How About a Cherry on Top?

The Raptors are apparently throwing everything they can at Phoenix Suns President and GM, Bryan Colangelo, to give him the same title in Toronto. As of now, Colangelo is making what’s believed to be around a million dollars a year (two-thirds of the league’s personnel with his title reportedly makes more).

The Raptors are supposedly more than content to triple Colangelo’s salary to bring him up North, where he’s got listless documented ties to Raptors part-owner, Larry Tanenbaum, and interim GM Wayne Embry.

This story has been circulating heavily in the papers for a couple of weeks, now. Initially I was skeptical about the whole thing. Why would someone leave a masterpiece they’ve pieced together, when it’s just a couple of tweaks away from championship contention?

Well, anytime you triple one’s salary, that’s a good start. The Suns new ownership group, which officially takes over command after this season, could easily match the offer (they paid $400 million to purchase the Suns in the first place – the most ever paid for a single franchise), but there is apparently a rift between managing partner, Paul Sarver, and Colangelo.

Since I know of none first-hand, here’s an article from today’s Toronto Star that documents some of the purported accounts.

http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1140735016405&call_pageid=968867503640&col=970081593064&t=TS_Home

If the Raptors can bring in Colangelo, it would mark a huge boost for the strength and stability of the franchise. He won last year’s Executive of the Year Award, and is expected to repeat this year, as well (ala Steve Nash and the MVP?). He’s only 40 years old and commands respect, both earned, and off the reputation of his father, Jerry Colangelo, who has been involved in the NBA since 1996.

check his bio: http://www.hoophall.com/halloffamers/colangelo.htm (for some reason, I can't link it)

As written in several papers (from both Arizona and Toronto), this entire coaxing process could be ballooned by the fact that Bryan Colangelo might just want a raise, but if he is interested in starting fresh in Toronto… I say give him everything he wants… and a cherry on top.

==
The Raptors’ quiet week meant quiet times for myself. I spent most of my break reading about rumoured trades (the deadline has just passed with little blockbuster appeal, with the exception of the further digging on the Zeke/Knicks’ part), playing ball, and spending time at the gym.
The one taste of action that they had since the break was a trip to Memphis. A valiant effort that came short against a very tough Grizzlies team.

Grizz 94, Raptors 88

How the Raptors shot 45% against one of the league’s best defenses is beyond me. Especially when they held Memphis to 41% shooting, and still lost. Bobby Jackson led a furious 2nd half from the Grizz. B-Jacks’ 14 points does nothing close to symbolize his importance to this game – or the team for that matter. Shane Battier continued to play the lockdown D that’s made him a name in the NBA, Eddie Jones nailed the game-winning dagger, while Pau Gasol topped it all off with 21 points, 10 boards and 6 assists.

Chris Bosh had 26 and 9, Charlie Villanueva came off a solid all-star weekend to contribute 14 points and 10 boards, while Mike James added 16 points and 6 assists.

Memphis has won the past 7 meetings with the Raps.

==
Before we get back to the all-star break, I want to touch on the Knicks/Magic swap…
The rumoured thinking behind this move [Penny Hardaway’s expiring $14-million dollar contract and Trevor Ariza for Steve Francis] on New York’s part is that they’re stockpiling talent to make a run at Kevin Garnett in the summer.

Maybe I’m being a little naïve here, but I find it so hard to believe that Minnesota would ever trade KG – whether the team is successful or not. This guy’s already got a ticket to the hall of fame, he’s a solid teammate that does everything he possibly can on the court, and says he wants to stay a member of the T-Wolves.

No matter how many shoot-first point-guards the Knicks collect, none of them (or all of them) would pry the Big Ticket out of Minny (in my opinion). New York’s payroll now stands at over $130 million, and as I write this, they are the 2nd worst team in the league, and not really expected to improve on that.

Granted, they do have some talent now, but how well they will play together is another matter in itself…

==
Now, to Houston… You all saw it, so there’s no need to recap… I wasn’t even going to write about it at all, but a friend told me he checked in and there was nothing here… so I might as well touch on it…

The Big Show, on Sunday, I thought was great. Lebron James becoming the youngest MVP of an all-star game was nice, as was the East’s beautiful comeback… Bosh had 8 points and 8 boards.

