FIVE QUICK NBA THOUGHTS 1. GREIVIS VASQUEZ (Raptors): Has been sensational for the Raps in the past few weeks. His confidence in his three-point shooting and his ability to make difficult shots in the lane have been huge. He runs the team well and plays with wonderful enthusiasm. Major pick-up as a back-up point guard and hes finally settled in to his role and comfort level in Toronto. Really fun/upbeat personality who loves the game and plays with a swagger. Fun to see it all coming together for him. 2. ALLEN IVERSONS NO. 3 RETIRED IN PHILLY: In an otherwise gloomy season in Philadelphia, this was the definite highlight. Talk about a guy that absolutely carried his team and was the heart and soul of his franchise. Loved the passion and toughness he played with. When you think of great small guards who have ever played the game, hes right at the top of the list. His competitive spirit resonated throughout the teams he led and the city that adopted him. I think back to broadcasting the 2001 Raptors seven-game series in the Eastern Conference semi-finals against them and he was awesome. A complete joy to watch. Willed his team to the NBA Finals. Deserving honour. 3. NY KNICKS: I talk about AI and his competitive spirit and then I watch the Knicks vs. Bulls game on Sunday and just shake my head. The wheels have come off and Im not surprised one bit. When the Knicks were in Toronto twice during the pre-season I could sense from chatting with their folks an over-confidence about what they achieved last season and the feeling that they would just pick up where they left off. It aint that easy. Last season doesnt mean a thing - youve got to start off all over again. Complacency can be a killer. Whats the old line? "Good is the enemy of great". Doubt the Knicks would ever be considered great but they sure were good last year. When you enjoy those good spoils of success and arent ready for the grind again it spells trouble. I feel bad for head coach Mike Woodson, its not like he hasnt called them and challenged them on things constantly. Losing battle right now. House cleaning coming. 4. JIMMER FREDETTE (Bulls): Nice pick-up for John Paxson and Gar Forman. This team is playing great yet lacks consistent offensive fire power. Wouldnt surprise me to see Jimmer earn some playing time in a few weeks after he gets adjusted to the new system. Remember last season, Nate Robinson and Marco Belinelli were huge for them off the bench as DJ Augustin has been this year. Jimmer will give them another three-point threat. Yes, hes got challenges defensively due to his size - he lacks lateral quicks - but he will compete his tail off and stick shots if he gets in. Im sure hell get a good look down the road this month. Solid under-the-radar move. 5. THABO SEFOLOSHA and KENDRICK PERKINS (Thunder): Both banged up right now in OKC and with the return of Russell Westbrook its been a revolving door around Kevin Durant yet I think its all a blessing for their organization. Its been "Force Feed" time for Reggie Jackson, Steven Adams, Jeremy Lamb and Perry Jones and theyve developed folks that need to grow as players quickly in an elite environment. From April 15 onward when both injured guys will be back for the Playoffs, the depth and experience of these challenges will help this team become steadier and more consistent when the stakes are higher. Brett Ritchie Jersey . Not only that, when Julian de Guzman first stepped on the pitch for Deportivo de la Coruna he became the very first Canadian to play in Spains top tier. Jason Spezza Jersey . On paper, it looks a little like Andre the Giant taking on a midget wrestler. It has all the makings of a rout with the Americans adding an eighth win in nine outings of this biennial event. The Yanks have eight players in the top 15 in the world while the Internationals have just one. http://www.authenticstarspro.com/Blake-comeau-stars-jersey/ . Hes had three top-10 results this season and feels ready to put it all together and finally hoist a trophy at the top level. Mattias Janmark Jersey . Johan Franzen had two goals and two assists, Gustav Nyquist a goal and three assists and David Legwand a goal and two assists in the Red Wings 7-4 win over the New Jersey Devils. Stephen Johns Jersey . Gauteng High Court Judge Dunstan Mlambo ruled Tuesday that South African media houses will be allowed to install three remote controlled cameras in court for the Olympic athletes trial starting next week to capture images that likely will be seen by millions around the world.PITTSBURGH -- Johnny Manziels time is coming. For now, the most famous backup quarterback in football is merely a student. Brian Hoyer, the journeyman veteran