This is what it’s all about
Amid trade season, it can be easy to overlook the true meaning behind basketball. To forget what our favourite sports team ignites in us that we love so much. We’ve all done it. It’s easy when you’re watching a game, scanning a box score, or playing around in the trade machine to forget that there’s real people behind the game we all love. I get it. I wrote a piece just yesterday about Ochai Agbaji’s dwindling time in Toronto. It’s part of the business, and it’s easy to get caught up in. But during a time where we treat human beings as numbers, easily swapped for other numbers, it’s nice to remind ourselves of what this sport is really about. Last night’s game in Portland served as a beautiful reminder of the fandom that connects us all.
In the Moda Center last night, a faint “Let’s go Raptors” chant could be heard echoing throughout the building, growing louder as the Raptors accelerated to a 110-98 win. As the game came to its close, the cheering Raptors’ fans were the only ones left to be heard. And as the players headed to the locker room, the broadcast panned to Scottie Barnes, beaming from ear to ear, stopped in front of their section, egging on their cheers.
It was a beautiful moment. A sliver of sunshine in an otherwise cold time in the NBA season. A moment that later grew brighter when the fans were invited backstage to join in on the celebrations.
Look at the excitement! Players and fans together as one for a moment of pure, unfiltered, joy. A reminder of why we all love this sport so damn much. It brings us together, running deeper than we all do individually.
“That was awesome. I heard that that group … last 11 years they [have been] making a trip to come and support [the] Toronto Raptors. There was a group of 25 of them and it was awesome seeing them before the game singing [the] national anthem and supporting the team. It’s really special, it’s really cool.”
I mean that’s amazing, this group of fans has been getting together every year to plan a trip to support their favourite team. Getting five people together for dinner is a challenge, imagine the dedication they have aligning twenty-five individual schedules to make this trip happen. I bet every second spent planning is beyond worth it for the memories created together.
These small moments throughout a season are one of the reasons I’m staunchly against ‘tanking’ and why I roll my eyes every time someone suggests ‘blowing the team up’. We’re quick to forget just how awful tanking years truly are. Rooting for a team that has the joy and relationships that this Raptors group has is far more fun than checking the standings, hoping to lose more games than the Washington Wizards. It’s why the championship or bust mentality is a fool’s errand. One out of thirty teams wins a championship every year, does that mean all other twenty-nine teams failed? I don’t think so.
There is value in simply being a ‘good’ basketball team, value that extends far beyond the court. In a world that seems more divided every day, there’s beauty in the community that basketball provides us. Whether it’s this group of fans who get together every year to plan a trip to watch their favourite team. Or all of us creating a community on this website. Or the person in your life that you talk about every game with, as I do with my Mom. Basketball brings us together. Don’t take that for granted. Embrace these memories and this team for what they are. Enjoy the players and enjoy the time you spend watching the games. The kind of love that was expressed in every player and fan’s face last night during their impromptu party is rare, but it really is what this is all about.
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