The second day of free agency proved to be a very eventful one for the Toronto Raptors and their fans.
The reports coming out around lunchtime Saturday that Fred VanVleet was re-signing with Toronto had people veritably giddy on Twitter, both happy that VanVleet got the payday he deserved and because it didn’t completely break the bank for the Raptors, allowing them to keep their ambitious plans for the 2021 off-season intact.
Ibaka was one of the most popular members of the Raptors, turning himself into an engaging personality thanks to his active social media channels and YouTube page that saw him become a fashion icon, a celebrity chef and a comedian.
But as much as Ibaka will be missed for his endeavours off the court, on it is where the Raptors might really be in trouble without him.
VanVleet was unquestionably the Raptors’ top free-agent priority, but speaking strictly in terms of team depth, Toronto would’ve been OK had he decided to take his talents elsewhere, particularly after the club selected Malachi Flynn in the first round of Wednesday’s draft.
On the other hand, when looking at Toronto’s centre depth, with Ibaka gone and Marc Gasol also a free agent, the only players who fit in there are Dewan Hernandez and Chris Boucher — who is currently a restricted free agent but is likely to return.
That’s rather problematic for the Raptors, and even if you want to argue that the league is going small anyway, you’d still like to have someone who can start at the five for you, and neither Hernandez nor Boucher seem like they’re ready for that just yet.
Thus, it’s now rather important that Masai Ujiri, Bobby Webster and Co. go out and try to find a centre in the free agent market.
As this year’s free agency has shown, the market for centres is at about the full non-tax-payer mid-level exception (a starting salary of about $9.25 million), but if the Raptors don’t mind paying the luxury tax this season, they would have the room to go beyond that — something that could help them in their pursuit of starting-quality big men.
There are options to be had out there for the Raptors, and here are nine they may want to consider.
Probably the best option still available, Baynes is tough as nails, sets elite screens and even appeared to add a three-point shot to his game in what was a career year last season with Phoenix.
He may be a player slightly out of the Raptors’ price range, but the heart and hustle he plays with would make him an instant fan favourite if he were to join Toronto.
An actual fan favourite, Biyombo hasn’t been able to recapture the magic he had with the Raptors in the four seasons since he left Toronto in free agency.
Biyombo, no doubt, would make the Raptors stronger defensively, but his inability to shoot the ball may not make him the most attractive option.
With that said, it seems like he’d at least like to talk to the Raptors.
An athletic rim-running big, Cauley-Stein is a pretty good player, but he offers little in the way of versatility.
With his athleticism, he should be a better defender than he actually is, and he flat-out can’t shoot threes. And while he’s aware of what his game is and doesn’t take them, the skills he brings to the table may seem too comparable to those of Boucher’s, minus the outside shooting potential.
A sexy name, Cousins is a four-time all-star but has seen his career derailed by injury, playing just 95 games over the past four seasons and missing all of 2019-20 with an ACL issue.
At one point, Cousins was one of the best centres in the league, but after enduring so many injuries and having to go through all that rehab, it’s difficult to say what kind of player he may be now.
With that said, he could likely be had at the veteran minimum and if he’s anything close to the “Boogie” of old, then the Raptors would be hitting the jackpot.
Marc Gasol
Sometimes the simplest solutions are the best ones, and in the case of the Raptors, they might be able to solve this particular problem if they can convince Gasol to return.
According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, they — plus at least the Golden State Warriors — are in pursuit of Gasol at the moment.
There was understandably a lot of attention paid to the idea that the Raptors had to re-sign Ibaka, and that’s probably because while Ibaka had arguably his best season as a pro, Gasol may have just had his worst.
Gasol will be 36 near the end of January and his skills very well may have outright diminished, but coming off the NBA and FIBA championship in the summer of 2019 into last season, something always seemed off with Gasol, so there’s a chance 2019-20 was an anomaly and his game will return to him.
