what happened to...the toronto raptors (pt. 1)

The Toronto Raptors have experienced quite a fall from grace over these past few years. 

Is it crazy to say that just three years ago they were at the top of the sporting world, having just won an NBA championship over Stephen Curry’s Golden State Warriors, a magical dynasty of its own, and the poster boys of sport in Canada for their grit, determination and ultimate victory. 

The tumultuous events that would follow would mark the end of the Raptors mini dynasty which saw superstars come and go, coaches enter the building and then get fired, and draft busts galore walk onto the court only to fade away into ultimate obscurity. Now, the Raptors are on the heels of a victory over the New York Knicks, a liqueur that has run dry this season, and head out to the Western Conference where the lamb that is the Raptors is about to get slaughtered by the likes of Booker, Curry and Sabonis. 

HERE'S HOW I LOOK AT THE RAPTORS' PAST FEW SEASONS

THE RISE:

I remember the rise of the Toronto Raptors as being a large part of my youth, and why wouldn’t they? After waddling away in eternal mediocrity for the large part of 20 years, they had finally begun to shift a corner with Derozan and Lowry, a soon to be all-star backcourt that would carry the team to its first playoff appearance since the times of Vince Carter in 2001. That first playoff series, playing against the Brooklyn Nets, a team that traded away the lottery draft picks to assemble one of the first super “big threes” the league had ever seen (that’s not to say that trade would have disastrous consequences for the future trajectory of their franchise), the Raptors took the series the distance, to seven games, only to lose in the final minute of the final game on the final play, where Kyle Lowry put up a driving layup only to find it “blocked by Pierce” to end the game. This loss marked the beginning of a new Raptors era where the high skies of the NBA playoffs were to become a mainstay of April in the hearts of Raptors fans and was seen by all as the beginning of something new, something better, a young team with a dynamic duo of stars, on the rise. The future was bright.

THE RISE CONTINUED:

The rise continued, but it was not without the brutal years where our city became known as Lebronto thanks to the brutal losses at the hand of our friend, who some consider to be the Goat, Lebron James. And boy, were those losses brutal. Following a series sweep at the hands of the Washington Wizards, where Paul Pierce became synonymous with the evil Jafar from Aladdin in the eyes of all Candians, the Raptors endured an even worse fate at the hands of Lebron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers. Lebron had won championships with the Miami Heat but had recently returned to his hometown Cavaliers to bring a championship to the city of Cleveland and state of Ohio, which he loved. Unfortunately, in order to do so, he would have to destroy the raptors, crush the souls and dreams of Raptors fans year in and year out, until the championship returned to Cleveland. A moment that stands out to exemplify Lebronto in all its glory is Game 3 of the 2019 eastern conference semis, in which Lebron hit  a game winner to ice the series and all but send the Cavs to the next round and the Raps skidding home. It was a beauty of a shot, one I clearly remember, flying over the outstretched arm of OG Anunoby and off the backboard before falling into the hoop. You could hear the stadium explode, the fans cry, and the Raptors sulk off the court at a shot “that wasn’t their fault.” Tie your laces and cut your rations boys, because nothing could have been about that beauty. The Cavs would eventually get swept in the finals. All in all, the Raptors would lose to the Cavs three times in five years en route to their championship. Those years were brutal.

THE TOP OF THE SPORTING WORLD

Stay tuned for part 2 where we will dive into the next era of Raptors Basketball where the Raptors climb from mediocrity to contenders. Part 2, the Kawhi Era, will be released shortly.