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Mavericks guard Jose Calderon was barely two minutes into his post-shoot around assembly with the media before he was blindsided
Mavericks guard Jose Calderon was barely two minutes into his post-shoot around assembly with the media before he was blindsided
in Quasselecke 31.07.2018 09:37von jinshuiqian0713 • 1.650 Beiträge
DALLAS - Mavericks guard Jose Calderon was barely two minutes into his post-shoot around assembly with the media before he was blindsided by the first of many hugs from his former cohorts. M.J. Stewart Jersey . Mavs shoot around had just let out and the Raptors were slowly filing onto the court at American Airlines Center when DeMar DeRozan ran straight to the far baseline, surprising his former teammate with a hug. Amir Johnson was next, followed by Jonas Valanciunas and several other Raptors players until finally, he was greeted by his old coach and good friend Dwane Casey. "Its always going to be a little bit of a different game for me after all those years in Toronto," Calderon said with a big smile on his face, which of course is nothing new, ahead of Friday nights contest against his former team. "I still have a lot of friends on the other team." Listen to all the action live on TSN 1050 Radio in Toronto, beginning at 8:30pm et. Traded to the Pistons in the three-team deal that netted the Raptors Rudy Gay last January, Calderon had spent his first seven-plus NBA seasons in Toronto. He remains the franchise all-time leader in assists and free-throw percentage, ranking second in games played, fourth in minutes and fifth in points. At the time it seemed like an inevitable, albeit saddening breakup. Bryan Colangelo had just acquired Kyle Lowry to pair with and eventually replace Calderon, whose contract was expiring. The trade was hardly a surprise but its one the Raptors are regretting nearly 11 months later. Gays time in Toronto was short-lived for obvious financial and stylistic reasons while replacing Calderons quietly dependable production has proven to be a challenge, one the Raptors hope Greivis Vasquez may help solve. The Raptors recorded 20 or more assists in 22 of 23 games with Calderon starting prior to last years trade however, they accomplished that feat in just 21 of 56 contests with Gay in the lineup. A lot has changed in 11 months, as Calderon noticed when putting together a list of dinner guests on Thursday. "Yesterday, I was trying to put together a list of guys who could come for dinner," he said. "And it was like okay, there are not so many guys." The point guard, who ended up hosting Valanciunas and seven members of the Raptors staff at his new home on Thursday night, has played with only six current Raptors. Only two, DeRozan and Johnson, were teammates with Calderon for more than a couple months (they played with him for just over four seasons.) "That happens all the time," the nine-year vet said. "Thats how the NBA works, even more now with the new GM in Toronto and all the new management. You knew changes were coming." For those who had the opportunity to play with him, to coach him, Calderon has been missed. "That was my point guard coming into the league," said DeRozan, in the midst of a career year. "And in the early stages of my career he really helped develop me into the player I am now. He helped me understand a lot and I commend a lot of my success to Jose." Inking a four-year deal with the Mavericks over the summer, Calderon and his family are getting comfortable in Dallas. In 24 games this season, the Mavs guard is averaging 11.9 points and 4.5 assists, making more threes per game (2.6) than he has before while shooting a career-best 47 per cent from long range. At 32 years of age, Calderon was the old man in Toronto, but in Dallas he fits right in. "I think its making my job a little bit easier playing with guys like Vince (Carter) or Shawn (Marion) or Dirk (Nowitzki)," he said. "They know how to play. For a point guard, being with guys who know to play all the time is easier, so I feel really comfortable out there with them for sure." As Mavs coach Rick Carlisle pointed out, its hard to believe how long Calderon has been in the league, especially for those that remember him as a raw, timid rookie out of Spain back with the Raptors in 2005. At that time Carlisle was coaching the Pacers and remembers the words of Lithuanian guard Sarunas Jasikevicius, who was familiar with Calderon having played against him overseas. "He came to me one day and said, that guy Calderon is a very resourceful player, hes better than you think he is," Carlisle recalled. "And he was right." "Joses had a really strong and solid career in the NBA," the Mavs coach continued. "Hell go down as one of the top European players ever." Both teams got their greetings and reminiscing over with early: Calderon with his old teammates, Carter with the Raptors media and staff and Casey with Carlisle, his former boss in Dallas. Once the ball is tossed up its all business for the Raptors, who are coming off a last-second overtime loss and are beginning a daunting four-game road trip. "Not [for] me," DeRozan said, asked if it will be difficult to face a player that has meant so much to him. "Not me personally, not at all. I understand that once we step on this court I could be playing against my mom and Im going to go out there and try to win." At 11-2, the Mavericks own the second-best home record in the Western Conference and have won 12 of the last 13 meetings with the Raptors in Dallas. Carlton Davis Buccaneers Jersey . - A mixed martial arts fighter who changed his name to War Machine was ordered Friday to stand trial in Nevada state court on 34 felony charges including attempted murder, sexual assault and kidnapping that could get him life in prison for allegedly