If Toronto can convince him to return at something like the veteran’s minimum (about $2.5 million) or something comparable, it would be worth the risk to find out if he still has more left in the tank.
At one point in his life, Giles was the No. 1 college recruit in the country. He was dubbed as the next great big man until he tore his ACL during his senior year of high school, derailing his development.
Though he doesn’t have the kind of freakish athleticism he featured in high school, Giles can still be an effective rim-runner and rim protector. He’s still only 22 years old coming off his second year in the NBA and there’s a chance there’s some untapped potential there that Toronto’s development staff would be able to draw out.
Kaminsky is a stretch-five who won’t do much for you on the glass or on defence, but he has offensive skill and would likely stand to benefit from getting more three-pointers up to increase his productivity.
He’s not the strongest candidate here for the Raptors, but the ability to shoot the ball, especially when you’re seven feet, will warrant you a look.
Len is an old-school bruising big with little athleticism and a poor outside shooting stroke, but he features plenty of hustle on the boards and, when given a chance, soft hands on the inside.
Len would likely fall outside of who the Raptors would look to target, as they’re an organization that values versatility. A player who’d do better playing in the 90s doesn’t exactly fit that bill.
Still, he’s an option who’s out there, and it’s never a bad idea to keep an open mind.
If the Raptors want rim protection, there are few in the league better than Whiteside, who’s an elite shot-blocker.
He doesn’t offer much in the way of outside shooting skill, nor is he much of a passer, but Whiteside can score the rock when given an opportunity to do so down low. His game would probably look like Jonas Valanciunas’s when he was with the Raptors, with the difference being that Whiteside is a much better defender.
These would all be enticing things for the Raptors, but the question is how expensive might he run them?
MONTREAL – On a night when New York’s top line was missing in action, the bit players grabbed the spotlight and led the Rangers to a commanding 7-2 win over the Montreal Canadiens.
“That’s the kind of team we have,” said Filip Chytil, who led the Rangers with a pair of power-play goals Tuesday. “The guys on the top line had chances but when they don’t score we have three other lines to pick up the slack.”
The Rangers’ dominance was reflected in the amount of time they spent in the Canadiens zone and their 45-23 edge in shots.
“If you’ve watched us practice, you know that’s something we work on all the time,” said Chytil. “When we get the puck, we want to hold on to it.”
The Rangers grabbed a 2-0 lead on goals by Mika Zibanejad at the 56-second mark and Jonny Brodzinski at 2:05, but it was Montreal which pressed the play in the first minute.
“I thought we had a good start but they turned it around on us,” said Montreal coach Martin St. Louis.
Lane Hutson controlled the puck off the opening faceoff and had two early shots, both of which were blocked by New York’s Jacob Trouba.
“That was huge for us,” said Rangers coach Peter Laviolette. “We know (Trouba) can generate offence but he can come up with those big defensive plays.”
Montreal goalie Sam Montembeault exited at 11:05 of the first period after giving up four goals on 10 shots. Zibanejad, Brodzinski, Chytil and Reilly Smith all scored on the Habs’ starter.
His replacement, Cayden Primeau, stopped 33 of 35 shots, giving up goals to Braden Schneider, Kaapo Kakko and Chytil.
Nick Suzuki scored both of the Montreal goals, his first strikes of the season
“It didn’t really feel like a 7-2 game until the end there when you look up at the scoreboard,” Suzuki said. “But we obviously keep digging ourselves these holes, and against a good team like that, our details early on have to be really sharp. And we were definitely a little sleepy coming out and they jumped on us.”
Hutson led the Canadiens in ice time with 24:10 but this wasn’t one of his better games. Smith scored on a breakaway after taking the puck off Hutson’s stick and the rookie was minus-4 for the night.
After Tuesday’s morning practice, the Canadiens announced forward Juraj Slafkovsky will miss at least a week with an upper-body injury. Defenceman Kaiden Guhle missed a second consecutive game with an upper-body injury but the team said it isn’t a long-term ailment.
