Toronto Raptors to become more popular than the Leafs?

[mikecubs]

Toronto Raptors more popular than Maple Leafs? Not as far-fetched as it sounds
Sport’s popularity on the rise in Canada thanks to changing demographics and growing leagues

The familiar sounds of balls swishing through the nets and high tops squeaking on the court filter out of HoopDome on a busy October night. The Downsview Park basketball facility is bustling with players all working on their game.

And it’s a game that’s booming in Canada.

“Within 10 years, the Raptors are going to be the most popular team,” outgoing MLSE CEO Tim Leiweke told a group of Ryerson students last month.

“They will be more popular than the Leafs in Toronto. Promise you.”
On the surface, it seemed like a statement that can be dismissed as hype — Canada lives and breathes hockey, after all — but if you dig deeper, it’s easy to see the logic behind the Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment president’s prediction.

As the Raptors begin their 20th season Wednesday night at the Air Canada Centre, four months after their playoff run captured the city’s imagination, it’s clear Canada’s only NBA team is at the centre of a perfect storm.

At all levels, from amateur leagues to the NBA, the sport’s popularity is growing in Canada, thanks to factors like a new wave of top-shelf Canadian NBA talent, changing demographics and a shift away from hockey because of rising costs and injury rates.

The 2013 and 2014 NBA overall top draft picks of two Toronto-born players, Anthony Bennett and Andrew Wiggins, ushered in a new era. Canada has a record 12 players on NBA rosters this season, the most of any country outside the U.S. A number of the Canadians in the league, mostly from the GTA, have mentioned the impact of watching Vince Carter play for the Raptors while he was in his jaw-dropping prime.

“A lot of (the popularity) is driven by the fact that this is the first generation of kids who’ve grown up with a team in the country,” says Dan MacKenzie, vice-president and general manager of NBA Canada.

Basketball is a “youthful sport,” he says, adding 57 per cent of NBA fans are under the age of 35.

Seeing Canadians like two-time MVP Steve Nash in the NBA “gives hope” to aspiring young players in Canada, says Toronto-based trainer Jayson Prince.

Prince, who trains youth aged eight to 19, has seen an increase in demand for training in recent years; a “chain effect” from kids seeing familiar faces making it big. Players used to be predominantly black, he adds — but now there are more youth from different cultures hitting the court.

That rise in player diversity speaks to Canada’s changing demographics, which is helping fuel an influx of basketball fans.

At his Ryerson talk, Leiweke noted the demo of the young, passionate crowd in Maple Leaf Square during the playoff run and that half of the people living in Toronto were born outside Canada.

“It takes you one second to figure out where this is all going, and I think that’s going to be about basketball and soccer,” he said.
MacKenzie said around 250,000 people immigrate to Canada every year from China and the Philippines, two countries where basketball is the number one sport.

“They’re helping to fuel the growth of our fan base,” he added.While the NHL is still No. 1 in all youth demographics, the NBA ranks second among new Canadian youth and those living in Toronto and Vancouver, according to the 2014 Canadian Youth Sports Report.

The fan and player base is getting stronger every year, and not just on the men’s side, says Michele O’Keefe, executive director of Canada Basketball, which oversees the provincial sport bodies.

“We had two women drafted into the WNBA this year,” she says.

O’Keefe played basketball for decades and coached at the club, high school and university levels. Back in her high school days in the early 1980s there were only a handful of Canadian basketball clubs. Now she says there are over 230.

Tony McIntyre has seen similar growth within his Brampton-based developmental organization CIA Bounce, from “a couple teams” at the league’s start around nine years ago to 15 teams today.


At the amateur player level, hockey registration is sluggish. Around 235,900 players were registered in the 2012-2013 Ontario Hockey Federation season, only a slight increase from the just over 233,400 registered in 2008-2009.

Experts are pointing the finger at maxed-out facilities and growing concern over the sport’s cost and injury rates.

In September, Leiweke said a majority of the NHL players are coming from rural areas: places with rinks everywhere, where the history and traditions of hockey are ingrained in the community. But players aren’t developing in heavily populated urban centres to the same degree.