The robbery… errr, Dunk Contest… was also incredible to watch…



That was obviously a little man marvel right there, but how Nate Robinson (listed at 5'9") won after 13 unsuccessful attempts on his finale is a little baffling.
I predicted, and thought, that Andre Igoudala should have won, and his jam off the back of the backboard had me screaming with glee at the station.

I can’t believe I get paid to watch this stuff.



The Rookie/Sophmore game was what it was… entertaining, but not quite incredible. Charlie V had a great showing for the Rooks with 18 points and 12 boards, but the show was Iggy’s… he took the game’s MVP honours and made the game watchable with dunks, threes, and lane-breaking steals, all while picking up 30 points (12-of-17 shooting).

As if anyone in Toronto needs to be reminded… The Raptors could have drafted this wonderful Arizona Wildcat.

Oh yeah, you heard that Rafael Araujo could be undergoing surgery on his shoulder??

Here’s to hoping for Bryan Colangelo.
==

The Raptors play a matinee in Dallas tomorrow, after that, they're home to the Hawks on Wednesday... finally back to work.

Don’t Lick the Knife That Spreads Your Butter

Seriously. It will just stroke its ego.
Sure, you might be reading this and say ‘knives don’t have egos.’ And you’d be right. But in this space, the knife is Mike James, and the butter is the basketball.

Too many times James has single-handedly brought the Raptors back into ball games. But when you pat him on the back (or lick the knife), you’re telling him ‘good job, keep doing what you’re doing.’

I was watching last night’s game against the Knicks, and all throughout the second half, I saw James try to force the issue; playing one-on-one ball around the perimeter, trying to sneak into the paint for an easy lay-up. Sometimes it worked, most of the time it just wound down the shot-clock, forcing an attempt of desperation – whether it come from him, or whether he bestowed the responsibility of saving the day to someone else.

From these eyes, it appeared that the Raptors went away from what was working in the 1st, and some of the 2nd, quarter: distributing the ball to get open looks.

James had 5 assists in the opening frame, but finished with 9… He had only 3 points in the 1st, but finished with 22. After 1 quarter of play, the Raptors were up 32-23.

But in the end…

Knicks 98, Raptors 96

I’m not saying Mike James’ scoring is to blame for this loss - the Raptors’ first in regulation this month – but when he goes into scoring-mode, things can get awfully ugly. Especially against a team as brutal as the Knicks. New York had lost their last 10.

Morris Peterson scored 19 points (all in the first half) and added 7 rebounds. Chris Bosh also had 7 boards to go with a game-high 25 points, but also committed 5 turnovers – as did Mr. James (to balance my argument, though, all of those turnovers were in the first half).

The Raps bit on way too many Jalen Rose pump-fakes (hadn’t they seen his moves before?), fouled the Knicks way too early and often (NY outscored Toronto 29-19 from the stripe), and that handcuffed them in the paint – where Eddy Curry had his way (7-10 shooting, for 18 points).

The Raptors head into the break at 20-33.

==
Before the Knicks, there were Timberwolves. In Minnesota.
Kevin Garnett got way too much respect from the referees, and manhandled Bosh into his worst game in almost a year.
It looked like KG was getting a lot of slack from the refs, while Bosh would get whistled for the slightest contact. I guess that’s what being a 9-time all-star gets you.

The Raptors won their 3rd straight, regardless:

Raptors 98, T-Wolves 94

Garnett had 23 points and 19 rebounds, but Mike James nailed a game-sealing lay-up with 8 seconds left, and finished with 27 points. Mo Pete nailed all 4 of his 3-point attempts, and finished with 20, while Bosh had 8 points off 3-of-6 shooting.

==
Sebastien Telfair apparently brought his girlfriend’s gun to Toronto, but that couldn’t protect him or the Blazers from getting blown away by the Raptors.

Raptors 114, Blazers 81

The 33-point margin of victory might have been the Raptors’ season-high, but it also happened to be the third straight 30+ point loss for Portland.

