Very cool restraint by you Raptors fans

I was stunned that all through yesterday and into last night that whenever I wandered to the comments section here there was no outrage, no clamouring for explanations, none of the angst that I’m used to.

After all, the NBA released its annual GMs pre-season poll – the one about who’ll win and why, who’s good now and will be good in the future and who the stars of the game truly are – and the HOTH were, well, basically snubbed.

Shock.

Horror.

Outrage.

Okay, maybe not.

But you’d have to look far and wide to find even a mention of anything Raptors and that kind of snub generally sets some of the masses aflame. It’s anti-Canadian! It’s a fraud perpetrated by the evil-doers in the American media! It’s David Stern telling everyone to ignore all things Canada! If Bryan hadn’t drafted all those Euros, they’d be loved everywhere!

(I mock because I love; honest)

The funny thing is, I’m kind of surprised there was any mention of anything to do with the Raptors.

And the fact most of them had to do with guys who’d never played a single NBA game – Kyle Lowry as the most under-rated acquisition of the summer was the only one to do with a “veteran” – isn’t necessarily a bad thing.

The GMs, or at least a few of them, think Jonas Valanciunas would be the European player most likely to have a breakout season, they like the athleticism of Terry Ross and Quincy Acy and Ross got a vote for rookie who might be a sleeper this year.

Not bad, I guess, when the future is being taken into consideration and, really, not that big an indictment of the holdover players. After all, four straight years of missing the playoffs – and not really being in the race late in any of those seasons – will knock down a team’s profile a peg or two.

But, in reality, it’s all guesswork, although I suppose the poll does give a glimpse into the thinking of rival GMs if, in fact, they actually did the voting and didn’t pass off the chore to minions.

And in that vein, one thing really caught my eye:

The majority of voters would rather now have Kevin Durant rather than Kobe Bryant take the shot with the game on the line. That caught me totally off guard.

Other than that, not sure there’s much to argue about any of the picks but you know what I want to see next year?

A poll of the worsts. Worst defensive player, high draft pick who’ll have no discernible impact, player you’d least like to see with the ball in their hands and the game’s on the line.

They keep the results of this one anonymous, why not go that way and we’ll really see what GMs think.

How much fun would that be?

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Oh well, we’re here, they played this the other night at the game and I cannot get it out of my freaking head.

Someone help me, I’m not a big Randy Newman fan.

Please!

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Hang on a second.

It’s Fashion Week back there?

And they’ve conveniently found a way for me to be away until Saturday afternoon?

Hmm.

I smell a rat.

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So, how’d the lads look last night?

The report I got from various spies, insiders and know-it-alls was that Lowry was solid down the stretch, Valanciunas was a factor even if the stats didn’t show it and it was a rather tidy win.

And I would strongly suggest that since we’ve seen Lowry, DeRozan Fields, Bargnani and Valanciunas on such a regular basis, there’s no reason to think that’s not going to be the starting lineup on opening night.

But the one thing I did hear that continues to be troubling is that they committed 19 turnovers and if that kind of shoddy ball-handling continues, two things are going to happen:

Dwane is going to explode into little bits and nobody wants that.

And

They are going to get absolutely drilled some nights.

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Remind me the next time someone asks about locker room opulence in the NBA that the Lakers – as big, successful, rich and powerful as they are – are far down the list in the space their players get at the Staples Center.

Now, the back parts, where the prying eyes from the media are gouged out of heads should they inadvertently see them, might be gorgeous and well appointed and as you’d think a Laker thing would be.

The locker room where we get to work?

Relatively tiny, not as big as the Raptors digs and decidedly pedestrian.

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Do you think it’s a good thing when the menu says “Cajun blackened fish” and you ask the server what kind of fish it might be and he says:

“I’m not sure. But it’s good.”

No, not a good thing at all.

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Yeah, okay, so the Lakers have a smallish locker room. What makes it worse is the crazy amount of media around this team.

I get that the 50 or 60 folks in the locker room Sunday might have been there primarily because it was Dwight Howard’s first game (he looks pretty good, the Lakers are going to be phenomenal, by the way) but 40 or so folks at practice on Monday was a bit much.

I thought there were, and are, too many folks around the HOTH on a usual day; if this is the norm out here, I have no idea how anyone gets any legit work done.

The biggest flaw in our industry is that we all play follow the leader too much, we have too many people wasting time going over what happened last night instead of what’s going to happen tomorrow and the bigger the crowd, the harder it is to get something interesting.

Good luck to ‘em out here.

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For real, do not get used to this stuff being up at this time, the second night out west is always the worst for me, sleep-wise. And, besides, things will get back to normal with me having to work at night very soon.

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Oh yeah, my man Dan did a bang-up job; and I'm sorry I've seen the end of the Jerel McNeal-Chris Wright eras.

 

Hoping for a Game 7 that's not a letdown

There is nothing quite like a Game 7 and Steve Nash wiling (no clue how long an interview might last after the Lakers practice) you know I’ll be glued to a stool and a TV set this afternoon for Giants-Cardinals.

I fear greatly I’ll be let down.

The trouble with Game 7s, history seems to have proved, is that they have a tendency not to live up to their billing in a lot of sports.

