Short Term vs Long Term: Does Winning Now Hurt The Raptors Future?

Are teams banking on a lottery pick to change the
fortunes of their teams?

Before the 2013/14 NBA season started there had been a lot of debates, discussions, assumptions and even accusations about how many general managers and their respective teams were planning to make sure they secured high draft pick/s in the talent-filled 2014 draft. 

When Masai Ujiri traded Rudy Gay, the collective sentiment was that he was setting the ball in motion for a "tank". All but making sure that the team was going to lose enough games and almost guarantee a high draft pick selection.

With Rudy Gay, there was hope for the playoffs. Without Rudy Gay, there is hope for the future. Most people thought trading Gay was a sign that the team was giving up on the season but strangely enough, at least for the last month, they has responded with wins which, if the trend continues, will jeopardize the hopes of a high pick. When the season started I figured the Raptors had a better than average chance of sneaking into the playoffs with a seventh or eighth seed and thus almost eliminating a high draft pick. I am not sure how many fans felt about this but I was personally thrilled with the possibility of the Raptors going back to the playoffs for the first time in six years. I figured Rudy Gay -- with a full training camp, preseason, and laser surgery on his eyes to boot -- was going to be the final piece for a young Raptor squad that could make the post season, especially in the weak Eastern Conference. 

I completely understand that making the playoffs, especially this season, comes with a very high risk of not adding quality talent through the draft. The roster currently has some young talented players but none of them have the franchise-player talent level that can ultimately take a team to the playoffs, yearly. Up until Ujiri orchestrated the trade that sent Rudy Gay, Quicy Acy and Aaron Gray to the Sacramento Kings in exchange for Greivis Vasquez, John Salmons, Patrick Patterson and Chuck Hayes – I was all but certain that the Raptors had a chance to get a taste of the post season.

Instead, the team has somehow managed to become… well… a team! The addition of Vasquez has given Coach Casey more flexibility at the guard position. John Salmons adds a veteran presence that is very much a calming influence for DeMar DeRozan as he no longer has to fight for shots; Rudy Gay’s shot selection and shot-volume made the offence stagnant and this meant that the ball often ended in either Gays' or DeRozans' hands, as the shot clock winds down.

If I were in Ujiri's position, I would be both happy and sad about the current success of the team. On one hand I would want a top three pick which guarantees taking Parker, Wiggins or Julius Randle/Marcus Smart/Joel Embiid. On the other hand, I would be glad that the team is competing and winning games while working towards a goal of making the playoffs.

Changing the culture of the organization is something that teams need to learn. Only a handful of players can bring a winning culture to a team but most teams that want to be part of the yearly trip to the playoffs have to learn to assemble talent that can grow together and learn to win. This is what seems to be happening right now with the Raptors and I believe that if the trend of wins continues this year, it will add a special quality to the team that can only benefit the young players and the organization in the long run.

To me, a winning culture is just as important to an organization as much as a superstar player. A winning culture for the Raptors means that they will have what it takes to survive in case the lottery balls don't fall in their favor.

After all, a bottom five ranking at the end of the season only gives as high as a 25 per cent chance of the top three picks in the draft lottery.

RAPTOR FANS: PLEASE BE OPTIMISTIC

So, it has been a few months since I have scribed my thoughts on the things that matter to me most in the world of sports (particularly basketball). For those that are actually interested in my thoughts and have asked me in person why I haven't blogged in these past few months. My only and shameful excuse is that I was busy with work and school. I underestimated how much interest there was in this blog and thus slacked off a little. My apologies!!! I have also been writing for a website (www.thedashingfellows.com) as a contributing writer and have shifted a bit of my focus to that.

A lot has been going on in Raptorland. Here we are again sitting at the doorstep of yet another losing season and the dinos are currently sitting in the second to last position in the eastern conference. If any one of you are like me and truly do care about this team then you must have gone through a plethora of emotions during this season.

You probably started off the season being very optimistic. The pundits and pseudo-know-it-alls managed to convince all of us that this years edition of the Raps were good enough to finish the season in the middle of the pack. Place anywhere from fourth to sixth place; make the playoffs and maybe even make it out of the first round. The fact that the team started the season by winning their first three games also added to the illusion but ever since that mark, the team has shown that they really are what they are.

