Sonny and Demar @ The Pavilion in Thornhill (HD Vid pg. 7)

[Raptors_Dynasty]

You guys should get Demar to play Sonny 1 on 1 and then get it on tape .

[fame]

Anybody there yet?

I have a buddy heading down there now to check out the scene. He's a member and I'm not, so I want to know how packed it is before I decide if it's worth paying the 20 bones. If it's to packed, there'll likely be little chance to play with them.

[simple_jack]

Its somewhat packed. And its only 10 bucks to get in today

[ghuytro]

Did anyone go to this?

[simple_jack]

Did anyone go to this?

Yea I did! It was pretty awesome. Got to play a couple of games against sonny, Demar and their entourage guys. Man those guys can really jump. But Demar had a failed windmill attempt that was kind of embarrassing. And their shooting was a bit suspect against super scrub pickup players.

Overall it was cool playing up against NBA level talent.

[Geddy]

Did anyone go to this?

Yea I did! It was pretty awesome. Got to play a couple of games against sonny, Demar and their entourage guys. Man those guys can really jump. But Demar had a failed windmill attempt that was kind of embarrassing. And their shooting was a bit suspect against super scrub pickup players.

Overall it was cool playing up against NBA level talent.

Did you get Yogi's autograph???

[DG88]

details people details

[simple_jack]

Nah I didnt lol

I wish I took a pic of one of their girlfriends. Not sure if it was Demar or Sonny's girl but she had a BIG booty. And the gym was packed but most people were there just watching and taking pics.

They also did a slam dunk competition with a couple of other pick up players. Sonny had some sick dunks including going between the legs.

Oh and Sonny talks a lot of trash. Didnt matter if they were 5 foot kids or not lol. Also pretty hilarious how they were crossing up little kids though.

[-Blitz-]

Nah I didnt lol

I wish I took a pic of one of their girlfriends. Not sure if it was Demar or Sonny's girl but she had a BIG booty. And the gym was packed but most people were there just watching and taking pics.

They also did a slam dunk competition with a couple of other pick up players. Sonny had some sick dunks including going between the legs.

Oh and Sonny talks a lot of trash. Didnt matter if they were 5 foot kids or not lol. Also pretty hilarious how they were crossing up little kids though.

lol yea i was there too...sonnys jokes he was talkin **** everyone i dunno if u saw but he called out some short dude that was like 5 feet and told him to guard him..sonny crossed him out and wet a step back 3 in his face..poor guy lol

[andreasleo]

I'm happy to be reading about this. It's nice to know that these professional athletes took some time to connect with their fans, even though they had to pay. Hopefully they didn't bruise too many egos though lol

[Mike_Toronto]

First off - sorry, no pictures. Mafia prefers to stay off-camera and doesn't carry one either.

They were understandably late, appearing on the court @ about 7:15. Entourage consisted of a couple of girls, a couple of buddies and a fellow who was actually responsible for their appearance @ the club. According to the Pavilion's manager who also was on hand, the dude (who is a regular at these pickup games) actually twitted either Sonny or DD and suggested they should come play some pickup ball - and they've accepted. Just like that. Pretty cool, huh?

Anyway, back to the proceedings. They were greeted, but not mobbed. A lot of kids got a lot of stuff autographed by both players, a lot of typical fan pictures with the stars were taken - and then the games were on. Disappointingly (to me, at least), they played on the same team, with those three they came with rounding up their five. Each game lasted 10-15 minutes, then they'd break for 5 minutes or so, chat with the fans and then the next team would come in and the play would resume. I talked to Sonny during one of these intermissions, basically congratulating them both on impressive summer league showing and expressing to him how good for the fans this appearance is, especially during the "summer of departing Bosh". He said they fully understood the significance and were thinking the same thing when they've agreed to come. After 3-4 games a longer intermission broke into an impromptu dunk contest, with 2-3 locals showing off their modest wares and the Raptors throwing down some pretty impressive slams. I left shortly thereafter to complete my workout, but the games were still going strong...

Personal observations: they are about the same height and none looked taller than 6'4" to me. I am about 6'1" and they weren't more than 3 inches taller, at least when standing up close. Of course, their leaping ability is amazing, but that was to be expected. Sonny is built very much like Vince - the same powerful physique, while DD has a thinner, wiry frame and looks way too slim for the abuse of the NBA. Sonny looked much sharper, rarely missing a shot from anywhere on the floor, while DD was missing left, right and centre and even blew a dunk. Obviously, none tried too hard, they've let others play at both ends of the floor, taking their intensity up a notch with a steal or a block or an offensive move whenever they wanted.

