There's lots to talk about in this edition of the Ol' One-Two Punch, so let's get right to it…

ONE: Of all the euro players on the Toronto Raptors roster, one stands out to me. Best case scenario the Raptors may have found a poor-man's Charles Oakley in Spain's Jorge Garbajosa.

Now, hear me out on this. Garbajosa, like Oakley, is an earth bound power forward. Both, are more likely to hit an 18-foot jumper, than to ever make a dunk.

It's true the Spanish power-forward will never be considered an athletic NBA big-man. But, neither was Oakley.

So why isn't he a euro Rafael Araujo? Because Jorge, like Oakley has had success by using his basketball savvy. Simply put, both understand the game better than most of their foes.

And, Garbajosa, like Oakley has a reputation for being tough as nails.

Now, of course Oak was a bigger body than the Spaniard – hence the "poor man" description.

But, Garbajosa could give Toronto a big man who can thrive while mixing it up. And, if he can use his years of experience to get into position to snag rebounds, and get the occasional put-back basket – the Raps front-court has a dynamic it hasn't seen for years.

Toughness.

So, if at the 60 game mark Garbajosa is using his limited command of English to bark orders at an underperforming teammate, and better still that team-mate is nodding -- the Raps may have the on-court presence needed to help Chris Bosh mature as a leader.

That would go a long way to pushing the Dinos back into the post-season.

TWO: I've also been thinking about Adam Morrison lately.

And, I'm thinking that these comparisons to Larry Bird are way off base. Really, the guy Morrison reminds me the most of is Dirk Nowitzki.

Dirk is another guy, who you think, SHOULD be nullified by a quicker defender. But, Dirk finds ways to score.

Just like Morrison did in college.

Dirk has crazy range. Ditto for Morrison.

Dirk has a habit of dropping shots on what look like out of control drives -- same for the 'Stache.

And, neither entered the L with much of an ability to defend their opposite numbers.

Now, of course there is one HUGE difference between the two. Size. Dirk is 7-1 and Morrison is listed at 6-9.

So while Dirk has been able to shoot over almost any defender, and has the physical bulk to overpower opponents, Morrison may find himself unable to do so. Especially if teams turn to athletic four's -- their slight lack of speed won't hurt them, even if they have to follow Morrison well beyond the three-point line.

Still, Dirk has unveiled new tricks every year, and Morrison may do so as well. Racking up buckets of the "how on Earth did he get that shot off" variety.

Either way, Morrison is going to be one of the most intriguing NBA'ers to watch over the next few seasons.

ONE: I wrote in this space two years ago that Brett Favre's time as an elite NFL QB was finished.

That was after Brett inexplicably threw a shovel pass while several yards past the line of scrimmage in a close playoff game against the Vikes. Favre was in the red zone, and the play killed the drive. And, Favre one of the most competitive players in the game, incredibly, had a big grin on his face.

At that point I knew there was no chance we'd see the Favre magic again.

Now I think most NFL pundits probably wrote Brett off as a top QB around that time, if not even a season earlier.

So, let's spare Brett some hard times and avoid any needless commentary on what sort of QB he is now.

We all know he's a shadow of his former self. And, Brett, deep down probably knows it as well.

So there is no reason to take extra delight in the Pack's week 1 whitewashing. Some people, for whatever reason, want to get the long knifes out on Brett.

Perhaps its revenge for the years of "never bet against Favre" propaganda. But, again that stopped (from any legitimate source) two years ago or more.

So, let's give Favre, in this his farewell season, a break. When he rolls right and throws into triple coverage for an interception – use that to remember all those times when he did the same thing, but instead of serving up the INT zipped it in for a completion.

Yes, Favre made a lot of dumb throws in his career, and maybe he believed he was better than he was.

But, he showed (and still, amazingly shows) a love for the game, a pure joy that makes watching him play special. Let's let that be his legacy – a QB who may have been over-rated, but still was one of the greats -- especially in cold weather -- quite an accomplishment for a Southern Boy.

Besides if, he is like Dan Marino, somewhat inflated by his statistics, can anyone honestly not say he's a thousand times more likeable, or genuine?

TWO:  Does Damon Allen deserve to be in Canton?

The Toronto Argonaughts QB has now thrown for more yards than anyone else in the history of professional football, passing Warren Moon. (And don't forget he sits 15th all time in rushing for that matter)

But, he did it in Canada.

That makes it a tough call. There is no doubt that while the Canadian game employs exceptional athletes, by and large the best in the world play in the NFL. So, it's tough to truly gauge what Allen has done.

Interestingly several USA publications have written about whether or not Damon Allen deserves a place in the football hall of a fame. And, many have come out in support of the former Cal-State Fullerton stand-out.

But, again, it's a tough call. Although with the success Moon, Doug Flutie and Jeff Garcia have had in the NFL you have to wonder if Allen could have thrived in a West Coast Offence.

But, sadly when Allen came of age he had three major strikes against him:

1. He was "only" 6 feet tall

2. He wasn't a pocket passer – and while a couple had broken the mold -- say Fran Tarkenton -- it would take Warren Moon a decade to more thoroughly erase the stereotype. And, the bias against scramblers is hardly dead.