"They are NOT who we thought they were"

I had to pay a little humorous homage to the infamous public rant by Dennis Green back in October of 2006 after his team failed to secure a victory against a much better Chicago Bears team.

The Raptors are not who we thought they were. Even though we added Jermaine O'Neal to the fold; we should have known better that the teams make-up was not built to withstand the test of more physically and athletically gifted teams in the league. Although the expectations were high, the shocker for me is the fact that we lost this many games and are just sitting one spot above the Washington Wizards. The Raps are not good enough to meet the preseason expectations but are most definitely not this bad to be in this current position. Let's be honest here; if the Wizards had Gilbert Arenas playing all season and were not plagued with numerous injuries to a lot of their core players, they would be sitting above us and we would be the ones sitting in the last place. I take a look at the standings and see Milwaukee, Indiana, New Jersey and New York ahead of us. Does anyone serious think that these teams are better than the Raptors. One thing that these teams have in common and of which we are serious lacking is the ultra-athletic wing player. Richard Jefferson, Danny Granger, Vince Carter and Al Harrington. Pre-Shawn Marion; all we had on the wing were Anthony Parker, Joey Graham and Jason Kapono. SERIOUSLY??? These three are good players that should be coming off the bench for us. They would be the perfect backup for a team that has an any one of the wing players from the aforementioned teams named above.

This leads me to the 2009 NBA draft. With this season rapidly coming to an end, it's natural for teams that will be spending the month of April doing nothing to start looking forward tot he next season. Team scouts are not the only ones that keep an eye out for college ballers that might be declaring for the draft. Fans like me actually make mental notes and sometimes even write down the name and specifics of college players that I feel will be a good fit for the Raptors. Based on the teams area of need and sometimes based on a guess-timation of draft class and team draft position. For those that have read an earlier post that I wrote about team success being on the wing, then it shouldn't be a surprise when you read the list of potential draft-able players that I feel our Raptors should pick if they are available. I personally like these three players and strongly feel that they will be able to make an immediate contribution to the Raps.

Gerald Henderson. SG, 6'5. Duke
Henderson is an athletic wing player with the toughness that the Raptors badly need in that position. If anyone doubts how tough this kid is - please check out this link from YouTube in which he gives Tyler Hansbrough a "little love tap."
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O5glRSAUVCQ
Don't just typecast him as a goon that can "throw them bows", he is also a very talented played that can fill up the basket in bunches. He plays great defense and can literally jump right out of the gym.

James Harden. SG, 6'5. Arizona
Lefties are revered in the world of sports. This lefty is a smooth operator that averages 21ppg and 5rpg for the Wildcats. Harden is a flat out scorer that can do a little bit of everything really well - except play solid defense. I am not too worried about his defense since everything I have seen, read and heard about him states that he is an extreme hard worker and competitor. He has often handled the point guard responsibilities for his team in order to create mismatches.

Demar DeRozan. SG, 6'6. USC
DeRozan is the baller that intrigues me the most. His extremely freakish athletic ability makes me overlook all his deficiencies; and trust me, their are a few. He is not a good shooter. His dribbling skills need a lot of work and he often relies on fast breaking opportunities to get his points. With that said, he honestly has the biggest upside of all three of my picks ans for that matter of many of the players that will be drafted. (An obvious exception is Blake Griffin. Okay. A quick B-Griff rant: If in some miraculous way, the Raps secure the first overall pick and pick Griffin. I would be absolutely overjoyed. He plays the same position as Bosh and will have to play right away because he is that good a player. I say we trade Bosh and get some good pieces to put beside Griffin, Bargnani and Calderon. Draft picks of other players would do. I am boldly saying this right now that I would take Griffin right now over Bosh. I need to stress that I think the world of CB4 but the pending 2010 drama is the main reason why I say this. There is no guarantee that Bosh will stay and if we get the first pick then he becomes a great trading asset. End of rant!!!) DeRozans shooting form is not awkward and he is athletically gifted enough to work on his in-between game and dribbling skills. He will make a good pro; hopefully it's with the Raptors.

I am still very much interested in how this season unfolds. The Raps have won four of the last five games and are again showing that they are not as bad as their record indicates but at the same time are showing that the needs on the wing should be addressed in next years draft or through trades. After a roller-coast of emotions that had me initially optimistic, then skeptical followed by disappointment and eventually pessimism. I have come full circle back to optimism. After all, I am a true Toronto Raptor fan and I honestly believe in next years team.