Mo Pete had 15 of his game-high 22 points in the 3rd, James chipped in with 19 points, while Bosh scored 14 off 7-of-9 shooting in just 28 minutes. Only two starters played 30+ minutes: James and Charlie Villanueva, who finished with 16 points and 9 rebounds.

==
In Charlotte, the Raptors came out blazing on both ends of the floor. They doubled up the Bobcats, holding them to just 11 points. The Raps then fell asleep in the 2nd, allowing Charlotte to come back, and take the lead by half-time.

Mitchell obviously had some fiery words, because the Raptors opened the 2nd half with a 20-2 run, and cruised the rest of the way.

Raptors 87, Bobcats 73

While it was mostly bad shooting on Charlotte’s part, the Raptors held them to just 32% from the field. Toronto outscored the Cats 48-14 in the paint. Charlie V led the way with 24 points, while Bosh trudged through 6 turnovers to contribute 15 points and 10 boards. James had 18 points and 8 assists.

==
The numbers don’t lie. Mike James is obviously an essential part of any Raptor success. I just think when the point-guard takes control of the game, a team can get into some serious troubles.

If your knife isn’t spreading the butter, chances are, you’ll have a big clump of the stuff all in one place.

And maybe it’s just me… but I don’t think that tastes very good.

Breakfast and an All-Star Bid

I’m staring at my plate, now covered in a few stray poppy-seeds, some left over cottage cheese, and at a glass that once had water in it. I’m thinking of what to write about, the day after Chris Bosh gets named an all-star for the first time. He joins Vince Carter and Antonio Davis as the only Raptors to represent the team for the mid-season classic.

It’s not as much Bosh that I want to talk about here, though, because we all see exactly what he does, and how much he means to the Toronto Raptors. What I want discuss on this space is Davis: the recently-arrived, expected-to-be-grumpy, once-a-beast, big-man that’s starting his second tenure as the Raptors’ starting center.

The only thing I was worried about with that recent trade is what mind-state Davis would be in upon his return. If yesterday’s practice, or Wednesday’s game, was any indication, things would be just fine.

The last time AD was sporting the Purple and White, the only thing I was reporting on was traffic (and sometimes weather). So I was never around the guy before. I'm glad things are different now.

After speaking to Coach Sam Mitchell and Bosh, himself, about what an honour it is to be named an all-star (you’ve seen/read/heard the clips – you know what he said), we spoke to Davis.

Before we got into the talk about Bosh, I wanted to know what he felt about his first game back (we’ll get to that in a moment), and about playing a solid 33 minutes.

“I was in here today, telling them: ‘you know, we didn’t practice like that in New York. We didn’t get up and down the floor, I didn’t play those type of minutes, I wasn’t in games late in the fourth quarter and things like that.’ It felt great. It felt good that, you know, they were looking for me to do some things, depending on me, and stuff like that. It just feels good to be part of a team like that. I hadn’t felt that in a while, so I’ll embrace it.”

You’ve seen Antonio. You know how big he his. Picture him smiling while saying this, with a grin as big as his shoulders. I’m not worried about how he’ll fit in anymore. You can tell, only one game in, he likes it here.

We also had to weigh in about his thought on Bosh, who he had helped mentor in Chris’ rookie year:

“I’m excited for him. I like the way that he’s matured, and I think he leads in a quiet kind of way. But you understand what he’s all about, and what you have to be about if you want to play on this team. I’m glad the Raptors drafted him, and gave him an opportunity to come here and be a special person.”

After that, he talked about all the things Bosh can do – pretty much everything. I asked Davis: “Bosh can obviously do a lot very well on the court. Do you see any holes, or voids, in which you feel you can help?”

He replied: “The only thing that I can help him do – hopefully – is get him to understand you have to work on your body, and it’s not to look good, not to be strong, but it’s just so that you’re not getting injured, and that you can bounce back off of a 48 minute game, and still come back and play the next night to that level.”

