TORONTO - Its been almost a full year since Raptors forward Landry Fields underwent surgery to correct a debilitating and somewhat enigmatic injury to his right elbow; an injury that nearly turned him against the game that he loves. Nelson Cruz Orioles Jersey . For Fields, the road to recovery has been a long and arduous journey, one that continues to this day as the 25-year-old prepares for his fourth NBA season and second with the Raptors. This summer was a time of reflection, a time of change in his life, both personally and professionally. Returning to play in 46 games following ulnar nerve surgery early last season, Fields battled through the aftermath of his injury, a hitch in his shot and the resulting toll it took on his confidence. He had targeted the offseason as a time of reconciliation, a time to reconstruct the shooting mechanics that had been betraying him. It turned out to be more trying than he could have anticipated. "There was a point where I was so frustrated, my dark days basketball-wise," Fields told TSN.ca in an exclusive conversation Tuesday evening. "Even in the summer there was a lot of ups and downs," he admitted. "Its just a continual process really. In my mind I thought I [would have] surgery and boom, Id be back to normal, but clearly [that] isnt the case." First and foremost, as Fields pointed out, the nerve still needed to heal and strengthen. Trying to avoid that temptation to put the cart ahead of the horse was his biggest challenge, as he juggled on-court work with the natural healing process that had to occur first. In an attempt to work around the injury and play through it last year, Fields developed some bad habits including what he called a "weird motion" in his shot. He recalled the "down periods" this summer, when he would be in the gym working tirelessly to hone in on his mechanics as he would lose the strength in his shooting elbow. The injury has forced Fields to reinvent his shot and his game while calling a few unexpected audibles along the way. He even tried to do something that is mostly unheard of at the NBA level, change shooting hands mid-career. "At that point I was like, its early in the summertime what if I just start working with my left [hand for] a couple months and see how far I can go," he said of the short-lived experiment. "It didnt really work as I excepted it. Im right handed, so I got off of that and stayed faithful to the process and what the doctors were saying." Fields was a 39 per cent three-point shooter as a rookie with the Knicks back in 2010-11, a year in which he attempted 219 triples. Last year he made just two of 14 attempts from long range. "In my mind I just wasnt playing with a full deck of cards," Fields said of his first season in Toronto. "I want[ed] to shoot it but I understood that my strength and my sensation and the sensory skills in my right hand arent nearly what they need to be so I cant really feel when Im going up for a shot." "Its almost like Im shooting a ghost ball or something," he joked. "So when thats going on, yeah youre confidence kind of dwindles. Youre like, I cant shoot right now, not because I dont want to but I literally cant. Its physical." Still not 100 per cent, Fields says he can "finally see a light at the end of the tunnel" and is ready to get back to work. Most importantly, he insists the confidence issues that plagued him last year are forever in the past. "You can tell his confidence is at a much higher level," teammate Aaron Gray said of Fields after the first couple days of camp. "He had to deal with so much last year that I hope no player has to do. Just finding your rhythm and your balance between life and basketball, its huge." Finding serenity in his private life, with a marriage and the birth of his first child, has allowed him to find that balance and put basketball in perspective. Although Steve Novak and Austin Daye will compete with Fields for minutes behind Rudy Gay and DeMar DeRozan at the wing positions, the presence of accomplished shooters could take the pressure off the Stanford grad. "I told him, dont even worry about his shot," said Raptors coach Dwane Casey. "Hes been working his butt off on his shot, his shot has improved but Im not even concerned about that because he brings so many other things to the table." "I think the weight of the world is off his shoulder," he continued. "Hopefully him knowing that we dont need his shooting to give us a chance to win, that takes some [pressure off]." Instead, Fields will be asked to contribute in other areas of the game, areas he has excelled at in the past, making for what should be a natural transition into his new role. At 6-7 Fields is a skilled defender that Casey has used in man coverage on the likes of LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony. He can handle the ball, move without it and rebound as well as anyone at his position. This will be an important season for Fields as he continues to work his way back from an injury that, at least