52-23 – Knicks are next up
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B8j3vB9PxN4
Former Raptor Lucas Nogueira opens up on battle with depression, drinking – Sportsnet.ca
“I was depressed and lost my identity in NBA,” he told Spanish outlet Marca.com last September, adding that he hoped to “regain happiness in Spain.”
It doesn’t appear that has happened. Nogueira was eventually released from the Spanish team and, in a candid interview with ESPN Brazil, detailed his struggles with mental health, alcohol abuse, and the wake up call that he feels will help lead him back to the NBA.
“This is why I kind of stopped talking about my frustrations,” Nogueira said of previous attempts to open up about his fight with depression. “I talked to a lot of people I shouldn’t have in this period of time. I thought they would help, but they didn’t. People start to make fun of you and mock you just because you have some money and some status, they think you’re untouchable, like you’re not human. Money and status don’t matter that much. It [depression] can happen to anybody. You can’t escape just because you’re famous.”
Nogueira was a member of the Raptors last season when ex-teammate DeMar DeRozan similarly went public with his own mental health battles, and says his own issues began to magnify last spring.
“No one had the opportunity to talk to him just like they didn’t talk to me either. I was pretty bad in May. It got worse in September, then I decided to come back to Brazil.”
To compound problems, Nogueira says he’s gone through periods where he was drinking far too often upon his return to Spain last fall, mirroring his experience as a young player in the ACB league. Nogueira spent several seasons with CB Estudiantes, both with their junior club as far back as 2009 and at the league’s top level before coming to the NBA.
“I’m not the victim here and I don’t deny that,” he told ESPN. “I’m a sincere guy who has always taken responsibility for what I did. I think I should’ve had more opportunities, but maybe I did not deserve them. Everyone has their time to go out and drink, but I went over and over again. And there was no one to, you know, step on my brakes.”
Nogueira says he’s been sober for three months now.
“I went out a lot,” he continued, looking back on his earlier days in the Spanish league. “In Spain, we had one game per week. You’re young, you have some money and no limits. You would eventually find the party. It’s Europe. I had no work ethic whatsoever. When I went to the U.S. I saw that a 15-year-old kid had more discipline than I did.”
Raptors blog: Killers from the corners | Toronto Sun
Overall, Toronto is fifth-best in right corner accuracy and sixth in left-corner accuracy. Only San Antonio and Indiana have been better overall.
Who else was amused by Siakam throwing a long bomb to Kyle Lowry, resulting in a layup? That’s like Antonio Brown going deep to Ben Roethlisberger (well, not anymore, sorry Steelers fans).
The Raptors did not miss a free throw for the second straight game, the first time in franchise history that has happened, which seems a bit surprising. Toronto ranks No. 3 in the NBA in free throw percentage this season at 80.4%. It would be the best mark by a Raptors team since the 2008-09 edition led the league at 82.4%.
Raptors’ Powell might find less is more in pursuit of playoff minutes | The Star [$$$]
“It’s a little different like for me as a head coach in this (regular season) setting. I think you give these guys a lot more chances and you kind of throw them their 18, 20 minutes regardless of what they do, because there’s so many games and this and that and the other thing,” he said before Tuesday’s game. “But there comes a point in time where you, as a coach, the one thing that you use to either motivate them or motivate your team is certain guys’ playing time.”
Powell’s propensity for pushing just a wee bit too hard, trying to do just a little bit too much, is confounding and disappointing to his coaches. He’s a gifted athlete, a pretty shooter and will probably play in the NBA for a decade or more. But to be a key player on a good team, rather than a stats-stuffer on some marginal team, he has to be better at picking his spots. It’s not easy, but it’s imperative.
“When you have the ball a lot — when you’re handling, when you’re trying to make plays — you’re going to make some mistakes. There is a line you’ve got to ride between overdoing it and playing too passive,” Nurse said.
“It’s tough because his natural instinct is to get that thing, put his head down and go to the rim, right? I think we need a little less of that and more at the right times.”
Those times are going to mean Powell pulls back on the throttle more than he ever has.
“My favourite (Powell plays) are in transition, because I think that was a real strength of his. About two years ago, the ball would be free, he’d run it down and it’d be a fast break and boom, he’d be at the front of the rim,” Nurse said. “And then late in the clock, he bails you out with that 17-footer, he’d go up in the air. You need those late shot-clock baskets.
“In between that, he should probably be circulating a little bit or taking the odd three.”
Doing less. So he can play more.
Not much to gain and potentially plenty to lose as Raps close out season | Toronto Sun
The results of the seven remaining games barely mean anything.
Toronto is realistically too far back of Milwaukee to bump them for the No. 1 seed and too far ahead of Philadelphia to fall to third.
The magic number to lock up the No. 2 seed in the East is two, so any combination of Raptors wins and Sixers losses totaling two cements it.
That shouldn’t take too long at all.
But there is no question even games like Tuesday’s win over an injury-plagued Chicago team that, quite frankly, can’t see the end of the season soon enough, brings opportunity.
It’s no secret Nick Nurse has yet to determine that ninth and likely final player who will see any meaningful minutes in the post-season, barring injury.
The starting five, along with Fred VanVleet, Serge Ibaka and OG Anunoby appear locked in.
The ninth and final spot, a guy who might average 8-10 minutes in the post-season assuming things go according to plan, will likely come down to one of Norm Powell, Patrick McCaw or Jeremy Lin. Perhaps even Jodie Meeks, if none of the first three appear up to the task, but for now Nurse would have to start with that trio.
And from that trio, Lin would almost assuredly have the longest odds at this point.
Have Raptors improved their chances of re-signing Kawhi Leonard? – Sportsnet.ca
Click to listen to audio
3) Kyle Lowry celebrated his 33rd birthday on Monday. During his seven-year tenure with the franchise, what is your favourite moment?
Sully: My favourite Kyle Lowry moment is when he announced his decision to re-sign with Toronto in the Players’ Tribune back in 2017. After an ugly sweep to the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 2017 post-season, Lowry could have left Toronto to sign with the Spurs or the Timberwolves, who were at least modestly interested in him. Instead, he followed DeMar DeRozan’s footsteps from the year before and returned to Toronto. For a city that has watched all its top players leave, this was something special to see. It signified that Lowry not only wanted to change the idea of what Toronto was as a basketball city, but also to build something special here.
Then came Lowry’s article on The Players’ Tribune where he highlighted his journey in Toronto along with the stories that came with it. Reading his story made me appreciate Kyle more than ever. Now, with the team setting their sights on a long playoff run, Lowry has a chance to fulfill his final message:
Thomas: So many moments to choose from, but I’ll always love the bromance he has and will continue to have with DeMar DeRozan. The joy he had for DeMar’s success, and the playful banter on and off the court, it’s something I’ve missed from this season. Here’s hoping he gets anywhere close to that with Kawhi in the future (because he’s staying).
Mitch: Kyle Lowry’s career as a Raptor has been quite a ride and I’ve loved every damn stop of it. I loved the Miami shot. I loved the celebration in Detroit when DeRozan yammed Anthony Tolliver into the core of the Earth. I love all of these photos of this 33-year-old man, I’ve never had the pleasure of meeting and I’m happy to celebrate his eventual championship here in Toronto.
Blogtable: Your top three candidates for Kia NBA Defensive Player of the Year? | NBA.com
Shaun Powell: First is Kawhi Leonard, top five in steals and capable of guarding three positions, much like the No. 2 choice, Paul George, the current steals leader. Third is Joel Embiid, whose work in the paint ranks him right with Rudy Gobert in terms of interior defense.
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