Raptors coverboys Marco Belinelli and Andrea Bargnani. (via Interbasket.net)

Okay, I can forgive the local morning show guy for fumbling the name of Toronto Raptors guard Marco Belinelli. After all, he’s a relatively new non-hockey player. But, as a service to the public (and to Belinelli), I present a list of things that, while similar in some ways, are NOT Belinelli.

From the home office in Ajax, Ontario, Canada, here is tonight’s Top 10 List — Things Mistaken for Belinelli:

10. Béla Lugosi. The foreign-born actor appeared in films by Ed Wood, the Don Nelson of directors (ill-fitting parts, eccentric cast).

9. Baklava. A dessert (i.e., not a starter) from Turkey.  Confused with new buddy Hedo?

8. Bulimic. Perhaps a mixup with former Raptors guard Roko Ukic, whose pose AltRaps once compared to an underfed fashion model.

7. Benigni. The Italian performer is popular overseas, but has yet to find sustained success in America. Also appreciated for his improvisational skills.*

6. Bocelli. He’s a “Favourite Specialist Performer,” but some criticize him for unevenness and lack of technique.*

5. Jelly Belly. Little shots of sweetness that you’d like to have more of, but probably shouldn’t.  

4. Bollini. Goes well with a few dishes. 

3. Bellini. A tall drink that’s popular with the ladies.

2. Farinelli. He must have felt castrated by his former coach. 

And the top thing mistaken for Belinelli:

1. Balboa. ‘Cause they look alike!

(* Thanks to Doc Naismith for his suggestions.)

Agree? Disagree? Wanna add to the list? Comment below.

"Marco Belinelli fly to crush." (Repubblica.it)

That’s what it says in this Italian article here, according to Google Language Tools. Y’see, that’s why I use a human translator.

Anyway, Marco’s line: 10/1/1, 1 3PT, on 50% shooting and just over 19 minutes of play. And he definitely would’ve crushed a fly with the above dunk.

UPDATE: Raptors have exercised the 2010-2011 contract option on Belinelli. Coincidence? I think not.

Thanks to mookie from A Stern Warning for the translation work.

Francesco Cuzzolin, who has come from Benetton Treviso, is now with the Raptors to act as trainer.

How is your experience going so far?

Super. Truly beyond all expectations since arriving. With different working methods and different ideas in terms of administration and off-the-court, it was not easy to put everything into practice immediately.

As a third of the team is European, it’s really easy to work with them. And of course, there was immediately great harmony with the two Italians.

There are still many things to fix, but we are working well. The team is young and has nine new members. It is only a matter of time. We believe in what we’re doing.

Maurizio, Hedo and Francesco. (via HTSpor.com)

What inspired you to accept this new adventure?

Life is full of challenges and this was something unexpected, but it was something I could not leave alone. I take the view that you can’t live life with regrets. I was convinced that my credibility in Italy and Europe could be questioned, so I accepted this opportunity with open arms. It came at a time in my life where I could make choices, so I did. [mookie's note: I think he's implying here -- if I translated correctly -- that he needed validation by taking on the NBA after Europe. Could be wrong though.]

Would you accept it anyway if you were going to work in a team with no Italian connection?

I worked in Russia and Latvia. The need is not to have European players, the need is to have a coaching staff that believes in the trainer that works in direct contact with the players.

Tell us about your relationship with Andrea Bargnani.

I’ve worked with Andrea for seven years. I feel a bit like an older brother to him. We worked out during the Summer and firstly we have a professional relationship and secondly a friendship that has solidifed over time.

Does he have room for improvement physically?

Yes, he does, because Andrea has not been well-endowed physically. So everything that you give him is something that can improve him. Andrea is a tactical weapon that can be used in different roles. He must improve his strength and his centre of gravity, as he has to compete against players that are heavier than him and shorter [mo0kie's note = have a lower centre of gravity] than him. It’s a job that takes time and we hope sooner [rather than] later to see the improvements.

What did you think of Marco Belinelli?

Marco missed a bit at the end of last season that caused him to lose condition. This summer he played with the national team and has also worked to get back in shape. He is not yet in “top shape” that I would want him to be, to be competitive at this level. That’s why, on Saturday, his day off, that we also got in the gym to train. I’ve known Marco since he was at Virtus with the cadets [juniors], and he’s a great guy.

DeMar Derozan seems to be an “animal” athletically.

For me, it’s a bitter wood [Italian saying, for a wood that you can't yet use on the fireplace] that needs to be invented, from the point of view that he has a lot to improve in athleticism and has great potential, but also many weaknesses. He’s a boy and does not have a solid physique that will allow us to increase his load exponentially. We’re working hard and he’s another guy with lots to give, so he should be kept away as he’s very young, even from the standpoint of physicality and athleticism. But he’s a great piece and a great person.

