Toronto Raptors look to build off fan excitement and last year’s success

TORONTO – It was nearly three hours before the opening tip and Conrad Yu and Apoorva Keocar had already made their way to Maple Leaf Square just outside the Air Canada Centre.

It’s not the first time the University of Waterloo students and self-proclaimed diehard fans have made the 90-minute trip home for a Raptors season opener. Looking around at the hundreds of others dressed in Raptors apparel who also came downtown early, however, they admit there’s something different about this season. There's a renewed excitement surrounding their favourite team.

“This year, with all the hype, everything seems right,” Yu said.

And Koecar agrees.

“It’s a good time for the city,” he said. “People are out supporting the Raptors. Two or three years ago nobody even knew about the Raptors.”

Okay, perhaps a slight over-exaggeration, but you can understand where he’s coming from.

Toronto is a hockey-first city, and the Raptors always have – and likely always will – played second fiddle to the Maple Leafs. But inside the ACC just minutes prior to Wednesday’s opener you could have been convinced otherwise.

When point guard Kyle Lowry, fresh off signing a new four-year $48 million contract extension over the summer, stepped to the centre of court to welcome back the fans and kick off the franchise’s 20th anniversary season with a short speech, he was quickly drowned out by cheers, left to simply stand in silence and smile.

“There’s definitely a lot of excitement,” Amir Johnson said before the game. “I’ve seen the best and worst of this franchise. Some people would say Toronto is back with a little bit more life this year and it’s definitely something to play for and be happy about.”

A lot has changed in a year.

While some were optimistic, albeit cautiously, about a return to the playoffs last season, less than two months into the year the Raptors looked to be heading in the opposite direction and taking their first steps towards a rebuild.

Masai Ujiri traded Rudy Gay, the team’s marquee player, to the Sacramento Kings and days later reportedly had a deal in place to send Lowry to the New York Knicks until it was vetoed by Knicks owner James Dolan.

But amidst all the talk of ‘tanking’ and giving themselves the best shot at drafting Canadian sensation Andrew Wiggins – the worst of it may have come just before the Gay trade when the team blew a 27-point fourth quarter lead in a loss to Golden State – the Raptors surprisingly turned their season around.

DeRozan was named to his first all-star team, Lowry began to thrive as the leader – and pulse – of the team’s offence, Terrence Ross and Jonas Valanciunas made strides as sophomores in the league and Patrick Patterson, Greivis Vasquez, John Salmons and Chuck Hayes – all players acquired from Sacramento in exchange for Gay – gave the Raptors much-needed depth off the bench.

A team that was 6-12 before moving Gay ended the year atop the Atlantic Division with a franchise-record 48 wins and nearly fought off a more experienced Brooklyn Nets team in the first round of the playoffs before falling in Game 7.

But a division title is no longer an accomplishment to hang your hat on, it’s now an expectation.

And Wednesday the Raptors took the first step towards defending that crown with a 109-102 victory over the Atlanta Hawks in their season opener, a game that saw seven Toronto players score in double digits including DeRozan, who struggled shooting just 4-for-16 from the field, but still led the team with 17 points and set personal career highs in rebounds (11) and steals (6).

“Of course we want to get back to where we were [last season,]” said Johnson, who provided 16 points and 10 rebounds in a gritty performance. “But we just have to stay level headed. [Our captains let everyone] know that there’s a time to play and a time to be serious. We definitely emphasize that point.”