Ready for some late-night greatness?

Great.

Guess we’re all going to have to change the sleeping patterns if the only good games in the NBA playoffs are going to be the last ones of the night.

For a fella who generally ends the evenings prone on a couch with heavy eyes and drifting off, that’s going to be a wee bit of a challenge.

So how’s this for here for now? We do some stuff that happened, look at some stuff that might happen and touch on a few other things? Works for me right now.

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I’m not sure a guy with three NBA titles to his credit and one Finals MVP to his name can be in the least bit under-rated but, my goodness, I don’t know that we give Tony Parker his full due.

Watching him yesterday was watching one of the true greats, he did what he wanted when he wanted where he wanted.

His ability to get to the rim, contort himself and finish, might be the best in the game, he is not an overly large man by any stretch of the imagination yet he can get in there, twist and turn and take the hit and score.

It is delightful to watch, we in the East don’t see him nearly enough to fully appreciate his immense skills and if he’s playing like that? The Spurs are even more heavily-favoured to win a fifth championship – 13 years after they won their first – and if that happens, we have to start talking about them as one of the greatest organizations and dynasties of all time in any sport.

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The NFL draft, which should have been hosted by Jerry Lewis, took about eleventy days to finish and was broadcast from start to finish; the CFL draft is in the middle of a weekday afternoon.

I kind of like the Canadian way, to tell you the truth.

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Big game for TOD down at the ballyard tonight, and it’s going to require some deft work with the clicker to stay on top of Rangers-Jays as well as Knicks-Heat, Magic-Pacers and Mavs-Thunder.

That’s because it’s Yu Darvish for Texas and as much as anything, the curiosity comes from wanting too just how good he is.

We all know the story: Sublimely gifted Japanese player goes through convoluted posting process on way to majors, Blue Jays allegedly have some interest in a winter where they might have needed to make a big splash but they lose out because they either weren’t willing to spend what it took to get him or to spend what it was going to take to sign him on top of that.

Maybe Alex and the boys were right; maybe they were wrong. It’s way too early to tell.

The one thing that intrigues me a lot about Darvish, though, is that we want to see how good a pitcher he is, pure and simple.

Think back to the other few big pitching phenoms of the last couple of decades, the guys who really created the buzz:

Diaskuke Matsusaka: Gyro-ball.

Fernando Valezuela: Eye-roll wind-up.

Mark Fydrich: Talking to himself behind the mound.

All had schticks as wells an abundance of talent.

Darvish? He’s just good, or at least we think he could be good, and the other huge draw of it is he might have been a Blue Jay.

Griff lays out part of the process here and that curiosity – Darvish may turn out to be the best pitching free agent the Jays might have missed on last summer – is what’s going to drive the audience tonight.

I’ll be tuning in a little bit, just to see what he’s got.

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We all know playoffs – in any sport – ratchet up the intensity and the emotion of everyone involved.

But it’s also a time when the very best are able to channel that intensity and emotion into greatness. Not so Rajon Rondo yesterday and it’s could very well cost the Boston Celtics dearly.

Forget that referee blew the call – it had to be a jump ball – it was up to Rondo to control himself and he didn’t.

No one in their right mind can consider his bump of ref Marc Davis an accident; don’t let anyone even try to convince you Rondo stumbled into him. Yes, he took a bit of mis-step but he balanced himself and the chest bump was clear and deliberate and stupid.

Ask any player anywhere about the one final limit to anger and he’s going to tell you it has stop with physically hitting an official, in any sport at any time anywhere.

Rondo has to get suspended – he’ll probably get one game, I’d give him two since he’s been sat down once already this year for throwing a ball at an official – and I don’t know that the Celtics can come back from down 0-2 to Atlanta.

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You know, if you live in a back split with nine steps up to the bedrooms and five steps down to the TV room and six steps down from the front porch to the lawn, having a surgically repaired Super Dog who can’t do steps has to be carried to bed and for walks and to just hang out, it’s a bit of a pain.

Just sayin’

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It is without doubt a fact that the NBA season was an abomination: Too many games in too few nights with no time to rest or practice and product, in many cases on many nights, sucked.

But, that said, I am not believing for a second the compressed season was the reason that both Derrick Rose and Iman Shumpert blew out knees on the weekend.

They were what they were: Freak accidents that can happen at any time; they didn’t come with either guy was fatigued from a week with five games or the culmination of a tortuous month for either.

We know what the loss will cost each team – Rose is by far the best player on the Bulls and his absence may cost them a legitimate shot a title and Shumpert is New York’s best perimeter defender – and that cost is tremendous.

But it is the breaks of the game that they got hurt when and how they did; sometimes those breaks are just bad.

And, no, I have no problem whatsoever with Rose being on the floor when he was in that game. Anyone who’s ever watched Tom Thibodeau coach knows that’s how he rolls, he rides his stars hard and never feels a game is under control.

He’s blameless in this, as is the schedule and the lockout season.

