Raptors at Pacers game-day Dino-bytes

Our game-day look at tonight’s Raptors game.

TORONTO (1-6) at INDIANA (3-4)

Bankers Life Fieldhouse

TIPOFF: 7 p.m.

TV: TSN; RADIO: FAN590

Probable starters

Toronto: Jose Calderon, DeMar DeRozan, Dominic McGuire, Andrea Bargnani, Jonas Valanciunas; Indiana: George Hill, Lance Stephenson, Paul George, David West, Roy Hibbert.

Key backups tonight

Toronto: Ed Davis, Amir Johnson; Indiana: Gerald Green, Sam Young.

 

What happened this morning

Change happened.

According to the crack Pacers media relations staff, Indiana’s going to give Lance Stephenson his first start of the season and second of his caeer.

Not sure exactly about the reasoning behind it, we’ll hear more from coach Frank Vogel this evening but Stephenson will be in tough with DeMar DeRozan going so well of late.

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Everyone slept

No shootaround for the Raptors, who dragged their worn out selves into the team hotel sometime after 2 a.m. following that Jazz marathon.

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Speaking of …

Yes, DeRozan’s 60 minutes of playing time against the Jazz on Monday was the most of his career. But he was telling us the 44 minutes against Philadelphia the other night was no big deal, can’t imagine he’ll complain about being tired tonight. But he will be.

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Not a nice place to visit

With its sightlines and old-school fieldhouse design, the arena formerly known as Conseco is right near the top of everyone’s of favourite buildings in the league.

Except the Raptors, perhaps; Toronto has lost its last seven games in the joint.

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Once more into the breach

Most memorable Raptor moment here?

It was the scene of The Trade; we were in the hallway outside the locker room when we got word Vince Carter had been dealt to New Jersey.

Best line?

Jalen Rose figured when he heard that Jersey was involved that Toronto had to get someone like Jason Kidd back. When he was told what was in the package …

“For the first time, Jalen is speechless.”

Gotta love Jalen.

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All-time numbers?

Toronto is 23-41 vs. the Pacers and 7-24 here in Indiana.

 

 

 

 

Yes, I sure do know how to take the right games off

Wow.

Yeah, I can sure pick nights to take off, can’t I?

And, no, didn’t get to see it at all, the downtown Marriott in Indy, normally one of the top locals on the road, couldn’t find the game, despite the best efforts of Autumn and her boss.

It left us to follow it on an iPhone and the twitter and, no, at no time did we giggle at the fate of our confreres.

(Well, maybe a smirk but certainly not an out-loud giggle).

So with that in mind, we can’t get too specific but having spoken to a few people through the night and after the game, we’ll still do this.

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THREE POINTERS

Wear ‘em out because you have to

Except for the predictable last-second offence-defence move, or a move necessitated by someone fouling out, no coach in the NBA likes to make substitutions once overtime starts and for as long as it lasts.

Yes, it adds up the minutes in those marathons – DeRozan played an astonishing 60 of 63, Calderon played 50, Bargnani was at 49 – but that can’t be a factor in any decision a coach makes.

The players are going on adrenaline, mostly, and don’t feel the predictable fatigue while in the flow of the game.

But …

Tonight is going to be a different story and with a depleted roster anyway, it’s going to be interesting to see how Dwane manages some worn out players.

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Stroll down memory lane

While that was all unfolding, was trying to figure out the other epic three OT contests in history and, yes, two came to mind.

First was way back in February, 2001. Remember? I bet some writer friends of mine do.

First game ever for Jerome Williams after he’d been acquired from Detroit and had driven up to Toronto to make the game. It was against Sacramento, JYD got caught by a great back screen and Peja Stojakovic drilled the game-winning three right in front of the Raptors bench.

Epic game and I was writing the trade story and didn’t have to worry about filing on deadline.

The last one?

Wasn’t that long ago.

London, O2 Arena, Nets and Raptors and another marathon that Toronto lost.

Don’t remember a lot of specifics except Andrea took a series of potential game-winning shots, I believe.

But it was with a five-hour time zone head start so deadline wasn’t an issue then, either.

Yes, I do know how to live through triple overtime games, it would appear.

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What they need?

Well, a win would be nice, that’s for sure.

But I think the most welcome thing this week will be Wednesday off and two days of practice before they head to Boston.

(Cathal’s going on that one, prepare for quadruple overtime).

Games and travel have been coming fast and furious so far and starting Sunday they have another stretch of four-game weeks (Sunday-Tuesday-Wednesday-Friday both weeks).

A break for three days after tonight’s game will be the most important thing they can get right now.

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More?

As usual.

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A little John Cougar Mellencamp because of where we are and it fits perfectly in this Indy story.

We’re here for the Final Four a few years ago and it’s a big event, of course. Can’t remember what night it was exactly, might have been the Sunday between the games, but a huge storm comes tumbling in.

It actually turns into a tornado at some point, Mellencamp’s putting on an outdoor concert in the middle of the city and as the storm churns, they stop it mid-show and people are fleeing all over the middle of the city.

Me and Quag (an old grunt who’s now a big shot) are not at the concert, we’re safely inside the sports bar we frequent. Trouble is, it’s got huge glass windows at the front and management – worried about the whole liability thing – decides we better get the heck out of there.