Sportacularly yours,

The Vicarious Athlete

Expectations on high. Way too high!!!

I have a question for all Raptor fans out there. I need an honest answer that requires an unbiased mind frame during this process.

Here's my question. Aside from Jose Calderon, Chris Bosh and Jermaine O'Neal, whom else on the Raps current starting line-up would be a starter on any other NBA squad?

I'll give you sometime to go over the entire roster. I bet you are thinking of bad teams like the Bobcats, Timberwolves and Clippers - comparing them with the Raps, thinking that these teams roster are just as bad. If you can't come up with any player that deserves to be starting alongside the three mentioned above; then how come there is such a high expectation for the team to do so well and make the playoffs this season.

I will confess that I was blinded by love at the beginning of the season when I said this in an earlier post: "My prediction: 49-33 record, finish 4th or 5th in the east and lose in the second round to...........????." Well, since then my eyes have been opened. Here's a small analysis of three Raptor players that should not be starting for the squad or almost any other team.

Jamario Moon would only be getting spot minutes on most NBA teams. Somewhere around 10 - 15 minutes max, coming off the bench. Moon is arguably the most athletically gifted player on the team but he has serious problems with his lateral movements. He settles too often on defence by allowing his man to blow by him and then he attempts to block the player from behind. This usually results in him either getting called for a foul, his man scoring or drawing the Raps big men (Bosh and O'Neal) away from the basket to the baseline or top of the key. This opens up numerous back door passes for dunks and easy layups. Moon does not have the necessary ball handling skills to create his own shots and thus he often takes two or three dribbles and settles for a pass or a tough fadeaway shot. On some teams in this league, Moon would only be playing during blowout games or close to the end of the season when bench players sometimes start the last few games.

Anthony Parker is a hustler. This description of him is two-fold. A hustler in the way that he plays hard and never lets his offensive game affect his effort on the d-side. You can always count on him to guard the toughest and best wing players from opposing teams. He is also a hustler in the sense that his hard work and ethics on defence has been fooling us for a while that he is actually a better defender than he truly is. He is not playing any tricks on us with his personality. In actuality, it's his physical capabilities that has had us bamboozled for the last few years now. Put him on a good team and he is the first or second guy coming of the bench. He is the guy that comes in for mismatch purposes. The offense for defense substitute in the final moments of a close game. Parker is a valuable player but should not be starting. He should be key role player on most teams in this league.

Jason Kapono is a tough one to analyze. His ability to shoot really well makes him good enough to start on most teams but his unwillingness to shoot at will and his liability on the defensive end makes me think otherwise. I should note that Kapono has had a resurgence recently since Sam Mitchell got fired and Jay Triano (the interim bench boss) inserted him in the starting lineup. He is shooting more and is playing a smarter brand of basketball. I guess Triano has figured out a way to use Kapono without giving too much away on the defensive end. I have noticed that most of the time, the plan is to funnel Kapono's man to the centre of the court which results in a pass out without drawing the bigs too far from the basket. This strategy works at times but still allows the opposing team to swing the ball to the top of the key and subsequently to the corner for a wide open three. Kapono would be more effective as a starter if Moon was not the incumbent wing player beside him.

I am not going to over-analyze Andrea Bargnani. I am simply convinced that his up, and mostly down performance is rooted in his personality and mentality rather than his skill set. It's obvious that he still has room for improvement but I think he needs to see a sports psychologist (preferably an Italian speaking one) that will figure out a way to bring out the fiery Italian in him. Yes, I am stereotyping here but Bargnani needs to play with the same passion that Italians are known for.

How in the world does Bryan Colangelo keep telling himself that these guys named above, along with the rest of the Raps mostly inept bench squad are good enough to make the playoffs? Reality bites and it sometimes bites really hard and often leaves a nasty mark. Unless Colangelo makes a trade or two, the bite marks on the squad this season will have them missing the playoffs. This will be nasty and upsetting because most fans have bought into the high expectations that was created by Colangelo and partially, the media. On that note, I feel it's up to me to temper the high expectation. Thus, I have changed my prediction for our beloved Raptors.

My new prediction: 33-49 (yah, I simply flipped it. What?!?!?)

