MIAMI—A tiny chair had been put aside for Jonas Valanciunas to meet the swarming media Monday morning, the first chat session the Toronto Raptors centre had held since spraining his ankle bad enough to be sidelined for the rest of NBA Eastern Conference semifinal.
His right calf and ankle encased in a cumbersome boot, Valanciunas pulled back a curtain to see the chair, basically flung it aside over the protestations of the team’s media relations staff and defiantly stood there to make his point.
He’s okay, he hopes to be back soon and his spirits seem high.