They were tough, bad breaks. Sometimes crap happens.

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The end of the weekend mail

Well, that was quite some day to open the playoffs, wasn’t it?

Sad, horrible injuries, a great game and it was nice to see 10 hours or so of high-level intensity.

Have at this until today’s action starts, if you like.

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Q: Hello, Doug! So, some well-deserved 'coasting' for you, eh? And I can vouch for the philosophical, psychological, and spiritual merits of a complete 'time-out'. However, when I coast for a while, I'm able to 'disengage' totally if I so choose: shutdown all means of communication with the world outside my home and drift undisturbed for as long as I feel necessary. I suspect for you a day of 'coasting' isn't quite so peacefully idyllic, though. So, aside from obviously not having to attend Raptor games, practices and write about them, is it possible for you - and actually for any reporter doing the type of job you do - to choose how much to you can 'disengage' from it all? (And by it all, I am, of course, excluding your never-to-be-severed-connection with your demanding Irregulars!) :) Cheers, and thanks for all your splendid stuff this past season!

Lorie P, London

A: It’s difficult. Not impossible, but difficult. I know for me, and I presume for a lot of colleagues, we are so invested in the game we watch intently even if there’s no real reason to. And, of course, we all make the obligatory calls and send the obligatory e-mails and texts, to sources, friends and execs just checking in.

But there is also time for other pursuits, like the Mighty Tigers (nee Yankees, nee Rockies). And that there is more time for that, and long-neglected jobs around the house, is enough “disengagement” for a lot of us.

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Q: Hey Dougie, Why is coach Karl not mentioned in anyone’s short list for coach of the year? Health aside, he's lost some good players and a great player in the last 2 seasons and Nuggets always seem to occupy a playoff spot. It actually bothered me that Sloan never got the award. It's like consistency goes unnoticed in this league. If Denver tanked last year and then made 6th seed this year, Karl may have got some recognition.

I posted this in the comments section, more eloquently. Forgive me if you already responded? I could not find it.

You said there ZERO chance of Weems coming back. Is that because there no need for his skill set/position? Is it a culture thing? Money? Or his disinterest in coming back?

I watched the press conference last night. You did a great job Doug. I really enjoyed your Q&A's more then others.

Marcus T, Newmarket

A: Oh, I’m sure George will get some votes and it was tough to leave him off my ballot, actually, but there was only room for three.

Weems? Not sure what the love is for a guy who was an average player on a 22-60 team but what the heck. It’s skill set (is he really any better than what they have?); it’s not particularly money because he won’t make much; not sure there’s interest on his part (seem to recall reading somewhere that he didn’t want to come back); it’s just time to move on. And there’s really no loss.

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Q: Doug. Do you think that Amir Johnson is a candidate for amnesty? (Take away his salary the next couple of years and now there is 20 million to spend). Or do you think he has any trade value?

Isaac O, Thornhill

A: No, I don’t and I think you’re off by about $5 million on what’s left on the deal; the final year isn’t and has never been fully guaranteed. Been trying to dispel that myth since the contract was signed. Plus, for this summer’s calculations, only the value of the deal next year is to be added to any free agent money.

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Q: Doug, two questions if I may. First, if the raps had the opportunity to acquire Dragic (FA) or Lowry from Houston, which would you prefer, or would you stick with Jose and focus energies at other positions?

Second, assuming the lottery balls don't bless us with the top pick, would you trade the pick + DD or Davis for Harden? I think OC may have to make some tough cap decisions and might have trouble justifying paying Harden over Ibaka.

Gary M, Ottawa

A: I much prefer Lowry.

And I might make that deal but first I’d have to run out to store and by a Get Well Soon card because it will have meant Sam Presti has suffered some kind of mind-altering seizure.

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Q: Hi Doug. At the end of the year when none of the starters seem to be playing, are they upset by this - ie do they want to play knowing that the season is ending and there won't be any more games until next Fall (at least for the ones not playing in the Olympics)?

Penny D, Fredericton

A: I only talked to a couple of guys here and they were actually injured or worn out and had no issues with getting a night or two off. I did not get a chance to talk to DeRozan after the final game so I can’t speak to how he felt. It’s been my experience, though, that they’re fine with it.

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Q: Hi. A very irregular Irregular who has had to a significant amount of catch-up on the blog over the last week or so (I'm so far behind in my reading that I am just now getting to the consecutive Sports Illustrated issues with Tim Tebow on the cover and I see in the pile that there are two consecutive Jeremy Lin issues). I hadn't planned on sending this in, but seeing as you said you're light this week, I was wondering if you could comment further on athletes being influential? I would have thought that as a sports writer you may have sided much more with the power of athletes to influence people. While not a big Tebow or Lin supporter I have to say their influence over the last calendar year has been remarkable. I truly believe sports can serve as a microcosm of life and these kind of rags to riches stories reach far beyond the field of play. Their stories might not inspire someone to pick up a football or a basketball but they may just serve as a reminder of what hard work and a belief in one's self can do. As someone who is constantly drinking from the bowl of kool-aid you serve up week-to-week (even the stale, week old stuff), I am interested in your thoughts now that some time has passed.

