TORONTO - The NBA pre-season can seem numbingly long, but the Toronto Raptors still have plenty of work to do before the curtain comes up on the regular season next week.Coach Dwane Casey spent Tuesdays practice session in teaching mode. At the top of his agenda: defence. Again.The Raptors are 5-1 on the pre-season, but have yet to put in the solid defensive effort — especially on the boards — that Casey would like to see before opening-night tipoff.I want to start the real season but were still in practice mode, weve got to fix some things, said centre Jonas Valanciunas, who led the Raptors in rebounds last season. (Rebounding) is an area weve got to get better on. Were doing that every practice, so hope were going to get better and were going to show better results.Weve got to get used to going for the ball, all five guys.The Raptors were a disappointing 20th in the NBA last season in defensive rebounding.The 22-year-old Valanciunas will be counted on to anchor Torontos defence. However, despite going into his third NBA season, the Lithuanian still has a lot to learn before he has a complete grasp of the nuances of the NBA game.Valanciunas played in Los Angeles last summer before going to Spain for the FIBA World Cup, where he led the tournament in shooting percentage at 69.6 per cent.But one summer is not enough, he needs to continue to go with Hakeem (Olajuwon, former Raptor and Hall of Famer) or whoever in the summer, Casey said. He needs to play pickup basketball where its not as organized or you really have to anticipate against quicker athletes, maybe smaller athletes, so its a work in progress for him.Valanciunas could be one of the more comfortable Raptors when the team hosts Maccabi Haifi at Air Canada Centre on Wednesday. The team plays in the Israeli Basketball Super League, winning the Super League championship in the 2012-13 season — its first Israeli title since the team was formed in 1953. Its a good test for us, they play a different style, mostly four out and one in, really spread the floor, a lot like four guards out there on the floor, Casey said. So its going to be a challenge for Amir (Johnson) and Tyler (Hansbrough) and the big fours (power forwards) to get out there and guard those guys off the bounce, off the dribble, getting back in transition.It will be a challenge for us. They play faster up and down moreso than were used to and a tremendous amount of pick and rolls, a lot like what San Antonio did with four ball-handlers with the ability to run a pick and roll, which is a little different than what you see in the NBA.Maccabi Haifa, which is owned by American businessman Jeffrey Rosen, was beaten 91-59 by the Kings on Sunday. Theyd arrived in Sacramento following a 10-hour bus ride from Portland, where they lost 121-74 to the Trailblazers.Three players remain in the running for the 15th and final spot on the Raptors roster — centre Greg Stiemsma, point guard Will Cherry and swingman Jordan Hamilton. NBA rosters have to be set by opening day on Oct. 27.I think it makes it tough on management because we all can play, were good players, Hamilton said. Wills a good young guard, I feel like I can score, and Greg, he does all the intangibles. Best man wins.The Raptors open the regular season Oct. 29 against the visiting Atlanta Hawks. . The result means Atletico Madrid now tops the table, with Madrid level on points in second and Barcelona a point behind in third with nine games remaining as the title race shapes up to be the closest in years. . -- Scottie Wilbekin sat on the bench for the final minute, holding a bag of ice against his left knee.