“You look today in Toronto and name me one place in an urban area where they’re building ice rinks right now,” Leiweke said.

He mentioned that if Nazem Kadri is the only non-white player on the Leafs this year, that will eventually be a problem because the team doesn’t represent what the city is becoming.Phillip McKee, executive director at the Ontario Hockey Federation, says “hockey is pretty stagnant” right now, and agrees that at-capacity hockey facilities are partly to blame.

With so many headlines about concussions and costs in recent years, it’s not surprising that some parents may be wary about enrolling their kids in a league.

Hockey ranked sixth on the 2014 Canadian Youth Sports Report’s list of sports perceived as most likely to result in injuries, while basketball didn’t even crack the top 10. In the same report, popular team sports such as basketball, volleyball and soccer cost 25 to 50 per cent less than the average. Hockey came in as the second most expensive of all 44 sports studied, with an annual average cost of $1,666.

Mike Jonathan, a Raptors fan who shoots hoops in a men’s league at HoopDome three to five nights a week, describes a different scene in his sport.

“All you need is a ball,” he says.

www.thestar.com/sports/raptors/2014/10/28/toronto_raptors_more_popular_than_maple_leafs_not_as_farfetched_as_it_sounds.html#

[mikecubs]

I don't think there's any chance the what so ever the Raptors will be more popular than the leafs in 10 years BUT 30-50 if immigration trends continue? Don't bet against it!

Also while Vancouver is still too small for NBA/NHL right now(throw in the sinking Canadian dollar too)Vancouver in the future absolutely WILL be able to support the NBA when you consider

1.the growth rate

2. the growth rate is mostly coming from Asians.

I also don't think there's any doubt the Raptors are Toronto's number 2 team. Jays are a sinking ship when you consider

1. they have the longest playoff drought in just not MLB but in freaking pro sports!!!

2. they have a depressing dome from another era and unlike Oakland/Tampa they are going to try and renovate the old pig instead of trying to building a retro park. So basically in a few years if things go right Toronto will have the last bad ballpark in MLB without any desire of a replacement. What a lovely combination no playoffs+a relic from the failed era of cookie cutter stadiums!!!! I'm sure all those immigrants will be racing to buy Jays tickets so they can sit 40 million miles away from the field due to the awful circular shape of the seating bowl!

[mikecubs]

NHL better NOT take Canada for granted and assume they have it conquered forever.

Something for the NHL to consider. Instead of trying to "grow the game" in places like Miami/Phoenix through massive amounts of revenue sharing wouldn't it be better to perhaps use some of that $$$ to buy equiptment for minorities in Canada so they play hockey? NHL could really end up with egg of it's face IF

1. 20-30 years from now they still can't sell hockey in the south(mostly)
2. The NBA sneaks into Canada under their noses and they lose future fans/minorites to the NBA while spending all that money in the south US.

[Bruinsfan]

Oct 30, 2014 14:36:20 GMT -6 mikecubs said:

NHL better NOT take Canada for granted and assume they have it conquered forever.

Something for the NHL to consider. Instead of trying to "grow the game" in places like Miami/Phoenix through massive amounts of revenue sharing wouldn't it be better to perhaps use some of that $$$ to buy equiptment for minorities in Canada so they play hockey? NHL could really end up with egg of it's face IF

1. 20-30 years from now they still can't sell hockey in the south(mostly)
2. The NBA sneaks into Canada under their noses and they lose future fans/minorites to the NBA while spending all that money in the south US.

I agree with this, the best way to grow the game is to show that everyone plays...not just in canada, buy equipment for minorities in places like New England, Milwaukee, Minneapolis, hell even texas and California


Let hockey die in bad pro sports markets and Miami and Phoenix are BAD pro sports markets...at least for their local teams

[Deleted]

They said the same thing about baseball 25 years ago when the Blue Jays were competing for the MLB title. It never happened. Once the Leafs have a good team, hockey will be the undisputed champion.

