winning streak.Lopez, playing his fifth game since returning

In Canadian football, the potential of the games greatest players isnt always obvious during the early stages of their careers. And Anthony Calvillo is no exception. He came to the CFL in the most unusual of circumstances, the 21-year-old quarterback of a CFL expansion team in Las Vegas that spent its one and only season playing before crowds that resembled friends and family. That first season, he completed 44 per cent of his passes and threw more interceptions than touchdowns while the team stumbled to a 5-13 record and then folded. Had Calvillo hung up his cleats right then and there, no one would have blamed him. And no one would have remembered him, either. At that time, he was about as anonymous as a CFL player could be. All of which makes more remarkable the journey hes taken over the past 20 years, retiring as the all-time leading passer in pro football history, three Grey Cup rings and a legacy in Canadian football that is virtually unmatched. The lesson of Anthony Calvillos career is that those who become stars in the Canadian game are rarely those who possess eye-popping physical attributes, or who arrive with bona fide star power. They are, instead, usually players whose full skill sets arent obvious right away, requiring a combination of humility, determination, patience and smarts to reach their potential. And in Calvillos case, he needed every one of those qualities to get him to the top. Calvillos time in Las Vegas was followed by a move to Hamilton for three seasons where he served primarily as backup quarterback for the Tiger-Cats, followed by two more with Montreal where he once again played the understudy, this time under CFL great, Tracy Ham. If there was greatness ahead of him at that time, only Calvillo would have known it. Yet six years into his professional career, following Hams retirement after the 1999 season, Calvillo took the reins in Montreal looking like someone whod been succeeding at the Canadian game all his life. It turns out Calvillo had made good use of those first half-dozen years in the league, refining his craft, learning from his own mistakes and those of others, quietly turning himself into someone who was ready and able to engineer a CFL offence. When his time came to become a starter with Montreal, he was meticulous and calm, the consummate professional who could command respect from those around him with his approach to the game and unmatched level of preparedness. Had his success come earlier in his career, Calvillo might not have lasted as long as he did in the CFL. But when the National Football League comes looking for players in Canada, it tends to value youth and overhwelming physical skills. To appreciate Anthony Calvillo, you couldnt just look at tape or watch him at a workout. You had to see him game-in and game-out to understand the consistency, how rarely his instincts betrayed him and what a winner he was. That recogntion didnt come quickly in Canada either, however. Consider that when TSN did its Top 50 all-time players list in 2006, a survey of football media from across the country, Calvillos name wasnt on it. It wasnt truly until the final half-dozen years of his career that Calvillo began to receive his due as one of the leagues all-time greats, as the success he accumulated year after year became impossible to ignore. Calvillo is the last player to have played for a U.S. expansion team to retire, closing the book on that desperate chapter of CFL history but at the same time reminding us it wasnt all bad. If it werent for the Las Vegas Posse, would Calvillo have ever played in the CFL? And even if he had surfaced elsewhere in the league, would his journey somehow have turned out differently? Its been a great ride for Anthony Calvillo, the rare CFL player who retires as a nationally recognized name in Canada. From the unlikeliest of beginnings to the highest of accolades, he earned everything he got along the way. Dave Naylor can be heard weekdays from 4pm-7pm as the host of TSN Drive on TSN Radio 1050 in Toronto. Hakeem Butler Jersey . David Perron had a career high four-point night with two goals and two assists as the Oilers experienced an offensive explosion, blasting the Columbus Blue Jackets 7-0 to record a rare home win for their second victory in a row. Zach Allen Jersey . 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The 25th-ranked Frenchwoman broke back twice in the second set before Bacsinszky saved a match point at 5-4.DENVER - Kobe Bryant had 23 points, 11 assists and 11 rebounds for his 21st career triple-double, and the Los Angeles Lakers held off the Denver Nuggets 111-103 Tuesday night to end a three-game losing streak.Bryant shot 6 of 11 from the floor, giving him 25,000 field goal attempts for his career. The only players whove attempted more shots in NBA history are Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (28,307) and Karl Malone (26,210), according to STATS.The Lakers star played nearly 32 minutes in his second game back. He missed three games around Christmas because of overall soreness.Carlos Boozer had 19 points and Ronnie Price added a season-high 18.Ty Lawson and Jusuf Nurkic both finished with 16 points for the Nuggets, who have lost four of five.HAWKS 109, CAVALIERS 101ATLANTA (AP) — Paul Millsap took over for Atlanta in the fourth quarter to help hold off a Cleveland comeback, and the Hawks beat the Cavaliers, who were without LeBron James.James, celebrating his 30th birthday, was held out with a sore left knee.The Hawks led by 17 points early in the second half but had to hold off a comeback by Cleveland, which got 35 points from Kyrie Irving.After a jam by Tristan Thompson cut the Atlanta lead to 93-90, Millsap scored Atlantas next eight points. Millsap led the Hawks with 26 points, including 10 in the fourth quarter.Jeff Teague had 23 points and 11 assists, and Kyle Korver sank five 