I want to believe sports have played a tremendous role in defining my character and the character of others (possibly even an old grunt that likes the way things used to be at the ball yard). So it is easy to say it is the sport and not the athlete, but within those sports if we do not have the characters that transcend the sport then we do not have a collective stories with which to share to magnify the lessons learned. Have I over-stated the impact of the people who play our games at an incredible level? To that end, wouldn't it be nice to have a fine person such a Steve Nash here influencing the people of southern Ontario?

I've rambled. Apologies. Thanks as always Doug.

Peace

John D, Cairo

A: Of course athletes can influence those who follow them closely, by their actions, the strength of their personalities, their performance on the field of play. Rags to riches stories, talking about perseverance and fighting long odds are wonderful.

In the case of Tebow, specifically, it was entirely in North America and while Lin had a greater reach, it’s not like he introduced basketball to Asia.

They were interesting stories, hardly globally influencing.

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Q: You were having an important coaching meeting on Friday. Now that the braintrust has gotten together, what are the expectations for the Mighty (Yankees, Rockies, Tigers....)? And who are the Dastardly Other Guys you have to watch out for this year?

David H, Mississauga

A: Oh, yeah, we’re getting the band back together but I don’t have too many specifics. We’re moving up a league with a very young group so we can keep all the kids together; have a big Midget A meeting tonight when we’ll have all kinds of information.

And not to worry, I’ll let you know because I believe we’re going to need all the support we can get.

The start of the weekend mail

Hmm.

Not sure if was the hour-long chat Friday or the various IGBT that became more discussions than game stuff but we’re quite light on the mail this week.

That’s not too bad because I’d like to coast at least a little bit; here’s some that we got, there are only three or four leftover now for the morning so if there’s something on your mind or you just want to say hello, you know the drill.

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Q: Hello. For the Tall Foreheads, as for how the blog goes, I vote for a combination of all things sports, except no hockey. There is enough of that permeating the culture. I also vote for the lighter side with "our" favourite music, videos and Grace.

Today's question is: Does today remind you of the last day of public school? The promise of summer holidays,the anticipation for next fall? Who will be your classmates?

If you can find it, Gary U.S. Bonds, School Is Out! ( I can root for the Yankees from the bleachers, and don't have to worry bout teachers)

Bob E, Kanata

A: If there wasn’t the lottery and the draft and free agency and the summer league ahead, it sure would have had the feeling of last day of school. Let’s say it was more like the last day before March Break; we’ll get a bit of a respite but we’ll be back at it in not too long with all the familiar boys and girls.

Oh, and since you asked …

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Q: Sorry if a repeated comment/question, but heard someone say the other day that "Canada is a hockey country". I was wondering if you could comment on that.

Personally, I don't understand the need to force the idea that being Canadian is playing hockey and that Canada needs to have an identity per se. Also, in considering economic concerns (hockey seems to me to be the most expensive sport to play), changing demographics, increased talent/opportunity in other sports, and safety issues, it seems outdated, misplaced, and an incredibly forced perception.

Jay F, Scarborough

A: I think it’s actually more people of a certain age and background and geographical location in our country that insist it’s a “hockey country.”

In my little neck of the multi-cultural demographic, there are more baskets than hockey nets, for instance. Long gone are the days when dads and sons would be sure to sit around on Saturday nights watching the pucks.

It’s changing, for sure; there is a more fractured fan base for all sports. The suggestion this is solely a “hockey country” is a trite cliché no longer true.

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Q: Hey Doug: This question comes on the heels of your blog regarding Bryan's exit speech. I don't know if you realize it or not, but a number of your readers feel that they could do a MUCH better job as GM of the Raps than Bryan has. (Why all of the NBA teams have overlooked them is beyond me.)_I happen to believe that Bryan has done a good (not perfect) job. I'd like to cite three (and a half?) examples:

The hiring of Dwane. If memory serves, there were a number of other teams trying to find the 'right' coach. Bryan did. Obviously, due diligence was done.

Signing Andrea to an extension - an act that many of the would-be GMs denounced. However, based on Andrea's performance this season, it would appear that Bryan knew exactly what he was doing.

Maintaining financial flexibility for next season. Based on what you've said of Bryan, it must have nearly killed him this season to not make some sort of 'move.' But he stayed the course - for the most part. His deal for Barbosa (this is the half) actually improved the Raps position going forward.

Now for the question: Could you add a few more examples of the 'good' things that Bryan has done for the Raptors? Not for the 'doubters' - they apparently only hear their own voices - but for those of us who think Bryan is doing fine. I'd like to hear some of the other, 'oh, yeah' things that he's done.

Thanks for all of your hard work for the Irregulars!

Tim H, Windsor

A: Well, like all GMs in all sports, he has definitely had some misses that go along with his hits, that’s just the nature of the business.