[mikecubs]

^^^ That could very well. But the demographics are certainly changing. Bare minimum the Raptors will at least gain quite a bit of ground. Look at how much they have already gained and the Raptors have mostly sucked other than last year and a few of the Vince Carter years. You can maybe flip things around and say what if the Raptors ever won something significant? I don't really like the jays comparison though because when you look back to 25 years ago the Jays had the misfortune of building the last circular ballpark. That was their big downfall. Unlike the Jays the Raptors play in a modern facility and aren't playing with a handicap and if Air Canada ever becomes outdated they'd easily be able to fund a new arena given that there are 2 popular teams and Toronto is huge and has a lot of corporations and $$$$.

[mikecubs]

Oct 30, 2014 19:09:23 GMT -6 Bruinsfan said:

Oct 30, 2014 14:36:20 GMT -6 mikecubs said:

NHL better NOT take Canada for granted and assume they have it conquered forever.

Something for the NHL to consider. Instead of trying to "grow the game" in places like Miami/Phoenix through massive amounts of revenue sharing wouldn't it be better to perhaps use some of that $$$ to buy equiptment for minorities in Canada so they play hockey? NHL could really end up with egg of it's face IF

1. 20-30 years from now they still can't sell hockey in the south(mostly)
2. The NBA sneaks into Canada under their noses and they lose future fans/minorites to the NBA while spending all that money in the south US.

I agree with this, the best way to grow the game is to show that everyone plays...not just in canada, buy equipment for minorities in places like New England, Milwaukee, Minneapolis, hell even texas and California


Let hockey die in bad pro sports markets and Miami and Phoenix are BAD pro sports markets...at least for their local teams

Miami and Phoenix aren't that bad of sports markets but the absolutely suck for hockey. Suns have usually draw above league average and are a top 15 franchise in value, Diamondbacks draw ok and are about to sign a massive tv deal, Cardinals have sold out every game at the new stadium(though they list the attendance below the capacity). As long as you have the theory the Cardinals attendance at the old stadium SHOULDN'T be counted since the stadium sucked Phoenix is ok. If you don't buy that theory Phoenix is a bad market because you could never redeem that bad of attendance even if you sold out for the next 100 years.

Dolphins usually average over league capacity the last 24 years. People make too big of a deal about the non-sellouts. Only reason they haven't sold out recently is the capacity was too big and those upper deck seats they are removing were the worst seats in the league.

Miami Heat are a top 10 franchise value wise and that's not just because of Lebron. Name 10 franchise you consider more valuable that the heat. Enough said.

Marlins have been horrible but look at the circumstances. They have never had a real ballpark and real owner simultaneously EVER.

Milwaukee is too small to care about and if the Bucks get a new arena that kills NHL pretty much FOREVER but I like your idea for those other cities.

[NHLWinnipeg]

Nice to see Leiweke spent a few weeks in Canada.

[Deleted]

Oct 30, 2014 21:51:06 GMT -6 mikecubs said:

^^^ That could very well. But the demographics are certainly changing. Bare minimum the Raptors will at least gain quite a bit of ground. Look at how much they have already gained and the Raptors have mostly sucked other than last year and a few of the Vince Carter years. You can maybe flip things around and say what if the Raptors ever won something significant? I don't really like the jays comparison though because when you look back to 25 years ago the Jays had the misfortune of building the last circular ballpark. That was their big downfall. Unlike the Jays the Raptors play in a modern facility and aren't playing with a handicap and if Air Canada ever becomes outdated they'd easily be able to fund a new arena given that there are 2 popular teams and Toronto is huge and has a lot of corporations and $$$$.

Not happening.

The demographics have changed dramatically in the last 25 years, and hockey is still the undisputed king. Caucasians are the minority in Toronto, and hockey is still #1. That will never change. The Raptors are not even in the same league as the Leafs, and will never be.

