Well deserved honour and the most boring way to lose dramatically

As usual, a handful of tiny items to finish off the week, am sure something will catch your fancy.

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You’ve got to like it when good things happen to good people, right?

That’s why it was pretty cool yesterday when NBA Tall Foreheads named Masai Ujiiri as the executive of the year.

Yes, he’s the same guy who was the director of global scouting here in Toronto and an assistant general manager during his three years with the Raptors before he moved on to be the executive vice-president of basketball operations out in Denver.

His work over the last year – and that doesn’t include his excellent handling of the Carmelo Anthony fiasco – got him the well-deserved honour; it’s all laid out here in the press release from the league.

Now, I’ve known Masai since 2007 (I remember sitting in his office working on this story a very long while ago) and you could sort of tell that he was on a path to something significant back then.

Here’s a guy who paid he dues all over the world, built a career from the ground through sheer hard work and diligence; it’s nice to see someone like that rewarded.

Now, I also do think it says something that he earned his stripes under the tutelage of Bryan and The Henchmen and every time I speak to Masai, he makes sure I know that he wouldn’t have gotten anywhere had it not been for the opportunity he got here so many years ago.

And I know he called Bryan a great role model and Wayne Embry a mentor when he was talking about the award yesterday and I know that to be the entire truth.

Masai learned an awful lot about the inner workings of a front office when he was here; nice to see it pay off.

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This is good Friday music, isn’t it?

Because I know smart people, I am now a bit familiar with Coachella and the Of Monsters and Men set will be blaring in a second.

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Was listening to TOD on a drive home when last night’s defeat was accomplished.

A walk-off walk?

Seriously?

Now, I’m trying to think if there’s a worse way to lose a game in any sport than that?

It’s like death by a thousand paper cuts – well, four to be exact – and that fact it takes so long to play out has to be a killer to teammates, coaches and fans.

Wouldn’t you prefer a homer, or a double and single on back-to-back pitches? Or anything other than a walk-off walk?

Other sports when they get to those situations – and it’d generally be overtime, I guess – conclude with at least a bit more drama.

Sure, a 10-point basketball lead with a minute to go in OT is boring but you could just as easily get a buzzer beater.

Not much beats an empty-net pucks goal to tie and hockey overtime – I’m told – can be quite tense and concludes rapidly.

Football? I guess a long, boring run-dominated drive could be a bit of a snorefest but it’s sure not a boring as a walk-off walk.

Not even sure you should celebrate that.

What are you supposed to do, mob the hitter at first base as he saunters down there? Nah.

You should probably just look sheepish and walk back to the clubhouse.

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Mail!

Please!

I see some sweet friends over there but there’s not an awful lot of questions in the queue and we’re at that time of the week.

It’s askdoug@thestar.ca, help a guy out.

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Speaking of baseball …

Pitchers and catchers – and infielders and outfielders and hitters – reported for The Mighty Navy Tigers and, I tell you, we might not suck.

It’s a short spring training – Opening Day is Tuesday – but at first glance, they can all hit, throw and run; a solid combination in a house league baseball team.

But I have to tell you, after a solid round of giving infield, one of the coaches needs to ease into the season.

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Okay, Sir Alex Ferguson hands ‘em up at Man United and he’s a giant in the coaching business, Not Grace makes the point that he could be the greatest coach in all of sports history and I can certainly get on board with that.

Ferguson’s record is incredible, his longevity is laudable, his impact on growing Man U into a global entity cannot be understated.

We haven’t had anyone like that on this side of the pond ever – no one whose team has become a worldwide phenomenon along with other stuff, that’s for sure – and as Ferguson walks off into that good night, it should be one of the most emotional, significant nights in years and years and years, right?

Well, my friend Mighty is on the tweeter and finds a little note that says tickets for Ferguson’s last game, and I quote …

“Going for up to 500 (pounds)”

Up to 500 pounds?

Shouldn’t they be a lot more?

I’m guessing they don’t have the “secondary ticket market” over there that they have here; I’m also guessing scalpers aren’t as prevalent and I’m totally glad that the ownership, unlike some that shall go nameless, didn’t go with the gigantic prize hike we might see over here.

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Wings tonight!

Well, that’s not a totally uncommon occurrence for some of us but it’s Wing Fest and since I’ve got to scarf down all or parts of 20 wings, I better take it easy on the snacking during the day.

There will be no huge salads (like there ever are!) and the in-take of deep fried brown things will be a minimum.

And if I don’t totally screw it up and anyone’s organizing a Pizza Fest, I know where you can get a judge cheap.

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Why do people have to act like dopes?

You know me and fans, right?

There needs to be more civility and respect for those around you at games, you cannot be loutish or overly loud or increasingly inebriated. You need to behave as grown up human beings, have your fun certainly, but don’t be knuckleheads.

Now, that rant a few days ago was primarily aimed at the way spectators treat each other; there’s a whole other level that’s equally troubling.

The way fans – some, not all, but more than you’d think – treat athletes is, frankly, shameful.

Personal attacks, the “you suck!’ screams, the inane criticisms of everything from hair style to off-the-field-of-play interests is ridiculous and, like the boorish behaviour of fans towards those around them, it can ruin a night.

Now, I’m all for good-natured heckling as long as it’s done in fun and not mean-spirited. A good line can bring a smile to a players’ face, the night the guy in Philly told Reggie Slater, ‘hey, Reggie, I saw your game, it’s on a milk carton’ was pretty funny.

But this?

Look at this and you tell me if any professional athlete deserves to put up with that crap.

I saw that repeatedly on the tweeter sometime during the night so I can’t say for sure who first put it out there first and give credit but explain to me, please, what in the world that couple could have been thinking. What were they trying to accomplish?

To goad Noah into doing something extraordinarily stupid? To try to make themselves feel more a part of the action? To get themselves on TV?

Athletes in all sports know they have to suffer some kind of indignities as they go about their business, it comes with the territory and that they are able to shrug most of it off is an impressive display of self control that I don’t think gets nearly the appreciation that it should.

Yes, they are highly paid professionals and some things come with the turf; stuff like that doesn’t and shouldn’t and it’s shameful.

It probably doesn’t speak to society as a whole, just to two idiots with good access at a major sports event who got caught being buffoons.

But it sucks.

