Good game, good efforts and a good rant, if I do say so myself

Hands up everyone who saw that coming?

A tough, physical game on the road against a superior team and down four with 10 seconds and the Raptors win?

If you knew that was coming, please send me this week’s lottery numbers.

Thanks.

Anyway …

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THREE POINTERS

A good pair, for a night

Dwane had said he wanted to avoid using both Andrea Bargnani and Jonas Valanciunas on the court together because of their defensive deficiencies and the fact they hadn’t played together for months.

Well, that changed in hurry.

A lot of it had to do with the subtle change in rotations – you’ll notice the limited minutes for Aaron Gray – and a lot of it had to do with the success they were having.

I kind of hope it’s permanent despite the fact there will be times when they give up a lot of points in a big hurry but for one night, they were better than anyone could have possibly expected.

And it came quickly.

They were on the court together in the first quarter and later in the game as well and Dwane’s worries were unfounded.

Not entirely sure what changed his mind – didn’t get a chance to ask him in the post-game stress to make deadline – but my guess, knowing him, would be that he wanted to see what he’d get against a team that plays big on the frontcourt and liked what he saw so he stuck with it.

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A miffed Roman

I don’t know that I’ve seen Bargnani as physically engaged as he was last night and there was some toughness that I’m pretty sure few of you saw the best part.

It was right in front of us, late in the fourth quarter and Tyler Hansbrough, far more a goon than a basketball player, knocks Bargnani over in the paint.

There’s no call – of course, those three refs were terrible – and Bargnani is super pissed off.

So what’s he do?

He starts to get up, sees Hansbrough and bumps him, trips him and knocks him down.

All the time, Bargnani’s woofing at any Pacer in his sight, it truly was unusual to see.

Bargnani barked at David West, at Roy Hibbert, he took shots and gave them and if he plays like that consistently, a lot of you are going to like him.

Not sure he will, and I’m certainly not suggesting it’ll be like that all the time but it was for one night.

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Change coming?

Four minutes for Alan Anderson.

Just 13 minutes for Aaron Gray.

What gives?

Well, I’d suggest it was mostly a matchup issue at a large level, Dwane wanted to stay big with two legitimate bigs who were playing well and he got big nights out of both Gay and DeRozan.

But the way he managed their minutes was pretty good, too.

Gay only played 44 of 53, not bad; DeRozan only went 41, both had legs at the end of the game and in overtime.

Ross didn’t hurt them in the 18 minutes he was on the court and I’d suggest that they stay with that rotation of twos and threes permanently.

It gets the two key players enough rest, some run for the rookie and Anderson is there in case of foul trouble or emergency.

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More? Oh yeah, a bit

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Oh yeah, I’m still here.

Will be until Sunday at 4 p.m. so I don’t think I’ll get to the New Orleans game at 6 and the weather got me again.

But not worry, I have an idea on how to spend some time in this city if I have to.

And I have to.

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The cab’s got some dreary station playing on the radio but then the disc jockey (are they still called disc jockeys?) says Saturday is Carole King’s birthday and why not, it’s nice music.

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Pardon my rant

American Express, I think we could all agree, is a big and successful company run at all levels by people with brains and a modicum of common sense, right?

I disagree.

Entirely.

Look, I understand it snowed back there and it was a tough day and that lots of travellers on their corporate program had to make changes to their plans during the day.

I get that.

What I don’t get is how AMEX, which is allegedly a service-oriented company, could not understand that and make sure they had enough staff on to handle those issues.

All it would take is having a couple of extra operators working with the their computers from home, or Mumbai or Montreal or wherever they are.

But no, no, a thousand times no.

That big company let one guy I know pretty well (Hello, me!) remain on hold for 40 minutes before the game started and – get this! – TWO FREAKING HOURS after the game with absolutely no service whatsoever ever.

I finally gave up and made alternate arrangements and I might be done with American Express.

That’s shoddy service when they should have known better and been prepared.

End of rant.

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Oh, and since I’m going to be here all day and want to stay out of trouble, someone send me some mail so I can answer some questions.

There aren’t a lot there, it’s askdoug@thestar.ca and I welcome any and all communications.

I’ll likely be on a stool most of the afternoon and then eating a huge piece of well-marbled ribeye later so say hello if you want.

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The things you read on the road.

Check out this one from yesterday’s Indy Star wherein a woman who had been held hostage by an armed gunman who was robbing a story is now suing that store.

Not because she was grabbed by a gun-wielding assailant at the store; that might make even the tiniest bit of sense to some. Not to me, but to some.

No, she’s suing the store for emotional distress because an employee shot the gun-toting robber and freed her.

Yeah, she escaped unharmed after being held hostage and is now suing those who got her off safely.

I tell ya, I just don’t get people.

I really and truly don’t.

