Protection » of racism in the National Basketbb

Following what the players and coach described as an "embarrassing" loss to the Florida Panthers on Tuesday night, Toronto Maple Leafs general manager Dave Nonis remains willing, patient and fully committed to Randy Carlyle. "The pressure right now should be placed on the players, Nonis told The Dreger Report on Wednesday. "I know Randy and the coaching staff is working hard. Im not now, nor have I ever contemplated making a coaching change. The players have to respond." Nonis refuted the notion that the players are no longer listening to Carlyle, or have tuned out the veteran coach and says at the end of their season exiting meetings after the Leafs Game 7 meltdown to the Boston Bruins last spring, that every Toronto player - to a man - credited Carlyle and his staff as the main reason the Leafs qualified for the postseason last year. The Hits Keep Coming Now Trevor Smith broke his hand in the 3-1 loss to the Panthers and could be out for the next eight weeks, further taxing Torontos depleted centre ice position as Tyler Bozak and Dave Bolland are still weeks away with long-term injuries as well. Centre Jerred Smithson was recalled from the Toronto Marlies to help fill the void, but Nonis can see the toll - particularly up the middle - that his teams steady stream of injuries is taking on the club. Nonis has been trolling the league looking for trades and admits he has had offers on James van Riemsdyk, Nazem Kadri, Jake Gardiner, Morgan Rielly and both his goalies. However, the general managers with the most interest have yet to produce anything beyond older players in return or trade packages that are not useful to the Maple Leafs in the long term. More On Gardiner Following back-to-back bad games resulting in a benching against the Panthers, Jake Gardiners availability has once again become topical. Nonis insists hes not shopping Gardiner, but rival management sources say Gardiners name has been brought up by Toronto in trade discussions in Noniss search for a top-six forward. At the moment, there doesnt appear to be a trade fit that makes sense, so amid the growing frustration in Leaf Nation, Noniss plan is to sit tight, pray for good health in the New Year and do whatever is necessary to help this team keep its head above water. Broadway Banter Meanwhile, New York Rangers general manager Glen Sather continues to shop defenceman Michael Del Zotto. Toronto is among the teams with some interest, but the expected return of a young defenceman may be too steep for the Leafs. Its believed the Rangers would prefer a right-handed shot on the blue line, so Cody Franson is a likely target for New York as well. Sources say the Ottawa Senators are also still in the mix, although the sudden and impressive emergence of rookie Cody Ceci may have cooled the Sens interest. And providing Ceci can maintain his play, the Senators may be willing to move either Eric Gryba, Joe Corvo or Patrick Wiercioch to one of the many teams in the market for a defenceman. With the holiday roster freeze looming, its unlikely well see any big-time action prior to the break. But the appetite for change is growing among some of the NHLs big market clubs. Rasmus Ristolainen Jersey . Spains victory rendered Frances 3-0 win against Finland meaningless as Spain needed just one point to secure passage to Brazil. Franck Ribery and Karim Benzema scored either side of Joona Toivios own-goal as France advanced to the playoff among the eight best second-place finishers. Jason Pominville Jersey . -- Derek Jeter spoke for 25 minutes, 44 seconds and answered 26 questions about his decision to retire at the end of this season. http://www.authenticsabrespro.com/Pat-la...abres-jersey/.C. -- The Edmonton Oilers used a late-power-play goal to get a hard-fought road victory. Justin Bailey Jersey .B. -- Canadian pairs skaters Meagan Duhamel and Eric Radford went from elated to frustrated in the span of a few minutes. Conor Sheary Jersey .Y. - His opponent couldnt stop him, and LeBron James didnt quite know what to think when his coach tried.WASHINGTON -- The NAACP wants a meeting with NBA commissioner Adam Silver to discuss Clippers owner Donald Sterling and the racist comments he allegedly made in a recorded conversation. The announcement was made Tuesday morning by Roslyn M. Brock, the chair of the NAACP National Board of Directors. She says the NAACP wants to talk to Silver about what it calls, quote, "the influence and impact of racism in the National Basketbball Association.dddddddddddd" This comes as the organizations Los Angeles chapter withdrew its decision to give Sterling a lifetime achievement award, and returned money he donated. Brock says the situation reminds us "racism and bigotry are still alive and well in all corners of society." The NBA is scheduled to announce later Tuesday the result of its investigation into Sterlings alleged remarks. 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