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TORONTO - Sitting in the home of assistant coach Bill Bayno one February evening, Jonas Valanciunas fretted over the slump that had befallen him. "Im not scoring," the young centre griped, as he and his most devoted mentor watched film, hoping to get to the bottom of the recent on-court funk that was beginning to wear on his confidence. JV, youre 21-years-old," Bayno responded. "Theres no centres in the league your age that are even playing much less averaging 10 points a game. Youve had great games [but] when you have a two-point game, going up against a really good, tough [centre], you cant get upset about it." His message, the teams message, has never wavered. "Youve got to do the other things to help us win." With that in mind Bayno put pen to paper, drawing up a list of attainable goals for Valanciunas, a cheat sheet consisting of basic fundamentals that can now be found taped to the right side of his locker. Outwork, outrun, sprint[Set] great, legal screensStep to [your] manBlock out And it goes on like that. "He got really down on himself when he went through that tough stretch," Bayno explained. "So we just really sat down and talked and [I] said, look, its no secret, JV, these are the things youve got to do." "Youre going to have some ups and downs," he told the second-year pro, "but Im going to write it in your locker, so every day before the game you see, this is what you have to do on a nightly basis." "Everything thats on that sheet is what we work on." Its a simplistic tool but one that the Raptors first-year assistant feels strongly about, one that has yielded proven results throughout his coaching career. Admired for his innovative player development techniques and his passion for molding young talent, Bayno first adopted this method of teaching on one of his regular trips to Africa, about a decade ago. There he met Michael Scholl. The two would become good friends and Bayno eventually hired Scholl as his assistant at Loyola Marymount University in 2008. Scholl - who spent eight years in Africa running an AIDS prevention campaign and implementing youth basketball leagues - introduced Bayno to an old Harvard study, something he used himself to motivate the children he taught there. The study correlated the success of students with writing down their goals and displaying them in their dorms. Bayno, like Scholl before him, applied that principle to basketball. "Having those goals, having them written out where they see them every day I think is huge and its been proven," said Bayno, who is also planning on employing that strategy with the Raptors other sophomore, Terrence Ross. "The vets dont need it. The vets will laugh at you if you try to do it. They really dont need it anyway. I could say to Chuck (Hayes), remember five games ago, you had that kick out situation, you missed a kick out. Hell say, yep, and hell know exactly the play. But the young kids need it." Bayno has spent more one-on-one time with Valanciunas than anyone on the staff this season. Whether hes sparring with JV in the post - wearing his trademark forearm pads to simulate in-game physicality - throwing out-of-reach passes to him in practice or hosting him at his house for an extra film session, Baynos fingerprints are all over the sophomores continued development. "He works with me a lot actually," Valanciunas said of Bayno. "Hes helped me a lot, especially on the post-up moves. Now I feel much more comfortable going against those guys, like big centres. What were working on every day is helping." Bayno, like head coach Dwane Casey and the rest of the Raptors staff, has worked to manage Valanciunas own expectations and lesson the external pressure that he faces as an emerging star in the league. Theyre not overly concerned with his scoring totals or the number of touches he gets in the post. He shouldnt be either. They know his value, at least this season, cant be measured using a box score. Instead they hope to lay down a foundation for the future. His role is to do the things he can control, to master the basic fundamentals of the game that will ensure his longevity in the league. The "little things" as Bayno calls them. "Were a good team because hes accepted his role and hes done all the little things," said Bayno, formally an assistant in Portland and with the Timberwolves. "I really believe hes going to be a good scorer in this league." "Im not expecting a lot of point production every night out of him," echoed Casey. "If he gives it to us, its great but I dont want to put that kind of pressure on him. Hes growing, hes a second-year guy. Im not going to expect him to get 23 points, 24 points every night. If he does, its gravy. If he runs the floor, rebounds, plays defence, for this team, this year, thats great. I promise you, his offence is going to come. We all want it to hurry up and get here yesterday but Im more concerned about him picking up the speed of the game, the rebounding, defending the low post, defending his position and reacting in the half-court game. His career is going to be long enough. Hes going to be a scorer in this league two or three years from now." A month ago at this time Valanciunas was pressing. The touches were not there every night, his scoring numbers dipped, as did his playing time. More often than not Casey would opt for a smaller, more experienced lineup late in games. Valanciunas was frustrated. Then the card went up in his locker. He sees it nearly each day, before and after every home game. Currently, hes playing some of the best basketball of his young career. Whether his improved play is related or a happy coincidence, he has been carrying out the very tasks Casey and company have been emphasizing. In Sundays win over Atlanta, Valanciunas recorded his team-leading 19th double-double of the season after totaling eight as a rookie a year ago. He played 33 minutes, attempting just four shots while matching a career-high with nine made free throws. His impact on the game was understated, yet significant. His point production has gone up but, as Casey points out, hes not necessarily seeing more touches. Instead hes working for them. Hes running the floor, hes rebounding, hes getting to the line and as a result hes playing more and closing out games. He understands how his bread is buttered, at least for the time being. "Im not a scoring machine," Valanciunas acknowledged. "Im a worker. My job is to get a rebound, to set a screen to make DeMar (DeRozan) open, or Kyle (Lowry) open, or [Ross] open, whoever is playing on the perimeter. My job is to box out [and] go for offensive rebounds. Thats my job." In less than four weeks, Valanciunas will make his first playoff appearance. Although hes peaking at the right time of season, the internal expectations havent changed. Outwork your man, set