows and concentrated on dramas or cop shows or whatever?

Well, how about …

Five Sitcoms I Wish Never Went Off The Air.

And I’m leaving Seinfeld off the list because you know how I feel about that; at least you can still see it about 16 hours a day, these ones can’t be found.

Sports Night

Anyone remember it?

Fictional TV sports news show, Felicity Huffman (never a bad thing) and Benson (get that?)

Barney Miller

Classic, no? Abe Vigoda as the old crotchety guy I hope I become, Jack Soo being, um, detached and disinterested and Steve Landesberg, who I always found hilarious.

Murphy Brown

Not sure what you can say about this one. Got Dan Quayle in hot water and that’s never a bad thing and, well, the list of guest appearances is legendary.

Remember when Kramer went to California and showed up as Murphy’s secretary in one of the great cross-over bits of all time?

And how can you top this?

Hogan’s Heroes

Oh, that zany Klink and Schultz.

WKRP in Cincinnati

Greatest.

Sitcom.

Line.

Ever.

WKRP Turkey Drop from Mitch Cohen on Vimeo.

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Baseball, bands and a lot of other fun stuff

Basketball stuff?

Not so much but I figure after Billy and David meet today we might have something to chat about tomorrow.

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Hey, looks like we might have some pennant races – well, wild card races and I guess that’s the same – and that has to make the final few days of the baseball season a little worthwhile.

You’ve got the Rays and Angels just two and a half back of the Red Sox and I can just imagine the angst around Boston these days.

There is nothing – nothing – like the emotion of Red Sox fans, who have been bitterly disappointed before and they’ll be walking the banks of the Charles like zombies if this team blows this one.

Tee-hee.

Having at one time been one of them – I still remember George Scott striking out nearly every at-bat one September and could not look the man in the eye if I saw him today – I can only assure you there will be gnashing of teeth like you never saw.

And the fact they play the Yankees this weekend?

Even better.

Here’s the thing, though.

What do the Yankees do? Rest guys? Alter the rotation so they’re ready for the playoffs next weekend?

New York finishes, if I’m not mistaken, with Boston and then Tampa Bay and can have a huge impact on what happens in that race.

If I’m them, and I respect the game, I have to use all my regulars on their regular days. That means if guys like Jeter and Rodriguez and Cano and Granderson would normally only have one day off each in a six-day span, that’s what they have to get between now and next Wednesday when the season’s over.

The pitching rotation has to remain the same – although the back end of the Yankee staff is in such shambles that probably doesn’t matter – and Girardi has to use his bullpen like he’d use it in June or July or August.

I think it was Cito Gaston one time who told us – with the Jays out of a race but playing contenders – that the thing to do to treat the game and the race and your opponent with respect is to use your regular lineup in games against teams with something to play for and experiment with kids in games that really don’t matter.

It’s why John Farrell has to keep running out Bautista and Lind, Encarnacion and Thames and the usual suspects today and through the weekend in Tampa and let kids like Loewen and Cooper and whoever get at-bats and playing time next week in Chicago.

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Action: REM calls it quits.

Reaction: Any band that can write lyrics for a single song that includes references to Andy Kaufmann, Freddy Blassie, Mott The Hoople and Elvis is all right with me.

Story?

And it involves REM.

One of the cooler things we can sometimes do in our interminable, daily wait on the concourse of the Air Canada Centre while practice drones on is catch a sound check or a warm up for whatever band is playing that night.

Doesn’t happen very often – usually we just stand in the corridor looking over the seating arrangements for that night – but I do remember catching an REM sound check with the band one day that was outstanding.

Second best, or probably tied for first?

Andrea Bocelli, who was doing music for some figure skating show or something.

.

Action: Leaves cut 23 players.

Reaction: How utterly stupid is pucks training camp.

Really.

Why bring ‘em in. Wastes their time, your time, everyone’s time. You want to have a look at them? Run some other camp for minor league lifers or juniors or whatever.

You can’t tell me – well, you can tell me, but I won’t believe it – that anyone gained anything from a camp that began with 70-something players and then was whittle down by 23 inside of a week.

It’s why I think training camps are generally a waste; I know you need bodies but that’s crazily excessive. If the HOTH bring in 18 or 19, that’s about three too many; 70 strikes me as silly.

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Oh yeah, one other Celeb Shows At The ACC thing:

Never are we bothered, really, by them setting up or getting ready for one show.

And there’ve been lots.

The most inconvenient thing we’ve had to do came one morning when we showed up about 11 for practice and had to pass through a metal detector at the security desk.

Now, this was at least eight hours before the show and it struck us as rather odd that the promoters would insist on this intrusion.

After all, we figured if they were doing that, there’d be Grunt Sniffing Dogs all over the place and we’d never be able to stow away or stash any explosives or anything untoward.

The artist:

Barbra Streisand.

Diva.

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Man, sucks about Brett Lawrie, aka Hobbs, doesn’t it?

Busts up a finger taking early ground balls and is done for the season?

Not sure there’s been an athlete to take Toronto fans by storm like he did since that Carter fellow a decade ago.

Hobbs plays hard, he plays well, he’s tough and treats the game the same every day.

(Griff’s notebook here gives all the statistical data you need).

It’s really too bad the fans didn’t have a chance to really say goodbye. I presume he’ll duck his head out of the dugout after tonight’s game and give a little wave – I presume the 12,000 or so fans who’ll be there will demand it – but still seems like a disappointing send off.

This has been a pretty crazy summer for me in a lot of ways; the highlight was the grand slam he hit that night.

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Mail?

You folks didn’t do too well yesterday, I expect better today.

Here. Thanks.

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