PS...You are incorrect about the Blue Jays. From the time the SkyDome was opened in 1989, until the strike of 1994, the place was usually sold out. It has very little to do with the design of the ballpark. When the Blue Jays were challenging for first place, the place was packed. When the Jays have stunk, nobody goes to see them. If what you are saying about changing demographics are ture, it would have first been noticed in MLS soccer, with the Toronto FC. Unfortunately, after beginning with high demand and sellouts, the team rarely ever gets capacity crowds.

The Raptors are popular right now because they finished with their second best season ever in 2013-14, and nearly won an exciting 7 game series. The same thing happened in 2000-01 when Vince Carter was leading the team to their first playoff victory. They were popular, but never even close to the Leafs. The NHL will always be #1 in Canada. Some "experts" said when the NFL came to Toronto, it would rival hockey in popularity, but it was a complete failure, when the Bills were playing here.

[mikecubs]

Ya, the Jays were popular at 1st when the Dome opened until about 98. Then it went south. Once retro parks started springing up around MLB(and the Jays stopped winning) fans figured out their experience wasn't exactly the same as fans were getting in the states. Jays are the hardest team to be a fan of in MLB. No winning and the worst ballpark experience other than Oakland/Tampa. At least Oakland/Tampa want to improve themselves. The Jays don't.

The thing with the Raptors is this isn't just bandwagon jumping. Raptors have been popular for their almost entire existence. They've finished above league average attendance in 12 of 16 seasons, forbes for a while had them as the NBA's 10th most valuable team, now they have them middle of the packish.

As far as the demographics the metro is 53% white yet. Even with all the foreigners coming in the white population has held constant(in Toronto and Canada in general) so it's not really an overall lose for hockey yet. It's just that the overall % goes down due to immigration. But here's the problem. The white population in Canada is going to start outright DECLINING(not % wise from the influx of foreigners but in outright numbers). Canada only has a fertility rate of 1.6 kids per woman. The replacement level is 2.1. In the 2020's canada's population would start outright declining if it wasn't for immigration. Now that 1.6 counts EVERYONE in Canada. Obviously immigrants have higher fertility rates. But bear minimum it's safe to say from this generation to the next Canada will lose 1/4th of its white population. Now obviously it's not like none of the immigrants will not like NHL hockey or hockey in general. But still if you give them the choice between NBA vs. NHL which will they choose?

As far as MLS I can't answer that because I'm not a fan but it's good to hear people aren't going to MLS. They shouldn't. It's minor league. We will NEVER compete with Europe for the best players. Sports like NBA etc.. you don't have that problem.

I posted quite a few articles on here on how the NFL was a failure in Toronto. Problem was you guys have your own league. NFL won't work because of that.

[Deleted]

Oct 31, 2014 1:08:09 GMT -6 mikecubs said:

Ya, the Jays were popular at 1st when the Dome opened until about 98. Then it went south. Once retro parks started springing up around MLB(and the Jays stopped winning) fans figured out their experience wasn't exactly the same as fans were getting in the states. Jays are the hardest team to be a fan of in MLB. No winning and the worst ballpark experience other than Oakland/Tampa. At least Oakland/Tampa want to improve themselves. The Jays don't.

Unfortunately, you are not correct. As I stated, the Jays attendance was strong, starting in 1985, when they captured their first AL East pennant. They were a competetive team for the next decade or so, winning 2 World Series championships, and making the playoffs in 1985, 1989, 1991, 1992, 1993. From 1985-98, the Jays managed to attract over 30,000 fans for an average game. They haven't done that before 1985, or after 1998 (until recently when they made an effort to field a winning team). It all depended on how the club performed, and have virtually nothing to do with the stadium.

www.baseball-almanac.com/teams/toroatte.shtml

Oct 31, 2014 1:08:09 GMT -6 mikecubs said:

The thing with the Raptors is this isn't just bandwagon jumping. Raptors have been popular for their almost entire existence. They've finished above league average attendance in 12 of 16 seasons, forbes for a while had them as the NBA's 10th most valuable team, now they have them middle of the packish.