The injury situation didn’t get any better after Trouba flattened Justin Barron at 7:11 of the third period. Barron didn’t return to the ice but there was no immediate word on his condition.
The Rangers welcomed back defenceman Ryan Lindgren, who made his season debut after missing five games with a jaw injury.
Before the game, 14 players from the Canadiens’ team that won four consecutive Stanley Cups between 1976 and 1979 were introduced at the Bell Centre. Among them were Hockey Hall of Fame members Yvan Cournoyer, Serge Savard, Guy Lapointe, Bob Gainey and Ken Dryden.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 22, 2024.
Shohei Ohtani’s 50th home run ball has sold at auction for nearly $4.4 million, a record high price not just for a baseball, but for any ball in any sport, the auctioneer said Wednesday.
“We received bids from around the world, a testament to the significance of this iconic collectible and Ohtani’s impact on sports, and I’m thrilled for the winning bidder,” Ken Goldin, the founder and CEO of auctioneer Goldin Auctions said in a statement.
The auction opened on Sept. 27 with a starting bid of $500,000 and closed just after midnight on Wednesday. The auctioneer said it could not disclose any information about the winning bidder.
The auction has been overshadowed by the litigation over ownership of the ball. Christian Zacek walked out of Miami’s LoanDepot Park with the ball after gaining possession in the left-field stands. Max Matus and Joseph Davidov each claim in separate lawsuits that they grabbed the ball first.
All the parties involved in the litigation agreed that the auction should continue.
Matus’ lawsuit claims that the Florida resident — who was celebrating his 18th birthday — gained possession of the Ohtani ball before Zacek took it away. Davidov claims in his suit that he was able to “firmly and completely grab the ball in his left hand while it was on the ground, successfully obtaining possession of the 50/50 ball.”
Ohtani and the Dodgers are preparing for Game 1 of the World Series scheduled for Friday night.
LOS ANGELES (AP) — LeBron James gave his 20-year-old son a pep talk before they rose from the Lakers bench. Amid rising cheers, they walked together to the scorer’s table — and then they stepped straight into basketball history.
LeBron and Bronny became the first father and son to play in the NBA together Tuesday night during the Los Angeles Lakers ‘ season opener, fulfilling a dream set out a few years ago by LeBron, the top scorer in league history.
“That moment, us being at the scorer’s table together and checking in together, it’s a moment I’m never going to forget,” LeBron said. “No matter how old I get, no matter how my memory may fade as I get older or whatever, I will never forget that moment.”
Father and son checked into the game against Minnesota simultaneously with four minutes left in the second quarter, prompting a big ovation from a home crowd aware of the enormity of the milestone. The 39-year-old LeBron had already started the game and played 13 minutes before he teamed up with his 20-year-old son for about 2 1/2 minutes of action.
LeBron James is one of the greatest players in NBA history, a four-time champion and 20-time All-Star, while LeBron James Jr. was a second-round pick by the Lakers last summer. They are the first father and son to play in the world’s top basketball league at the same time, let alone on the same team.
“Y’all ready? You see the intensity, right? Just play carefree, though,” father told son on the bench before they checked in, an exchange captured by the TNT cameras and microphones. “Don’t worry about mistakes. Just go out and play hard.”
Their time on court together was fast and furious, just as LeBron promised.
LeBron, who finished the night with 16 points, missed two perimeter shots before making a dunk. Bronny had an early offensive rebound and missed a tip-in, and his first NBA jump shot moments later was a 3-pointer that came up just short. He checked out one possession later with 1:19 left in the second quarter, getting another ovation.
“(I) tried not to focus on everything that’s going on around me, and tried to focus on going in as a rookie and not trying to mess up,” Bronny said. “But yeah, I totally did feel the energy, and I appreciate Laker Nation for showing the support for me and my dad.”
