Cleveland Cavaliers 114 Toronto Raptors 94

Yeah, that's about right.

What the hell is Lebron even doing in that picture? Whatever it is, it can only be done against the Raptors.

I need a hug.

Or a drink.

A Professional Baller

How god-awful are the Miami Heat? Coming off a five game losing streak and a 2-8 record without CB4 in the lineup, there was no better cure for what was ailing the Toronto Raptors than the so-called "basketball team" from the sunny confines of south Florida.

The Raps, with Bosh back in the lineup, opened up a can of whoop ass against the Heat on Wednesday night, the likes of which haven't been seen around these parts before. It was the biggest win in Toronto franchise history, a 42-point margin with a final score that read 96-54. The Raptors scored more points in the first half - 58 - than the Heat managed all game. If that doesn't blow you away, this should: Chuck Swirsky brought out the salami and cheese with three minutes left...in the second quarter.

It's been a tough season for Miami. Those of us who play sports have all been in the situation where the team you're up against is just a gazillion times better than yours. You know it, the opposition knows it, and you don't have a prayer. It's not fun, and I can't imagine Wednesday night was for anyone involved with the Miami organization - players, coaches and fans. The Heat's 54 points were the third-lowest in NBA history and they shot an unbelievable 26% from the floor. What a bunch of chucker's. I'm not sure the Heat roster could beat any one of the NCAA college squads. They're that bad.

Anyways, Bosh is back, and it will be interesting to see if the Raptors struggles are behind them. With only a handful of games left in the season and the team only two games above .500, I'm not sure how high expectations can really be going into the playoffs.

Perhaps the recent dive in the standings - thanks to a Bosh-less roster and a seriously erratic T.J. Ford - is a blessing in disguise. Perhaps more losses is exactly what this team needs in order to, well, I'll be honest, avoid the Cleveland Cavaliers and King James in the playoffs.

The Eastern Conference is downright brutal, so there's no worries about missing the playoffs. The New Jersey Nets are proud owners of a 29-39 win-loss record and currently occupy the eighth and final playoff spot. That is sad. By comparison, the Denver Nuggets of the supreme Western Conference, who spanked the Raptors last week, own a 40-28 record - 12 freakin' games over .500! - and they're two and a half games out of a playoff spot. It just goes to show that life isn't fair.

If the season ended today the Dinos would open the playoffs on the road in Cleveland. Not good. Nobody can guard Lebron, especially the Raptors. And LBJ has been known to light it up at the Air Canada Centre. We must avoid the King, at all costs. The Orlando Magic, whom the Raptors line up much better against, are comfortably in third place in the East, trailing Detroit by five games and ahead of the Cavs by five and a half. With that being said, the Raptors need to finish sixth. Straight up. Let the Washington Wizards and super douche Gilbert Arenas, who trail the Raptors by only half a game in the standings, deal with Lebron.

I hate to say that I want the Raptors to lose, but I really don't want to see a first-round match up with Lebron James. The Raptors are still a couple of pieces away from being a true contender and this is another "gain some playoff experience" year, but they've got to make it out of the first round to gain said experience. Against LBJ and the Cavs, that ain't happening.

On to the title of this post. It's time to show some love to Rasho Nesterovic. Although the Raptors got their tails handed to them while Bosh was out, Rasho was awesome in his absence. If former Toronto Blue Jays outfielder Frank Catalanotto is a "professional hitter," then my main man Rasho is a "professional baller." He never complains about playing time but is always ready when called upon. He's a pro and he goes out on the floor and competes. Rasho has seen limited minutes this year as the super inconsistent Andrea Bargnani starts every night but going forward, if the Raptors want to win a playoff round, Rasho has to play. Plain and simple.

In the 10 games that Rasho started while Bosh dealt with his knee injury, he was workmanlike and consistent in his contributions. He averaged 13.2 points and 7.3 rebounds a night as a starter and shot a beautiful 53.7% from the field. Rasho can still bring it at both the offensive and defensive end. He commands respect and really sets the tone for the Raptors defense, and that's huge because if there's one thing the Raptors can't do, it's defend and rebound.

Wednesday night in the practice against the Heat, with SMitch easing Bosh back into the lineup, Rasho played 30 minutes, scored 12 points on six-of-nine shooting, and picked up four rebounds, four assists and three blocks. I love Rasho Nesterovic.

In the playoffs last year against the Nets, Rasho started the first four games of the series. However, his minutes went down after the second game. He only played a touch under 11 minutes in game four, less than two minutes in game five, and didn't get on the floor in the sixth and final game of the series. Sam Mitchell, I demand more Rasho in this year's playoffs. He's clearly still got game and for a big man has some pretty good range. He can hit the long jumper and has even got a sweet hook shot.

As you can see, I'm big on Rasho Nesterovic. And you should be too. He's a professional baller and can only help the Toronto Raptors.

On that note, it's the long weekend, so I'm off to the great city of Cleveland, Ohio, to take in the Raptors and Cavaliers game (yes, it's true, I will be missing the Leafs game). And for the record, I'm not going to see Lebron. I'm going to see Rasho.