In an 82 game NBA season, you also work [the rest of] the year — what can be done to prevent accidents?

Prevention and preparation are parallel — they are not two different worlds. Logically, 82 games gives you a period of time that is very restricted. And there is very little time between trips and workouts. The quality of what we do is crucial. That players have to work out even during the season on their fitness. Of course, different people require different amounts of work. We must differentiate the work as much as possible for this reason.

Steroids: Mark Cuban has in recent days made a statement on the possible use of steroids to heal injuries. What do you think?

I read those statements. Maybe, I’m just saying, what he said has been a bit manipulated. Because there are medications that contain steroids that are prescribed by doctors, but I am of the view that one cannot generalise and we speak about these things, we must have a specific notion of cause. This is all I will say: addressing the steroids issue in a superficial way is a risky thing because there are many students who might misunderstand. Again, there are structures, there are doctors who have the right skills to be able to prescribe this type of drug and patient information. But to say that can be used with ease to …. is wrong. That’s it.

LeBron James is convinced that there is a problem with steroids in the NBA.

But he is so strong that they would definitely be needed!

Joking aside, in basketball this is an idea that doesn’t stand. Your skills make the difference. You can be someone who is not physically a giant and have those skills that allow you to soar up high. In some disciplines it can make a difference when the physical weight and power are the key elements, like for those that play defensive line in American football, or in track where you have to make a single type of movement. In my opinion, [in] basketball [it] is the most stupid, because the risks that you run to get that result are not going to be compensated by the satisfaction you have by improving your technical skills. So why do it? You don’t become a champion in basketball by weighing five or so pounds heavier.

Thanks again to mookie. Be sure to follow him @asternwarning.

Pete Marasmitch: I enjoyed your hair-raising piece, a.k.a. Bryan Colangelo’s Personal Vendetta. How goes the faux-hawk? Are you sporting the fedora, 24-7?

Eric Koreen: The faux-hawk lives. (Although I’m writing this a few days before the season starts. I could have evened it out by the time this is published.) I have worn a hat just once, and am now pretty comfortable with it. I don’t like it, but I’ve made my peace. Amir Johnson told me he did me a favour, while Sherman Hamilton told me about three weeks after the cut that the hair was at the ideal length. (Although, perhaps I should not be putting too much stock into Sherm’s thoughts on hair.) And if I do cut my hair soon, it will be legitimate: Johnson cut his hair a week before the season started, although he did apologize to me for leaving me hanging.

PM: In your behind-the-scenes view of the Raptors, what are some things about the players, coaches, management, etc., that might surprise the average fan? (Feel free to counter-attack B.C. and Amir Johnson.)

EK: There’s not much I can share here that’s particularly interesting, but I will say that Johnson, derided for his work ethic in the past, has stayed late almost every day of the pre-season. Maurizio Gherardini likes his dark humour, and is kind of the feet-on-the-ground yang to Colangelo’s always-hopeful yin. There is also far less defiant nudity in a basketball locker room than in a hockey or soccer locker room, and I’m fine with that.

PM: Please share a funny anecdote from your time as a beat writer.

EK: Jose Calderon has a reputation as a mundane quote, and that’s fair. Players don’t owe us anything, and I certainly don’t hold this against a player like Calderon, especially considering English is not his first language. But that doesn’t mean he’s devoid of personality. Two seasons ago, during the winter that featured unrelenting snow, Calderon was late for a game. When he arrived, he went on a two-minute rant about how drivers in this city over-react to snow, driving cautiously well past the point of necessity. He was not mean-spirited; I’ve never seen him be a jerk. But he was certainly enthused by our inability to cope with the conditions as a city, and it was damned entertaining.

PM: Do you regret missing the Sam Mitchell years? What nickname would he have given you?

EK: I didn’t miss all of the Mitchell years. I became full time in January 2008, so I got 11 months of Smitch — minus the summer, of course. It wasn’t quite enough time for us to form much of a coach-reporter relationship as he had with Doug Smith or Michael Grange, but I think he called me Goldilocks a few times. He was half-right. 

PM: Who are your sleepers from this edition of the Raptors, and why?

EK: With the nature of the Raptors’, errr, fervent fanbase, and the amount of money Colangelo tossed around this summer, I’m not sure anybody on this roster can be considered a sleeper. But my favourite thing the Raptors did this summer was sign Jarrett Jack. Their second unit was just brutal last year, and Jack is poised, and up to this point in his career, he has been productive.

One of my biggest problems with this team, as constituted, is the lack of offensive punch off the bench. I think they hope Marco Belinelli would fill that role, but I was not impressed with his pre-season body of work, and remain unsold. They’ll need someone to contribute offensively off the bench, other than Jack. I like Antoine Wright’s demeanour, but I’m not sure that’s him.