Oh, and catch the part where the mother of the robber is suing the store because – seriously – it “owed Atkinson (the gunman) a duty to exercise reasonable care for his safety”

That might be the story of the year right there.

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Okay, off to write a Rudy Gay feature before I hang in downtown Indy.

Hope Super Son’s got the shovel going.

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Comments

[jc]

I saw it coming when they were down 8 to start the 4th :). I guess the cosmic rule is that in a Raptor game the 4th quarter lead gets blown. I just didn't read the fine print where it said it could be the other team doing it.

[Rob]

I think you are right to be frustrated about the lack of AMEX service. BUt in this instance, that was one wallop of a storm, worst single day dump in over 30 years. They very well may have been at full staff already and the sheer volume still way overpowered them (and every other travel related service in N. America). If thats the only time that happened i'd give them a mulligan.

Blogger's note: No one should ever be on hold for two hours at 11 p.m. Ever

[Mike kovacs]

Did you see a replay of the goon move of tyler h on JV? Even his coach benched him.

When you rant about Air Canada or AMEX in this space do they ever respond to you?

Blogger's note: No, no responses that I can recall from anyone

[Rob]

Its strange how fortunes can change so quickly in an NBA game.

Rudy gay has a truly aweful game for 40 minutes, and turns it up for the final 8 and gets to be the hero and game saviour

David West has a monster game for 47 minutes and 50 seconds, and somehow ends up being the reason they lost and the game dunce

[Arlene]

My lottery numbers are on their way, Doug! Expecting another loss in a close game and delighted with the result.
The boys played their tails off and like the "tough guy" attitude. Gay is special, and feel better about that trade now. Good fit for the Raps.
Is Landry still having back issues? Wondering where he will fit in when healthy. Might there be a trade scenario with Anderson or Fields for a back-up point guard? Get your tarot cards out!

[Lorie]

Ahhh. Tapestry. The soundtrack to my high school years. Every track brings back a memory. What an album. And still resonates. Thanks for mentioning it. Here's Carole and James Taylor doing one of the many, many great songs from it in concert a couple of years ago.
http://youtu.be/wz8pfih6mxE
Oh, what the heck. You've got time on your hands. Here's the link to an entire concert! :)
http://youtu.be/3IMntLIgIq8
Great win by the Raptors last night. Thrilling to see Andrea play that way. Hope it continues. Don't you think the boo's at home will be silenced now?

[Matt M]

Damn. Here I thought it was safe to turn off the TV and go read a book when the Pacers were up by four with 13 seconds left. Next time I will know better.
Good game by the Raps. Thank you Casey for proving me wrong about your trust in the rookies (for one game anyways). Valanciunas proved he belonged on the floor, and as long as he avoids foul trouble he, Amir, and Bargnani should prove to be a good three big rotation with Gay and Gray helping out depending on foul trouble and the situation. Nice to see Ross get minutes ahead of Anderson but too bad the kid didn't have a great game. But then I'm don't really mind him and JV getting about 15 to 20 minutes in a game then sat if they don't impact the game.
It was also nice to see Bargnani engaged. He seems to have come back the way Lowry before him, wanting to fit into the team concept. It has always been the case that an engaged Bargnani will help this team more than anything that would come back in a realistic trade. Chances are that Bargnani will be here for a few more years. If he plays hard then maybe the only thing that would be bad about that is the near constant whining about non-rebounding seven footers that we hear from McCown whenever Bargnani's name comes up. I can live with that more than I can live with the Raptors downgrading their roster in order to satisfy the Toronto fans and media that don't really get Bargnani or how basketball has progressed on the offensive end in the last ten years or so. But then again, after hear McCown call Pau Gasol a 'shooting big man' and Boozer a 'low post player' one is left to wonder if he watches the game or just falls back to stereotypes whenever he has to form an opinion.

[Matt G]

Hear ya on AMEX. Two hours would beat my personal record but not by much. Brutal, and unacceptable, service at times.

Btw, that was probably the most enjoyable win of the year. Mostly because the Pacers play such a rough and tumble style. And you nailed it when you called Hansbrough a punk. Hope he gets a game or two for that take down of Valanciunas.

[doug]

I loved that game, was a total joy to watch it...reffing was equally bad for both teams, players engaged Casey coaching to win, and Gay doing what he was brought here for...one of the best parts of the game for me and this alludes to sportsmanship topic you brought up the other day, when Hans-punk-brough did his WWF crappola on JV...Vogel immediately pulled him and they glared at each other as Hans-solo went to the bench, I gained a lot of respect for Vogel in that one moment, class move by one Pacer at least....next game against Pacers in 1st quarter I'd level Hansbrough, with a shoulder on a pick, or a knee to the chest on a drive, he deserves payback for that....anyways good to see we have a closer finally in Gay....cheers

[Alan C.]