After the final whistle on the Lakers’ first opening-night victory in LeBron’s seven seasons with the team, father and son also headed to the locker room together — but not before stopping in the tunnel to hug Savannah James, LeBron’s wife and Bronny’s mother. The entire family was in attendance to watch history — on little sister Zhuri’s 10th birthday, no less.
Ken Griffey Sr. and Ken Griffey Jr. also were courtside at the Lakers’ downtown arena to witness the same history they made in Major League Baseball. The two sluggers played 51 games together for the Seattle Mariners in 1990 and 1991 as baseball’s first father-son duo.
LeBron first spoke about his dream to play alongside Bronny a few years ago, while his oldest son was still in high school. The dream became real after Bronny entered the draft as a teenager following one collegiate season, and the Lakers grabbed him with the 55th overall pick.
“I talked about it years and years ago, and for this moment to come, it’s pretty cool,” LeBron said. “I don’t know if it’s going to actually hit the both of us for a little minute, but when we really get to sit back and take it in, it’s pretty crazy. … But in the moment, we still had a job to do when we checked in. We wasn’t trying to make it a circus. We wasn’t trying to make it about us. We wanted to make it about the team.”
LeBron and Bronny joined a small club of father-son professional athletes who played together. The Griffeys made history 34 years ago, and they even homered in the same game on Sept. 14, 1990.
Baseball Hall of Famer Tim Raines and his namesake son also accomplished the feat with the Baltimore Orioles in 2001.
In hockey, Gordie Howe played alongside his two sons, Mark and Marty, with the WHA’s Houston Aeros and Team Canada before one NHL season together on the Hartford Whalers in 1979-80, when Gordie was 51.
While the other family pairings on this list happened late in the fathers’ careers, LeBron shows no signs of slowing down or regressing as he begins his NBA record-tying 22nd season.
LeBron averaged more than 25 points per game last year for his 20th consecutive season, and he remains the most important player on the Lakers alongside Anthony Davis as they attempt to recapture the form that won a championship in 2020 and got them to the Western Conference finals in 2023.
Bronny survived cardiac arrest and open heart surgery in the summer of 2023, and he went on to play a truncated freshman season at the University of Southern California. He declared for the draft anyway, and the Lakers eagerly used the fourth-to-last pick in the draft on the 6-foot-2 guard.
LeBron spent the summer in Europe with the gold medal-winning U.S. team at the Paris Olympics, while Bronny played for the Lakers in summer league. They started practicing together with the Lakers before training camp.
The duo first played together in the preseason, logging four minutes during a game against Phoenix just outside Palm Springs earlier this month.
“It’s been a treat,” LeBron said at Tuesday’s morning shootaround. “In preseason, the practices, just every day … bringing him up to speed of what this professional life is all about, and how to prepare every day as a professional.”
The Lakers were fully aware of the history they would make with this pairing, and coach JJ Redick spoke with the Jameses recently about a plan to make it happen early in the regular season.
The presence of the Griffeys likely made it an inevitability for opening night, even though Redick said the Lakers still wanted it “to happen naturally, in the flow of the game.”
The Lakers have declined to speculate on how long Bronny will stay on their NBA roster. Los Angeles already has three other small guards on its roster, and Bronny likely needs regular playing time to raise his game to a consistent NBA standard.
Those factors add up to indicate Bronny is likely to join the affiliate South Bay Lakers of the G League at some point soon. LeBron and Redick have both spoken positively about the South Bay team, saying that player development is a key part of the Lakers organization.
Miami forward Kevin Love, who knew all the James children — Bronny, Bryce and Zhuri — from his time as LeBron’s teammate in Cleveland, said it was “an unbelievable moment” to see father and son playing together.
“I grew up a Mariners fan, so I got to see Griffey and then Griffey Sr. But this is different, because LeBron is still a top-five player in the league,” Love said. “This game, man. It’s why we have that ($76 billion) TV deal. The storylines and the things that happen like this, it’s an unbelievable story. This is really cool to see.”
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AP Basketball Writer Tim Reynolds in Miami contributed.
