04.11.2019, 08:58
TORONTO - As anticipated, Thursday nights NBA Draft turned out to be a historic evening for Canadian basketball, however the Raptors, the countrys lone team, became reluctant spectators despite their best efforts to get in on the festivities. Cheap Air Max 90 . In many ways it was a celebration of how far the country has come and how much the sport has grown within it. In total, four Canadian players were selected - setting a league record - including three in the top 18, all from the Greater Toronto Area. For the second consecutive year Canada produced the top pick, 19-year-old phenom and Vaughan-native Andrew Wiggins, who will join last years No. 1 selection Anthony Bennett, Tristan Thompson and Dwight Powell - picked in the second-round of Thursdays draft - in Cleveland. Mississaugas Nik Stauskas followed suit, going to the Sacramento Kings at pick No. 8 before the Phoenix Suns - owners of the 18th pick - nabbed Brampton point guard Tyler Ennis, a player that sat atop the Raptors board when he heard his name called. It was a bittersweet moment for the 19-year-old Ennis, who was finally realizing his lifelong dream, albeit two picks away from beginning his career with his hometown team. The Raptors, drafting 20th, struck out on their top target but it wasnt for a lack of effort or interest. "We tried everything," Dwane Casey admitted shortly after the first-round concluded. "It just didnt work out." Masai Ujiri and his staff tracked Ennis throughout his freshman year at Syracuse and quickly became enamoured with his poise at the point guard position. Until recently they believed there was little chance he would fall to them, or even come close. With his stock fluctuating leading up to the draft, Ujiri hoped Ennis would be available to them, also exploring several scenarios to trade up and even entice the Suns to give him up after the selection had been made. With Ennis off the board, Ujiri opted for the next player on his wish list, Brazilian mystery man Bruno Caboclo "We decided we lost one," said the Raptors general manager, "were not going to lose the other one. So we jumped on it." The Raptors came that close to drafting what would have been the first Canadian selected in their 20-year franchise history, but given the rate in which the country is producing high-level talent its only a matter of time until that vision - which once seemed like a pipe dream - becomes a reality. "Ennis was a target for us but he was picked by another team," Ujiri lamented. "We will have Canadians on our team. Definitely we will have Canadian players on our team. Theyre all over the league now. The last two first picks have been Canadian." "We tried and it didnt work out this time," he continued, "but were glad theres a lot a lot of them in the league and eventually well get a couple of Canadians here, trust me. Itll come, well get them here." Thursday served as a friendly reminder, Canada isnt going anywhere. After hemming and hawing for weeks, the Cavaliers finally decided on Wiggins with their No. 1 overall pick. Decked out in a captivating black suit decorated with white floral print and topped off with a black bow tie, the one and done Kansas star couldnt hide his joy when first-year commissioner Adam Silver called his name. "A thousand thoughts are going through my head right now," Wiggins said minutes later. "Its a dream come true. Ive been dreaming of this moment since I was a little kid. My dream was just to make the NBA and now going to high school and college the opportunity of going number one came into talk and now I accomplished that. So its a crazy feeling right now. I dont even know how I feel. It doesnt feel real right now." "I always believed it," Stauskas added. "I believed in myself and I dont think many other people did but this is something Ive always felt is a possibility for me and I just kept working my hardest to make it happen. Its a cliche but dreams really do come true when you put all your effort into it." What could this night mean for the country? "I just think its huge," Wiggins said. "It opens doors for all the youth and everyone in Canada. It gives them hope. Because coming up when I was Canada, I wasnt ranked or nothing, I wasnt known. I didnt have no offers or anything like that. But I just kept my head straight and kept working on my game and look where I am today. So I just think it gives everyone hope that they can do the same thing and accomplish whatever I do because its possible if they work hard." The Raptors, like most of the 29 other teams, did pass up on four other eligible Canadians that went undrafted Thursday. Montreals Khem Birch, Calgarys Jordan Bachynski, Toronto-native and reigning Big 12 player of the year Melvin Ejim and the 7-foot-5 Sim