News » New York Yankees general

PHOENIX - Going into Fridays game the Raptors had one noticeable advantage over the surprisingly competitive Suns - their size. Cheap Nike Jazz Jerseys . The Raptors owned the NBAs seventh-best rebounding rate and ranked fourth on the offensive glass while the Suns, a team that starts two point guards and plays mostly outside of the paint, have struggled on the boards despite their hot start to the season. For Toronto, the game plan was simple. "Try to make them pay for playing small," Dwane Casey emphasized after morning shoot around. It turned out to be easier said than done. "Thats an area that was a strength of ours, rebounding, but now its one of our weaknesses," Casey said after his team was out-rebounded 53-36, including an 18-11 disparity on the offensive boards, in a 106-97 loss, the Raptors fifth straight. Caseys club misjudged this Suns team like others have done early in the season. As Toronto found out, their stature can be misleading. Their toughness set the tone and the Raptors, for all of the mismatches they planned to exploit, were in over their heads once again. "Its about toughness, its about attention to detail, its about being locked in and knowing your guy is coming in behind you," Casey exclaimed. "When you give them 18 more bullets, you cant win in this league." The Raptors played frustrated, which didnt necessarily translate to that desperate style of play that Caseys been looking for. Markieff Morris jawed at Jonas Valanciunas, baiting him into a double technical, Kyle Lowry pouted and complained until he was whistled for a tech of his own and former Raptors castoff PJ Tucker got under the skin of DeMar DeRozan and Rudy Gay all night. The Suns did a lot of talking, but they backed it all up. Morris missed just three of his 14 attempts recording a double-double of 25 points and 11 rebounds and Tucker scored 18 to go along with a career-best 13 boards. "This team is a very physical team," Casey said of the Suns. "Their wing players are very physical. They are tough match-ups and you have to meet that physicality with physicality and we didnt do it on the boards." With a roster designed to be bad while incoming visionary Ryan McDonough collects picks and cap space, rookie head coach Jeff Hornacek has the Suns playing hard despite being outmatched in the talent department most every night - not unlike the team that overachieved in Caseys first year with the Raptors. On the opposite end of the spectrum, nothing is going right for the Raptors. The team still sits dead last in the league in assists (they recorded just 15 on Friday) and their primary shot-takers cant seem to knock down shots. Gay and DeRozan combined to shoot 11-for-30 on a night in which both were oddly ineffective and often unnoticeable. Efficiency be damned on some nights, but generally one or the other - recently its been DeRozan more often than not - manages to put points on the board. It was not the case on Friday. Most concerning for Gay continues to be his missed shots around the rim, an ongoing trend this season. Gay was just two-for-seven in the painted area against the Suns and his percentages around the bucket have dropped significantly compared to his career norm. "Its tough because hes getting hit, but he has to hit first," Casey said of Gays struggles in the paint. "Hes not getting the benefit of the calls, but some of them are not fouls. He has to go in there and hit first and think about dunking the ball rather than finessing." Johnson fills in for injured Hansbrough The Raptors certainly missed the toughness of Tyler Hansbrough, who exited the game just two and a half minutes in after taking an inadvertent elbow from Channing Frye and spraining his left shoulder. He did not return and is considered day-to-day. In his place, Amir Johnson, who lost his starting gig to Hansbrough last week, stepped up and chipped in a season-best 22 points in 33 minutes off the bench. It was the second-straight game in which Johnson resembled his old self, a positive sign for this team moving forward, especially if Hansbrough is forced to miss time. Looking ahead, or not looking ahead Prior to the game, Casey insisted he and his team would not be distracted by a boisterous announcement made by Kobe Bryant and the Lakers earlier in the day. Bryant, who has been recovering from his Achilles injury, will make his season debut in Los Angeles against the Raptors on Sunday. "I heard that," Casey admitted. "But I know Im not [looking ahead] and I havent heard our guys mention anything about it as far as looking ahead to Sunday." "We have no right to look ahead," he exclaimed before the loss. "Weve got to be the hungry team, weve got to be the desperate team tonight." Authentic Jeff Hornacek Jersey . Three days after falling to Hamilton, Abbotsford scored three goals in 53 seconds en route to a convincing 5-1 win over the Bulldogs Saturday in American Hockey League play. Authentic Ricky Rubio Jersey .Fiji striker Roy Krishna scored in the 14th minute to give Wellington its fourth win, along with a draw, from its past five matches, putting the Phoenix fourth but only a point behind third-placed Adelaide. http://www.cheapjazzjerseysauthentic.com/?tag=authentic-joe-ingles-jersey . -- New York Yankees general manager Brian Cashman has no concerns about the health of shortstop Derek Jeter, who was limited to 17 games last season due to leg injuries.Dolphins offensive lineman Richie Incognito lashed out at teammate Jonathan Martin on Twitter Wednesday, saying "The truth is going to bury you and your entire camp. You could have told the truth the entire time." Incognito also wrote Martin told him he thought about committing suicide because he wasnt playing well. "FACT: Jonathan Martin told me he thought about taking his own life in MAY 2013 b/c he wasnt playing well. Told me he felt worthless," Incognito said on Twitter. Incognitos series of tweets directed at Martin and his representatives come as the NFL is preparing to release a report on the Dolphins bullying case which could help clarify their much-publicized relationship. Martin previously said he was harassed daily by Incognito and other teammates. He alleged their racial, aggressive and sexually charged comments played a role in his departure from the team on Oct. 28. Incognito recently finished serving a three-month suspension but isnt expected to return to Miami. He took aim at Martins agent Kenneth Zuckerman from Priority Sports, on Wednesday, accusing him of releasing information to the media. "What do you have to say for your actions? Why did you release the VM. What was your goal?" Incognito wrote on Twitter. Zuckerman said in a brief telephone interview with The Associated Press that he didnt want to respond to Incognitos comments, except to say, "The only thing I would say is Ill let Jason La Canforas tweet speak for itself. Discount Jazz Jerseys. quot; After Incognitos Twitter rant, La Canfora, who works for CBS Sports and broke the story on the text messages exchanged between the teammates, said on Twitter that Zuckerman "had nothing to do with my reporting." Zuckerman declined to answer other questions about the case. Incognito also wrote on Twitter: "the truth will set me free. I cant say the same about Jon Martin. The truth is what hes hiding from." Incognitos final tweet referred all questions to his attorney Mark Schamel, who did not return phone calls to the AP. Martin abruptly left the Dolphins last October and was hospitalized. He underwent counselling for emotional issues. Incognito was suspended Nov. 3, causing him to miss his final eight games. The NFL report, which is headed up by Ted Wells, is expected to be released and could help shed some light on what role Dolphins coach Joe Philbin and his staff, as well as the front office, had in the case. The concern is whether or not Incognito was ordered to toughen up Martin, who struggled after earning a starting job in 2012 as a rookie. cheap falcons jerseys cheap ravens jerseys cheap bills jerseys cheap bears jerseys cheap bengals jerseys cheap cowboys jerseys cheap lions jerseys cheap texans jerseys cheap colts jerseys cheap jaguars jerseys cheap chiefs jerseys cheap rams jerseys cheap dolphins jerseys cheap vikings jerseys cheap saints jerseys cheap giants jerseys cheap jets jerseys cheap eagles jerseys cheap steelers jerseys cheap 49ers jerseys ' ' '