Toronto

It was an incredible contest, but the way Game 6 of the NBA championship ended left a sour taste in my mouth, demonstrating again that the world’s top basketball circuit has the worst officiating in professional North American sports.

Cut to black. Sadly, for real this time. True-life tragedy has struck The Sopranos family with the death of Tony Soprano himself, actor James Gandolfini, at age 51.

Major League Baseball has become much more of a pitchers’ league over the last few years. Pitchers are in the midst of their most successful stretch in decades, and they owe much to their mastery of the strikeout. But for all their progress, pitchers still haven’t vanquished their mortal enemies. Nothing on this earth can humble a pitcher quite like an unstoppable home run hitter, and that breed has not yet gone extinct. Bleacher Report Pop Culture Lead Writer Gabe Zaldivar and I got together to pay homage to the game’s deadliest home run hitters. They like to travel around but can generally be found in Denver, Toronto, Detroit and Baltimore. If you have any comments, questions or complaints about the absence of a certain Miami slugger, you’re welcome to leave them below. You’re also invited to follow Gabe and me on Twitter, where we tweet like crazy. Follow Zachary: @zachrymer Follow Gabe: @gabezal

Chris Bosh's three-year stay with the Miami Heat has never been easy.The third member of Miami's vaunted Big Three, he's often been reduced to third-wheel status as a player just fortunate enough to be sharing the floor with a pair of Hall of Fame teammates. The statistical sacrifices he's made since migrating south in the summer of 2010 have been staggering. The 24.0 points per game scoring average he packed in his luggage has plummeted to just 16.6.He went from a player responsible for nearly 30 percent of the Toronto Raptors plays while he was on the floor in his final season there to one tasked with fewer than 23 percent of Miami's possessions this year.And those are nothing compared to the punitive damages he's been assessed in the court of public opinion. His critics cried that he was too much of a finesse player to effectively man the low block, too soft to withstand the physical rigors of life in the NBA post.The numbers from Miami's season-saving 103-100 win in Game 6 seemingly lend credence to those critiques. In more than 38 minutes of work, Bosh managed just 10 points on 5-of-12 shooting from the field.His San Antonio Spurs counterpart, the 37-year-old Tim Duncan, forced him to attend a complementary post clinic. The ageless wonder erupted for playoff-highs of 30 points and 17 boards, giving his team a tremendous chance to win a game in which Tony Parker's shot was M.I.A. (6-of-23) and Manu Ginobili was more reckless than he'd ever been (career-high eight turnovers).But Miami Bosh had never been a player defined by his statistical output, even if his $17.5 million salary suggests that he should.He's a fiery leader who never bites his tongue when tough talks are needed. But on a night when the Heat came frighteningly close to seeing their title defense bid come to a screeching halt, Bosh let his play do the talking.And the well-spoken star never sounded so brilliant.To be clear, Miami's never even within striking distance without a blistering fourth-quarter effort from LeBron James. The reigning MVP scored 16 of his team-high 32 points in the period, including a 25-foot triple that trimmed San Antonio's one-time 13-point lead to just two with 20 seconds left in regulation.Without Bosh's crunch-time performance, though, James' performance is all for naught. After Spurs sophomore Kawhi Leonard split a pair of free throws following James' three, James fired off another long-range shot. But this one caromed off the front of the rim, kicked off the glass and floated above a pack of black jerseys.But there was Bosh soaring above the smaller Spurs defenders. He snatched the ball over a leaping Ginobili, wrestled it away from some prying San Antonio hands and quickly found a backpedaling Ray Allen, who buried the game-tying three with only 5.2 seconds left on the clock.When the overtime session rolled around, Bosh was the first player to get Miami on the scoreboard. He finished a layup through contact off of a James assist on the Heat's third possession of the period.Miami would go on to score six more points in the period, which proved to be enough thanks to some timely defensive stops keyed by Bosh.A James turnover gave the Spurs the basketball facing a one-point deficit with 40.5 seconds left on the clock. San Antonio went to its MVP candidate Parker, who lost James on a Duncan screen and left Bosh with a brutal matchup on the perimeter.Parker drove hard to his right, then cut off his jets and pulled back for what looked like an open jumper. But the lanky Bosh recovered to the speedy point guard and deflected his potential game-tying shot.The teams traded empty possessions, which forced the Spurs to foul Allen (a career 89.4 percent free-throw shooter) and the 17-year veteran calmly converted both of his foul shots.That left the Spurs with 1.9 seconds to climb out of a three-point hole. It was a tall task for sure, but far from impossible for a team housing the new record holder for the most threes ever made in an NBA Fi

