FIVE QUICK HOOPS THOUGHTS 1. Phillip Lindsay Jersey . TIM HARDAWAY, JR (Knicks): Picked 24th by New Yorks former GM, Glen Grunwald (honestly, what is owner James Dolan thinking firing him?) is a gem. Saw him on Friday night vs. the Raptors. I was very impressed with him. Hes got nice shooting mechanics and plays with great energy and awareness. Played for a terrific college coach at Michigan (John Beilein) who is one of the best in the business at teaching offensive fundamentals and obviously his dad, Tim, Sr. was a wonderful player. He really jumped out at me. Hell be playing for a winning team and will have to earn every minute he gets which is a good thing - it will make him a better pro in the long run. If first impressions matter he made a positive one, thats for sure. 2. GREG ODEN (Heat): Practiced for the first time 5-on-5 on Sunday and got through it okay. Fingers crossed hes able to practice/play consistently. Frustrating start to his NBA career with a rash of injuries. The positive is that the Heat need him in a secondary capacity and hell be brought along slowly and eased in. In addition, hell be held accountable by coach Erik Spoelstra, president Pat Riley and a team with good internal leadership - you had better be in shape, do your work and be professional or else. Its an environment that is conducive to a gradual step in the right direction for him if he can stay healthy. 3. NIKOLA PEKOVIC (Timberwolves): Man this guy is a beast. What a load to move in the lane. Felt bad for the Raptors big men watching them try to battle with him last week. When he gets to his spot on the floor - good luck moving him. Hes developed into a nice player and when you look around the league there will be nights that hell have his way in the lane with smaller/weaker bigs in the paint. He has no back down and is a relentless rebounder and improving offensive feature for coach Rick Adelman. 4. DEMAR DEROZAN (Raptors): I have been impressed with him and his approach from the start of Training Camp. Definitely stronger and seems to know what works for him and playing the game at an efficient pace. Ive always respected his mature approach. He loves the game and works at his craft diligently. Hes playing with a greater degree of toughness in the lane and attacking his opponent and working harder to draw fouls and get to the free throw line. Obviously, the Raptors have played only four preseason games so the sample size is very small but he is on the right track. Stay on it and keep improving. People talk a lot about his three-point shooting needing to improve. I totally agree. Lets be real though. Hell never be confused even at his best with Ray Allen. Hes a slasher with great explosiveness and increased strength whose biggest positive is getting to the rim. Play to your strengths - be who you are. 5. ANDREW WIGGINS (University of Kansas): Got my Sports Illustrated in the mailbox and see him on the cover. The hype is ratcheting up even further. What expectations and pressure on this young man. Happy that hes getting the PR and its an exciting time for the growth of Canadian basketball yet I always worry when too much is thrown at a young player. Thrilled for him yet the attention unnerves me. Most times it creates distractions that they cant live up to. Im hopeful that he has the emotional maturity/makeup to handle all of this. I wish he could ease into this a bit more. With the accelerated pace of development of players these days its hard for a player to experience the much needed growing pains that shape your character and improve you as a player. Easy does it is not the mode anymore and it can crush a guy. Based upon what Ive seen he looks like a guy that will get through it all just fine. DeMarcus Ware Youth Jersey . Both of Padakins goals came in the second period while Zane Jones added a single in the first period for Calgary (13-6-4). Hitmen goaltender Chris Driedger finished with 30 saves for the shutout. Dre Mont Jones Broncos Jersey . Footballs governing body said Tuesday that of the 2,577,662 tickets allocated for this years tournament, 1,041,418 have gone to people in Brazil. The U. http://www.thebroncosstoreonline.com/Youth-Bradley-Chubb-Broncos-Jerseys/ . Vinci also beat Dulgheru last week in Bucharest en route to her first WTA final in a year. Vinci next faces sixth-seeded Kurumi Nara of Japan, who beat Czech qualifier Katerina Siniakova 7-6 (5), 6-7 (3), 6-2. No. SAN DIEGO -- The Padres are on a roll, proving how quick momentum can flip in baseball. Will Venable homered and San Diego beat the Miami Marlins 5-4 on Sunday for their first three-game winning streak of the season. This run comes on the heels of Thursdays extra-inning loss, when second baseman Jedd Gyorkos error led to Giancarlo Stantons home run and a deflating defeat. Now the Padres hit the road packing along some confidence. "Its a much better vibe, theres less tension in the clubhouse and in the dugout," Padres manager Bud Black said. "When you dont score theres tension. And its been released a little bit and the guys are playing a little more relaxed. That is what winning does. When you dont score, things get a little tight." The surging Padres offence, which has scored 24 runs in the three games, also got two hits and two RBIs from Chris Denorfia. Robbie Erlin (2-4) scattered five hits in 6 1-3 scoreless innings before giving way to three Padres relievers. Huston Street pitched around a hit and two walks in the ninth to earn his 11th save. Street handled the middle of the Marlins order, Stanton and Casey McGehee with caution. He didnt mind putting them on when they didnt offer at border line pitches early in their counts. "I saw (Jeff) Baker in the hole and while he swung the bat well in series, I felt like once the bases were loaded I got to start attacking," Street said. "You know how you feel and youve seen how guys are hitting and when I fell behind those guys in middle of lineup, you feel like you dont want to give them anything to hit, especially Stanton." Street retired Baker on a fielders choice. "Got to be a little crisis at the end but Huston has proven over the years how to work his way through an inning, how to get an out," Black said. "He always knows whos on deck, whos in the hole and as the inning proceeds, what he has to get done and that is always a good sign of a good closer." Stanton understood. "He wasnt going to give me something to hit a homer and goo up in the game," he said. DeMarcus Ware Womens Jersey. "So he was either going to take the corners and if I didnt bite, he was going to let (McGehee) take over." Erlin handed his game over to the bullpen and was rewarded. He had lost four straight decisions before beating the Marlins in his first appearance against them. But it was his second consecutive strong showing after a seven-inning, one-run outing versus the Royals. The Padres pitchers struck out 48 over the four-game series to set a franchise record. They broke their mark of 44 set in 1998 against Montreal. Miamis Henderson Alvarez (2-3), who was coming off his second shutout of the season and third in his last eight starts, wasnt sharp. He lasted four innings, allowing five runs on seven hits with three walks and two strikeouts. "He didnt have a good feel for his sinker today and that is his bread and butter," catcher Jeff Mathis said. "Without his sinker today we were doing what we could do throw the ball over the plate." Venable hit his franchise-best 10th career leadoff homer. His 400-foot blast off a 1-0 fastball over the right-field wall was his first home run of the year. NOTES: Padres SS Everth Cabrera was out of the starting lineup after his wife, Connie, gave birth to their daughter late Saturday night. ... OF Carlos Quentin was to play with Single-A Lake Elsinore on Sunday as he continues his rehabilitation from bruised left knee. Quentin could join the club on its upcoming road trip. ... LHP Casey Kelly threw a bullpen session and will pitch at Double-A San Antonio on Wednesday; hes rebounding from Tommy John surgery. ... Marlins MGR Mike Redmond said hes not sure where RHP Henry Rodriguez fits into the teams bullpen. Rodriguez, who worked the seventh inning, was summoned from Triple-A New Orleans. ... Marlins RHP Tom Koehler (3-2, 1.99) faces Dodgers RHP Dan Haren (4-1, 2.68) on Monday in Los Angeles. ... Padres RHP Andrew Cashner (2-5, 2.86) goes against Reds RHP Mike Leake (2-3, 3.40) in Tuesdays series opener in Cincinnati. ' ' '