I liked the James Johnson for a 29th draft pick deal, I liked the Jerryd Bayless pick up, I think he did a pretty good job getting Barbosa for, well, nothing, really. Garbo and Anthony Parker signings were great and got the team to the post-season twice and I don’t think people remember that buzz and excitement.

Sure, Turk didn’t work out but he fixed it; Jermaine O’Neal didn’t work out but he rented Shawn Marion for a while that allowed him to make another bold deal.

It’s been ups and downs – more downs lately but the ups were there – and they are positioned quite well to move forward because the deals he made, or didn’t make.

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Q: If the Raptors are a 1,2,3 pick, it's not that hard to pick someone? Otherwise the Raptors are a 7,8,9,10,11 pick. Do they take a PG-type or a SF-type?

Richard S, Lethbridge

A: The most glaring need, in my opinion, is at small forward.

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Q: During an in game blog after JJ didn't play for the second game you mentioned something about getting some info on the situation when you traveled to Thunder... did you ever find anything out about that situation??

Also, I'm wondering if you have any insight into what happened with Wilson Chandler... he was signed for a reasonable amount, and we got rid of Barbosa, which suggests we could have done so earlier.

Any insight if it was the money? Did he turn us down or did we turn him down?

Jeffrey M, Saint John

A: Did find out about it and wrote about it in Thursday’s paper (it’s in here somewhere).

Chandler wanted a deal for longer than just the rest of this season at the end, couldn’t get it here because of convoluted cap restraints and did a multi-year deal to go back to Denver.

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Q: Doug being in other NBA arenas (losing teams) how do you rate the Raptors attendance, fans basketball knowledge and fan support of the team?

Mike G, Kitchener

A: I’d say in the top half. Good-sized crowds for a so-so team, quite a rabid fan base that tends to get too grumpy too quickly some nights but, overall, certainly in the top half of the league.

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Q: BC traded Barbosa in order to have the "potential" to add salary immediately at the season's end.

If they wanted to trade today, with a team whose season is over, can they?

If you had to guess... would you guess the chances are they do, in fact, make a trade sooner rather than later?

Jeff M, Saint John

A: Trades can be consummated now between any teams whose seasons are over; that’s non-playoff teams right now and the list grows as teams are eliminated.

But I don’t think anything of any substance happens before the May 30 lottery so we’ve got more than a month to sit around and wait.

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Q: Doug, Calderon and Nash would be the smartest classical playmaking point guards duo of the NBA history.

They, with the new big kid coming from Lithuania playing the C, Andrea at the PF, Demar, a smart defending veteran with the ability to score from the arc at the SF role and the new rookie could be a big surprise next season.

The Raps have other good players (Amir, Ed, Aaron, JJ, Kleiza, Forbes) to fill an high level bench and a very, very impressive coaching staff who was able to build an efficient defensive system without having a preseason training.

Doug, in your heart do you feel that in the next 1-2-3 years we are going to see the best team of the Raptors history?

Paolo P, Roma

A: I don’t about the best team in history, I guess it has that potential but the early-2000s with Vince and Oak and AD and Alvin was pretty special. I will say they are positioned better today than they have been in half a decade and there is a justified sense of optimism and that something quite good is going to happen relatively quickly.

Let's chat about the Raptors

Hi again

Got questions?

If Bryan hasn't written his script yet, here are some ideas

Well, that’s that.

Sixty-six games, far more good ones than bad -- at least from a competitive aspect -- a few good things, a few bad things, too many games in too few days.

A jumble.

But now the real work begins.

Well, it continues, actually, because it’s been going on all year.

First, of course, is the annual free-for-all with Bryan and Dwane in a couple of hours and that ought to be fun.

I’m sure BC’s been thinking about what he’s going to say and how he’s going to say it for a day or so – he is somewhat meticulous in his preparation for such things – and I won’t pretend to guess which way he’s going to go with things.

(I do know somebody who isn’t sure whether the ball is blown up or stuffed and probably couldn’t name five Raptors without a program will show up and try to make his bones by becoming part of the story rather than reporting it; but that’s how things work, sadly)

But I do have an idea of what Bryan should say and if he gets a chance to read this before we all get together, here are some short items he probably should touch on.

And, BC, if you haven’t written anything down, feel free to use this. You’re welcome.

“I just want to let you all know that we’ve decided to pick up the third year option on Dwane’s contract today and we’re pleased to announce it now.”

I know it’s little more than a formality – if they let this guy get away it’d be a travesty – so why not tell us right now.

I don’t know that anyone who watches this team with any regularity can possibly have an issue with it, it’d be a message to the players and league that this is Dwane’s team to run as he sees fit and it’s just the right thing to do.

Casey is universally respected around the league, he’s proved this season more than capable of doing the job, the players play hard for him and his strategies are beyond reproach in almost every regard.

So that’s No. 1 out of the chute.

No. 2?