On that note, I asked him about something I saw the previous night, against San Antonio (I swear, we’ll get there). After the player introductions, AD was standing by himself, away from the ceremonial huddle. Then Joey Graham all of a sudden runs over and leaps onto Davis, hanging off his neck. I mentioned my observation to Antonio, and asked how they connected so quickly:

“First day, I came in here early for practice, and he was lifting weights and stuff. I just looked at him, and shook my head, like ‘there’s nobody that’s gonna stand in your way, it’s all about you. Whatever you want to do, you’re going to be able to do it, and it’s not going to be from a physical standpoint, it’s going to be all mental.’ So he will be one of the guys that I’ll try to embrace, and get him to understand ‘you don’t have to keep working in [the weight room], you need to get out on the floor, stay out in front of the coach, and do those types of things.”

All my worries could be locked away. I think Antonio’s final games (whether it be the season, or his career) will mean a great deal to a lot of people.

In terms of Bosh, obviously his hard work has paid off, and I feel fortunate to have seen his growth. It’s not hard to visualize Bosh as being a perennial all-star, and developing into being of the best in the league. Hopefully with the acquisition of Davis, Bosh can be locked up for the max, in the very near future.

==
Now back to the past: the night before. I told you we’d get there, and we have. The Spurs were in town. There were rumours running around that Tim Duncan wouldn’t play because of flu-like symptoms. Those rumours were true. Even without one of the league’s best big men, the Spurs would still pose a big problem for the Raptors.

They went exactly 4:11 without scoring a single point (from 8:59 to 4:48 in the 2nd), allowing San Antonio to go on an 11-0 run. One minute and five seconds after that, Bruce Bowen connected on a 3-pointer, which gave the Spurs their largest lead of the game – at 16. The Raptors would fight back to cut the deficit to 10 by the break.

Chris Bosh already notched his 22nd double-double of the season by that point, with 16 points and 10 rebounds.

The Raps came out with a 9-2 run to open the third, and kept pace from there on in. After the 3rd, the Raptors were down 6.

In the last 3:06 of the 4th, Mike James scored 10 straight Raptors points, and by scoring 18 in the final frame alone, he almost single-handedly took the game into overtime.

Everyone knows in basketball you stay with the hot-hand. Unfortunately, by this point, James’ hand was scorching and it must have actually forged a bond with the ball, because he never gave it up.

Davis could have given the Raptors their first lead, just 45 seconds into overtime, but missed two free-throws (finished 1-for-6 from the charity stripe). James also missed a pair, as the Raptors lost their second straight – both in overtime.

Spurs 125, Raptors 118

James finished with 36 points, 4 rebounds and 7 assists. He was also blocked twice in overtime while trying to force shots. Chris Bosh had 30 points, 4 assists (2 shy of his career-high) and 14 rebounds. He also made 11 of his 18 field goals, as opposed to James’ 13-of-28.

For stat-trackers, it was the first time since April 11th, 2004 that two Raptors scored 30+. Jalen Rose and Vince Carter had 32 and 30, respectively, in an overtime loss to the Bulls.

After the game, I was covering the away locker-room – and being a long-time Spurs fan – I couldn’t be happier.

The funniest anecdote came from Coach Greg Popovich, who had a nice sarcastic comment about the play of former-Raptor, Sean Marks, who shot 8-for-9 before fouling out in OT.

“Sean does that quite often,” [insert MSN emoticon of reporters busting out laughing] “Whenever Timmy’s out, we expect Sean to get those points.”

This was Duncan’s first missed game of the season.

Next we went into the locker room, shared some laughs with Marks, who spent the majority of 2 seasons in Toronto playing Yogi Stewart, before Yogi Stewart arrived.

A.K.A. Riding the pine in street clothes.

Tony Parker was a beast, though, and scored 32 points, to go along with his 13 assists. He talked about the battle of the guards:

“It was a good game, Mike James had a good game, and got hot, too… it was back-and-forth, and it was good. I just wanted to make sure we got the win, and not get caught up in a match-up with him.”

Before we split, I asked if he knew how to slow down… to which he replied:

“Me? No… I do everything fast.” [insert horrible pre-teen girl laughter that came from his mouth… HERE]

And with that, I leave you… I’m working at the station Sunday night, meaning no home games for this guy until March 1st. It’s going to be tough, but hopefully I’ll get through it.