Sportacularly yours,

The Vicarious Athlete

Sam No More!!!/MVP-DS Part 3 of 14

I would like to start by conjuring the spirit of Boyz II Men past and sing an oldie but a goodie. This is dedicated to you, Sam Mitchell.

How do I say goodbye to what we had?
The good times that made us laugh
Outweigh the bad.

I thought we'd get to see forever
But forever's gone away
It's so hard to say goodbye to yesterday.

I don't know where this road
Is going to lead
All I know is where we've been
And what we've been through.

If we get to see tomorrow
I hope it's worth all the wait
It's so hard to say goodbye to yesterday.

....Okay, that's about enough of that song. I find it interesting that the words of the song fits perfectly to how most Raptor fans are feeling today after the "semi-shocker" that was when Bryan Colangelo decided that it was necessary to relieve Sam Mitchell of his duties as the coach of our beloved basketball team.

It's hard to say goodbye because we have all fallen in love with Mitchell's character and his coaching style. Now we are left to wonder what the future holds with the new bench boss; Jay Triano. I must be honest with you all. I saw this coming and I am pretty sure that a good number of people also knew his days were numbered. If I may tap into the feelings of fans in this great city of ours, I would say that the sadness is not because we thought it's a bad move that Mitchell got fired but rather because we liked his honesty and sound bites. I always look forward to watching Raptors T.V the morning after a game to see him surrounded by media scrums, picking on them, making fun of them and their sometimes ridiculous questions. Sam Mitchell was not a bad coach but he was not good enough for this team. He needed to be fired for his own personal growth as an NBA coach.

When I heard the news yesterday, I was in my class and my initial reaction was....YES!!!. Yes because I love my Raptors more than the person coaching them. Like the Cliche goes, "nothing personal, it's just business." A couple of good friends kept texting me while my class was going on and I replied every time simply because this was an important issue that needed to be bantered about. My friend Zu really liked Sam and he felt that it was basically a knee-jerk reaction to the loss in Denver that resulted in his firing. I responded that even though Sam was a good coach, he was not an X and O's type of coach. Aside from high and low pick and rolls that consisted of the majority of his play calling, it was evident that he was being out-smarted by most other coaches on both the offensive and defensive end. Sam had no set defensive schemes and after five years it just seemed as though he wasn't going to be able to make the right defensive adjustments; from a game to game basis.

I got home from my class around 10:30 pm and the first thing I did was make a call to another good friend. Howell (or as I'll refer to him in future postings: A-Ho) was the other one that had been texting me and actually called a couple of times when I was in class. Now, it's important that I mention that A-Ho is a crazed Raptor fan just like I am. We were on the phone until almost midnight. Naturally we started with the Mitchell firing and then we talked about Stephon Marbury and how it would be a good thing if Colangelo made a move to get him. If and when he gets his buyout from the Knicks.

There is one topic that A-Ho and I talked about but not in great length. It was the fact that Colangelo probably had in mind to fire Mitchell when he came over from the Pheonix Suns. Colangelo couldn't fire Sam after he was honored with the Coach of the Year award for the 2006-2007 season and thus he rewarded Sam with a 4 year contract. This eased the media pressure on Colangelo that kept questioning if he planned on bringing in another coach that he personally selected. The new contract for Mitchell made it seem that his job was safe but the truth is that coaches get fired all the time. It does not matter if a coach signed a lucrative mutli-year contract because as soon as the team starts to struggle and in the Raptors case; underachieve. The first person that gets made as the scape goat is the coach. I think it's a PR move by most GM's. It's an attempt to put out a small fire before it becomes a forrest fire. GM's make moves like this to make it seem that they are not sitting on their hands while the team is potentially tanking the season. I think Colangelo partially did this but also thought it was the perfect opportunity to make the change he wanted to make from the day he got the gig in Toronto. The unfortunate thing is that we won't know if this is a great move until we find out whom Colangelo will replace Jay Triano with. Triano will be the interim coach for the rest of this season.

IMPORTANT NOTE: CONGRATULATIONS TO JAY TRIANO FOR BECOMING THE FIRST CANADIAN BORN NBA HEAD COACH. I HOPE THIS WILL OPEN MANY OTHER COACHING OPPORTUNITIES IN THE NBA. KUDOS AND WELL DESERVED!!!