attacking his porn star ex-girlfriend and her friend. Vinny Curry Buccaneers Jersey .While Rosberg is coming off a strong victory at the Brazilian Grand Prix, Hamilton is dwelling on a mistake that ended his streak of five consecutive wins and kept him from increasing his advantage. http://www.authenticbuccaneersstoreonline.com/Black-47-John-Lynch-Womens-Jersey/ .com) - American Madison Keys grabbed a first- round victory on Sunday in a rainy start to the Apia International Sydney tournament.The Edmonton Oilers picked up veteran scoring winger Teddy Purcell, sending Sam Gagner to Tampa Bay, who then flipped Gagner to Arizona in a move to clear cap space. Numbers Game breaks down the pieces involved in these two deals. The Oilers Get: RW Teddy Purcell. Purcell, 28, is a skilled winger with good size, though he doesnt always use that size to his maximum advantage. Hes missed a total of three games over the past four seasons and his 194 points over that time ranks 57th in the league. Hes a productive player. A fine complement to other skilled forwards, Purcell has posted strong relative posession stats, enough that hes a solid fit as a second-line winger. How that fits with the current Oilers roster is an interesting question, at the very least. With Taylor Hall, Jordan Eberle, David Perron and Nail Yakupov on board, adding Purcell to the mix does give the Oilers plenty of scoring wingers, though they are now looking at a presumed hole at second-line centre, unless the Oilers are already projecting third overall pick Leon Draisaitl into that spot. Purcell has two years remaining on a contract that comes with a $4.5-million cap hit; no bargain, but not unreasonable for a top-six forward. The Coyotes Get: C Sam Gagner and RW B.J. Crombeen. Gagner is a 24-year-old who has never surpassed the 49 points that he scored as a rookie, but is also the second-leading scorer from the 2007 Draft class, behind only first overall pick Patrick Kane. Its certainly possible that Gagner can recover his game, because hes still relatively young, but hes been a possession disaster over the past couple seasons and at least part of that reflects his defensive shortcomings. Where this fits for Arizona is that they have two-way centres that can effectively protect Gagner. With Martin Hanzal and Antoine Vermette available to face tougher match-ups, Gagner can be utilized in a role that focuses on offensive production. Since the Coyotes just bought out Mike Ribeiro, its conceivable that Gagner could take over those minutes and Ribeiro started a higher percentage of his shifts in the offensive zone (minimum 40 games played) than anyone in the league last season. If the Coyotes are going to maximize Gagners production, they could also give him that offensive role and add a free agent winger to further upgrade their skill level. Former Oilers RW Ales Hemsky is a free agent, but Jussi Jokinen, Matt Moulson and Mike Cammalleri are other options that could have some appeal. Gagner has two years left on hiss contract, at a cap hit of $4. Chandler Catanzaro Buccaneers Jersey. .8-million, and will get $5-million per season in actual salary, with the Lightning retaining one-third the cost as part of the trade. More on that in a moment. Crombeen is a 28-year-old winger who has has 90 fights and 49 points in 265 games over the past six-plus seasons. Hes generally a subpar possession player, but not so much so that he cant handle a regular shift on the fourth line. Heading into the final year of his contract, Crombeen brings a cap hit of $1.15-million, and gives the Coyotes an enforcer that they can keep in the lineup on at least a semi-regular basis. The Lightning Get: A sixth-round pick in 2015. In the immediate aftermath of the Gagner-for-Purcell swap, the Lightning Tweeted that Gagner was going to be bought-out, which makes sense considering the Lightnings decision to retain salary as part of the deal with Arizona. Since Gagner is under 26-years-old, a buyout would cost one-third the value of his contract, so the Coyotes jumped in, before Gagner hit the open market, and by taking on Crombeens salary, gave the Lightning a little increased financial flexibility as they prepare for free agency on July 1. With more room to maneuver under the cap, the Lightning could go in a couple directions. They could go after a scoring winger -- Jarome Iginla, Thomas Vanek and Mike Cammalleri are some options -- a veteran to complement a young and promising group of Tampa Bay forwards, or they could spend that money on defence. Former Lightning D Dan Boyle could be one target, but Christian Ehrhoff, Mark Fayne, Anton Stralman and Matt Niskanen are among the more prized blueliners about to hit free agency. A sixth-round pick brings with it about a 15% chance of yielding an NHL player, so not great value, but a token price for taking on Crombeens contract. In a separate deal, the Lightning also moved Nate Thompson to Anaheim, acquiring fourth and seventh-round picks in 2015. The picks bring a little less than a 30% chance of an NHL player, but the Lightning clear Thompsons $1.6-million per season for the next three years off the books. Essentially the Oilers, and especially the Lightning look like they are making moves to set up something else, other moves to make this offseason, while the Coyotes took advantage of an opportunity and filled a hole in their lineup at a very reasonable cost. Scott Cullen can be reached at Scott.Cullen@bellmedia.ca and followed on Twitter at http://twitter.com/tsnscottcullen. For more, check out TSN Fantasy on Facebook. Wholesale NFL Autographed Jerseys Wholesale NFL Autographed Jerseys Cheap Jerseys From China Cheap Jerseys Wholesale Nike NFL Jerseys China Wholesale Jerseys 2019 Wholesale Jerseys ' ' '
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