Weekly Takes - Monday, June 12th Edition

Weekly Takes - Monday, June 12th Edition

1. The Maple Leafs losing Spencer Carbery to another team will be quite annoying if they end up firing Sheldon Keefe, as Carbery probably would have been the odds-on-favourite to get the job.

Now it will be slim pickings when it comes to possible replacements for Keefe, who may be the biggest loser in all of this. It would be cold-blooded and not a good look to fire Keefe after all of the available head coaching opportunities are taken.

2. I would have preferred a first-time general manager, but Brad Treliving was the best of the options when it came to what Brendan Shanahan was looking for.

He has a history of drafting well, ends up on the right side of trades more time than not, is well respected across the league, has the experience, has experience in a Canadian market, and should be considered progressive relative to most general managers in the league.

Is he a better general manager than Kyle Dubas? I do not think so, but it is close enough that maybe a fresh set of eyes is what the doctor ordered.

And who knows? With more resources, maybe Treliving is every bit as progressive as Dubas, simply without all the hoopla.

3. As for Dubas landing in Pittsburgh, this would explain why he made a last-second change in his contract negotiations with the Leafs.

He always knew this was an option.

Shanahan looks better and better as each day goes on here. He trusted his gut and was proven correct.

4. The Leafs hiring of Shane Doan is the classic case of the Leafs flexing their financial muscle to get who and what they want.

Doan knows Treliving, is an up-and-coming executive, and has a close relationship with Auston Matthews.

A no-brainer of a hire.

5. Anthony Bass was surely nowhere near good enough to warrant keeping him on the roster for as long as the Blue Jays did given every piece of drama he had put the Blue Jays through this season.

Even for a player with value, there, at some point, has to be a line drawn for what is acceptable and what is not.

He blew past the line.

6. Darko Rajakovic checks off all the boxes the Raptors should have been looking for in a new head coach.

They needed an offensively-minded head coach who had no prior connections to the organization. A fresh face, voice, and vision were needed.

The fact that he is as well respected as he is across the league is only a tremendous bonus.

7. The 76ers hiring of Nick Nurse is a home run of hire for a team who was in desperate need of an elite head coach.

The fact that Nurse knows every strength and weakness in Joel Embiid’s game is only a bonus. And a rather significant one at that.

8. If a Jamal Murray-Shai Gilgeous-Alexander backcourt cannot lead Canada to an Olympic medal one day, then I think it is safe to say that Basketball Canada is forever cursed, right?

9. Leo Messi coming to MLS is the ultimate game-changer (obviously) for a league that is on track to blow past the NHL in the States sooner rather than later.

That says a lot about both sports equally.

10. The PGA-LIV merger simply further defines the legacy of everyone involved.

Those coming back from LIV will forever have tarnished legacies due to selling out for blood money, while the same can now be said for Jay Monahan.

The only winners are those who stayed loyal to the PGA Tour this entire time.

11. Nick Taylor’s 72-foot putt is not only one of the greatest moments in Canadian sports history, but a signature moment for an event that should be considered one of the best “non-majors” on the golf calendar.

It has no business taking place a week before a major.

12. We all agree that a golf ball ending up in the grandstand should be a one-stroke penalty, right?