Until then, I’ll provide brief recaps of the road-games… otherwise, stay tuned to the Olympics and GO CANADA.

Sour Grapes for a Rosey Leader...

So I’m sitting here, in this very chair, doing my pre-game research… scouring the internet for tidbits, stats and facts for the Raptors/Knicks 2nd meeting of the season. I’d taken my daily trip to hoopshype.com, I’d ravaged ESPN.com, yahoo’s sports section had already been picked apart and now I was just killing time.

It was about 3:53pm when my phone rang. It was work.

“Zack, did you hear?”
“Hear what?”
“Stephen A. Smith is reporting that the Raptors have dealt Rose to the Knicks for Antonio Davis… you should probably get to the game as soon as you can.”

The first thing I thought was “Antonio Davis?!?!” Hadn’t he burned every possible bridge on his way out of our metric-system-favouring city?

The first thing I did was check ESPN.com, and read the 40 word description.
Then I called the reporter I’d be working with, and told him the deal.
After that, I sent a text message to all my immediate hoop-heads to give them the scoop.

Then I rushed downstairs, took a shower, shaved and trimmed the beard, re-brushed the teeth, put on some fresh clothes and left my half-folded laundry on my bed. I ran outside, caught a streetcar that was waiting at the stop already (it feels so good when that happens), and I head to the ACC.

I check in with the Fan crew, figure out who’s doing what, and head to the media center. En route, I see that Knicks coach, Larry Brown, is surrounded by a horde of media-folk. The other Fan reporter is already there. I switch minidiscs with him, so I can chop up the goods, and he can toss a mic in front of Wayne Embry and eventually Sam Mitchell.

I get to the media center, grab a bottle of water, a few slices of pizza and then proceed to put on my headphones and get to work.

A media relations guy hands me the official press release that reads:

“The Raptors acquire Cap Relief, Davis from Knicks for Rose, Draft Pick”

By now you know the deal, so I’ll just get into my views…

I love it.

Assuming Antonio Davis reports, and leaves his sour grapes at home (hopefully along with his wife), the Raptors not only get immediate help in the post… but they also get some size, some defense, and knowledge. I think – again, assuming he didn’t bring a big bag of negativity with him – he can teach the young guys a lot.
But more than Davis, as stated in the header, this trade was more for cap-flexibility. When his $14-million contract comes off the books, the Raptors will have plenty of wiggle-room to re-sign both Bosh and Mike James (if they want to).

They’ll still have their own draft pick (potentially a top-5), but lose the Nuggets’ pick – which in a shallow-draft won’t break any backs – and of course, a great locker room presence in Jalen Rose.

In my time covering the Raptors, Rose was always a pleasure to be around. Even amid all the losing, he’d find a way to keep everybody smiling. His quotes may have turned more cliché than in his past, but he always had something to say.

And with this all consummated, the Raptors are under the cap for the first time since before the over-spending summer of 2001.

Everything’s cyclical, and I think this puts the Raptors in a solid position to make the moves they need to, to get back to being competitive.

Speaking of which, they still had a game to play. While AD was sitting in a hotel room somewhere in Toronto, Jalen was still at the ACC – sitting on the Knicks bench, smiling as if he was that kid in that candy store, who was just told to take anything he wants – free of charge. (Free Candy?? You better believe it)

Charlie Villanueva would get his first career start – at the 3, nonetheless – and while he came out a bit hesitant, the rest of the team came out firing. Mo Pete scored 13 points in the 1st, connecting on all 3 of his shots from downtown, including a buzzer-beating 3-pointer from half court. Mo finished with 21 points. Chris Bosh led the way with 29 (15-of-17 FT’s) as the Raptors won their 3rd straight.

Raptors 104, Knicks 90

Mike James shot only 6-of-16, but still picked up 15 points, and spread the wealth with 10 assists. Charlie Villanueva had 18 points and 9 rebounds (just like against Washington). The Raptors defense was still porous, allowing New York to shoot 49%, but Toronto did force 21 turnovers, leading to 31 Raptor-points.

It would also be unfair to not mention the performance of Loren Woods, who had played in only 6 previous contests this season had 4 points and 8 rebounds in 18 and a half minutes of work.