“I just want to let the rest of the league know that if we don’t get the No. 1 selection in the draft, we’re going to trade it so the phone lines are open.”

Look, they have – according to an awful lot of impartial observers – the second best player in the draft coming in Jonas Valanciunas.

The draft, once expected to be the greatest in years, now seems to be Anthony Davis and a bunch of other guys and, frankly, this team doesn’t need two kids to teach next year.

It needs men, some guys who have been in the league, know what it takes to win in the league and who can help right away.

If they didn’t have the big fella coming, this wouldn’t be the wisest course of action but they do. Pretend he’s this year’s draft pick and use the one you get May 30 as a bargaining chip to go out and try to get some immediate help.

No, I don’t know who that is and if you have to add Amir Johnson or James Johnson or Linas Kleiza to the deal to make it attractive, go right ahead.

You can be too young in the NBA, it takes kids a while to learn how to play in the league and then how to win in it; dealing the pick if it’s not No. 1 is prudent roster-building.

Oh, and one more?

(This is like Three Pointers, isn’t it?)

“I did what I said I’d do; there is no need for apologies.”

Yes, it was in some ways a difficult season, it always is when you lose far more games than you win.

But anyone who expected otherwise just wasn’t paying attention because what transpired this season is exactly what they promised would.

They became a far better defensive team, they did nothing to screw up future financial flexibility and some of the kids under Casey’s charge got better.

Go back and check the pre-season quotes if you don’t believe.

I think I said then, maybe not here but to some people privately, that talk is cheap and while it’s all well and good to make promises and develop plans, the proof is always going to be in the pudding.

And now it’s time to see if it is.

We will dutifully listen and write down what each of these gentlemen says this morning and I’m sure there will be useable quotes.

But aside from those three points (really, Bryan, I don’t need credit, go ahead and use them verbatim if you like) I’m not sure we need a lot of talk.

In the next three months we need to see action.

The past has been prelude all year; now it’s time for action.

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Oh yeah. Don’t forget we’ll be here at noon to take your questions for an hour or so and if you can’t make it, we have some room in the mail bag. Click here, type some innermost thoughts and send ‘em along.

Thanks.

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The playoffs are here (those are games that good teams play after the season’s over, in case you forgot) and I will say this:

After all the resting of players that nearly every team did in a despicable finish to the regular season that was a direct slap in the face of paying customers most times, if any player, coach or GM whines about a short turnaround before the playoffs begin, they should be mocked and ridiculed.

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Okay, folks. Question time.

We have to keep this little charade up even now that the HOTH are packed up and gone for another few months. What do we do?

Do we do a morning recap in our own inimitable fashion of the previous night’s NBA stuff?

Do we combine that with other stuff?

Do we lament the past Raptors season until it’s lottery time?

Any suggestions greatly appreciated; I need to take something to the Tall Foreheads and I’m at a bit of a loss.

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The Goods On The Game, Nets at Raptors

Well, it's here!

Game 66 of 66.

A sendoff for the ages for Captain Canada in the valley

If this doesn’t give you goosebumps, you need to check your pulse, like immediately.

Yes, they do love their Steve Nash out in Phoenix and who can blame them and if Thursday was the last time he wore a Suns uniform, he went out with the love of the fans ringing in his ears.

Now, I can’t begin to guess what Captain Canada might be thinking about his future because I’m pretty sure he doesn’t know, either.

And if you read this delightful Q and A transcript with My Man Coro of the Arizona Republic, you will get some tremendous insight into the mind of a mature, grounded, self-confident young man.

Nash is truly at a crossroads in his professional career and he will take some time to truly examine all his options and won’t ever jump willy-nilly into his next contract, as well he should.

I don’t for a second believe chasing a championship will be first and foremost in his mind – the “Winning and being competitive and being part of a good environment, those are the top” quote hammers that point home.

I will say this without equivocation: The team that lands Nash this summer will be getting one of the greatest teammates in any sport in any era and should count themselves lucky. Few and far between is the high-profile, immensely-talented athlete who cares more for his teammates and organization than Nash does.

And maybe that is what drives him, he likes environment and company more than anything, he has to appreciate the people around him – in the locker room, the front office, the stands – to get the most out of his incredible talent.

I know I have this serious Man Crush on him as a player and a guy, but I think that’s an attitude shared by many, as we saw first hand in Phoenix last night.

Really, Bryan: Three years, maybe $30 million. Take your shot. You won’t regret it. Maybe it won’t work but it’s time to make a bold move. Honest.

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Oh yeah. If you want to talk Nash and playoffs and the HOTH you’re in for a treat. Seems an hour has opened up Friday at noon and we’ll be here for one of our too-infrequent chats, please stop by, it should be a gas. But if you can't, there's the mailbag and you can get in it by clicking here with your heartfelt thoughts.

And don’t forget we’re here for the final IGBT of the regular season tonight at 7. Yes, 7; they switched the game time from 8 p.m., bless their hearts.

