An die SV » Meagre assist totals have limited the app

The rematch is upon us. The San Antonio Spurs and Miami Heat will meet for the second consecutive year in the NBA Finals, starting tonight at AT&T Center. The 2013 NBA Finals went seven games, a series that went down in history as one of the all-time greats. Watch it live on TSN and TSN GO and listen to it on TSN Radio at 8pm et/5pm pt. Last year in Game 6, the Spurs were three clear with five seconds left and staff at Miamis AmericanAirlines Arena started roping off areas in anticipation for a celebration. Ray Allen hit a circus 3-pointer to tie it. The Heat prevailed in overtime to force a Game 7, which Miami won by seven in South Beach. San Antonio was literally seconds away from a fifth title in franchise history, all, not so coincidentally, under the leadership of Tim Duncan and head coach Gregg Popovich. The boss was extremely proud of this group. "I think they showed an unbelievable amount of fortitude," Popovich said after clinching a berth in the Finals. "If I can compliment my own team humbly, to have that tough loss, especially the Game 6, and not have a pity party, and come back this year and get back to the same position. I think thats fortitude, and Im really proud of them and even happier for them." And the Spurs welcome the challenge of taming the Heat and exacting revenge. "Weve got four more to win, and well do it this time," boasted Duncan. "Were happy its the Heat again. Weve got that bad taste in our mouths still." That sort of bravado is a little out of character for the mild-mannered Duncan, but perhaps the best illustration of how much the Game 6 loss still hurts. And, its also a testament to the Spurs focus. "They dont like us, they dont. I can sense it from Timmys comments over the last couple of days," LeBron James said after practice on Monday. "They wanted this, they wanted us and well be ready for the challenge. "They wanted us, they got us." This is the first Finals repeat since the Chicago Bulls and Utah Jazz both made it in 1997 and 1998. Chicago of course won both of those to complete its second three-peat. A win in this series and the Heat would earn three consecutive titles. The Los Angeles Lakers turned the same feat in between Michael Jordans Bulls and James Heat, but this Miami group is the first to reach four consecutive Finals since the Boston Celtics did it from 1984-87. "Im in the moment, I dont really think about it," said James. The Heat clinched their spot in the championship round first. They knocked off top-seeded Indiana in six games in the Eastern Conference Finals after sweeping Charlotte in the first round and needing five games against Brooklyn. The Spurs moved on with a Game 6 overtime victory over Oklahoma City Saturday night. San Antonio was pushed to a Game 7 in round one versus Dallas, but handled Portland in five games in round two. It was in the Dallas series Tony Parker injured his ankle. He sprained it and the All-Star sat out the second half of San Antonios clinching Game 6 victory over the Thunder. Thanks to four days of rest, Parker declared himself ready to go for Game 1 Thursday, but the injury could linger. "Im trying to be very positive, trying to do everything I can, eat healthy, get my rest, do all the treatment. I just trust my body," said Parker. "I had little stuff, wear and tear, but Im still here and I trust my body to hold up for the whole series." The two sides split two regular-season meetings with the home team prevailing both times. Including last years Finals, the Spurs are 5-2 in their building against the Heat, but Miami has won four straight over San Antonio and seven of their last eight at AmericanAirlines Arena. In looking for differences from last years Finals to this years, the format might be the biggest change. The NBA implemented a 2-2-1-1-1 format for this Finals as opposed to the 2-3-2 version of a year ago. Also, Miami had homecourt advantage in 2013 and this year it belongs to San Antonio, which finished with the best record in the NBA. Toronto Blue Jays Gear .Y. -- Florida Panthers captain Ed Jovanovski finally has something to show for all the pain he went through in overcoming a string of injuries that kept him sidelined for much of the past two years. Fake Blue Jays Jerseys . Dragic was a game-time decision because of a sore right ankle that had kept him out of Wednesdays loss at Utah, but played all but the last 10 seconds of the second half in the first 40-point game for a Phoenix player since Amare Stoudemires 44 on March 19, 2010. https://www.cheapbluejays.com/ . Catch the game on TSN starting at 7pm et/4pm pt. You can also listen to all the action live on TSN 1050 