WASHINGTON—The FBI uses drones for surveillance of stationary subjects, and the privacy implications of such operations are “worthy of debate,” FBI director Robert Mueller said Wednesday.He said the law enforcement agency very seldom uses drones now, but is developing guidelines that will shape how unmanned aerial vehicles are to be used.There will be a number of issues regarding drones “as they become more omnipresent, not the least of which is the drones in airspace and also the threat on privacy,” Mueller said in an appearance before the Senate Judiciary Committee.“We already have, to a certain extent, a body of law that relates to aerial surveillance and privacy relating to helicopters and small aircraft . . . which could well be adapted to the use of drones,” Mueller said. “It’s still in its nascent stages . . . but it’s worthy of debate and perhaps legislation down the road.”Drones “allow us to learn critical information that otherwise would be difficult to obtain without introducing serious risk to law enforcement personnel,” the FBI said in a statement following Mueller’s comments at the Senate hearing.The FBI used drones at night during a six-day hostage standoff in Alabama earlier this year. The standoff ended when members of an FBI rescue team stormed an underground bunker, killing gunman Jimmy Lee Dykes before he could harm a 5-year-old boy held hostage.The FBI said its unmanned aerial vehicles are used only to conduct surveillance operations on stationary subjects. In each instance, the FBI first must obtain the approval of the Federal Aviation Administration to use the aircraft in a very confined geographic area.The aerospace industry forecasts a worldwide deployment of almost 30,000 drones by 2018, with the United States accounting for half of them.

Chevon Walker was pencilled in as the heir apparent to starting running back Avon Cobourne. But C.J. Gable has taken an eraser to that plan for the Hamilton Tiger-Cats.

James Gandolfini, the burly actor best known for his Emmy-winning portrayal of a conflicted New Jersey mob boss in the acclaimed HBO cable television series The Sopranos, has died while vacationing in Rome, Italy, the network said on Wednesday.Gandolfini, 51, who began his career in live theater in New York, died of a possible heart attack, HBO spokeswoman Mara Mikialian told Reuters.Since The Sopranos ended its run in 2007, Gandolfini has appeared in a number of big-screen roles, including the espionage thriller Zero Dark Thirty and the comedy The Incredible Burt Wonderstone.At the time of his death, Gandolfini had been working on an upcoming new HBO series titled Criminal Justice.

NEW YORK — Microsoft rolled back a much-criticized requirement that its upcoming Xbox One gaming console be regularly connected to the Internet and made clear that there will be no limitations on sharing games.Microsoft Corp. has been criticized for vague statements about whether it will allow Xbox One buyers to play second-hand software. Gamers also expressed distaste for a requirement that the console be connected to the Internet once every 24 hours.Don Mattrick, president of Microsoft’s Interactive Entertainment business, said in a blog post Wednesday that an Internet connection will no longer be required to play games on the Xbox One after its initial setup, and users can share and play games like they have on the Xbox 360.Mattrick said the changes are in response to feedback Microsoft received since unveiling plans for the console in May.“You told us how much you loved the flexibility you have today with games delivered on disc. The ability to lend, share, and resell these games at your discretion is of incredible importance to you,” he wrote. “Also important to you is the freedom to play offline, for any length of time, anywhere in the world.”In a shot aimed at Microsoft, rival Sony Corp. announced during last week’s Electronic Entertainment Expo in Los Angeles that its upcoming PlayStation 4 will not require a regular Internet connection to work and that the company won’t try to restrict used game sales.Both consoles will go on sale later this year, the Xbox One at $499 and the PS4 at $399.