So, yes, I have been evacuated from an indoor bar, we were sent up to the second floor of the hotel for safety reasons. And we went carrying our full glasses, obviously.

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Yes, the shrimp cocktail at St. Elmo’s is still as hot and great as ever and with a lunch plan for Steak ‘N Shake, the trip to Indy will be a culinary success.

If only there was a Five Guys for dinner.

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I need to become a fan of NASCAR because those guys are crazy and entertaining.

We’ve seen dudes intentionally – gently, but intentionally -- crash into each other during contentious point of a race, I’ve seen drivers standing on the track screaming at some guy driving by, I’ve seen drivers throw their helmets at passing cars because they’re so ticked off.

And now?

Now they’re getting into full-on brawls after races?

There’s nothing like a nice post-race donnybrook, is there?

Please, tell me this happens a lot and I’m all over the sport.

That’s classic, those guys are berserk.

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The joint we were in last night at the Marriott is a regular haunt of NBA officials; we run into them often nights before games and nights after.

They’re familiar to the staff, too, because the aforementioned Autumn The Bartender was talking about them.

So, which one’s your favourite?

“The one who orders the chicken sandwich.”

Guess they’re memorable only to a point.

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Phil Jackson and his agent didn’t go quietly into that good night, did he?

Take a read of this story from the LA Times and this one from ESPN.com and you’ll see just how ticked off both Phil and his agent are over the decision to bypass him and hire Mike D’Antoni.

Now, I suspect there are, like always, three sides to this story – his, theirs and the truth – but it’s a rather distasteful end to this saga, no?

And Jackson comes off a bit petulant, the Lakers come off looking like they snubbed a legend disrespectfully and I will say this:

If Buss family – Jeannie and her boyfriend Phil, Jerry and his son Jim – have a big Thanksgiving dinner planned for next week, I hope someone takes video of it.

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D'Antoni with Lakers will put some show back in Showtime

So, Mike D’Antoni it is.

Woke up this morning after a nice relaxing eve to find out that no, Phil Jackson will not be the next coach of the Los Angeles Lakers but that Mike D’Antoni got a four-year deal to do the job.

Let the fun begin.

This is going to be great, I think; D’Antoni is just the kind of hands-off coach the veteran Lakers need, he’ll put an offensive system in place that relies a lot of freelancing and high screen and roll and I know that guys like Nash and Kobe and Pau and Howard will thrive in it.

Say what you want about D’Antoni, and I’m sure there are those in New York who weren’t entirely enthralled by him, but his teams are fun to watch. They get up and down the floor quickly, there’s a lot of three-pointers and hard rolls to the basket and, really, this has a chance to be the closest thing to Showtime out there than anything since the halcyon days of Magic and Kareem and the lads.

It’s going to be fun to watch and it really puts some “oomph” into the Lakers. Even with that Hall of Fame-studded lineup – at least from the feeling I got being around them for four days and from the games I saw this year – there didn’t seem to be much joy. Yes, they talked about long hours in the gym and how they were working hard to figure out the nuances of what Mike Brown wanted to run offensively but I didn’t see an awful lot of smiles.

You watch them play now. They will be giggling it’ll be so much fun just to unleash their creativity and talents without many restrictions. Cannot wait.

But is it the right hire, given that Jackson was out there and obviously on the list?

Absolutely. No question at all.

There’s no doubt Phil is a great, great coach, all those rings mean something but, to tell you the truth, he looked worn and beaten down when he walked away after that disastrous series with Dallas. I’m sure he’s a bit revitalized by his extended leave but even when his name was first mentioned on Friday, I was a bit dubious.

The fact he was trying to find a way to not coach all the games – the travel really gets to him – and the fact there’s a large dose of “been there, done that” to his interest made me wonder if a different direction wasn’t the best.

D’Antoni is certainly different, and the right choice if they want success coupled with fun out there in LaLa land, they’ve got it.

And it sure makes Christmas Day, Knicks at Lakers, far more important and likely entertaining. Better check my flight to San Antonio that day so I can be sure to see it.

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Apropos of nothing, heard this on the radio yesterday and when Super Son gets done nailing the Jungleland sax solo, he can move on to this CCR tune and I’d be quite happy with that.

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Raptors?

Well, since we mentioned Alan Anderson is on crutches and Kyle Lowry was at the doctor during practice yesterday, it’s probably going to be Kleiza or McGuire who starts tonight.

Which one? Not sure it really matters, I’m thinking it’s more likely to be McGuire but that fact Dwane made it a point to suggest he needs McGuire on the floor with Lucas to take some of the ball-handling duties makes that a total guess.

Luckily, we don’t have long to find out, we’ll know sometime around 7 tonight.

And when we do, I’ll be somewhere in Indianapolis trying to either find the game or decided whether I want the medium-rare ribeye or the prime rib at St. Elmo’s.

Bad flights on the back-to-back get me the night off, Not Grace Kelly will be your chronicler this evening.

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Those zany lads who run FIBA have started screwing with the world championships, the qualifications for them and the Olympic qualification and for the life of me, I cannot figure out why, except it’s some kind of a cash grab, control demand and it could – if it goes ahead as basically planned now – take all NBAers and even collegians out of the qualification processes.