3-pointers while scoring 19 points.Thompson had 18 points and 13 rebounds for Cleveland.James status is day to day.GRIZZLIES 95, SPURS 87MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — Mike Conley had 30 points and six assists, and Marc Gasol added 17 points to help Memphis defeat San Antonio.Conley connected on 10 of 13 from the field, and missed only one of his five shots from outside the arc as the Grizzlies won their second straight and claimed at least a tie with the Spurs in the season series.Tayshaun Prince added 12 points for Memphis.Marco Belinelli and Cory Joseph scored 18 apiece for the Spurs. San Antonio went 5 of 22 from outside the arc.WARRIORS 126, 76ERS 86OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Marreese Speights scored 23 points, Stephen Curry added 13 points and nine assists, and Golden State beat Philadelphia.Draymond Green had 10 points and 10 rebounds and Leandro Barbosa scored 17 off the bench for the Warriors, who won their 10th straight home game to improve to an NBA-best 25-5.Golden State led by as many as 47 in a game that was even more lopsided than the final score. Warriors coach Steve Kerr pulled his starters early in the fourth quarter, only to see his reserves add to the lead.Henry Sims had 19 points and seven rebounds for Philadelphia. The 76ers (4-26) have dropped three straight following back-to-back road wins over Miami and Orlando.MAVERICKS 114, WIZARDS 87DALLAS (AP) — Monta Ellis scored 20 points in 27 minutes, and Dallas handed Washington its most lopsided loss of the season.Nine of Ellis points came in the final 2:35 of the second quarter, when the Mavericks outscored the Wizards 36-21 for a 63-45 halftime lead. He shot 8 of 15 and finished with four steals without playing in the fourth quarter.The Mavericks 10 straight wins over Washington represent their longest active winning streak against any team.Chandler Parsons had 14 points, Dirk Nowitzki added 13 despite shooting 2 for 8 from the field, and Rajon Rondo had 11 points and five assists.Washingtons John Wall had 11 points and eight assists.Dallas, which forced 23 turnovers, extended its winning streak to three games and ended the Wizards three-game winning streak.TRAIL BLAZERS 102, RAPTORS 97, OTPORTLAAND, Ore.dddddddddddd. (AP) — Damian Lillard had 26 points and nine assists to help Portland rally past Toronto in overtime.LaMarcus Aldridge, who returned after missing three of the last four games because of an upper respiratory illness, had 23 points and 13 rebounds for the Trail Blazers, who won their fourth straight.The Blazers (26-7) rallied in the fourth quarter after trailing by 13 points, but Amir Johnsons short jumper for the Raptors tied the game at 87 and sent it to overtime.Portland took a 96-90 lead in the extra period on consecutive 3-pointers from Lillard, Wesley Matthews and Nicolas Batum.Kyle Lowry finished with 24 points, and James Johnson had 14 points and 11 rebounds for his first double-double of the season for Toronto (24-8).PELICANS 110, SUNS 106NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Tyreke Evans scored 24 points, including eight straight for New Orleans in the final 2 minutes, and the Pelicans stopped Phoenixs winning streak at six games.Anthony Davis had 19 points with a season-high 18 rebounds, and Jrue Holiday scored 17 of his 21 points in the second half for New Orleans. Evans step-back jumper with 49.9 seconds left, coupled with a late steal by Dante Cunningham, helped the Pelicans hang on.The Pelicans made their last eight free throws after hitting only 10 of their previous 21 attempts.Goran Dragic led Phoenix with 22 points, and Eric Bledsoe added 21.NETS 96, BULLS 82CHICAGO (AP) — Brook Lopez had a season-high 29 points, Joe Johnson had 20 points and 11 rebounds, and Brooklyn snapped Chicagos seven-game winning streak.Lopez, playing his fifth game since returning from a lower back strain, started in place of Kevin Garnett and was 13 for 21 from the field. Johnson was 8 for 14.Mike Dunleavy led the Bulls with 23 points on 9-for-15 shooting, including 5 of 9 on 3-pointers.Jimmy Butler, who averaged 26.4 points during the winning streak, had just eight points. Derrick Rose managed only four.Brooklyn had just one previous win this season against a team with a winning record.PISTONS 109, MAGIC 86ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Jodie Meeks scored a season-high 34 points off the bench, shooting 9 for 11 on 3-pointers, and Andre Drummond added 17 points and 22 rebounds to lead Detroit over Orlando.Drummond, the NBAs No. 2 rebounder, sat out the final 14 minutes after coming within three rebounds of the leagues season high. The Pistons (8-23) have won three straight for the first time since February last season.Reserve guard D.J. Augustin had 11 points and 10 assists.Victor Oladipo led the Magic, who were also seeking a third straight win, with 16 points. Tobias Harris added 15 points and eight rebounds.JAZZ 100, TIMBERWOLVES 94SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Gordon Hayward scored 11 of his 26 points in the final 4 minutes to rally Utah past skidding Minnesota.Trey Burke set a career high with 26 points and Derrick Favours had 15. Before the game, the Jazz announced that starting guard Alec Burks will have shoulder surgery and miss the rest of the season.Shabazz Muhammad scored a career-best 30 points, including a jumper that gave the Timberwolves a 92-84 lead with 4:22 to play.Utah then mounted its comeback with Haywards 3-pointer and a steal-and-dunk sequence. Hayward capped the 11-0 run that gave the Jazz their first lead of the fourth quarter with another steal and layup with 1:38 remaining.Andrew Wiggins scored 21 points but the Timberwolves have lost nine in a row — their worst skid since dropping 11 consecutive games in 2012. Meanwhile the Jazz have won six of eight, extending their best stretch of the season. 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