Not sure it equates to baseball as much as, say, basketball or hockey, but players have been known to play a little tight, a bit careful or, in some circumstances, try to do too much to the detriment of their team and themselves.

It’s a Hero Complex Thing sometimes. The stars think they have to be stars and press, taking themselves out of the most important game of the season.

But I don’t seem to recall that happening too often in baseball, likely because of the unique nature of the sport. It is an individual game couched in a team sport, it’s pitcher against hitter, the fielders react to the results of that one showdown and it’s virtually impossible for someone to try too hard to take over a game.

I suppose a pitcher could over-throw or get rattled but that’s not really the same, is it?

There’s not going to be a Kobe Bryant taking 24 or 26 or 28 shots; there’s not going to be some centre trying to go the length of the ice on every shift; it’s just different.

Better?

Not sure I can say that, I think I’d rather see one guy try to become the story.

Let’s just say, like with so many things, it’s different; not better, not worse, just different.

Best Game 7s I’ve ever been at?

The Raptors-Sixers would be at the top of that list with Spurs-Pistons in, I believe, 2005, right behind it. That San Antonio-Detroit one might have been a bit more pleasurable because there was far less stress on me.

Now, you have to understand that Game 7s and I aren’t quite on speaking terms as far as me being a fan is concerned.

Three I remember best?

1967: Bob Gibson beats Jim Lonborg.

1986: you knew it was over when the ball went through Buckner in Game 6, didn’t you?

1975: Best. World. Series. Ever. Except for the outcome.

Yeah, those Red Sox killed me for a long, long time, didn’t they?

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You know me and the extraneous, um, entertainment things at NBA games, right?

Too many, too intrusive, too mind-numbing, too scripted too often.

Except Kiss Cam.

I (Heart) Kiss Cam for some reason.

And when the Lakers did it with some very cool music last night, it was hilarious. And entertaining.

Who doesn’t like a little Sonny and Cher while fans are made to smooch and feel a tad self-conscious.

The HOTH must steal this. They must.

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Speaking of the Raptors, we weren’t at practice yesterday but it doesn’t mean we didn’t keep tabs.

Everyone practice – much to the delight of Dwane Casey – and it would appear tonight he’ll have everyone available. About time, too.

It’ll be interesting to see how he massages the rotation tonight, too. It’s getting down to time to get serious and I would imagine he’s about at the point where he’s got to have his starters stretched out to more than 30 minutes, with four or five backups filling in some kind of regular rotation.

With only two games left – and without having had one game where everyone was available – it’s imperative they start getting to some semblance of normalcy.

One thing to look for? I think Dwane quite likes rotating his three guards through the two spots and I bet you see a lot of it.

If you’re watching, that is. And I hope you are, I’ll need a full report.

(It’s my man Dan Girard tonight, by the way; Not Grace Kelly is off on Blue Jays patrol, I hear).

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I’m not saying Laker fans are presumptuous or anything but the M-V-P, M-V-P chant for Kobe Bryant when he was shooting free throws four minutes into the first quarter of the team’s sixth pre-season game is a bit much.

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Seriously, there’s not much better than a couple of post-game glasses of Stella and some cheese fries in a sports bar of an airport Marriott to sum up the often mundane road existence of a grunt, is there?

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Oh yeah, saw the first three episodes of the first season of The Newsroom on the flight out.

Tremendous show, crisp writing, great delivery, entirely believable story lines.

Now I know why it was getting all those recommendations from you folks and I’ve got some catching up to do with it and, I understand, Homeland.

Just need to find some time.

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Speaking of catching up, had a nice chat with Robert Sacre after the game last night.

He hadn’t been particularly effective but it was the kind of nights rookies are going to have and he’s more than willing to sit and learn at the feet of some masters.

Not sure how much he’ll play now that Howard’s back and the Lakers did use Pau Gasol and Antawn Jamison a bunch Sunday when Howard was resting but I’m hearing he’s likely to stick if the Lakers keep 14 or 15 players on the active roster.

Good for him; you don’t see a lot of 60th overall picks hang around and I fully admit to being a bit surprised by that.

And I’m not entirely sure which Irregular is going to climb all over me because I didn’t think the Raptors should have taken him and I still don’t. Doesn’t mean he can’t play, there was absolutely no need for him in Toronto.

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I cannot get away from the pucks, it seems.

Walking along the hallway outside the Lakers room after the game with an old friend and she points out this big case sitting against the wall.

Yep.

The Stanley Cup.

(No, I did not genuflect)

It’s been in L.A. a lot, as you’d imagine, and they took it out to put it on display for the players to see.

Nash told me he’d seen it a bunch of times at the Lakers practice facility (the Kings are in the same place) and back home in Victoria; Sacre was going to stop by and check it out.

“I’m not Steve Nash, I don’t hang out with the Stanley Cup,” he joked.

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Oh yeah, this is the first night in an odd time zone so sleep’s kind of goofy, I wouldn’t expect this as this time the next couple of days. Please don’t get used to it.

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Now it's time for the end of the weekend mail

Told you there’d be more.

Have at this while I loaf a bit here before Lakers-Kings tonight.

(And since we’re on the west coast with a big time difference for me, no promises on what time the morning stuff gets up for the next couple of days; will try to keep it to between 7-8 a.m. back home but no promises).

