News & Neuigkeiten » DeRozan led the Raptors on Sunday with 31 poi

Nate James and Jon Scheyer have been handed the keys to the Tesla. Theyre not about to go joyriding.We dont want anything to happen on our watch while hes away, James said.Can you blame them?He would be Duke Blue Devils coach Mike Krzyzewski; he of the five national championships and more than 1,000 wins; he of the Basketball Hall of Fame; and he of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, a graduate whose steely-eyed stare could leave a grown man weak in his knees. And he currently is in Rio where hes leading the U.S. mens basketball team, the best basketball players in the world, in his final go-round as Olympic head coach.Meantime, back in Durham, North Carolina, sits his Duke mens basketball team, which will arguably be one of the best college basketball teams in the country this coming season, winding up its critical offseason conditioning.Essentially, James and Scheyer, two of Krzyzewskis two assistants, have been given one charge: Dont mess it up.Theres no question you feel a huge responsibility to make sure youre holding up what he would want, Scheyer said. The big thing we tell our guys is, how do you want this team to look when he gets back? The first chance he gets back to watch us again, how do you want to be?That, indeed, might seem like good fuel to get the old motor running.The good news is the coaches know their boss pretty well. James and Scheyer both played under Krzyzewski and have been on staff for a few seasons. James came on board in 2007-08, just as Krzyzewski was prepping to head to Beijing for that Olympic run. With Chris Collins and Steve Wojciechowski manning things on campus, he often found himself as the lone man on the recruiting trail, tying up loose ends. He repeated that role in 2012, when Krzyzewski headed to the London Games.Now, with associate head coach Jeff Capel in Rio, James is the old veteran on staff. He and Scheyer, who has been on staff since 2013, are the guys in charge while Nolan Smith is the low man on the totem pole as the newly hired special assistant.The staff got through July relatively easily. The coaches were fairly certain about who they were interested in -- and those players already knew of Dukes interest -- so there was no need to explain why Krzyzewski wasnt around. It got a little tricky when they spied someone who hadnt initially been on their radar.Whenever theres a new recruit thrown into the mix, it creates a slight problem, James said. We were gym-hopping a lot to begin with, so we were limited in the number of guys we could see and we also had to think, Ok, how can we make this work without him feeling like we dont have any interest?But as vital as planning for the future is, handling the present is really critical this year for Duke. With Harry Giles and Jayson Tatum, the anchors of the nations No. 2 recruiting class, joining Grayson Allen, Amile Jefferson, Matt Jones and Luke Kennard, the Blue Devils will be among the heavy favorites to win it all next season. All of the players already are on campus, working on conditioning drills and individual workouts. Thats the easy part. Most high-caliber athletes are accustomed to training and weight lifting.The harder part of the winning formula is combining the old with the new. That worked exceptionally well two years ago, when Justise Winslow, Jahlil Okafor and Tyus Jones mixed seamlessly with veteran players on the roster, the lack of friction as much the reason for the 2015 national championship as the talent on the roster.Krzyzewski used that offseason -- in particular the month of August, when the freshmen were on campus -- to foster team building. That year, the Blue Devils participated in a program called Dear World, in which people write meaningful phrases on their bodies and then share the stories behind them.Now its up to James and Scheyer to ensure this critical early time goes smoothly. Though Krzyzewski is in frequent contact -- usually via text, or through Capel -- hes surprisingly not a micro manager. The Army man in him has left his soldiers to figure things out on their own, entrusting them to do what they think will work best with the players.He gives us complete freedom, letting us follow our instincts, Scheyer said. Of course hes keeping tabs, but he really leaves it up to us.Realizing that the dog days of August arent exactly fun for anyone, the coaches decided to try to use the reason for Krzyzewskis absence as their tool. Lets call it the Blue Devil Heptathlon.The coaches have divided the team up into three groups of four -- the gold, black and white teams -- and created their own pseudo-Olympic games. There are no individual event medals, just points assigned to each with an overall gold awaiting the group that scores highest.Weve