Overall, I was very impressed with both players and the fans @ the gym. Everyone was really cool, some friendly trash was talked, some game pointers were given and received, a lot of applause and general fan support was provided (complete with ubiquitous "D-fense") and everyone had really good time. Great idea, awesome for both of them to come and mingle with their fans like that - they've certainly made me a bigger fan of the Young Gunz.

[[SJJ]]

First off - sorry, no pictures. Mafia prefers to stay off-camera and doesn't carry one either.

They were understandably late, appearing on the court @ about 7:15. Entourage consisted of a couple of girls, a couple of buddies and a fellow who was actually responsible for their appearance @ the club. According to the Pavilion's manager who also was on hand, the dude (who is a regular at these pickup games) actually twitted either Sonny or DD and suggested they should come play some pickup ball - and they've accepted. Just like that. Pretty cool, huh?

Anyway, back to the proceedings. They were greeted, but not mobbed. A lot of kids got a lot of stuff autographed by both players, a lot of typical fan pictures with the stars were taken - and then the games were on. Disappointingly (to me, at least), they played on the same team, with those three they came with rounding up their five. Each game lasted 10-15 minutes, then they'd break for 5 minutes or so, chat with the fans and then the next team would come in and the play would resume. I talked to Sonny during one of these intermissions, basically congratulating them both on impressive summer league showing and expressing to him how good for the fans this appearance is, especially during the "summer of departing Bosh". He said they fully understood the significance and were thinking the same thing when they've agreed to come. After 3-4 games a longer intermission broke into an impromptu dunk contest, with 2-3 locals showing off their modest wares and the Raptors throwing down some pretty impressive slams. I left shortly thereafter to complete my workout, but the games were still going strong...

Personal observations: they are about the same height and none looked taller than 6'4" to me. I am about 6'1" and they weren't more than 3 inches taller, at least when standing up close. Of course, their leaping ability is amazing, but that was to be expected. Sonny is built very much like Vince - the same powerful physique, while DD has a thinner, wiry frame and looks way too slim for the abuse of the NBA. Sonny looked much sharper, rarely missing a shot from anywhere on the floor, while DD was missing left, right and centre and even blew a dunk. Obviously, none tried too hard, they've let others play at both ends of the floor, taking their intensity up a notch with a steal or a block or an offensive move whenever they wanted.

Overall, I was very impressed with both players and the fans @ the gym. Everyone was really cool, some friendly trash was talked, some game pointers were given and received, a lot of applause and general fan support was provided (complete with ubiquitous "D-fense") and everyone had really good time. Great idea, awesome for both of them to come and mingle with their fans like that - they've certainly made me a bigger fan of the Young Gunz.

Thanks for the recap bro - I'd love to have a chat with these guys.

[basketball royalty]

Thanks for the recap Mike in Toronto. I live like 2 mins away from pavilion and would loved to have gone if I wasn't still in a walking boot recovering from achilles surgery. I'm too old to just go so I can get a few pics and autographs, I would have needed the guise of going in for a work out and happening to have my DD jersey and a sharpie on me .


Anyways, surprised to hear you think DD is more wiry than Sonny. It seems like the other way around but I haven't seen them up close and personal.

Also, what do you mean by the Mafia comment? Is that in reference to you or the owners of the pavilion?

[YogiStewart]

Guys,
last night was great.
thanks to all of you who asked me for my autograph.

to my bros Sonny and DD: sorry for stealing your sunshine. everyone wanted my autograph. and sorry to have done my 720 dunk on you. but you can't stop Yogi from bein' Yogi, yo.

[chimpston17]

how many people were there?

[barrist]

DD bricking shots against nobodies? We is doomed!

[Mike_Toronto]

Thanks for the recap Mike in Toronto. I live like 2 mins away from pavilion and would loved to have gone if I wasn't still in a walking boot recovering from achilles surgery. I'm too old to just go so I can get a few pics and autographs, I would have needed the guise of going in for a work out and happening to have my DD jersey and a sharpie on me .


Anyways, surprised to hear you think DD is more wiry than Sonny. It seems like the other way around but I haven't seen them up close and personal.

Also, what do you mean by the Mafia comment? Is that in reference to you or the owners of the pavilion?

That was just a joke. Should have used a smiley.

Lots of people there were taking pictures and making videos, I am just not into that personally.

[Mike_Toronto]

how many people were there?

I'd say about 20 people playing and about another 50 watching.

[CRACKSMATIC]

thats pretty cool that there gunna play ball with everyday people.. i would be all over that if i lived in Toronto.

[Duke3D]

I ended up going and the highlight of my day was being dunked on my Sonny.

Once you play with these guys you realise how crazy athletic AND strong they are. Demar looked impressive - looks like he has packed on some muscles, looked a lot like the 2nd/3rd year VC.

Note to others - do not run with professionals after not playing bball for over a year