National Post (National Edition)
Raptors coach rolls up sleeves
NURSE PREACHES MORE DEFENSIVE DISRUPTION
Usually NBA Summer League in Las Vegas is a time for assistant coaches to hone their craft helming a squad.
That won’t be the case for Toronto’s entry, since Nick Nurse wanted to get used to being the main man again after taking over for the fired Dwane Casey.
“I want to get to work, I want to get our guys going, get used to hearing my voice, but mostly I just want to get started,” Nurse told reporters in Las Vegas on Thursday.
Nurse, who spent years as a head coach in England and in the then NBA Development League before joining the Raptors, was asked what will be different now that he is in charge and said the team has prided itself on how hard it has played in recent years and that will not change.
“You can’t argue with how hard we’ve played in the past. Keep that up, moving the ball,” Nurse said.
He is hoping his charges get a bit more pushy and disruptive on defence.
“We’re going to try to try to create a few more turnovers defensively instead of kind of play the bend but don’t break defensive (style). We will get more aggressive, be more handsy, and hopefully the ball is getting up the floor quicker (at the other end as a result),” Nurse said.
Toronto’s Summer League team will be led by sophomore OG Anunoby, who defied the odds in coming back months earlier than expected from a severe knee injury suffered while playing for Indiana to emerge as a key starter for a Raptors team that set a record by winning 59 games.
How has Anunoby looked? “Great so far,” Nurse said “He’s had a great off-season, you can tell. His skills are already improving. You would think he should be the best player on the floor — well, he looks like the best player on the floor. He’s exerting his presence (at both ends).”
Anunoby remains a man of few words, but he did provide a brief assessment of the start of the Nurse era.
“I like him a lot. He’s a great guy. I’m excited,” Anunoby said while not looking all that excited.
As usual, many of Toronto’s younger players have gathered in Vegas to work with the coaching staff, even if they aren’t a part of the Summer League roster this year. That group includes forward Pascal Siakam and point guard Delon Wright, who also weighed in on the controversial coaching change.
“It’s different. I know a lot of people think it’s not a change (going from Casey to his longtime assistant), but I think it’s a change,” Siakam said.
“He’s his own man and he does things his way. It’s going to be interesting to see how things go.”
Wright described the move as a fresh start and also indicated that it won’t be the same old, same old.
“He wants things his way ... Coach Casey had a different style of coaching, but I think they’re both effective. It just depends on how you take the message,” Wright said.
BJELICA ON MOVE TO SIXERS
Nemanja Bjelica is moving from Minnesota to Philadelphia.
A person familiar with the negotiations said Bjelica has agreed to a one-year contract with the 76ers worth nearly US$4.5 million. The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity Thursday because the deal has not been announced.
Bjelica gives Philadelphia more shooting depth, needed in an offseason where the 76ers lost Ersan Ilyasova and Marco Belinelli.
The 30-year-old Serbian shot 42 per cent from 3-point range last season, his best clip in his three NBA years. He had a long career in Europe before coming to the NBA with Minnesota in 2015.
Bjelica was originally drafted by Washington in 2010.
WE WILL BE MORE AGGRESSIVE, BE MORE HANDSY, AND HOPEFULLY THE BALL IS GETTING UP THE FLOOR.
CELTICS INK TOP PICK
The Boston Celtics announced Thursday they have signed firstround draft pick Robert Williams. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Williams, a forward-centre out of Texas A&M, was selected 27th overall last month with the Celtics’ lone draft pick.
His signing comes days after he received a lecture from the team about accountability following a pair of off-the-court incidents. The 20-year-old slept through a scheduled conference call with reporters the day after the draft and then failed to catch a flight from his native Louisiana to Boston in time for a summer league practice.
Williams will wear jersey No. 44.
Boston signed free agent guard Brad Wanamaker earlier this week.