Vorstellung » s, and then it turns into a circus." The Pisto

TORONTO - The Raptors have won seven of eight games, with just four remaining on the docket before the playoffs begin, but their head coach has been reluctant to celebrate his teams bittersweet late-season success. Thanks in large part to a soft schedule and their improved efficiency on offence, they are finding ways to pull out games that they have probably deserved to lose. In that way, progress has been made, as Raptor teams of the past would universally find creative and increasingly frustrating ways to squander winnable games. The red flag is routed in their recent slippage on defence, Dwane Caseys bread and butter. With the postseason around the corner, Casey knows that mental and physical toughness is about to become more important than ever. He cant help but be concerned with what hes seen. "If we havent taught defence by now we shouldnt be coaching," he said following a Thursday afternoon practice session. "Its a mindset right now, its a focus. Its this time of year throughout the league, its an epidemic." Over the last two games, Toronto has allowed Milwaukee and Philadelphia - the NBAs two worst clubs - to score 212 points combined, shooting exactly 50 per cent from the field, with each team exceeding 60 points in the painted area. On the season, the Raptors are surrendering 102.0 points per 100 possessions, the eighth-best mark in the association. Since Mar. 25 - a span in which theyve played nine games, six against sub-.500 competition - that number has ballooned to 107.2, ranking 17th, below league average. Offensively, theyve picked up the slack. Over that same stretch of nine games, the Raptors have scored 4.1 points more per 100 possessions than their regular season mark. Simply put, their shots are falling. Theyve connected on 44 per cent of their three-point attempts in the last four contests. That said, theyve made it this far with their commitment to defence. Thats what Casey knows, thats what he preaches and for whatever reason, his team has struggled to regain their identity at the most inconvenient time of the year. "Weve just got to get back on track," DeMar DeRozan said, following Torontos 125-114 win over the lowly 76ers on Wednesday. "Weve got to get out of whatever were not doing on the defensive end before the playoffs start. Just clean that up and use the next four games for that. Understand what were not doing and get back to the basics of what got us to this point." "We saw it on film, we showed the film, we talked about it, went through it this morning," Casey added the next day. "Its something thats going to have to be internal. Guys have to decide individually, Imma guard my yard and Im not going to let a guy blow by me." For the most part thats been the most glaring issue, containing speed and quickness on the perimeter, something the Raptors have been burned by consistently throughout the latter part of the season. Its easy to look at the 126 points Toronto has given up in the paint over the past two games and assign blame to the teams interior players but most of those buckets have come as a result of blow-bys and mental lapses on the perimeter. "Its a lot of things that factor into it and weve got to understand and learn that weve got to bring the same effort and focus every night," Casey said. "Its not something you teach. I mean, were not going to change defensive fundamentals. You cant drill it, its too physical. So its a mindset of understanding where we are in the season and understanding what were playing for." "Its not a lack of energy. Guys are playing hard, were just not focused on what we need to do and what were trying to do scheme-wise and playing smart." Surely some of the drop off can be attributed to injuries and having to shift rotations. Kyle Lowry returned to the court Wednesday after a three-game absence with a knee injury while Amir Johnson, the teams most valuable help defender, has missed most of the last four contests nursing his sore ankle. Johnson participated in a light practice Thursday and is nearing a return to game action, though the coaching staff will be cautious with his playing time when he is able to suit up, as early as Friday at home to the Knicks. "Its a day-to-day thing," Casey said of Johnsons status. "He probably could have went [Wednesday] night if it was totally needed but we need to get him healthy." With or without Johnson, the Raptors will be pursuing history when they host New York Friday evening. With a win, or Nets loss - theyre at home to Atlanta - Toronto would clinch its second division title in franchise history, while also matching a team record for most victories in a season with their 47th. Theyll also have an opportunity to go 15 games above the .500 mark for the first time in their 19-year existence. "That would definitely be an accomplishment," Johnson admitted, "but our main focus is just going game-by-game until we get to the top and then we can celebrate all our accomplishments." Meanwhile, the Knicks are a desperate team, sitting two games behind the Hawks for the eighth and final spot in the Eastern Conference playoff race. Well rested after four days off, they could present a challenge for Toronto and its ailing defence. "We expect nothing but theyre best shot," Casey said. "Theyre going to come out guns blazing, playing hard, as we should after our defensive performance [Wednesday] night. So I expect both teams to