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Now, I’m sure I’m way late to the party on this but this Metric combo’s pretty darn solid.

Some people out there with good taste.

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Okay, of all the things we’ve come to expect from the Chicago Bulls, a shocking lack of composure would not have been anywhere near the top of the list.

Six technical fouls. Two ejections. Worst playoff loss in franchise history. Joakim Noah channeled an old Bulls sage: “Yeah, I would call that not keeping your cool. Not being very Zen."

We know that emotions run higher in the post-season than normal, there’s more at stake, there’s more adrenaline flowing, things can get out of control quickly if you let them.

Good teams, great teams, good players, great players have a way of not giving into to those circumstances. That’s exactly what the Bulls uncharacteristically didn’t do; they caved.

It’s going to be interesting to see what they learned, how they comport themselves in Game 3. There’s nothing to suggest they won’t revert to form but, then again, there was nothing to suggest they’d misbehave as they did Wednesday night.

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Really, folks.

Mail. Need some. Have, like, two questions over at askdoug@thestar.ca and we all know we need more than that.

Thanks.

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Everyone enjoy their Quarter Pounders yesterday?

(Cat? Go among the pigeons)

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Now, I’m sure a lot of you would realize that I was not glued to any television set last night watching the pucks – there were far more fun pursuits to take care of, thankfully – but I have been reading and was paying attention later in the evening and it sounds like a cracker of a game.

But here’s the question for those who watched intently or were even there:

Does the fact it seems to be a hugely compelling game, a plethora of goals, some hits, some great plays and close calls and dynamite entertainment as a one-off event at all mitigate the final result?

Is there any part of anyone today who thinks, ‘wow, that was a special night, I’m glad I got to see and live it’ or is the level of angst over the 3-1 Leaves series deficit render that impossible to think?

I would imagine the answer is an overwhelming yes, and that it’s hard for so many of you to separate event from result and it’s that at least a little unfortunate?

By all indications, it was a delightful night of high intensity competition, too bad that couldn’t be enough.

Sometimes it’s okay to be a fan of an event rather than a team, makes the totality of the process a bit easier, I think.

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I’m guessing the whole “Ricky Romero has figured it out” narrative took a beating last night, didn’t it?

It still amazes me that a pitcher who had significant success at the highest level could all of a sudden lose it; it has to be a combination of a physical issues and mental toughness, doesn’t it?

There’s no way it could be just one and I imagine that’s got to be the most frustrating part for all concerned. If it was just one thing – a bad release point, a lack of concentration – it’d have to be far easier to fix. That it seems to be a bit of both, and you know this is speculation from afar but sometimes that’s what we do here, has to be the most troubling.

Back a couple of summers ago when I was doing some seamhead work, I had more than a few chances to deal with Romero, he was a good guy, easy to get along with, always had the time for prying reporters.

He’s just one of those guys you hope has success and I still do.

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A clear and present danger exists every night

I haven’t seen an awful lot of gruesome things during games I’ve been at in person – the worst, by far, would have been Garbo’s ankle/leg injury in Boston – but I’ve seen all the same horrific stuff as you have on TV.

That shot that JA Happ took off the head during the Jays game last night was as bad as anything and underscores the inherent danger of near catastrophic injury that every athlete operates under every time they take the court or the field or the pitch.

It’s scary, isn’t it? You’re a young man doing what you love and being richly rewarded for it but at any split second it could all come crashing down through no fault of your own.

(Yes, the same “danger” exists for a lot of other professionals and people in every walk of life but the “public” aspect of sports makes it different and it seems to hit a lot more closer to home)

I don’t know that living with that thought is something any athlete does consciously, it would impede them far too much from doing what they can to the best of their ability.

And maybe because they don’t have it even in the darkest recesses of the minds, that’s what makes the able to go out and push their bodies as hard as they do each and every game.

A line drive to the head. A blown out knee. A head shot that causes irreparable damage in the short and long term.

All are things are clear and present dangers. Every single night.

JA Happ – and every pitcher at every level of professional baseball – know that they are exposed every time they throw the ball.

Every basketball player who gets four or five feet off the ground, helpless, knows what could happen.

Every hockey player who goes speeding into a corner or across the middle of the ice is vulnerable.

Every football player in a scrum with other behemoths is one missed step from disaster.

Yet they don’t think about it, can’t think about it. It what makes the good ones stand out from the not-so-good; it’s part of what separates them from mortals.

What happened to Happ was horrific, we can only hope for speedy and complete recovery from whatever damage was done; we can only wonder what his mind will be like when he’s back and able to pitch again.

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How about that?

The Day of Reckoning – the “we have to have a decision and we have to have it now, this is the turning point in franchise history, how can they sit around and wait day” – came and went with the Raptors yesterday and was …

Business as usual.

There never was going to be a kneejerk immediate reaction to an annual end-of-season report, it’s not how things work in the real world, where major decisions are thought out and analyzed and taken after much consideration.

We might be a week, maybe 10 days, maybe three or four days from any resolution, all those breathlessly waiting to unload on whatever decision is made need to stand down for a wee bit longer.

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One of the great joys of this little exercise is you never know what’s going to evoke response, either good, bad or ugly.

The little item yesterday about McDonald’s and how I’m going to have to go there today because I like to support their charitable endeavour (and because I know people who have urged me to try it more often of late) really got some of you going.

And it was quite fascinating to read; if you’ve got some time, go check the comments out.

I always find it fascinating which little item will get some of you going, and I think it’s a testament to the wide range of personalities that come to this little daily cocktail party. You never know when a cool conversation will pop up out of nowhere.

Oh and then figure out if you want to grab a big burger today, I’m pretty sure I will and I know others who enjoy them in the regular course of life are going to as well.

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I honestly can’t remember where I heard this but someone mentioned it was Bob Seger’s birthday this week.

And since we share Birth Month, why not …

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Speaking of fast food …

T-minus two days ‘til the gig as a judge at the Toronto Wing Fest (it’s Friday, the Rotary Club of Toronto Skyline raises funds through it and you can get all the details here) and I’ve got to tell you, I’m quite looking forward to it.

There’s two groups of wings – 10 “regular” ones if you will, 10 “specialty” ones – and while I go into it with an open mind entirely because that’s the right thing to do, here’s a list of …

Three Favourite Things About Wings

(Mind you, this will in no way impact any decisions made Friday)

Not too saucy

Sure, they can be messy, it’s what they’re supposed to be but too much goop takes away from the taste, doesn’t it?

