Ep. 455: Game 5 from The Basketball Jones on Vimeo.

*The episode above is their last one of the season after the Lakers’ title clincher. Tas is the guy in the Miami Vice Hawaiian shirt in the clip above*

When you sit down and think of Toronto, as a sports fan, you immediately think of the storied Maple Leafs 13 championships and Joe Carter’s walk-off Home Run in 93 that gave the city its first MLB title.

As a man, its also easy to think about all the beautiful women at Carnival. But there’s more to this city than those events and new rap sensation Drake.

Since 1995, when the Toronto Raptors launched their inaugural season, two of their biggest fans, Tas Melas and JE Skeets, took their love of not only the Raptors (season ticket holders), but basketball; and created what is now the #1 independent NBA podcast on the net called ‘The Basketball Jones.’

From a daily podcast I used to listen to on my headphones; to a new, crisp video format they implemented this season, The Basketball Jones doesn’t just provide us with unbiased basketball opinion, but entertainment.

Remember the All Star Weekend clip with Tas rapping to Amare in Greek? What about the dunk contest they had in Phoenix this past year with all the kids?

For 82 games and close to eight months, their passion for basketball shines through our computer screens. The hard work has definitely paid off for these two young men from the Great White North.

Without further adieu, I present to you Tas Melas from the Basketball Jones. Skeets couldn’t make it because he was too busy impersonating Steve Nash at autograph sessions across the country. Just kidding! Shout out to him and his great blog over at Yahoo Sports.

Claudio: So let me start off with this – What do two guys from Toronto know about basketball?

Tas Melas: We know a bit. I was a fan of basketball as a whole growing up and the Bulls as well. Don’t call me a bandwagon now. A lot of people were Bulls fans growing up. But everything changed when the Raptors came here in 95. I remember falling in love with the teams early success; and how can’t you love that old Raptors logo?

Claudio: Those jerseys were definitely a classic. I mean if there was a throwback a lot of people wanted it was those Camby, Damon, Vince ones.

Tas: Most definitely.

Claudio: I never got the chance to lay a palm print on those. You?

Tas Melas: Me neither. But that Raptors warm-up and jersey were huge anywhere you went in this city.

Claudio: I can only imagine. So I hear you’re a Raptors season ticket holder. How long have you been down with the team?

Tas Melas: For a long time now. Me and a few friends pitched in and got us some seasons. We attend a lot of games. Truthfully speaking, if it weren’t for the Raps, I don’t know if we’d be having this interview right now.

Claudio: Why’s that?

Tas Melas: Its great watching basketball, but when you have a local team to root for who you can see every night, it definitely keeps your interest.

Claudio: Sticking on the Great White North – how popular is basketball up there?

Tas: Its hard to say. Personally, I feel its the 2nd most popular sport. Its hard to compare it to baseball really because the Jays win out in ratings. But that’s only because the Raps don’t get broad-casted everywhere.

In addition, there are so many different cultures up here and not everyone grew up on hockey. You have many who come from different countries who never saw a basketball game in person, but love the sport.

Our team has close to 19,000 screaming fans nightly and we haven’t done much in recent years. That shows you that basketball has staying power here.

Claudio: Now before we get into the birth of TBJ and how you, Skeets and JD prepare for it, tell me about the deep hatred of Vince Carter up there.

Tas: Its really crazy how they hate Vince up here.

Claudio: Why do you say that? I mean the man basically erased his great Toronto years from his mind and had a bunch of negative stuff to say about the fans.

Tas: People in Toronto are generally quiet and polite. But something about Vince really struck a chord with them.

Claudio: I remember when you did that skit with the Vince jersey outside of Air Canada Center. The feedback you received wasn’t so positive.

Tas Melas: It definitely wasn’t. One female fan slapped me. People were giving me the evil eye and wondering why the hell I was wearing a Vince jersey.

Claudio: That sounds more like it.

Tas: But wait – deep down inside everyone knows that Vince put us on the basketball map. He made us realize we had a great athlete. People out here love Vince. Their just disappointed in the way he chose to exit.

Claudio: Now off of the past and onto the present. Why is their so much hate for Chris Bosh?

Tas: People in this city really turned fast on Bosh. And I always wondered why. What has he done wrong? He plays his ass off and is a franchise player.

Claudio: So you’re saying that there hasn’t been enough talent around him?

Tas: We have talent; I think if Jose Calderon was healthy this year, we might have been a playoff team.

Claudio: Is there any love for him at all?

Tas: Definitely. There will always be people who criticize Bosh, but for the most part, people recognize his talent. Plus, he has a great personality as you saw in his video skits this season.

Claudio: Do you think this is the last year Bosh wears a Raptors uniform?

Tas: No I don’t. Bryan Colangelo is no dummy. Expect us to re-sign him and build around him and Barganini.