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Q: Doug, first if I may start with a comment: I disagree with you downplaying the importance of Baumgartner supersonic free fall; the dude has pushed his own limits, accomplished what no human prior to him has. That being said, there is a French quote that I do believe that you will appreciate regarding his accomplishment: "a small jump for man, a big leap for publicity.” Nevertheless, as far as I m concern, the Neil Armstrong quote could have been "a small step for man, a giant step for a nation.”

Anyhow, now to my question: What do you think were the 5 most impressive individualistic accomplishments by any sport athletes? And it doesn’t have to be in a single game, but through out a career as well. Thx for the daily blog!

Jean-Serge B, Dawson City

A: Ah, man, that’s a tough one but it’d make for a good stool debate.

I’m going to mix and match a bit between single-game or event items and a career accomplishment, okay?

And this is in no particular order and kind of off the top of my head, it’ll be interesting to hear what others might come up with:

Cal Ripken’s 2,632 straight games played.

Rocky Marciano’s 49-0 career boxing record.

Roger Bannister’s sub-4:00 mile (that’s probably the most debatable)

Joe DiMaggio’s 56-game hitting streak.

Wilt Chamberlain’s 100 point game.

Wayne Gretzky’s 215-point season.

But there are dozens and dozens of others of equal greatness, I’m sure.

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Q: Doug, since we all know how much you like lists. In light of your blog about how classy and professional Jeter is as a player, how about some a list of the most dignified sports figures? You can pick the list (all time/all sports, just Raptors, just people you've covered in any sport, etc.) Who should we celebrate from a personality angle?

Chris C, Toronto

A: First two that came immediately to my mind:

David Robinson and Grant Hill, I just admire the way they handle themselves.

Now, I didn’t “cover” these guys to any degree but I think you might have to put Ali and Pele on that list, wouldn’t you?

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Q: Hi Doug. What are your thoughts on the pay wall that has gone up around the G&M and the system they have implemented; 10 free monthly views along with the home page and links from other sources are free and don’t count towards your 10 (i.e. face book, twitter etc.) Does that sound like something that ‘Mother Star’ will get behind? Any insight on how The Star is going to approach this would be greatly appreciated as I always enjoy reading the blog. The blog brings me in and then I find other things to read after it has drawn my view and I’m already here. It would be interesting to know how the fewer eyes viewing the online ads and the drop in revenue from that vs. the income from subscriptions plays out. When viewing the site on a mobile device, which sounds like the fasting growing way to view news online, are the ads as effective or as numerous when the screen size is so limited? I know this might be a better question for someone in management but your opinion is one I enjoy and any musings of yours or conversations co-workers would be interesting. Thanks

Scott R, Toronto

A: I can’t pretend to think like the kinds of people who make those paywall decisions, or don’t make them, but someone, someday, somewhere, somehow, has to come up with a workable way to monetize our websites since so many people only go there for the news, sadly.

We’ve done a great job of keeping our content free and I’d hate to see that change; I’ve had no indication from anyone that it will but, again, I am not at that level in any discussion.

I wonder if “augmenting” our regular newspaper and website features and news with extra stuff – video, expanded features, something like that – might work? Don’t know if it would, though.

I check our site regularly, on a laptop and on my mobile device and I don’t think the ads have nearly the impact they do in print, which may be a reason it seems to be hard to sell web-only advertisements.

But I fear paywalls, once they work in one place even a little bit, might become far more prevalent.

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Q: Doug, could you please clarify the situation on the protected Lottery pick the Raptors gave up for Lowry? I understand if it is 1 to 3 the Raptors keep it. If it is 4 to 14 it goes to Houston and if the Raptors make the playoffs, they keep their pick, wherever it is. Is this correct?

Dave B, Cornwall

A: If the Raptors make the playoffs they keep the pick; it is protected top three in 2013, top two in 2014 and 2015, top one in 2016 and 2017. If the Raptors make the playoff in each of the next five years, they give up their 2018 first-round pick regardless of where it is.

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Q: Hi Doug. Looks like the TOD (Team Of Destiny - Jays) is trading their manager and a player to the Red Sox for a player. Is the ability to trade coaching staff like players unique to baseball? I have never heard of this before.

Richard Y, Kincardine

A: I certainly don’t recall it happening in any other sport but they couched in terms of a two separate deals, I believe, the Carpenter-Aviles trade and releasing Farrell from his contract but it was actually all one move for all intents and purposes.

But it does seem unique to baseball.

The end of the weekend mail, sort of

Okay, folks, here’s the deal.

A confluence of events – flight back from Montreal, desire to make dinner for Super Son and Super Wife, early night because of an early flight to L.A. – conspired against me getting all the mail done.

So you read this while I fly and I’ll get to the dozen or so other questions – some lists, newspaper paywalls, all kinds of fun stuff – when I’m either in the air or on the ground out there and we’ll get some bonus mail up later.

Deal?

Have a good day.

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Q: Hi Doug. Time was it was the NFL that had the reputation of being the 'no fun league' but according to what I've read today, perhaps that moniker should be passed along to the NBA. It seems the league has put a limit on the amount of time players can shake hands, perform routines, dance moves and even skits before the game begins. The time players can now entertain the fans with routines that in some cases were perhaps getting into the territory of being eligible for Tony Award nominations is limited to 90 seconds post player introductions.

