Sports

Malachi Flynn maturing faster than expected

Published

4 years ago

December 15, 2020

In hindsight it’s possible I underrated Malachi Flynn when I wrote that he has star potential? In that prediction I wrote about his the future, in that Flynn has plenty of room for growth. I wrote this then:

Flynn plays like a Steph Curry who shoots well, instead of GOAT-level, and isn’t quite as burst-y a dribbler or an athlete. That’s still a very good player. Think Jamal Murray.

That’s the path to stardom for Flynn. Plenty has to break right for him to sniff Murray territory. He needs to improve his strength, most of all, but his ability to create separation from defenders also needs work. His jumper has to carry into the NBA and perhaps become even more accurate. He needs to prove that his reputation as a defender remains true in the NBA. Basically, everything needs sharpening, which is a normal expectation for a rookie.

I’m joking, of course, that I was underrating him. Reaching those heights remain an unlikely goal. Though possible, of course, if all things break right. But I did underrate how quickly Flynn’s skills would translate to the NBA. I thought it would take time for his ability to manifest, for his passing feel to adapt to NBA speed and athleticism, for his handle to maneuver around NBA defenders, for his jumper to reach over NBA length. Keep in mind that this is of course preseason, so every possible projection has to taken with salt as large as a grain can grow. Still. Things look rosy.

Flynn already seems stronger than advertised. His ability to finish in the lane hasn’t been compromised at all by the presence of NBA athletes; his body control has allowed him to create good looks from the mid-range at will. Against Charlotte, he never forced the issue on his drives, but he was able to absorb contact and still maintain his elite touch within the six-to-eight foot range. His pull-up jumper was immaculate, whether from behind the arc or in the mid-range. He can create space with his dribble, and he dusted multiple defenders with a nasty right-to-left crossover. All that projects well. And as a result, he has shot over 50 percent through two games despite taking a huge majority of his shots from deep or the mid-range.

His passing was the skill that most obvious would translate, and it surely has. He’s been flinging passes all over the court. That hasn’t escaped the notice of Nick Nurse.

“He’s been a good generator of offence and I don’t mean just because he’s been scoring,” said Nurse. “He’s just been getting in to the heart of the defense; again, he’s making some good drives and he’s finding some great fire-outs to guys, getting the offence initiated and breaking down the defense into rotations. That’s been a pleasant surprise. That’s not easy to do in this league, to be able to come in and do that.”

And defensively, Flynn has been better than advertised. To be fair, he wasn’t supposed to be a poor defender. Remember, he won Defender of the Year for the Mountain West Conference. But with his size and build, it was a fair question whether his success would transition to the NBA right away. Thus far, Flynn has been excellent. His anticipation has allowed him to snag four steals through two games, and they’ve come on the ball and off, as he’s jumped live dribbles as effectively as passing lanes. He’s also been able to guide larger offensive players without fouling, forcing poor shots with picturesque contests. He’s shown a grasp of the small things, such as taking good angles when chasing the ball around screens. He doesn’t drop out of plays.

In the fourth quarter, with all youngsters on the floor and everyone playing for real things like minutes or contracts, Flynn took over. He hit deep pull-up triples. He drove and finished from the short mid-range. He threw one-handed passes on the move for triples. He was, far and away, the best player on the court, and he was facing a player picked 26 spots ahead of him in LaMelo Ball. He was so good that Nurse took him off the court with six minutes remaining in the game so as to get a longer look at deeper-bench players. Flynn hasn’t earned his stripes yet, but it’s telling that he’s not one of the players left on the court to close a preseason game.

All told, Flynn has now compiled 26 points and 7 assists in his first 40 preseason minutes. He’s shot 42.9 percent from deep. Perhaps most significantly, the Raptors have outscored Charlotte by 48 points with him on the court, highest among all Raptors. (Next highest, by the way, is DeAndre Bembry at plus-27. And remember: the Raptors have won the two games by a combined 14 points.) Those numbers are tough to dismiss. He’s done it while frequently performing as the best player on the floor. Certainly, that deserves an asterisk, because — and this is putting it mildly — not everyone tries as hard as possible in preseason. But even given those mellowing elements, Flynn looks like he belongs, which is rare for a rookie of any stripes, let alone an undersized late-first round pick. Flynn is ahead of schedule.

