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TORONTO - In his brief 10-month stint with the Raptors, Rudy Gay averaged just under 20 points per contest, accounting for the bulk of Torontos offence while hitting some big, game-winning shots before he was whisked away to Sacramento. His tenure wont be remembered for any of that, rightly or wrongly, and the Kings forward has mostly come to terms with that. He wont be remembered for the shots he made. No, "Rudy the Raptor" - as Kings coach Mike Malone refers to Gays previous incarnation - will be remembered for the shots he missed. All 530 of them. Even Gay himself, given the opportunity to sugarcoat his shooting woes ahead of Fridays return to Toronto, wouldnt put lipstick on the pig that was his horrid field goal percentage. It was bad, and he knows it. Surrounded by the sizeable Toronto media army he left behind for small-market Sacramento following Kings practice on Thursday, Gay was asked if he feels slighted when hes been called inefficient. "I was inefficient when I was here," he admitted, to the surprise of those who may have expected him to dance around the obvious. "Im not anymore. I was when I was here." Fridays game will mark Gays first visit to Air Canada Centre since he was sent to the Kings, along with Quincy Acy and Aaron Gray, on Dec. 9 in exchange for Patrick Patterson, Greivis Vasquez, John Salmons and Chuck Hayes. He was acquired from Memphis less than a year earlier, a trade engineered by former Raptors general manager Bryan Colangelo in the hopes of landing a star player that could dig the team out of its playoff hole and, in doing so, save his own skin. The experiment was short-lived. "He was put in a tough situation where he was looked on to be the saviour," coach Dwane Casey said of Gays time in Toronto. "Thats not his role as far as [the] type of guys we had. Hes a dynamic player, a big-time talent. He was brought here for the right reasons. It ended up turning into something that wasnt meant to be." After he and the Raptors closed out last season on a high note, the team opened with a record of 6-12 as Gay struggled, putting up some of the worst numbers of his eight-year career. "For whatever reason in Toronto he was only shooting 38 per cent, taking over 18 shots a game and everyone wanted to say he was the most inefficient player in the NBA," Malone said. "All I can base his play on is as a King. Hes been shooting the ball over 50 per cent, 20 points a night and hes a proven playmaker and rebounder as well." Nearly three months removed from his time in Toronto, Gay is enjoying a career resurgence as a member of the Kings. Hes scoring more points, taking three less shots per game while getting to the free throw line at a higher rate. He has shot 50 per cent or better in 23 of 37 games as a King, something he accomplished once in 18 contests with the Raptors this season. Whats responsible for his turnaround? It has a lot to do with the space occupied and the attention drawn by the Kings beast of a centre. "If you go back to his time in Memphis. when he had the luxury of playing with a very talented frontcourt in Marc Gasol and Zach Randolph. he was much more efficient with that line-up," Malone pointed out. "So we felt that he and DeMarcus (Cousins), especially the inside-outside combination, would be very tough to guard." With Gay, Cousins and breakout point guard Isaiah Thomas, the Kings are the NBAs only team that features three 20-point scorers. Although the record hasnt necessarily reflected it - Sacramento is 16-26 since the trade - that trio has co-existed better than expected. As a team, the Kings rank 12th in offensive efficiency, despite dropping to the bottom of league in assists. For a collection of reasons, many of which are probably too tough to explain or quantify, Gay has found a home in Sacramento and he seems to fit. Of course, he is not the only one with a new lease on life in the aftermath of the trade. The Raptors are now 27-14 without Gay in the line-up, jockeying for playoff position in the Eastern Conference as the Kings toil in the basement of West. Gay is genuinely happy for his old teammates, many of whom he considers close friends, but the Kings forward doesnt necessarily buy into the correlation between his departure and his former teams success. "We dont know if that would have happened if I were there, too," said the 27-year-old. "It happened early in the season. Nobody knows. Its one of those things that it has happened now, the trade happened, now theyre a playoff team. Of course, Id like to be a part of that, but Im in Sacramento now and I have to build this team." However, Raptors fans remember the missed shots, they remember the isolation-centric offence that torpedoed their teams overall watchability for the first month of the season, but, most of all, they remember the losses. In Gay, the Raptors got what they paid for and their inevitable break-up should not have come as too much of a surprise. He probably doesnt deserve to be booed when he returns to the ACC wearing visiting purple Friday night, but he will be and when he is, he wont be caught off guard. "I dont care," he said. "Im just going out there and doing my job. Honestly, I joke with these guys all of the time. I say, If you put two rims up in the kitchen, Ill go out and play. It really doesnt matter what happens, whos booing, whos cheering. It doesnt matter." Cheap Los Angeles Clippers Jerseys . -- Teemu Selanne scored the first goal of his 22nd NHL season, and the Anaheim Ducks extended the best start in franchise history with their fifth straight victory, 3-2 over the Calgary Flames on Wednesday night. Cheap NFL Jerseys China .5 million, one-year contract on