Read the details here but the short strokes are that they are changing the qualification process for the worlds to something akin to soccer’s – broken into groups and played out over two years with home-and-home series between countries. They are talking about doing it in November, February and June some years, and there’s no way in the world NBA teams or even EuroLeague teams are going to let their players go to play.

And, for some reason, they are going to increase the number of teams in the worlds to 32 (that’s 16 too many, to tell you the truth because Micronesia vs. Tunisia is hardly worth it) and they’re moving the worlds to an off-year (2019, 2023, 2027) to get them away from soccer’s World Cup.

That’s not a bad idea, the rest of it seems cockamamie and not well thought out, to me, and I’m sure there will be more debate before it’s finalized.

What does it mean for Canada? Well, if Canada can’t get its top players released for the qualification process, it’s going to suck big time and they need to press FIBA to make sure that doesn’t happen.

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You watch the Argo game?

Good for you, if you did.

But it was tough for some of us and rather telling.

Baseball Steve (a rabid Argo fan) and I were trying to find a couple of stools for the game. First place we tried, a joint with about two dozen TVs, couldn’t put a single one on the CFL because it’s got a contract to show solely NFL on Sunday afternoons and we had to do some sweet-talking at a second place and cajole them to move a Minnesota Vikings game off one of the screens.

Respect? CFL gets none.

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Speaking of FIBA, how about this.

Not that it really means anything, actually, but Canada has somehow reached the top 10 in combined world rankings, according to the list you can see here.

Of course, it’s based mainly on the top-8 Olympic finish of the women and the great age-group success the junior and cadet teams had and the men have a long way to go to get back to relevance but it’s still kind of neat, I guess.

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The end of the weekend mail

As I promised, here’s what was left over from this morning, have a good rest of your day.

Me? Even when there’s no hockey, there’s hockey. The ACC’s got some old guys game or somesuch as I sit here waiting out practice.

They better get done soon, I have an Argos game to watch.

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Q: Hello. How about the NBA doing something about the cameramen along the baseline? With all the new technology couldn’t they install some remote controlled devices and save some players' ankles?

I see one of the Oklahoma players thinks Bargnani is a waste of a big man who only shoots from the outside. Is it time to show everybody his drive and dish move? Oh wait, he did that already once in a game.

Bob E, Kanata

A: The cameramen are a huge danger and needs to be addressed before someone blows out a knee, or worse. There is a rule that says there has to a three-foot wide clear escape lane directly next to the stanchions but it should probably be wider. It also says the photographers need to be four feet off the baseline, I think some might creep and that should eight. They also have to have soft lens covers mandated by the league.

I like the remote devices thing, for sure, you should be on the competition committee, I’ll mention it to Bryan.

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Q: I earlier posted a list request of stools (or chairs) that should not be missed. Norm's chair at the faux Cheers Bar at Feneiul Hall, Boston was one. In addition, a burger at the SNL featured skit "Billy Goat Tavern" should probably be there too. Any additional can't miss travel spots?

Thanks as always.

Nick K, St. Catharines

A: The thing of it is, I tend to avoid those kinds of cliché touristy places because they’re generally filled with, you know, gawking tourists. Have never been to the Cheers place in Boston, have been to the Billy Goat but it was years ago. My tastes tend to run to local saloons, lobby bars and familiar restaurants where I can see old friends.

That said, The Fours in Boston, Major Goolsby’s in Milwaukee, Hoops in Auburn Hills, The Palm in the Sheraton in Philly, St. Elmo’s and its cousin Harry and Izzy’s in Indy, Ri-Ra in Charlotte are don’t miss places if I have the nights off I need to enjoy them.

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Q: One thing that drives me nuts about the NBA is the amount of traveling players get away with. Refs are pretty good about travels that directly affect the defender on a drive, but other travels that occur, particularly when a player is receiving the ball (Lowry is just one culprit) are routinely ignored, I imagine to 'speed up the game'. To my mind it cheapens the game, and makes players lazy about their feet and more liable to travel in other situations. When I played in high school, such things were always called. Should that not be a 'point of emphasis', or am I just being crotchety?

Alan C, Lindsay

A: I think you might be over-stating things a bit.

If you go through this and find the definition of travelling as it is in the official rules, it might help a bit.

Do they miss the odd travel? Probably. Do they intentionally ignore it to speed up the game? Not a chance.

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Q: Doug greatly appreciate what you do, I enjoy the slices of non basketball info that you put forth. One of the things in your articles that you sometimes do is to give us game photos by the star photographer, any chance we could see the photos being a bit more of a regular part of what you do, maybe put the squeeze on the tall foreheads.

Keep up the good work, thanks from the good folks in nova scotia

Gary K, Truro

A: I would if they were available but not all photogs put together the same picture blogs or photo arrays that Stevie Boy does. If they do, I will.

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Q: Greetings, possible early mailbag here. Several times I have seen you refer to 10/15 games being the period necessary to start to fully understand what Bryan has wrought. Just curious, is that period of time a typical proving period or have you taken the HOTH's specific schedule into consideration? They do seem to have a concentrated early season in so far as the number of games and the proportion of road games.

Part two, if the HOTH competed in one of the western divisions (as a home division) what might change in their makeup or approach?

Thanks for what you do.

Doug T, Brantford

A: To me, that’s pretty typical regardless of the schedule. I think it takes that long for most teams to shake things out, even the good ones.

