Toronto revels in the glitz and glamour of NBA finals

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This article was published 03/06/2019 (2649 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

TORONTO — Sure, I could attempt to break down the various Xs and Os, go through the ebbs and flows, which saw the Toronto Raptors build a healthy lead by halftime Sunday night, only to watch it slip away in a 109-104 loss to the Golden State Warriors during Game 2 of the NBA finals.

I could, but I won’t. That’s because I came to Toronto this past week to get an up-close view of the inner workings of the coolest sports league on the planet, to observe the revelry as the championship series hit Canada for the first time, to bring you a couple local stories — how neat that the Raptors’ mascot is Winnipegger Ryan Bonne in disguise? — and look at how the sport has exploded in popularity north of the border, including in Manitoba.

My conclusion, after two games and five days and a little bit of history in the Big Smoke: what a show it was.

There was the three-ring circus that was “media day,” followed by the raucous atmosphere during Thursday’s 118-109 victory by Toronto, which led to the joyous celebration on downtown streets that was still going strong when I left the arena a couple hours later.

Then there was the emotional roller-coaster that was Sunday night’s affair, including the fact people began lining up almost 24 hours before the game began just to guarantee a spot at the “Jurassic Park” street party, which started strong, but ended up being a rather subdued affair by night’s end.

Tied 1-1, the series now shifts to northern California for the next two games. Good luck to everyone involved in trying to match the spectacle we just witnessed over the past week.

As a prime example, I can now cross “Watch a basketball game with Barack Obama” off my bucket list.

No, we didn’t sit together Sunday night. I was among the 400 or so scribes way up high in the press box, while the 44th president of the United States was much closer to the action, a special guest of both the Raptors and Warriors.

But here’s the thing: as much as the 20,000 fans who were lucky enough to score a ticket will no doubt remember the game itself, they’ll likely also walk away telling others about everything else that went down.

That’s the NBA way, where the hype is real, the glitz and glamour is over-the-top, and the stars truly come out to play. Not just on the court, but off it, as well. And it’s easy to see why the league scores major points, especially with a younger audience.

From Fantasia singing the Star Spangled Banner to Alessia Cara belting out a glorious rendition of O Canada. From Flo Rida performing an on-court halftime show. From the Lil Ballers dancing during one of the television timeouts — an adorable group of children grooving to a Drake song as the artist himself looked on from his usual sideline seat, of course.

From the acrobatic duo who wowed the crowd during another break, to the Stomp-inspired troupe who did the same later in the game. To the live DJ who spins tunes during every lull in play.

From the “Celebrity Watch” cameras which showed pro golfers Rory Mcllroy and Sergio Garcia (in town for this week’s Canadian Open), former Blue Jays second baseman Roberto Alomar, actor Will Arnett, singer Shawn Mendes and a handful of other notable names in the crowd. The message was clear: this was the place to be.

Prior to the game, Obama got a royal Raptors welcome from Drake, who embraced him with a big hug.

Hopefully the Toronto-born star didn’t trash talk him the way he’s been going after Draymond Green and Steph Curry of the Warriors, which is another part of the entertainment you won’t find in other sports league.

Midway through the second quarter, the building exploded as Obama was shown on the video scoreboard. Chants of “MVP” rained down, which one can only assume stands for “Most Valuable President.” Let’s hope Donald Trump wasn’t watching, otherwise brace for the incoming Tweet storm.

Now, some may pooh-pooh the idea of politics mixing with sports, but that’s another great thing about the NBA: They’re not afraid to make a stand on important issues of the day. Where other leagues — hello, NHL — seem to shy away from anything that might be seen as remotely controversial, the NBA embraces it.

Exhibit A: Golden State coach Steve Kerr, who showed up to his press conference a couple hours before Sunday’s tip-off wearing a Vote For Our Lives t-shirt. That’s in support of stricter gun control laws in the United States, which just had another mass shooting Friday in Virginia that left 13 dead, including the gunman.

Despite his team down 1-0 in the championship series, how refreshing was it to see someone with Kerr’s clout and audience use that to talk about more than just slam dunks and three-pointers.

“The shirt has everything to do with the tragedy in Virginia Beach a couple days ago, and how devastated so many families are and so many people are. The shirt is a reminder that the only way we can get out of this mess is to actually vote, and to vote for people who are going to be willing to create some change in our gun laws in our country,” said Kerr.

Vote For Our Lives is an idea from the “March For Our Lives” organization, founded in Florida after a gunman killed 17 at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High in Parkland in February 2018. And Kerr has a pesonal reason to take speak as loud as he’d like: His father, Malcolm, was a university professor specializing in the Middle East and the Arab world who was killed by gunman in 1984 while serving as president of the American University of Beirut.

“The young generation, the March For Our Lives generation, has really inspired me. So I offer my support to them and to all young people, and hope that we can create a change where we don’t all have to walk around scared we’re going to get shot in our country,” said Kerr.

It’s not all serious business, of course. Another thing the NBA does is drag the Finals out as long as humanly possible to maximum exposure and let storylines marinate, as seen by the two full days between each game. They trot out the coaches and star players every day, religiously, for us media types to ask questions that often border on the, well, bizarre.

For example, check out what one writer put to Toronto’s Kawhi Leonard on Saturday. This is, word-for-word, the actual question as transcribed by the NBA

“You look around the city and the city is completely basically enamoured with you. Almost like it’s a love affair. You go to restaurants, there’s the “Ka’wine and Dine” stamp. you talk to fans and you ask them who they think is going to win the title, and they’re like “Ka’why not us?” It seems like it’s a real love affair right now. What are your thoughts on that and what are your sentiments toward the city of Toronto right now?”

Toronto coach Nick Nurse had another playful exchange on Sunday with a reporter, in his pre-game chat, who asked about a lineup decision.

“The only thing of interest would be, is OG going to be activated? And do you think you could get anything out of him if he is able to dress and play?” the writer asked.

“That’s the only thing interesting going on tonight?” replied Nurse.

“This is the fourth time we have had to talk to you in three days. So you’re probably as tired as we are,” replied the scribe.

Tired? This thing is just getting started. There’s still plenty of road ahead, no doubt with a few more surprises in store. And probably some dumb questions, as well.

mike.mcintyre@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @mikemcintyrewpg