Regardless of what happens in the best of three series between the Toronto Raptors and Brooklyn Nets, basketball is the talk of the town in Toronto. The support this team has gotten during this playoff run has been absolutely unbelievable. The TV ratings have been off the charts, the square has been filled with thousands of people every game, and the crowd in the ACC has been venomous for the enemy.
This team has the undivided attention of the city. I’ve seen my Facebook newsfeed cluttered with people supporting the Raps. Those same people would scoff at me for supporting the Raptors 6 months ago. However, the success of this team has brought out the passionate fanbase that the Raps have been waiting for.
I’m going to go ahead and say it – this is the best crowd the playoffs have seen thus far. Words cannot describe just how loud the square is. There are plenty of great fan bases around the league – the Golden State Warriors and Oklahoma City Thunder would be the first that come to mind. However, the passion Raptors fans have shown is simply something else.
Here’s a pretty hilarious quote from a Nets fan, whose fanbase is pretty embarrassing.
“The worst thing about this game was that my section was full of Raptors fans. They chanted “let’s go Raptors”! And it was deafening. Then at the end of the game when the Raptors had it wrapped up, they started to loudly chant “F-you BK! F-you BK! It was embarrassing. Some Nets fans were leaving early when the game was all but over and the Raptors fans taunted them. It was horrible.”
Amir loved the videos from the Square. "Excuse my language, but I think the Raptors fans sh—– on the Brooklyn fans."
— Ryan Wolstat (@WolstatSun) April 29, 2014
This is significant because it not only shows the Raptors we care, it shows the entire league how great Toronto really is. I still remember when Bill Simmons claimed that nobody cares about basketball in Toronto because it’s a ‘hockey town’.
I can only imagine what’s going to happen when the Raptors win the series. Let’s make game 5 hell.
