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|  Wys³any: 2019-04-22 04:57:25 Temat postu: ation from Vaughan, Ont., mak
NEW YORK -- Andrew Wiggins walked proudly across the stage to take his spot as the NBAs No. 1 overall draft pick, the culmination of a path hes been pointed down for years. The Cleveland Cavaliers selected the 19-year-old sensation from Vaughan, Ont., making Wiggins the second consecutive Canadian theyve taken with the top pick. The Cavs selected Anthony Bennett -- Wiggins longtime teammate growing up -- in the No. 1 spot last year. Wiggins said the ripple effect in Canada will be "huge," and hes proud of that fact. "It opens doors for all the youth in Canada, it gives them hope," Wiggins said. "Coming up when I was in Canada, I wasnt ranked, I wasnt known. I didnt really have any offers or anything like that. I just kept my head straight, kept working on my game, and look where I am today. "I just think it gives everyone in Canada hope that they can do the same thing and accomplish whatever I do. Because its possible if they work hard." Wiggins was the star on an historic night for Canadian basketball. Nik Stauskas of Mississauga, Ont., went eighth to the Sacramento Kings, and Tyler Ennis of Brampton, Ont., was selected 18th by the Phoenix Suns. Dwight Powell of Toronto was drafted by the Charlotte Hornets 45th overall, but was reportedly traded, along with veteran centre Brendan Haywood, to the Cavaliers for swingman Alonzo Gee. No more than three Canadians had ever been drafted in the same year. No country other than the U.S. had ever had back-to-back No. 1 picks. Wiggins had been intensely focused on the top spot, chalking it up to his competitive nature. So confident was he on Thursday night at Barclays Center, he chose a killer suit jacket that screamed No. 1 -- a black Waraire Boswell jacket with a white floral print. He finished it off with a black bow tie and oversized black glasses. "We just wanted to do something different, really stand out, try to win it on both ends, the stylish points and to come No. 1," Wiggins said of the suit that was specially designed for him. In a draft that has been maybe the mostly highly anticipated in a decade, Wiggins has long been touted as the top pick. The six-foot-eight guard has been called possibly the biggest star since LeBron James. Hes been in the spotlight for years -- a YouTube video of him dunking with ease as a 13-year-old has almost five million views. "A thousand thoughts are going through my head right now," Wiggins said. "Its a dream come true. ... "Going to high school and college, the opportunity and possibility of going No. 1 came into talk. And now I accomplished that, so its just a crazy feeling right now. I dont even know how I feel. It doesnt even feel real right now." When his name was called, Wiggins slipped on a maroon Cleveland hat, hugged his dad Mitchell and mom Marita, and then strode on stage to shake hands with commissioner Adam Silver, who was calling the first round for the first time since replacing David Stern. Wiggins makes it three Canadians playing in Cleveland -- the Cavs took forward Tristan Thompson of Brampton, Ont., fourth overall in the 2011. "I played with Tristan for a summer of AAU, and I played with Anthony for a while on the AAU circuit and on the national level too, so Im just excited," Wiggins said. "The chemistry is already there with those guys because I played with them already. I think big things are to come." The six-foot-eight guard is genetically-gifted -- hes the son of an NBA player and Olympic sprinter. He called Thursday night a "huge moment" for his family, including his brothers Nick, who played college basketball at Wichita State, and Mitchell Jr., who plays at Southeastern University. "Especially because my parents were pro athletes before, now they can kind of live the dream again through me, and just watch their youngest son do something special with his life, and play at the highest level of basketball," Wiggins said. "We cherish moments like this. Its great, great for us." The Cavaliers are hoping to bring James back to Cleveland, and if that happened, a new teammate would be glad to welcome him. "I want to win," Wiggins said. "If he wants to win, wed be good together." Milwaukee selected Duke forward Jabari Parker with the No. 2 pick, while Wiggins Kansas teammate Joel Embiid -- a big question mark going into the draft after he underwent surgery for a stress fracture in his foot -- went third to Philadelphia. "He worked so hard," Wiggins said. "He didnt let nothing get to him. He always stayed motivated. So Im just proud. Its a proud moment for Kansas." Arizona forward Aaron Gordon went fourth to Orlando, followed by Australian guard Dante Exum to Utah. The Toronto Raptors selected Bruno Caboclo with their No. 20 pick. The Kings, meanwhile, looked to fill their shooting void by taking perhaps the best marksman available in the draft in Stauskas, a Michigan product whos a bit of a YouTube sensation himself -- his videos of throwing up three-pointers have hundreds of thousands of views. "This is a huge honour for me," Stauskas said. "This is something Ive been working towards since I was seven years old. The face that Im sitting here in front of all you guys now is just. . . I cant put this into words." The six-foot-six Stauskas celebrated with an orchestrated handshake with his dad Paul -- the two slapped hands and then threw up three-point matching goggles, Stauskass trademark gesture whenever he drained a three at Michigan. "A planned handshake that we thought of last night," Stauskas said. "I always just throw up the three goggles. So I thought it was only appropriate I did it here. . . It was a little pressure, but he got it right. So Im happy." Three Canadians had been drafted in the same year twice before -- it happened in 1983 (Leo Rautins, Stewart Granger, and Ron