come out, I think itll be a hard fought game but weve got to play hard and smart." DeRozan and Lowry are also chasing history as their career seasons come to a close. Lowry needs just one three-pointer to tie Morris Petersons single season franchise record, previously set in the 2005-06 campaign, while DeRozan is 10 made free throws away from matching Chris Boshs mark of 504 from 2008-09. Johnny Unitas Jersey .com) - The Los Angeles Dodgers made it official Tuesday and signed pitcher Brandon McCarthy to a four-year contract. T.Y. Hilton Jersey . He could have transferred when academic sanctions barred the Huskies from the NCAA tournament his junior season. http://www.coltsfansshop.com/Colts-Matt-...n-Draft-Jersey/. "I had a pretty good year," the soft-spoken Granberg told TSN.ca with a grin from the teams annual rookie tournament in London. A fourth-round selection in 2010, Granberg is worth keeping an eye on with NHL training camps rolling around in less than a week. The six-foot-two, 200-pound defender may not possess the wow-inspiring theatrics of fellow prospect Morgan Rielly, but nonetheless has a chance to contribute with the Leafs when all is said and done this season. Braden Smith Jersey . -- The Anaheim Ducks have signed left wing Dany Heatley to a one-year deal, returning the 33-year-old unrestricted free agent to the Pacific Division. Jacoby Brissett Jersey .Jeff Green, playing in his second preseason game after missing the first four because of a calf strain, had 18 points. The Celtics (3-3) shot 47.2 per cent from the floor and made 15 of 37 3-point attempts. AUBURN HILLS, Mich. -- Samuel Dalembert had more offensive rebounds than Andre Drummond, Greg Monroe and Josh Smith combined. That was probably the most telling stat from Saturdays game, which Dalemberts Dallas Mavericks won 113-102 over a Detroit team hurt throughout the night by Drummonds foul trouble. Dirk Nowitzki scored 24 points and Vince Carter added 18 for Dallas. "If youre able to get them in foul trouble early, they kind of slow things down a little bit and become less aggressive," Dalembert said. "We knew what we were getting into, and we were ready for the fight." Dallas had surprising success on the boards against Detroits imposing front line. The Mavericks finished with 16 offensive rebounds. The Pistons, who came in as the NBAs top team in that department, had only nine. Drummond finished with only eight points and three rebounds in just under 20 minutes of action. "When you get in foul trouble, it changes your aggression, but it also keeps you from ever getting in the flow of the game," Detroit interim coach John Loyer said. "Andre is a guy who is normally always into the flow, but he wasnt able to do that tonight, whether because of the fouls or something else. I know hell be in the gym tomorrow making sure it doesnt happen again." Smith kept the Pistons in the game for a while and finished with 32 points, his most since signing with Detroit last off-season. Monta Ellis had 12 points and 13 assists for the Mavericks. Dallas leads ninth-place Memphis by two games in the Western Conference playoff race. The Pistons, meanwhile, fell 3 1/2 games behind Atlanta for the final playoff spot in the East. Dallas led by 13 in the third quarter, and after the Pistons closed within four in the fourth, Nowitzki connected from beyond the arc to give the Mavericks a 96-89 lead. Dallas was able to keep Detroit at arms length after that. "We did a pretty good job of not letting thhem get too much momentum," Dallas coach Rick Carlisle said.dddddddddddd "When you let them get momentum and get in transition they convert quick, they can hit 3s, they throw lobs, and then it turns into a circus." The Pistons did have 24 fast-break points, but they went 2 of 11 from 3-point range. Detroits Brandon Jennings had only two points and three assists on 1-of-7 shooting, and for a second straight night, the Pistons went mostly with Will Bynum at point guard with the game on the line. Bynum had 17 points and eight assists. "We played a tough team tonight, and they beat us," Bynum said. "We had the energy in spurts tonight, but weve got to have that for 48 minutes and we arent doing that." Ellis scored 10 points in the fourth quarter, and the Mavericks benefited from Drummonds absence throughout the game. Greg Monroe had 17 points and 17 rebounds for the Pistons, but he had little help on the boards. Smith, for all his scoring, finished with only three rebounds, and he didnt score a point in the final period. Dallas had six players in double figures. Dalembert had 12 points and 11 rebounds -- six at the offensive end. Jose Calderon added 11 points and Shawn Marion scored 10. The Mavericks had 31 assists, one night after reaching a season-high 39 in a win at Philadelphia. Ellis had 11 assists in the first half against the Pistons, and Dallas led 64-54 at halftime. Smith -- who had 24 points on 11-of-13 shooting in the half -- kept Detroit from a bigger deficit. The Pistons were only down 39-36 when Drummond picked up his third foul with 9:03 left in the second quarter. The Mavericks slowly extended the margin after that. NOTES: Dallas improved to 17-8 against the East this season. ... Carter appeared to be hit in the midsection in the first quarter and grimaced as he came up the court. Then he took a pass and immediately spotted up for a 3-pointer that gave Dallas a 29-25 lead. 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