Stinky game, grandstanding pols and rating the burgers

Well, anyone who didn’t think these guys had stinkbomb or two left in them between now and end of the season obviously hasn’t been paying attention all year.

They sure got a smelly one out of their system last night, didn’t they?

-

THREE POINTERS

Slow, or non-existent motion

For lo all these games, offence hasn’t really been an issue for the lads, they’ve found ways to score somehow practically every night.

Some evenings it hasn’t been pretty, too much isolation, not enough repeated screen-roll but it’s been effective because the guys on the weak side were moving a little bit and getting the defence moving which made it easy for the guy with the ball to either get a shot or make a play.

Last night?

Not a bit of movement. Stagnant with the ball and on the other side of the floor and it was mind-numbing, not to mention ineffective.

Dwane’s been talking all season about “getting the ball to the other side” with passes or penetration but last night at least, it was if the Raptors – whoever had the ball – thought there were crocodiles on the other side of the court, that’s how afraid they were to swing the ball.

Now, I don’t imagine it’s permanent, and for seven or eight games it hasn’t been an issue but, man, was that gory last night.

-

A ref or an ump?

Sure, they blew the call on the foul with eight seconds left, didn’t think Anderson tripped Garrett and it would appear the TV replay would prove me right but that’s not too big a deal. The game was decided.

No, it was after the call, when everyone was arguing and gesticulating and generally letting the frustration of the night out that was the issue.

Dwane’s all over ref Gary Zielinski right in front of us, so much so that the assistant coaches had to get between them to save Dwane some cash.

And what’s the ref do?

Prolong the argument. Dwane was finished and instead of doing what any professional would do – which is walk away to the other side of the court to calm the situation – Zielinski went back at Casey with a couple of comments of his own.

It was silly and uncalled for.

For as horrible as the NBA officiating has been league-wide this year, they need to at least comport themselves as pros and veterans; this guy didn’t in the least. That's the kind of actions of confrontational baseball umpires, not NBA refs.

-

Give one of ‘em credit

If there was one good thing out of the night it was how active and aggressive DeMar DeRozan was right from the get-go.

Not sure the kid’s getting enough credit for the consistency of his effort and play this year but when all those around him were sluggish and blah, he was doing what he’s done all year, make mid-range shots, get to the line (he shot nine free throws) and playing his game.

I’ve had a couple of private chats with him over the last couple of weeks and I’m not sure there’s anyone on the team more focused on trying to at least make a serious playoff run.

He scoreboard watches, his play has been for the most part exemplary and if he keeps it up, he might just carry them to hugely important games in April.

-

More? Always.

Okay, there is no way in the world I understand this whole Harlem Shake thing. Someone needs to explain it to me and even then I probably don’t get it but the kids on the team sure seemed to have fun with it.

Go figure.

-

I have a lot of respect for the San Antonio Spurs, as we all know. Great organization of consistent winners and a model for the league in many ways.

But after reading the second note in My Man Monroe’s piece here, I have some serious issues with some of the players.

Seems a team outing – full on a bus trip – to In And Out Burger didn’t go over too well with some of them and anyone who doesn’t like In And Out Burger is someone I have issues with.

In fact, if you’re going with the list of all-time good, greasy, bad-for-you burgers, here’s the top three:

(And I’m going only on road joints, it’s Harvey’s over all others here; maybe McDonald’s second and if I never have another Wendy’s burger, I’d be fine with that)

Steak ‘N Shake

The grilled cheese burger, three kinds of cheese, double patty, thick Texas toast, is a wonder to behold.

In And Out

Tony Parker, cementing himself near the top of my favourites list, called the double-double “awesome” and I can only hope he had fried onions on it.

Five Guys

I know. It’s as much about the mountain of fries as it is the burger but, man, they’ve got some good grease going for them at most spots. And since there’s one about three kilometres from Casa Doug, I’m thinking lunch before Cleveland for sure.

-

Mail? I know you can see the link over there to the right but it’s askdoug@thestar.ca and I could use a nice hello or two. Please and thanks.

-

You know, there’s truly nothing like a grandstanding politician to give me a couple of paragraphs of rant.

Not sure if you heard but Andrew Wiggins was named the USA’s prep school player of the year yesterday, a pretty big honour.

Well, I saw a tweet from That Harper Fellow congratulating him and it struck me that he wouldn’t know Andrew Wiggins from Adam I don’t imagine and all it was, was pandering and trying to ingratiate him with a group of people he has never reached.

(No, this has nothing to do with politics, it has to do with politicians of all stripes so don’t get your knickers in a knot)

So, I’m waiting for someone to ask the leader of the country’s ruling party whether he’s going to go to his sports minister today and try to find some money they’ve denied team sports in Canada to put back in the funding pipeline.

That would do an awful lot more to ingratiate a politician (Official Motto: We Want Gain Power And Then Retain It Any Way We Can) that some out-of-nowhere tweet of congratulations.

-

Having finally dumped the Smelly Ford Focus on some unsuspecting junk yard a while ago when Super Wife upgraded to something new, wish me at the Smelly Ford Taurus (bigger, a bit faster, waaaaaay old and kind of broken down) luck on our jaunt around the lake.

It does mean I’m out of this loop for a fair bit this afternoon, don’t take it personally if comments get delayed.

-

 

 

Comments

[Rob.V]

Yeah, not the greatest time to lay an egg like they did last night but good teams generally have a stinker every now and then. I guess we'll see if the recent wins were simply a product of the Gay trade and whether the shine is wearing thin. I hope this team bounces back and proves that they really have turned a corner.

