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TORONTO - At the ripe old age of 27-years-old Amir Johnson, the final player to have entered the league straight out of high school, finds himself in an unfamiliar situation as his 10th NBA season approaches. Johnson has never been one to pace himself, thats what has made him so valuable to the Raptors throughout his years in Toronto, and as a result hes taken a beating physically. Since coming to the Raptors, hes been remarkably durable, especially when you factor in the countless rolls of tape used on his troublesome ankles and time spent on the trainers table each season. Hes missed just 18 games in five years but by late March and April you can expect him to be hobbling around on one good ankle, if that. Up until last seasons surprising run to the playoffs it hadnt really mattered. A second-round pick out of Westchester high school in Los Angeles, Johnson began his career playing sparingly for a contending Pistons team. Eventually he transitioned to a complimentary role in Detroit before playing out four losing campaigns as a Raptor. By the spring many of his teammates would shut it down, mentally or physically or both, but Johnson kept chugging along. Last year was supposed to be much of the same, but thats not how it turned out and now here he is, participating in his 10th NBA training camp, but first in which hes expected to play a significant role for a playoff-bound club. Hes graduated from X-factor status, a tag that implicates ones game with the unreliability commonly associated with younger players. Amirs notoriously our glue guy, said Dwane Casey, a far more appropriate label for a player that has anchored Torontos defence and produced efficient offence for years. We know who he is. More than ever before, the Raptors need him on the court, as close to 100 per cent as possible during the stretch run and into the post-season if theyre to top last years accomplishments. The question is, how do you slow down a player who has been so effective operating at one speed? Amir, if he doesnt play with energy or if he tries to pace himself, that doesnt help him and it doesnt help us, Casey said. Hes an old pro and he knows how to play. Im not really concerned about him wearing down. Hes just got to stay healthy. The onus, at least to some degree, will be on Casey and the coaching staff to monitor Johnsons usage and perhaps scale back his minutes, not excessively but sporadically throughout the year, something they implemented last March as the forward battled a series of late-season aches and pains. The teams added depth and versatility should help Casey ensure that all of his regulars - including Johnson, DeMar DeRozan and Kyle Lowry - are kept fresh. Patrick Patterson was one of the leagues premier reserves after last seasons trade and figures to have an expanded role in his first full campaign with the Raptors. Tyler Hansbrough has earned praise in camp, having added a jump shot and improving his spacing and overall court awareness. James Johnson can also shift over to power forward, something Casey has experimented with in camp and feels comfortable deploying when they play small. Well watch his minutes, said Casey, but no ones playing that [many] minutes at the position to be overly taxed energy-wise. Johnson is doing his part to prepare for what could be his most grueling year, beginning with his work and innovative approach during the summer. The Raptors forward did not require surgery on either of his tender ankles, to his relief, instead he spent time at the P3 training facility in Santa Barbara, Calif. to help prevent the recurrence of similar injuries. It started with football players and now they expanded to a bunch of basketball players, he said of the cutting-edge sports clinic. What they do is strap you into these little light bulb suits, like they do in video games, and they have a screen where they show you every movement you do. So I was jumping up and down, sliding, seeing which way I land and they break it down to where you can see your skeleton and your bones move in slow motion, when you land and how you land. It could be something where you can just adjust your foot and kind of turn it a different way and that prevents you from maybe rolling an ankle or hurting your back. There, Johnson received feedback on how to refine some bad habits in his movement on the court - running, jumping, landing, etc. Its something he still works on implementing ahead of games and before practice. It takes repetition, but you can get used to it. So I did that this summer and I think it worked out great for me, he said, having also worked with Hall-of-Famer Hakeem Olajuwon on his post moves. Ive been working, strengthening, conditioning and keeping my body healthy. It didnt take long for Johnson to give the Raptors their first scare of the young campaign - if you can even call it a scare, given how often he hits the deck and pops back up. Johnson went down, battling for a rebound late in the second quarter of Fridays exhibition win over the Thunder. It wasnt my ankle, it was actually my foot, he clarified after sitting out the remainder of that game as a precaution. But Im fine. Perhaps his new and improved footwork, coupled with the possibility of reduced playing time, will lesson the threat of injury for Johnson in this all-important upcoming season - its also a contract year for him - but that risk will always be a factor and presumably higher than most on account of the way he plays the game. Whether theyre used to it or not, his teammates and coaches will always cringe when they see Johnson sprawled out on the court, but its par for the course. He may end up their intentionally - after diving for a loose ball or taking a charge - or otherwise, but as long as he continues to pop back up, the Raptors will live with