Not sure they’d change much in another division, you get the guys you’ve got and go with them. In a perfect world, I suppose you’d piece together a roster to take a shot at your closest rivals but you don’t get to pick and choose your entire team.

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Q: Hey Doug: I don't know if this wildly entertaining, or interesting, or thought-provoking, but here goes.

What do you think of MLB's policy of teams having to interview a minority candidate for certain positions? If you were a member of a minority, and you were interviewed just because someone had to be interviewed, would you not feel like the 'token minority?' I'm not sure that it accomplishes what MLB thinks it accomplishes.

Thanks!

Tim H, Windsor

A: I can see where some might see it as some kind of tokenism but I don’t have a problem with it at all. Not only does it force teams to broaden some horizons, perhaps, but it also gets people into the interview process who might not get there. And the more you learn through one or two or even three interviews, the better chance you have at polishing yourself and your interviewing skills that might help you land a job.

Now, I wish we lived in a world where it didn’t matter but, sadly, we’re not quite there yet.

Luckily, there's a long way to go; and please, please remember

I have not felt the wrath of war or its costs; Super Great-grandpa served and his medals are a source of tremendous pride. But that’s as close as it’s hit me and those I love, I cannot imagine what it’s been like for people touched directly by it.

And all of those things we take for granted – free speech, voting, our basic freedoms in life – are available to us in no small part by the men and women who serve their country.

Please, do not ever forget them.

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Now, if your angst and anger of the night has dissipated a wee bit – and I really hope it has because there are 76 games left and I don’t want any heads to explode – we’ll get to the usual far.

 

THREE POINTERS

Was it supposed to be easy?

Really? Was it? If you thought that, some re-examination needs to occur.

This was always going to be a process, things weren’t going to turn overnight and the impatience is, frankly, staggering.

Yeah, they’ve played terribly for stretches of pretty much every game but they’ve also played well for some stretches of pretty much every game. It’s what’s going to happen with all teams except the truly good, veteran ones and this isn’t that yet.

What it is, is a work in progress and progress is coming slowly.

So, no. No one needs to get fired, they’ve made some tweaks and will make some more and they will play 76 more games and we’ll see where they are then and make decisions on personnel from the front office to the of the bench then, shall we?

I understand some of the frustration, I don’t understand – and never will – the thought that all of sudden things should go from bad to good.

And don’t give me “it’s been four years” because one isn’t the other. This isn’t last year’s team, just like it isn’t the 47-win team of 2007.

It’s new, it’s not bad and it’s got a long, long, long way to go.

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Get him started

First play?

A post-up for Bargnani.

New few plays?

Lots of shots for the enigmatic Roman and even the detractors have to admit he was pretty good all night. The numbers were solid – 23 points on about 50 per cent shooting, five rebounds, three steals – and the effort was consistent.

But now the learning has to come.

Philly doubled Bargnani in the post more often than not, waiting until the first dribble before bringing a second defender from the weak side, and the big fella’s got to get used to that.

He needs to be more decisive and quick, either going or passing and he cannot wait because you might see more episodes like the pass that flew into eighth or ninth row of the seats.

But they did what they needed to do to get him going and he responded.

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Too small for kids

No, Jonas Valanciunas didn’t play a lot in the second half – first eight minutes or so and then the night off – but there’s a fine, logical reason.

They didn’t need him. They needed to go small (Dwane explains it pretty fully in the story here) and let me ask you this:

If you’re Toronto and you’re only going to play one big, which one are you going to play?

The guy who gets you 20 points a night or the kid who can’t?

A no-brainer.

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A wee bit more?

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I’m not sure exactly what this is but they are playing a professional sports game in Toronto today that’s happening after a regular season has ended.

Playoffs, I think they call it.

And since no one around here’s really used to them, it’ll be interesting to see what kind of crowd the Argos draw for their Eastern semifinal against their traditional Eastern rivals from, um, Edmonton.

Hope it’s a great crowd but I have my doubts. And if you’re there or watching on TV, here’s something to consider and something we chatted about on the McCown show the other day.

The suites and lower bowl of the Rogers Centre – the only seats the Argos sell – total about 27,000 or 28,000 available seats, according to people who’d know this sort of thing.

So if there are wide swaths of empty seats as there seem to be for every game I’ve watched on TV, not sure they’re telling the absolute truth when they announced audiences of more than 25,000.

Anyway, I’ll be watching from the comfort of a couch or a stool – practice ends about 12:30 or and then there’s writing to do so going is out of the question – and I bet if you do, you’ll be entertained.

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This is kind of fitting, no?

Great Canadian singer on an important Canadian day?

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Haven’t forgotten the rest of the mail, imagine I’ll get it knocked off later this morning and have it here as some kind of bonus later on this afternoon.

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Dear Alex Anthopoulos

It’s a really slow news time this week, can we please have a managerial hire to dissect.

Regards

Most TOD fans.

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Poppy?

Yeah, we’ve got Poppy.

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And that’s that for this morning, shorter than usual a bit but it’s a Sunday and it’s a lazy day.

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The Goods On The Game, Sixers at Raptors

Hey, click this to get the IGBT, I'm told Sorry for the confusion.

Sixers at Raptors game-day Dino-bytes

Our now-traditional, post-shootaround look at tonight’s Raptors game.

