The book 100 Things Raptors Fans Should Know and Do Before They Die is a detailed factoid written by former sports reporter Dave Mendonca. Mendonca is a former sports reporter for theScore television network before it became Sportsnet360. Mendonca has had work appear on ESPN & SLAMonline. He also co-hosted a podcast called The Breakdown with Dave & Audley where they interviewed NBA stars.
The book, 100 Things Raptors Fans Should Know and Do Before They Die chronicles the ups and downs of a young Toronto Raptors franchise that has had a dramatically plagued history to this day. The book is a solid read for the lifetime fans as well as the more recent generation who’ve started following the Raptors during their recent success. Regardless, the book serves as a great tool for anyone wanting to know more about their favorite sports franchise the Toronto Raptors.
“They have 100 Things About the Blue Jays & 100 Things About the Maple Leafs, so I said let’s do one about the Raptors.” – Mendonca
Not only did Dave send us a copy of his book, but he also took the time to do a fairly entertaining interview (link posted below) about the current makeup of the Raptors franchise as well as addressing some of the moments written within the book. 100 Things Raptors essentially lists the most important moments from most important to least important in Raptors history – so obviously Vince Carter was number 1.
“Vince was just such a dominant force, no offence to DeMar or Kyle or any of those guys – they’re just not dominant.” – Mendonca
Interestingly enough, Kyle Lowry cracks Mendonca’s top 10 in his short time with the Raptors.
The heartfelt book also features a foreword by the original ‘Junk Yard Dog’ Raptors’ legend Jerome Williams. In the foreword Williams recalls the first time he ever heard about Toronto and how he fell in love with the city and the people – without a ghostwriter.
It’s crazy to think that there’s a whole generation of Raptors fans who don’t understand the impact JYD had on this team and it’s fans.
An entire generation who’ll never understand the significance of ‘bringing out the salami and cheese!’
An entire generation who’ll never understand how players like three-time NBA champion B.J Armstrong and Hall of Famer, Alonzo Mourning both declined their opportunity to play for the Raptors – leaving the franchise to pick up the broken pieces.
This is whom this book is for.
The Raptors are a relatively young expansion franchise that has not amassed three consecutive winning seasons since their run between 1999-2002. Overall, the Raptors as a franchise have only had 7 winning seasons in their 20 year history – four of which since the drafting of Andrea Bargnani in 2006.
When you put that into perspective there hasn’t been a lot of good that comes with being a Raptors fan. However, if you’re old enough to remember some of the warmest memories in Raptors history like their first trip to the playoffs, or VC’s duel with Allen Iverson in the Eastern conference semi’s then you really feel good when reading parts of 100 Things Raptors Fans Should Know & Do Before They Die.
Yet if you’re able to remember Chris Childs stinking it up against the Detroit Pistons and essentially ending the ‘glory days’ for the Toronto Raptors – parts of this book will definitely hurt your soul.
As a basketball junkie it’s always great learning new things about your favourite team – especially when it includes first hand recounts of franchise-defining moments by former players and coaches. If you’re a Raptors lifer, than you’re more than likely going to know or have knowledge of most of the moments that made it into the book.
You can’t be know-it-all so there will be moments while reading the book that will test your expertise on all thing Toronto Raptors. With that being said, Medonca includes a 30-question quiz about the Toronto Raptors that will challenge a fan whether they’ve been there since day one or not.
This book is by no means a difficult read – nor should it be, making it a good resource for younger fans who want to understand how things went down with the Toronto Raptors before their time. Mendonca’s knowledge and passion for the game of basketball really shine through in his writings – so I’d definitely recommend this book to any passionate Raptors fan out there.
For any fans out there looking for more information about this book written by Dave Mendonca, check out 100thingsraptors.com. The book is available for purchase on Amazon, your local Indigo, Shoppers or Wal-Mart.
You can find Dave at davemendonca.com or follow him on twitter @DaveMendonca.
1 thought on “100 Things Raptors Fans Should Know & Do Before They Die – Book review and interview with author Dave Mendonca”