Oh, and I'm with Doug Smith. The boo-age by Raptors fans against the Heat, because they didn't score 100 points to get the fans their precious pizza, was lame. Seriously lame. The Raptors won by 42 points for Christ's sake, and they were booed? Come on Toronto, we're better than that. That's something the folks over in Ottawa or Montreal would do.

The Weigh In

When news of Jason Blake's cancer diagnosis broke, it put a lot of things in perspective. Professional sports, in general, are quite meaningless. Blake is a young man - only 34 - and a father of three. His health, not hockey, is the only thing that matters now......It's amazing that only five or six years ago the disease - chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) - was uniformly fatal. Thanks to a pill called Gleevac, it now has a survival rate of 85 to 90 per cent. Jason Blake is going to live a long and healthy life, God willing. The lesson of the day? Cancer research, boys and girls. It's for real, and it's money well spent. Let's keep on donating......So, it looks like the end of the line for Joe Torre in New York. I think George Steinbrenner is actually morphing into his Seinfeld character - he's going straight loco! Is there not enough pressure to be a New York Yankee, coach or player, than for Big Stein to come out and publicly say that if the Yankees didn't come back to beat the Cleveland Indians that Torre would be fired? Give me a break. Give Torre a break. He deserved better than that. Sure, there's an insane amount of talent on that team, but Torre never once missed the playoffs as coach of the Bronx Bombers. Steinbrenner's losing it, man......Speaking of Torre, I had a dream last night he was wearing a Blue Jays uniform and sitting in the dugout at the Rogers Centre, the newest manager of the Toronto Blue Jays. Wouldn't it be something? As much as I love John Gibbons, if the Jays can get Torre, see ya Gibby! Sure, Torre will come at a ridiculous price tag, but my main man Ted Rogers can afford it. He's a baller. I know, some of you probably think I'm going loco, but hey, a man can dream......Keeping it on baseball, great column by Dan Wetzel over at Yahoo! Sports. The Yankees, with their $200 million plus payroll, once again failed to make it past the division series. Money a championship does not buy. There are four teams left standing in baseball's playoffs and only one of them has a payroll in the top 12 in baseball - the Boston Red Sox ($143 million). Cleveland checks in at #23, the Colorado Rockies at #25 and the Arizona Diamondbacks at #26. Add up the payrolls for Cleveland, Colorado and Arizona and you get $168.2 million - substantially less than that of the New York Yankees. That is absolutely ridiculous. And I wondered why Big Stein was losing it......Oh, those poor, poor fans of the Buffalo Bills. When will their suffering end? In what SI's Peter King called "The best 24 minutes in sports in 2007" the Bills were once again silenced by the Dallas Cowboys, this time in a Monday Night Football game for the ages. Tony Romo was intercepted five times, but it wasn't enough. How a team can win when their quarterback gets intercepted five times is beyond me, but the Cowboys pulled off a miracle. Numerous official reviews, an onside kick, two 53-yard field goals - it was drama at its finest. The Bills led all the way until the end and they were, oh, so close, but as always, they lost. If you've got a heart, you feel for the city of Buffalo and its citizens. Forever losers, and it's got to be rough......Speaking of the Cowboys, they've got a date with the New England Patriots next week, in a match-up of undefeated teams. Tom Brady vs Tony Romo. Already talk has begun of New England possibly going 16-0. Premature? You're damn right. Impossible? No way. If anyone can do it again, Tom Brady can. He's Superman. And Batman. If you need me on Sunday at 4:15 pm eastern time, I'll be on the couch......Back to the Yankees for a second. It's looking like Alex Rodriguez is going to opt-out of the final three years of his contract with New York. Seven years ago when he signed his mammoth contract it was believed that his would be the most expensive contract in baseball history at $25 million a season. Now his agent thinks he can get $30 million. After the season A-Rod had, he will undoubtedly be named American League MVP, I wouldn't be surprised if he got $35 million a year. I thought baseball was out of control back in the day. Some things will just never change......What's up with Lebron James wearing a Yankees hat at the game in Cleveland? He's just asking for trouble. Witness!......Word has it that Rasho Nesterovic has shown up to Toronto Raptors training camp in great shape. Maybe it's premature to hand Andrea Bargnani the starting centre job. A little healthy competition never hurt nobody......Classy move by Jacques Villeneuve in his NASCAR debut at Talladega Superspeedway over the weekend. A number of drivers, including a vocal Jeff Gordon, made it known they weren't happy with Villeneuve making his debut on NASCAR's biggest and fastest track, during the NEXTEL Cup Chase (I still have no idea what that is). Villeneuve, however, held his own and qualified sixth for the race. Before the green flag dropped, though, he voluntarily moved to the back of the field. He caused no accidents, didn't piss anybody off, and said the 500 miles were a great learning experience. Attaboy, Jacques. That's how we Canadians roll......How God-awful were the Leafs last night? A 7-1 loss early in the season on home ice can't be a good thing. The Leafs have a number of home games in October and need to get the ship on course, and fast. I can't even blame Vesa Toskola for his performance, because none of the Leafs showed up. I guess they should have evacuated before Hurricane Carolina showed up at their front door...