PM: What were the events that led you to become a beat writer for the National Post? Did you ever seriously consider a different career?

EK: To answer the second question first, ever since I about 16 or 17, I had tunnel vision toward sports reporting. As somebody who grew up in Toronto when the Raptors were just starting, as far as beat reporting goes, this is as good as it gets for me. I’m not sure I want to be in sports for 20 more years, but there are more good days than bad days on this job, and I think that’s better than most people can say.

As for how I got here, I started as an editorial assistant as The Canadian Press when I was 18, the summer after my first year at university (Ryerson, journalism). I did that for a year and a half’s worth of weekends (nothing good happens on weekends in university, right?), and then quit, had a miniature life crisis, then got a job at the Post sports section, doing a little bit of everything. I hung around there for a while, long enough for them to gain some trust in me, and I spent six weeks in the winter of 2007  interning there, which meant far more chances to write, including some Raptors stuff.

After I finished school (not to mention an appendicitis scare; I started the Toronto sports year of appendicitis in which Andrea Bargnani and Roy Halladay also suffered from the same ailment) I interned for the Post for the summer. I stayed on in a freelance role, and Matthew Sekeres, who was briefly the Raptors reporter, left the Post in around November to go be the Globe’s sports guy in Vancouver. I got the job at that point. (Matt recommended me, so I owe him a thank you.)

PM: Who are you most excited about in your Raptors FANtasy team lineup, and why?

EK: Durant! I co-run a keeper fantasy league with some friends, and I drafted Durant in the fourth round of his rookie season. He has been on my team for the last two years, and he is the only player in the league I can no longer write objectively about. (I’m joking about that. Kind of.)

Elsewhere, I thought getting Caron Butler in the third round was good, and Troy Murphy in the fourth round was absurd value. It’s easy not to like his game, but he was a points-rebounds double-double last year, with 45% three-point shooting. That last number will probably go down, but still, I was very pleased with that pick. I keep waiting for Al Horford to blow up, and that could happen this year. I was excited to get Allen Iverson as low as I got him. It’s a risky pick, but so is anything in the 10th round. If one of D.J. Augustin and Mike Conley has a good year, I think I have a chance, although I’m not sure I have the requisite hustle stats. That’s always my blind spot.

PM: You talk a lot about TV in your personal blog (A Snack and an Ego Stroke) and on Twitter (@ekoreen). What are your favourite shows? How do you feel about the final season of Lost?

EK: Oh, how you’re going to regret asking me that question. My two favourite shows on television are Friday Night Lights (inside every cynical sportswriter is a beating heart that is dying to feel good about athletes and coaches; FNL feeds that, and gives interesting portrayals of small-town life, too) and Chuck (as far as I know, it’s the only comedy-action-romance-straight-up-drama hybrid with unremitting ’80s pop culture references on television.) Yes, I suppose I’m doomed to love poorly rated shows. I also enjoy new comedies Community and Modern Family. I liked a pair of little-seen comedies from last year, Better Off Ted and Party Down, as well as stalwarts How I Met Your Mother and 30 Rock. If we’re talking all-time (or at least this decade), I loved both Veronica Mars (Buffy with a little more heart and more propulsive serialization) and like everyone else, The Wire. The latter has kind of ruined cable shows for me. The Wire is great, but so much effort was required for it to really kick in that I’m just too lazy to give Mad Men or Breaking Bad a chance. I know they’ll be great, but I feel like I need to clear my schedule for a month to give them a shot.

As for Lost, I’m a fan, although not a huge one. The only season I can say I really loved was the fourth. They changed up the formula just enough, but were still telling compelling character stories that year. I like my cult television, but the sci-fi-ness of Season 5 sort of lost me. And I stand by the notion that Seasons 2 and 3 were kind of a waste of time.

I think Lost is more plot-driven at this point than character-driven, and that’s perhaps why I can’t embrace it as much as people seem to think I should. (And I don’t think many of the characters are that compelling; the only two I really care about are Desmond and Penny. Sun and Jin used to be in that group, but they’ve been too de-emphasized lately. I also think Ben is one of the more overrated characters in TV history; he’s more of a plot device than a character, but that’s a whole different conversation.)

Despite all of that, I’m hopeful for this season. I’m positive they’ve left themselves with too little time to address all the questions they’ve asked. But there should be enough time to resolve the major questions as well as give resolutions for the main characters. As long as they have the guts not to end with an abrupt fade to black, I’ll be good.

PM: Thanks, Eric. Looking forward to our Week 2 fantasy matchup. Go, Channing Frye!

Don’t forget to check out A Snack and an Ego Stroke, @ekoreen, and Eric’s work at the National Post.