It was quite funny listening to the sports shows today, hell, it was funny listening to all the radio shows today, sports or otherwise. All the talking heads had an opinion, most when stripped down, where saying the same thing: Shame on Tiger for being egotistical, for being the Tiger Machine, for not respecting the game, for taking the story away from the game, a tournament under his old sponsor’s name. Yes he didn’t break the law, but he has handled it poorly. Does that seem about right?

What’s astonishing to me is the coverage this prepared read statement is getting the day before it happens. During tonight’s Canada vs. Switzerland hockey game, CTV was promoing it’s live coverage of this staged, 1 camera, pre-selected media, 1 way, no question conference. It was a full sale press. The local radio stations are coaxing listeners to tune in, in case they get the rights to cover the read statement.

Now, I like watching the train wreck as much as the other guy. So don’t get me wrong. This however reeks. The guy’s a great golfer. He may be a total schmuck, but he is a great golfer. His machine is trying to control the story, and the saps are allowing them too. By blasting the fact that the Tiger press conference will be carried on their network they are feeding the beast. I am very far from perfect, but I can tell you I won’t be tuning in. I’m the idiot who works from home on NHL trade deadline day. I’m the guy who watches the NFL/NBA draft without really knowing the kids being drafted because I like the excitement. This Tiger Woods thing????? Nope. I am not going to watch. I’ll read about it. I’m sure it won’t be avoidable on twitter, the net, radio and tv.

Are we going to be surprised by anything he is going to say??? Should anyone be surprised that he is going to be coming back to play golf? Come on, we aren’t that stupid. We all know what he is going to say. We don’t need to stop our world to watch the machine at work.

TSM

@yyzsportsmedia

In cased you missed it, Toronto Raptors’ radio analyst Eric Smith uploaded a couple shots of rookie DeMar DeRozan to his twitter account. The pics are pretty crappy quality but it’s clear that DeRozan has bulked up since draft night.

It’s not like this means much when it comes to his game (see: Graham, Joey), but it’s further evidence of DeRozan’s incredible work ethic. Back in July, Kevin Arnovitz of ESPN caught up with the rookie before a summer league game, when DeRozan was the first player to arrive at the gym. Considering how raw he was at USC, it’s great to see this continued level of dedication to readying for the season ahead.

Here are some other benefits of a bulked-up DeRozan:

1. Toronto has really struggled to guard opposing wing players and a bigger body means the rookie is better prepared for the assignment. His defensive awareness will probably need work, but you can’t teach size.
2. Better conditioning means a smaller chance of hitting the rookie wall. It’s a long season and it’s great to see DeRozan preparing for it accordingly.

Here is the second picture from Smith – Creative captions are encouraged:

- DL

For months, almost every mock draft has showed the Toronto Raptors picking Demar Derozan of USC. On draft night, the Raps took...Demar Derozan.

Smith is here.

I admit it, there is one song of his I liked and that was it…Clearly, his passing lead to the death of any progress on the NHL draft front- I AM KIDDING- ONLY A COMPLETE MORON would suggest that no trades were made because MJ died! One last point on MJ- wholly shit did 640 Toronto and their uber producer Josh Rimmer bring their A game on the Jackson thing! Greg Brady spoke to Pat O’Brien and Jesse flippin Jackson shortly after the official word broke that MJ died. I am not kidding, Brady did an interview with Jesse Jackson. Whether or not you like or dislike MJ, you have to, I say, have to be impressed that Rimmer got JJ on the post Watters show…WOW….

So, here we are draft day. So far, doesn’t look so good for those of us thinking Burke is going to hit a homer. He has all but thrown cold water on our hopes for a splash, but who knows what gets said amongst GM’s in the Sheraton Montreal lobby bar… Here’s hoping Brian Lawton, who had to resort to emails to the league that he was in charge (but Bettman says this is all over blown) downs one to many and takes that last offer Burke has for the #2 pick. Time will tell.

Do you like the Raptors pick? Should I? Vince carter got dealt, now he can go not try for Orlando- good luck to them.

TSM will be hosting a live NHL draft blog tomorrow- right here- myself, LT, Dan and some fellas will be online chatting it up so please stop by. I will post links and info tomorrow….

