Releases » hed back against that notion, saying it was

Daniel Bruno: Do you guys feel any affinity towards the young canadian players coming in the NBA now like Wiggins, Bennett, Thompson. People talk about Vince being the guy to influence these young players, but you guys were also a part of growing the game in the country at that time.Alvin Williams: Well i got a chance to work with the Canadian team a couple of years ago with Jay Triano. He brought me back and I met a lot of the young players. They showed a lot of respect, they showed a lot of appreciation just through their communication with me, so yeah I feel a connection with them and it just feels good to be a part of there upbringing. To what degree Im not sure, but its always good to have a piece of that.Antonio Davis: I think when were playing this game we never really know the effects and what is actually going on outside the basketball floor. All we know is that weve got each others backs and were trying to come out here and win. But when you come to Toronto, theres a different set of circumstances, were trying to over throw hockey as well (laughs). Were trying to get people to love this game the way we love it and if anything came out of that we were definitely appreciative of it, but i think these guys would have caught onto the game eventually. I just think that we brought a little more sexy, is maybe the word for it, so that the fans would want to go out and experience what we were experiencing.DB: So, the Raptors are celebrating their 20th Anniversary season, which you guys are a part of. Over those years, the Raptors have gone through three distinct "looks", the original purple dinosaur look, the purple front/black back look of the early 2000s and the red/white look. Which one of these was, or is, your personal favourite.AD: Ahh, I dont even know about that (thinking).AW: I think I like the purple/black one with the black in the back, I think I like that. I do like the red though because it gave you a little different feel to it, but I like the purple the best.AD: Actually, when I was coming here my kids liked the whole Barney thing, so I like those first early jerseys because I was the man in the crib when Id come home (laughs). Id have a t-shirt on or something like that and theyd be going crazy.DB: So Alvin, you have a pretty good relationship with Kyle Lowry and a lot of people see similarities between your demeanor on the court. Antonio, What are some similarities you see when watching Kyle after playing with Alvin all of those years.AD: I always say for me, I obviously always watched him play from behind. And to me, he set the tone with what we were doing. You know, hed be out there locking somebody up, whether it was full court, as soon as we cross half court or wed see him down in the stands. You just saw this aggression you know what I mean, so anytime youre looking at that it just kind of carries over and every body kinda takes on the same tone. And I see that now, Kyle Lowry is out there showing passion, you know he wants to win, hes doing everything that it takes and all of those other guys are just falling in line. And its an incredible thing to watch.(Getty Images)DB: Do you guys know who has your lockers now on this team?AD: I dont even know because I havent been in there, so im not even sure.AW: They changed the locker room now, so...AD: Oh, they did?AW: Its not even the same, its like a oval thing now, its not like a block like when we played. Its fancy in there now.AD: Ya, they fancy now (laughs).DB: (Laughs) Well, Drake is the global ambassador of the Raptors, as you know, and hopefully this will help recruit some players to the city. Back when you guys played, who was a rapper or pop culture star that would have helped sway you towards a team if they were the “global ambassador?”AD: (Points at Alvin) Thats the hip-hop dude right there, theres probably a bunch of them that woulda swayed you!AW: Nahh...AD: Cmon, give me one good one, what you got?AW: I was a Biggie Smalls guy and a big Jay-Z guy, so someone like that. Someone that you know, well, its cool to see Drake and his passion, its cool to see him there, he can relate to the young guys and the young guys can relate to him. Its a good combination.DB: So, in honour of Movember, people are growing out there best staches. Out of you two, who would look better in a stache? And if youre having some trouble picturing it, I used some technology to help make it happen.AD & AW: (Hysterically laugh for awhile)AD: (Composes himself) Im trying to see who Al looks like! He looks like somebody I know, but I dont know who (starts laughing again).AW: Um, I dont really like that (laughs)... Tone looks really happy though. Like really happy! Head to the side..DB: Moustache is curling up nice...AD: (Still laughing) That stache, yo. Wow! Im so glad we didnt do that. This whole stache/beard thing that they got going on nowadays, Im so happy Im not a part of that.DB: So, lets go back to that 2000-2001 season. Whos someone on that team that doesnt get the recognition that maybe you guys and Vince get for the success of that team. Who was the unsung hero that deserves some credit.AD: Hmmm.AW: You got a lot of players, I think Dell Curry was a guy...AD: (nodding his head) Ya, I was gonna say Dell.AW: He was a guy that would just come off the bench and open everything up for you. And I dont know if you know, but as a point guard it just made it easy. You just give him the ball and you know what hes gonna do. And I know, I can speak for Tone, when Tones setting screens and youd have to leave someone like Tone as a defender because you have to chase Dell. So, Tone would get a lot of slips, tip-in baskets and such, so Dell Curry I think was the guy. Hed bring us back, hed keep us in games and stretch games out because of his ability to score the basketball.