TORONTO -- Dwane Casey has been carrying around a contract in his briefcase for the past few months, signed by all the Toronto Raptors and the teams staff. Trevon Coley Jersey . The contract, just two or three lines long and something that "wouldnt hold up in court," Casey said laughing, was a pledge of commitment. Its headline: "Im all in." Perhaps no one was more committed than Casey to the Raptors success this season, and on Tuesday, the 57-year-old coach was rewarded with a new three-year contract. The announcement came two days after Torontos season ended, but a couple of months after GM Masai Ujiri first approached the coach to get a new deal done. "Coach Casey was really classy because he said to me and he said to the players, Lets leave this and concentrate on the season, this is our chance to prove ourselves," Ujiri said, recounting his initial contract talks with Casey back in March. "He said, If Ive preached that to the players, then I owe it to them to continue this and well talk about (contract negotiations) after the season. I really give him credit for that." Casey led a young Raptors team to a remarkable and unexpected season that included a franchise-record 48 wins, an Atlantic Division title, and the No. 3 seed in the playoffs. Toronto pushed the vastly experienced Brooklyn Nets to seven games in the opening round of the playoffs, losing Game 7 by just a point. Casey said he drew up his "Im all in" pledge right after the February all-star break. In their next game, the Raptors recorded a big 103-93 win at Washington. "(It was about) committing to the process. Leaving their egos at the door," said Casey, who said he might have the contract framed. "Each player dedicated themselves, gave themselves to the season, and also as far as Im concerned to the future. Because this year was just a start of what we want to grow and develop with Masai as our leader and also the guys that are coming back here." Kyle Lowry was the first player to jump up and sign the pledge, said Casey. Retaining Lowry, the point guard whose teammates say was their heart and soul this season, will be one of the Raptors top priorities in the coming weeks -- the 28-year-old becomes a free agent on July 1. Lowry spoke glowingly in exit interviews a day earlier about his love for his teammates and the city, and Ujiri sounded, on Tuesday, as if the feeling was mutual. "Its very important (to re-sign Lowry) in terms of continuity," Ujiri said. "Kyle has had a phenomenal year. I thought Kyle was a huge, huge key to our season. For me, negotiating is easy if we want Kyle to be here and Kyle wants to be here. "Hes grown tremendously, to be coached and to work with," Ujiri continued. "His teammates, everybody has said that. Were proud of him. And so well go through that process, but were optimistic stuff will happen." Lowry and his teammates praised Casey in season-ending media interviews, noting the consistency of his message. For his part, Casey said he never considered testing the market. Ujiri made a commitment to the coach when the season began, and Casey said it was only fair he reciprocate. Caseys job status was uncertain when the season began. He was hired by Bryan Colangelo, and Ujiri had just replaced Colangelo as GM. "Masai could have made any decision when he first took over the job last spring." Casey said. "He was true to his word, he gave all of us a platform to go out and prove and show, even the players, what you can do. And he was true to his word. Thats all you can ask for in this business is an opportunity. "It would be so disingenuous to even go out and put your foot in the market and think that was a possibility, so I didnt even give it a second thought. My heart is here, my mind is here." The Raptors thrived after the seven-player deal last December that sent Rudy Gay to the Sacramento Kings. Casey, who is almost fatherly in the way he communicates with his team, worked four new players into the roster, and from that point forward Toronto had the best mark in the Eastern Conference at 41-22. Casey and Ujiri were proud of the teams performance in the playoffs. They squared off against a Nets team that was built for success right now, whereas the Raptors are very much a work in progress. Casey was named head coach in June 2011, shortly after he helped guide the Dallas Mavericks to an NBA title. When asked which season -- the championship in Dallas, or this Raptors campaign -- was more satisfying, he said this one. "Its far more gratifying watching kids grow, watching development ... watching guys go through Game 6, when our compete level in the first half was probably one of the lowest we had all year, and then turn it around and put ourselves in a position to win the game," Casey said. Casey said the biggest mistake the team can make now is be complacent, so improvement is the focus of the off-season. He pointed out how sophomore centre Jonas Valanciunas will work with NBA legend and former Raptor Hakeem Olajuwon over the summer. The coach said, for his part, hell do what he does every off-season and examine tape of every game, looking for what they did wrong, what they could have done better. Both Casey and Ujiri spoke again about the incredible fan support in Toronto, noting that support helps when theyre trying to sell the city to free agents. Casey called it easily the best in the NBA and compared it to the 1996 NBA finals. He was with the Seattle SuperSonics that year, bowing in the final series to Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls. "KeyArena was rocking, loud. The Finals in 96, I thought that was loud," Casey said. "That didnt compare to the Air Canada Centre on Sunday when Deron Williams was shooting his free throws (in the dying seconds). You could just hear it vibrating. The official had to lean over to me and whisper in my ear, which I felt kinda creepy ... but you couldnt hear yourself talk. Thats a home-court advantage, its second to none in the league." Ujiri mentioned his predecessor at the end of Tuesdays 45-minute news conference at Air Canada Centre. "I think Bryan Colangelo did an unbelievable job here," he said. "He hired Dwane Casey. The starting five were picked by Bryan Colangelo as young players. I think the guy did an unbelievable job. He was a boss here, my boss and a mentor. He needs to be given some credit." Casey was named NBA Eastern Conference coach of the month in December. The Raptors finished in the Top 10 in the NBA in defensive field goal percentage (.450) and points allowed (98.0), and also posted a franchise-best 22 road wins. Joel Bitonio Jersey . Venus Williams advanced to the ASB Classic final in Auckland on a walkover when fellow American Jamie Hampton withdrew from their semifinal Friday with a right hip injury. Genard Avery Jersey . The Oilers will try to get back in the win column on Monday when they continue a four-game road trip with a battle against the Buffalo Sabres. Edmonton won its third straight game last Wednesday against visiting San Jose, beating the Sharks 3-0 as Scrivens stopped 59 shots to set an NHL record for saves in a regular-season shutout. http://www.officialclevelandbrownsfootball.com/authentic-chad-thomas-jersey-womens . Sweeting scored two in the first and three in the second before Strong (4-4) got two back in the fourth. Sweeting then scored three in the fifth, two in the sixth and one in the seventh to grab a commanding 9-2 lead.Fans of hard-nosed football will love this years Mitchell Bowl.The sixth-ranked Mount Allison Mounties and No. 3 Marauders will bring very similar styles to McMasters Ron Joyce Stadium on Saturday for the Vanier Cup semifinal. Both teams have relied on smash-mouth defences and solid running games throughout the Canadian university football season and promise to bring more of the same to the Mitchell Bowl.We want to be violent. We want to make sure we hit you, said Mounties head coach Kelly Jeffrey said in an interview this week. We want to be disruptive in terms of taking the ball away as much as possible. We want to be disciplined, we want to have sound schemes that dont give up big plays.If we can do those things, thats basically the heart of our defensive philosophy.That approach has worked for Mount Allison all year. The undefeated AUS champions had the best defence in Canada this season, allowing an average of eight points per game and ranking third in both total yards allowed (324.0) and against the run (98.1).The Marauders are strong defensively as well. The 9-1 OUA champions allowed 17.75 points per game, the best in Ontario and fifth-best across the country. OUA defensive player of the year Nick Shorthill has been dominant at linebacker, helping McMaster place second against the pass (201.4) and the run (132.1).Defensively weve got several guys that we lean on and have come up huge in our playoff run to date, said Marauders head coach Stefan Ptaszek. Nick Shorthill, (defensive backs) Scott Martin, Steve Ventresca and Joey Cupido are four of the best in the country and were going to continue to lean on them.Both teams have relied on productive ground attacks all season, with Mounties tailback Chris Reid earning AUS rookie of the year honours after leading his conference and placing second in the country with 987 rushing yards.Hes explosive, hes got great burst, said Jeffrey of his star running back. Maybe not the sprinter some guys are, but certainly hes got very good burst and quickness that can make guys miss in a small areaa. Terrance Mitchell Jersey. Once that little guy gets behind that big O-line hes hard to see and contain.McMaster relies on two running backs in its schemes, with Wayne Moore averaging 70.3 yards per game in the regular season for a total of 492. Although he only averaged 61 yards per game in the regular season, Chris Pezzetta rushed for 143 and 144 yards in the Marauders first two post-season games.Establishing our run with that big O-line and Chris Pezzetta and Wayne Moore, our two running backs that are going to get the bulk of the work, is critical, said Ptaszek of Saturdays matchup.An emphasis on the run could be necessary on Saturday, with a wintry blast hitting southern Ontario and western New York for most of the week. McMaster had to move its practices from Ron Joyce Stadium to Redeemer University College in nearby Ancaster, Ont., to make use of an inflatable dome covering the schools football field.Forecasts have the temperature rising to just above freezing on game day with a chance of rain.If theres some elements of weather its always important to run the ball well, said Jeffrey. If we can then pop a few big plays offensively I think thatll be important to help change field position and set up scores.Although McMaster is only 1-3 when hosting Vanier Cup semifinals, Ptaszek is confident that playing in the Marauders home stadium will play to his teams advantage.No place like home is especially true for a student-athlete thats working through midterms and has finals not too far away, said the McMaster head coach. Just staying in our routine and all the national exposure that our student-athletes are going to get over the week, it helps us stay grounded and remember that theres actually a football game to be played at the end of this week.Having the 13th man in the stands is a huge advantage.The winner of the Mitchell Bowl will advance to the Vanier Cup in Montreal on Nov. 29. 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