TORONTO - The NBA pre-season can seem numbingly long, but the Toronto Raptors still have plenty of work to do before the curtain comes up on the regular season next week. [url=http://www.authenticcelticsproshop.com/Reggie-Lewis-Jersey/]Reggie Lewis Jersey[/url] .Coach Dwane Casey spent Tuesdays practi

TORONTO - The NBA pre-season can seem numbingly long, but the Toronto Raptors still have plenty of work to do before the curtain comes up on the regular season next week. Reggie Lewis Jersey .Coach Dwane Casey spent Tuesdays practice session in teaching mode. At the top of his agenda: defence. Again.The Raptors are 5-1 on the pre-season, but have yet to put in the solid defensive effort — especially on the boards — that Casey would like to see before opening-night tipoff.I want to start the real season but were still in practice mode, weve got to fix some things, said centre Jonas Valanciunas, who led the Raptors in rebounds last season. (Rebounding) is an area weve got to get better on. Were doing that every practice, so hope were going to get better and were going to show better results.Weve got to get used to going for the ball, all five guys.The Raptors were a disappointing 20th in the NBA last season in defensive rebounding.The 22-year-old Valanciunas will be counted on to anchor Torontos defence. However, despite going into his third NBA season, the Lithuanian still has a lot to learn before he has a complete grasp of the nuances of the NBA game.Valanciunas played in Los Angeles last summer before going to Spain for the FIBA World Cup, where he led the tournament in shooting percentage at 69.6 per cent.But one summer is not enough, he needs to continue to go with Hakeem (Olajuwon, former Raptor and Hall of Famer) or whoever in the summer, Casey said. He needs to play pickup basketball where its not as organized or you really have to anticipate against quicker athletes, maybe smaller athletes, so its a work in progress for him.Valanciunas could be one of the more comfortable Raptors when the team hosts Maccabi Haifi at Air Canada Centre on Wednesday. The team plays in the Israeli Basketball Super League, winning the Super League championship in the 2012-13 season — its first Israeli title since the team was formed in 1953. Its a good test for us, they play a different style, mostly four out and one in, really spread the floor, a lot like four guards out there on the floor, Casey said. So its going to be a challenge for Amir (Johnson) and Tyler (Hansbrough) and the big fours (power forwards) to get out there and guard those guys off the bounce, off the dribble, getting back in transition.It will be a challenge for us. They play faster up and down moreso than were used to and a tremendous amount of pick and rolls, a lot like what San Antonio did with four ball-handlers with the ability to run a pick and roll, which is a little different than what you see in the NBA.Maccabi Haifa, which is owned by American businessman Jeffrey Rosen, was beaten 91-59 by the Kings on Sunday. Theyd arrived in Sacramento following a 10-hour bus ride from Portland, where they lost 121-74 to the Trailblazers.Three players remain in the running for the 15th and final spot on the Raptors roster — centre Greg Stiemsma, point guard Will Cherry and swingman Jordan Hamilton. NBA rosters have to be set by opening day on Oct. 27.I think it makes it tough on management because we all can play, were good players, Hamilton said. Wills a good young guard, I feel like I can score, and Greg, he does all the intangibles. Best man wins.The Raptors open the regular season Oct. 29 against the visiting Atlanta Hawks. Greg Monroe Jersey . Calgarys Bo Levi Mitchell and Montreals Troy Smith will be the starting quarterbacks in a CFL season-opener for the first time in their careers. Both want to reinforce their No. 1 status. You can watch the game live in the first half of a doubleheader on TSN and TSN GO at 3:00pm et/Noon pt. Kyrie Irving Jersey . - The situation looked bleak at best for the coach Doc Rivers Clippers — down by four points with 18 seconds left in the fourth quarter. http://www.authenticcelticsproshop.com/Jaylen-Brown-Jersey/ . Harris has played in six games since joining the Argos in 2012, completing 17-of-35 passes for 256 yards and one touchdown.FORT MYERS, Fla. -- Big Papi is staying put. David Ortiz and the Red Sox agreed to a 2015 contract Sunday with options for the following two years, a move that means the popular slugger will probably finish his career in Boston. Ortiz, the World Series MVP last season, has led the Red Sox to three championships in the past 10 years. He batted .309 with 30 home runs and 103 RBIs in 137 games last season after missing all of spring training while rehabbing a strained Achilles tendon. The 38-year-old designated hitter has 431 major league homers and has made nine All-Star teams in 11 years with Boston. The Red Sox announced the deal Sunday night. It includes a club or vesting option for 2016, and a club option for 2017. "With this agreement, we have near certainty that David Ortiz will finish his career in a Red Sox uniform, which is something we have all wanted and that we are all proud of," owner John Henry said in a statement. "It is difficult to describe Davids contributions to our city both on the field and off the field, and we are so proud to have this ambassador of our game with us as he continues on this road to Cooperstown." Multiple media outlets reported earlier that the sides had reached an agreement that guarantees Ortiz $16 million in 2015. He is set to earn $15 million this season as part of a two-year contract he signed in November 2012. The team said Ortiz, manager John Farrell and general manager Ben Cherington would be aavailable to the media Monday in Sarasota before the Red Sox play the Baltimore Orioles. Danny Ainge Jersey. Big Papi batted .353 with five home runs and 13 RBIs in the 2013 post-season. He hit a clutch grand slam that swung the AL championship seri