My parting statement on this is that even though Sam Mitchell was not the right coach, he was the "right-now" coach. The team is currently 8-9 and have seen their best post rebounder and defender miss five of the last seven games because of an injury. Even though Mitchell had his coaching shortcomings, he was not an incompetent bench boss and by all accounts he still had the ears and trust of the players. Colangelo is one of the best GM's in the game and I am sure that this is not the last of the moves he will be making this season.

NBA tidbit for ya'll: With all the economic down turn that is going on right now, it is amazing that NBAstore.com has just reported a 70 percent increase in sales from last year at this point of the season. I guess this is a nice transition into my MVP-DS voting......

..........according to reports, the main reason behind the seventy percent increase in overall sales is the actual sales of Chris Paul jerseys. Wow!!!

My MVP-DS is shorter because of the Mitchell firing. Here are my votes for the last six games that were played in the association:

Chris Paul gets a vote. He deserves one just for carrying the NBA in merchandising sales but the real reason is because he has been playing a phenomenal brand of basketball in the past six games. He is five games away from breaking the league record of consecutive games with a steal.

Lebron James gets back into the votes here. His team went 6-0 during the voting stretch and his numbers were simply out of this world. It's almost as if LBJ read my last blog entry because he has averaged a blocked shot in 5 of the last 6 games. Keep it up King James!!!

Dwayne Wade stays on course here by carrying a team that does not deserve to be 10-9. His stats are still outstanding and his team went 3-3 in the last six games. Including victories in Pheonix, Golden State and Utah.

Kobe Bryant finally gets on here. He deserves it because he is finally trusting his team mates and he is sacrificing his stats in order to get more wins and hopefully a championship. His stats aren't bad either. His 25ppg places him in the fourth spot in league scoring.

Vote totals:
Chris Paul - 3 votes
Dwayne Wade - 3 votes
Chris Bosh - 2 votes
Lebron James - 2 vote
Dwight Howard - 1 vote
Kobe Bryant - 1 votes

Sportacularly yours,

The Vicarious Athlete

The Vicarious Athlete returns!!!

Alright peoples!!! It's been quite a while since I poured out my "vicariously athletic" soul on this blog. I kinda lost the passion after the "real world" insisted on taking up a lot of my time. I've been somewhat busy with my job hunting and part-time student status at Ryerson University but I recently came back to my senses and realized that there is way too much going on in the sporting world without me adding my benevolent 2cents to it.

Without further adieu.....allow me to re-introduce this blog!!! (thanks Jay-Z).....Lol

I am CRAZY! about Basketball, totally in love with Football, building a promising relationship with Baseball, going on occasional dates with Soccer and...........I only hang out with Hockey when it's convenient.

That's an honest breakdown of how I pay attention to sports. I am certain everyone's point of view would be different, so if you are expecting me to blog a lot about the "only when it's convenient" sport, then you will be disappointed. It will happen but not a whole lot of it.

So, what's been happening in Raptor-ville lately?
Jermaine O'Neal will start a new chapter in his basketball career as a Raptor on October 29th. Just like all the Raptor fans out there, I am very optimistic about this season and it all has to do with trading for J.O. After eight pre-season games, he is gradually rounding out into his expected talented form. My prediction of his stats goes something like this:

12-15ppg, 9-11rpg and 2-2.8bpg

The big question is if trading T.J Ford will end up hurting my beloved Raps? I THINK IT WILL!!!

Why? Because the diminutive Ford gave the Raps an uncanny advantage in ball control. We were the envy of the league in that category but it was took good to last (like all good things I guess) because Ford decided to summon the twisted spirit of Vince Carter Past....well in a reversed sought of way. Unlike the shameless Carter (whom, by the way I am still a fan of......yes, I can like someone and still be objective in seeing and telling the truth about them) deciding not to play hard or care about the success of the team in order to get want he wanted. Ford decided, after coming back from that freakish and unfortunate injury, to play very hard and try to score every time he touched the ball. In his mind, he must have been thinking that outscoring Jose Calderon would re-establish him as the the true starting point guard for the team. In the process, he destroyed the on and off court chemistry that the team had. I still like his game a lot and sometimes go back and forth that maybe we should have traded Calderon instead.

