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With the NBA season just getting underway, we asked TSN hoops experts Jack Armstrong, Josh Lewenberg and Duane Watson a few burning questions about the year ahead.cheap jerseys . Today we asked: with so many new Canadian players entering the NBA and Andrew Wiggins on the way, where is Canada as a basketball nation and what are the next steps for the National team? Jacks take: It is really cool to watch the emergence of the sport of Basketball across Canada. Ive seen it happen on two different levels over the past 25+ years, first as an NCAA Division 1 Coach at Niagara for 10 Years and then for the past 15+ as a broadcaster in Canada. The Best is yet to come. The exposure to the sport is top-shelf and kids are getting better instruction and coaching than theyve ever had. The key will be the loyalty of the Canadian players to play for their country and succeed at the international level. There are lots of expectations now and with that comes the pressure. A strong fundamental base and demands on playing the game as a team will be paramount. There are Lots of talented young players emerging on the scene at the same time which is great yet a concern as well. These guys need to know how to sacrifice for the greater good and not allow the narrow-minded selfishness of youth to overtake whats good for the team. Who will be the winning veteran examples for them? Talent only gets you so far. Team play, toughness, role definition, maturity, selflessness and smarts will be the factors that have to become more and more evident each day. The potential is there -- now there must be a willingness to lay it all on the line and represent your nation with no strings attached and do it the right way for the right reasons. Im fascinated to see how it will all work out. Watsons take: The talent has already established itself, now its a matter of nurturing and developing it. Canada is a top five basketball country in terms of talent, however the mens global ranking at 25th in the world, by FIBA isnt far off. They havent been able to compete and win as a country, failing to qualify for the World Cup at the FIBA Americas this summer. Not to say they wont, but this "golden era" exists more on the NBA court than the international one. Excluding the US, Canada boasts the second most players in the league after France. With the season tipping off on Tuesday night, Cory Joseph (Spurs), Kelly Olynyk (Celtics), Joel Anthony (Heat), Tristan Thompson (Cavaliers), Steve Nash (Lakers), Robert Sacre (Lakers), Andrew Nicholson (Magic), and No. 1 draft pick Anthony Bennett (Cavaliers) were all on NBA rosters. Thats an unprecedented number of Canadians in the league. The Canadian team needs to develop chemistry, the bulk of the players are not only new to the program, but most are new to international basketball. Furthermore, they havent really played together, and while it may not happen in Rio at the Olympics, the players are committed and the program is definitely headed in the right direction. On the NBA court, the Canadian invasion will continue and its quite likely a Canadian will be playing in the All-Star Game in Toronto in 2016. Lewenbergs take: "This really is the golden age of Canadian basketball," Steve Nash famously proclaimed just as the Senior Mens National Team got set to embark on its first test in Venezuela this summer. Despite feelings of renewed optimism and legitimate signs of positive growth in the tournament, the FIBA Americas ended in familiar disappointment for Canada. However, as Nash and company have reminded us, this is just the beginning. It goes without saying now, because it has been said so many times in recent months, Canada is further along as a basketball nation than it has ever been. Entering his third year in the NBA, Tristan Thompson has exceeded all expectations with the Cavs, Cory Joseph cracked the playoff rotation in San Antonio last spring and Andrew Nicholson is poised for a breakout sophomore season with the Magic. Then there are Anthony Bennett, Kelly Olynyk and Andrew Wiggins who have played in zero NBA games and have yet to suit up for the Canadian senior team. And thats not to mention the rest of the countrys collegiate talent and young players turning heads north of the border every day. Nash was wrong, or exaggerating for effect. This isnt the golden age of Canadian basketball, not yet. But its coming and its not far off. cheap jerseys from china . JOHNS, N. cheap nfl jerseys . Once complete, the 18,000-seat arena will become home to the Detroit Red Wings who will move out of aging Joe Louis Arena. The transfer approved Tuesday is the third part of council action on the $650 million project.MINNEAPOLIS -- NFL players are defending their decision to disband the union, saying employers cannot force workers to unionize, and dissolution is "not akin to turning off a light switch." The players made the statements Monday in a court document filed in response to the NFLs assertion decertification was "a sham." "It is established law that a union can renounce collective bargaining to enable its workers to protect themselves from antitrust violations," lawyers for the players wrote in the filing. Lawyers for Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, Drew Brees and six other NFL players are asking a federal judge to halt a lockout imposed by owners, saying an injunction is needed to "stop the irreparable harm being inflicted today." A hearing on the issue is scheduled for April 6 in St. Paul, Minn. The players say that prior court decisions have made it clear the right of workers not to unionize is absolute. The players disclaimed their union, gave up the right to strike, to collectively bargain and to have union representation. "The players sacrificed these labour law rights for one reason: to gain the ability to assert antitrust claims against anti-competitive restrictions imposed by defendants," lawyers for the players argued on Monday. NFL spokesman Greg Aiello said, "There are no surprises or arguments we did not expect. The unions lawyers still fail to come to terms with the jurisdictional principles that bar an injunction in this case." Last week, the NFL wrote in response to the lawsuit to ask that the lockout be kept in place, accusing the players of trying to manipulate the law with what the league deems a baseless antitrust claim. The NFL also argues that any legal decision on the lockoutt should wait until the National Labor Relations Board rules on an unfair labour practice charge against the now-dissolved players union. wholesale jerseys. The players argued that the NLRB proceedings could take years, thus there is no basis for the court to wait to tackle the issue. The "claim that it was bad faith for the NFLPA to renounce its union status is absurd," the court document said. It added that the NFLPA was re-formed as a union because of a court settlement, and that it existed as a union for nearly 20 years, "with renunciation occurring only after two years of fruitless collective bargaining." U.S. District Judge Susan Richard Nelson is scheduled to hear arguments on the injunction next week. The current players say they cant afford to wait for the NLRB to conclude its investigation and issue a ruling. The lockout has shutdown free agency, prevented player movement and kept players from working out at team facilities. "Players are suffering irreparable harm now, before games are lost ... Absent immediate injunctive relief, it will be impossible to turn back the clock or quantify in damages these lost opportunities," the filing said. A group of retired players filed their own lawsuit as well on Monday, seeking to gain class-action status with the current players against the NFL. Hall of Famer Carl Eller, three-time All-Pro Priest Holmes and two other ex-players want the lockout lifted to ensure their pensions and health benefits remain funded. According to the lawsuit, those benefits can end if a collective bargaining agreement is not renewed by next March 11 -- a year after the last one expired. ------ Associated Press Writer Amy Forliti and AP Sports Writer Dave Campbell contributed to this report. ' ' ' |