Hats off to Andy Strikland, Kaberle’s NTC doesn’t apparently go quiet until after the start of the draft tomorrow! I love the banter of multiple draft picks for TK.

So, it was one year ago today that I got off my ass and decided to start putting finger to keyboard and launch Torontosportsmedia.com. Who would have guessed that one year later, my little site would be home to 30,000 set of unique eyeballs a month and over a 100,000 pageviews. I must say I am humbled.

TSM started in part out of frustration and in part out of the love of the game. Frustration with how our teams and games are covered and I think the love the of the game thing is obvious. I was fortunate enough to spend some time in the business when I wore a younger man’s clothes and I realized that I missed it and wanted a way to stay involved. This site has allowed me to do just that. I don’t fancy myself an insider or one who knows much of anything more than the average fan. I just like taking the time to talk to people, to listen and then to express myself on my Apple Macintosh laptop (when it’s not dead).

I have to say I owe a lot to several folks for getting the site to where it is. There are, of course the oopmah loompas behind the scene who have helped a non-techy look sharp and sophisticated (the good folks at hooplah, onroad, Alan, Slava and anyone else I am forgetting). I have had the helping hand of my good man LT from day one. He is a super fan, a great fill in and loves the teams and games as much as I do. The many many sites that link to TSM on a daily basis are just awesome. I am in awe of the spectacular work that you folks to each and every day. Whether or not blogging is accepted in the mainstream sports media, there are some amazing, truly amazing writers out there and I tip my hats to each of you.

To those of you who have emailed me, reached to me, offering advice, information and news and just plain support I hope that the site is what you have hoped. I enjoy “speaking” to you about the business and look forward to doing so in the future. Thanks to those who have also taken the time to do a podcast, there should be more time to do more this year as I have help in doing so and learned the tricks of the trade.

To the many folks who have been kind enough to write for the site, I thank you on behalf of all the readers as well, Anthony, Victor, RotoRob Dan and Lilly.

Most of all, I thank those of you who come back each and every day to read what I have to say. I especially appreciate all those who comment, post and take part in the conversation. I know many don’t agree with me or my views or those of other readers, but you have validated my hunch, that there is an appettie for this type of information on a daily basis. To my man Mike S for helping with the radio lineups, to Eggbert, Daniel, Julian, Wendel, PPP, The Meatriarchy, Mike, EYE, Al from Burlignton, and of course Nealio, keep it coming fellas….If I forgot someone shame on me.

Here’s to another good year of sports in the Toronto and cheers to those who cover it.

Make sure you check out Dan’s NBA draft coverage tonight, we will be back tomorrow afternoon with NHL draft coverage.

This little tidbit just popped up on the Globe site:

“Maybe Brian Burke has a trading partner before the NHL entry draft, after all. Atlanta Thrashers general manager Don Waddell admitted Wednesday he is listening to tenders for the fourth overall selection at the draft Friday evening, and he revealed he has swapped trade ideas with his Toronto Maple Leafs counterpart. “We’re certainly going to look at the trade market, but we’ve had no serious offers,” said Waddell, who was asked if he has been contacted by Burke. “We have talked to everyone. He has a better chance of getting to No.1 if he already has the [No.]4.”

Earlier tonight Darren Dreger announced that he has learned that Burke is actively shopping the #7 overall pick in attempt to secure a current roster player who can help now, and no that roster player is not, according to double D, Vincent Lecavailier. Dreger is saying that the Isles are going to stay away from John Tavares and draft Victor Hedman. This to me should be good news for Burke. If he really wants to get Tavares, he has a better shot trading to 2 then he does to 1. I can’t imagine too many current roster guys he can get in exchange for the 7th pick that I would really want (and that are realistic returns).

rumour on the globe is here

I love this quote from Bettman on the Tampa situation:

“I think sometimes they get a little overblown. When you have partnerships, people don’t always see eye to eye on everything, it’s like a marriage, like friendships, like all relationships,” he told a news conference in Montreal after a meeting of the league’s board of governors. “Sometimes these issues come to more of a head because people in other businesses are under more pressure. I don’t think any of them warrant the amount of attention that they’re getting, but they’re there and they’re all being dealt with.”

