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 Toronto's Hedo Turkoglu hits the floor during the Raptors' 104-88 loss to the Chicago Bulls on Sunday in Toronto. (STAN BEHAL/QMI Agency) |
There is something deep within the culture of Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment Ltd. that produces embarrassing team after embarrassing team.
A sporting virus that is not easily explained or defined — but clearly it is there.
Almost every year — almost every team, MLSEL: A profitable portrait of exasperation.
The worst season in Maple Leafs memory thankfully ended Saturday night.
The Raptors followed that up with a disgraceful performance Sunday evening in a game that was supposed to mean everything to their season.
The soccer team attracts fans who show up and have fun whether they win or lose — so it doesn’t really matter what they do.
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But it mattered at the Air Canada Centre Sunday night.
The season was supposed to be on the line for the Raptors. It mattered to the fans who acted playoff-like with standing ovations before the game even began and ended with the same fans either walking out early or booing — or both.
And it had to matter more than the passive Jay Triano demonstrated after the crushing loss to the Chicago Bulls.
Triano had every reason to pull a Ron Wilson, have a caustic comment or two, point a finger, blame somebody, get pissed off, scream, but instead he whispered weakly about how he thought their effort was good and their preparation was good and the players were fired up.
It was only the game and the score and just about everything else that wasn’t any good.
Watching Triano, with head down, eyes looking to the floor, mumbling his way through the post-game press conference Sunday night was almost uncomfortable and spoke volumes about this sad excuse for a basketball team.
He was soft, his team is soft, the MLSEL template is all about soft teams.
Right to the end he protected this group of malcontents, divas, and overpaid underachievers. Right to the end he offered no answer to any question of merit.
Questions that need to be asked of Bryan Colangelo, the general manager who constructed this mess; to Larry Tanenbaum, the chairman of the MLSEL board who clearly comprehends how to make money, but is absolutely clueless when it comes to building winners.
And what’s almost sad, and seemingly unimportant, is that this Raptors team can still qualify for the playoffs.
As if that really matters.
As if they can step up and play against anyone of merit.
As if that’s just another reason to bring in some bucks and go away quietly.
The fact the Raptors can still qualify for the playoffs is an indictment of the rest of the Eastern Conference. This isn’t a race for eighth —this is Alphonse and Gaston.
I don’t want it, you take it.
And this is an indictment of every Raptor who dressed against the Bulls, with Chris Bosh and Antoine Wright missing, and not a player of consequence to be found.
Not that long ago, the Milwaukee Bucks lost Andrew Bogut and already had Michael Redd out. They didn’t fold up like a cheap suit. They won.
The Raptors weren’t much with Bosh. Without him, honestly, it’s painful to watch.
The odds, strangely, may still be with the Raptors.
The Bulls have two games left and need a win against either Boston or Charlotte: Both games are challenges for Chicago.
All the Raps have to do is beat the really awful New York Knicks on the last night of their season. This is the time when NBA teams out of the playoffs mail in road games. The Knicks have nothing to play for. A win over New York is nothing to celebrate.
“We lost a big game,” said Sonny Weems last night.
“It’s not embarrassing.”
Therein lies the problem.
The coach isn’t embarrassed. The players aren’t embarrassed.
Ask a question, no matter what the question, and you get no real answer, no clue as to how a game the Raptors can play so small in such a large game.
Some organizations wouldn’t stand for this kind of garbage. Some would stand up for their fans, for the paying customers, demanding more, expecting more. But MLSEL counts its money and moves on to the next day.
Like the coach of the Raptors, they have nothing to say and seemingly no idea of what constitutes winning in professional sport.
steve.simmons@sunmedia.ca