Drumsticks, please

If I had my preference, I’d take the little drumsticks all the time; not that the other parts aren’t tasty, just a bit more difficult to handle.

Lots of napkins

I hate – HATE – saloons that drop off a dozen wings and two scrawny little paper napkins. Irks me no end.

What have I forgotten?

Oh, and I cannot imagine this happening but if someone tries to pass off “boneless” wings, I’m suggesting the find the Toronto Chicken Finger Fest because that’s what they are.

This is going to be a hoot, hope to see some of you there.

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Mail.

Please.

Looks like Friday night is dead and who knows what the means for Saturday morning so let’s get started early, okay?

Thanks. It’s askdoug@thestar.ca.

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Good and bad news emanating from Canada Basketball yesterday.

The good would be that things are going to start next week for the women’s senior team and they’ve got an ambitious schedule ahead, as you can see and a group of players that seem to present a solid mix of veterans and kids.

Now, given that they’ve been exponentially more successful than the men over the last half decade – a fact lost on too many – it’s going to be interesting to see how the changing of the guard rolls out.

The men, meanwhile, got a bit of blow now that Anthony Bennett, who still looks like a high lottery pick in June’s NBA draft, is going to be sidelined about four months thanks to shoulder surgery.

That shouldn’t have an impact on his NBA career – he’s still looking like a top 6 pick today – but I can’t imagine whatever team drafts him is going to look too favourably on him playing for Canada in this fall’s world championships qualifier.

It’s not a crippling blow – I still think Canada has more than enough talent to qualify – but it’s certainly not great news.

The men don’t get going for real until much later in the summer, too bad they won’t have a huge key future component available to them.

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The one "platform" that matters more than all others

You know, sometimes it’s not quite fair.

I understand that we will in a media age where immediacy seems to be the key over all else, instant analysis, multi-platform delivery of information through video, audio, the written word and “engagement” with the readers.

We spent hours and dollars doing investigations of malfeasance and any number of wrongs in the world and that is all well and good, it is important part of what we collectively do.

And it would appear readers want the still pictures and the moving pictures and to know us as more than simply reporters and recorders of fact; they want to be involved in the craft to no small degree and we placate them as best we can.

We do it quickly, we tweet, we get fast stories up on the web, we are immediate deliverers of information and we can add context and nuance as time moves on.

I’m not sure it’s right and there’s a bit a constant lament of mine that sometimes goes unheard: It’s that I don’t know how many people – those who practice the craft and those who obtain their information from it – pay attention to the words and how they are put together.

The writing.

It hit home early one morning – and I mean crazy early – when I finally got around to reading the full issue of Sports Illustrated that had the Jason Collins cover.

It is entirely incongruous to me that I was lying in bed reading on some magical iPad mini thing – nothing as old fashioned as paper for me in that regard and I’m sorry – and came across a story on a new anthology coming out of collected works of the legendary and iconic Red Smith.

He was the practitioner of the craft at the highest of levels, able to paint a picture and tell a story like few ever could.

They had this, the first paragraph of his “game” story on Bobby Thompson’s “shot heard ‘round the world” as the best newspaper sports story lede paragraph ever and, well, I don’t know that we can argue that fact:

“Now it is done. Now the story ends. And there is no way to tell it. The art of fiction is dead. Reality has strangled invention. Only the utterly impossible, the inexplicably fantastic, can ever be plausible again.”

Now, I’m sure there are wordsmiths out there today who can be so lyrical and who can nail the precise right at the precise right moment (“strangled invention” works at so many levels) but I wonder if too many of us are worry about tweeting and blogging and getting stuff first rather than best that something is being lost.

It probably is and that’s too bad.

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Seriously, if you had an office with a view of, say, a parking lot and you were wanting to kill some time while you got some work done, you could be way worse off than if you were to dial up some Bob Marley to get you through a report or something.

This came up on the shuffle the other day …

And it’s one of those you can’t get out of your head for a while.

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Now, I will fully admit to not being as a big a fan of McDonald’s as some – although I have driven through more often lately it seems – but someone needs to remind me tomorrow to grab up a burger or something, okay?

It’s that Ronald McDonald’s House day where a cut of every big thing bought goes to the charity and I can help out and feed myself, well, that sounds like a great day, no?

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No, I was not able to keep the old failing eyes open long enough to see the end – or very much – of Golden State-San Antonio last night but reading around the tweeter and the web this morning it hit home again:

Experience counts.

And playoff experience counts more.

And that’s why – I don’t care what your chances are or what your record might be or how overmatched you may be on paper – it’s of vital importance to be in as many playoff games as possible.

You can’t tell me that the Warriors won’t learn valuable lessons in these games on what it takes to close them out, how consistent the effort has to be, how hard you have to play on every possession.

I don’t know what will eventually happen in that series (oh, wait; yes, I do) but I do know that the youthful Warriors will be better off for having gone through it.

Oh, and that Steph Curry will be an idol to tens of thousands more fans because he’s becoming “the” story of the post-season.

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Getting drilled 7-0 in a place where they can never seem to win with any consistency and mired in a season long funk where they alternate between not being able to pitch or hit or catch, you’d figure TOD would mail it in, take another licking and chatter some more about trying to figure it out before it’s too late.

Well, it might be too late anyway but if there’s any such thing as momentum and a single game that can turn around your fortunes, you’d have to think the Blue Jays comeback win in Tampa last night would be the moment, wouldn’t you?

I’m not a great believer in momentum from one day to the next – I think baseball momentum is based almost entirely on the quality of that day’s starting pitcher – but if fans want to hang their hats on a two games as being turnaround moments, I’d guess Morrow’s start and the 10 runs Sunday coupled with Monday’s shocking comeback would be a good thing to do.

Hope so, at least, it’d be nice for them to get on a little run to make things more interesting when the dog days of summer arrive.

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The time has come to make a decision

So, is this week we get some resolution?

No one’s talking on the record – or even off it an awful lot, for that matter – but there are rumblings that there might be some chatter at the top levels of Maple Leaf Sports this week in the regular course of business that could lead to some kind of answer to the one burning question surrounding the basketball team.

Now, this is not going to be some “showdown at high noon” or anything like that, I think there might have been a bit too much drama apportioned to this whole situation than is real.