Ummmm, given your history with honesty on these matters mr. commissioner, I am finding this response to be anything but credible or the least bit believable.

Bettman is here

Andy Strickland has a pretty good rumour on his ESPN blog:

“Word is Phoenix turned down an offer from Toronto that would have sent Ed Jovanovski and the 6th overall pick to the Leafs for Kaberle. I hear Phoenix didn’t want to give up the pick.”

Let’s hope they change their mind, eh EYE??

The next couple of days should be amazing folks, lots of speculation and tons to talk about…Keep tuned to all the outlets and of course to TSM for the updates…

Thanks again to all, this has been really, really fun.

TSM

I had the chance to talk to a long time NHL executive today about a myriad of topics, the bulk of which centered around the upcoming weeks in the NHL off-season. I asked the draft guru 2 questions. First, if you were Garth Snow, who would you pick first?

“To be honest, I would trade down. There is no real consensus pick this year, and given that, I would trade down, assuming I could get some other assets for doing so. However, I get the sense that the Islanders have are really focused on a new building and the need for a marquee name, if that’s the case then the only pick they can make is John Tavares.”

The second question i asked, not surprisingly was,if you were picking first for any other team, who would you pick?

“There are some exceptionally talented players available this year. The reason i said I would trade down is simply because you could throw a blanket on the top 8 players in the draft and have no clue who is the best player of the lot. The differences in them is so slight that you really can’t go wrong with any of them. Having said that, if I pass on Tavares, I had better be pretty comfortable with my position and the kid I am picking because the hype is big on him and he is the one player who could turn out to be really special. If you pass on him and he lives up to the hype, then your reputation will be tied to passing over him. That isn’t easy to overcome in our business.”

As you may have noticed, I don’t do mock drafts or really comment on them. I leave that to the guru’s and those smarter than I. However, I find it intriguing that someone as experienced as this guy is said just how deep this years draft is. This is one of my favorite times of year as a hockey fan, I guess it comes with not having our team in the playoffs for so long.

Thursday night come to TSM for a live NBA/Toronto Raptor blog, where Dan and a basketball crew will be breaking down the 2009 NBA draft for you.

As for the draft…….

Here’s your bikini of the day from bikinibeat.org:

On Fan 590 Tonight- thanks to Mike S.

- open phones with McCown from 4:05 to 4:55
- business report at 4:55
- co-host at 5:05 is Stephen Brunt
- Friday roundtable from 5:05 to 7:00 with James Deacon & Doug Smith

On 640 with Hayes and Watters:

Live from WEGZ Sports Bar

420 – Steve Mason – rookie of the year
440 – Bob Mckenzie
540 – Glen Crouter & Sandy Hawley
610 – Dreger
640 – Richard Griffin – Toronto Star Jays writer

TSM Take:

Ahhhhh Friday. Balsillie had his little rally today, but didn’t show up. This is a good group on the roundtable. Lots of issues to discuss besides Coyotesgate. One week to go until the NHL draft, less than one week until the NBA draft….golf for you tee heads…. Where in the world did Steve Mason come from? Bob Mckenzie remains the best in the business especially this time of year! Interested in horse racing, Crouder and Hawley are good for that, Dreger should have interesting things to say about the Panthers odd announcement today and Griffin on the surging Jays….

Take a good look at that guy – He’ll be a fan favourite in Toronto before long, that much I can guarantee.

If Raptors fans were impressed by Pops Mensah-Bonsu, wait until Reggie Evans gets a chance to display his hustle and emotion inside the ACC.

In case you missed it, Toronto and Philadelphia made a deal today, as sharpshooter Jason Kapono was shipped to the 76ers for power forward Reggie Evans.

From Doug Smith:

“Evans, a 6-8, 245-pound power forward, is considered one of the more physical players in the league. Toughness is an aspect of the game Toronto has been lacking for years.

While he’s not an offensive threat – averaging just 3.3 points per game last season with the Sixers – his rebounding average of 4.6 boards in just 14 minutes per game should earn him some playing time with Toronto.

