Sports

Siakam resembles all-star self as Raptors use complete effort to beat Mavericks

Published

11 months ago

November 9, 2023

DALLAS — Toronto Raptors star Pascal Siakam and head coach Darko Rajakovic want the same thing: for their team to win, and for the two-time all-NBA forward to play the kind of basketball that he’s capable of playing.

One can’t happen without the other. Siakam has been the Raptors’ leading scorer for the last four seasons and has also been among the leaders in assists. He’s averaged 22.9 points a game over that stretch on 47.7 per cent shooting as the team’s primary option. But so far this season, he’s fourth on the Raptors in scoring, averaging just 15.4 points a game on 41.2 per cent shooting which would be a career low by a margin, just as his scoring would be by far the lowest average of his career since he became a full-time starter in his third season. The Raptors want to spread the offence around more this season, but they still need Siakam to be a primary driver of it.

“I think for us to be great as a team — obviously Scottie [Barnes] is doing amazing and he’s playing at an unbelievable level. (But) I think, for me, I have to play at a high level for us to be successful anyway,” said Siakam.

His head coach wasn’t beside Siakam as he was speaking, but you could almost sense Rajakovic nodding.

“It would be a huge help. I think it’s coming. It’s the start of the year, it’s a different style of play, he’s going through adjustments, but at the same time he is really trying to do the right thing. He’s trying to move the ball, he’s trying to find his teammates and that kind of took away a little bit from his aggressiveness,” said Rajakovic. “The last two days I’ve talked to him like, ‘You better be aggressive first’. Aggressive to score, aggressive to attack the rim, to shoot the ball. And if they put two on you, then it’s common sense to find your teammate, but he is just testing the waters, I think. I think very soon, hopefully tonight, he’s going to take off.”

Both men were proven prophetic as the Raptors enjoyed their best win of the young season, with Siakam playing his best yet as Toronto left Dallas with a 127-116 victory. Siakam led the Raptors with a season-high 31 points as Toronto improved to 4-4 on the year and 2-1 on their four-game road trip that concludes in Boston on Saturday. It was just the second loss of the season for the Mavericks, who fall to 6-2 on the year.

It was an exceptional team effort by the Raptors, their most complete one of the season. O.G. Anunoby continued his excellent start to the year, scoring 26 (9-of-17) points while also making life difficult as Luka Doncic’s primary defender, forcing the Mavericks star to grind for his 31 points and eight assists as he shot 11-of-26 from the floor and committed four turnovers. Anunoby was recognized by the coaching staff as the player-of-the-game, earning the decorative chain that goes with it for his two-way effort. Scottie Barnes was sniffing a triple-double on what was a poor shooting night for him as he finished with 14 points (on 4-of-15 shooting) but added 13 rebounds, seven assists, four steals and two blocks. Dennis Schröder was a formidable two-way presence, and it was the best showing of the season by the Raptor bench as the four who logged the most minutes all finished in positive territory. Gary Trent Jr. had 16 points in 26 minutes and Chris Boucher was at his hustling, energizing best with 10 points in 15 minutes.

In addition to the win, the game was notable because for the first time this season Siakam looked like the all-star from a year ago — or the all-NBA player from the season before that — as he added 12 rebounds, five assists and a long list of good plays that don’t have number attached to them.

“He’s been putting a lot of work in. I’m seeing him every single day, how he practices, how he prepares himself,” said Rajakovic. “He did a really, really good job. He gave us a really amazing spark in the first half and just continued down the stretch, making the right plays. He was all over. He was rebounding. He was making assists. He was scoring. He did a great job.”

Siakam came out determined to make his presence felt, but it was a little dicey at first. He missed two triples and a long jumper and then another triple by the time the game was six minutes old. None of them were close. Siakam then began doing what he’s always done well, particularly early in his career when the offence didn’t necessarily run through him, and he found ways to score in the cracks, seams and margins. He squirted free for a lay-up. He gave the ball up on the break and scored on the tip-in on his teammates’ miss. The Raptors found him with some mismatches in the post and he delivered. By the time the quarter was done, he had 10 points, nearly all of them by being opportunist and hustling. The Raptors withstood a powerful early surge led by their stars, Doncic and Kyrie Irving, and trailed just 33-27 when it looked like Dallas was poised to blow them out.

Siakam had plenty of help, too. Anunoby picked up right where he left off in the Raptors’ big win over the San Antonio Spurs. The hybrid lineups made up of one or two starters and bench players more than held their own. Boucher was dusted off for the first time in two games and scored seven points in five second quarter minutes, and Siakam kept bringing it. In one quick sequence, he scored at the rim after Jakob Poeltl found him on duck in, then bullied a smaller Tim Hardaway Jr. in the post before scoring on a fast break, all of which contributed to the Raptors taking a 62-58 lead into the half. Siakam had 16 points.