It’s not like two “sides” are going to stride in a boardroom like opposing lawyers discussing contentious settlement issues. It’s very much been business as usual over there, even with the future at cloudy as it might seem.

People need to get on with what they have to get on with, planning the summer and the fall, doing research into players and possibilities for summer moves; there is work to be done and it’s getting done.

As I’ve said often, however, I do think a quicker resolution is the best for all concerned.

I would suggest any HR Lady worth her training manuals would suggest that anything left hanging – especially something as significant as who is running the show – is counter-productive; it’s not that people aren’t doing their jobs because they are all professional enough to realize that work needs to be done but clouds and major decisions left hanging are not good.

You know what I think should happen: I think they should at least guarantee the last year of Bryan Colangelo’s deal, let him and Dwane Casey get on with trying to make the team better and more relevant and remove any issues in that regard.

I know there will be howls to accompany that opinion – I think there’s still some zany mystic interest in Phil Jackson, as if he’d be able to come in and magically change a team on a specific course immediately – but I do think it’s the prudent thing to do.

But I also am firm in my belief that it needs to be done sooner rather than later, I can now understand why it didn’t happen in the week after the season given the change at the very top but it’s been long enough now that everyone should have been able to do his research and know what course of action he wants taken.

Take it. This week. Sure, it’ll mean more work for some of us but I’m wiling to put up with the inconvenience

(I keed. A little).

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A fella’s mind works in weird and wonderful ways; had this ringing in the ears all weekend.

Go figure.

But, no, you cannot have too much Mitch Ryder and the Detroit Wheels in the morning, can you?

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Quick fashion question, please.

Gotta run up to the closet to get ready for the day; what clashes with blue?

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And another one bites the dust.

All PJ Carlesimo did was take over a team in disarray, get it to 49 regular season wins and a playoff berth and today he’s looking for work.

Yeah, coaching in the NBA can be one tough gig.

Brooklyn’s an interesting case, though, isn’t it? If you want to look at a capped-out roster with pieces that will be extremely difficult to move and a roster that seems to lack just something tough to describe (passion? Energy?) that’s it.

And now, dissatisfied with a guy who did an admirable job, in my opinion, they’re off in search of some big-name coach who’d probably be a bit leery of the roster he’s getting.

I think it speaks to the basic impatience of an owner who has pie-in-the-sky expectations; a general manager who thought he was doing what his boss wanted only to realize he’s stuck with a questionable roster; and players who simply didn’t get the job done and likely wouldn’t have had Red Auerbach been on the bench.

And PJ paid the price.

But it’s forever thus and this year, the coaching situation in the NBA is entirely out of control and it’s going to be a wild summer of movement.

You’ve got, so far, Brooklyn, Philadelphia, Charlotte, Detroit, Milwaukee and Phoenix looking to fill holes. We have no idea what’s going to happen in Atlanta and with the Clippers and Minnesota is a question mark as well. Toss in inevitable questions about Toronto until things get settled and that’s a possible 10 of 30 teams hunting for something new.

Make sense?

Not to me but then I’m not running an NBA team, I’d like to think I’d have more patience but who knows if that’s the case.

Anyway, what I wonder is how many of the displaced coaches from this past year – PJ, Lawrence Frank, Alvin Gentry, Avery Johnson – will end up back on the treadmill.

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How good is this?

We’ll do a fair bit more as the week progresses but the good people at the Rotary Club of Toronto Skyline have, for some reason known only to them, asked me to be a judge at their wing fest this Friday night.

It’s going to be great and now I can rationalize all those nights in all those saloons ordering various wings as doing “research.”

If you can get tickets, you should.

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Much angst around the NBA writer/broadcaster world yesterday when we found out LeBron James was somehow one vote shy of becoming the first unanimous MVP in league history.

I, of course, did vote for him, as I told you at the end of the regular season when ballots had to be in and I cannot comprehend how someone could have put Carmelo Anthony ahead of him for any logical reason.

And I think, in the interests of transparency, we need to make voting more public. It’s a point we’ve made to the league for the last couple of years and this year – when we’ve Luke Babbitt (???) get a Sixth Man vote and David Lee and Ty Lawson get MVP votes – we may have hit the tipping point.

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The end of the weekend mail

Well played again, folks.

Thanks as always, some good stuff here. And when you take a break from this wondrous weather -- a nice peaceful day with friends would be nice -- enjoy.

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Q: Doug, what are the top 3 must-dos for the Raptors to improve next season, apart from personnel changes?

Cheers

Ron F

A: That’s actually a pretty easy list if you take specific roster moves out of it.

They need to defend better, individually and collectively.

They need to trust and become more familiar with each other so that they have no compunction about passing up a good shot so that someone can get a great one and know that if the tables were turned, teammates would help them in that regard, too.

And they have to shoot three-pointers better because the overall impact on spacing for other wings and the emergence of Valanciunas as a post threat will increase exponentially.

Are those three things achievable? Without a doubt.

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Q: Doug

I have been thinking about the reaction to Jason Collins coming out both in the NBA and beyond. It was treated as almost a non-issue in the league. Does this indicate a general broad-mindedness or just that those who were upset with the event were smart enough to realize that it was best to just shut-up? Don't know if you saw this article about Glenn Burke?

http://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2013/05/actually-jason-collins-isnt-the-first-openly-gay-man-in-a-major-pro-sport/275523/

The author makes the point that he expected the first openly gay athlete of this generation would come from baseball. This got me thinking about the 'cultures' of the four major sports. Could you give a summary of how you see each - you can include MLS If you want?

Bruce, Mississauga

A: I like to think the reaction spoke to the way society as a whole is evovling, it’s seen as not that big a deal but I still contend the message it sent to young people, teens who may be strugglng with things, was the most significant part of it.

As for the cultures? I know this is probably too stereotypical but I do think basketball – with its history of race relations and its record with hiring of women in significant roles – is a bit ahead of the curve as an inclusionary sport. It didn’t surprise me at all that it was so accepting of Collins’ announcement.

I think there there remains a macho, war-like element to football that is a bit off-putting, I think hockey is a bit more closed (even many of the Europeans who play have been trained or well-versed in the North American culture) and I think baseball crosses so many different cultures there’s a bigger mix than in any other sport and that makes it hard to pigeon-hole.