And;

3. Allen is black.

Like it or not, even in the mid-'80s a sizeable amount of the  NFL brain-trust just didn't believe a Black quarterback could succeed. It was racism, pure and simple. (A racism that is sadly not gone today. It's hidden better, you'd never hear an outright assault on a black QB's intelligence, but if you read through the lines you can still see it hanging on with an ugly ferocity).

So, Damon had his three strikes and packed up to Canada. Where he preceded to win three Grey CUP MVP awards, and then one outstanding player award, at the ripe old age of  42.

But, really, forget about whether Damon could have made an impact in the NFL or not. It's conjecture, and it's not material. The issue is simply this: does Damon deserve to get in for what he is done?

I say yes.

I say yes, if only because the immensity of his accomplishment (playing at a high level for 22 years) is virtually unheard of in the sport.

And, I partially say yes, because Damon was denied a chance to prove himself against "the best." And, to deride the accomplishments he has made because they came in Canada – when he had no other option for so much of his career -- is simply unfair.

Hopefully the decision makers will look at the enormity of Allen's accomplishments, and decide to skip the exchange rate. Instead they will simply see them as exceptional, and worthy of remembrance.

ONE: If you've been yearning for an album to take you back to when Juliana Hatfield  was the Juliana Hatfield Three but with a little more grit – check out "Scout Niblett's" debut disk.

Also, kinda Solex sounding for those with a thing for Dutch noise-meisters.

TWO: And on the film side of the ledger, its been out for awhile, but I can't say enough good things about "Little Ms. Sunshine."

Well acted, and very well written it's a movie where nobody is painted in a particularly glowing light (domineering Dad, crazy mute son, depressed and sarcastic brother in law, Heroin shooing Grandfather -- yes, you read that right) but in the end everyone is likeable.-

Plus, it may have one of the best recurring gags of the year involving a VW wagon that just won't start without a little extra effort.

ONE: Isn't anybody suspicious that the guy who used to back-up Rick DiPietro just handed him a 15-year deal worth close to $70 million ?

Just checking.

(And really there is nothing more to say about this, it's just too bizarre. On every level this deal makes no sense, every level – including "camp.")

I really can't think of a comparison – not even the Alexei Yashin deal. Which was also ridiculous – but at least Yashin had succeeded at a high level.

The only thing I can think of was Mike Milbury had a clause in his contract that forced his successor(s) to make him look good).

Although to be fair to new GM Garth Snow landing Viktor Kozlov for 850-grand was actually pretty canny.

But, um… yeah… DiPietro….

TWO: Speaking of bass-ackwards GM.'s may I bring you to the work of One John "Jacob Jingleheimer" Ferguson Jr.

Ok, the Tomas Kaberle deal looks like a steal.

But, Ferguson blew that good work by overpaying for defensemen Pavel Kubina and Hal Gill. And, you can add Bryan McCabe to that list.

Didn't anyone notice how badly Kubina struggled last year? Forget the career high in points. Look at the dramatic drop off in goals. Or more tellingly look at his team. It wasn't a coincidence that the last Stanley Cup winner missed the playoffs this time around.

I actually have every confidence Kubina can turn it around if he plays with his countryman Kaberle. But, then who do you play with McCabe? Young Ian White, looks like he may have the best skill set for that – but its too early for the kid.

So that leaves us with Hal Gill.

Now if Pavel Kubina was a "Ford Pinto" of a signing, than Gill was a Yugo

You give the man who defines the term "turnstile" more than three million over two years?

My enduring memory of Gill is from the playoffs three seasons ago when the Montreal Canadians made Gill look like the right hand lane on the 401 – blowing by him at every opportunity.

So, John, in the new NHL, when speed is at a premium, and you have a boatload of young kids looking for ice time you massively overpay for a guy who was considered slow in the OLD NHL?.

Sure you needed another D-man with experience, but you could have signed Sean Hill (Sean Hill who played significant minutes for the Stanley Cup champion Carolina Hurricanes) for a FRACTION of the price.

But, that wasn't it for Ferguson. He also traded one of the top goaltending prospects in the NHL, Tukka Rask, for -- Andrew Raycroft, another goaltender.

Quickly, I'll tell you why this was madness.

The Leafs need forwards. Rask was expendable because the Leafs also have Justin Pogge waiting in the wings.

Why not trade Rask for a forward? Nashville could use a keeper of the future. So could the Caps, or the Oilers, even Detroit. 

And, if you believe that Justin Pogge is the future, why get a young keeper in Raycroft? If he pans out you're holding Pogge back. If he doesn't, you wasted an asset on a position where you have answers.

Both J.S. Aubin and Mikael Tellqvist showed flashes last year. For depth Ferguson could have signed someone like Manny Legace for a song. Legace works well either as a #1 or the back-up.

Or, he could have gone with Aubin and Tellqvist, and if the Leafs were in a playoff position, and needed an upgrade the GM could trade for a veteran keeper down the stretch.

Instead the Leafs traded an excellent asset for basically a couple of years of insurance.

And, finally Ferguson did not upgrade the forward pool.

Mike Pecca is useful, but for the money he got he needs to score more than he will. Surely someone like Anson Carter (now a Columbus Bluejacket) would have made more sense – and again been cheaper.

Carter nurtured the Sedin twins nicely in Vancouver, could he not have performed a similar task say with Kyle Wellwood and Alexander Steen? The Leafs two most intriguing youngsters?

All told the Leafs are again expensive, now slightly younger, and not really built to win much of anything.