Crevier) and again in 2012 (Andrew Nicholson, Kris Joseph, and Robert Sacre). "I think this is a big year," said Ennis, a 19-year-old Syracuse point guard that the Raptors had been high on. "We had the No. 1 pick, we had Nik go in the lottery, myself. . . At the end of the night, Canada has something to be proud of." The new NBA Canadians join six other players from north of the border in the league -- Bennett, Thompson, Kelly Olynyk, Nicholson, Cory Joseph and Joel Anthony. Jordan Crawford Jersey . Left back Armero opened the scoring in the fifth minute when his deflected shot rolled past Greece goalkeeper Orestis Karnezis. Striker Teofilo Gutierrez poked in Colombias second goal from a deflected corner in the 58th and James Rodriguez capped it off with a low shot in stoppage time after a slick backheel flick from Juan Cuadrado. Pelicans Jerseys .com) - John Wall supplied 24 points and 11 assists in leading the Washington Wizards to a 102-91 win over the New York Knicks on Christmas Day. http://www.shoppelicansonline.com/Authentic-Nikola-Mirotic-Pelicans-Jersey/ . On Saturday night, Winnipegs strong offense was again accompanied by some fantastic pitching which gave the Fish a commanding victory. Nikola Mirotic Jersey . Sources tell TSN Hockey Insider Pierre LeBrun the international tournament will likely return in September 2016 rather than 2015. ETwaun Moore Pelicans Jersey .The Canadiens will visit the Boston Bruins at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass., on New Years Day 2016, taking hockeys oldest rivalry outside.It was special in 2010 just to be there with the history behind Fenway Park and all that, Bruins centre Patrice Bergeron said. PYONGYANG, North Korea -- Dennis Rodman apologized Thursday for comments he made in North Korea about a detained American missionary, saying he had been drinking and was under pressure as he organized a game with former NBA players. The former basketball star issued the apology through publicist Jules Feiler in an email message to The Associated Press, a day after he sang "Happy Birthday" to North Korean leader Kim Jong Un at the start of the friendly game. Rodman has been slammed for not using his influence with Kim to help free Kenneth Bae, the missionary in poor health who is being confined in North Korea for "anti-state" crimes. In an interview with CNN on Tuesday, Rodman implied Bae was at fault. "I want to apologize," Rodman said Thursday. "I take full responsibility for my actions. It had been a very stressful day. Some of my teammates were leaving because of pressure from their families and business associates. My dreams of basketball diplomacy was quickly falling apart. I had been drinking. Its not an excuse but by the time the interview happened I was upset. I was overwhelmed. Its not an excuse, its just the truth." Rodman said he wanted to apologize first to Baes family. "Im very sorry. At this point I should know better than to make political statements. Im truly sorry." In the interview, Rodman was asked whether he would raise the issue of Bae during his visit. "Kenneth Bae did one thing," Rodman replied. "If you understand what Kenneth Bae did -- do you understand what he did in this country?" Asked to explain, Rodman declined to respond. Bae, a Korean-American Christian missionary and tour operator based in China, has been detained for more than a year. North Korea sees missionary work as a threat to its authoritarian government. Baes sister, Terri Chung, welcomed Rodmans apology. "I think its good to see him recognize the gravity and the urgency of Kens plight," she said from her home in Edmonds, Washington. "Its nothing he can make light of or play games with." "I just want to make sure that everyone -- not just Dennis Roodman -- everyone knows about Kenneth Baes plight and how precarious it is," she said.dddddddddddd. The U.S. State Department distanced itself from Rodman and said it did not want to "dignify" his activities or comments in Pyongyang by commenting on them. But spokeswoman Jen Psaki said the department was open to speaking with Rodman on his return. "We have not reached out to him. Weve said before, if he wants to reach out to us, were happy to hear from him and what he has to say," she told reporters. Rodman dedicated the game to his "best friend" Kim, who along with his wife and other senior officials and their wives watched from a special seating area. The capacity crowd of about 14,000 at the Pyongyang Indoor Stadium clapped loudly as Rodman sang a verse from the birthday song and then bowed deeply to Kim, seated above him in the stands. Rodman said he was honoured to be able to play the game in the North Korean capital and called the event "historic." Some members of the U.S. Congress, the NBA and human rights groups, however, say he has become a public relations tool for North Koreas government. The governments poor human rights record and its threats to use nuclear weapons against rival South Korea and the United States have kept it a pariah state. Kim shocked the world in December by having his uncle, once considered his mentor, executed after being accused of a litany of crimes including corruption, womanizing, drug abuse and attempting to seize power. Rodman has refused to address those concerns while continuing to forge a relationship with Kim. Rodman is the highest-profile American to meet Kim, who inherited power after the death of his father in late 2011. Rodman has said he is not a statesman and instead is seeking only to build cultural connections with the North through basketball that may help improve relations between Pyongyang and Washington. Along with Rodman, the former NBA players included ex-All Stars Kenny Anderson, Cliff Robinson and Vin Baker. Also on the roster were Craig Hodges, Doug Christie, Charles D. Smith and four streetballers. ' ' ' |
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