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Q: Hello Doug.

There are lists going around of all the things that are new since the last time the Leafs were in the playoffs. How about a list of some improvements since 1967, the last time they won the cup. Can you list, say three things that you wished we still enjoyed? (Cheap gas? the Princess Phone? Howard Cosell?)

Any ideas on what we may enjoy when the Leafs do win the cup again. Flying cars? A transit system that works? A basketball team that is consistently in the playoffs?

Regards!

Bob E, Kanata

A: Three things I wished we enjoyed now that we had back then?

Time.

Time.

Time.

World’s too fast right now.

And here’s one for you: If you’d asked in 1967 what we’d be enjoying if the Leaves didn’t win the Cup for another 45 or so years, I bet someone would have said “flying cars” then so I’m going to stick with that.

And interplanetary travel.

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Q: Hi Doug

As now Mississauga has an NBL team and Brampton just introduced the A's what's you take on the NBL expansion? I believe Mississauga is a perfect location for the Power.

10 teams from 7 in two years, do you think there is a future for growing the league and have western provinces joined soon? Is there a long term plan, if so what does the NBL need to do to have a Canada wide 15-20 teams league?

Thanks,

Corben, Mississauga

A: I was going to get into this a bit more in the next little while but, yes, the NBLC expanding to Brampton and moving the Oshawa team to Mississauga is great for us folks on this end of the GTA but I really wonder if two teams in such a tight geographical area will work.

I hope so but I don’t know if it’s sustainable in the long-term.

As I’ve said from the very start, the most important thing is slow and steady growth, not getting ahead of themselves by trying to do too much too quickly and I think they’ve done that. Western teams may eventually work but I think they need to solidify every in our area and the East first. Montreal’s team has some issues that have to be dealt with and they need to have a solid, established base before too much more expansion is on the horizon.

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Hello, Doug

So, I was sitting in a neighborhood bar the other night with a few friends, and the conversation eventually turned to....bars! And we started ranking the local ones. And then we branched out to ones we'd been to in Toronto, too. And we were having so much fun - which might have had more than a wee bit to do with a patio, a starry night and a couple (okay a couple times several times a few more) pitchers - we expanded the rankings to hotel bars the world over.

Now, some of my friends have travelled a bit more than I have (my pick was for the Coq D'Or at The Drake in Chicago - ever been? Historic significance: it opened the day after the end of prohibition! That's some timing, eh?) and named places like the Bar Hemingway at The Ritz Carlton in Paris (!) and the Bascule at Cape Grace Resort in Cape Town, and another in Hong Kong whose name escapes me.

Now, you've been around, and seen some things in your time, and I'll bet a few of those things and times might've happened in hotel bars. :)

Care to give us your favourite Top 3 Hotel Bars, and then maybe name one or two that you haven't been to as yet, but are definitely on your One Day I'm Gonna Get There List? Thanks!

Lorie P, London

A: I have been in the Drake bar, some years ago, but I remember it being pretty cool.

Now, most of the hotel lobby bars I find myself in these days are nondescript and the same, few stand out.

But three from all time?

The Oak Room at The Plaza in New York. Spent more than a few road nights in there finishing an evening with good company (Hello, Butch) and a good cigar -- that's how long ago it was. You never knew who you'd see in there, once said hello to Richard Belzer and while others were complimenting him for Homicide: Life on the Street, I was all about his star turn in Elmopalooza.

Not sure about the names of these next two -- lobby bars tend to meld together -- but there's one in a Marriott directly across from Hyde Park in London -- the other London -- that was very cool and one on the roof of a hotel called The President, I believe, in Athens that I remember as a standout.

Oh, the one in the Westin Prince in Madrid, too! Almost forgot that one.

Thanks for the call on the Hemingway joint, that vaults to the top of the list.

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Q: Hi Doug

Should be an easy question to take care of hanging on the deck with Stella (but there are so many other good Belgian women out there... I digress).

Does Wayne Embry still have a role with the team? If so, to what extent?

I remember that he managed to come in post-Babcock and somewhat right the ship in terms of the cap and player situation, setting the stage quite well for the next guy. I'm not necessarily suggesting he do the same patch job (in fact, I don't think the situation is that bad -- I do see ability with the current roster for movement/improvement), but moreso pointing out that in many situations, it's not as hard as it seems to dig out of the hole.

Let's see, spent 18 days in Brazil in April, came back to Ottawa to 25 degree weather -- I guess I'll spend Saturday on the beach. Terriblyhard life we lead.

Cheers,

David.

A: Yes, Wayne is still around in his role as a senior advisor to the board, Bryan and anyone smart enough to seek his counsel. He did spend more time here this season this he has In a couple, not necessarily putting out fires but he does act as a sounding board for everyone and his wisdom is appreciated and sought.

And I'm sure if there was ever a need for someone to step In for an interim period he would have been asked as he was after Rob's tenure -- his ability to jettison Jalen's contract was huge -- he'd consider it but they are no longer at that point in the middle of a season.

The start of the (Phil Jackson edition) weekend mail

Okay, how’s this for a plan?

Not very much mail this week, at least not yet, and since I have this odd sense of obligation to have something here every day (yeah, I’m working on changing that for the summer), let’s do this:

Here’s a solid query right off the bat and then …

All The Phil Jackson Questions You’d Ever Want To Read; and All The Phil Jackson Questions I’d Ever Want To Answer.

And since it looks like a nice, slow, sit-on-the-deck kind of day (and if that deck was a cottage overlooking a lake as the sun set it’d be better) more questions are welcome and we’ll be back tomorrow.

Sound fair?

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Q: Lots of news lately to take us away from the court or the chosen field of play. I don't follow sports for the game re-cap and have no interest in the vacuous talking heads.

I read or listen to informed opinions of well connected professionals who offer opinions based on information from direct sources who provide insight to areas where I have no access. I appreciate a thoughtful unbiased opinion.

I'm having difficulty defining who is responsible when the pendulum swings out too far to the general public opinion. Who is accountable? Do corporations push their talent too far or does the talent believe they have corporate backing to push the envelope to the extreme?

Strange times, indeed.

Regards

Johnny C, Mississauga

A: Strange, yes.

I think there is a bit of shared responsibility for the emergence of “instant experts” for the lack of a better expression.