The Raptors have never been that popular, compared to the Leafs, except when they are winning. The reason they sellout, is because there are over 6,000,000 people in the metro area. That is not unlike many NBA and NHL teams. The Raptors start to make big headlines when they are performing well. Other than 2000-2003, and just recently, I never heard too much about how the Raptors did on TSN or Rogers, or the Toronto based talk shows.

Oct 31, 2014 1:08:09 GMT -6 mikecubs said:

As far as the demographics the metro is 53% white yet. Even with all the foreigners coming in the white population has held constant(in Toronto and Canada in general) so it's not really an overall lose for hockey yet. It's just that the overall % goes down due to immigration. But here's the problem. The white population in Canada is going to start outright DECLINING(not % wise from the influx of foreigners but in outright numbers).

First off, Toronto's population was 52.5% Caucasian in 2006, 50.2% in 2011, and went below 50% in 2012. My guess is the percentage of Caucasians is around 49% as of 2014. When you say "it's not really an overall loss for hockey yet," you are implying that you must be White to enjoy the game. Have you any idea how many East Indians, Chinese, Africans, etc. are Maple Leaf fans? 40% of Toronto's population was born outside of Canada, but they have certainly taken a liking to NHL hockey. In fact, HNIC is carried in Punjabi. I'm not sure if it is just me, but I don't see the "White" population declining in Toronto as a problem. There is no color barrier to watching hockey. Aboriginals have the highest birth rate in all of Canada, and most are big hockey fans. Most second generation Canadians from Asia are big hockey fans. But please, stop with the "you can only be white to appreciate hockey" argument. It is just silly.

Here are the demographics for 2011:

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demographics_of_Toronto

In the 2020's canada's population would start outright declining if it wasn't for immigration. Now that 1.6 counts EVERYONE in Canada. Obviously immigrants have higher fertility rates. But bear minimum it's safe to say from this generation to the next Canada will lose 1/4th of its white population. Now obviously it's not like none of the immigrants will not like NHL hockey or hockey in general. But still if you give them the choice between NBA vs. NHL which will they choose?

Again, you are turning this into a race issue, which it is not. In the last 20 years, Canada has more than doubled it's visible minority population, and most have become hockey fans.

As far as MLS I can't answer that because I'm not a fan but it's good to hear people aren't going to MLS. They shouldn't. It's minor league. We will NEVER compete with Europe for the best players. Sports like NBA etc.. you don't have that problem.

It defeats the whole purpose of your argument. You make the argument that the more immigrants we have, the more they should become basketball fans. However, with soccer, with is extremely popular with immigrants, you argue it's good that attendance is dropping? If what you are saying is correct, the Toronto FC games would be always sold-out, since the immigrant population keeps increasing.

I posted quite a few articles on here on how the NFL was a failure in Toronto. Problem was you guys have your own league. NFL won't work because of that.

Both leagues have not worked in Southern Ontario. The Argos and Ti-Cats can barely draw flies. The NFL games are not sold-out. It could be the market is just not cut out for football, in general.

PS...Just for the record, are you American, since you state "problem was you guys have your own league (CFL)." If you are, that could explain the fixation on race, since it seems to be more of an issue in America than in Canada. Skin color is less of an issue, and has always been less of an issue in Canada as opposed to the USA. That may explain why you think the NBA will match the NHL in several years. However, in Canada it does not work like that. I can't really speak for the USA, as I have never really been to a NHL game there.

[mikecubs]

1. Read my post CLOSELY. I said losing played a part too. The retro park crazy is credited with bringing baseball back. George Will has said other than Jackie Robinson breaking the color barrier it's the most important thing in MLB history. But yes winning and losing plays a big part too. Here's how it works. If you lose you get less attendance yes. No doubt. In any MLB market. But the drop offs aren't as severe. Basically what a retro park does is it raises your "floor" and "ceiling". Fact is 29 of the 30 teams are going to be playing in a retro park soon or an actual old historical park that's been renovated. The cookie cutter circular stadium was a failed model that nearly killed the sport. That's why it's not built anymore and Rogers Centre will be the only one left. Camden Yards changed the game. I'm not saying if the Jays had a retro park they'd 100% sell out forever. Teams in MLB rarely do that but what I'm saying is the Jays floor and ceiling would be raised with a real park.