Now, I seem to recall that we'd all mock some of this stuff on the IGBT. And I also seem to recall that there was also some disgruntlement by a certain someone (okay, YOU!) that it potentially compromised writers being able to file their stories on time.

So, Doug: truth! Was it the PBWA that petitioned the league to make this rule change. And if so, what's next on your association's agenda? Decibel levels in arenas? Seriously, how do you feel about this rule change and is it true that a team contravening the time limit gets a technical? Doesn't that seem a bit harsh to you? Thank you. And Cheers! (which are sent to you without time-wasting dance moves and below 15 dB)

Lorie P, London

A: I wish it was us, would give us credit for improving the pre-game period but, alas, we don’t hold that kind of power.

Actually, the handshakes, hugs, high fives, dance routines, pantomimes, love-ins weren’t too too horrible; some of them were kind of fun. Not sure what got the league’s knickers in a knot about them but limiting them to 90 seconds is probably better than banning them all together.

And not a technical foul but a delay of game warning; and if you get two in a game, then it’s a technical.

Think there’ve been two or three assessed already and I did hear that an official through the ball up for an opening tip while Kevin Durant was still fist-bumping his teammates the other night. That would get a coach’s attention, I’m sure.

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Q: Hi Doug. My question deals with the LA Lakers and their ability to constantly retool with superstars. Is that simply a matter of the owners willing to spend above and beyond other teams and pay the luxury tax? I find it quite fascinating that the Lakers have only missed the playoffs 5 times in the 64 year history. With the Lakers having to deal with the same rules as the other 29 teams, what makes them be a playoff contender year in and year out, and have superstars constantly sign with them? Even the Celtics were bad in the 90s.

Dave R, Toronto

A: Well-managed with deep-pocketed owners willing to spend is probably the easiest way to explain it. But they also have made wise draft choices (getting Kobe in a pre-arranged trade at No. 13 was pretty smart), had cap room at key moments (Shaq), bamboozled other teams (Pau) and accumulated assets to turn into other assets (Bynum going out in the Howard deal made it possible). They’ve had a pretty good run, indeed, but you can’t point to one specific reason for it alone.

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Q: In your opinion, what is the biggest stumbling block for the Raptors playing one regular season game in Montreal and Vancouver per year. I can think of several pros and few cons.

Looking forward to Friday. Montreal's passion for basketball should be on display.

Ted S, Montreal

A: Outside of the ticketing issue with season ticket holders and any travel issues that may pop up for the visiting team, I can’t see a reason not to, to tell you the truth. They play games in London, England, for goodness sake. And I recall Boston used to play a game or two in Hartford, I believe; and I think Utah or the Lakers or someone went to Vegas once or twice.

But I guess the poobahs in New York are trying to “grow” the game in Europe more than, say, Montreal or Vancouver.

And the passion on Friday was excellent to see; we’ll have more on it in the usual fare Monday but it was an excellent night all around.

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Q: Doug. So now we have an absurd wave of attention to what LeBron James is going to do two years from now!!! Good grief. Of all the major North American professional sports leagues, none compares to the NBA for fan/media attention to off-season moves. At times I wonder if many fans wouldn't rather talk about the off-season than watch actual games. For these people the regular season and the playoffs simply serve as a testing ground for what future moves should be made. Why do you think NBA fans are so caught up in speculation about the future?

Joe S, Kingston

A: I wish I knew. I guess it can be partially chalked up to the free agent frenzy and the hope that some star will move to “your” team sometime in the future. The way the league operates compared to others in North American kind of lends itself to that ridiculous, time-wasting speculation.

Frankly, it all bores me to tears and I pay scant attention to any of it. Yawn and move on until something real happens.

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Q: Bonjour! I arrived to work and as my usual routine called your daily blog up on the 'puter. As I am sure is a complete coincidence, the gist of your missive deals almost directly with what I had been thinking about on the drive to work. There had been discussion last season regarding the lack of preparatory time that Dwane had with the team, given the shortened season and this year I have found myself wondering why they seem to have regressed on the D end, which given the full preseason one (IMO) would expect to be considerably more finely honed. So after having read the blog this am, why is it that the players are able to give less than their full attention to the preparation and still expect to progress as a team? Should not the "culture" around the team encourage, nay demand, full participation in a specifically laid out plan to improve the team's result? Or, perhaps, everyone sees the length of the regular season as time enough.

Thanks for what you do,

Doug T, Brantford

PS. have spent a lot of time debating paywalls this week. Creates quite a dilemna actually. Will be interseting to see how everything evolves.

A: It should demand that but, like all employees, I can see them getting a bit bored with the routine and that’s when attention wanes. Athletes tend to live for real, live competition and try as you might, you cannot get that in four or five practices in a week. It’s like overloading them with the mundane and minds wander. That said, they are getting better as the season approaches, guess the edge that impending games that matter helps.

And I wonder about paywalls, too.

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Q: Was watching the A-Rod bikini hunt with dismay, but it did bring to mind all types of distractions that are undoubtedly brought to professional athletes every game. In your mind, are there any 'Romeos of the hard court', past or present who have shown to be easily distracted by off court diversions?