the frequent scare. Hes that valuable. Nike Zoom Outlet Italia . The Marlies centre set up three goals, including the game-winner, as Toronto cruised to a 4-1 victory over the Oklahoma City Barons in American Hockey League action. Nike Zoom Saldi . Nothing pretty. But this is 1/4 World Cup. Usually plays out this way. http://www.nikezoomscontate.it/ . Mesoraco hurt his hamstring while scoring from second in Friday nights 5-4 loss at Atlanta. Chapman was hit by a line drive during an exhibition game on March 19, breaking his nose and a bone above his left eye. The left-hander looked strong while throwing 43 pitches in batting practice before Saturday nights game against the Braves. Nike Zoom Offerta . He was 90. The team announced Monday that Adams had died, saying he "passed away peacefully from natural causes." The son of a prominent oil executive, Adams built his own energy fortune and founded the Houston Oilers. Nike Zoom Scontate Italia .com) - One point guard will return, while another will sit when the Minnesota Timberwolves visit American Airlines Center to take on the Dallas Mavericks.PITTSBURGH, Pa. - With their captain under fire and their season on the brink of collapse, the Pittsburgh Penguins responded with a crackling show of force. Of course, having the New York Rangers look like a team only too happy to get back home with a split helped. Kris Letang broke a scoreless tie in the second period, and Marc-Andre Fleury made 22 saves for his franchise-record seventh playoff shutout to lift the Penguins to a 3-0 victory on Sunday night, tying the second-round series one game apiece. Letangs 15th career postseason goal matched Larry Murphys record for Penguins defensemen. Jussi Jokinen scored during a third-period power play, and Evgeni Malkin added an empty-net goal for the Penguins, who pushed around the suddenly weary Rangers. Fleury earned his 50th career playoff victory. "I thought to a man our players were extremely good all night," Pittsburgh coach Dan Bylsma said. "It was a huge win for us." Game 3 is Monday night in New York. Henrik Lundqvist made 32 saves for New York, but the Rangers mustered little offense while playing their fourth game in six days. Not that coach Alain Vigneault wanted to blame fatigue for a listless performance. "Did my goaltender look tired? He was on top of his game," Vigneault said. "If hes not tired, nobody else should be." The Rangers have lost eight straight Game 2s and have dropped 13 consecutive games when leading in a series. They had their chances to jump ahead early, only to be let down again by an anemic power play. Three times in the first 10 minutes a Penguins player skated to the penalty box, and three times the Rangers spent two minutes milling about as though they were killing time before getting back to even strength. The Rangers finished 0 for 4 with the man advantage and havent scored the last 29 times theyve had an extra skater on the ice. "It could have given us some momentum, and we didnt finish," Vigneault said. "Ive got to find the right trigger points here to make it work. Well spend the night trying to figure it out." Only Lundqvist seemed interested in sending the Rangers back to New York with a commanding 2-0 lead. He was typically brilliant, particularly when Pittsburgh captain Sidney Crosby was on the ice. The NHLs leading scorer and Hart Trophy finalist is in the midst of a lengthy postseason scoring funk. He began the night without a goal in 12 straight playoff gaames, a span that included 327 shifts and 275 minutes of ice time.dddddddddddd Bylsma insisted early Sunday that he anticipated seeing Crosby at his "best" with the season possibly at stake. Though Crosby failed to score, it was the only thing he didnt do. For the first time in weeks, he looked like himself. Relentless at both ends of the ice, the jump in his game that was missing at times during a listless performance in Game 1 returned. "To see Sid play like that tonight was really inspiring for everybody in our dressing room," Letang said. "He was really dangerous." Crosby finished with a game-high six shots. During one stretch at the end of the first period he produced a pair of scoring opportunities, including a nifty deke around two defenders, before he ripped a wrist shot that just missed the net. Each time Crosby appeared poised to end the drought, Lundqvist found a way to get a piece of the puck. He made a sprawling leg save on a tip-in attempt by Crosby, though Lundqvist wasnt so fortunate the next time the Penguins came at him. Chris Kunitz began a breakout by feeding Malkin at the New York blue line. Malkin slipped the puck over to Letang, who flipped it toward the net. Rangers defenseman Dan Girardi dived headfirst to block the attempted pass to Kunitz, but the puck deflected off Girardis stick and past a surprised Lundqvist to give Pittsburgh the lead. "They just spent a lot of time in our own end," Lundqvist said. "That was the biggest difference." Fleury had little problem letting the one-goal advantage stand up. The Rangers rarely challenged him over the final 30 minutes, and Jokinen and Malkin removed any remaining drama by scoring twice in the last 5 minutes. Jokinen banged in a rebound off a shot by James Neal for his fourth goal of the playoffs with 3:30 remaining. Malkin beat two Rangers to tap in an empty-net goal with 54 seconds left as the Penguins exhaled. "Now the series is tied 1-1, and two games in their building," Jokinen said. "Im sure theyre going to be better. We need to keep playing the way were playing." NOTES: Lundqvist made his 75th career playoff appearance. He will tie Mike Richters club record for games played if he starts, as expected, on Monday night. ... Pittsburgh D Brooks Orpik missed his fourth straight game with an undisclosed injury. ... The Penguins are 2-6 in their last eight Game 2s. ' ' '