Former Expos owner Charles Bronfman said it best. Baseball is a slow pastorial sport. A slow pastorial sport with a circular concrete monster doesn't work. This was a big reason why the Expos failed.

2. You are right. The Raptors haven't EVER been as popular as the Leafs and certainly won't be in 10 years like Liewke thinks. But my argument is they COULD be in the distant future(40-50 years). But I agree it's not like we will wake up tomorrow and find the Raptors are more popular. You are spot on on the 2nd part. While the Raptors have usually drawn well there's NEVER really been much buzz about them on talk shows etc.. except during the Vince Carter era.

3. Yes the actual city itself is minority. That's not what I'm arguing. But the metro area isn't (yet)

www12.statcan.gc.ca/nhs-enm/2011/dp-pd/prof/details/page.cfm?Lang=E&Geo1=CMA&Code1=535&Data=Count&SearchText=Toronto&SearchType=Begins&SearchPR=01&A1=Visible%20minority&B1=All&Custom=&TABID=1

The city stat is meaningless for any market. Metro is better, combined statistical area is best. I can't find the demographics for the actual golden horseshoe area, metro is best I can find.

As far as minorities not liking hockey that's not what I said. In my last post I said "Now obviously it's not like none of the immigrants will not like NHL hockey or hockey in general"

Of course there's going to be minorities that that are huge NHL fans. I see quite a few Asians at Canuck games. But overall the % isn't going to be as high as white people so that's a loss for hockey. What me/Liewke are arguing

a. The cost of hockey is expensive
b. Immigrants are more open to other sports and may like other sports better since they get the chance to play it(b-ball)
c. B-ball is the 2nd most popular sport in the world next to soccer. Other than Europe which isn't where your immigration is coming from hockey isn't played in places where these immigrants are coming from like China, Phillipines ect.... many of these immigrants that are coming are already B-ball fans and haven't been exposed to hockey. This gives B-ball a huge edge. Other sports will gain ground B-ball in particular. But it's not like hockey is going to shrivel up, die and blow away.

Do you have any stats on % minorities liking hockey to back up your claim that most immigrants like hockey? The impression I'm under is it's not nearly as high as the white population due to lack of exposure/costs.

4. I'm not arguing that immigrants should like B-ball better than hockey. For the record I really hope hockey is more popular than B-ball in Toronto forever. I'm just questioning with the demographic shifts if that actually will be the case. As far as MLS it's minor league. I think everyone realizes that(new immigrants+general population). If MLS was the best in the world it would be more of a threat to hockey like B-ball is due to how popular soccer is world wide. As much as I HATE soccer I'd argue that IF we had the best league in the states/Canada it would be the most popular sport in both countries eventually due to changing demographics and how soccer is the most popular sport world wide.

5. This is correct. Toronto sucks as a football town. Worst one on the planet. It's too split. Some prefer the NFL since it's "major league" and view the CFL as minor league others like the CFL and hate NFL because it's not your league. Plus you have the problem of the Dome sucking for both CFL and NFL. Dome is too big for CFL and creates a crappy empty atmosphere, and it's no where near good enough for NFL.

Yes, I'm an American. I agree race is more of an issue here than in Canada by far. Except for sports. Here is why. Our most popular sports are different than your most popular. In Canada hockey has always been king. In the states hockey is a nitch sport that is a distant 4th in the food chain. Our most popular sports are NFL,MLB, NBA in that order. Football isn't really played anywhere other than Canada throughout the world though it's becoming more popular in London due to the NFL games there. It does have a following in Latin American. NFL played a game in Mexico City in 2006 and it sold out. Overall though lots of minorities play football here despite football not being played worldwide.

Baseball is played throughout Latin America and SOME Asian countries(Japan, Korea, not China though). At least a 4th of the players are from Latin American countries. That's our number 1 sender of immigration.

B-ball is everywhere.