K M, Huntsville

P.S. Agree 100% with Magloire's value as a continued Raptor - as a motivator and mentor. Enjoy your work. Thanks Doug

A: Not easily distracted but if you’re at a game, or TV shows the huddle during timeouts, watch to see which, if any, players are actually looking up in the stands rather than listening intently to the coach. It happens. Now, I’ve heard – not seen, but heard – of players sending ballboys with notes to fans of the femaie persuasion during games, not all the time but every now and then. But it’s always been players not actually in the game but those who are getting a rest.

The start of the weekend mail

Now, that was a heckuva night.

Great crowd, arena worked for us, a post-game soiree with an Irregular, an old friend who’s a local Montreal scribbler and Jay and Jacqueline at McLean’s made us feel right at home.

Not bad at all.

Early flight tomorrow to L.A. but a night of coasting so if you’ve got more queries, I can bluff more answers.

You know the drill.

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Q: Hi Doug. Careful not to party too much in Montreal and miss your flight home.

This Raptor team is very young. Is there anyone on the current roster that you see being the face of the franchise in a few years.

Howard B, Toronto

A: If I had to guess, I say Jonas Valanciunas is going to be that guy because of the combination of his personality and his skills. The kid’s got a nice sense of humour and a friendly demeanour and I think he’s going to be a player.

He also seems to me to be the kind of guy who’d welcome that, too.

And I can proudly say that in all these years I have never missed a flight. Jinx!!!

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Q: Liked your article about John Lucas III, and I like Lucas as a player. He has the right attitude, would that some of the players could learn from him. Perhaps the Raps have found a bona-fide leader. What think you?

Speaking of "pouty" players when criticized, are there many players on the Raps that you have observed with that kind of response. Know you can't name names...but wondering about team chemistry as a whole. Seems the whiners would be a detriment. With the sense of "entitlement" that appears to permeate pro sports, it is so refreshing to encounter a player like Lucas who plays for the right reasons.

Arlene E, Chesley

A: Whiners are a detriment and teammates can see when a guy is continually pouting and it does get them down sometimes. And that’s why you see trades that may not makes sense – it’s addition by subtraction – or why you may see a guy acquired (Marcus Banks was a prime example here) by a team only to be told to go home, or stay away.

And there have been some guys over the years here who I presume we all know had a propensity to hang their heads when things went wrong. Remember TJ Ford, who I quite like, loafing on the court a couple of minutes when he was a backup? I do.

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Q: Hi Doug. I was watching a preview about a documentary that Raptors TV is putting on in regards to this year's training camp. One of the clips shows the team boarding an Air Canada jet for Halifax. That brought up a few questions for me that I hope you'll answer:

Do most teams in the league lease a plane like the Raptors do or do many own their own plane?

Have you ever had the opportunity to fly with the Raptors on their plane? If you did, do you have any interesting tidbits to share about what a professional player/coach gets treated to on a plane in comparison to us regular folks?

Thank You.

Joe D, Mississauga

A: All teams fly charter, some own their own planes (Dallas does) but most “rent” as the Raptors do in an arrangement with Air Canada. But no team flies commericial. Ever.

And most of the charters – and I know this specifically for the Raptors because I’ve been on it on a few occasions – are laid out with all kinds of space to move around. The Raptors plane, for instance, has three or four rows removed in the middle of the plane that serves as a serving area for a pre-flight snack that’s laid out while the bags are being loaded.

Let’s just say it’s a very comfortable way to fly.

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Q: Doug: What's your view on fouls? I was getting tired of all the soft calls on everyone going for a layup. Detroit handed out a couple of hard fouls, one that flattened Lowery. I don't like dirty play, but once in a while, a good clean hard foul keeps everyone honest, even if it's against your team. What's your take?

Ken Burns, Matheson

A: I have no problem with a hard foul. Never had, never will, as long as it’s clean and in the run of play. And I don’t know that anyone connected with the team would have a problem with it; it’s part of the game.

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Q: Hi Doug. I see that Tracy McGrady has opted to play in China this year. And Stefon Marbury is still playing there today.

My question: What's life like for a past NBA star in China? Do they live in opulence or a scaled-back lifestyle? Penthouse suites or 1 bedroom apartments? Adoring fans, or only mildly interested?

Gary D, Stouffville

A: From people I’ve spoken to who either played over there or know the situations, it’s a comfortable life but not opulent. Regular condo-apartment dwelling, at the higher end of the spectrum, and teams will help with transportation and translation services. The North Americans aren’t fawned over but they are taken care of a bit better than the average worker.

And fan support is pretty good throughout the league, they play to about 75 per cent capacity according to one story I read. Don’t have raw numbers but that’s a pretty good total.

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Q: Doug. How do you see MLSE's recent semi-takeover by Bell and Rogers affecting the Raptors (and the other teams as well). It seems that under the OTPP's thumb, the organization was more concerned with profit than wins, given the years of mediocrity among all the MLSE teams. But my concern is that instead of the organization being sold to a private owner (who buy teams due to their own personal fandom), it was sold to two corporations, who also care about profit.

So my concern is that our Toronto teams are going to keep making moves to maximize profit rather than wins. Is my concern justified? What's your take?