His teammates recognize his promise, without wanting to get ahead of themselves. So far in the preseason, Fred VanVleet has been a mentor to Flynn.

“Getting the offence initiated and breaking down the defense has been a pleasant surprise,” said VanVleet of Flynn. “That’s not easy to do in this league and to come in and be able to do that, I mean listen, it’s still preseason and don’t want to get carried away here, but he’s looked good.”

All this points towards Flynn being less a project and more a player. He’s ready for real minutes already to start the season. They may not come. As has become tradition, the Raptors have a deep bench. Pat McCaw, Terence Davis, and Matt Thomas are all entrenched ahead of him in the rotation for guard minutes. Not to mention Norman Powell. But with Flynn’s floor general qualities, he offers something no other bench player can. Consequently, one day soon, Flynn could be coming for minutes. If his trajectory remains the same, that day could come sooner rather than later.

Source: – Raptors Republic

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Fernandez and Dabrowski headline Canadian lineup for Billie Jean King Cup Finals

Published

3 hours ago

September 16, 2024

Anne Joseph

TORONTO – Singles star Leylah Fernandez and doubles specialist Gabriela Dabrowski will anchor Canada’s five-player lineup when the team tries to defend its Billie Jean King Cup title in mid-November.

The 26th-ranked Fernandez, the 2021 U.S. Open finalist from Laval, Que., is the lone Canadian in the top 100 of the WTA Tour’s singles rankings.

Dabrowski, from Ottawa, is ranked fourth on the doubles list. The 2023 U.S. Open women’s doubles champion won mixed doubles bronze with Felix Auger-Aliassime at the recent Paris Olympics.

Marina Stakusic of Mississauga, Ont., returns after a breakout performance last year, capped by her singles win in Canada’s 2-0 victory over Italy in the final. Vancouver’s Rebecca Marino is also back and Bianca Andreescu, the 2019 U.S. Open champion from Mississauga, Ont., returns to the squad for the first time since 2022.

“Winning the Billie Jean King Cup in 2023 was a dream come true for us, and not only that, but I feel like we made a statement to the world about the strength of this nation when it comes to tennis,” Canada captain Heidi El Tabakh said Monday in a release. “Once again, we have a very strong team this year with Bianca joining Leylah, Gaby, Rebecca and Marina, making it an extremely powerful team that is more than capable of going all the way.

“At the end of the day, our goal is to make Canada proud, and we’ll do our best to bring the same level of effort and excitement that we had in last year’s finals.”

Fernandez, who beat Jasmine Paolini to clinch Canada’s first-ever title at the competition, is ranked No. 42 in doubles.

Canada, which received an automatic berth as defending champion, will play the winner of the first-round tie between Great Britain and Germany on Nov. 17 at Malaga’s Martin Carpena Arena.

Australia, Italy and wild-card entry Czechia also received first-round byes. The tournament, which continues through Nov. 20, also includes host Spain, Slovakia, the United States, Poland, Japan and Romania.

Stakusic is up 27 spots to No. 128 in the latest world singles rankings. Marino is at No. 134 and Andreescu, the 2019 U.S. Open champion, is ranked 167th.

Canada will look to become the first team since Czechia in 2016 to successfully defend its Billie Jean King Cup title.

Malaga will also host the Nov. 19-24 Davis Cup Final 8. The Canadian men qualified over the weekend with a 2-1 victory over Great Britain in Manchester.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 16, 2024.

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Penguins re-sign Crosby to two-year extension that runs through 2026-27 season

Published

3 hours ago

September 16, 2024

Anne Joseph

PITTSBURGH – Sidney Crosby plans to remain a Pittsburgh Penguin for at least three more years.

The Penguins announced on Monday that they re-signed the 37-year-old from Cole Harbour, N.S., to a two-year contract extension that has an average annual value of US$8.7 million. The deal runs through the 2026-27 season.

Crosby was eligible to sign an extension on July 1 with him entering the final season of a 12-year, $104.4-million deal that carries an $8.7-million salary cap hit.

At the NHL/NHLPA player media tour in Las Vegas last Monday, he said things were positive and he was optimistic about a deal getting done.

The three-time Stanley Cup champion is coming off a 42-goal, 94-point campaign that saw him finish tied for 12th in the league scoring race.