(Getty Images)DB: Thats interesting, do you guys remember Steph Curry as a kid being around a lot, shooting the ball and whats it like watching him play now?AD & AW: (Share a look and shake their heads, almost in disbelief)AD: Wow, yeah its crazy...AW: Its unbelievable to see, and now back at home I use him for an example. You know, its not an accident that hes as good as he is because he stayed in the gym. Even when we played games, hed go into the practice facility at shoot. Wed get there for practice and hes already there just putting up shots. He and his brother, Seth. They were just always around basketball.DB: Do you guys have a favourite Charles Oakley story?AD: One we could tell? (Laughs).AW: I dont have one (winks).AD: I would love to tell one, I just dont know if we should.DB: (Laugh) Thats fair. Who do you guys think is going to be the first Raptor to get their jersey hung in the rafters at the Air Canada Centre? Is he playing now, has he not come yet, is it Vince?AD: I remember we were talking about this earlier, I dont see how it wont be Vince. I think with all of the excitement and buzz that he brought to Toronto, you cant help but think that he kind of lit that match to the fire. And its continuously burning now, through all these young Canadian guys in the mix and its just taken it to another level. And fans here now are more open to having a team like the Raptors carrying the flag for the country. #51972788 / gettyimages.com DB: Can you guys go BarDown?AD: I cant even get on the ice.AW: I can.AD: Nooo, you cant! Get outta here!AW: (Stares at Antonio with a smirk and raised eyebrows... Both burst out laughing).....(After the interview)AD: (As were saying our goodbyes) Hold on before you go, I need that picture of us with the moustaches (laughs).(Sees it again, starts laughing and puts the picture onto his phone)AW: (Smiling and shaking his head at Antonio)AD: This is good to see every once in awhile, man! (laughing) And im gonna figure out who you look like, Al! Christian Pulisic Jersey . As future stars prepare to make the big leap to the professional ranks, TSNs Draft Week delivers wall-to-wall coverage of both the NHL and NBA Entry Drafts, highlighted by exclusive live coverage of both events. Chris Pontius Jersey . More importantly, he is trying to show his young teammates the Colorado are still post-season contenders. He hopes winning a series at home was a fresh start. http://www.usasoccerauthority.com/dax-mccarty-usa-jersey/ . PETERSBURG, Fla. Chris Wondolowski USA Jersey . -- The Washington Redskins coaching staff distanced itself from other coaches Thursday by siding with ownership -- and not the players -- in the NFLs labour dispute. Bobby Wood USA Jersey . His big 2-minute outburst in the fourth quarter Tuesday night is all that really mattered for the Dallas Mavericks.FALL RIVER, Mass. -- Aaron Hernandezs attorneys on Monday sought to have a murder charge dismissed, saying prosecutors dont have enough evidence to tie the former New England Patriots star to the murder of a semi-professional football player. Prosecutors countered that they can show Hernandez was with Odin Lloyd when he was shot and that Lloyds killing was part of a pattern of Hernandez committing acts of violence following nightclub disputes. Also Monday, the former tight end pleaded not guilty to charges that he attacked a handcuffed inmate and threatened to kill a guard and his family while at a county jail in Dartmouth. Hernandez faces murder charges in Lloyds June 17, 2013, slaying, as well as a separate case in which he is accused of gunning down two men in Boston in July 2012. He has pleaded not guilty in each case and is being held without bail. Judge E. Susan Garsh will rule at a later date on the motions to dismiss the Lloyd murder charge and to suppress certain evidence gathered by the state, including cellphone records and surveillance video from dozens of cameras at Hernandezs North Attleborough home. The judge on Monday also floated a possible trial date of Oct. 6, and she set a July deadline for the New England Patriots to respond to the defences requests for access to the football teams personnel records. Hernandez defence attorney James Sultan called the prosecutions evidence "woefully lacking" and maintained that the state has yet to suggest a specific motive for Lloyds killing. "Theres certainly a lot of what I would call smoke. No doubt about it," Sultan said. "But you cant throw a bunch of stuff at the wall and say, Well, thhats good enough.ddddddddddddThats not probable cause that he committed the crime." Prosecutor William McCauley countered that the state has "powerful" evidence against Hernandez. In what amounted to a preview of the states arguments, he said toll booth, surveillance, GPS and cellphone records clearly place Hernandez in the car with Lloyd at the time of his murder. McCauley said the states evidence also shows Hernandez had the "presence, knowledge and intent" to see the murder to its completion. Prosecutors also suggested incidents in Boston, Providence and Miami show a "common pattern" of violence by Hernandez following disputes at nightclubs. But Hernandezs lawyers pushed back against that notion, saying it was part of a persistent attempt to trash Hernandezs character. They criticized prosecutors for their focus on his "affinity for guns," his drug use and past run-ins with law enforcement. Lloyd had been at a Boston nightclub with Hernandez and others days before his bullet-ridden body was found about a half mile from Hernandezs North Attleborough home. Prosecutors in Boston have said a spilled drink in a nightclub led Hernandez to kill two people in a drive-by shooting. Another Hernandez associate, Alexander Bradley, has filed a civil lawsuit alleging Hernandez shot him in the face on Feb. 13, 2013, after they argued following a visit to a Miami strip club. Dressed in a blue blazer and khaki dress pants, Hernandez sat passively through Mondays nearly three-hour court hearing, one of the longest since his arrest last year. His mother and other supporters sat in the audience, as did Lloyds mother and others. ' ' '