The Toronto Raptors are a professional basketball team based in Toronto. The team belongs to the Eastern Conference in the Atlantic Division of the National Basketball Association. They share Scotiabank Arena with the Toronto Maple Leafs of the National Hockey League (NHL). Under the leadership of Masai Ujiri, the Raptors have enjoyed the most success in franchise history, winning the NBA Championship in 2019, the eastern conference title, and several division titles.
1. After acquiring Kawhi Leonard (who now plays for the Los Angeles Clippers), the Raptors won their first Eastern Conference title in the 2019 playoffs, and they advanced to their first NBA Finals… where they finally won their first NBA championship.
2. The Raptors are the only NBA team in Canada.
3. The Canadian national media introduced the Raptors team name on May 15, 1994: the choice influenced by the popularity of the 1993 film adaptation of Michael Crichton’s 1990 science fiction novel Jurassic Park.
4. In 1995, the Raptors became the first NBA franchise based in Canada, along with the Western Conference’s Vancouver Grizzlies (the Grizzlies moved to Memphis).
5. The Raptors struggled in their early days as a new franchise. Still, on March 24, 1996, the Toronto Raptors beat Michael Jordan and the bulls 109 to 108 in the most important victory for the young franchise (MJ hit a shot a few milliseconds after the final buzzer, but it was too late), shocking the basketball world at the time. The Bulls went on to win the NBA Championship that year.
6. Michael Jordan finished the game with 36 points.
7. Damon Stoudamire of the Raptors scored 30 points and recorded 11 assists, knocking down six out of his eight three-point attempts.
8. Who owns NBA Raptors? The Toronto Raptors is owned by Larry Tanenbaum, Rogers Communications, and BCE – the same ownership group (Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment) that owns the Toronto Maple Leafs and other sports clubs in the city.
9. Does Drake own part of the Raptors? Many people ask this question, and the simple answer is no. Drake is simply an Ambassador of the team, and no, he doesn’t get paid by the team directly, but he gets a lot of exposure.
10. What are the Raptors worth? Sports experts estimate the Raptors to be one of the most valuable teams in the NBA, worth approximately USD 2.55 billion.
11. After being selected fifth in the 1998 NBA draft, Vince Carter spent his first six seasons in the NBA with the Raptors.
12. The Toronto Raptors reached their first three playoffs with Vince Carter leading the team.
13. During the 2012 off-season, the Raptors acquired Kyle Lowry in a trade with the Houston Rockets. He is the most accomplished player in Raptor’s history.
14. At the end of the 2017-18 season, DeMar DeRozan set a franchise record by scoring 52 points against the Milwaukee Bucks, the third player to attain 50 or more points in a single game.
15. Toronto’s professional squad used to be called the Toronto Huskies before entering the NBA. However, due to their losing record against the New York Knicks and low attendance in the 1940s, the team folded, and Toronto would not see another basketball team until 1995.
16. A courtside seat on Ticketmaster sells for over $60,000.
17. Due to the crowd, the parade was delayed by three hours. Nevertheless, it was the largest gathering in Canadian history (over 2 million).
18. We would be remiss if we didn’t shout out Nav Bhatia, the biggest Raptors fan. He has never missed a home game. The Raptors gave Nav a championship ring of his own as a sign of their love for him.