 

PHILADELPHIA (3-2) at TORONTO (1-4)

TIPOFF: 7 p.m.

TV: TSN; RADIO: FAN590

 

Probable starters

Philadelphia: Jrue Holiday, Evan Turner, Dorrell Wright, Thaddeus Young, Lavoy Allen; Toronto: Jose Calderon, DeMar DeRozan, Dwane Casey Won’t Say, Andrea Bargnani, Jonas Valanciunas

Key backups tonight:

Philadelphia: Spencer Hawes, Nick Young; Toronto: John Lucas III, Amir Johnson.

What happened this morning

A depleted group

Kyle Lowry is taking it slow and sure with his sore right ankle and he’ll miss his second game. Most interesting thing about it is he said he originally hurt it in the summer and is now being careful not to rush back.

And Landry Fields won’t play. He’s got some soreness and discomfort in his right wrist; he saw a doctor Friday who referred him to a specialist he’ll see next week. No, there is no prognosis yet and, yes, it has contributed to some of his early-season results.

Trickle down effect

The absences are forcing Dwane Casey to tweak his starting lineup but he probably would have made changes anyway and there may be more coming.

The coach, mindful that we’re so well read here that the Sixers will be checking, is holding his cards close to his vest and said we’d have to guess who his starters will be. He’ll tell us around game time.

So, let’s guess.

To be a bit of a contrarian, I’m going with Calderon, DeRozan, Dom McGuire, Bargnani and Jonas Valanciunas but I think Valanciunas only gets about five or six minutes to start.

Tune in tonight to find out.

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Here’s one for you:

The last time these teams played was April, late in the season and Toronto trotted the likes of Justin Dentmon, Ben Uzoh, Solomon Alabi, James Johnson and Gary Forbes off the bench in a 93-75 loss.

That’s an average D League team.

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Sixers are hot.

After averaging about 83 points a game in their first four, they exploded for 106 in a win in Boston on Friday night. The guard duo of Holiday (21 points, 14 assists) and Turner (25 points, 11 rebounds) was pretty good.

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Fashion warning

It’s camouflage jersey night as a way to recognize the Canadian armed forces and tomorrow’s Remembrance Day. It’s one of two times the Raptors will wear those delightful uniforms this season.

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Ooh, it’s a tiebreaker!

The all-time series between the Raptors and Sixers is tied 32-32.

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Zach Zarba, Sean Corbin and JT Orr are the officials, if that matters to any of you.

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The start of the weekend mail

Man, you folks got me this week.

Here’s a whole whack of questions and there are some leftover that I’ll get to later today for tomorrow morning as a special added bonus.

I’d finish them off now but there’s grocery shopping to do and then a shootaround to get to for the game-day Dino-bytes.

Have fun with this and we’ll be back around 7 for the usual IGBT.

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Q: Derek's comment about sports psychologists reminded me of Tony Robbins (yes, the big head, big hands, late nite infomercial, fire walking Tony Robbins) telling the story of how he worked with Byron Scott when he was a Laker to improve Byron's shooting percentage. Robbins says it worked and it was documented by Life Magazine. My question, you have been around enough teams, enough guys, to see slumps and streaks... what is your opinion on sports psychology and what guys like Robbins can bring to the table?

David W, Oakville

A: The Raptors have a sports psychologist on a retainer as a consultant, have for years and it’s just another tool players or coaches can use if they see fit. I don’t for a second think they “solve” problems but if they can help in a small way by being offering advice, why not take advantage of them?

I think they bring an outsider’s look at an insular organism like a team and that can sometimes be good. But it’s not for everyone, there are players and coaches who’d rather keep things private, and that’s fine, too.

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Q: Looks like our Lightning is off to another great NBL season and hopefully won't be looking back at the loss of Gabe Freeman. You've mentioned how the NBL is a helpful incentive for young Canadian players to work for a pro career, but is not necessarily a stepping stone to the big show.

But I was wondering - does the NBL give coaches a better chance to showcase their talents for the NBA. I think we've got some good ones; not sure if the gig here will advance any coaching careers. What do you think?

TL I, London

A: I don’t think it gives them any kind of resume boost, most coaches – primarily NBA assistants -- get jobs in large part because of who they know when opening occur. That said, the more you coach, the more different situations you have to handle strategically and in dealing with personalities so in that way it’d help.

But I don’t thing any NBA GM or head coach would say, ‘hey, this guy’s been coaching in Canada, we should give him a look.’

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Q: Hi Doug. Thanks for the blog and all your other efforts to keep us entertained. Your company with my breakfest every morning is much appreciated.

I have a quick question about the way Raps games are being officiated. I am admittedly a fan of the Raps, and so there is at least some bias at play. However, it has seemed to me that we have been getting called for a whack of ticky-tack fouls and not getting the same treatment when we're on the offensive end.

Officiating in the NBA is a very hard job, but consistency is important. I know that they always give the 'name' players the calls, but we were getting whistled for everything against Dallas and Minny in particular and all their name players are currently on the shelf.

Is this just my own homerism at work here? Do the Raps need to earn a reputation as a halfway decent team before we get a fair shake? Did Dwayne at some point in his career say something unflattering about a Ref's mother and now finds his teams forever cursed?

What is your take on the way our games are being officiated?

