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PLAYA VISTA, Calif. -- On Saturday, the NBPA held a screening in the weight room of the Los Angeles Clippers practice facility, administering EKGs and blood pressure tests, echocardiograms, a consultation with multiple physicians and cardiologists, and orthopedic evaluations to more than 40 former players.The extensive testing, which can take several weeks to schedule and get results under normal circumstances, lasted roughly an hour-and-a-half to two hours, with results on the spot.The players association had screened more than 100 players heading into Saturday, with previous stops in Houston (the inaugural screening), Detroit, Atlanta, Orlando and Las Vegas. Trips to Dallas and New York are scheduled in the coming weeks.Although the sample size isnt substantive enough to draw serious conclusions -- the NBPA believes it will take at least another year of testing to form takeaways -- the impact of the players association being proactive, not reactive, in assessing disease and illness in retired players has been significant.Every screening weve come to, Ive had several retired players talk to me on the side or email us at the union and say, Thank you for putting this together. We really appreciate it, said Joe Rogowski, the players union director of sports medicine and research. They know that the players union cares for them. Even though theyre not part of the union anymore, the fact that were still looking out for them means a lot to them.Several retirees told ESPN.com that its difficult to deal with the feelings of disconnection and isolation that affect players after their careers are over. Through the outreach to former players and free screenings, some retired players are beginning to feel included again.Sometimes when you retire, you feel like you get kicked to the curb and you dont matter anymore, said Michael Cage, a 15-year NBA veteran who retired in 2000. It can be cruel and a cold feeling. Its like being disconnected from The Matrix. All of this energy is running through your body. Youre feeling vibrant and alive and healthy, and then all of the sudden, the cord gets pulled, and youre on your own.Youve gotta go. Youre not part of The Matrix anymore.Cage, who is currently a broadcast analyst for the Oklahoma City Thunder, flew from Oklahoma City to be screened in Los Angeles. Others traveled from as far as Seattle, Phoenix and San Jose, as well as from all over southern California.After the deaths of Darryl Dawkins and Moses Malone last fall, there has been a heightened awareness around the league and among retired players regarding their post-career health risks, particularly high blood pressure, high cholesterol, obesity, diabetes, heart attacks and strokes.Showing up here today will save some guys lives, Cage said.For Cage, the death of Sean Rooks, who died July 7 because of a heart attack and was nearly a decade younger than Cage, hit home and shook him enough to be seen.That has certainly been on my mind, Cage said. Ive also looked at the long-term aspects of preventative health care. I like living well. When I played ball, I was known as the Iron man along with A.C. Green. I played in 736 consecutive games.I play basketball two or three times per week at 54. Ive been blessed that I havent had any surgeries or broken bones, but when you look internally into your body, thats a different story. Thats what this is all about. Its to help guys like myself, who want to be told where our health stands and what we can do to improve the quality of our life.According to several physicians on site, there is no concrete evidence that players are at risk after a certain age or at a certain height. Still, its clear that there is some correlation between heart disease and high blood pressure among NBA players, especially African-American players.The African-American population is a little bit higher instance of undetected or higher blood pressure, said Michael Emery, assistant professor of clinical medicine at Indiana University. With a higher prevalence of African-Americans playing basketball and in this cohort, thats something of definite consideration and concern for these athletes.The fact that many of the former players who have died from heart-related diseases were close to 7 feet tall isnt lost on the players, which makes testing and collecting data on as many players as possible so vital.Whats happened as weve seen a large number of our players have died at a young age, its been from heart problems, said Keith Erickson, a 12-year NBA veteran who retired in 1977. But we havent put that together. We havent really figured out that its a problem for taller people. Theyre starting to study that now, and thats part of the reason why theyre doing all this testing.Theyre going to be looking and seeing if they can help us be more aware of that, so that the really tall people make sure they get in here and get tested.Cage, who claims his family is his primary motivation to live longer, has become something of an activist on the issue lately, urging his fellow retirees to be seen by a physician as soon as possible, even if theyre reluctant.I want to encourage guys to go this, Cage said. You dont have to sit at home and suffer. You dont have to feel like no one cares. You dont have to worry about health care. This is a pre-screening where you have real cardiologists, real doctors, real orthopedic surgeons. You can do blood work. Do it. Its free. You dont hear that often when you retire. Its free. Thats one of my favorite words.Information from ESPN Senior Writers J.A. Adande and Jackie MacMullan was used in this report. 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The second-seeded Murray, a two-time Rogers Cup champion, was playing his second match since his Wimbledon victory. The loss ended the Scots winning streak at 13 matches. Rafael Nadal won his third round match, beating Polands Jerzy Janowicz 7-6 (6), 6-4. Nadal, the fourth-seeded Spanish star making his first tournament appearance since losing in the first round at Wimbledon, improved his ATP Tour-leading record to 45-3 -- including 7-0 on hardcourts. "I had a very good victory today against a very difficult opponent," Nadal said about the 6-foot-8 Janowicz. "I did a few things well during the match, a few things that I need to improve a little bit more. His serve is huge. His forehand and backhand can be very dangerous. "When he plays with a little bit of regular shots, he will become a very difficult player to beat. If he is able to maintain the right level during whole match he will be a player that will be in the very top positions." The Rogers Cup winner in 2005 and 2008, Nadal will face Australias Marinko Matosevic, a 7-6 (7), 6-7 (10), 6-3 winner over Frances Benoit Paire. Defending champion Novak Djokovic played later Thursday. After ousting Canadian Frank Dancevic in the second round, Janowicz felt he couldve given Nadal more of a battle had he served better. "Actually Im upset a little bit," he said. "I didnt practise at all after Hamburg, so I didnt play tennis for two weeks. "Im still quite happy I was able to get three matches here.dddddddddddd. Thats most important for me, to get as many matches as possible before the U.S. Open. Today, even without my best game, without especially my first serve, I was able to fight." Nadal won the Rogers Cup in 2005, his first hardcourt victory, and in 2008. In another early match, Bosnian-born Australian Marinko Matosevic, who got into the main draw as a qualifier, celebrated his 28th birthday with a 7-6 (7), 6-7 (10), 6-3 win over Benoit Paire of France. "Unbelievable match," said Matosevic, who caught a break in the second round when his 10th-seeded opponent Tommy Haas retired with a shoulder injury. "I knew it would be a special win on my birthday." But up next is Nadal, who beat Matosevic 6-1, 6-2 on clay in Monte Carlo this year. "Im not happy about that after playing two-and-a-half hours," said Matosevic. "Im sure hell make me run. "And he beat me pretty easily in Monte Carlo. Hes one of the greatest payers and a credit to tennis. Its great to see him back playing and healthy." Matosevic also reached the quarter-finals last week in Washington, where he beat Canadas Milos Raonic in the third round before losing to Dmitry Tursunov. Defending champion Novak Djokovic is in action later Thursday, as are the two Canadians left in the draw, Raonic and Vasek Pospisil. Raonic takes on sixth-seeded Juan Martin Del Potro while Pospisil faces fifth-seeded Tomas Berdych. Its the first time two Canadians have reached the third round of Canadas top mens tennis tournament since Chris Pridham and Greg Rusedski in 1992. ' ' '