The Toronto Raptors of the National Basketball Association currently sit second in the Eastern Conference only behind the defending champion Cleveland Cavaliers.
The Raptors are in much need of an upgrade at the power forward position, and the rumour mill is swirling with the idea they are trying to acquire Paul Millsap of the Atlanta Hawks.
On Tuesday, Jan. 24, the Raptors host the San Antonio Spurs at the Air Canada Centre with a battle of two second-place teams from both conferences.
Two superstar players will clash, with Kawhi Leonard sitting 12th in the NBA in scoring with 24.6 points a game and Demar DeRozan currently 6th with 28.1 points a game.
On Wednesday night, Jan. 25, for the second game in back-to-back nights, the Raptors head to Memphis to face the Grizzlies.
Memphis has taken down some huge powerhouses in the NBA, including an upset of the East-leading Cavaliers and the league leaders – the Golden State Warriors. The Grizzlies have downed the Warriors twice this season.
The Raptors also have a busy weekend schedule, with the Milwaukee Bucks visiting on Friday evening, Jan. 27, and the Orlando Magic finishing off the week on Sunday, Jan. 29 with a 7 p.m. start time.
On Saturday evening, the NBA has its showcase with the Los Angeles Clippers visiting the Warriors. The two sides have a storied history with numerous playoff series in the past few years and a long-standing rivalry between head coaches Doc Rivers of the Clippers and Steve Kerr of Golden State.
Also on Sunday afternoon, NBA star players Russell Westbrook of the Oklahoma City Thunder and Lebron James of the Cavaliers go head-to-head in a 4:30 p.m. matinée.
The National Hockey League is approaching its All-Star Weekend in Los Angeles, although there are games Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday nights of this week. The Toronto Maple Leafs have a pair of road games Wednesday and Thursday evening with 8 p.m. start times.
They head to Detroit first before visiting the city of broverly love to face the Philadelphia Flyers.
The Ottawa Senators also host fellow Canadian team, the Calgary Flames, Thursday night in the nation’s capital.
On the weekend, the NHL All-Star Game takes place in Los Angeles with all the festivities that occur during the weekend.
The skills competition, a perennial favourite, is Saturday night, followed by the three-on-three tournament between divisions being played the following day.
Two of Canada’s headline hockey players are captains for their respective divisions. They include forwards Connor McDavid of the Edmonton Oilers (Pacific Division) and Sidney Crosby of the Pittsburgh Penguins (Metropolitan Division).
Carrying the Atlantic Division and Central Division banners, respectively, are Montreal Canadiens goalie Carey Price and defenceman P.K. Subban of the Nashville Predators (formerly of the Canadiens).
Also in attendance will be former NHLer Pavel Datsyuk. The once-dynamic forward retired from the NHL last season, but the league is announcing some of the 100 best players in the game’s history, and Datsyuk is rumored to be part of the list.
The National Football League’s Pro Bowl falls the same evening as the NHL All-Star Game, with a bye week for the two teams meeting in the Super Bowl the following Sunday.
In world tennis play, the 2017 Australian Open enters its second week, with the quarterfinals, semis and finals being decided later. The women’s final will take place Saturday with Serena Williams vying for her 23rd grand slam. The men’s final goes Sunday morning.
