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TORONTO - On the eve of his memorable exit interview, Greivis Vasquez sat down for dinner with the leagues most famed and influential global ambassador, carrying on his mission to secure a new contract with the team that gave him new life in the NBA. In Vasquez time, the meal may have lasted six hours. What did he and Drake discuss? Perhaps a certain 2013-14 MVP came up in conversation. Thunder forward and four-time scoring champion Kevin Durant has been on the minds of Raptors fans for the better part of the last year. Could Drake help lure Durant from Oklahoma City when he becomes a free agent following the 2015-16 season? He may have found a partner in crime. "Hopefully I get to play with him one day in the NBA," Vasquez said of Durant, his high school teammate and old friend, guesting on TSN Drive with Dave Naylor on Monday. "Hopefully its here in Toronto." He wasnt done. "Imagine if we get KD, Kevin Durant in 2016 and he leads us to a championship," the Raptors point guard added, unprompted in an interview with Bryan Hayes on TSN 1050 the following day. "I think hed have statues right outside the ACC." Well played, sir. Vasquez, the quote that keeps on quoting, is angling for a new deal and with the offseason barely a week old, he has positioned himself favourably. In case you havent heard, Vasquez is quite fond of being in Toronto. A week ago, on a day in which Kyle Lowrys impending free agency took centre stage, it was his backup, Vasquez, that stole the show delivering an emotional 19-minute soliloquy, with the occasional question sprinkled in. He thanked the city, its fans, his teammates, coaches and general manager. He thanked the Toronto school board. "My son cannot wake up at 8:00 in the morning, he wakes up at six because hes excited to go to school." He thanked his waiter at the local all-you-can-eat Brazilian steak house. So, he was thorough. It was exit interview meets academy award acceptance speech, only no one had the heart to play him off with music. "Thats Greivis," GM Masai Ujiri said a day later. The 27-year-old point guard rarely holds back on the court, playing the game with a refreshing passion that helped spark Torontos remarkable turnaround in 2014. The same could be said about his approach away from basketball. "Id use the word passionate for Greivis," said newly extended head coach Dwane Casey. "He has stones. Hes probably, truth be told, probably the most confident player on the team. He feels like he can score on LeBron James, Kobe Bryant and Michael Jordan in his prime, which is great and you need that." "If you tell him, Greivis, run through that window right there, hes going to do it. Now he may look at you a little bit, but hell do it." Vasquez, a restricted free agent this summer, is sincere in his sentiments, he truly hopes to remain a Raptor and the way hes gone about publicizing it could go a long way in ensuring hes back with the team next season. "It would be heartbreaking if I dont come back," Vasquez exclaimed on a Monday afternoon in the bowels of the Air Canada Centre. "Im an emotional guy, so I really embrace, Im really committed to the team, to the city, to this franchise." Seven days later, there was Vasquez, on stage shaking hands with Torontos Deputy Mayor and representing the organization as May 12 was proclaimed "Raptors Day". After arriving in an early-season trade from Sacramento - where he says he lost his passion for the game - Vasquez averaged 9.5 points and 3.7 assists in 61 games for the Raptors, his fourth NBA stop in four years. He has not wasted the opportunity. Hes gone all in. The Venezuelan-native has established himself as an emotional leader on the team and an ambassador in the city. For good measure hes also offering up his services in recruiting one of the NBAs premier talents, should he still be around in 2016. But will he be around? Ujiri will not be pressured, not by elaborate speeches or the promise of an endorsement in two years from now. Vasquez will be retained if Ujiri determines it makes sense in basketball terms, and it may. Still, the extracurricular incentives cant hurt, especially if the Raptors GM values continuity and chemistry as much as he has indicated. "We hope to get something done," Ujiri told TSN.ca, in reference to Vasquezs contract status. "Hes one of those pieces on the team where you know that hes always going to be a great teammates and hes going to go out and compete." As Vasquez walked off the podium, an audience of assembled media brimming after he captivated them with a season-ending speech for the ages, he left the room the same way he entered it 20 minutes earlier. The "loveable underdog" - as he once referred to himself - wore a black cap decorated with the words "We The North" on his head and a big smile across his face. "Im not taking this for granted," he told the city and its acting mayor on Raptors Day. "Im saying it because I mean it." And he does, but he knows exactly what hes doing. Oscar Robertson Jersey . They wanna make t-shirts about it and sell them at our next hockey game..DB: Wow, they want to make t-shirts? That sounds pretty amazing.MS: Yeah, I was also on the Top 10, I was number 1 today, so that was pretty cool. Custom Milwaukee Bucks Jerseys . Compared to