Thanks to our very own Zarar, and some rather incriminating pictures of several Raptor executives I was able to photoshop, I was somehow able to secure media credentials for the Raptors’ training camp in Vancouver, this past weekend. Having never been a member of the media at an event like this, it was a new and interesting experience for me, one which I will do my best to share with you, the loyal readers of Raptors Republic, over the next few days.
After waiting in the media room with the likes of Doug Smith and Eric Koreen, we were finally let into the closed off gym at the Fortius Sport and Health Facility, where the Raptors were holding their training camp. Having never been to one of these things, I wasn’t quite sure what the protocol was, so I hovered and watched as the more seasoned reporters did their thing.
Without knowing what else to do, I grabbed my camera and started taking pictures and video of the players that were left on the court, being taken through their paces by the assistant coaches and trainers. This was a lot of the individual work that goes on before and after games and practices, and it’s the main way a lot of the younger players can improve during the season, when there really isn’t time for regular practices.
Eventually, Terrence Ross was ushered towards the waiting horde for a media scrum, and he regaled everyone with his rather canned and practiced answers to the regular questions thrown at him. It was obviously something he had worked on after last season.
Wanting more that just the same answers these players give hundreds of times, I had worked on some questions that I figured would cut through the crap and get the player or coach to actually think for a moment. I asked Ross what he thought the teams biggest weakness was last year and what the team was trying to do to improve on that.
He didn’t seem impressed with the question, and rather dismissively said, “Closing games out”.
Next.
Not much of a sound bite, there.
Next up, I flagged down trainer Alex McKechnie, whose work I had admired, and talked with him for a few minutes. He was MUCH less guarded than Ross had been, and was happy and willing to answer my questions in depth. We discussed everything from what he’s doing to help make Bruno Caboclo physically ready for the NBA to why he chose the Raptors when the Lakers released him, along with much of their staff, in order to save money during the previous lockout.
It turns out that while McKechnie was courted by some more glamorous and successful teams, he was most impressed by the pitch the Raptors gave, and especially the fact that they basically created a position for him which allowed him almost autonomous power over the training of the players, something he never had with the Lakers, and something that had been non-existent around the league before he joined the Raptors.
In fact, it’s a something that has since been copied by other teams around the league.
He also discussed the different things that they focus on during the season, including looking at sleep patterns, diet and how analytics can be used for training and not just coaching and player development.
Just as we were wrapping up our conversation, the media liaison pulled me aside to tell me I could talk to Bruno and Jonas Valanciunas, now, which are the two players I had expressed interest in interviewing earlier.
He had warned me that Bruno’s english was not very good, but he seemed to have made a vast improvement over the summer, and while I had to keep my questions fairly simple and not speak too quickly, he was more than willing to answer any questions I had for him. It seems he hadn’t be jaded by the media, just yet.
I’ll get more in depth on Bruno, as well as Jonas, who I interviewed next, in the next couple of instalments of the series.
After the two interviews I had most wanted, I noticed Dwane Casey talking to a couple of people, waited until they were done, and then asked if I could have a few words with him. He was friendly, talkative and asked about Zarar, describing him as the “older guy” who also writes for the Raptors Republic.
Casey was extremely personable and seemed like the kind of guy who could discuss basketball for hours with anyone who was interested. Probably the only thing preventing that was the media liaison who was trying to usher Casey away, as all the other players and coaches had already cleared out and were apparently waiting for him. You never felt that Casey was rushing or in a hurry, though.
It was clear that the best place to talk to any of these people were away from the media scrums where the bright lights and the number of microphones and cameras aimed at you obviously causes the defences to go up and the canned responses to come out.
For some of that interview and more, watch my first episode of Raptors Training Camp:
Check back tomorrow for part two, a deeper look at the Raptors’ 20th pick, Bruno Caboclo.