John K, Hamilton

A: Don’t see it having any immediate impact at all, actually. Money, or having the resources to spend, was never an issue under the old group, it was how that money was spent that was the issue. But I do know television draws far better in the post-season than in the regular season across all “platforms” so there may be a bit more of a push from the absolute top to have success. That being said, all businesses are run for profit so that will always be a factor, regardless of ownership.

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Q: Hi Doug. Was at the Madrid game and really liked John Lucas. Obviously he's a score first PG but why hasn't he gotten more respect and could he be a solid number 2 PG after Lowry. I thought the team was so much more exciting with him as opposed to Calderon. Why can't coaching teach him to move the ball around more?

Thanks,

Alex B, Toronto

A: I think there are limitations to Lucas’s game that are well-documented; he isn’t a pass-first guard, never was and never will be so I don’t know that he’s a long-term answer as even a full-time backup. Trust me, coaches have tried, sometimes guys just don’t have what it takes to get the job done. That’s not a criticism, it’s simply a fact.

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Q: You’re off to YUL to see the oldest team in the NBA. How happy are the Celtics? If the up tempo doesn't work against the NYK, scrap it! Pondering about the semi-demise of the Mavs, remembered Dwayne and Terry Stotts were asst coaches. and we all discuss the impact of players A & B but rarely consider good coaching. How impactful can solid B Ball people impact your team? Also, I was looking at Dwayne's assistants, any special attributes jump out from the group?

John C, Mississauga

A: I think good coaches – who get too much blame when things go wrong just like they get too much credit when things go right – have a knack for getting through mentally to their players to bring out the best in them and the good ones also realize the faults their players have and don’t put them in positions where they are likely to fail.

And on this staff, there aren’t a lot of special attributes that pop out, they are all well-schooled in teaching NBA basketball fundamentals like footwork and shooting and the like and they teach well but no one stands out as a genius in any particular phase of the game.

The Goods On The Game, Knicks at Raptors

Hello, folks

And off into obscurity a national team stumbles

Of course it had to happen and anyone surprised that Canadian soccer coach Stephen Hart resigned yesterday hasn’t been paying attention.

No, you can’t coach heart or effort or responsibility and he’s not fully responsible for the debacle of this week but resigning was the honourable thing to do, I suppose.

But it, and the dreadful result in Honduras, now sets in motion a scenario I’m quite familiar with concerning national teams who fail to achieve anything of significance.

They drift far, far, far out of the consciousness of most people and the vicious circle of trying to regain some kind of image continues.

Saw it with the men’s basketball, know it’s going to happen with the soccer.

They won’t play a game of importance for at least 18 months – all the good teams will be involved in the World Cup, no one will want to come to Canada to play – the team will lose money and profile until the next round of qualifying starts in four years or so.

Making matters worse is that the women will continue their ascension in the public eye, thanks to the 2015 World Cup in Canada and the men will be even more of an afterthought. And on those rare occasion when casual fans think of the team, they’ll think of the failures and the success of the women and the men will drift further into obscurity.

Failing at such a grand level takes years to recover from because, to many normal people it’s a fringe sport at best and not having a game of importance makes them irrelevant.

Sure, ardent fans will still pay a bit of attention to the odd friendly and may track Canadians playing in Europe but the job of fund-raising and awareness-raising is almost imposslble at any major level for years.

The basketball got it back through dynamic leadership and the emergence of a fine group of young players; not sure if that can happen with the soccer.

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Sunday.

Hamilton.

Am entirely jealous of Super Son and Super Wife, who’ll be at Copps when I’m on a long road trip.

And this is a great, great tune. Dare you to listen and not tap your toes.

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Was checking in on some pre-season NBA games while sitting there watching the baseball and happened to notice Andre Drummond got four fouls in 10 minutes and had no impact on the Pistons game.

Just sayin’.

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Mail?

Would love some. Today’s going to be busy with shootarounds, likely a stop at some good deli here and then an early story to write but I’m good for a couple of hours of answering.

Click. Write. Send.

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Okay, maybe this is just me and the wacky way my mind works but I’m watching Tim Lincecum pitch last night and there’s one thing I can’t get out of my mind:

Sidd Finch.

Seriously, quite aside from the fact Lincecum is no longer overpowering, or particularly effective, there’s something there, isn’t there?

Now, I’m pretty sure a lot of you have never heard of Sidd Finch so the original story about him is here, read carefully, it’s one of the best magazine articles you’ll ever read.

As for Lincecum, it’s quite amazing what’s gone on; not sure there’s a true parallel to Ricky Romero for a guy who just seems to have lost great stuff but it’s close.

This was the Freak, a guy with the quirky deliver and awesome stuff who was dominant.

Now? Now he’s a shell of his former self and nowhere close out our friend Finch.

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I (Heart) Porter and the island airport and I really need that airline to fly to a few more American cities so I can use it more often.

Quick check-in, great location, no over-bearing security.

Dream spot, actually.

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I think there were two or three Irregulars who gave me McLean’s Pub as a settling point last night and for that I am eternally grateful.

Food was good, music on the jukebox was outstanding, location couldn’t have been any better and side-by-side TVs showing the baseball and the football made it a fine evening.

