d. Gleason was also a decent position player over part of his

TORONTO - In one of the NBAs most unexpected role reversals, the Raptors find themselves sitting atop the East, looking down on a paper-thin conference that includes the hard-luck Pacers, a 56-win team that has hit rock bottom in the absence of their best player. For years, the Indiana Pacers had been a model for the Raptors and most of the NBAs rebuilding teams seeking sustainable success in a league that is generally dominated by superstar players and big basketball markets. Dwane Casey and former general manager Bryan Colangelo would point to the way the Pacers built up their roster, without a top pick or big money free agent import. They would point to Indianas rise to the top of the Eastern Conference - qualifying for the playoffs in each of the last four seasons, improving by at least five wins every year. Continuity and internal growth helped turn Frank Vogels club from a middling team to powerhouse in the East, but theyve fallen on hard times in the aftermath of a season-ending injury to Paul George, one of the NBAs elite two-way players. The Raptors share a similar affliction, also playing without their leading scorer, albeit less permanently. Granted, DeMar DeRozan is not at Georges level, nor are the Raptors as dependant on him as the Pacers are on their All-Star. But the biggest reason theyve been able to tread water in his absence - improving to 4-3 without him - was ultimately the difference in their latest win over wounded Indiana. One of our weapons that we have is our bench, said Patrick Patterson, a member of Torontos second unit, a group that poured in 64 points, fuelling the teams 106-94 victory Friday night. We feel like we have one of the best benches in the league. The Pacers have also been without starting point guard George Hill - out indefinitely with a knee injury. Meanwhile, 34-year-old David West still looks out of sync working his way back from an extended absence. The result has been a seven-game losing streak - their worst since 2009 - and an eight-point (per contest) swing from last year (scoring 3.2 points less, allowing 4.8 more). Toronto, on the other hand, is better suited for life without its top point producer. Unlike the Pacers, they have a second star in Kyle Lowry - hes taken his game to another level with his backcourt partner sidelined - in addition to a strong and diverse bench to pick up the slack. With their starters struggling - Terrence Ross and Jonas Valanciunas combined to go 6-for-23 from the field - the Raptors reserves took over, led by the hot shooting of Lou Williams. Lou is a born scorer, Casey said of Williams, who had a game-high 26 points in 29 minutes. Hes done it in big games, hes done it in playoff situations. Thank goodness hes back healthy again. We have to make sure we get him good looks. Four reserves scored in double figures for the Raptors - James Johnson had 13 points, Patterson added 11 and Greivis Vasquez overcame a slow start to score 10. Tyler Hansbrough took just one shot but changed the game with his energy in a spirited 18 minutes off the pine. Together, they stretched an eight-point lead to start the fourth quarter to a 19-point advantage, allowing Casey to rest Lowry - who logged just 26 minutes after exceeding 40 in each of his last three outings. We have pretty much the sixth man of the year in my opinion with Lou Williams, Patterson said. Then you have myself, Tyler, Greivis, JJ. We have so many guys, so many different pieces who can come off the bench and contribute game in and game out and it can be anybodys night and tonight it seemed like it was a total team effort from the starters to the second unit. Its good for teams to have a second group, to give the first group relief, Williams added. We have a lot of guys that can start on other teams and weve accepted the role of being backups and we take that in pride, we take that in pride that we know were going into games and going to change the pace of the game. I think thats a major plus. Without George, the Pacers already lacklustre offence has fallen even further. They scored 94 points on Friday becoming the first Raptors opponent to be held under the century mark over Torontos last 10 games. Well, its been a struggle, obviously, said Vogel. If you look at where our record is, we havent had that. Were trying to establish that. Were trying to work through the changes in bodies that we have out there and working guys back from injuries. Its obviously a different dynamic. Indiana simply doesnt have the offensive talent to make up for what theyve lost, but they still present a challenge on the defensive end and on the boards, where they rank second in the NBA. One of our main emphasis going in was to talk about rebounding, said Casey, whos team bested the Pacers on the boards, 52-39, including 16-6 on the offensive glass. And to out-rebound a team like Indiana, which is very physical and a paint-oriented team, my hats off to our guys. Overall, it was just a team effort keeping them off the glass, said Patterson, who contributed eight rebounds. We know theyre a great rebounding team and we know rebounding hasnt been our forte these past couple of games and its something we need to improve on and I think tonight was a step in the right direction. It seemed like everybody was on the glass. παπουτσια Adidas Superstar ανδρικα . "Ive got a lot of work to do on this team and the sooner that I can get back to my office and