Hockey is just in Europe. Europe is in a demographic death spiral and not much of the immigration to the States or Canada is from Europe. Our main immigration comes from Latin America and China. Your's is from China, India, the Phillapines. Hockey isn't being played in those countries seriously.

PS. Don't confuse me for Lieweke. Lieweke is saying 10 years NBA will catch NHL in Toronto for 100% sure. I think there's 0 chance that happens. What I'm saying it MIGHT in several decades not several years but no 100% promises. But it's trending the wrong way for hockey. Lots of minority kids can't afford hockey and B-ball is popular in the county they came from. What I will say is NBA for 100% sure will be more popular as time goes on in Canada. Look at all the minority NBA players coming from Ontario all of a sudden. Back to back number 1 picks in the NBA draft. Things are changing. However right now there still is a BIG gap between NHL and NBA. Maple Leafs are an ELITE NHL franchise money/popularity wise, the Raptors are merely a good NBA franchise.

As far as me/Lieweke being fixated on race in this we aren't the only ones saying this. A decent amount of posters on HF boards who love hockey are saying the same thing. Read the thread.

hfboards.hockeysfuture.com/showthread.php?t=1762825

Now a wild card in all this is IF the NHL would be smart enough to start a program to buy minority kids hockey equipment. I suppose they might but NHL leadership isn't too bright and may think hockey has always been number 1 in Canada let's not worry about it and let the NBA sneak in under their nose. NHL is much more focused on the south and places like Miami/Phoenix and trying to make it work.

[Deleted]

[mikecubs]

Another MLSE executive doesn't rule out the Raptors becoming more popular!

Toronto Raptors have a chance to dethrone Maple Leafs as kings of the city

The Toronto Raptors recently passed the Toronto Maple Leafs in Facebook “likes.” The Raptors, as of Friday, were at 1,242,769; the Leafs were stuck at a lowly 1,183,594. All hail the new kings of the city.

Well, not quite. The usual qualifiers exist: Raptors’ fans skew young, and so do Facebook’s users; there are six other Canadian teams to compete with the Leafs for NHL devotion, and none for the Raptors to contend with; the Leafs’ television ratings (and those of the Blue Jays and Argonauts, for that matter) regularly dwarf the Raptors’ audience.

If the Facebook figure is flawed, though, so are television ratings in an age of online streaming and delayed viewing — two things which, again, young people are more likely to utilize than their parents. The Facebook fact means something, even if we do not exactly know what that is.

“It floored me. It floored me,” Maple Leafs Sports and Entertainment chief commercial officer Dave Hopkinson said about the Facebook statistic during a recent interview. MLSE owns both teams, along with Toronto FC and the Toronto Marlies. “I’m so proud of what we’ve done with the Raptors. As somebody who is also tasked with the brand health of the Maple Leafs, I found it troubling all at once. Emotionally, I was terribly conflicted about it.

“I think we’d be crazy to say that [the Raptors overtaking the Leafs in popularity] could never happen. We’re in a city that is driven by immigration. Fifty-one per cent of Torontonians were born outside of Canada. Basketball is a global sport in a way that hockey is not. Hockey is really a regional game. Yes, the strongest region for that is Canada, and the strongest region in Canada for this game is Toronto. But I don’t think it’s impossible. I don’t think we can take it for granted that hockey will always be the number one sport, especially if we can’t get the Maple Leafs turned around and win a Stanley Cup here. I see that Facebook stat, and I see it as the canary in the coal mine that we have a problem [with the Leafs].”

Outgoing MLSE president Tim Leiweke recently expressed a similar thought during a talk at Ryerson University. While one deep Maple Leafs playoff run could make this conversation seem deeply silly, there is no denying that as the Raptors open their 2014-15 season with media day on Monday, they have a chance to command the Toronto sporting scene. The Leafs are betting an emphasis on math (despite a remarkably similar roster) will turn around their fortunes; the Blue Jays just finished an up-and-down season that resulted in a familiar mediocrity; Toronto FC is engaged in yet another management shakeup; the Argonauts are a civic afterthought without a long-term home; the NFL dream is as dead as Jon Bon Jovi’s working relationship with guitarist Richie Sambora.