Doug, I miss the on-line gamers. None since Miami, although there was a piece of one up for a few minutes last night, then taken down. Still nothing this morning, yet I find it in the paper Star (yep, I still get the Saturday edition). What's going on?

Blogger's note: It's the second story from the top on our website now
http://www.thestar.com/sports/raptors/2013/02/08/toronto_raptors_stun_indiana_pacers_in_ot.html

[Rob.V]

15, 33, 26, 44, 53, 59. Nah, I'm not that lucky!

Great game last night. I imagine I'm one of the very few that appreciate those 69-68 grind em out games that remind me so much of the Knicks and Heat from years past. That's great Basketball. No, not flowing and graceful, but great (dramatic) basketball just the same.

It's also great to see Colangelo's move in acquiring
Gay paying off for this team because lets be be clear, there is a ZERO chance they win that game without Rudy Gay.

He's a player! Not just the final shot, let's talk about 5 steals... and the biggest play of the game, the steal at the end of regulation where he caught the west inbounds pass and had the presence of mind to get it to Amir as he was falling back over the timeline. That was a hell of a big time play.

After Gay made that shot it looked as though each and ever Raptor player realized for the first time that they have someone to help get them to the promised land. Let's hope this is a confidence builder for this team.

[john]

Good win by the Raps. Fans should enjoy the fact they have a legitimate star who can win a game in the fourth-quarter for the first time since VC. CB was never that player. JV sure played like he wanted his starting job back. He sure seems to have hibberts number.
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@poster Doug. Its not hockey.

[DaveB]

Good morning Doug. I checked into my Condo on Padre Island (near Corpus Christi) for a month. I did enjoy my day at the Houston Space Center reliving some of the space exploration milestones that happened in our lifetime. I am hoping most of the snow and storms will be gone by the time I head back north. The plan is to go through Austin. Dallas and Oklahoma City and then head east.

So, I didn't see the game last night but hear the audio for the last few minutes plus overtime. I know Rudy is the hero today, but the game was won in a large part by Amir. I realize Rudy got the steal but the "stick to it ness" by Amir put them in a position to win as well as his play in the first minute or so of overtime.

My fear is that Bryan will trade Andrea now due to all the booing and negative press. And that I think would be a mistake. I agree with you, keep him until summer and see how it works. This team is not going anywhere this year.

One person mentioned McCown. I don't hear him often, but he has nothing on this article (speaking of punk moves) by Jeff Blair.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/sports/basketball/blair-raptors-should-trade-the-poison-that-is-bargnani/article8326154/?cmpid=rss1

The Sun writes some damning articles also. Particularly disgusting are most articles by Frank Zicarelli. Ryan is mostly negative and even Mike in some articles like this one:
http://www.torontosun.com/2013/02/05/bargnanis-almost-back-does-anyone-care

I do think a change of address would be good for Andrea, but I think it is a loss for the Raptors. His 10 million a year is not bad considering some of the other contracts in the league, Rudy's and Boozer's not withstanding.

Have a good day in Indy, Doug and hopefully timely flights back home tomorrow.

[Jonathan M]

Here's my AMEX rant:

I was a gold cardholder for many years, one time at a bar away from home I left my card with the bartender as I ran a tab, as one may often do. I paid the $80 or so tab in cash at the end of the night and was given my card back. The following month, there was a $660 charge on the card from the bar. Of course, I challenged it, and received the appropriate paperwork to fill out, etc. The forged signature on the bill (charging me with champagne and all kinds of things) was such a poor comical imitation I expected no problems. Instead, AMEX sided with the bar and claimed they had verified their version, and that they considered the matter closed. I tried to contact the person who had handled the case several times, and they wouldn't let me speak to him. They set up several telephone appointments with me and then never called. The next thing I knew, they sent my bill to collections and said it had nothing to do with them anymore. So, to hell with AMEX. Rant over. Hey, how about them Raps?

[Penguin]

Your AMEX story struck a BIG chord.
First, after nearly 40 years as a "member"/cardholder, I have stopped using it and will not pay the fee for another year. Too many problems, too often, and waaaaay too much arrogance on their part.
More interestingly, my wife and I just bought the retail store that she has been managing for years. Like other retailers have done, we likely are going to drop accepting AMEX. MasterCard and Visa charge retailers here 1.7% on each transaction. AMEX wants to charge 303%, simply because THEY are AMEX. Further, while MC and VISA remits the sales to the retailer after one day, AMEX takes three, making money, of course, on the additional cash float.
Decades ago, AMEX had cachet and was accepted more broadly than MC or VISA. Today, truth is, they offer little if anything that the others don't, which also provide as good and often better service. Yet AMEX remains as arrogant as ever. So, for both me personally and likely for our new business, it's goodby and good riddance to AMEX (I say "likely: because we are checking with some of our larger customers to make sure that they have no problem using MC and Visa; we're pretty confident that it won't be an issue).