Since the Raptors dismantled the Knicks 3 weeks ago, New York has only won once in their ensuing 10 games.

After the game, I was covering the Raptors’ locker room…

We’ll start off with Bosh, who said he’d welcome back AD with open arms.

“Well of course… He’s a big, physical, experience veteran who can teach a lot of the young guys some quality things. He was one of the ones that kind of molded me, so I’m ready to talk to him. Ready to see him.”

Mo said the trade really caught him off guard:

“I was shocked. I was surprised. You know, people had been speculating the trade for the last year, and nothing happened. So I used to tell him, ‘J, you’re not going anywhere, you’re not getting traded.’ And now here he is, moving on to another team.”

Now onto Charlie V… He’d been dogged for his defensive effort at times this season, and was now forced to guard even quicker players, since he was starting at the small-forward. I asked what he felt about that challenge:

“That’s something I’ve been working on in practice, you know. Coach had me guard Jalen Rose or Mo Pete in practice for the past 2 weeks, so I knew he was going to put me out there at the 3 sometime. I just didn’t know when. I was glad it was tonight.”

I mentioned how with him at the 3, it gives the Raptors something they’ve sorely lacked for years… size. He agreed.

“I think it definitely helps us out, as far as rebounding and as far as taking advantage of my height, my length and my versatility.”

He also said he’s looking forward to learning from Antonio Davis. I’m just looking forward to seeing how it all plays out.

==
My views on the trade might be outdated by the time you read this, seeing as how Davis and Embry are meeting as we speak to discuss exactly what’s going on.

Also, I won’t be at the game on Sunday… the station wants me well-rested for Superbowl coverage, so I’ll probably do up my next update after the Spurs game on Wednesday.

An Exciting Ride in the Big Red Taxi

I’m never one to shy away from bringing a musical reference into my writing, and I won’t do so now. Today, I’d like to welcome Joni Mitchell; A woman who dropped such timeless knowledge on us all, when she sang the words: “you don’t know what you got ‘til it’s gone.”

The Raptors had an 18 point lead on the Wizards with exactly 6:03 left in the 4th. I’m sitting up in the press-box thinking: “What the hell is Eddie Jordan doing? His guys are getting crushed, and he’s still got his starters doing battle.”

But then his Wizards starting firing off shots like Bullets. Caron Butler, who scored Washington’s first 8 points in the final frame, then picked up 4 more, as the Wizards went on a mini 6-0 run.

Jalen Rose replied with a big 3. (Right now, there’s 3:50 left, and the Raptors are up 106-91)

Then, just as I’m getting introduced to do my live hit on 680, both the anchor and sportscaster start proclaiming victory for the Raptors. You just can’t do that. And I led off my report by saying: “you can never count out these Wizards… especially when they’re playing the Raptors. Every game seems to go down to the wire…”

As these words leave my lips, Antawn Jamison fires off the first of 3 consecutive 3-pointers. I didn’t have the focus to talk, and write down the time of the last one, but I can tell you that the first 2 were just 25 seconds apart.

By this point, the Raptors’ lead is down to 6 (106-100), courtesy of a 15-3 run for Washington.

Chris Bosh then posts up Jamison on the other end, drives by baseline, and gets the two and the tweet… He coverts the free-throw to put the Raptors up by 9 (2:08 left).

On the other end, the Wizards go on an 8-0 run, capped off by a Gilbert Arenas 3. The Wizards have officially fired off a 23-6 run, to bring them to within 1, with 1:25 to go.

Mike James then replies with a pair of cold-blooded 3’s, sandwiched around an Arenas lay-in. 24.4 seconds later, the game’s over, and the Raptors preserve the win.

Raptors 117, Wizards 112

The Raptors win their 2nd straight, and Chris Bosh gets his first ever 30-point performance at home – in front of a franchise-low announced crowd of 13,640. Bosh finished with 33 points (15-of-19 shooting) and 13 rebounds. James had 29 points (11-of-16, and 5-of-7 from downtown), while Charlie Villanueva had 18 points, 9 rebounds and 4 blocks on the day he was named to the Rookie squad for All-Star weekend in Houston.