Crosby has spent all 19 of his NHL seasons in Pittsburgh, amassing 592 goals and 1,004 assists in 1,272 career games.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 16, 2024.

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Slovenia’s Tadej Pogacar wins Grand Prix Cycliste de Montreal

Published

14 hours ago

September 16, 2024

Anne Joseph

MONTREAL – Tadej Pogacar was so dominant on Sunday, Canada’s Michael Woods called it a race for second.

Pogacar, a three-time Tour de France champion from Slovenia, pedalled to a resounding victory at the Grand Prix Cycliste de Montreal.

The UAE Team Emirates leader crossed the finish line 24 seconds ahead of Spain’s Pello Bilbao of Bahrain — Victorious to win the demanding 209.1-kilometre race on a sunny, 28 C day in Montreal. France’s Julian Alaphilippe of Soudal Quick-Step was third.

“He’s the greatest rider of all time, he’s a formidable opponent,” said Woods, who finished 45 seconds behind the leader in eighth. “If you’re not at your very, very best, then you can forget racing with him, and today was kind of representative of that.

“He’s at such a different level that if you follow him, it can be lights out.”

Pogacar slowed down before the last turn to celebrate with the crowd, high-five fans on Avenue du Parc and cruise past the finish line with his arms in the air after more than five hours on the bike.

The 25-year-old joined Belgium’s Greg Van Avermaet as the only multi-time winners in Montreal after claiming the race in 2022. He also redeemed a seventh-place finish at the Quebec City Grand Prix on Friday.

“I was disappointed, because I had such good legs that I didn’t do better than seventh,” Pogacar said. “To bounce back after seventh to victory here, it’s just an incredible feeling.”

It’s Pogacar’s latest win in a dominant year that includes victories at the Tour de France and Giro d’Italia.

Ottawa’s Woods (Israel Premier-Tech) tied a career-best in front of the home crowd in Montreal, but hoped for more after claiming a stage at the Spanish Vuelta two weeks ago.

“I wanted a better result,” the 37-year-old rider said. “My goal was a podium, but at the same time I’m happy with the performance. In bike racing, you can’t always get the result you want and I felt like I raced really well, I animated the race, I felt like I was up there.”

Pogacar completed the 17 climbs up and down Mount Royal near downtown in five hours 28 minutes 15 seconds.

He made his move with 23.3 kilometres to go, leaving the peloton in his dust as he pedalled into the lead — one he never relinquished.

Bilbao, Alaphilippe, Alex Aranburu (Movistar Team) and Bart Lemmen (Visma–Lease) chased in a group behind him, with Bilbao ultimately separating himself from the pack. But he never came close to catching Pogacar, who built a 35-second lead with one lap left to go.

“It was still a really hard race today, but the team was on point,” Pogacar said. “We did really how we planned, and the race situation was good for us. We make it hard in the last final laps, and they set me up for a (takeover) two laps to go, and it was all perfect.”

Ottawa’s Derek Gee, who placed ninth in this year’s Tour de France, finished 48th in Montreal, and called it a “hard day” in the heat.

“I think everyone knows when you see Tadej on the start line that it’s just going to be full gas,” Gee said.

Israel Premier-Tech teammate Hugo Houle of Sainte-Perpétue, Que., was 51st.

Houle said he heard Pogacar inform his teammates on the radio that he was ready to attack with two laps left in the race.

“I said then, well, clearly it’s over for me,” Houle said. “You see, cycling isn’t that complicated.”

Australia’s Michael Matthews won the Quebec City GP for a record third time on Friday, but did not finish in Montreal. The two races are the only North American events on the UCI World Tour.

Michael Leonard of Oakville, Ont., and Gil Gelders and Dries De Bondt of Belgium broke away from the peloton during the second lap. Leonard led the majority of the race before losing pace with 45 kilometres to go.

Only 89 of 169 riders from 24 teams — including the Canadian national team — completed the gruelling race that features 4,573 metres in total altitude.

Next up, the riders will head to the world championships in Zurich, Switzerland from Sept. 21 to 29.

Pogacar will try to join Eddy Merckx (1974) and Stephen Roche (1987) as the only men to win three major titles in a season — known as the Triple Crown.

“Today gave me a lot of confidence, motivation,” Pogacar said. “I think we are ready for world championships.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 15, 2024.

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