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Okay, wanna finish off the awards?

Why not.

Three to go and although I do have a vote for the three all-NBA teams, I’m not about to bore you with those.

So, let’s go.

Rookie of the Year

Duh!

Now, I am soooooo much a Rubio fan it’s not even funny; the kid plays with a style and a flair and a competency that you have to appreciate, right? That said, blowing out a knee mid-season kind of takes him out of the running, right? At least for first.

Which leaves us with, first to third …

Kyrie Irving, Cleveland

And I will say this: It’s good that I talk to people and watch some games because if all I had to go on were games I saw in person, there’s really no way I could vote for Kyrie Irving. In games against Toronto, he’s been entirely pedestrian but on other nights, he’s been quite good.

When the season began, this was his award to lose. He didn’t.

Ricky Rubio, Minnesota

I don’t care.

The rest of the candidates have been so underwhelming, this is almost a Second By Default. And when careers are done, it won’t have changed. This is not a great class of kids.

It’s not Kenyon Martin No. 1 and a bunch of others, but it’s not far off, I don’t think.

Kenneth Faried, Denver

If Rubio was second by default, what do you think of this pick of a guy who didn’t do a thing until the last month or so of the season. Suppose Isaiah Thomas could fit in here but I like the guy from the winning team better.

 

Sixth Man of the Year

There are those who see this as something of a consolation prize: “You should be starting but here’s a trinket for your trouble.” But that’s not how it is, we know rotation balance is significant and there are guys who are quite okay with coming off the bench.

And, really, this was as easy as the rookie of the year vote:

James Harden, Oklahoma City

Sure, he’d start in a lot of places but he finishes games and that’s what’s important and he brings some semblance of calm to an Oklahoma City team prone to costly turnovers.

Oh yeah, he might have the best beard in sports and that has to count for something.

Lou Williams, Philadelphia

Not too often a Sixth Man leads his team in scoring but imagine where the offensively-challenged Sixers would be without this guy.

Al Harrington, Denver

Not a big fan, personally, but on a deep Denver team he’s a solid contributor off the bench. I could probably convince myself to with Jason Terry here.

 

Most Improved Player

Okay. This as nebulous and confusing as it gets. Does a guy improve solely because he gets more playing time thanks to the way the roster is constructed? If that’s the case, there might be a dozen candidates.

This was, and is, a tough one; not even sure I’ve convinced myself which way I’m going to go but I’d better hurry, the league ballots have be in tomorrow at the latest.

Jeremy Lin, New York

I know, I know, I know. I would have liked a larger sample size and I would have liked more time for Lin in a more structured and disciplined offence but we didn’t have it. He is vastly improved – or simply got in the right place in the right time. If he regressions, can we can a least improved player award next year and a do-over.

Talk me out of this one folks, I’m not sure this is the name I’ll submit.

Andrew Bynum, L.A. Lakers

Maybe it was only relative good health and fewer cases of utter knuckleheadism but this guy when from questionable to being one of top two centres in the league (no, not Dwight, Marc Gasol is the other).

Ersan Ilyasova, Milwaukee

A very, very long time ago, I was standing on the court in Milwaukee before a game catching up with Brian James, who was working out some raw kid before game. “This kid’s going to be pretty good,” BJ said, or something to that effect. “Believe me.”

Well, that was during Ilyasova’s first stint with the Bucks and it might have taken a while, but Brian was right.

So, if I do dump Lin – and I might – do I go with Greg Monroe of the Pistons? Ryan Anderson? Paul George? Decisions, decisions, decisions.

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Man, I either nailed these end-of-season grades or not many of you saw them because the rip jobs were few and far between. Good for me.

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One quick note because it’s already started.

Somewhere out there, some buzz was created by some totally bogus report the Raptors had offered an unseemly amount of money to – get this – Sasha Vujacic.

Didn’t happen. Won’t happen. Of this I am dead certain.

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Time to start the NBA awards voting, at least for me

You know how when you go to vote they give you that sheet of paper and stick you behind that little cardboard screens so you can have total privacy and no one can see where you’re putting the X?

Well, that’s all well and good for democracy but this is me and this is the NBA and now that it’s almost time for me to get the post-season awards ballots in, figure I’d share my selections with all you lucky Irregulars.

(Besides, it knocks off a slow day here and I still reserve the right to make a secret change before I submit them to the league either this afternoon or tomorrow morning)

So, without further ado, let’s do three today and three tomorrow, okay?

MVP

It’s good that we like our heroes a bit flawed because whoever comes out on top in this race – and it might be a close one – will have some foibles that are overlooked, either individually or with the team.

I don’t know what it is but there’s just something about LeBron James that, at times, underwhelms me. You look at nights like the one he had in Jersey last week – 17 straight points to rescue his team – and nights like he had against Toronto right after – 10 makes in his first 11 shots – and you want to scream: WHY DON’T YOU DO THAT ALL THE TIME, WE KNOW YOU COULD!