Friday. Hawkins, who turns 41 in December, will compete with Rex Brothers for the closers role at spring training. http://www.cheapnfljerseyssafe.us.com/Cheap-Chicag...ina-91- Rb/ . By having more great seasons. Manning was the only unanimous choice for the 2013 Associated Press NFL All-Pro team Friday. Cheap Columbus Blue Jackets Jerseys . The 31-year-old Spain midfielder hasnt played since Madrid lost in the Copa del Rey final to Atletico Madrid in May due to back and foot injuries. Cheap Jerseys .C. -- When North Carolina freshman Ryan Switzer reported to training camp in August he was a little miffed to learn he was third on the depth chart at punt returner.LONDON - Arsenal and Chelsea showed more great form ahead of Champions League matches with thrashings of Norwich and Cardiff that left the London clubs first and second respectively in the Premier League on Saturday. Now unbeaten in 12 games in all competitions, Arsenal dismantled Norwich 4-1 at home while Samuel Etoo scored his first Chelsea goal and was involved in a controversial equalizer to spark a 4-1 win at Stamford Bridge. Arsenal has not lost a game since its opening Premier League 3-1 home loss to Aston Villa in August that angered the Gunners fans and might have played a role in German playmaker Mesut Ozils transfer to the club from Real Madrid. Ozil scored a brace against Norwich and has been key to Arsenals resurgence. "A few weeks ago we lost our first home game here and it was a difficult time, but we responded well and since then we have been consistent," Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger said ahead of Tuesdays Champions League match against Borussia Dortmund. "I like the solidarity in the team, of course we have quality, but its how much we maintain that and sustain that, that will decide our future." The Gunners are two points clear of Chelsea and Liverpool after the Reds had to settle for a point in a 2-2 draw against 10-man Newcastle. Adam Lallana grabbed a late equalizer for Southampton in a 1-1 draw at Manchester United, adding to the defending champions troubles in a lacklustre start to their title defence. Also on Saturday, Everton beat Hull 2-1, Stoke was held to a 0-0 draw by West Brom and Swansea defeated last-place Sunderland 4-0. At St James Park, Daniel Sturridges header salvaged a point for Liverpool against 10-man Newcastle, but the England striker also missed a great opportunity to give the Reds the win in the closing stages when he completely misjudged his volley after being brilliantly picked out in the area by Steven Gerrard. Yohan Cabayes long-range strike had put the Magpies ahead before Gerrard scored his 100th league goal for Liverpool, equalizing from the spot after defender Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa was sent-off for a foul on Luis Suarez in the 40th minute. Substitute Paul Dummet restored the home sides lead in the 57th with a shot at the far post against the run of the play but Sturridge headed home Suarezs precise cross in the 72nd. Liverpool monopolized the ball after halftime and created the best chances but Sturridge, wwho has scored in seven of Liverpools eight league matches this season, volleyed wide before Newcastle goalkeeper Krul denied Suarezs free kick in added time with an excellent save.dddddddddddd "Its a chance missed for us today," Gerrard said. "I thought we did enough to win it but credit to Newcastle for hanging in there. After the sending off the game changed. They started strongly but we dominated the rest of game but couldnt get enough goals to win it." Ahead of its Champions League trip to Schalke, Chelsea extended its unbeaten Premier League run at home to 13 matches after recovering from a goal down and equalizing with a controversial goal which should have been disallowed. Jordon Mutch had put the visitors in front before Eden Hazard levelled in the 33rd, being set up by Etoo who caught out Cardiff goalkeeper David Marshall while he was bouncing the ball, leading to Hazard scoring from close range. FIFA rules state the goalkeeper is still in possession at that point. Etoo made it 2-1 in the 66th before Oscar put the match to bed and Hazard scored his second of the afternoon. Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho was sent to the stands before the third and four goals for berating the officials as Chelsea fans chanted "Jose Mourinho, he sits where he wants." Mourinho climbed over the dugout and opted to sit next to a fan who tweeted: "OMG morinho is sitting next to me." Manchester Uniteds disappointing start to the season continued as Southampton scored a late equalizer at Old Trafford. United had taken the lead after 26 minutes when Robin Van Persie scored from the rebound after Wayne Rooneys shot was saved by Artur Boruc. Rooney then hit the crossbar with a volley moments later and Van Persie headed against the bar in the second half before Southampton levelled in the 89th as Lallana bundled in a corner from James Ward-Prowse. "We had the opportunities to go 2-0 up. They had been knocking on the door but I thought we would see it out," United manager David Moyes said. "But if you dont defend a corner well enough, theres always a chance they will score. We had a couple of good chances where we could have finished them off and if we had scored a second it wouldve put the game to bed, but 1-0 is always a dangerous scoreline." United is provisionally eighth in the standings, eight points behind Arsenal. Cheap NFL Jerseys Authentic Wholesale Authentic Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys Authentic Cheap Jerseys Authentic Cheap NFL Jerseys Cheap Jerseys NFL China Cheap Jerseys ' ' '
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