I think there are too many young people in our craft who are too hellbent on becoming opinionated too quickly; they don’t realize that you need context and nuance and knowledge gleaned over time to really make valid points. They “talk” without thinking because they think it validates them. And, sadly, too many of them do that without taking the time to really listen.

But it’s also on bosses – at every level – as well. There is this strange desire to create personalities far, far too early. Not sure if it’s because there are simply not enough old heads on staffs anywhere to let people grow into roles rather than have them pushed into them.

It probably gets to what Dwane Casey once referred to (and I don’t imagine he was the first) as the “instant coffee” nature of the craft these days, everyone knows everything right off the bat when in fact they know little, or at least less than they should.

I am fully of the opinion that there are too many declarative statements made by people who would know better if they were more interested in informing rather than telling.

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(And now, our continuing series in weekly Phil Jackson question, in which we play what-if until something remotely real happens)

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Q: Doug, I have two hypothetical questions:

First, if a legendary NBA coach (let's call him Ilphay Acksonjay) became the president of an NBA team in an out-of-the-way location (let's call them the Aptorsray) and announced a master plan to make that team a force to be reckoned with, how much impact would his "aura" have on the perceived attractiveness of that team to free agents? Would players and their agents be leaping onto the bandwagon of the master plan, or would it still be all about dollars?

Second, if all of the championship teams and perennial contenders previously coached by Ilphay Acksonjay, across more than one franchise, had been built around a fanatically driven superstar (let's call them Ichaelmay in one location and Obekay in another), would you expect Ilphay Acksonjay, as president of the Aptorsray, to start clearing cap space so he could pursue a similar player? And in your view, what current NBAplayer would best fit that profile?

Thanks

Mike D, Toronto

A: I’m going to suggest that any “aura” the guy you’re talking about might have as he takes the very first front office position of a career that’s been spent entirely on bench won’t mean squat unless it can aurally (is that word? Know what I mean?) change the current NBA salary cap rules. Yeah, a guy like that might get guys to listen; if he can’t pay them, he may as well be blowing smoke.

It takes about four years, maybe three, to clear the kind of cap space you’d need (don’t forget, if you clear so much that all you’re left with is a garbage roster who wants to join it anyway?) so to even hazard a guess is, well, beyond me.

But since most great young players are already locked – and Chris Paul isn’t coming in the fall – why not suck it up for half a decade and try to get the Wiggins kid when his first contract runs out.

That way the tank-proponents can have four years of relishing in defeat.

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Q: Hi Doug

I know there have been rumours linked Phil to the Raptors. Is the speculation that he would replace BC? My fear would be that great players and coaches does not always translate into success at the next level. Look at MJ in Charlotte. I know Phil is a great coach, but he also had very good talent to work with. I just wanted to get your thoughts on Phil in a management position in general.

Monty

A: Yes, that is the speculation, indeed.

Now, I no clue what his management abilities would be, no one does. He might be great, he might be Michael Jordan, he most likely would be like every other GM in the history of pro sports: Successful in some of his moves, something less than successful in others and an abject failure in others.

It’s a crapshoot, just like every hire.

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Q: Hey Doug.

Funny random stat of the day: Sebastian Telfair plays only 13 games for the HOTH and – still – comes in 2nd for team assists. Solid.

I think if Phil Jackson comes to the Raptors that there will be a lot of pressure to, maybe, I don’t know, let him run things he’s “Phil Freaking Jackson.” Then again, chimps don’t have teeth.

I just think it would be kind of cool to have him in Toronto because I remember growing up and watching the Bulls and Phil’s championship with MJ.

Can you please tell me more about what you think could happen with the Raptors team if Mr. Jackson decides to come on board?

Lyall D

A: I think they would become marginally more relevant in the media and a bit of a story for a month or so. But as for what they would or would not become on the court, unless he can wave a magic wand and resolve some cap issues and has the ability to hoodwink other, more experienced GMs in player transactions, not sure how much of an impact he’d have. Or what anyone would have, for that matter.

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Q: Hello Doug.

What do you think about Phil potentially taking an advisory role with the Raptors but with a little more power than a Wayne Embry? I think that Jackson would bring much credibility to the franchise in attracting better talent and potentially a new GM that will bring a fresh perspective to the team. I would be in favour of keeping Casey because I think stability within the coaching ranks is needed and I think Casey is a good coach.

Do you not think Jackson would be the perfect person to usher in a new era in management in Toronto and potentially facilitate the “winning culture” that Leiweke desires? I don’t imagine that a team that had Jackson in a managerial role, with all the great assistants he could bring, could do worse than missing the playoffs these last five years, no?

Omari J

A: I don’t think much of it at all. If you’re going to hire a guy, hire hi and give him real power. And wouldn’t Phil Jackson – and we’re absolutely guessing here – be a “new era in management” on his own?

And who knows if they could make the playoffs once in five years; you’d think they could but no one could say with 100 per cent certainty they could or would.

Phil Jackson might turn out to be R.C. Buford, the gold standard. He might turn out to be Michael Jordan.

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A marginalized event and the best of dads and sons

Some little things, a bit of a list and the usual grab-bag of Friday fare, if that’s okay with you?

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Hang on a sec!

The Kentucky Derby is Saturday?

I honestly can’t recall reading a single story about the race, don’t have a clue about the field or the stories and I believe we’ve made this point before but if there’s a more marginalize or forgotten “big event” than the Derby, I can’t think what it is.

Especially here.

I can remember when every paper in the city would staff the race, regardless of whether or not there was a Canadian angle, and now you can’t find a story of substance with a search warrant.

Wonder why that is.

Imagine it’s got two main reasons, actually.

With the way readerships are getting so fractured today, people with an interest in horse racing can get it in a handful of different ways; a fact that newspaper are grappling with every day in those circumstances.

We may not have the absolute expertise that a sport-specific website or publication as when it comes to things like horse racing or any of those other one-off events comes up and investing the time and money needed to get some significant story done that’s different than what other people are doing is a major commitment.

I think we should do it more but I also know the resources, time and planning it takes to pull it off are scarce. I’d love to be able to have a couple of weeks to report a story, travel to do it, get inside a subject but, unfortunately, that’s not the way my world works for the most part.

