warum » be enough momentum to cut the dry-scrape experiment shorter than

We saw what it looked like last spring. Toronto as a basketball-mad city captured not just our own attention but that of those from around the NBA. The buzz in the city, the crowds at Maple Leaf Square represented by fans from nearly every Toronto ethnic demographic ... and of course the atmosphere inside the Air Canada Centre – electric in a way it rarely, if ever, is for the local hockey team. It all felt like it might be a glimpse into the future. A future where the gap between the love of the local NBA and NHL teams might be small, where basketball might drive the sporting pulse of Toronto nearly as much as hockey. Were not there yet and we may never get there, at least for a long, long time. Outgoing Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment president and CEO Tim Leiweke promised an audience last month that within 10 years the Raptors would be more popular than the Leafs. That statement may say far more about Leiwekes brashness and lack of sense for the market into which hes been transplanted. But the truth is we dont really know how close the Raptors could get because theyve have been so underwhelming during most of their existence. There is little less inspiring in sports than a bottom third NBA team playing out an 82-game schedule where most nights against good teams they dont stand a chance. So to truly get a sense of how much basketball potential there is to unlock in Toronto, were going to need more than just the Raptors running off a 48-win season, pushing a team to seven games during the first round of playoffs and coming up with a splashy television ad campaign. Were going to need a sustained period of competitive basketball. One where the Raptors stay on the NBA radar, with Toronto players becoming part of the greater NBA conversation. Were going to need marquee matchups, games on national television in the US. And rivalries that matter. The challenge with the Raptors hasnt so much been about getting good for a season or two ... its been about staying that way. The Raptors have had six winning seasons in their 19-year history and one playoff series win. This time has a chance to be different. They appear to have the right management, the right coach and a team that is not built primarily around the skills of one player, whose discontentment or subpar performance could on its own completely reverse the direction of things. Theres momentum, youth and potential on their side this time. And while an NBA Championship at the end of the road would be nice, what could come from the journey getting there would be far more significant in the long run. Lee Smith Cubs Jersey . Patty Mills scored 15 points, Tim Duncan had 10 points and 11 rebounds in limited minutes, and San Antonio trailed for only 11 seconds late in the first quarter of a 103-90 victory over Portland on Wednesday night. David Bote Cubs Jersey . Top-seeded Djokovic, who is making only his second appearance this year after reaching the quarterfinals of the Australian Open, was a 6-3, 6-3 winner over 54th-ranked Istomin of Uzbekistan. "It wasnt as easy as the scoreline indicates," said Djokovic, who has won in Dubai on four occasions. https://www.cheapcubs.com/120t-cole-hamels-jersey-cubs.html . -- Pelicans coach Monty Williams does not expect guard Eric Gordon to play in any of New Orleans final five games this season. Willson Contreras Cubs Jersey . LOUIS -- The St. Brandon Morrow Jersey .J. -- New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning is going to start the off-season training program with a surgically repaired left ankle.TORONTO - Dry scraping the ice before overtime will be among the topics discussed at Tuesdays NHL general managers meeting, and the possibility exists that the idea will get scrapped earlier than planned.For the first time, regular-season games are being paused before overtime so the ice can get a dry scrape. The hope was to improve the quality of play and reduce the number of shootouts deciding games.Early evidence suggested that it — along with changing ends in overtime — was working, but GMs will discuss the dry scrape because of the time its adding to games and the momentum that it may be stopping at the end of regulation.Thats an interesting one, Calgary Flames GM Brad Treliving said Monday at the Prime Time Sports Management Conference. It used to break up between overtime and the shootout. Now it kinds of breaks up between the game and overtime. But the ice is better.Some players have complained about the dry scrape, which seems to delay overtime four to six minutes after the third period ends. Treliving said his experience was that it wasnt taking very long but he was interested to see data on how it was helping.Deputy commissioner Bill Daly said getting rid of the dry scrape is one possibility. That would require approval of the GMs, board of governors and Players Association.If it were up to Nashville Predators GM Dave Poile, the NHL would do away with the dry scrape right away, even though he believes it was instituted for all the right reasons.The big word everybody uses is buzz kill, Poile said. Therres no question.dddddddddddd I got up and stretched my legs in the first one and a lot of people were getting up and leaving and I said thats a mistake. Weve got to rectify that.The Ontario Hockey League got rid of the dry scrape in early October after going through long delays.Stars GM Jim Nill said the delays have only been four minutes in Dallas, so he doesnt mind.At the NHL level, there may not be enough momentum to cut the dry-scrape experiment shorter than at least this season. Montreal Canadiens GM Marc Bergevin said he was fine with it.It doesnt bother me one bit, Bergevin said.Treliving added that while he wants to hear debate on the issue, he doesnt think its a big deal and doesnt feel overly emotional one way or another.Another topic thats expected to be on the agenda once again is three-on-three play in overtime. The American Hockey League is trying some of it this year, and a prospects tournament in Traverse City, Mich., also experimented with it.Nill has seen it in the AHL and likes it.So many things can happen, Nill said. If somebody breaks a stick out there and youre stuck in your end with the long change, it just changes the whole dynamic. I think its a great way to end the game without getting to the shootout.Detroit Red Wings GM Ken Holland has long been a proponent of making three-on-three part of NHL overtime. But Daly isnt sure the rest of the crowd is ready to get on board.I know there continues to be some resistance to that happening, Daly said.---Follow @SWhyno on Twitter ' ' '