at 7pm et. The Knicks are two games behind the Atlanta Hawks for the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference race. Toronto Blue Jays Pro Shop . -- Andy Granatelli, the former CEO of STP motor oil company who made a mark on motorsports as a car owner, innovator and entrepreneur, has died. Stitched Blue Jays Jerseys . Hamilton signed offensive linemen Mike Filer, Joel Reinders, Landon Rice and Carson Rockhill. Familiar faces lead the Vancouver Canucks fantasy parade, but a team that has been consistently strong has plenty of quality options. Top Picks: Since 2008-2009, C Henrik Sedin has scored 414 points, ranking second only to Alex Ovechkin. At the same time, last seasons 0.94 points per game represented his lowest per-game scoring rate since 2007-2008 and he will be 33 by the time the puck drops to start the season so decline, while not necessarily immediate, is coming. Not so coincidentally, LW Daniel Sedin ranks fifth in scoring since 2008-2009, falling behind largely because he has played 30 fewer games than his brother (largely due to a broken foot and concussion). Daniel actually holds more fantasy value because hes an elite point producer at a position that lacks top-end production. If we consider that Ovechkin has shifted to right wing, and Ilya Kovalchuk has returned to Russia, the next highest-scoring left winger since 2005-2006 is Henrik Zetterberg, who is 95 points behind Daniel Sedin. Working the power play with the twins has its benefits and D Alexander Edler has scored 99 of his 206 career points with the man advantage. Since 2009-2010, Edler has 146 points, ranking 15th among defencemen and hes a low-end No. 1 or high-end No. 2 fantasy blueliner. After the Canucks surprisingly traded Cory Schneider to New Jersey, G Roberto Luongo is once again the number one option for Vancouver, even though hes coming off a season in which his .907 save percentage was his lowest since his 24-game rookie campaign in 1990-2000. If 34-year-old Luongo can return to form and stop about 92% of the shots he faces (his career save percentage is .919) while starting 60-65 games, then hes, once again, a valuable fantasy goaltender. Value Plays: A tremdendous two-way player who missed 31 games due to shoulder and foot injuries, C Ryan Kesler is a five-time 20-goal scorer and two-time 70-point scorer who ranks 13th with 47 power play goals since 2008-2009, despite scoring just two power play goals last season. RW Alex Burrows has been a productive player who is at his best when skating with the Sedins. Since 2008-20009, hes one of four players with at least 100 goals and 400 penalty minutes, but his value is tied to the Sedins because of how much more offence he produces when hes playing with them compared to Kesler.dddddddddddd RW Jannik Hansen has steadily progressed, with last seasons 0.57 points per game a career best. Theres some question about how high his offensive ceiling is, particularly without significant power play time, but hes been a double-digit plus in each of the last three seasons, making him viable as a No. 4 right winger. D Dan Hamhuis has contributed more offensively in his last couple seasons with the Canucks, and over the last three years, he ranks second among defencemen with a plus-67 rating. While D Kevin Bieksa isnt as consistent as Hamhuis, he is a three-time 40-point scorer who is always good for PIMs (698 PIM in 491 career GP). Both fit as number three fantasy defencemen. Sleepers/Breakthrough: Meagre assist totals have limited the appeal of D Jason Garrison, but his 24 goals over the last two seasons ranks third among defencemen. A boom or bust pick, RW Zack Kassian has 21 points in 83 career games, but could have a chance to skate on the Sedins wing and that would give him a shot at a breakthrough season. Hes big, tough and talented, but has yet to provide consistent results. As a late-round flier, though, youd be hoping he starts to reach his potential this season. Rookies: The Canucks do have room for rookies, particularly at centre, where the Sedins are followed by Kesler and perhaps Jordan Schroeder. Brendan Gaunce and Bo Horvat, first-round pick in each of the last two seasons could have an opportunity to start the season in the NHL, though it may be too soon to have any expectations for their production. Gaunce has been a point-per-game player in Belleville (OHL) for the last two seasons and Horvat has 61 points in 67 games with London (OHL) last season before scoring 16 goals and 23 points in 21 playoff games. Scott Cullen can be reached at Scott.Cullen@bellmedia.ca and followed on Twitter at http://twitter.com/tsnscottcullen. For more, check out TSN Fantasy on Facebook. ' ' '