All the action at the rim and in the paint was also part of the discussion as the Raptors had two days to dissect Siakam’s disappointing 2-of-12 outing against the Spurs on Sunday. Siakam has been shooting just 30 per cent on shots from three to 16 feet so far this year, while he converted 47 per cent of them last season.

Could he be hesitating? Overthinking?

Whatever the cause, Siakam decided to put it to the side and let his game speak.

“I always trust who I am as a player. My instincts are good. I always play the game the right way,” he said. “But at the same time, for me to get to where I am today a lot of things happen, and there’s always that reminder that’s it’s always been a journey for me. Things have never been easy for me, and I feel it separate me from a lot of other people. I’m resilient. That’s one thing I know about myself. And when things are muddy and cloudy I like that as a person just because I knew that like, I’m never gonna give up and there’s always going to be a process and I’m gonna want to get better.”

Siakam hasn’t let his offensive struggles affect his defence and nor did he rest on his offence when it was flowing Wednesday night. Down the stretch, Siakam was a big part of an impressive team effort defensively. When Siakam locked up Doncic in the post, forcing a miss that sparked a Raptors break and ended with a Barnes three-point play that put Toronto up by 15 it was emblematic of the team’s commitment on that end when the game was still in doubt.

Another paint score by Siakam — his first points of the fourth quarter but not his only impact — effectively sealed the game, a much-deserved win, and a perfectly-timed return to normal service by a player the Raptors need to have at his best to be at their best.

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Red Wings sign Moritz Seider to 7-year deal worth nearly $60M

Published

2 hours ago

September 19, 2024

Anne Joseph

DETROIT (AP) — The Detroit Red Wings made another investment this week in a young standout, signing Moritz Seider to a seven-year contract worth nearly $60 million.

The Red Wings announced the move with the 23-year-old German defenseman on Thursday, three days after keeping 22-year-old forward Lucas Raymond with a $64.6 million, eight-year deal.

Detroit drafted Seider with the No. 6 pick overall eight years ago and he has proven to be a great pick. He has 134 career points, the most by a defenseman drafted in 2019.

He was the NHL’s only player to have at least 200 hits and block 200-plus shots last season, when he scored a career-high nine goals and had 42 points for the second straight year.

Seider won the Calder Trophy as the league’s top rookie in 2022 after he had a career-high 50 points.

Red Wings general manager Steve Yzerman is banking on Seider, whose contract will count $8.55 million annually against the cap, and Raymond to turn a rebuilding team into a winner.

Detroit has failed to make the playoffs in eight straight seasons, the longest postseason drought in franchise history.

The Red Wings, who won four Stanley Cups from 1997 to 2008, have been reeling since their run of 25 straight postseasons ended in 2016.

Detroit was 41-32-9 last season and finished with a winning record for the first time since its last playoff appearance.

Yzerman re-signed Patrick Kane last summer and signed some free agents, including Vladimir Tarasenko to a two-year contract worth $9.5 million after he helped the Florida Panthers hoist the Cup.

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Veterans Tyson Beukeboom, Karen Paquin lead Canada’s team at WXV rugby tournament

Published

3 hours ago

September 19, 2024

Anne Joseph

Veterans Tyson Beukeboom and Karen Paquin will lead Canada at the WXV 1 women’s rugby tournament starting later this month in the Vancouver area.

WXV 1 includes the top three teams from the Women’s Six Nations (England, France and Ireland) and the top three teams from the Pacific Four Series (Canada, New Zealand, and the United States).

Third-ranked Canada faces No. 4 France, No. 7 Ireland and No. 1 England in the elite division of the three-tiered WXV tournament that runs Sept. 29 to Oct. 12 in Vancouver and Langley, B.C. No. 2 New Zealand and the eighth-ranked U.S. make up the six-team WVX 1 field.

“Our preparation time was short but efficient. This will be a strong team,” Canada coach Kevin Rouet said in a statement. “All the players have worked very hard for the last couple of weeks to prepare for WXV and we are excited for these next three matches and for the chance to play on home soil here in Vancouver against the best rugby teams in the world.

“France, Ireland and England will each challenge us in different ways but it’s another opportunity to test ourselves and another step in our journey to the Rugby World Cup next year.”

Beukeboom serves as captain in the injury absence of Sophie de Goede. The 33-year-old from Uxbridge, Ont., earned her Canadian-record 68th international cap in Canada’s first-ever victory over New Zealand in May at the Pacific Four Series.

Twenty three of the 30 Canadian players selected for WXV 1 were part of that Pacific Four Series squad.