The other reason? Horse racing is absolutely trivialized in these parts, it doesn’t hold the allure it once did and I don’t know that many people are too concerned with us pulling back coverage. Of all the sports, that’s one I can safely say has fallen the farthest among casual readers.

Am I right?

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Know I’m probably right on this.

In a span of two weeks, I would suggest that Stephen Curry has become the most popular young player in the NBA.

He was fantastic in the Denver series and the more he plays, the more people appreciate just how good he is.

Now, I’ve got a couple of days to figure out if the Warriors have any chance in the next round against the Spurs – I’m dubious – but it’s been a great ride for Curry so far.

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Neighbours be damned.

If it’s a sunny day and you and Super Dog are having a first summer Deck Day and The Ramones come on the iTunes shuffle and you don’t turn it up as loud as it’ll go, you and I might have issues.

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About half of the mail I got was on Phil Jackson and that’s not going to cut it, folks.

And, no, the fact Jackson is doing some consulting work for the Pistons in their new coach search – he’s a friend of the Detroit owner – should not be taken as a repudiation of any other job.

But that’s for another day; the mail (askdoug@thestar.ca) is the job at hand.

Help me out, would you?

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I totally forget this leftover from the mail last weekend and given the whole Stephen Son Of Dell Curry stuff we’ve got going on, seems relevant, doesn’t it?

Besides, it can be …

LIST TIME!

Q: Doug, With that University of Michigan team's parents' pedigrees, and guys like Steph Curry and Al Horford and even former Raptor Ed Davis (I'm old enough to remember each of their fathers) being in the NBA play offs, it had me wondering who is the best father/son combo in the NBA. Do you have maybe a top 5 or 10 list - taking each family member at their prime of their career?

Geoff H. Toronto

Well, since you asked …

I’m going to go 1-5 here and I’m pretty sure I could be convinced to change the order with not much pressure

Rick, Brent, Jon and Drew Barry

We can debate the relative merits of some of the sons until the cows come home but that’s a rather formidable and accomplished quartet, no?

None of the sons shot free throws under-handed but they never had to, either.

Joe and Kobe Bryant

Sure, son has eclipsed the Dad (son has eclipsed all but a handful of players in the history of the game) but they have to be in the top 5, if not No. 1.

Bill and Luke Walton

I don’t know that there are enough people who are fans of the game today who realize just how good Bill Walton was. All those great passing big men today? Not sure many could carry his sneakers.

Jimmy Walker and Jalen Rose

There are all kinds of parental issues at play here but there is no denying the talent in either parent or fils

Mike and Mike Dunleavy

Heady, talented. I think they get lost a bit in the discussions but they need to be in it for sure.

Now, I would think that Dell and Stephen get in here for sure in the next few years and, who knows, maybe Doc and Austin Rivers do, too. There’s the Vandeweighes and the Schayes and I’m sure a couple of others I’ve forgotten but that’s what I’ve got. How about you?

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I need to have a word with whoever’s in charge of the weather these days.

Sure, it’s been nice for two days in a row and it’s supposed to be okay over the weekend but it’s freaking May and if I’m going to sit on Super Deck and work during afternoon, I need to be able to find some shade.

And this just ain’t cutting it.

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Okay, you’ve heard me brag on the kids at Cawthra for a while now and they didn’t disappoint at Springfest last night.

Lots of talent there and I’ve got to tell you, when Super Son and Jazzlab came out to do their stuff, the Latin number was pretty good but then …

Then this incredibly talented young woman joined them to do vocals, they got all amped up and …

Yes!

Tower of Power!

Now that’s a throwback.

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Good teams and grown up players do not go easily

I apparently must bow to the superior intellect of friends.

I had absolutely written off the Celtics – before Game 4 as a matter of fact – and it was with grudging respect that I watched them stave off elimination once again last night, lying on the couch entirely surprised at what was transpiring.

But it gets to the heart of what I’ve been preaching for quite some time: There is nothing more important than having some old guys around who’ve been through just about everything and lived to tell.

Experience counts because Old Heads just know how to get things done.

Look at Paul Pierce? He could barely move in the fourth quarter he was so worn out but he kept making a shot here and there, drawing a double-team every now and then and running like he was in quicksand.

Did you see KG? He had 18 rebounds, it seemed he was almost too tired to woof very much but he got the job done and made perhaps the shot of the game by calmly knocking down that 18-footer in the final minute.

Avery Bradley looked like Avery Brown (you’ve got to go deep to get that one, kudos to anyone who can) and they basically didn’t have a point guard, a fact hammered home by some possessions where they treated the ball like it was radioactive.

And they won. Kind of handily. Because they are smart and savvy and know when to rest, when to turn it on; they trust each other, trust the coach, trust the system and I cannot hammer home how important that is.

It’s not usually about pure talent and athleticism, it’s about teamwork and familiarity and simply saying, ‘screw it, we’re making play.’

Now, the Knicks were complicit in the result, of course. JR Smith disappeared, Carmelo Anthony went through long stretches of soul-sucking hero ball and they looked entirely discombobulated at times.

But the story, to me at least, was the Celtics and their unwillingness to go quietly into that good night.

No clue whether they’ve got one more in them, let alone two (although I know people who are dead sure they’ll be just fine) but even if they don’t, they can go out with their heads held high.

(One addendum, though: At the end of the game, seeing Jordan Crawford, who had as much impact the game as I did, chirping at midcourt was despicable. Jordan Crawford should have been back in the locker room laying out towels and lotion and clothes for Garnett and Pierce and everyone else and telling how thankful he was that they’re making playoff bonus money for him.)

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Just because this guy should be a favourite of everyone and if it’s a long day, it’s a nice distraction.

You can never have enough Van Morrison, right?

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Bosox 10, TOD 1.

Bruins 4, Pucks 1.

Impact 6, TFCs 0.

Most successful local team of the night might have been the HOTH. They didn’t lose.

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Hey!

Check this out!

No, Super Son’s Jazz Lab won’t be on stage with The Stones later this month but the Cawthra choir will be and by osmosis that’s pretty cool.

And now the lad might want to actually go and see one of the concerts and that can’t be a bad thing. And if any of you go see ‘em, let me know how they sound, okay?

I’ll have to pay a bit of attention tonight at the school’s big spring festival to hear just how good they are.

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Didn’t someone once say something about silk and sow’s ear?

(I’m not just imaging an old saying, am I?)

