TORONTO - Toronto Raptors coach Dwane Casey said he often gets asked about Drake. O. J. Simpson Jersey .I get texts: Do you know Drake? Have you met Drake? He sits there every night, he hears me cuss out the referees every night, Casey said, laughing. He knows all my cuss words.Part rapper, part Raptors mascot, Drake is the basketball teams global ambassador, and has his own courtside seat at the Air Canada Centre, about an arms length away from where Casey paces and hollers at the referees.The rapper-songwriter hosted his second annual Drake Night, on Wednesday at the Air Canada Centre, as the Raptors played Brooklyn for the first time since the Nets ousted Toronto in the first round of last seasons playoffs.A sell-out crowd of 19,800 fans received keepsake Drake Night T-shirts. Drake announced the Raptors lineup pre-game before taking his usual courtside seat. He spent some time at the broadcast table doing guest commentary.Do I hear Dwane Casey use foul language? Drake was asked in a humorous pre-game scrum with reporters. He just always says high hands. Hes always screaming high hands. Honestly, I sit right beside him, and I cant understand a word that hes saying. I dont know how the players know what to do. It just all sounds like random words that come to his mind. Hell just be like, A-1 sauce!Drake said while the night was named for him, it was all about a Raptors team that is enjoying its best start in franchise history.Its really about this team just doing what theyve been doing all year, which is just being incredible, he said. I had some conversations with a couple of the guys and just really asked them to overdo it tonight for me.I hate to be redundant, but I just care so much about the city and the people in it and night after night, its amazing to see all these seats sold out, he added. Sports is a huge part of my life, and its just great to see people from all walks of life, Toronto itself is such a mosaic of different people from different cultures and different walks of life and you look around the building and you see all these people just coming together for a great squad, a great game.Drake said he was given a choice of visiting teams for his night this season. Brooklyn was an obvious choice after the Nets dispatched the Raptors in Game 7 of the opening round of the playoffs last season.If theres anybody that I want to beat, its the Nets, Drake said. I think if we have a rivalry at all, I think this would probably would be it. Obviously, Ive got much love for New York and Brooklyn but in this particular arena at this particular moment, the one thing I want to do is knock out Brooklyn.Drake has come to know the Raptors players well, and attributes their success to their chemistry.Being part of an ensemble cast, it involves the meshing of all personalities. I can testify because I was on Degrassi where there were 12 kids trying to co-exist, and everybody wanted to be a star, he said. Once you have a common goal in mind as opposed to a personal goal, thats when things really start to click.They have a real family vibe going on. . . These guys love each other. They care about each other. It shows in our record. Im excited for this stretch, and Im excited for the stretch where we play the over-500 teams. I think thats going to be the real test.After Sundays game versus the visiting New York Knicks, the Raptors head west for a tough six-game road trip. TreDavious White Bills Jersey . The 7-foot-1 Hawes, who is in the final year of his contract, is averaging 13 points and 8.5 rebounds, both career highs, and shoots 40 per cent from 3-point range. The 25-year-old Hawes is in his seventh NBA season. Doug Flutie Bills Jersey . "I had a pretty good year," the soft-spoken Granberg told TSN.ca with a grin from the teams annual rookie tournament in London. A fourth-round selection in 2010, Granberg is worth keeping an eye on with NHL training camps rolling around in less than a week. The six-foot-two, 200-pound defender may not possess the wow-inspiring theatrics of fellow prospect Morgan Rielly, but nonetheless has a chance to contribute with the Leafs when all is said and done this season. http://www.shoptheofficialbills.com/Elite-Andre-Roberts-Bills-Jersey/ . His actions are much louder on the Fenway Park mound. De La Rosa had another strong home start, going seven solid innings to lift the Boston Red Sox to a 2-1 victory over the Kansas City