After the game, it was up to me to cover the away-team… so per usual, we huddled up next to coach Eddie Jordan for some wise post-war thoughts…

I asked him what adjustments, if any, he made to help pull off that remarkable comeback attempt. After a somewhat standard response, I remarked how it seemed Arenas was the only one scoring in the first 3-quarters (he had 27, while Jamison was the next top-scorer with 10):

“Yeah, you know… I always like to give the other team credit. They played solid defense, even though I know you guys are writing, talking, about how bad their defense is, but you know… it’s no excuse for us.”

Then, of course, I had to ask what was going on during the huddles, when his team started to creep back…

“We’re sitting there saying ‘geez, you know, they’re getting a little tight.’ I think it wasn’t a matter of them missing a whole lot of shots, I thought we forced, we got a few good steals, got some blocks, they missed a few contested shots… and then we’re sitting down one, thinking we’re going to win this thing. You know, we got the momentum… we’re feeling good about ourselves, they’re thinking they won the game 4 minutes ago… and we’re thinking we’re gonna win this thing. But Mike James, man, stuck two big threes. That’s big… that’s big you-know-what for him.”

Gilbert Arenas, who ended up with 35 points, found the words:

“We were doing all the right things, but you know… James had big balls.”

Gilbert – who still stands as my favorite interview (I haven’t heard one cliché come out of his mouth yet) – also weighed in on the Raptors’ domination…

“They shot lights out. You know, between James and Chris Bosh, they only missed 10 shots. It’s hard to beat a team when they’re on a roll like that. You know, they had four days off, and they came out and hit shots… We fought for our lives, but they hit big shots at the end.”

=
At the Sam Mitchell pre-game scrum, all the talk was about Charlie making the rookie squad… He was asked if there was a sense of redemption, after Charlie got dogged so hard on draft-day:

“It’s not about ‘I told you so’ or ‘we knew better.’ We had confidence that Charlie was the right pick for us at 7, and he’s still got a long way to go, and a lot to learn, but he’s proving every day that he has a chance. If he continues to work, and keep the attitude that he has about work, then he has a chance to be a very good player in the NBA. And that’s all it’s about. We don’t have time to be worried about what people have to say, and what they think. We’ve gotta do what’s best for the Toronto Raptors.”

==
As we continue our tour back through time… it’s now Sunday. You’re at the ACC. I’m not, though. I’m at the radio station doing the updates… Missing what turned out to be a fantastic game.

Raptors 124, Kings 123 (OT)

The Raptors were up by 11, with 6:21 to go, when Ron “The Talk of the Town” Artest went off, and Mike Bibby single-handedly brought Sac-town back. Bibby finished with 42 points, while Artest scored 12 of his 24 points in the 4th to force overtime.

Chris Bosh got tech’d up, and fouled out, 2:15 into the extra frame, and apparently that fired up the Raps… and once again, Mike James. “Big Game” James (not Mr. Worthy) scored 7 of his 22 points in overtime, and the last play was designed for him to penetrate and get to the hoop. Simple.

Raptors stuck 1, with 11.2 seconds left… James winds down the clock a touch, drives to the hoop, then finds Jalen Rose (3-of-13 from the field at that point) open in the corner. Jalen pumps Fransisco Garcia, takes a couple steps in from the 3-point line, and drills the dagger over Kenny Thomas as time expires.

The Raptors’ 4-game losing streak is no more. Rose finished with 13 points, the day before he turned 33. Bosh had 21 points and 9 boards, while Morris Peterson scored a team-high 23 and pitched in with 10 rebounds, 4 assists, and 3 steals.

An all-around solid effort from the Raptors… and another great Sunday game.

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From Joni Mitchell, we go to Little Brother… As I type these final words, the entire Justice League could be speaking to the Raptors when they drop the phrase:

“Relax yourself… be easy, cuz… we like the way you do it.”

Over and over, LB repeat the phrase, and every time I put it in that context, I re-realize just how much I appreciate doing what I’m doing.

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Friday night at the ACC, it’s the New York Knickerbockers. Come out and show some love. Those attendance numbers need to rise, people.

Thanks for checking in. I love you all.