Burgers? I'm generally one of those "every 3 year" guys until recently however dude you are missing out! You needn't go very far. A simple stroll from you home away from home at the ACC across the street to Elleven and you will find the absolute best burger (my friends concur) imaginable.

Now, as long as you don't mind assuming a 2nd mortgage to pay the cost, they are absolutely worth every penny... mouth watering!.

Blogger's note: I've heard but don't do Elleven or Real Sports; one seems snooty, the other is a nightclub and I am soooooooo not a nightclub guy

[Geoff Read]

GM: The Prime Minister is not the head of state. The Queen is. Nor is he her representative to Canada: that's the Governor General.

Nitpicking aside, I see your point. But I'm with Doug: it seems to me like blatant politicking.

[Dave T (Ottawa)]

The biggest disappointment for me is trying to find a nicely cooked burger anywhere in Canada. If a large portion of American restaurants can cook a burger medium-rare and not get sued (in America, no less), then surely with our superior (in my opinion) beef, we should be able to do the same.

In Ottawa there are a couple of burger places you can get a nice burger. The Works, Chez Lucien, Hintonburger and so on. The Works can be a little overwhelming and isn't quite the same as "back in the day", but they have some GTA locations. Worth bringing Super Son to check one out, Doug.

[sportschic]

Yeah, I don't really get the Harlem Shake thing, probably because I'm not of the right generation, but they looked like they were having fun, and why not a little bonding that they may have enjoyed more than bowling or something else?

Speaking of bonding, I was going to mention Fatburger (so I guess I agree with Stephen Jackson on that one). The 'fat' in the title referred to an expression from the 50s. The one I had in mind was in Santa Monica, though, and it's closed now apparently.

[Hope Caper]

Great as usual Doug, seems like the Raps could use a PG that can pass. I have a feeling that is what is really ailing Bargs this year. He didn't do well with Lowry before the injury and of course Jose was gone before he got back. Maybe the trade took more than Jose and Ed out of the mix.

We have a pretty good burger in the Moncton area at a pub called the Fox and Hound. It is called... the Fox burger. BTW there is no wild meat in the meal. And there are no franchises.

[doug]

Burger Priest hands down....not even close, like last night game, ..here is a list of top canadian burger joints the Priest is on it....and the Licks in the Beaches has been closed for a few months now, condos (what a surprise)...ok cheers...

http://www.readersdigest.ca/food/bbq/canadas-8-greatest-burger-restaurants?id=8

[Mike kovacs]

I trust you would not agree with this? Any playoff experience for these young players will pay dividends down the road.

http://www.tsn.ca/nba/story/?id=416896

Blogger's note: You trust correctly.

[Lorie]

@Geoff Read: Yup. In London, Ontario you can't beat Tony's Famous Italian Restaurant (...and Tony's modernized somewhat - he recently removed the word 'Tavern' from his signage...!) for pizza. But the decor's not been changed since the 70's and thankfully the quality of the food hasn't either. @D-Mac: The Works has just opened here in London and in my opinion the food's still really good, but not AS good as your Bank Street location. Although I'm thinking that it might've been a case of just enjoying the whole Bytown experience more 'cause I was always visiting my kids when I was dining there. Harvey's fries. The stuff that launched a thousand midnight treks from downtown Brant Street thru Aldershot around Burlington Bay into Barton Street East, Hamilton to get to the location that stayed open until 2am. And you've got to have young arteries to even contemplate that trip...now, it's those damn healthy sweet potato fries with no-fat yogurt dip. Sigh. So, a Taurus. Did it come with a cassette player? :) Seriously, safe travels, Doug. Enjoy your own trek around the lake.

[jc]

Hey Doug,
Two things. I'm not sure how the media would have reacted to Bryan suggesting we blame the messenger for motivating the booing of AB. However the pic from your blog last night (not your doing I realize) had a caption that poked fun at the big guy. Worse so, the pic itself seemed intended to do so. The shot had no basket, no block, no pass..no focus other than pointing out that AB was starring at the play. As were the two other players in the pic who went uncredited. This is the same mob mentality that causes people to cheer for pizza :)
Rant aside, I wonder about something you mentioned on PTS the other day. You mentioned that Jefferson or Milsap would be great fits for Toronto. Was that "in an ideal world" stuff or could you see a way that they could fit into the Raptors payroll next year?

[ronmor]

Doug,

For hot dogs (weiners)Estabrooks in Burlington opposite the RBG can't be beat. (Also, their super thick old-fashioned milkshakes are only surpassed by Bells in Broken Hill, NSW Australia).

Watching RG last night his play confirmed the article in the Memphis paper that was cited by a reader that he goes left twice as often as right.

Washington coaching staff must have seen it too.

Jack's comment about AB needing to assume ownership for his weak play makes a great deal of sense. Andrea can't wait for the coaching staff and his teammates to make everything right without his imput. Do you think he is gun-shy because of his major injuries this season and last? VERY rarely crashes the boards when a teammate bricks a shot.

Has any other Raptors' player's game been so dissected and found lacking in the history of the franchise?

[Christian]

What do you think about the raptors trying to sign Dirk in the summer? Will definitely help out in the spacing and a big upgrade from Bargnani?

[NK]

As far as burger chains go, Five Guys has a handful of locations now in the GTA, I've seen them in Mississauga and Toronto.

Blogger's note: The Mississauga one is a like a home game for me, close to Casa Doug