who beat out the Heisman Trophy winner for the starting job in Cleveland, provided a lesson in resilience on Sunday. Then Ben Roethlisberger and the Pittsburgh Steelers provided another in how to finish. Again. Roethlisberger hit Markus Wheaton twice during a last-gasp drive to set up Shaun Suishams 41-yard field goal as the Steelers survived 30-27. "Well, that was exciting, wasnt it?" joked Steelers coach Mike Tomlin. Thats one way of putting it. Another might be harrowing after Pittsburgh let a 24-point lead evaporate. Still, in the end it was Roethlisberger doing what he always seems to do when he faces the Browns. Roethlisberger improved to 18-1 against Cleveland after one last audible set up Wheaton for a 20-yard gain. "When (Suisham) lines up to kick it, I was on the sideline like, This was why we have him," Roethlisberger said. "There was never a doubt he was going to make it." There never is when the Browns (0-1) play in Pittsburgh (1-0). Cleveland hasnt beaten the Steelers on the road in 11 years, though for the first time in a long time the gap in the decidedly one-sided rivalry appears to be narrowing. Roethlisberger passed for 365 yards and a touchdown, running back LeVeon Bell had 197 total yards and a score and Antonio Brown caught five passes for 116 yards with a touchdown. Brown added a highly entertaining (if illegal) kick to the face of Cleveland punter Spencer Lanning -- and still the Steelers needed every last second to hold off the Browns. "We cant apologize for the way we win," Roethlisberger said. "We just have to win games." Clevelands second-half rally came without receiver Josh Gordon (suspension), running back Ben Tate, who left in the second quarter with a knee injury, and tight end Jordan Cameron (shoulder). It also came without Manziel. He spent his NFL debut in a baseball cap watching Hoyer nearly engineer one of the unlikeliest upsets since the franchises reincarnation in 1999. The northern Ohio native who was nearly out of football when the Steelers gave him a short stint as a backup in 2012 completed 19 of 31 passes for 230 yards and a 9-yard touchdown to Travis Benjamin. That tied the game at 27 with 11:15 to go. "I told those guys at the end of the game that Ill take thhat team to the end of the Earth if were going to fight back like that," Hoyer said.dddddddddddd. Scrapping is nothing new to Hoyer, who held off Manziel during an uninspired training camp battle. Coach Mike Pettine promised the well-travelled Hoyer he wouldnt have to spend games looking over his shoulder. Pettine flatly answered "no" when asked if he considered going to Manziel after the Browns fell behind 27-3 at the half. "The way the game went we just never felt the need for him," Pettine said. The Browns ditched their methodical attack for an uptempo no-huddle that kept Pittsburgh off-balance. When Tate went to the sideline, rookies Terrance West and Isaiah Crowell provided a jolt. West darted for 100 yards and Crowell scored a pair of second-half touchdowns as the Browns somehow pulled even. It just wasnt enough. After sometimes frantic play for the first 50 minutes, both teams squandered chances to take control. Clevelands last gasp came with a first down its 20 with 1:53 to go. A sack, an incompletion and an ill-advised screen gave the Steelers the ball back at their 43. Roethlisberger found Wheaton for an 11-yard gain on second down and connected with Wheaton again at the Cleveland 24. Suisham, who signed a contract extension during training camp, smacked the winner down the middle. Earlier, surrounded by playmakers and emboldened by an expanded no-huddle offence, Roethlisberger passed for 278 yards -- including a beautiful 35-yard rainbow touchdown to Brown -- in the first 30 minutes as the Steelers raced to the 27-3 halftime lead. The highlight came on a rollicking punt return by Brown in the second quarter. He tried to leap over Lanning, only to have his cleat smash into Lannings face. The play drew an unnecessary roughness penalty on Brown -- perhaps the first ever by a punt returner -- and comic laughter from the sun-splashed crowd delighting in what appeared to be another mauling in a series full of them. "I tried to get over him," Brown said. "There was no intent to hurt him. It was just a bad outcome of a play." The penalty hardly stopped the Steelers, who needed two plays to spring Bell for a 38-yard touchdown run that made it 24-3. NOTES: Cameron caught two passes for 47 yards before aggravating a shoulder injury that has bothered him all summer. ... The Steelers are 11-1 in their last 12 home openers. ... Pittsburgh RB Dri Archer left the game with left knee and ankle injuries and did not return. ' ' '