https://www.cheapairforce1outlet.com/. Whenever United loses, its crisis. When other top teams slip up, its the quirky nature of the Premier League. The predictable reaction speaks to the sky-high expectations for a team proven perennial contender and 13 times Premier League champion. .com) - Even on the day his New Hampshire football team became the nations top-ranked team two weeks ago, coach Sean McDonnell conceded something about the team they replaced at No. . -- Jane Kish stopped all 25 shots she faced as the Weyburn Gold Wings blanked the Sudbury Lady Wolves 3-0 on Friday to advance to the gold-medal game at the Esso Cup. GOODYEAR, Ariz. -- Cincinnati Reds closer Aroldis Chapman is undergoing surgery to repair a broken bone above his left eye but has no other serious injuries after being hit in the face by a line drive in a spring training game. Team doctor Timothy Kremchek said Chapman could be playing again in six to eight weeks. The left-hander with a fastball that has reached 105 mph hopefully will start exercising and throwing in a couple of weeks, Kremchek said. The doctor called Chapman "a very lucky guy." Kremchek said a metal plate will be inserted in the bone above his left eyebrow, with perhaps a bone graft as well, and will remain there permanently. Chapman has a very mild concussion but no other brain injury and no injury to his eye, Kremchek said. "Hes feeling better and he has some pain management. Were optimistic that he is going to be on the mend," Reds manager Bryan Price said after meeting with players Thursday morning at the teams spring training facility. "Obviously, well stay in touch. We will make sure we follow the process as we continue to get familiar with the injury itself. We will let him know how much support he has and that we care about him. Hopefully, we will see him here very soon." Catcher Brayan Pena, a fellow Cuban and Chapmans close friend, was one of several Reds players who visited the injured pitcher Wednesday night and spoke to him on the phone Thursday morning. "He was talking to me and we joked a lot," Pena said. "He just wanted to make sure for me to tell everybody that he appreciate so much the fans prayers, especially our teammates, our coaching staff, everybody around, how much support and how much love he received and got from all of us." Pena said Chapman was very happy when they spoke Thursday, "talking and joking. He was talking a lot about some Cuban jokes and thats good because that means his memory is still working pretty good." The frightening incident, widely available on video via the Internet, occurred in the sixth inning of Wednesday night game at Kansas Citys spring training facility in Surprise, Ariz., when the Royals Salvador Perez lined Chapmans 99 mph fastball into the pitchers face. Chapman was knocked backward to the ground, then rolled on his face, kicking in pain. Pena rushed to the mound. "Honestly when I saw it I wanted to cry," Pena said. "That was my first feeling because it was very scary. It was very scary because I saw the line drive going straight for his face, and then I saw him bleeding and kicking and moving around the way he was." Pena said Chapman "wasnt even talking. He was just like mmoaning and making sounds and then when I got there I panicked because I didnt know what else to do.dddddddddddd Then the medical staff guys got there, and those guys were great." Chapman was taken off the field in a stretcher as the crowd fell into an eerie silence and the game was called off. The pitcher was taken to a nearby hospital, then transferred to Banner Good Samaritan Medical Center in Phoenix. Kremchek said he expected Chapman to remain hospitalized for a couple of days, perhaps being released on Saturday. The ball hit Chapman in one of the most protected areas of the skull, the doctor said. "If you get hit in the side of the head, that could be disastrous," Kremchek said. "Where Aroldis got hit, you dont want to say he got hit in a good spot because hes undergoing surgery, but it could have been a lot worse, a lot more injuries, a lot more permanent. Hes very lucky." The 26-year-old Chapman has a fastball that regularly tops 100 mph. The two-time All-Star defected from Cuba in 2009 and made the Reds club in his first season of 2010. He had 38 saves each of the past two seasons, with 122 strikeouts in 71 2-3 innings in 2012 and 112 strikeouts in 63 2-3- innings in 2013. Price, a former pitcher, said pitchers are in a dangerous situation, "regardless of how hard you throw." "Its hard to defend yourself from 53, 54 feet," the manager said. "And everyone finishes their pitches differently. Everyone is not in a perfect fielding position and even if you are there is no guarantee that you can protect yourself when a balls hit that hard." Major League Baseball approved a protective cap for pitchers this winter following several terrifying scenes similar to this one in the last few years. The hats were available for testing during spring training on a voluntary basis but most have rejected them. Besides, the hats would offer no protection to the face, where Chapman was hit. Chapman particularly wanted to thank the Royals organization for its support and offer assurance to Perez that it is just something that happens in baseball and was not his fault. Pena said he also felt some responsibility. "I kind of blame myself a little bit because I could have called slider or I should have called changeup," Pena said. "Thats your thought process. Everything goes through your mind and youre looking for answers. ... You kind of put yourself in that guilt feeling." But Chapman, Pena said, told him "You know, its not your fault. I should have thrown slower. Im the one feeling very bad about it and hes the one thats cheering me up. Hes the one in the hospital." ' ' '
