Like the state of California, preseason basketball games are for dreaming. And it doesn’t get too much dreamier, at least on the basketball court, than the game Matt Thomas had against the Charlotte Hornets.
He finished with 16 points and five assists, but even more impressive than his numbers was his contribution beyond the shooting. I mean, yes, we should start with the shooting: it’s real, and it’s wonderful.
But Thomas proved himself so much more than a shooter against the Hornets. And only a few nights after saying that the Raptors who won consistent rotation minutes would be all-around players, Nick Nurse acknowledged that Thomas was exactly that.
“He’s a shooter, obviously, but he’s also a good player,” said Nurse of Thomas. “He cuts and he moves. He does the right thing on defense. He’ll get overmatched once in a while size-wise or strength-wise or whatever. But I think for as much as he does at the other end, and his good decision-making at both ends, I’m wanting to lock him into a role this year where he’s a big factor.”
So Thomas seems to have the inside track on a rotation spot. That’s great news for a Raptors team needing offensive punch; it means Thomas should indeed be a big factor. But what specifically did Thomas do so well to earn such high praise?
The passing, first and foremost, was great for Thomas. He had some solid pass-aheads and quick-hitters that earned him assists because shooters made their shots. But he had a few dimes wherein the advantage was created solely on his own merit, like this nifty jump-pass to Yuta Watanabe.
“I came off a quick pindown and my guy was chasing behind me, and the big was up,” said Thomas of the situation. “I’m coming off that, jumping up in the air expecting to shoot. But if the big’s up and there’s two guys on me, it’s a split-second, instant decision to make that read and make that pass.”
Having those instantaneous reads in the bag gives Thomas another way to take advantage when defenses overplay him. The more ways he can hurt defenses by leveraging his shooting, the more effective he will become. And even beyond those passes created by his jumper, so too can he shift into a playmaking role, attack the paint, and see what it does to the defense. He started this play by catching the ball like Manu Ginobili, accelerating into the ball rather than stopping to create the threat of a shot. And he used that momentum to draw help and make the easy, but high-calorie, pass.
Thomas spoke after the game about emerging as a playmaker. He’s shown that ability. But he was a playmaker in other ways; his relocations drew defenders, allowing others to cut into open spaces. He cut into the heart of the defense for layups. His offense was a complete package, creating or at least adding to plays even when he didn’t touch the ball.
Perhaps more important for Thomas’ future in the rotation, his defense was solid. He’s clearly improved from last year, which he and Nurse readily admitted. I asked Thomas after the game how he went about improving his defense.
“A lot of it is just watching film,” explained Thomas. “Learning our schemes and our defensive concepts and principles to the point where they’re second nature.”
“Teams are going to target me, and they’re gonna go at me, so that’s something that I need to hold myself accountable to.”
“If you’re smart, and you know where to be, and you know the rotations, and you know guys’ tendencies that you’re defending, whether you’re forcing right, left, they’re a shooter, close out short, fly them off the line, etcetera,” he said, “if you know all those details, it’s going to help you out.”
And Thomas showed a grasp of the details. He slowed opponents just enough in the post to allow help to come. In fact, he defended in the post three times against Charlotte; the three possessions resulted in one turnover, two missed shots, and zero points total.
Thomas had some trouble at times taking indirect lines around opponents’ screens. But on one occasion he was able to recover and still impact the play, which resulted in a stop; then he ran down to the corner for good measure and hit a triple in transition. Even middling defense is outweighed by his offensive game. But his defense wasn’t middling. When opponents tried to pick on him on the perimeter, he was solid at staying in his stance and contesting. He’s never going to be a stopper, but as he said after the game, smart players can always fit in on the defense end. He’s showing that knack.
And because preseason games are dreams, just wisps of enjoyment rather than real, meaningful basketball games, there were many more positives in Toronto’s win.
Beyond Thomas, there was plenty to love. OG Anunoby was Toronto’s best player on the night, defending like a demon and showing an improved handle and attack. Malachi Flynn looked spectacular and played like a heady veteran, committing no turnovers while orchestrating the attack for much of the night. This may be burying the lede a bit — in that this could be the most significant possible development of all, in terms of impacting Toronto’s future play — but Pascal Siakam’s jumper looks better. He has discarded any echo of a hitch in his three-point stroke, and he’s improved his release speed. After starting slow, Chris Boucher recorded some spectacular blocks in the fourth quarter, finishing with three to his name.
It was almost a perfect game for Toronto, counter-balanced only by the fact that it didn’t matter a bit. Opponents rarely try in preseason. Even for Toronto, Fred VanVleet and the other veterans had little interested on the offensive end; good performances don’t mean much in preseason. But Nurse said that Thomas should have a consistent role this year. All the rest may be a drop in the ocean, but Thomas’ improvement seems real enough to impact Nurse’s evaluation. That matters.
And look: ultimately, very few of these extrapolations will be true and remain that way into the season. It’s preseason. For now, we’re just dreaming.
NEW YORK – Toronto Blue Jays reliever Chad Green and Canadian slugger Tyler O’Neill of the Boston Red Sox were named finalists for the Major League Baseball Players’ Association’s American League comeback player award on Monday.
Chicago White Sox left-hander Garrett Crochet was the other nominee.
