Team: Toronto Raptors
Sport: NBA Basketball
Background: The Toronto Raptors are
a National Basketball Association team based in Toronto,
Ontario.
Founded: 1995
Home Arena: Air Canada Centre
Uniform colors: Purple, Red, Grey,
and Black
Logo design: A snarling red dinosaur
NBA Championships: none yet
Franchise History:
After meeting all of these conditions, PBF could finally
get down to the business of creating a team identity.
It instituted a nationwide "Name Game" contest
to name the team and develop team colors and a logo.
The Name Game became one of the most popular such
enterprises in league history, generating more than
2,000 entries. The final top-10 list was dominated
by animal names: Beavers, Bobcats, Dragons, Grizzlies,
Hogs (Toronto's nickname is Hogtown), Raptors, Scorpions,
T-Rex, Tarantulas, and Terriers.
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The team's first GM Isiah Thomas helps unveil the
New look for the Toronto Raptors.
On May 15 the PBF finally had an identity. No doubt
fueled by the enormous success of the movie Jurassic
Park and the popularity of dinosaurs with youngsters
who would grow up to be fans in the target market,
the team's new moniker, the Toronto Raptors, was unveiled
on Canadian national television. The franchise's logo
(the work of NBA Properties) featured an aggressive,
sharp-toothed little dinosaur dribbling a basketball.
The team colors were to be bright red, purple, black,
and "Naismith silver" (in honor of Canadian
James Naismith, who invented the game of basketball
in 1891). More than $20 million in Raptors gear was
snapped up in the first month. By the end of 1994
the logo was hot in the marketplace, and the Raptors,
still a long way from their first game, were seventh
in the league in merchandise sales.
Shortly after their name was announced, the Raptors
made several additions to their management team. On
May 24, 1994, Isiah Thomas burst through a large paper
Raptors logo to be introduced as the team's vice president
of basketball operations. Thomas had long been admired
by Bitove, who had attended Thomas's alma mater of
Indiana and had then followed the start of his Pistons
career closely while studying at the University of
Windsor, Ontario, across the river from Detroit.
Not to be forgotten:
•
Damon Stoudamire
•
Doug Christie
•
Tracy McGrady |
• Marcus
Camby
• Hakeem
Olajuwon
• Keon
Clark |
•
Jerome Williams (JYD)
•
Antonio Davis |
Current Stars:
•
Chris Bosh C/F
•
Vince Carter SG |
• Donyell
Marshall PF
•
Jalen Rose G |
•
Alvin Williams PG |
List of Head Coaches:
• 1995 - 1996: Brendon
Malone
• 1996 - Feb 1998:
Darrell Walker
• Feb 1998 - 2000:
Butch Carter
• 2000 - 2003: Lenny
Wilkens
• 2003 - 2004: Kevin
O'Neill
• Current: Sam Mitchell
(hired on June 29, 2004)
List of General Managers:
• 1995 - March 1998:
Isiah Thomas
• March 1998 - April
2004: Glen Grunwald
• June 2004 - Current:
Rob Babcock
External links:
Toronto Raptors official web site (http://www.nba.com/raptors/)
Official Toronto Raptors Summer Pro League web site
(http://www.summerproleague.com/)
