A final thought on Toronto's loss Sunday at home to Portland. There were some positives as the defence was much better. For the second time all season (Boston was the other occasion) and only the 14th time since the start of the division championship season of 2006-07, the Raptors lost a game when holding an opponent under 45 per cent shooting from the floor. There was some early offence as Toronto scored quickly pushing the ball up the floor.
The final play was a botched one, as the set that Jay Triano drew up on his clipboard was not implemented. Which brings it back to the players as you can have the greatest play but it has to be executed on the court. Keep your eyes peeled because he plans to use it again.
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The coaching ranks took another hit as the Minnesota Timberwolves tied the can to Randy Wittman on Monday. Wittman is the fourth coach to be shown the door and general manager, Kevin McHale, will take over in the interim. If you are a coach that is out of work, depending on what happens with interim head coaches, you might want to start tuning up your resume for the interview circuit next spring.
Wolves point guard Randy Foye echoes the age-old adage that the players have to perform, regardless of who is running the team. It looks like Reggie Theus is just marking time in Sacramento as he is seemingly resigned to the fact that he is eventually going to be out of work.
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Cavaliers head coach Mike Brown was formerly an assistant in San Antonio under Gregg Popovich and Brown is still in touch with his mentor when he has questions. Whatever "Pop" is telling Brown seems to be working as Cleveland has the second-best record in the East behind Boston. But it's not only Brown, as many of Popovich's former players in coaching and management positions have him on speed dial.
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And finally, it looks like the Hall of Fame is going to open its doors again. It begs the question, and I will continue to ask it: Why is the guy Larry Bird called the best player he ever played with -- who won three championship rings along with a finals MVP award -- Dennis Johnson not in the Hall of Fame? The guy practically died on the court.