Bhullar, also from the Toronto area, didnt hear their name called. Instead, Toronto opted for UConn forward DeAndre Daniels with an early second-round pick and traded the 59th overall pick to the Brooklyn Nets. Ujiri has maintained that if and when the Raptors do add a Canadian he wont be employed for his passport and he wont be sitting at the end of the bench. The pressure surrounding that type of player in that situation would be unfair, hes said. All four of the undrafted Canadian players are expected to catch on with Summer League teams, hoping to earn a spot on an NBA roster before weighing their options overseas or in the D-League. Black Air Max 90 .S. President Barack Obama saluted the Stanley Cup winning Chicago Blackhawks at the White House on Monday -- a rare moment for a president hungry to see more victorious teams from his hometown. Womens Air Max Outlet .Then came December.Three straight losses, including a crushing 27-24 defeat to Washington (4-11) on Saturday, has the Eagles (9-6) on the brink of playoff elimination. http://www.airmax2018outlet.us/ .Y. - Lou Williams scored 21 points and the Toronto Raptors beat New York 81-76 on Monday night in the Knicks preseason home opener.Boston, MA (SportsNetwork.com) - Kyle Lowry poured in 35 points to lead the Toronto Raptors to a 110-107 win over the Boston Celtics on Wednesday. DeMar DeRozan scored 23 and Patrick Patterson netted 14 on 4-of-6 shooting from beyond the arc for Toronto, which has won two straight. Boston had a few solid individual performances, but it couldnt overcome 28 turnovers that led to 36 points. Rajon Rondo registered his 20th career triple-double with 13 points, 15 assists and 10 rebounds, while Jeff Green paced the Celtics with 20 points. Jared Sullinger chipped in with 19 points and 16 rebounds in Bostons third straight loss. I thought the biggest difference in the game was their athleticism and physicality, Celtics coach Brad Stevens said of the Raptors. I thought most of our turnovers were in the halfcourt. They had active hands in the halfcourt. The Raptors, who were playing without forward Amir Johnson and center Jonas Valanciunas, scored six straight to take a 100-92 lead with 5 1/2 minutes left in the game. Sullinger knocked down a pair of free throws before Kelly Olynyk nailed a 3- pointer to help the hosts close within a possession. Moments later, Toronto built its lead back to six, but Green buried a 3 and Marcus Smart followed with a triple to tie the game at 105-105 with 1:10 to go. Although the rookie out of Oklahoma State hit a big shot, he committed a crucial turnover on the Celtics ensuing possession. Lowry plucked Smart at the top of the key, gathered the loose ball and found DeRozan for a thunderous dunk over Olynyk at the other end. DeRozan, who was fouled on the play, made the subsequent free throw for a 108-105 edge. Rondo then hit a pair of free throws, but Lowry answered by making a contested jumper to restore the cushion. Greens 3-pointer to tie was off the mark and Sullinger hauled in the offensive rebound, but time expired before he could make it out to the arc for another attempt. Sale Air Max Outlet. Im happy with the win, Lowry said. But we gotta start off better than the way we started off. Boston, which allowed Dallas to score 40 first-quarter points in a 118-113 loss on Monday, flipped the script on Wednesday with some hot shooting from the start. The Celtics made their first eight shot attempts from the floor, as Olynyks acrobatic layup helped the hosts to a 19-7 lead. Olynyk gave Boston its first miss a possession later on a reverse layup, but Sullinger crashed the boards for a putback dunk. Boston shot 15-for-19 over the first 12 minutes and outrebounded the thin frontline of Toronto, 14-2, taking a 35-23 lead into the second. Toronto trailed by 16 just past the midway point of the second when DeRozan converted two jumpers to start a 15-0 run. Patterson then made a 3-pointer before DeRozan capped the spurt with a layup to cut the deficit to 50-49. Rondos three-point play preceded Lowrys jumper at the buzzer as the Celtics brought a 57-54 lead into halftime. The Raptors closed the third quarter with six straight points for an 88-86 lead entering the fourth. Game Notes Toronto has won three straight over the Celtics ... Johnson missed his third straight game with an ankle injury, while Valanciunas sat out after injuring his hand in the Raptors win over Oklahoma City on Tuesday ... Toronto has won four of its first five to start the season for the first time since 2004-05 ... The Raptors finished with seven turnovers. They have turned it over fewer than 10 times in every game this season ... Boston outrebounded Toronto 55-24 ... Olynyk finished with 18 points and 13 rebounds. ' ' '
