y for me, it was a question to play more in the NHL

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- Xavier Rathan-Mayes finally feels comfortable as Florida States point guard after a learning curve the past two seasons.As the Seminoles are going through offseason workouts, the 6-foot-4 junior has done a better job of directing the action on the floor. In his first full season running the point last year, Rathan-Mayes averaged 4.4 assists, which is second in the Atlantic Coast Conference among returning players, but he also had six conference games where he committed four or more turnovers.In order to cut down on the turnovers, Rathan-Mayes has spent a lot of time looking at film from last season and has been concentrating more on making sure his teammates are on the right spot on the floor.Xavier has been extremely focused and in a good frame of mind, coach Leonard Hamilton said. We had our ups and downs last season but that is part of the process with point guards and young teams.Rathan-Mayes said he realized while watching film that he had to do a better job of taking more control on the floor. A lot of the turnovers last season were the result of poor passes or cases where players were not in the right position.Ball spacing was a huge problem late in the year as the Seminoles finished 20-14 and missed the NCAA Tournament for the fourth straight season.I have to do a better job of making sure guys are where they need to be, he said.Taking control may also mean an increase in scoring. After leading Florida State in scoring as a freshman (14.9 points per game), Rathan-Mayes average dropped to 11.8 last season. In conference games he averaged 12.1 points last season after having 16.1 as a freshman.Rathan-Mayes did say one of the things he has been working on individually is shooting and trying to have better form, especially on perimeter shots.Hamilton and Rathan-Mayes had their moments of strife last season as many wondered if he would return to school. The low point came on Jan. 20 at Louisville as Rathan-Mayes was benched for a violation of team rules. Both sides though have appeared to work out their differences after Rathan-Mayes decided to come back this season after briefly putting his name in consideration for the NBA draft.Rathan-Mayes and Dwayne Bacon are the only two returning starters, but the Seminoles did add another talented recruiting class that many services ranked in the top 10. It is led by 6-foot-10 forward Jonathan Isaac, who averaged 17.6 points and 10.4 rebounds at IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida.During Hamiltons basketball camps last month, many of the players would stick around until 11 p.m. in order to play pickup games.They are working their way in and doing a better job as the summer has gone along, Rathan-Mayes said. There have been some good battles but they have come in and focused. Nike Air Max Günstig . The recently retired Stern was elected Friday to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and will be enshrined with the class of 2014 on Aug. Großhandel Nike Air Max . PETERSBURG, Fla. http://www.airmaxschweiz.ch/ . -- The goal posts lying flat on the field, Arizonas fans lingered on the field, congregating around the locker room entrance nearly 30 minutes after rushing out of the stands. Nike Air Max Günstig Kaufen . Klitschkos management company says the bout will be the Ukrainian fighters 25th world championship fight. The 1.83-meter (6-foot) Leapai defeated the previously unbeaten Denis Boytsov in November to become the WBOs mandatory challenger. Air Max Schuhe Sale . According to a report from the Winnipeg Free Press, the Bombers will name Acting GM Kyle Walters to the post full time. Jonathan Marchessault returns to Tampa Bay on Tuesday night as the leading scorer of his new team, the rival Florida Panthers. But the 25-year-old winger certainly doesnt have an ax to grind with the Lightning, grateful for what they did for him, but also gratified that he made the right decision to leave this summer in order to find a more stable gig.That was the biggest thing, just wanted to be a guy that could play all his games in the NHL and be able to show what he can do, Marchessault said Monday afternoon over the phone. When I talked to Florida management, they told me they saw me in a bigger role and able to play in all the games and on a good line. Thats just what I wanted, is to play more in the NHL.He would have been penciled in for a third-line role with Florida this season, which was fine for him, but a long-term injury to Jonathan Huberdeau has opened up first-line duty, and Marchessault has responded with two goals and two assists in two games to open the season.Panthers GM Tom Rowe coached against Marchessault in the AHL during the years, so he knew the player. Last season, Rowe and Panthers coach Gerard Gallant were at a Lightning game in Tampa when Marchessault was discussed.I told Gerard, If the opportunity ever presented itself, hes a kid we [are] going to target come free agency, Rowe said over the phone Tuesday. A lot of us here had done research on him. We always liked his skill, on top of that, we liked how he competed.Marchessault is playing on a line with center?Aleksander Barkov and winger?Jaromir Jagr. OK, then.I think those two guys could find chemistry with pretty much anyone, said Marchessault, chuckling. Im just happy to be able to be on their line and be successful right now. Every game, were trying to know how each other plays.His early season success is no surprise to his old coach in Tampa.Coached against him enough in the minors to know he was a scoring threat every time he was on the ice, Lightning head coach Jon Cooper said Monday night via text message. Special skills when he is around the net. Needed to raise his competition [level] and he did ... that is why he is a regular noow.dddddddddddd. Great locker room guy as well ... has some swag!Marchessault has a certain kind of confidence, which he probably needs, given that he was never drafted and that hes 5-foot-8, 184 pounds.Hes got good hands but hes also cocky -- in a good way, said another Eastern Conference coach. He believes in himself. He was stuck in Tampa behind [Jonathan] Drouin, [Nikita] Kucherov and [Ryan] Callahan?on the right side, thats not easy.He was stuck, period, behind a lot of guys in Tampa.Theyve had the same 11 forwards for most of the last three years, said Marchessault, who appeared in 45 games with the Lightning last season, putting up 18 points. Its just a really good group of hockey players and it was hard to be in the lineup every night.So when free agency beckoned this summer, he looked for a better opportunity.[The Lightning] had salary-cap concerns but it was never a question of money for me, it was a question to play more in the NHL, said Marchessault, who signed a two-year deal worth $750,000 a year with the Panthers. I loved Tampa, theyre a world-class organization, the coaching staff, teammates, everything was unreal over there. Its just about thinking about your career a bit more and thats what I did this summer.Its not like Lightning GM Steve Yzerman didnt want him back, because he likes the player. But its an example yet again of the salary-cap system and its impact, organizations cant horde talent, they can only keep so many guys. So while the Bolts saw the talent in Marchessault when most other teams did not, theyre so loaded up front that keeping him as a depth guy was a luxury they couldnt have.As for Marchessault, hes out to prove hes not a fringe player but a player who can produce in the NHL.I mean, I was never drafted in the NHL, I was only drafted 12th round in junior hockey. Nobody really expected me to be productive, he said. I just keep surprising people. I always produced in the AHL. I just never really got the chance and I knew I would deliver if I ever got it. ' ' '