Got a nice corner seat on the bar right by the service area and after a 40-minute wander around downtown (nice city you’ve got here) was a perfect respite.

Thanks.

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So what’s up with the Raptors?

Not an awful lot, some predictable bumps and bruises that are complicating matters a little bit but other than that, not a whole lot going on.

About the only thing we’re waiting for is when they’ll carve the roster to its final 15 and with the need for warm bodies for practice, I don’t imagine there’s any rush to get that done.

And it doesn’t take a genius to figure out what that final 15 will look like – barring any trades and there is nothing going on in that regard that’s even close to serious – given what we’ve seen to this point.

Jamaal Magloire hasn’t played and I imagine we’re just a few days away from him moving into some kind of coach/mentor/community guy with the organization, a roll he’s perfectly suited for, and Jerel McNeal and Chris Wright will try to catch on in the D League, I’d guess.

That leaves the predicted 15 and things can get settled and into the routine.

Don’t know when the moves will be made though; with lots of practice days (Sunday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday next week) they could very well wait until after the Memphis game to get them done.

(Of course, in the world of Doug’s Jinxes, there’ll probably be a press release about them tomorrow).

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Hey, pucks people.

Don’t despair much.

I know in your hearts you figured there’d be a deal yesterday, or at least an all night bargaining session but that’s not the way these things tend to work.

Sorry.

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Beware the case of diminishing pre-season returns

If I were a big pucks fan (hahahahahahahaha) the news that they might be able to salvage an 82-game season (I’m dubious because these negotiations seem to be just starting for real) would be pretty neat.

But the part about them only having a week for training camp would be met with cheers and huzzahs and hoorays and whatever else you have.

We’re just over halfway through the interminable NBA pretend season – first game of Raptors regular season is two weeks from last night – and I would be if you asked every connected with the team from coaches to players to management, if they were totally and completely honest, they’d tell you it’s time to get started for real.

Yes, I know coaches want the practice days and the hours that affords them in the gyms but I honestly think that as things drag on they see diminishing returns.

As Dwane said the other day, the players are tired of the coaches, the coaches are tired of the players, the players are tired of each other and I wonder, really, how much good work is actually being done every day.

There has to be a staleness to the practices and I know there’s a staleness to parts of every game because everyone’s going over the same thing with no new challenge ahead of them.

Players, and coaches, love to have something to look forward to in the immediate future like the next game or the next trip or the next time something’s really on the line.

Now?

Now the sense of humdrum is palpable. I don’t know how many people shook their heads and agreed when I mentioned the pre-season is two weeks too long when we’ve been exchanging pleasantries these days. Everyone knows it, everyone says it in private conversation, the pre-season is at least two and probably four games too long. Take into account the two weeks or so of “informal” workouts before camp even began and you’re looking at six weeks of getting ready.

And I wonder how much good work is actually being done in practice, too. Yes, they need to work on specific sets and defensive systems but when you’re going against the same guys day after day after day after day, concentration has to wane.

The thing about practices in the season is that they are infrequent enough that they can sort of be “fresh” because they provide a respite, and a few teaching moments, from the grind of the games.

Now they are the same old, same old. And with a drawn out pre-season – the Raptors will have three stretches of four days between games and one three-day rest – it’s almost too much time in the gym.

So be excited, my pucks friends, if they do cut things to a week before they get going. The alternative is a bit worse.

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I just wanted to announce that I’ve severed all ties with Lance Armstrong, too.

Take that, Lance!

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After four games I’m still not sure what Landry Fields is going to give the Raptors on a regular basis but if it’s close to what they got in spurts last night, it’s going to be okay.

It wasn’t particularly flashy by any stretch of the imagination but it was a solid professional effort that added to the overall performances. A couple of solid off-the-ball cuts for easy layups, a couple of fast-break finishes and a vital contribution.

Dwane noticed, too.

I thought he did an excellent job running the floor, back-cutting, moving without the ball, we were going to DeMar in the post but his movement on the weak side created havoc and took out their help.

Those things you can’t teach, those are instinctive plays. We have ‘em in but a lot of times guys freeze over there and get like a magnet on the three point line. He did a great job of cutting and moving without the ball.

Now, we all know a dynamic three was on top of the summer shopping list but the hole didn’t get filled. No sense whining about it now, things are what they are and maybe that’s a spot that’s going to be quietly efficient rather than overtly exciting.

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Mail, please.

Missing some familiar names over there this week along with the kind of missives that make me sit up and take notice.

You know the drill.

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I need a joint with good TVs near the Marriott in downtown Montreal to watch some baseball early this evening, please. Maybe a joint with good bar food to sate the early appetite and maybe somewhere with a variety of taps to pull from. Oh, and somewhere not inundated with Rush fans, please.

Porter-willing, I land just before opening tip of the ALCS and I do think I’d like to sit and watch the Evil Empire get its just rewards.

Thanks.

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Okay, two smallish guards at the same time. How’d you like the 11 minutes or so of a backcourt rotation of Lowry, Calderon and Lucas?

Looked okay to me, actually. Don’t see it working all the time – it’s going to depend on the size of the opponents most nights – but there are merits to it. Another ball handler to play on the weak side, a handful of good shooters and I guess the one drawback is that it might cut a bit into the minutes for DeRozan and he’s looked pretty good so far this pre-season.

