Well, that was rather predictable, wasn’t it?

HOTH, short-handed, look gassed as the game progresses, the Spurs simply dissect them with a surgeon’s precision and what was an entertaining first half turns into a laugher as the game progresses.

And while I know fans will take little solace in this but, man, isn’t it fun to watch San Antonio play?

That’s a helluva grown up team.

Anyway …

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THREE POINTERS

Looking good. Early

Sure, the game went south after the first quarter but there were some signs that weren’t too bad.

At least twice that I can remember – and I spent a chunk of the game staring off into the crowd when it got out of hand – they got smart, good transition baskets because they passed the ball up the court rather than dribbling it; and it was DeRozan who made the smart, right play.

Lowry to DeRozan, who passed up both a shot or a drive in to traffic to give it up to Ross who made a three-pointer and I imagine there was as much surprise among the populace as there was among the coaching staff.

That’s the kind of ball movement in transition they need, not sure they’ll be all that good in the halfcourt and they need to manufacture early offence and that’s the prime way to do it.



They ended up with 23 assists as a team which for them is astonishing and if there’s any way they can keep that up, a lot of people will be impressed.

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Another new look

What’d we all think about the decision to move Ross into the starting lineup?

Not a big surprise – I figure they need to try and find out, again, whether the kid’s got it -- but it was one of those nights that makes you wonder.

Yes, he had some good moments with gusts to very good but he also disappeared for stretches and when we asked Dwane about it after the game, he certainly didn’t seem sold on the idea of the move being a permanent one.

But maybe it is time to let the kid play through more mistakes than usual, knowing full well that he is prone to lapses in concentration and poor decisions, like just about any second-year player.

Besides, not sure, given the circumstances and the roster, I don’t know if there’s a legitimate alternative.

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A cautionary tale?

My man M. Grange ™ brought this up on the tweeter but, honestly, it was in my mind to do.

We all know the Spurs are the NBA’s gold standard – 15 years of at least 50 wins and just digest that for a second – and to all those who suggest any teams trying to achieve greatness or even goodness solely through the draft needs to know this:

For the Spurs last night, the roster had:

Six second-round draft picks.

A guy chosen 30 th overall.

Two players taken with the 28 th pick in the draft.

One undrafted player.

And Tim Duncan.

So, no, it’s not about trying to catch lightning in a bottle with a series of lottery picks; it’s about all kinds of good talent evaluation finding pieces that fit.

That’s going to be on Masai and his Henchmen, not the vagaries of ping-pong balls.

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More? A little bit.

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You know I’m not a huge fan of the game ops, right?

Well, near the end of a blowout, this perks things up a little bit.

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All I will say is that Irregulars in the Toronto area need to read this . Closely. Often. And I will be out here in Hazelville amazed and shocked and saddened that some leaders are … well, you’ll see my point.

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Comical moment of the night?

The huge roar from obviously a hungry mob of cardboard eaters who cheered loudly when the HOTH hit 100, not realizing they’d changed the rules and they have to win.

Brought a smile to my face.

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This is a good one.

My friend Sam Amick of USA Today first mentioned it in a tweet the other night and I got more on it last night.

It has been my experience that professional athletes, for the most part, can be a frugal bunch.

Maybe it’s because they’ve been used to getting so much for free all their lives, maybe it’s because they tire of taking care of people, maybe it’s just human nature

Anyway …

Once word of the trade got out on Sunday, both Rudy Gay and Quincy Acy asked if they could get refunds on the tickets they’d bought for friends who would no longer need them for the Lakers game.

Now, Acy, who had bought more tickets than Gay, makes about $780,000, which is quite a substantial salary, and Gay’s up around the $18 million level so the optics of this are not good at all.

And when you toss in the fact that Gay was only on the hook for six tickets – total value was $1,000 at the most – it gets even worse.

Oh yeah, and toss in the fact the per diem for the western road trip would have been around $900, the whole thing gets a bit comical, no?

And I am sure now there will be mocking and perhaps it’s deserved but I’ll ask this:

What would you have done?

Eaten the cost? Given the tickets to someone else?

There was no confirmation that either of them got their money back because I was told the Lakers said they would refund the money only if they could re-sell the tickets and the Raptors washed their hands of the situation at that point.

But, again, was it wrong to ask for the money back?

Perception would suggest yes; not sure would.

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We’ll start the plea now. If you don’t see the answer to your pressing questions here in this from yesterday noon hour, let’s ask for mailbag submissions at askdoug@thestar.ca

Can’t wait to hear from you.