start that work, itll be better," he said straight-faced as the rest of the room erupted in laughter. παπουτσια NMD http://www.nmdgreece.com/adidas-gazelle-greece.html . The government says top golfers are expected to compete in the PGA Tour event at the Ashburn Golf Club in the suburb of Fall River from July 3-6 and again next year. Adidas NMD R2 προσφορες . Joakim Nordstrom and Garret Ross also scored for Chicago and Corey Crawford made 30 saves. Tomas Tatar scored twice for Red Wings (2-3-0), Jonathan Ericsson added a goal and Gustav Nyquist had three assists. Adidas Gazelle προσφορες . -- Without Carey Price, the run for a first Stanley Cup in 21 years got steeper and longer for the Montreal Canadiens.The voting results for the Baseball Hall of Fame will be announced on January 8 in the new year. Unlike last year when nobody got in, there have been estimates of as many as five getting voted in this time around and as few as one, Greg Maddux. Going over the list of players already in Cooperstown, I found it interesting that four went by the nickname "Kid" or "The Kid". They would be former Expos and Mets star Gary Carter, the Brewers Robin Yount, the immortal Red Sox legend Ted Williams and one you may not be as familiar with, Charles "Kid" Nichols. "Kid" Nichols began his career in the Majors in 1890 and was through in 1906. But the numbers he put up were truly remarkable. Starting in 1890, with the Boston Beaneaters in the National League he went 27-19 with a 2.23 ERA. In seven of the next eight seasons he won 30 or more games. He finished his career with 361 victories against 208 losses and a 2.96 ERA. Not only that he started 562 games over his career and finished 532. In other words he pitched complete games in about 95 per cent of his outings. Granted it was a different era. In his first three seasons, 1890-92, the distance from the pitching mound to home plate was only 50 feet. Nevertheless Nichols was the main reason the Beaneaters won three consecutive pennants. After that though the mound was pushed back to its current distance of 60 6" but Nichols remained every bit as dominant. The funny thing is Nicholls wasnt physically imposing. It has been estimated he only weighed about 138 pounds when he broke in with Boston and looked like a teenager, hence the nickname "Kid". "Kid" Nichols threw straight over the top and threw few if any breaking pitches. He and others have credited this for his durability and good fortune in avoiding injuries. He had impeccable control, and an uncanny ability to change speeds on his fastball. Nichols was almost lost in the annals of baseball history and didnt get into the Hall of Fame until 1949 when he was selected by the Veterans Committee. One of the loudest voices in getting him elected was a charter member of the Hall of Fame was none other than Ty Cobb. The most amazing fact about "Kid Nichols" is that he won his 300th game when he was only 30 years old. Again, there is a bit of a caveat. During his career teams usually only carried five pitchers at most and depending on circumstance you could be pitching every second or third daay.dddddddddddd Still the numbers he put up and the career he had was amazing. Heres the thing Im wondering about. Its "Kid" Nichols Canadian connection. Baseball Reference.com claims he went to secondary school at Queen Elizabeth High School in Surrey, BC. If you click on the school name, Nichols name comes up along with another former Major Leaguer who attended the same school, Kevin Nicholson. Nichols was an American born in Wisconsin, who spent part of his youth in Kansas City. I can find no mention of how he wound up in a Canadian high school. Interesting to say the least. I also wanted to mention another "Kid" who is not in the Hall of Fame. You might remember the name "Kid" Gleason. He was the manager of the infamous 1919 Chicago White Sox, of the "Black Sox" scandal infamy. Gleason played no part in throwing the series to the Cincinnati Reds, in fact he called out some of his own players for tanking after they played a brutal first game of the World Series. Well before that series, Gleason was a decent player in his own right. In 1890 for instance, he pitched 506 innings and completed 54 of the 55 games he started. Gleason was also a decent position player over part of his career in addition to being a manager. It was said he was every bit the fiery competitor Cobb was, if not more so. Bringing Back Banks It seems only fitting, when Disney is releasing the movie "Saving Mr. Banks" about the making of the "Mary Poppins" movie, the Blue Jays should be shooting out a lifeline to a Mr. Banks of their own. Theyve signed right-hander Josh Banks, a pitcher they originally drafted in the second round in 2003 to a minor league deal. Banks only pitched in three games for the Jays back in 2007, then bounced from San Diego to Houston and finally to the minor league systems of the Giants and Orioles. He was actually released by the Os on March 31, 2012. So why is he back? Well back in the day Banks could throw eight pitches including a knuckleball. Now at age 31 he has re-invented himself as a knuckleballer. The Jays are hoping theyve caught "Lightning in a Bottle" on this one. Altogether now, the Jays have three knuckleballers in their organization, R.A. Dickey, Tomo Ohka who is coming back as a knuckler at age 37, and now Josh Banks. If Banks makes it after three years out of the Majors maybe Disney will come calling about another movie. ' ' '