Rouet’s roster includes the uncapped Asia Hogan-Rochester, Caroline Crossley and Rori Wood.

Hogan-Rochester and Crossley were part of the Canadian team that won rugby sevens silver at the Paris Olympics, along with WXV teammates Fancy Bermudez, Olivia Apps, Alysha Corrigan and Taylor Perry. Wood is a veteran of five seasons at UBC.

The 37-year-old Paquin, who has 38 caps for Canada including the 2014 Rugby World Cup, returns to the team for the first time since the 2021 World Cup.

Canada opens the tournament Sept. 29 against France at B.C. Place Stadium in Vancouver before facing Ireland on Oct. 5 at Willoughby Stadium at Langley Events Centre, and England on Oct. 12 at B.C. Place.

The second-tier WXV 2 and third-tier WXV 3 are slated to run Sept. 27 to Oct. 12, in South Africa and Dubai, respectively.

WXV 2 features Australia, Italy, Japan, Scotland, South Africa and Wales while WXV 3 is made up of Fiji, Hong Kong, Madagascar, the Netherlands, Samoa and Spain.

The tournament has 2025 World Cup qualification implications, although Canada, New Zealand and France, like host England, had already qualified by reaching the semifinals of the last tournament.

Ireland, South Africa, the U.S., Japan, Fiji and Brazil have also booked their ticket, with the final six berths going to the highest-finishing WXV teams who have not yet qualified through regional tournaments.

Canada’s Women’s Rugby Team WXV 1 Squad

Forwards

Alexandria Ellis, Ottawa, Stade Français Paris (France); Brittany Kassil, Guelph, Ont., Guelph Goats; Caroline Crossley, Victoria, Castaway Wanderers; Courtney Holtkamp, Rimbey, Alta., Red Deer Titans Rugby; DaLeaka Menin, Vulcan, Alta., Exeter Chiefs (England); Emily Tuttosi, Souris, Man., Exeter Chiefs (England); Fabiola Forteza, Quebec City, Stade Bordelais (France); Gabrielle Senft, Regina, Saracens (England); Gillian Boag, Calgary, Gloucester-Hartpury (England); Julia Omokhuale, Calgary, Leicester Tigers (England); Karen Paquin, Quebec City, Club de rugby de Quebec; Laetitia Royer, Loretteville, Que., ASM Romagnat (France); McKinley Hunt, King City, Ont., Saracens (England); Pamphinette Buisa, Gatineau, Que., Ottawa Irish; Rori Wood, Sooke, B.C., College Rifles RFC; Sara Cline, Edmonton, Leprechaun Tigers; Tyson Beukeboom, Uxbridge, Ont., Ealing Trailfinders (England);

Backs

Alexandra Tessier, Sainte-Clotilde-de-Horton, Que., Exeter Chiefs (England); Alysha Corrigan, Charlottetown, P.E.I., CRFC; Asia Hogan-Rochester, Toronto, Toronto Nomads; Claire Gallagher, Caledon, Ont., Leicester Tigers (England); Fancy Bermudez, Edmonton, Saracens (England); Julia Schell, Uxbridge, Ont., Ealing Trailfinders (England); Justine Pelletier, Rivière-du-Loup, Que, Stade Bordelais (France); Mahalia Robinson, Fulford, Que., Town of Mount Royal RFC; Olivia Apps, Lindsay, Ont., Lindsay RFC; Paige Farries, Red Deer, Alta., Saracens (England); Sara Kaljuvee, Ajax, Ont., Westshore RFC; Shoshanah Seumanutafa, White Rock, B.C., Counties Manukau (New Zealand); Taylor Perry, Oakville, Ont., Exeter Chiefs (England).

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Follow @NeilMDavidson on X platform, formerly known as Twitter

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 18, 2024.

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Vancouver Canucks star goalie Thatcher Demko working through rare muscle injury

Published

3 hours ago

September 19, 2024

Anne Joseph

PENTICTON, B.C. – Vancouver Canucks goalie Thatcher Demko says he’s been working his way back from a rare lower-body muscle injury since being sidelined in last season’s playoffs.

The 28-year-old all star says the rehabilitation process has been frustrating, but he has made good progress in recent weeks and is confident he’ll be able to return to playing.

He says he and his medical team have spent the last few months talking to specialists around the world, and have not found a single other hockey player who has dealt with the same injury.

Demko missed several weeks of the last season with a knee ailment and played just one game in Vancouver’s playoff run last spring before going down with the current injury.

He was not on the ice with his teammates as the Canucks started training camp in Penticton, B.C., on Thursday, but skated on his own before the sessions began.

Demko posted a 35-14-2 record with a .918 percentage, a 2.45 goals-against average and five shutouts for Vancouver last season.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.

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