heir hands.Johnny FlameWith 7:19 left on the game clock in the

Each week, The Reporters put their thumbs out to the good and the bad in the world of sports. This week they discuss new Raptors GM Masai Ujiri, former St. Louis Blues forward Andy McDonald, Dodgers rookie Yasiel Puig, and 2013 French Open champion Serena Williams. Dave Naylor, TSN: My thumb is up to new Toronto Raptors GM Masai Ujiri, who took on what may be one the toughest jobs in professional sports this week. But long shots are not something he is afraid of, because he knows this well, he was one himself. One of the things about sports we love is seeing people come from off the radar, late bloomers. We see it in the athletes and occasionally we see it in executives. That is Ujiris story, parlaying a modest college and pro career in Europe into a volunteer scout role with the Orlando Magic, and then climbing the ladder with the Denver Nuggets. The headline in Toronto this week was that the Raptors lured the NBA Executive of the Year; the more significant story is how he got there. Steve Simmons, Sun Media: My thumb is up to Andy McDonald, formerly now of the St. Louis Blues, who announced his retirement from hockey this week even though he could still play in the NHL. McDonald has had five concussions in recent years and over the past three years, for every four games hes played, he has missed three. He wasnt feeling right playing in the NHL, he wasnt feeling right playing hockey and he made the hard decision to walk away now healthy rather than the alternative. Michael Farber, Sports Illustrated: My thumb is up to the extraterrestrial playing right field for the Dodgers, rookie Yasiel Puig. An amazing start to a big league career, these are some of the numbers - six games, 10 for 23, four home runs including a grand slam, two outfield assists, hes slugging 1.000, and his OPS is 1.458. If we project this over 162 games, he would have 138 home runs, 324 RBIs and 680 total bases. Thats quite a pace. Dave Hodge, TSN: My thumb has been down to Serena Williams, and Im not sure it has ever been up, but now is the time. Her French Open win yesterday was her 16th major title and it came 11 years after her first one. She can stake her claim as the greatest woman on a tennis court and there is no end in sight to her ways of making a stronger case. She has lost only three times since the 2012 French Open, and has won her last 31 matches - 31 to match her age. We say "remarkable athlete" too often. In the case of Serena Williams, we dont say it enough. Cheap Clearance Shoes . Capitals head coach Adam Oates said Ovechkin was injured in the first period against the Vancouver Canucks on Monday and clarified it was not a head injury. Cheap Shoes Wholesale . -- The proud fathers huddled near the Dallas Stars dressing room, smiling, laughing and telling stories while wearing replica green sweaters of their sons team. http://www.cheapshoesclearance.com/ . -- The Portland Timbers and Real Salt Lake played to a 0-0 tie Saturday night that left the top of the Western Conference standings unchanged. Cheap Clearance Shoes Online . -- Former San Diego Chargers safety Paul Oliver was found dead at his Atlanta-area home Tuesday night, and a medical examiner said Wednesday that the ex-player committed suicide. Discount Shoes Online Free Shipping . The team said Saturday that Lopez was hurt during its 121-120 overtime loss at Philadelphia on Friday. The Nets said they would issue another update next week after consultation with their doctors. Round 7 was a see-sawing affair that saw two sets of back to back games. The top of the table Sydney Kings and Perth Wildcats split their games while the New Zealand Breakers and Illawarra Hawks also split theirs.Home court advantage was a big factor this week as five of the six games fell to the home side; Adelaide were the only side not to deliver in front of their home crowd.Melbourne finally returned to the winners list with the return of star guard Chris Goulding, as well as welcoming in new import, Casper Ware.Unfortunately, the action wasnt exactly edge of your seat material as only one out of the six games was decided by single figures.So who and what stood out the most during round 7?Hot StartsJumping out of the blocks and getting a quick start against your opponent is crucial in games of basketball. It puts the opposition squarely behind the eight ball and can force them to throw away the game plan in the hopes of getting back into the game.Every side that won the opening quarter this round won the game.Brisbane stunned Adelaide, hitting more threes in the opening quarter than Adelaide did for the entire game. New Zealand flew out of the blocks and scored the opening 12 points against Illawarra in their opening game; a deficit that was to great too overcome.Welcome ReturnChris Goulding finally pulled on the United jersey again and it couldnt have come at a better time for his side. United had lost five straight since Goulding went down with his ankle injury against the Brisbane Bullets in round 3. Squaring off against the Cairns Taipans and hoping to get off the bottom of the ladder, Goulding was firing on all cylinders.Finishing the game with 30 points and an incredible 8/12 from beyond the arc, equalling the United record for made threes in a game. Hitting big shot after big shot and carrying his side over the line.Problems at HomeHome court is supposed to be your fortress, a place where you can impose your will on opposing teams.ddddddddddddUnfortunately for Adelaide, their stadium has effectively become a home away from home for opposing teams.Adelaide have now lost their last four games and more importantly their last two games have been at home. To add some salt into the wounds, theyve lost both games by double digits.The first step in solving any problem is recognizing there is one, Adelaide need to recognize that they have a major problem on their hands.Johnny FlameWith 7:19 left on the game clock in the fourth quarter and the Kings down by 15 points, they were screaming for answers; thats when Brad Newley caught fire and morphed into Johnny Flame.In the space of 2 minutes and 44 seconds, Newley hit four three pointers and brought the Kings to within 4 points.Running around screens and hitting from all around the arc, Newley was simply unstoppable; ultimately finishing with 34 points and hitting 7/10 from deep. Sadly for the Kings, it wasnt enough as the Wildcats ran away with the contest.BlowoutsRound 7 saw the biggest average winning margin of any round so far this season, eclipsing the round four average of 12.6. With only the one game decided by single digits, the average margin of victory over the weekend ended up a whopping; 15.5 points.Illawarra helped this margin with their 31 point decimation of New Zealand in the final game of the round. So far this season there have been two games decided by over 30 points and Illawarra are responsible for both.There have been 42 games during the 2016/17 NBL season with the average margin of victory sitting at 10.47 points. Whilst the competition has been hotter than ever, the games are unfortunately reflecting a more one-sided affair. ' ' '