Before you start yelling......OFF WITH HIS HEAD!! Let me explain why. Calderon's stock was very very high and he would have gotten the Raps a lot more in a trade. Maybe a young big man and a draft pick or two. Ford was seen as a semi-headache and injury prone guard. The trade that sent him and Rasho Nesterovic to Indiana for O'Neal definitely addressed a lot of our needs but, I think it inadvertently left us vulnerable in the back court. So, we got rid of one weakness just to inherit another.

What ever happens this season is going to be exciting and positive. I truly believe that. Calderon is the better floor leader between he and Ford. O'Neal will help us TREMENDOUSLY! Bosh will be Bosh. Reliable.

My prediction: 49-33 record, finish 4th or 5th in the east and lose in the second round to...........????

Sportacularly yours,

TheVicariousAthlete

The Toronto Raptors have a condition called MTDS: Mental Toughness Deficiency Syndrome

On Friday, February 29th the Toronto Raptors hosted the Indiana Pacers at the Air Canada Centre. The outcome of the game was a 122 -111 victory for the visiting Pacers.

I could have blogged about this game the very next day (March 1st) but I was too hurt by the way the Raptors played. I guess you can figure that they are my favorite team based on the fact that I was really bothered by this loss. I live in the city and I am crazy about this team. Crazy enough to get bummed out for a couple of days before I could even blog on it.

It would be unreasonable and naive of me to expect nothing but victories from the Raps. But it is not out of the question to expect them to beat or at least look competent on defense against a team like the Pacers. I sat in the comfort of my living room and watched in horror as............wait for it......TRAVIS DIENER. Yes! Travis Diener the former Marquette player with the tiny frame but extremely big heart, break down the Raps defense over and over again to assist Mike Dunleavy on his way to 36 points on 11 of 16 shooting. Diener ended up with 10 points and 10 assist (his assist totals would have been higher if he only passed to Dunleavy). Dunleavy was not the only recipient of Dieners penetration and kick outs. Kareem Rush was also able to shoot freely from beyond the arc. He connected on 4 out of 10 from long range. Dunleavy himself was 6 out of 9 from beyond the arc.

Alright, enough about the Pacers. I am not writing this to praise them. I am doing this to point out some obvious things about the Raptors.

I wonder how the Raps can beat the San Antonio Spurs and the Boston Celtics in their respective homes and then play awful against teams like the Knicks, Clippers and Sonics. My only logical conclusion is lack of mental toughness or at least not enough of it. It's this kind of toughness that allows a team like the Spurs to beat the Charlotte Bobcats and the Dallas Mavericks in a five games in ten days span. Not having enough of this mental toughness that makes the Raptors to "not show up to play" against teams they should be destroying.

As I watched the game the Raps played against the Pacers. I couldn't help but to notice the facial expressions on head Coach Sam Mitchell's face. Each expression showing anguish and sometimes confusion as to why Jose Calderon nor TJ Ford could stay in front of Diener. Why Andrea Bargnani hoisted up ten 3's but could have exploited a pacers team with no good big men on the block. The opportunity was definitely there for Bargnani to park his 7 foot frame in the post after Chris Bosh, the teams all-star forward/center, left the game for good in the first quarter due to a knee injury.

This type of play concerns me moving forward as the playoffs get closer. Teams respect the Raptors shooting but that's where it stops. In the playoffs, the focus for other teams will be to physically punish them on the inside and also out on the wings. The thing is that you don't have to be very athletic to be successful in the playoffs but you sure need heavy doses of mental toughness. A perfect example of a player that had this kind of toughness is the retired Jeff Hornacek. Hornacek played 15 seasons in the league and he definitely exemplifies what having mental toughness is all about. Any true basketball fan will remember that he wasn't all that athletic but he was one tough son of a gun. The entire Raptors team combined does not have as much mental toughness that Hornacek had.

Although it might come across to anyone reading this is blog, that I am saying the Raptors have absolutely no mental toughness. That's not my point at all. On the contrary, I know they have displayed it on occasion. What I am saying is that they need more of it. To me, its more accurate to say they have a Mental Toughness Deficiency Syndrome (MTDS).

If the playoffs were to start today, the first round match up would be the Cleveland Cavaliers. The addition of Wally "World" Szczerbiak and and "Big" Ben Wallace makes them a dangerous team to face. The Toronto Raptors will need to get daily doses of enhanced mental toughness in order to win the series.

Where can they get it from? Now, that's a good question!!!

Sportacularly yours,

The Vicarious Athlete