[Penguin]

Darn, wish you could edit a comment after posting. 303%% above should have been 3.3%.

One more thing, as others have said, I like the new format for the Star online, but wish it was less gray and more black for easier reading.

[Roaring Finnigan]

I'm from Winnipeg and we never get weather like their is out east. It's just cold here. Nothing like a good rant to make one feel better...Valenciunas after he was hip flipped to the floor, didn't get up complaining, even though he hurt the same wrist. You could see the intensity he played with the whole game and it was refreshing to see. If he consistently plays like this he reminds me of a Kevin Garnet type of player. I think coach Casey will have no problem playing him more than 6 minutes. JV and Amir double double trouble! (I actually enjoyed Bargnani coming off the bench).

[Penny]

Hi Doug - Hope you've found a stool someplace and are enjoying not having to shovel. Rudy played well in the 4th quarter last night but his shooting has got to improve. He was 8-24 on Wednesday and only 9-25 last night. Also, a couple of times, he didn't get back on defense because he was down at the other end complaining about the lack of a call just like DeMar used to do. DeMar, on the other hand, was great. He was fouled a number of times with no call and just continued to play. If Rudy shoots a little better, then the game doesn't go into overtime.

[sportschic]

Doug, I bet if on twitter, you link to this post with a statement that there is an AMEX rant within, you'd hear from them. Most airlines monitor twitter (or at least they used to -- maybe they see too many complaints now), so I'd be surprised if AMEX doesn't. If they knew how big your readership is, you might hear something.

Meanwhile, how about those Raps? I didn't think Gay was having a great game last night, but he sure turned it on (and around) when it counted.

I'm officially on the Amir block streak watch. ;)

Blogger's note: Okay, that'll be a stat we monitor closely

[doug]

@John it's obvious you have never played any playground b-ball..or any organized ball...as in b-ball you don't have the fights but messages get sent all the time....a well placed elbow can work wonders...watch the tape of the Bad Boy Pistons you think Lambeer wouldn't send a message come on...ok cheers..

[john]

@Doug, I am sorry, I must defer to your knowledge of the East Gwillimbury playgrounds and years spent playing in the basement of the church in organized Boy Scouts league where grudges are kept and retribution must be paid. Where a 'well placed elbow' ends all rough play because there will never be a higher one sent back. I must always remind myself that guys that retired 20 years ago are still the standard of what is played today cause the game hasn't changed at all since then. Thanks for the lesson. I get it now...

[doug]

@John you know nothing about me..,and thanks for that because if you let people shoot off their mouths, many times it's not loaded as in your case ...let people show themselves for who and what they are, lesson learned and watch some b-ball...cheers,

[doug]

@John let me really teach you a lesson...the internet or blog statements are not, I repeat are not any indication of who or what a person is...I don't mind sharing this as quite frankly your a idiot...I had a successful career as a youth care worker, it all went away one day due to me having to take care of a situation that affected my family, a situation i don't regret for a second to this day....it gave me this #537732 C that's my FPS number meaning I served time in a federal penitentiary for 3 years...Millhaven and Joyceville, 23 hour lock-up at Millhaven for a guy that never did a day in his life....I played a lot of b-ball in there, and it wasn't a church league, not Boy Scouts it was against angry men that could play, as thats all we had...guys denied parole, conjugal visits cancelled, everyday crap we had to face and emotions....one day I was approached in the yard by someone from Bifa, black brotherhood, he asked me to play b-ball with them that night in the gym, I did and was only the white person there, but I played and loved it....next day in yard aryan nation guy approached me and said I heard your playing b-ball with the "n*****s, I said I am, he told me to stop I told him to f**k off and played with theme veryday....so yes I know b-ball and tough b-ball, next time don't make such a fool of yourself, i have proudly gone on to another career and life...so please remember it's a blog not a ever a window into people and who and what they are as I have learned to waste time with someone like you is just that a waste...cheers...

[james]

Bargnani's many critics have often damned him with faint praise by saying he could be "a complementary player" on a good team if Colangelo just had the sense to trade him. Gay's arrival perhaps allows him to be a complementary player for Toronto. At his best, he is still a match-up nightmare for an opposing coach on offence, and it is my humble opinion that he is underrated defensively.

On the evidence of three meetings now and with a dramatic change in their personnel, the Raptors are obviously just as good as one good playoff team, the Pacers. An excellent game for Valanciunas; I'm starting to get quite excited about him.

[Alan C.]

Doug, re the gamer issue, I could access the article from the link you provided, but it does not appear on the basketball page of the Star sports section, at least on my computer. The second article down is NBA week ahead. It isn't on the Raptors page, either. Just thought you should know...

Blogger's note: Thanks, I'll pass it on