Claudio: Speaking of foreign talent, the Raptors have a lot with Barganini, Turkoglu, Calderon and others. You come from a Greek family. What does your family think of your podcast and passion for basketball?

Tas: Well, basketball is fairly popular in Greece. It may not be as big as soccer, but its definitely a sport people stay tuned into. As for my family, they love what I’m doing. An old school family; as long as I’m happy with what I’m doing they are as well.

Claudio: When did the original idea for the video/podcast come from?

Tas: We all graduated in 2005 from the Radio Broadcast Program at Ryerson University. After graduation, we knew we wanted to put our degree to use in a creative manner.

In the winter of 2005, we began to come up with the idea for a podcast. In January 2006, ‘Raptorcentric’ was born from JD’s living room. Once we started, people loved it and we then moved to the daily format. Its been history ever since.

Claudio: Take me inside the process of not only creating this show, but preparing for it. I suppose you guys have ‘League Pass’ to keep up with all the games nightly right?

Tas: We generally talk early evening before the games start. Usually, we pick 3 games to watch and cover them on the podcast the next morning.

Claudio: What time do you guys wake up to do this because it usually drops anytime from 930-1030 EST?

Tas: We wake up as early as 5am to get to the studio and do our research. By 730, we have all our info prepared. At around 8-830, our filming is done. JD then breaks it down for an hour and you get your daily show around the time frame you just mentioned.

Claudio: You aren’t backed by a major network or the league, but the quality of your show in terms of visual and audio is top notch.

Tas: Yes, when people see our show, they are amazed by the quality of it. Skeets and I are in no way camera people despite me having experience with it at TSN.

JD does a lot with a little because we don’t have all the resources most have. It looks like a show that is being produced by a major network. That’s how talented JD is.

Claudio: Why do you think the show is so popular? What makes you different than the guys over at ESPN who do podcasts?

Tas: People keep coming back to us because we are regular people. You don’t only see us talk basketball. You saw me rap to Amare in Greek trying to get on his new label. You’ve seen Skeets do karaoke. You’ve seen us act a fool outside of stadiums and such. You’ve seen our skits at the beginning of the show.

We are just regular people. As for ESPN, I’m a fan, but there’s a difference between guys on ESPN who wear suits and us who are kind of your buddies.

Claudio: Do you ever find it difficult doing a daily show on the same topic?

Tas: Absolutely. To do a daily show on the same topic isn’t easy despite the love for it. Its not easy to keep it fresh.

With shows like PTI, you have a dozen topics to speak about. Its totally different when you have to spend 20 minutes daily having a discussion on one topic for 8 straight months.

Claudio: Definitely is. Any plans to ever work for the NBA as an employee or produce content for them or any media networks?

Tas: We obviously want to continue growing and you can see that with our new features on The Score. But you’re probably alluding to hooking up with a major team. We would love to create content for an NBA team or TV channel. That’s a goal of ours. We want to be major players in the world of basketball.

Our podcast has done well and Skeets writes for Yahoo Sports so hopefully the opportunities will continue opening up for us.

Claudio: Understood. Now that the season is over, and the Lakers have been crowned champs, and Blake dominated summer league, what have you guys been up to?

Tas: One thing about the off-season is that despite us missing the daily show, we have so much more energy. I love getting sleep and being a normal person and working 40 hours a week. We need this time to reflect and have fun.

Claudio: Now let’s get a little more personal. Who’s the smoothest between you and Skeets? Who gets all the ladies?

Tas: HAHA. I don’t know. I’d probably say Skeets; although he would disagree with that statement. Really though, JD’s the smoothest of them all.

Claudio: The quietest one huh?

Tas: Yeah the quietest one is always the one you have to watch out for.

Claudio: Sticking on the smooth topic, I hear you’re a big R+B fan?

Tas: Yes I like listening to John Legend. Throw on some Mos Def, The Roots and Common when it comes to Hip-Hop. I like Greek beats and Lil Wayne to get my hyped as well.

Claudio: Last, but not least Tas, you know I’m a huge Spurs fan. What do you think of our past season and our future?

Tas: I think a team who was the #2 seed without Manu should be proud. I am not going to write off the Spurs like others have done. With a healthy core, you guys are still perennial contenders and I wouldn’t be shocked to see another title if the re-tooling works.

Claudio: From your lips to my ears. Oh, and speaking of my Spurs, thanks for that t-shirt you guys made of Manu. I purchased one and people love it out here.

Tas: Thanks man. We’re working with B McCalister out of Ontario who’s designed our shirts. He’s going to keep doing stuff for us and expect to see more merchandise.

Claudio: Great man. I’m walking around with TBJ on my back every few weeks.

Tas: Haha. Thanks.

Claudio: Well, I wish your Raptors the same luck you wished my Spurs. It was a pleasure speaking with you and continued success this upcoming season and get the rest while you can.

Tas: Thanks man. I appreciate the chance to be interviewed. Keep up the good work.

*Sorry for the delay Tas on posting this*

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