temporarily, changed the way he approached his job. "Im just trying to go out there and really try to have fun again," he said with a smile on his face. "I think last year with the injury it took away that fun aspect for me of basketball and you never want to go to work and not have fun." "I would still work hard but [when] you dont see the kind of results that youre putting the time in to get, it really starts to play with you. So this year Im not [going] to worry about any of that, just [going to] try to go out there and play for my teammates, play for the city and really have fun with it all." Wei-Yin Chen Jersey . -- The Los Angeles Galaxy have signed coach Bruce Arena to a multi-year contract extension.J.J. Hardy Authentic Jersey . Brad Richards scored twice on New Yorks previously anemic power play, Martin St. Louis had three assists in his best game since joining the Rangers last month, and Henrik Lundqvist kept the Carolina Hurricanes at bay in a 4-1 victory on Tuesday night.CHICAGO -- Pitching only 8 miles from where he grew up, Mike Bolsinger had more nerves than usual when he stepped on the mound at Wrigley Field against the Chicago Cubs. In front of about 20 family and friends, some of whom he hadnt seen in a long time after his family moved away when he was 10 years old, Bolsinger delivered exactly what the struggling Arizona Diamondbacks needed. Bolsinger earned his first major league win, pitching into the seventh inning and hitting an RBI single as Arizona beat the Cubs 5-2 Thursday. "Every once in a while Id look over and see my friends and family cheering me on," Bolsinger said. "It was good to get the first win, but I think it was a lot better to get a big team win, especially two in a row now. Hopefully that gets something started with this club, and we can keep it rolling." Bolsinger (1-1) allowed one unearned run and four hits in 6 2-3 innings. He struck out seven and walked two. Bolsinger was given the traditional beer shower by his teammates to celebrate his first win. Addison Reed got his fifth save in six chances with a perfect ninth, and the Diamondbacks won consecutive games for only the second time this season. After the game, Diamondbacks catcher Miguel Montero defended manager Kirk Gibson and general manager Kevin Towers against critical comments about them and the teams 7-18 start. Montero, unprovoked, said the staff doesnt deserve any blame for Arizonas record. "Theyve been coming here with the best attitude and the best intentions and theyve been pushing us hard, very positive," Montero said. "I wanted to say that because the blame should be on us, should be on the players. We havent played the way were supposed to play. I wanted to take that off my chest." Montero hit a two-out double in the first inning off Edwin Jackson (1-2) for a 1-0 lead. Montero also had an RBI single in the eighth off reliever Jose Veras. The Cubs got that early run back right away in the bottom half of the first. Leadoff man Emilio Boniifacio stretched a hit up the middle into a hustle double, which was reviewed when it appeared he was tagged out when he overslid the base. Brooks Robinson Authentic Jersey. After a lengthy replay review, the call stood. Following a walk, Bonifacio scored on left fielder Roger Kieschnicks error on a line drive by Anthony Rizzo. The Cubs went on to load the bases with one out on a walk, but Bolsinger struck out Mike Olt looking and got Welington Castillo to fly out. "It was a tough (road) trip, going 3-4 on it," Gibson said. "Wed like to do better than that. Were in a very tough time, and were pressing very hard. It seemed like we came out more relaxed today, and theyre feeling better about themselves." Cliff Pennington walked in the Arizona second and scored on Tony Campanas double. Bolsinger singled for a 3-1 lead. "Early in the game, it felt like I was rushing a little bit," Jackson said. "It was one of those days when you feel like you dont have your best stuff, so you try to make it happen. You just have to take a step back and slow the game down. I let it come to me, tried to go out and take it." Despite throwing 40 pitches through two innings, Jackson settled down and posted his longest outing since Sept. 10. He allowed five hits while walking two and striking out four in seven innings. Rizzo hit a solo home run in the eighth, his third of the season. NOTES: Diamondbacks OF Mark Trumbo (stress fracture in left foot) was placed on the 15-day disabled list and Kieschnick was recalled from Triple-A Reno. Kieschnick made his Diamondbacks debut Thursday, starting in left field and going 0 for 4 with three strikeouts. ... OF A.J. Pollock (neck stiffness) was not in the starting lineup for a fourth consecutive game. Arizona manager Kirk Gibson said he was much improved but not where theyd like him to be. ... Cubs top pitching prospect RHP C.J. Edwards was in Chicago on Thursday to get his shoulder examined after he experienced fatigue in a bullpen session. cheap jerseys from china cheap jerseys ' ' '