hard screens, box out, run the floor, do the little things. Hes heard them every day since arriving in training camp five months ago. Hes practiced them. Only now, handwritten in bright, unmistakable lettering, they stare him in the face. Cheap Nike Air Max 1 Elemental Gold . Raonic, the No. 8 seed from Thornhill, Ont., had 18 aces in the match. He needed one hour 39 minutes to complete the victory. Cheap Nike Air Max 1 Anniversary OG Blue . - New Orleans Saints general manager Mickey Loomis says the club has an agreement to bring back outside linebacker Parys Haralson on a one-year deal. http://www.airmax1cheap.com/cheap-nike-air-max-1-desert-sand/ . "This is my city," the Toronto native said upon his arrival Wednesday night. And the 35-year-old former league MVP says he is hoping to making 2014 a memorable year. Cheap Nike Air Max 1 Atmos Green Curry . -- A 25-year-old freelance journalist from British Columbia was formally charged on Thursday with a felony, five days after she was arrested in the United States over allegations she threatened to kill her hockey player boyfriend. Cheap Nike Air Max 1 All Colorways . has left the San Jose Sharks to become the Boston Bruins director of player personnel.Carl Robinson has accomplished quite a bit in his first nine Major League Soccer games at the helm of the Vancouver Whitecaps. After a rocky off-season that saw star striker Camilo Sanvezzo force his way out of town, the energetic and enthusiastic rookie head coach retooled his roster and has Vancouver off to a 3-2-4 start, including a 3-1-1 mark at B.C. Place Stadium. Robinson then admittedly took a risk this week by selecting a "younger than young" starting 11 in a hard-fought 2-1 road defeat to Toronto FC in the first leg of Amway Canadian Championship semifinal that resulted in the Whitecaps escaping with a valuable away goal. But like so many teams in MLS, picking up wins on the road has been elusive, and Robinson will be looking for his first on Saturday when the Whitecaps visit the Columbus Crew. You can see all the action on TSN beginning at 7:30pm et/4:30pm pt. "Were hungry. Part of the reason I left some of the senior guys out on Wednesday was to rest them for Saturday," said the Welshman. "Theyve got to go in now and give me everything theyve got for the weekend." Vancouver is 0-1-3 on the road so far in 2014, but played tough in a loss to the L.A. Galaxy and a draw against to Real Salt Lake — two teams considered to be among the Western Conferences best. Robinson said its his job to find a way to get his players on the front foot when they are the visitors, something that comes much easier at home. "Once I find that solution its going to be a lot easier because it wont put us under as much pressure at B.C. Place in getting results," said Robinson. "Its known throughout MLS that teams, when they go on the road, do struggle. But I think that if youre able to win four or five games away from home and take care of your home business then youre going to be there in the playoffs. "MLS brings up funny results. You lose two or three games and youre down at the bottom of the conference. You win two or three games and youre at the top of the conference. Thats the way Major League Soccer is set up and I think its an exciting way to go." Whitecaps goalkeeper David Ousted said its up to the squad to trust themselves and their abilities in tough environments. "I think its a mentality thing — going away from home and still believing fully that you can go win, even against good teams," he said. "Believing in the team and believing in your own ability and going away from home and trying to win every game is an important thing." Ousted and the Whitecaps other regulars saw some of that fight from the sidelines on Wednesday as Vancouvers kids battled a Toronto roster that boasted high-priced talent like Jermain Defoe and Michael Bradley. "The senior players were there and rooted them on and tried to support them as best as possible," said Ousted. "The young guyys did brilliantly.dddddddddddd. It was a chance for them to show the coaches what they can do and they did really well." The Crew (3-3-3) won their first three games of the season but have failed to record a victory in the last six, including a 1-0 road loss to the Houston Dynamo on Wednesday. "They are a little bit of a wounded animal. Theyre a good team and teams like that will do anything to get back to winning ways," said Ousted. "Were going to their place, were going away from home and they probably are going to come out and give all they can to get the win. We need to be ready for both a battle and a soccer match. "The start of the game will probably be a battle and be about finding the edge. After that we can hopefully get our game going and keep the ball and get chances." Columbus, meanwhile, will be hoping to get back in the win column for the first time since March 29. "Well be coming home, so well have a little more energy, hopefully, that were playing in front of our home fans," Crew midfielder Ethan Finlay told the clubs official website. "(The Whitecaps) are a really good team ... theyre a team that you have to watch for, they have a lot of pieces going forward, and it will be a tough test." One of those pieces in Vancouvers attack is Pedro Morales, who has three goals and two assists in six games this season, including two in last weekends 3-2 home victory over the San Jose Earthquakes. The Chilean is one of the pieces Robinson brought in after Sanvezzos departure and his presence in midfield has been a big part of the Whitecaps early success as the team looks to return to the post-season after missing out in 2013. On the other side, Columbus boasts the equally dangerous Federico Higuain, a striker who has four goals and two assists so far in this campaign. "Hes a special player," Robinson said of the Argentine. "Ive got one in Pedro Morales. He makes things happen in games. "Its going to be interesting. Theres two playmaking players (who are) going to be on the field on Saturday and whichever one probably has the biggest influence will win the game." Notes: Vancouver is 2-2-0 all-time against Columbus, including a 2-1 home victory last season. ... Robinson said he was pleased with striker Omar Salgados performance on Wednesday. The 20-year-old started the season with the second-tier Charleston Battery, but was recalled after the Whitecaps parted ways with Kenny Miller. And with Darren Mattocks out injured, Robinson said the first overall pick in the 2011 MLS SuperDraft will remain with Vancouver for the foreseeable future. ... The second leg of the Amway Canadian Championship tie between Toronto and Vancouver goes Wednesday at B.C. Place. The winner of the two-game, total-goals series will meet either the Montreal Impact or FC Edmonton in the final. 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