Thanks for your efforts, and I am interested to know how you (and the irregulars) feel about this.

Matt S, Toronto

A: I think, generally, NBA referees do an outstanding job. Are the blown or missed calls in the course of a game? Yes, but not as many as you’d think.

I also think that every fan of every team thinks it gets a bad whistle on a handful of occasions every game so, yes, there probably is some homerism at work.

I’ll pass on this story:

We’re talking to Dwane on Friday about the game on Wednesday and the top of Valanciunas’s foul trouble comes up.

I had lots of comments about how Valanciunas doesn’t get the “respect” of the officials and how some of the calls are bogus and someone makes that point to Dwane.

“No,” the coach says, “those were all fouls.”

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Q: Hey Doug, love the blog. My sister will be playing CIS basketball next year for the Ottawa U Gee-Gees and since I'm a hardcore basketball fan I would like to prepare scouting reports for her on opponents she is likely to guard. I am wondering what an NBA pro scouting reports includes or looks like? (Ex: tendency to go left, bad free-throw shooter, cheats for steals etc) If you could show us a detailed scouting report, that would be great. Another thing, I think Andrea Bargnani needs to get the ball on the block more often and especially early in the game. I find that he turns the ball over more frequently when he drives from the 3 point line to the rim. By getting the ball on the block, he can use his excellent mid range game to open up his drives. Also, by getting the ball early in the game, I think he is more likely to play harder on defense. What do you think? Once again thanks for the input.

Frank B, Cornwall

A: Sorry, but it’s not like they make proprietary scouting reports available to the media so, no, I can’t show you a detailed one. But I’ve seen one or two in my day and they include a lot of the stuff you mentioned – tendencies, favourite shooting spots, lapses that might be exposed, favourite play calls at specific times of games. It’s not rocket science, it’s pretty much common sense.

And, sure, Bargnani works well in the post – but only if he gets himself planted in the paint; if he gets pushed a metre or two out, he’s in no man’s land and is far less effective. He’s better at the elbow, in my opinion, or out at the top of the arc.

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Q: When the Raptors drafted Terrence Ross I thought the would be getting 20-25 guaranteed minutes a night like Demar did. One of the reasons they said they drafted him was because of the need for a wing player to hit the 3. With Fields's struggles and the Raptors generally poor 2/3 rotation why is Ross not getting more burn? Do you think he would be better off with 20-25 mins a night?

John T, Mississauga

A: No, I don’t. And no, I don’t think he should be getting 20 minutes a night at all. He’s not physically ready yet, he doesn’t have consistent shooting range, he certainly isn’t strong enough to guard 3s and if you give him 20 minutes at the 2, that’s 20 minutes you don’t have DeRozan on the floor.

Yes, Ross is a good shooter with a lot of promise. But, no, he’s nowhere near ready for a major role and I don’t think one was ever envisioned for him as a rookie.

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Q: Doug, based on reading your blog I know you have strong views about Hall of Fames and retiring numbers for various sports. Just wondering what you think makes someone worthy have having their number retired or being a hall of famer for all sports. I think if we look at statistics of a player and compare them with people of the same era that would help plus historically. But what about playoff success, winning awards, leading the league in scoring, being on the first, second, third NBA/NHL teams. Are there anyone you can think doesn’t deserve to be in the various halls?

George B, Kitchener

A: I’m going back to my old friend Potter Stewart (google him) for the basis of the determination of what makes a Hall of Famer.

I don’t know what the specific definition is, but I know one when I see one.

It’s not just championships or stats or all-star teams; it’s a combination of all of them.

And while I’d love to got through the lists of Hall of Famers in all sports, or even just basketball, and figure you who doesn’t “deserve” it, time precludes me doing that.

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Q: Hi Doug, realize this topic has probably been talked to death already but I was wondering if you could reach out to your contacts within the Raptor's head office and see if the so called "poison pill" contracts that are being thrown around by teams (ala the one we gave Landry that screwed the Knicks and the one that the Rockets gave Lin that also screwed the Knicks) are being factoring into contract discussions?

I understand that teams writing the poison pill contracts average the cap hit but those accepting the poison pill have to take the hit as written (meaning we average Landry's contract over the 3 years so he counts 6m a year for us but for the Knicks he would have counted 5m each for the first 2 years and 8m the last year).

If Collangelo wants to ensure that retaining someone like Derozan is not going to screw up his cap space a couple years from now then it's maybe better to accept paying an extra 2m a year but average it over 4 years then taking the chance that someone will offer a similar contract to DeRozan where we would have to take a 15m cap hit in the same year that Barg's and Amir are free agents?

Anyway thought this would be an interesting slow news day discussion! Thanks again for a great column!

Abraham R, Toronto

A: Don’t actually have to “reach out” at all, we’ve already asked Bryan about the potential for something like a restricted free agent deal fit into his negotiations on the extension and he said it was a minor, minor factor.

It certainly wasn’t the prime reason they reached a deal and it wasn’t event a huge consideration. A small part of the thought process is all.

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Q: While reading about your anticipation to read Rosie's book on Pat Burns, I thought that you'd be a natural choice to write the definitive biography of Jay Triano someday.

Bo K, Mississauga

A: Thanks, and I’m sure Jay would offer his thanks, too. And then we’d both wonder how big a seller that might be. Kind of a niche book and it’s hard to get a lucrative contract to write a niche book.