Well, that’s kind of what went racing through the head yesterday with the breathless announcement that the NBA was going to wind up its Vegas Summer league season with some kind of one-and-done playoff tournament that will eventually crown a “champion.”

I know there are those among you who have a huge interest in summer league, despite the quality of play, the (horrid) quality of officiating and the rather “relaxed” manner in which it all unfolds. But it’s still summer league and the only reason I can imagine that they’ve decided to name a “winner” is because it gives NBA TV another few days of July programming and if you’re somewhere in July watching summer league basketball on TV, I’d suggest you expand your entertainment options.

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Mail. Now. At askdoug@thestar.ca. Now. Thanks.

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Well, the Caricature gets back on the bully pulpit yet again last night (no, I didn’t watch; I read the reports after including this one in our paper) and this questionable Don Cherry sentence got to me:

“I have seen things and I have heard of things that go on in the dressing room, when the women are in there, are disgusting,”

And I need someone – anyone – to ask him this:

“When, pray tell, was the last time you were in a professional sports locker room when women and men were doing their jobs?”

Seriously.

This is a TV talking head who works from a studio, he has no more a clue of what goes on in a room these days than you do.

He’s a loudmouth living in a bygone era who, obviously, has no clue what he’s talking about if he’s making ridiculous statements like that.

And now we’re done with him. Forever I hope.

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Some roughness, some contention, some sniping: It's the playoffs!

Told you Denver-Golden State would be the best first-round playoff series out there, didn’t I?

With all due respect to the triple-overtime Nets-Bulls game, this Nuggets-Warriors series is giving fans everything they could want and seems headed for an awesome conclusion.

Last night we had Mark Jackson accusing Denver of sending “hit men” out to get Stephen Curry, George Karl wondering if Golden State’s Draymond Green played basketball or football at college, a couple of flagrant fouls, a gaggle of hard fouls and some big shots.

Delightful.

And at the centre of it is Curry, who is emerging as the story of the post-season in a lot of ways.

(Again, it’s way too bad the games have been so late but I’ve seen enough that I can ask you to take my word for it).

Dell’s kid has shot the lights out, played through a bad ankle that might have kept him out of a regular season game and moved the Warriors to within a win of taking the series.

And I think part of what makes Curry so compelling is that his toughness seems to go against his physical grain.

He is slight – and I mean basically tiny slight compared to people he’s going against – and he’s got those youthful features that make you wonder how he’d handle the toughness – borderline dirty – play in the post-season.

Pretty well, it seems.

The kid’s just good, he can give as good as he gets and he’s become one of the more compelling figures in the post-season so far and thank goodness for that because the first bit of the playoffs have actually been quite uneventful.

The Denver-Golden State series – far more than any of others that are droning on – has a level of nastiness and intensity that has, as usually happens – festered over the first five games.

That’s exactly what we want in playoff series, no? A great storyline that develops quickly and at a high level of dislike.

I hate sweeps, I hate series that go 3-0 before the obligatory sweep-saving win that just prolongs agony and I like it when coaches and players start sniping at each other as they did after last night’s games.

Maybe we’ll get more of it as the post-season unfolds – I have a feeling a Heat-Bulls series might have some juice – but for now, all I can say is I’m glad the Warriors and Nuggets are giving us something close to special.

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Weather’s going to be nice here, right?

And I have no idea but this feels like summer to me.

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So I’m checking out a bit of Madrid-Dortmund yesterday afternoon (it’s not TFC-Red Bulls but, then again, what is?) and all I can think of his how cool the “playoff” format in the Champions League is.

Two games, home and away, most goals on aggregate wins, ties broken first by away goals and eventually by penalties.

And how good would it be to have an NBA – or even NFL – lottery playoff exactly the same way.

Schedule it to start on the Thursday and Friday after the regular season ends, give the teams with the worst records a bye perhaps or at least a seemingly easier schedule and let ‘em go at it with the top picks in the draft at stake.

Everyone would get a least one home game, you might get some drama going from one game to the next and fans of teams who’ve been out of contention for months would have something to look forward to.

Yeah, two game, total points. That’s the way to do it. And if you want to count away points as the deciding factor in event of a tie, I’m all for it. And if there’s still a tie?

Free throws!

And we could make Leo Cahill the honourary commissioner, right?

(That’s going to take an Irregular Of A Certain Vintage to get even more than yesterday’s MD Telethon one did; and many of you were silly slow on the uptake with that one)

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Mail, please.

A dearth of it over there now and it’s getting to be that time of the week.

Thanks. It’s askdoug@thestar.ca and ask anything you’d like.

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Is there a pucks game tonight or something?

Think I read a bit about one.

But seems there must be because while I’m not nearly as eagle-eyed as some of my more observant friends, I’ve still heard about people with the omnipresent flags on their cars and, for the life of me, I don’t get it.

Guess it’s for support, right?

As you’re driving the streets of, say, Scarborough or downtown in the neighbourhood of the arena, you want everyone to know you’re rooting for the home side and that all the positive energy you can give them, the better.

Is that it?

Or am I missing something?

I ask only because I can’t ever imagine doing it myself and I honestly don’t know what compels people to do it.

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Welcome to Birth Month, by the way.

And as I’m looking out over the vast expanse of The Back Forty at Casa Doug I can attest to the utter fallacy of the whole “April showers bring May flowers’ load of crap they try to sell us.

Of course, I don’t have any perennials, or annuals, or tulips or whatever they are (those Green Thumbs among you can help me out, right?) but, still, there should be something other than muck and slightly brown grass and dirt, right?

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So TOD gets up, gets down, can’t catch the ball to save their lives and finally pull one out on a late home run.

Yeah, been a bit of a roller coaster, hasn’t it?

But if you’re a fan, take this into consideration, and it’s something we talk about in much shorter pro seasons.

It’s early, silly early; we’re just into the second month of the season and, no, things have not gone well at all but if there’s one thing I know, it’s that things can turn around quickly.

We’ve seen it countless times in other sports, as bad as things seen at one point, you’ve never more than two good weeks away from being right back in it and with five months or so left, there’s all kinds of time.

It’s the joy of baseball, isn’t it? The season plays out daily for months, no sense getting too worked up too early.

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You want to know why I like, respect and admire Sam Mitchell?

Watch this from his gig on Off The Record yesterday.

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