Kapono, one of the top three-point shooters in the NBA, never really found a niche with the Raptors, who signed him as a free agent before the 2007-08 season. The 6-8 Kapono averaged just 8.2 points per game and shot only 42 per cent from three-point range last season.

The deal also gives Toronto some financial flexibility.

Evans is owed $4.6 million next season and $5 million in 2010-11 on his contract.

Kapono’s deal will pay him $6.2 million this coming season and $6.6 million the season after.”

If you can’t tell, I’m excited about this trade. Most (all?) Raptors fans knew this team needed some toughness, and badly needed someone to rebound and play defence. That man is here, and out is a man who never found his game in Toronto.

Jason Kapono has been very disappointing since signing with the Raptors. There’s no doubt he can shoot, as evidenced by multiple 3-point championships, but Kapono simply hasn’t…shot…There’s no other way to say it – The man often passed up open shots, confusing both teammates and fans. In the right situation, Kapono can thrive, and this trade may be a win-win for both parties. Philly already has slashers and big men in place, and they’ve needed shooting since trading Kyle Korver to Utah. It wouldn’t surprise me to see Kapono play a decent role on that team.

As for the Raptors end, forget the stats. Throw them out the window, because they don’t matter. Obviously, averaging fewer than 5 points and 5 boards a game doesn’t look great on Evans, but stats aren’t what he brings to the table. Evans will play more minutes in Toronto, and his rebounding numbers will jump.

More importantly, he won’t take plays off, he’ll wear his emotions on his sleeve, and he’ll be the guy other teams HATE to play against. And I can’t say that about any players from last year’s team.

I’ve been a Reggie Evans fan since…well…forever, really. He’s always killed the Raptors, and for once, there’s a player in town who won’t be called “soft.”

And, of course, the Raptors actually save some money in this deal, which is no small feat considering the floundering economy. It’s a great start to the offseason for Bryan Colangelo, amidst much criticism from the fanbase.

The trade does make the Raptors very frontcourt heavy, and pretty much negates the possibility of drafting a big man like DeJuan Blair. Either Pops, or Patrick O’Bryant will probably be on the way out, or the Raptors may not sign veteran Rasho Nesterovic, as previously rumoured.

The trade also opens up a spot in the backcourt, which will likely be filled by either a free agent, or a draft pick (Maybe both). Potential picks like Tyreke Evans or Demar Derozan would have less competition, and it’s the type of pick that now makes even more sense.

This move was very under the radar, and it begs the question – What else does Colangelo have up his sleeve?

-DL

Smith is here.

From Doug Smith:

“So, today’s workout kids in Toronto were (or are, depending on when you’re reading this) guards Jonny Flynn and Jrue Holiday and forwards Chase Budinger, Damion James, Alade Aminu and Gorat Suton.

The big two, of course, are the guards but what I’m hearing is they are as much fall-back positions as players who are right at the top of the Raptors list. Toronto’s still focused – and should be, without question – on getting a two or a three with that No. 9 pick.

But if all the good twos and threes that they like are gone, you have to think Holiday or Flynn would be pretty good alternatives.

Still, by no means is anyone’s mind made up in Toronto, they’ve got a lot of guys still on their radar and are no closer to making a decision on a specific pecking order today than they were two weeks ago.”

I suppose my headline might have been slightly off-base. Like Smith says, and I think he’s right, Flynn and Holiday are both options, though neither are really what the Raptors need. And I think this year’s draft will really come down to team needs (and I’ll write about this more in the near future), considering picks 4-15 are all considered similar in talent. The Raptors desperately need a wing player to score, and picking a solid point guard won’t help (and might even hurt the development of Roko Ukic), but a lot will depend on picks 1-8, which will be unpredictable.

Of course, these predraft workouts could easily change management’s mindset heading into the draft. While the talent is considered mostly equal across the board, certain players will pan out, while others won’t. Certain teams in this league (Portland, Portland, Portland) always seem to end up with a good player, regardless of draft position, and it really comes down to evaluating talent properly, and being savvy with trades. There’s a lot of pressure on Bryan Colangelo to make the right pick this year, and there will be a whole lot of speculation to come. Here’s hoping the team doesn’t screw up this pick.