Raptors raise championship banner
but few hopes of another
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[October 23, 2019]
By Steve Keating
TORONTO (Reuters) - Before the start of
a new NBA campaign on Tuesday the Toronto Raptors and their fans
spent the final few moments before tip-off basking in last season's
glory by unfurling a championship banner and collecting diamond
encrusted rings.
Then they went to work.
The Raptors needed to put in overtime to see off the New Orleans
Pelicans 130-122 but the result was enough to keep the party rolling
a little while longer.
Rarely in sport has so little been expected from a team that just
four months ago accomplished so much, bringing an NBA championship
to Canada for the first time.
In June nearly 2 million fans clogged Toronto streets for a victory
parade but on Tuesday, as the banner was hoisted to the rafters, few
hopes were being raised along with it.
"One last nice celebration for everybody," summed up Raptors coach
Nick Nurse. "I think it is cool to have that piece of history
certainly for this generation and for the next generation that every
time they come in to a game or event and they are going to look up
and see that (banner)."
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There is little talk of a championship repeat in the NBA's most
northern outpost, in a matter of weeks fans have lowered the bar and
their expectations to the point where simply making the playoffs
would be an acceptable result.
Many oddsmakers have set the defending champions a 30-1 longshot to
retain their crown with a dozen or more teams ranked ahead of them.
That is what happens in the NBA when a team loses its best player
like Toronto did when finals MVP Kawhi Leonard signed with the Los
Angeles Clippers.
With Leonard on board the Clippers are now the oddsmakers choice.
What Toronto has been left with is a good team.
But in the NBA good teams are not good enough. If a team is to
contend they need a great player. Or two.
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![](../images/102319PIX/sports51.jpg)
Raptors superfan Nav Bhatia during a press conference at halftime of
a game against the New Orleans Pelicans where the team presented him
a championship ring at Scotiabank Arena. Toronto defeated New
Orleans in overtime. Mandatory Credit: John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY
Sports
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When Leonard agreed to sign with the Clippers it was only after they
had acquired fellow all-star Paul George.
That came after Anthony Davis decided to partner up with LeBron
James and the Los Angeles Lakers while the Houston Rockets landed
Russell Westbrook to go with James Harden.
"I don't really like to live with a chip on my shoulder I just flip
it and say it is more of a chance to prove ourselves," said Nurse.
"I see this as a tremendous opportunity for our organization, our
coaching staff, for a lot of players.
"I keep saying there are some really special guys on this team."
Not participating in the free agent musical chairs, the Raptors
instead decided to spend their money rewarding Pascal Siakam, the
NBA's most improved player award winner, with a four-year, $130
million contract extension.
While the lanky 25-year-old Cameroonian, who only seriously started
playing basketball eight years ago, has shown plenty of upside, the
Raptors are still gambling he can blossom into a top drawer player.
Siakam has taken on the assignment with gusto and a smile finishing
the opener with 34 points and 18 rebounds before fouling out late in
the fourth quarter.
"He (Siakam) was carrying us there for lots of stretches," assessed
Nurse. "We had to go to him time-and-time again there in stretches
and he produced."
(Editing by Christian Schmollinger)
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