Can you give an MVP award to a guy like that, a guy who tends to defer too often? Can you?

Or can you look at Kevin Durant, freakishly long, gifted scorer, good defender and vote for him while yelling: GO AND TAKE THE DAMN BALL FROM WESTBROOK, YOU KNOW WE’D ALL LOVE IT IF YOU DID.

Can you forget that Kevin Love stomped on Luis Scola’s face and still was only half of a twosome on so-so team that plummeted off the cliff when Ricky Rubio went down. Do MVPs let that happen?

Does Chris Paul get it simply for pretending to listen to Vinny Del Negro for most of the season?

Anyway ….

My five?

LeBron James

Kevin Durant

Chris Paul

Tony Parker

Kevin Love.

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Coach of the Year

Yeah, I know. Too much credit when things go good; too much blame when things go bad, who needs ‘em, right? Well, they do get too much credit and blame in games but they can still influence things mightily and there are certainly those who are better than the others.

So, in order, for now:

Gregg Popovich.

Irascible, argumentative, doesn’t give a rat’s patoot about what people think, sits down his best players when you least expect and, lo and behold, they have the best record in the NBA. Yeah, not bad.

Frank Vogel

Look at that roster. Who you going to give the ball to, what are you going to call, on that one possession that wins or loses a game? Right. No one.

Tom Thibodeau

Let’s say you lose your best player for almost half a season, the guy you signed to take pressure off that best player has been a virtual no-show because of injury and your frontcourt can’t really score. Now let’s say you don’t whine or complain and you coach your butt off and you’re team is the best in its conference.

Yeah, your name should be on the ballot.

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Defensive Player of the Year

No, it’s not the sexiest of awards by any stretch of the imagination. It’s like Basketball Grunt Work, though, and you know how I love Grunt Work.

From the top down …

Tyson Chandler

You try to make Baron Davis and Jeremy Lin and Amar’e Stoudemire and JR Smith and that bunch into a passable defensive unit. You try to do it while being coached for half a season by a guy who tends to treat defence with disdain.

Go ahead, try it.

Chandler did. He did it well. He wins.

Dwight Howard

Forget all the shenanigans about The Indecision and Stan Van Gundy and remember that this guy is a rather imposing sort when he’s standing near the basket.

His reputation took a huge hit, no question about it; his sklls didn’t.

Serge Ibaka

Maybe I change this to Iguodala or Tony Allen but I just like the sound in my head when it say:

IBAKA!!!!

Good enough for now, right?

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Okay, tomorrow, we’ll do rookie, sixth man and most improved, the other three ballots I have waiting in my in-box to fill out.

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More, as they say? How about two quick ones?

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So the Phoenix Suns are officially eliminated from the playoffs after losing in Utah last night and that immediately starts more speculation about Steve Nash’s future.

The one quote I saw post-game last night from him (“I’ll take a look at everything. I think I’ve earned that.”) makes entire sense.

You know that I say the HOTH should offer him three years at big money and see what he says (and, no, I have no idea what he’ll say) but that’s a point for another day.

Today’s point is this:

The Suns finish their regular season at home tonight against San Antonio and while I don’t expect that Nash will play very much, I would hope – and expect – that for every minute he’s on the floor, the fans out there stand and cheer like they’ve seldom stood and cheered before.

In, let’s say, the past decade, you can hardly find a guy who has made his franchise better, and relevant, than Nash has with Phoenix. He made marginal players far better than they should have been, he turned a so-so team into one to be feared in the post-season almost every year, he was twice named the best player in the league and if tonight is his last game in Phoenix, he needs to be shown more appreciation than anyone ever has been.

Name me three other guys more closely associated with a successful franchise over the last 10 years than Nash has been:

Maybe Dirk, maybe Kobe; that might be about it.

It has been a wondrous run and if it’s over, it needs to be a memorable moment.

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Seven games for Metta World Peace?

I’d say it’s on the low side but you can also make the case that David Stern didn’t over-react; I read somewhere that the longest suspension for an elbow to the head previously was two games and while I would have probably liked 10 better, I can live with seven.

Sort of wish it had been eight, though, which would have meant he’d miss the entire first round of the playoffs regardless of what happened.

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The road beckoned and we went

And so it ends, the road portion of an abomination of a season, with too many games in too few nights, too many oddities abounding, silliness to the Nth degree.

Thanks to My Man Kelly, only had to do 28 of the 33, which was fine with me, seeing how it felt like there was a game every day.

Fun?

Hmm.

A bit.

So as we’re sitting around sipping one last road Post-Game Decompression Beverage, the mind wanders:

 

Best trip

Well, there really wasn’t one but the lone western trek wasn’t bad.

Two nice wins to see in Phoenix and Utah, both snapping long streaks of futility, might have been the two most satisfying road victories of the year for them.

Toss in a delayed flight at LAX to Phoenix that afforded us some extra time for a bartender to tell us about the time the guy showed up in the lacey dress and nylons while we watched Giants-49ers in a playoff game and it was kind of cool.

