色色啦

Enjoy.

Hey Doug:

Hope this summer break has been good to you.

While it would have been wonderful to have Dwane Casey back with the Raptors, giving Bobby Webster the keys to the corner office was the correct decision. I know that he didn鈥檛 express any disappointment at not being named president (how could he?), the more interesting issue is what it says about the senior MLSE management. Keith Pelley, I seem to recall, was specifically questioned about why the Leafs did not have a president, but the Raptors needed one. Is this another indication that the firing of Masai Ujiri was not a strategic decision but a purely impetuous one, without having thought through all the implications? As you pointed out, not a good look for MLSE.

After not watching any baseball for some time, I鈥檓 curious about the electronic devices that pitchers now have in their caps. How do these work? Is it strictly a two-way communication between the pitcher and catcher, or is there someone in the bullpen also in on the call? How does the catcher send a pitch selection? I can鈥檛 imagine he is saying 鈥渇astball low and inside鈥� that the batter would overhear. And, by the way, I also find it amusing that the Jays pitchers keep having issues with their communication devices, virtually every other game. For a team owned by a telecommunications giant, one would have thought they would have figured these things out.

Finally, having grown up in Niagara, did you go to the EX as a kid? Any memorable childhood memories?

Appreciated as always,

-Phil

As I said, I think MLSE got the right result in a convoluted manner and, sure, maybe they took a bit of a PR hit but it鈥檚 over. And if the move works, as I expect, all will be forgotten. I also don鈥檛 expect any serious 鈥渋nterference鈥� other than the run of the mill business overseeing the board and ownership had over Ujiri all those years.

The Pitchcom thing鈥檚 cool, isn鈥檛 it? I鈥檓 told it is audio 鈥� pretaped, of course, and personalized for the pitcher-catcher combination 鈥� and is shared with other players. A first baseman, for instance, to set up pickoffs; the middle infielders so they can signal each other what pitch is coming and shade either way.

But, yeah, the communication is not fail-safe, which is why the old finger signals are still probably best.

The Ex? We used to make the trip one day a year when I was a yute and the one big memory was the two years our peewee baseball team played in the tournament. One year we won our first game which meant a second road trip! Parents were unimpressed, as I recall. Another day off work and more expense.

And who could forget Tiny Tom Donuts and the Alpine Way? Two of the staples of the memories.

I know the schedule鈥檚 been out for a week and I read your buddy Gilbert鈥檚 story about the Raptors but I鈥檓 sure you had thoughts.

Did you?聽What are they?

-Steve in the Hammer

I always have thoughts, you should know that.

First thing is to look for long trips and how painful they鈥檒l be. There鈥檚 a five-gamer in the East in November that鈥檚 HUGE. It won鈥檛 make or break the season but it鈥檒l be big either way.

I hate that there are two different trips to Los Angeles 鈥� it鈥檚 always easier to sell a doubleheader to the bosses.

There seem to be quite a few of road-road back-to-backs and those are tough because there鈥檚 limited access (no practices, no shootaround on the second day) so those are unlikely trips to take.

I like that there鈥檚 an off-day before the game in San Francisco because if we go, there鈥檚 a traditional outing I鈥檇 like to make.

For the longest trips, I鈥檓 always looking for logical splits for access and, frankly, to keep me out of the United States for as many days as possible for understandable reasons I鈥檓 sure you understand.

And I don鈥檛 know which drunken cartographer came up with at L.A, at San Francisco, at Sacramento and at Portland in a perfectly aligned trip 鈥� AND THEN TACKED A GAME AT OKLAHOMA CITY ON THE END!

So 鈥� Webster is the guy.

Rumour has it that one of the candidates to replace Ujiri said that the Brandon Ingram trade was as sign of Ujiri鈥檚 desperation. Don鈥檛 really know if that is true, but I think we all realize getting the starting five to click together will be a challenge. The fit isn鈥檛 obvious as a starting five; too much of some stuff; too little of other stuff, I guess. My only thought is the starting five will be better than last year. And our next five should be better than the next five last year.

With Webster, it is hard to imagine he disagreed with any of the previous moves the last few years 鈥� he was probably the architect of them. So losing Ujiri is really a straightforward loss for the Raptors. It鈥檚 not like we are going to start a different direction now. And we certainly lose Ujiri鈥檚 cache. Nothing against Webster at all 鈥� just really, really, hard to see ownership in a positive light. It makes it pretty clear that the anger over his dismissal was on the money.

Webster now has 鈥渇ull control.鈥� If they weren鈥檛 hiring something else, there was no choice here. It鈥檚 not like Pelley is qualified to make a basketball decision. And the modus operandi, these days, is that the guys who stay around don鈥檛 make the decisions that could get them fired down the road. The courageous don鈥檛 last long in 色色啦 sports management.

I鈥檇 be interested if you knew of a time when Webster wanted to make a move that Ujiri was against 鈥� or vice versa.

Well I promise not to bug you about Chris Boucher much this year. That鈥檚 a start.

-Jeff W.

No, the presumed starting five may not fit perfectly looking at it and it’s why I鈥檝e said for months there is a lot of pressure on Darko Rajakovic to have the creativity to make it work.

I don鈥檛 know of any move Ujiri made over all years that really didn鈥檛 sit well with Webster, that鈥檚 not the kind of sense I could even get from private conversation and tea leaf-reading. It will be interesting to see what moves are coming, that might give a sense.

As for the candidate running down Ujiri鈥檚 legacy and the end of his tenure: I鈥檓 not entirely sure it was the right thing to do. If I鈥檓 going for a huge job I鈥檇 probably talk about my strengths rather than the perceived weaknesses of the guy leaving.

What do the Raptors do now? I know it鈥檚 the dog days of the summer but even dogs do something, right?

-Lex in Mississauga

They don鈥檛 do much, that鈥檚 for sure. They鈥檝e already been in their retreat to Spain, the coaches visits to players are done. There鈥檚 some downtime, some summer 鈥渞uns鈥� here and there but everyone鈥檚 finalizing all their returns to 色色啦 full-time in early September.

Which is fine with me because I鈥檓 hoping to loaf for most of the start of September, watch some EuroBasket and hang out with my people on various stools/patios/saloons. Look me up!

If the 76ers’ Joel Embiid/Paul George experiment falters again this year, for whatever reason, do you expect a major makeover? And will it involve Nick Nurse? Can you see him wanting to coach a 鈥渞ebuilding鈥� team featuring Tyrese Maxey and V.J. Edgecombe?

-Paul M.

If that happens 鈥� and it鈥檚 a big 鈥渋f鈥� right now, I鈥檇 say no. One, because his contract will be done and I don鈥檛 think he鈥檒l get an expensive, long-term extension to restart; and, two, I can鈥檛 think he鈥檚 got the appetite for it any way.