Meanwhile, these Raptors might be good — very good by the Eastern Conference’s pathetic standards. They also might be likeable, which is nearly as important.

“Why not go out there and play your butt off every night? Just give it your all,” Kyle Lowry told Grantland.com’s Jonathan Abrams in a feature published last week about the enigmatic career of the proficient, pugnacious Raptors point guard. “You can’t worry if you look cool playing basketball. A cool basketball player is a garbage basketball player.”

Nobody would confuse any of these Raptors players with Vince Carter, the coolest player this side of Allen Iverson the last time the Raptors the last time the franchise had this opportunity. (Not to say that either Carter or Iverson were garbage at that, or any other, time.) However, the core of last year’s surprise 48-win Atlantic Division champion roster is back, and the pieces are still delightfully weird.

Jonas Valanciunas, the 7-foot Lithuanian whose tremendous promise is visually undercut by the occasional awkwardness of his game.

Amir Johnson, whose game so magnificently fails the eye test, despite his tremendous value, that even coaches and executives sometimes underrate him.

Terrence Ross, the swingman whose stunning athletic ability and sweet shooting stroke can make scoring look effortless, and whose shyness in front of the camera is unparalleled on the team.

Dwane Casey, the old-school coach who preaches a no-gimmicks, no-fuss style that pays little mind to a league that is getting stranger and more unorthodox by the season.

Finally, there is the backcourt, one of the league’s best. Still, DeMar DeRozan has made his career on perfecting difficult shots instead of creating easy ones, while Lowry relies on the decidedly unsexy combination of leverage and a knowledge of the angles rather than elite speed or leaping ability.

Indeed, if you are looking for the coolest member of the organization, it is probably a toss-up between the humanitarian-minded general manager and the unendingly hilarious mascot. Taken together, the Raptors give off a ragtag, underdog feel that is easy to get behind — the type of group that this city enjoys supporting. (Cut to incredibly skilled, underappreciated stars Mats Sundin and Chris Bosh nodding.) That they exist in the perpetually weak Eastern Conference, which could be even shakier at the top this year than last, only helps. Cleveland is the favourite, but LeBron James’ new/old team needs a chemistry lesson to kick in quickly. The Chicago Bulls, meanwhile, need a return to health and form for guard Derrick Rose, an uncertain proposition.

Not that the Raptors are a sure bet, either. They were the healthiest team in the league last year, and despite the presence of Alex McKechnie, the excellent director of sports science, that is unlikely to repeat itself. They need Lowry to show the same urgency after cashing in during free agency that he showed last year heading toward it. They need Valanciunas and Ross to keep progressing. They need lead reserves Greivis Vasquez and Patrick Patterson, also paid well this July, to be content with their roles but ready to step up if and when injuries hit. Most importantly, they need to react well when last season’s charmed campaign gives way to some real adversity.

The Raptors have been here before. They seemed poised to continue an ascent when Carter missed that shot in Philadelphia in 2001, and that turned out to be a franchise peak. The Bosh era never got better than 2007, when the Raptors surprisingly won the Atlantic Division and lost in heartbreak to the Nets in the first round. Sound familiar?

Still, it would seem that fans of Toronto sports are eminently available to be courted, as the Raptors try to build on the frenetic scene that took place outside of the Air Canada Centre last spring. These Raptors might not be cool, but they have a chance to be something a lot better than that.

sports.nationalpost.com/2014/09/28/toronto-raptors-have-a-chance-to-dethrone-maple-leafs-as-kings-of-the-city/

[TheDeuce]

Nov 4, 2014 0:47:09 GMT -6 mikecubs said:

{snip}

the Leafs’ television ratings (and those of the Blue Jays and Argonauts, for that matter) regularly dwarf the Raptors’ audience.




{more snip}

The bolded part struck me as unexpected. Are Argo ratings that good? Maybe Toronto can be a solid CFL market and it really is the stadium that's an issue.



m.