Other Sports

Usain in the Membrane

It only took 9.69 seconds, but Usain Bolt managed to steal Michael Phelps’ thunder at the Beijing Olympics. Despite Phelps winning a staggering eight gold medals (five more than Bolt), none of them were individually more spectacular than Bolt’s pulsating sprint in the 100-meter dash. Memories are built on moments, not numbers. In the primest […]

Hall of Fame

Steady Peddie keeps Toronto ticking

For most of us, the closest we get to being the president of a basketball team is by taking part in our various fantasy pools. We like the pretend feeling it gives us that we are the ones calling the shots from the big chair for a change. For Maple Leafs Sports and Entertainment (MLSE) […]

Other Sports

Lennox Lewis, Britain’s contribution to Canada’s Hall of Fame

On November 6, 2008, Lennox Lewis was inducted into Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame. Based on appearances alone, Lewis’ massive frame and long, dreadlock hairstyle makes him look part nightclub bouncer, part Whoopi Goldberg. British-born to Jamaican parents, the 6’5″ heavyweight boxer known for having a condor-like wingspan (84 inches) doesn’t immediately conjure up thoughts […]

Basketball

Where did it all go wrong for Isiah?

If Isiah Thomas had chosen Hollywood for his career path over the NBA, he would never have been cast in the role of a gang leader. His boyish grin and diminutive frame made him more Gary Coleman than Al Pacino. However, in the late 1980s and early 1990s, Thomas was indeed the leader of a […]

Basketball

The challenge for the Celtics is to become truly great

In sport, it’s said that the greatest challenge is not to become a champion, but to remain a champion. Anyone can win something once, but to do it all over again proves to any doubters that the initial success was fully deserved and did not come about by chance or any other mitigating factor. Right […]

Basketball

Madison Square Garden’s European makeover

New York Knicks general manager Donnie Walsh has long been a fan of Mike D’Antoni. When Walsh was GM of the Indiana Pacers, he wanted to add D’Antoni to the team’s coaching staff, only for then-Pacers’ head coach Isaiah Thomas to block the move. It took eight years and a move to New York City, […]

Basketball

Where now for Vince Carter

Vince Carter has always been a wanted man. Though selected by the Golden State Warriors with the fifth pick in the 1998 Draft, the Toronto Raptors had already organized a pre-draft deal to bring him to Canada making it clear to him that he was the guy they were after. Still a new team on […]