Royals on Saturday night. ATLANTA -- A long rain delay and extra innings tested the Washington Nationals mental and physical strength. Matt Williams said he was impressed his NL East-leading team finally found a way to win. Wilson Ramos bases-loaded single sparked Washingtons three-run 11th inning, and the Nationals beat the Atlanta Braves 4-1 on Saturday night. The start of the game was delayed by 3 hours, 41 minutes, and the final out wasnt recorded until Sunday at 2:29 a.m. "Considering all that happened today and the way we had to fight through the last couple of days, it was pretty good for us," Williams said. "We fought all the way." It was the Braves ninth loss in 10 games. The Nationals increased their lead in the division over Atlanta to 4 1/2 games. Anthony Rendon and Adam LaRoche led off the 11th with singles against David Carpenter (4-2). After left fielder Justin Upton made a leaping catch of Ian Desmonds liner, James Russell walked Bryce Harper to load the bases. Ramos then drove in Rendon with a single up the middle off Anthony Vavaro, Atlantas third pitcher of the inning. Devin Frandsens double to right field drove in two runs to make it 4-1. Ramos was initially ruled safe at home on the play, but the call was overturned following a replay challenge by Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez. Tyler Clippard (7-2) pitched a scoreless 10th inning, and Rafael Soriano got three outs for his 26th save in 30 chances. The Braves, who snapped an eight-game losing streak Friday night with a 7-6 win over the Nationals, were frustrated by leaving 11 runners on base. More offensive struggles wasted a strong start by Aaron Harang, who allowed one run in seven innings. "Its tough, especially against a team that we know were trying to make up ground on," Harang said. LaRoches homer in the sixth gave Washington a 1-0 lead, but the Braves tied it in the bottom half. Washingtons Tanner Roark and Harang opened with five scoreless innings before LaRoche led off the sixth with his 16th homer. The Braves settled for one run after loading the bases with no outs in the sixth. Tommy La Stella scored on Jason Heywards broken-bat fly ball to shallow centre field. Roark also lasted seeven innings, allowing one run, six hits and three walks. TreDavious White Jersey. BOOS FOR BRYCE Nationals outfielder Bryce Harper, booed consistently by Braves fans, might have tried to send a message back to the fans by scraping his cleat over the Atlanta "A" carved into the dirt behind the batters box, as if trying to scuff it. Fans responded with more boos. SPAN THE MAN Denard Spans fifth-inning triple gave him a 13-game hitting streak. He has reached base in 35 consecutive games, a streak that began on June 28. ALUMNI SOFTBALL Newly inducted Hall of Famer Greg Maddux, and Chipper Jones were among the former Braves players who played in a legends softball game. Jones, wearing shorts and striped socks, homered in his first at-bat. Maddux settled for a double. John Rocker and Ryan Klesko were among other players to easily clear the short fence for homers. TRAINERS ROOM Nationals: Right fielder Jayson Werth was scratched from the lineup as he continues to be slowed by a sore right ankle and right shoulder. He walked as a pinch-hitter in the 11th and should start on Sunday night, according to Williams. ... Outfielder Steven Souza, who hurt his shoulder in a collision with the right-field wall and left Fridays game, entered as a pinch-runner for Werth. Braves: Shortstop Andrelton Simmons sprained left ankle is improving. Gonzalez said Simmons might play by Tuesday. Simmons was no longer wearing a soft cast, but had the ankle wrapped. ... Right-hander Shae Simmons, on the disabled list with a right shoulder strain since July 27, said he "felt really good today" throwing in the outfield. He still hasnt thrown off a mound. UP NEXT Nationals: Left-hander Gio Gonzalez will try to end a streak of four straight losses in his last five starts at Turner Field on Sunday night. He won his first two career starts in Atlanta before a long string of bad luck. Gonzalez has received one run of support in each of his last five starts in Atlanta. Braves: Left-hander Alex Wood will look for his first win since July 20. Wood is 0-2 in his last three starts, dropping him to 7-9 with a 3.20 ERA for the season. Wood is 1-1 with a 2.25 ERA in two starts against Washington this season. ' ' '