The draft, free agency and trades. The triumvirate of roster building. The perfunctory answer of GMs across the league when posed the question, "How are you looking to improve the roster?" But is it really that simple? Isn't a team's ability to develop their young players of tantamount importance? Top 10 picks still bust with regularity while some teams are resourceful enough to find key components from less heralded prospects. Do these picks bust because they are landing with bad teams... which may suggest that organizational issues may be landsliding right from the top? This may explain why every player selected by the Charlotte Bobcats cringes when his name is called on draft day. Do teams that overachieve just scout better? That is certainly part of the equation, but I think player development is vital to maximizing roster potential through less obvious routes. For teams not in the sexier markets, who can just plunder teams for already developed players, a nurturing soil that is conducive to help young players realize their potential is a key cog to success. "How are you looking to improve the roster?" How about coaching up the talent that is already there. San Antonio Spurs: The perdurable core: Tim Duncan #1, Tony Parker #28, Manu Ginobili #57 Gary Neal signed as undrafted free agent Tiago Splitter #28 Danny Green (drafted #46 by the Cleveland Cavaliers where he played 115 minutes before being waived and joining the Spurs where he was waived again before sticking) Kawhi Leonard (drafted #15 by Indiana Pacers and acquired in draft day trade) Indiana Pacers: Paul George #10 Lance Stephenson #40 Tyler Hansbrough #13 Danny Granger #11 Roy Hibbert (drafted #17 by Toronto Raptors and traded to Pacers, which is the only team he has ever played for) Milwaukee Bucks: Ersan Ilyasova #36 Brandon Jennings #10 Larry Sanders #15 John Henson #14 Phoenix Suns: **crickets chirping** ---------- Judging by the pesky chirping crickets it appears that the Suns have fallen short of creating an environment that fosters positive growth. There has been a change in the culture, but it has been for the worse, which bottomed out as the team sunk to new depths last season. Not only has a somber pall shrouded the team, causing many pundits to predict multiple top five picks for the team in its bleak future, but to be blunt... the young talent on the team pretty much sucks. P.J. Tucker, basically a 27 year old rookie that the team pulled off the scrap pile, was better than any player on the roster under the age of 26. That was more of a scouting win, though, because it's difficult to make the argument that the Suns "developed" a 27 year old player who came right out of the gate swinging. Here are the Suns last 12 draft picks (newest to oldest): Kendall Marshall Markieff Morris Gani Lawal Dwayne Collins Earl Clark Taylor Griffin Emir Preldzic Robin Lopez Malik Hairston Rudy Fernandez Alondo Tucker D.J. Strawberry Robin Lopez is easily the best player on this list that the Suns developed. I would also concede that he's the best player on this list still in the league. The second best player? Rudy Fernandez, who was shipped out to the Portland Trail Blazers, when the Suns were still in the practice of selling draft picks for cash, before returning to Spain three years ago. That's a full roster of "talent" that could very well comprise the worst team fielded in the history of the NBA. Good job Suns. Now let's shift gears back to the lists of other teams I sampled. San Antonio Spurs: I know that a large contingent of Suns' fans despise this team, but the truth of the matter is that they are just flat out better than Phoenix. Sure, having a bona fide franchise player in Tim Duncan gift wrapped to the team helps, but from front office to coaching to scouting to drafting to player development to trades the Spurs have been consistently better than the Suns for the entirety of this cent

With each win the Boston Bruins add to their Stanley Cup playoff run, Dave Nonis recognizes how much it flatters his own team's gritty opening-round performance.