Throw in the annual trip to Pizzeria Bianco in Phoenix as part of that journey where the guy regaled us about the visits of the likes of Steve Nash for his birthday party, Chris Bosh and a guy he thought was Rudy Fernandez except it was Jose Calderon and it was a pretty good one.

But …

Saddest moment

It’s hard to get out of my mind the sight of Andrea Bargnani sitting on the bench during overtime in Utah with his head in his hands, his calf screwed up for the second time and wearing a look of despair I had never seen before.

Felt terrible for the kid, whose season was effectively over at that time.

He’d just had 30 the night before in Phoenix and was a huge part of an upset win at Utah before he got hurt again.

Sports sometimes pulls at the heartstrings; it did that night.

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Worst trip

Easy.

Thanks to a delay in Toronto that would have caused a missed connection, having to ultimately go Toronto-Atlanta-Oklahoma City-Memphis-Indianapolis-Detroit-Toronto to cover two games on back-to-back nights was horrific.

It was the You Can’t Get There From Here Tour and robbed me of a Saturday night out in under-rated OKC and, thanks to the back-to-back, missed a night on a stool having shrimp cocktail at St. Elmo’s in Indy.

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Since we’re talking about the road and my mind tends to wander a bit, how about One Of The Greatest Singalong Songs Of All Time (especially if your at some house party and it’s really late at night and the refreshments are flowing.

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Worst game

The night they lost by, oh, 70 or so in Boston at the end of a back-to-back and Dwane came out a bit seething and announced they were flying home and would practice the next day because, and I’m paraphrasing here, “they don’t deserve a day off after that; they need to representing the city and the franchise better.”

Good on him.

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Good start, good finish

Finish the first game in Cleveland way back in December and a gaggle of us stop by this Irish joint about a three-pointer from the arena.

Not only do they serve Samuel L. Smith’s organic lager (third place I’ve ever seen that sweet nectar in North America), there’s a little scuffle at the door involving five or six women and men pushing and shoving and getting into it and there’s nothing like a little brouhaha to get the season off to a rousing start.

Then it ends with a quick flight to Milwaukee and a late breakfast at one of the great greasy spoons on the road: George Webb, a 24-hour diner in the middle of desolate downtown Milwaukee.

What’s the place like? Well, it wouldn’t surprise me if Flo and Mel were arguing in the kitchen where I’m sure the cook has a hairnet and record.

Pretty good omelet and greasy bacon, though. And the coffee was strong.

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Most relaxing

New Year’s Day brunch in Isleworth thanks the graciousness of Butch Carter and his family. Great company, great food, great tour (yes, I saw the fire hydrant Tiger backed into) and the most calm three or four hours on the road this year.

Much, much appreciated.

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Best cab ride

Back to Phoenix and a 15- or 20-minute chat with a cabbie who used to do some boxing and knew all about George Chuvalo and who had worked unloading luggage off planes at Sky Harbour Airport next to Ellis Valentine.

No word on whether Valentine simply picked up the suitcases and threw them on to the belt with that stunning arm of his.

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Things we missed

No game at Golden State, no time in San Francisco; a night off in Philly to go see my friends at the Palm.

Things we didn’t miss

Having to go to Sacramento.

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Oh yeah, they played last night.

Figured there really aren’t three things that stood out.

They played hard, were over-matched in many regards, faded late in the game and lost a close one.

Lather, rinse, repeat.

Most interesting thing got into the game story for second edition and was Dwane talking about the technical and ejection that DeMar DeRozan got in the first half.

“That’s one of the growing moments for him. No matter how tough it gets or how much frustration sets in, fatigue, whatever it is, you’ve got to buckle up and roll with it.

“This was a teaching moment for him and that’s part of his maturity process. When you’re the man on the team, you’ve got to be responsible.”

And then there was the technical that Kleiza got late in the game, when the outcome was still in doubt, another move that miffed the coach.

“LK had a tough technical in a close situation down the stretch, we can’t let frustration set in, we have to finish the game in a professional way and play the game the right way … That’s what we’re teaching for now, when these games count, we can’t have those mental mistakes.”

One more thing on the DeRozan play.

A Raptors official talked to the referee after the game and found out that tossing a ball that ends up in the stands calls for an automatic ejection. It’s probably a silly rule that needs to have some room for interpretation because it was obvious DeMar was just ticked and didn’t rifle it into the front row. He tossed it the length of the court, it bounced a couple of times and probably really warranted a simple technical rather than an ejection. But intransigence in the rules didn’t allow any leeway. Too bad.

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Okay, rather long and odd travel day (you have to trust me, the decision to drive to Detroit, fly here, fly back to Detroit and drive home made the most sense) but I’m not likely back at Casa Doug until dinner time so I may not see many comments between, say, 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. I will get to them, though.

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The Goods On The Game, Raptors at Bucks

Four halves.

Eight quarters.

96 minutes.

But who's counting.