New York Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge, Los Angeles Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani and Kansas City Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. were named player of the year finalists.
The award winners, selected via player voting, will be named Saturday before Game 2 of the World Series.
Green, who missed most of the 2022 and ’23 seasons after undergoing Tommy John surgery, was a high-leverage option for the Blue Jays this past season and filled in at closer over the second half of the campaign.
The right-hander converted his first 16 save opportunities and finished the year with a 4-6 record, 17 saves and a 3.21 earned-run average over 53 appearances.
O’Neill, a native of Burnaby, B.C., also endured back-to-back injury-plagued seasons in ’22 and ’23.
After being traded to the Red Sox in the off-season, O’Neill set an MLB record by hitting a homer in his fifth straight Opening Day. He finished with 31 homers on the year and had an OPS of .847.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 21, 2024.
NEW YORK – Florida Panthers centre Sam Reinhart was named NHL first star of the week on Monday after leading all players with nine points over four games last week.
Reinhart had four goals, five assists and a plus-seven rating to help the Stanley Cup champions post a 3-0-1 record on the week and move into first place in the Atlantic Division.
New York Rangers left-winger Artemi Panarin took the second star and Minnesota Wild goaltenderFilip Gustavsson was the third star.
Panarin had eight points (4-4) over three games.
Gustavsson became the 15th goalie in NHL history to score a goal and had a 1.00 goals-against average and .962 save percentage over a pair of victories.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 21, 2024.
CLEVELAND (AP) — Deshaun Watson won’t finish the season as Cleveland’s starting quarterback for the second straight year.
He’s injured again, and the Browns have new problems.
Watson ruptured his right Achilles tendon in the first half of Sunday’s loss to Cincinnati, collapsing as he began to run and leading some Browns fans to cheer while the divisive QB laid on the ground writhing in pain.
The team feared Watson’s year was over and tests done Monday confirmed the rupture. The Browns said Watson will have surgery and miss the rest of the season but “a full recovery is expected.”
It’s the second significant injury in two seasons for Watson, who broke the glenoid (socket) bone in his throwing shoulder last year after just six starts.
The 29-year-old went down Sunday without being touched on a draw play late in the first half. His right leg buckled and Watson crumpled to the turf. TV replays showed his calf rippling, consistent with an Achilles injury.
He immediately put his hands on his helmet, clearly aware of the severity of an injury similar to the one Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers sustained last year.
As he was being assisted by the team’s medical staff and backup Dorian Thompson-Robinson grabbed a ball to begin warming up, there was some derisive cheers and boos from the stands in Huntington Bank Field.
Cleveland fans have been split over Watson, who has been accused of being sexually inappropriate with women.
The reaction didn’t sit well with several Watson’s teammates, including star end Myles Garrett, the NFL’s reigning Defensive Player of the Year, who was appalled by the fans’ behavior.
“We should be ashamed of ourselves as Browns and as fans to boo anyone and their downfall. To be season-altering, career-altering injury,” Garrett said. “Man’s not perfect. He doesn’t need to be. None of us are expected to be perfect. Can’t judge him for what he does off the field or on the field because I can’t throw stones for my glass house.
“Ultimately everyone’s human and they’re disappointed just like we are, but we have to be better than that as people. There’s levels to this. At the end of the day, it’s just a game and you don’t boo anybody being injured and you don’t celebrate anyone’s downfall.”
Backup quarterback Jameis Winston also admonished the uncomfortable celebration.
“I am very upset with the reaction to a man that has had the world against him for the past four years, and he put his body and life on the line for this city every single day,” he said. “The way I was raised, I will never pull on a man when he’s down, but I will be the person to lift him up.
“I know you love this game. When I first got here, I knew these were some amazing fans, but Deshaun was treated badly and now he has to overcome another obstacle. So I’m going to support him, I’m going to lift him up and I’m going to be there for him.”
The injury is yet another twist in Watson’s tumultuous time with the Browns.
Cleveland traded three first-round draft picks and five overall to Houston in 2022 to get him, with owners Dee and Jimmy Haslam approving the team giving Watson a fully guaranteed, five-year $230 million contract.
With a solid roster, the Browns were desperate to find a QB who could help them compete against the top AFC teams.
The Browns had moved on from Baker Mayfield despite drafting him No. 1 overall in 2018 and making the playoffs two seasons later.
But Watson has not played up to expectations — fans have been pushing for him to be benched this season — and Cleveland’s move to get him has been labeled an abject failure with the team still on the hook to pay him $46 million in each of the next two seasons.
Watson’s arrival in Cleveland also came amid accusations by more than two dozen women of sexual assault and harassment during massage therapy sessions while he played for the Texans. Two grand juries declined to indict him and he has settled civil lawsuits in all but one of the cases.
Watson was suspended by the NFL for his first 11 games and fined $5 million for violating the league’s personal conduct policy before he took his first snap with the Browns. The long layoff — he sat out the 2021 season in a contract dispute — led to struggles once he got on the field, and Watson made just six starts last season before hurting his shoulder.
Cleveland signed veteran Joe Flacco, who went 4-1 as a starter and led the Browns to the playoffs.
Before Watson got hurt this year, he didn’t play much better. He was one of the league’s lowest-rated passers for a Cleveland team that hasn’t scored 20 points in a game and is back in search of a franchise QB.