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The Goods On The Game, Wizards at Raptors

This will be four down, three to go; pre-season can't end soon enough.

Heartless soccer; old time music and a three-guard combo

Well, I still have the Black Stars of Ghana to root for, don’t I?

Guess we found out a wee bit about the Canadian men’s football team in what has to go down as one of the dark moments in the sport’s history here.

What a despicable performance. 8-1? My far more learned colleagues were incredulous at the immediate capitulation and while I am loathe to go all off the deep end because I don’t care all that much, really, there have to be major, major changes in that organization, don’t there?

Every coach in every sport at every big game ever played anywhere has always cautioned about weathering the initial storm.

It doesn’t take a seasoned observer to realize that desperate home teams are going to come out throwing haymakers and to not be ready for it is, well, deplorable.

Remind me of yesterday’s “big game” when the next World Cup qualifier rolls around, would you?

I was sitting with a guy watching the horror unfold and as the goals pile up and the Canadians looked increasingly amateurish bordering on entirely overwhelmed, he brought up an interesting point.

It’s going to be easier for a Canadian men’s basketball team to make an impact globally than it will for a Canadian men’s soccer team.

Yes, apples and oranges to a degree but if those are 1 and 1A in world sports – and they are without a shadow of a doubt – at least there is some promise in the develop of young talent for the basketball program.

I’m not sure that same optimism exists in soccer, which seems to me to be far more fractured than basketball ever was in its darkest moments.

I know there have to be great young footballers out there who are Canadian but they don’t ever seem to emerge wearing the national colours.

Why is that, folks? Enlighten me a wee bit, would you?

Is it because Soccer Canada can’t track them or entice them here? Is it because the opportunity to play for another country by dint of ancestry and passport is simply too good to pass up? Or are there not enough good young players in the pipeline to even get Canada to a second stage of World Cup qualifying.

It’s mystifying to me and it strikes me that in the two most respected games in the world, there is Canadian promise in one and none in the other.

How come?

How’s this for a minor point:

Is it all possible that the good young Canadian male athletes are simply choosing basketball over soccer? I’d say that’s a valid point to examine.

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Seriously, this is how my mind works.

Dude says, ‘hey, you’re going to Montreal with a free night, that’ll be cool.’

And I think to myself, ‘yeah, Montreal. Sweet. Smoked meat, a deli or two, perhaps a walk up the Street Of Pubs by the Bell Centre and …”

If I could have only found Youppi dancing and singing The Happy Wanderer it’d have been perfect.

But I bet this is the first time Fred Waring and The Pennsylvanians have ever appeared in a nominal sports blog.

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Oh yeah, we’ll be here for an IGBT tonight right around 7 for the titanic struggle betwixt the HOTH and the Washington’s and in the words of the immortal Billy (Red) Lyons, dontcha dare miss it.

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Justin Verlander is the best pitcher of his generation and I defy anyone to argue otherwise.

Just sayin’.

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Hey, Raptors fans?

Remember the zone defence?

Well, we haven’t seen it for a single, solitary possession this season but it’s coming, Dwane told us at practice yesterday.

“We haven’t seen it, we’ve been thinking about it and working on it a bit the last few days so we’re trying to get it in.”

The interesting part? If they can actually get stops with it, it should help them run a bit, he said.

“It’s an old adage that when you play zone, you run better. First of all, there are constant mismatches all over the floor, the shot goes up, the guy guarding you is probably not next to you so it does produce better numbers in offensive transition.

The problem with the zone, any zone, is defensive rebounding, boxing out, finding a body. But it does give us an advantage to run.”

I do see it still as a bit of defensive trickeration and not something they can use all the time but did throw a wrench in to some games last season and as an odd change-of-pace plan now and then, it should be fine.

But given how much work they’ve had to do on offence and traditional defence this camp, I can’t imagine them using it very much for the next month or so.

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Mail?

Sure.

You know the drill, right?

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So I’m sitting there yesterday trying to figure out some travel for the regular season and have stumbled upon the worst “you can’t get there from here” road trip maybe ever.

It’s Christmas Day to San Antonio then on to New Orleans then down to Orlando and you can’t get from here to San Antonio without a stop, you can’t get from San Antonio to New Orleans without a stop and there’s no non-stops between New Orleans and Orlando, either.

Not complaining, though, those are two very good cities (with Orlando being the odd one out), just pointing out that all journeys are not fun to plan.

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The pucks might come back?

Oh joy, oh joy!

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What are the few thousands of fans at tonight’s Raptors game going to see?

Well, for the first time all three point guards will be available and don’t be at all surprised if you see two of Kyle Lowry, Jose Calderon and John Lucas III on the court at the same time.

With Lucas proving to be a more than capable scorer still – he’s far more a scoring guard than a point guard – Dwane’s been toying with the idea of using some combination of the three in the same backcourt.

And if it works – I’m a bit dubious but we’ll see – it’s going to have a trickle-down effect on the rest of the rotation if Case wants to get to nine and 10 on the odd occasion.

“You have to look at your three guard combination, two of the three playing together at some point which may bump Landry to the three, DeMar to the three or whatever.

“That monkey-wrench is there; yeah, we have some issues to clear up before we get to that nine or 10.”

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