got the medicine ball throw, like a shot put, the mile run, a bunch of relays, James said.At last update, Jones, Giles, Frank Jackson and Chase Jeter had the early lead for the overall gold medal. This week as the U.S. enters the quarterfinals and medal rounds, the Blue Devils will gather to watch and celebrate their own, as yet still to be determined, gold medalists.Were trying to be as creative as possible, without getting anyone hurt, James said with a laugh.Thats probably not a bad idea. If youve been handed the keys to the Tesla, the last thing you want to do is crash it. Cheap Bucks Jerseys Authentic . Woodson said during a radio interview Thursday that the Knicks Carmelo Anthony doesnt get the same calls as other superstars. Tyler Zeller Jersey . Hargreaves began his career in 2008 with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and has played with the Edmonton Eskimos and last season with the Saskatchewan Roughriders. http://www.cheapbucksjerseys.com/?tag=cheap-eric-bledsoe-jersey . -- Former San Diego Chargers safety Paul Oliver was found dead at his Atlanta-area home Tuesday night, and a medical examiner said Wednesday that the ex-player committed suicide. Vin Baker Jersey . -- The boos poured down on Tom Brady and the New England Patriots at the end of a horrible first half. Cheap Bucks Jerseys China . -- Ryan Getzlaf grabbed the three pucks wrapped in tape and held them up to his chest in the Anaheim Ducks dressing room for a celebration nine seasons in the making. TORONTO -- After a poor defensive effort in losing to the Atlanta Hawks on Friday, the Toronto Raptors tightened up to defeat the Orlando Magic 109-79 on Sunday.The Brooklyn Nets, on the other hand, continue to lose on the road as they dropped a 108-107 game to the Philadelphia 76ers on Sunday after losing in Orlando on Friday.The Nets (7-19) make their next stop in Toronto to play the Raptors at the Air Canada Centre on Tuesday night.I thought that was a good bounce-back for us after our lackluster defensive game against Atlanta but thats the way we have to play, Raptors coach Dwane Casey said after the win on Sunday. If were going to be important or relevant in this league, we have to play with that defensive intensity every night.It was the same old story for the Nets, who are 1-12 on the road.We just couldnt get over the hump, Nets center Brook Lopez said after the game on Sunday. I dont know if theres that much analysis to it. ... We just have keep playing the right way. We dont have any room for error. We have to hold each other accountable. We just have to be better. We have to play a complete game for 48 minutes.Lopez had 22 points, nine rebounds, eight assists and four blocks Sunday and is scheduled to be rested on Tuesday and not play against the Raptors, who have won 11 of their past 13 games.Former Raptor Luis Scola could be Lopezs replacement on Tuesday.The Raptors continued to show their depth on Sunday. Backup point guard Cory Joseph could not play against the Magic because of flu symptoms. Fred VanVleet stepped in and scored four points, dished four assists and had three steals.Fred came in and there was no let-up, Casey said. I told somebody Cory better hurry up and get well, footsteps are behind him.ddddddddddddVanVleet has been shuttled between the D-League and the Raptors.It has been a grind for sure, going back and forth with a lot of basketball, but its part of the process, he said. Just lucky I got guys like Norm (Powell), who have already done it and paved the way so you can pick his brain a little bit about how he got through it. At this point, its about the experience and the exposure. Its not punishment. Just something you have to go through and you try to play well every time you go out there.DeMar DeRozan led the Raptors on Sunday with 31 points.Jonas Valanciunas rebounded from a mediocre game against the Hawks to score 16 points and grab 13 rebounds against the Magic.The Nets weakness has been allowing offensive rebounds and second-chance points.Yeah, its definitely an issue, definitely one of our weaker points defensively, Nets coach Kenny Atkinson said. We definitely have to do a better job, and guard rebounding is huge for us, and we have to do it collectively. This is going to be a big challenge.DeRozan was named Eastern Conference player of the week of Dec. 12-18 on Monday.It is the second time DeRozan has earned the honor this season (Nov. 7-13) and the third time overall in his eight-year career.DeRozan led the NBA last week averaging 31.5 points and shooting 60.5 percent (46 for 76) from the field in four games. He also averaged 4.5 rebounds and 3.5 assists. DeRozan led the Raptors in scoring in all four games, scoring at least 30 points and shooting 50 percent or better from the field as the team had a 3-1 record. ' ' '