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Q: Hey Doug: I plan on reading the Pat Burns book when I finish the latest Grisham book.

If you were to write a book about any Canadian athlete you wanted to, who would it be, and why?

Thanks!

T H, Windsor

A: It’d be Nash, for sure. So many layers, such an impact on his country and his sport. Someone good’s going to do one whenever he gets around to retiring and thinking about it but it’s been mentioned and he’s not close to that situation yet.

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Q: Do you think the Raptors have enough NBA pros to put together 2 "teams" either of which could "start" or for that matter "finish" a game in the NBA? My point is to have two different looks to throw at an opponent and to have Dwane decide which team to start any given game. For example, sometimes Jose and his crew start with a pick and roll offense lead by a pass first point guard. Next half or next game, Kyle Lowry starts with his shoot first offense. And yes I sure do think Amir should be on Jose's crew along with Andrea Bargnani. Just as DDr is made for Kyle's crew. I mean, why have a group known as starters? What's the point? BTW Jonas is the only Raptor that I can see being ready willing and able to play on either crew.

Greg A, Nanoose Bay

A: No, not only do I not think they have the necessary talent, I can’t see that working. It’s a matchup driven game and what you think might work one night won’t work the next. You find out each night where you have advantages and try to exploit them the best you can.

Books, Bonds and how sweeping change should be

A little digression off the top, if you don’t mind.

You get to know some pretty fascinating people doing this gig and I’m not talking about athletes or executives or celebrities of that nature.

I’m talking about colleagues, the giants of our industry, the writers, pontificators and shapers of debate who by the strength of their skills and personalities make this one of the most wonderful crafts out there.

Rosie DiManno is one them, a valued colleague, a dear friend, a powerful voice and if you want to make some pucks fan happy this Christmas, her new book on Pat Burns is a must-buy.

Of all the great writers in our city, I’d put my friend right at the top of the list for the depth of her knowledge, the passion she brings to the job, the body of works she’s put together in a career many of us could only hope to have.

The Burns book just adds another layer and I can’t wait to get at it.

There are not nearly enough Canadian sports biographies out there, I don’t think, this is one that should be in every library.

It was officially launched at this very cool bash last night and it reminded me, again, how lucky I am to run in such circles.

This is a pretty darn good era of Toronto sports journalism and newspapering as a whole. We have gifted young writers and grizzled old veterans who lend context to the events of the day.

The readers of the four papers are served like few cities in the world, there is something for everyone, varied opinions that should stir debate and provoke thought.

And seeing a whole gaggle of them in one room made me pretty proud to be a very small part of it.

We don’t have events nearly often enough these days, those of us in the business seem to be working too much, pulled hither and yon by assignment and life so that we don’t get to sit around and tell stories and see each other and whine a bit and share a drink and our experiences.

And when we do, it reminds me again what a truly great group we have.

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Vince Carter.

(Nothing new about him, just thought I’d throw the name out there for old time’s sake).

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So I’m told there’s a new James Bond movie out these days and it probably isn’t enough to drag me into a theatre.

But it will spark some debate, I presume.

Best Bond ever?

The list starts and stops with Sean Connery, doesn’t it?

Really, when you first think of Bond don’t you think of Connery? That’s the litmus test to me and, besides, I’m of the age that when I’d sit with Super Grandpa and watch the movies, it was Connery we saw. And first impressions are best.

I’d probably go with Roger Moore a distant second and the others are all just imposters.

I’m right, right?

And if you’re looking at best Bond theme songs, I think you need to look at Carly Simon, don’t you?

The woman can sing a little bit.

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I’m so quick at getting this done that in the time it took me to type this, Alex Anthopoulos did not acquire a relief pitcher.

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News that Mehmet Okur is retiring evokes fond memories of how some of us can spin a yarn into something more than it is and a cautionary tale about putting too much stock into some reports.

It’s the NBA Finals before Okur left the Pistons in ’04, he’s going to a free agent and this fellow I know from the New York Post is after a story.

Well, he speaks to Okur off to the side one day and the next day it’s all over his paper that the big fella has designs on joining the Knicks in the coming summer.

Catches a few of us off guard, including the late, great PR man Matt Dobek of the Pistons, who now has to deal with a minor distraction during a championship series.

Matt asks Okur what the hell he was thinking giving up that kind story at that time of year.

Memo’s stunned.

“I don’t know. He asked me if I liked New York. I said yes. He make me a Knick.”

Yes, some of us can turn a non-answer into a story in the blink of an eye.

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We’re down a bit on mail and since we’ve got another Saturday night game that’ll make Sunday just another day-after-game morning, let’s get at it today, shall we?

Click. Write. Send.

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Wonder what Dwane will do.

When last we left the intrepid Raptors coach, he was telling us that something might have to give with his starting lineup in the wake of Wednesday’s 36-point debacle of a first quarter in Dallas.

Now that he’s had a day to think about it and chat with his staff about possible changes, wonder if he’s made his mind up.

But I wonder how sweeping his change might be.

I have a feeling that Anderson for Fields may be the move that’s made (maybe Kleiza but I would be surprised) and that’s a bit of scape-goating because, yes, Fields has been an offensive disappointment but it’s not scoring that’s killing them in first quarters, it’s effort.