what hes gone through in recent weeks, that seemed like a breeze. Speaking to The Associated Press on Friday at an NBA Cares event, Silver said hes thrilled that the leagues attention can be on the championship series between the Miami Heat and San Antonio Spurs -- and not, as it was for so much of the post-season, on the off-the-court matters involving the banishment of Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling and now the looming sale of that franchise. http://www.nbabucksproshop.com/Authentic...c-Bucks-Jersey/. - Anthony Beauvillier had the winning goal in the third period as the Shawinigan Cataractes edged the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies 2-1 on Wednesday in Quebec Major Junior Hockey League play. Spencer Hawes Jersey . Barnard, 28, was 1-0 with a 0.53 ERA in three appearances, including two starts, with San Angel o this season. He struck out 19 batters and walked just one in 17 innings pitched. He has previous American Association experience with the Lincoln Saltdogs, El Paso Diablos and Amarillo Sox. Giannis Antetokounmpo Jersey .S. -- Carl-Antoine Delisle snapped a tie in the third period with his second goal of the game to lead the Tigres past Cape Breton 4-3 in Quebec Major Junior Hockey League action Wednesday as Victoriaville won its eighth in a row. MINNEAPOLIS -- With a bunch of big guys who swing even bigger, these Milwaukee Brewers always have the strength to quickly climb back in the game. They sure powered their way past this latest deficit. Carlos Gomez hit a three-run homer against his former team to spark the comeback for the Brewers in an 8-5 victory over the Minnesota Twins on Thursday. "If we swing the bat like that, were going to really do well," manager Ron Roenicke said. Khris Davis hit a two-run homer off Kevin Correia (2-7) for the lead in the sixth inning to pull Brewers starter Wily Peralta (5-5) out the an early hole created by Oswaldo Arcias grand slam. Jonathan Lucroy tacked on a two-run shot in the ninth, and Francisco Rodriguez finished up for his 18th save in 20 attempts. Thats been a functional formula for the Brewers, whove been in first place in the NL Central since April 5. "Theyve got a lot of guys who can hurt you, and you have to be careful," Correia said. "Obviously you make one pitch at the wrong time, its three runs. Thats happened to us twice in the last two nights." Arcia gave the Twins a 4-0 lead in the third inning, but the young slugger left the game after spraining his right ankle while being picked off second base in the sixth. Peralta was in trouble every other inning, but Arcia was the only one who actually made him pay for it -- and in a big way. After two walks sandwiched around a single, all with two outs, Brewers pitching coach Rick Kranitz visited the mount for a talk with Peralta. Then, the burly 23-year-old Arcia clobbered a 2-2 slider onto the open concourse behind the right field seats, the first grand slam of the season by the Twins. Arcia responded to his curtain call, emerging from the dugout, flipping his helmet off to reveal his intimidating faux-hawk haircut and thrusting both arms in the air to acknowledge the crowd. Peralta (5-5) finished five innings, giving up five hits and three walks while striking out four. He was 0-4 in his previous five starts despite a couuple of strong performances.dddddddddddd Naturally, as he matched his shortest turn this season he picked up the win. "He works really hard on every single batter, and you cant keep doing that," Roenicke said. Gomez gave him a boost in the second inning with a sprinting, leaping grab of Trevor Plouffes drive to right-centre field. Gomez crashed against the wall, crow-hopped away from it as he flashed his glove and chopped his arms below his chest in celebration. Then came the bigger play by Gomez, whose all-around potential showed in two seasons with the Twins but was too raw at the time for them to trust him. He tapped his helmet and pumped his arm at each base as he sprinted around the diamond following his three-run drive that brought the Brewers roaring back in the fourth. "Huge getting back in the game. The grand slam just takes that good feeling out of you, and then Gomez comes through," Roenicke said. Gomez batted cleanup for the 13th straight game, hitting .333 with two homers and 12 RBIs in that span. "Every time he walks to the plate hes in scoring position," Davis said. Coincidentally, Twins manager Ron Gardenhire praised in his news briefing before the game the flair that Arcia and Gomez carry, which can irk some players. "I think thats part of the game, man. Youre supposed to have fun," Gardenhire said. Correia hasnt had much fun lately. He was the most reliable starter for the Twins last year, but he gave up a season-high 10 hits while striking out three. His ERA spiked to 6.11, putting his spot in the rotation in question. There was no question for Gardenhire, though. "Kevins one of our starters. Hes paid good money to do that," the manager said, "and hes still going to get paid no matter what." NOTES: Roenicke said Aramis Ramirez, used as the DH to ease him back in from the DL, will return to 3B on Friday. ... Arcia is batting .366 in his last 10 games. ... Gomez is batting .333 in 22 career games against the Twins, with six HRs and 16 RBIs. ' ' '