Minecraft Disskusion » There was no resistance as far as the drills

TORONTO - With six weeks remaining before his teams likely return to the playoffs, Dwane Casey is hoping to manufacture some late-season rest for the Raptors two leading scorers. Oren Burks Super Bowl Jersey . Although DeMar DeRozan and Kyle Lowry have shown no sign of wearing down, each logging more playing time than they have previously in their careers, Casey would like to keep them as fresh as possible for the stretch run, something that may be easier said than done. Sitting 9 1/2 games ahead of ninth-place Detroit in the Eastern Conference standings, Toronto - the Easts third seed - is poised to make its first postseason appearance in six years. With that comes another rarity for the franchise, playing meaningful games in March and April. The challenge for Casey and the Raptors coaching staff will be in managing the rotation, loosening it enough to give the guards a breathier - together or separately - without sacrificing important games. "Thats the hard thing," Casey acknowledged following Wednesdays practice. "Weve got to buy them a few minutes here and there but every possession - not only every game, every quarter [but] every possession - is meaningful." "When you start looking at scoring, we hit a drought the other night against Golden State right before the fourth quarter but we were just trying to buy minutes for those guys off the floor. Its a catch-22." DeRozan is fourth in the league, averaging just over 38 minutes per game, behind only Carmelo Anthony, James Harden and Kevin Durant while Lowry is 14th, logging roughly 36 a night. Amongst NBA duos, only Houstons pair of Harden and Chandler Parsons as well as Golden States Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson play more. In February, DeRozan played over 40 minutes a night, with Lowry nearly hitting 38. Since the early-December trade, Casey has been rolling out a strict nine-man rotation, using primarily Greivis Vasquez and John Salmons to spell Lowry, DeRozan and Terrence Ross. Getting reliable contribution from his reserves and piecing together the right combinations will be essential for the Raptors coach to expand the rotation enough to buy his backcourt duo more downtime on the bench. One player hed like to see more of, who could help in taking the burden off Lowry and DeRozan, is newcomer Nando De Colo. The versatile guard has played just eight minutes since being acquired from the Spurs in a deadline day trade two weeks ago. Although Casey has had trouble pinpointing where exactly De Colo fits in his lineup, he anticipates using the 26-year-old as a secondary ball handler, likely at the two or three position. "Weve got to make sure we have the right combinations on the court, that way we dont sacrifice scoring, but he knows how to play, he has a feel for the game," Casey said of De Colo. "You cant really put your finger on his position or what he is, a two, a three or a point [guard], but hes a basketball player. He just knows how to play." The Raptors got back to work Wednesday after taking a couple days off to satisfy a league mandate. "I thought we had decent focus," Casey said, "the usual first day back to school-type start, but I thought once guys got into it we ramped the intensity a little bit. "There was no resistance as far as the drills were concerned whatsoever, so I could sense they were anxious to get back. As a coach you dont want to lose that rhythm, thats the biggest fear. I didnt sense any of that today." While Jonas Valanciunas used the time off to get away from the game, spending the day ice fishing on Lake Simcoe (he returned home empty handed, without a fish), Terrence Ross took advantage of a rare mid-season opportunity for rest. Ross has been nursing a sprained left ankle, keeping him out of Sundays win over Golden State, but was able to practice in full Wednesday. "It happened at the best time," said Ross, who expects to be in uniform when the Raptors host Sacramento on Friday. "I got a few days off to stay off it and rest. Im feeling back to normal. Ive still got to do treatment on it but right now it feels good." Lane Taylor Super Bowl Jersey . Lack made 20 saves for his third shutout of the season as the Canucks blanked the St. Louis Blues 1-0 in the first post-Olympic game for both teams night. Jason Spriggs Super Bowl Jersey . -- Dane Fox scored his 61st and 62nd goals of the season and Brendan Gaunce had a goal and three assists as the Erie Otters downed the Kitchener Rangers 7-3 on Saturday in Ontario Hockey League action. http://www.packersonlineteamstore.com/jaire-alexander-youth-jersey.html ." Argos general manager Jim Barker uttered those words during an interview with TSN 1050 radio just prior to the CFLs annual free agent frenzy.AMMAN, Jordan - Uruguay looks almost certain to qualify for the 2014 World Cup after crushing Jordan 5-0 in Ammian on Wednesday in the first leg of their intercontinental playoff. Goals from Maxi Pereira, Cristian Stuani, Nicolas Lodeiro, Cristian Rodriguez and Edinson Cavani have put Uruguay firmly in control ahead of the second leg in Montevideo next week. Luis Suarez set up Pereiras 22nd minute opener, and Stuani made it 2-0 just before halftime. Jordan had long spells of possession in the second half but was vulnerable on the counter-attack. Lodeiro slotted in from the edge of the box in the 69th minute and an unmarked Rodriguez hit a crisp volley from close range in the 78th. Cavani steered a free kick into the top right corner of the net in stoppage time as victory turned into a rout. "This result will put us in a good position for the second leg," Uruguay coach Oscar Tabarez said. "We will play with the same formation to honour the Uruguayan fans who will fill the stadium next Wednesday, as I heard that 60,000 tickets were sold." Jordans Egyptian coach Hossam Hassan said he was "fully responsible for this result" and "satisfied with the performance of my players." "I wished the Jordanian fans had seen their team win, but this is what happened," Hassan added. He said the squad would leave for Uruguay on Thursday. Pereira pounced to open the scoring after a header by Cavani was parried by Jordan gooalkeeper Mohammad Shatnawi and Stuani made it 2-0 after collecting a pass from Lodeiro. Aaron Jones Super Bowl Jersey. Jordan showed more determination in the second half, with its best chance falling to Adnan Hasan, whose effort flew past the post. But Jordans defence proved helpless as Lodeiro increased Uruguays lead, Rodriguez fired in the fourth and Cavani completed the rout with a free kick that left Shatnawi rooted to the spot. Jordans King Abdullah II and members of his royal family were among the 25,000 spectators at the Amman International Stadium. Their national team has never reached the World Cup and struggled on Wednesday to compete against Uruguay, a semifinalist at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa that finished fifth in South American qualifying. The defeat followed extensive preparations in Jordan for the game. The king donated $500,000 toward the cost of the teams preparations, while Jordan Television held a one-day telethon that raised $2.8 million. The fever also spread to the UAE where Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum and Princess Haya offered a private plane to fly the Jordan team to Uruguay for the second leg. Security was tightened for the match in Amman, where traffic was diverted away from the stadium, causing suffocating jams. Cars honking horns, despite the heavy defeat, were draped with the Jordanian flag and portraits of their players. Tickets for the match were sold at five times their face value on the black market. ' ' '