I don’t think he’ll do Bargnani (I think finding out early what he’s got and reacting accordingly is the right thing to do nightly) and I don’t think they should do Johnson for Valanciunas, although that would be second on my list. DeRozan’s been their best starter, I’m fine with Lowry when he’s healthy because he’s morphing into an excellent player and leader so the options really are limited.

But here’s the thing:

It’s five games in, it’s not panic time (no matter what some of you may think) and given the schedule and the opposition, I’d say 1-4 is right about where they would have figured to be.

Maybe 2-3 had they been able to steal the home opener against a team that’s better than they are right now but 1-4 is a legit record and if they get Philly on Saturday and steal one against Utah at home on Monday (tough task, but doable), they’re 3-4 and right about where everyone should have expected them to be.

 

 

 

 

 

When everything old becomes new again

Yeah, I’m way late, like an hour late, hope no one was waiting.

Confluence of 90 minutes sleep coming out OKC, a long day Wednesday and a post-game meeting with an old friend brought solid slumber.

We’ll be better next trip to the central time zone.

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THREE POINTERS

Ah, Vince.

He’s like the ghost that haunts the franchise or something, right? The curse?

But I have a question to ask since I’m hearing all this stuff about how he didn’t want to leave and how it all ended when it finally ended and I’m thinking one thing:

Is this 2004 or 2012?

Seriously.

The stuff about him going to the staff the day before he got traded and telling them he wanted to make it work and would do whatever it took to make that happen is so old, it’s become new again.

It’s been written here for years and years; it was the day before the trade went down, in a conversation with a coach in the Nordstrom’s at the Circle Center mall in downtown Indianapolis in which he said he’d do whatever it took to make things work – come off the bench if necessary, work wherever in the rotation best suited the team – and that was conveyed all the way to the top of the food chain.

The next day – the very next day! – they panic and do the worst trade in franchise history.

So, yes, there is more than enough blame for that debacle to go around, but to think it’s “news” is dead wrong.

Two more points:

No, I don’t for one second think they should even consider retiring No. 15, Vince was the most gifted player in franchise history and he put the team on the map and was responsible for its greatest success.

Maybe there is a way for them to honour him with the 20th anniversary coming around, maybe there’s a Ring of Honour or somesuch for Carter and, perhaps, four others as the top five of the first 20 years.

But retire the number? No way. Shouldn’t even think about it.

And this whole thing about him coming back somehow to end his career with the Raptors?

Well, what did you expect him to say but yes? If he wants to play after this deal is over, and he will have reached his 15-year goal at the end of this (you can read about that here) but why would he limit his future possibilities by saying no? That would make no sense.

Look, the guy can still play, we saw that last night. But I don’t know if next season he’s a good fit in Toronto, it’s a nice thought that I cannot imagine becoming reality.

And now we will leave Vince until the middle of next month when the Mavs come to Toronto and we dredge up something old as new again, again.

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Wither Ed?

Well, since you asked, I asked Dwane about Ed Davis and his limited role last night and it was, as I should have known, nothing to do with him.

“Amir had it going, it had nothing to do with Eddie … Andrea and Amir had it going and I wanted to ride with them.”

That’s hard to argue with, actually. Johnson had basically his best half of the season in the second half and so, too, did Bargnani and that’s why Davis didn’t see the court after halftime. I might have been convinced to give Davis the four minutes that Acy got but that’s not my decision to make. And it wasn’t the deciding moment of the game, the deciding moment of the game was the first 12 or 15 minutes.

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Wither Andrea?

Yes, it was a solid second half and some pretty good numbers (25 and 9 on 20 shots but five misses on five three-point attempts) and on the whole he wasn’t bad at all against the Mavs.

But his lack of hustle and intensity in the first quarter bordered on shameful and was a huge component in the HOTH being so far behind so early.

There’s probably not one solution to that issue – and I am in no way advocating taking him out of the starting lineup – but I think it might be a good idea to run two or three of the first three or four plays for him every night since he’s always been a guy who wants to get involved early and if he gets going offensively, his defence and overall effort perks up.

I know that’s kowtowing a little bit but I’m okay with that, they need him to be better more quickly and, most nights, you’ll find out early what you’re going to get and can react accordingly.

Worth a try?

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More?

There’s a bit because I’ve prattled on too long as it is.

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Once more to the Dallas tunes, if you don’t mind.

They don’t make ‘em lke T-Bone Walker anymore, do they?

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This is just off the heart of downtown Dallas and perhaps the Parking Gougers in downtown Toronto would take note?

Nah, didn’t think so.

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Mail’s really down for this point in the week, can you help a fellow out, please.

Click. Write. Send.

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Two things I’ve come to hate with, as a wise woman once said, the white-hot intensity of a thousand suns after a few days on the road.

People who get off an escalator and stop dead in their tracks.

Next time, I swear, I’m running right through you and knocking you asunder.

Then I’m going to step over your prone body and hope your luggage has spilled all over the floor and everyone can see your private bits.

And I’ll giggle.

People who talk – loudly – on their phone in the airplane the second it hits the ground.

Text, people! Or e-mail! We all know the flight was fine and we really don’t give a rat’s bum that you love your loved ones, are glad to be home and will meet them at the usual place.

Silence sometimes is golden.

And get off my lawn!

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