It’s no secret that Toronto isn’t exactly a premier destination for NBA players.
On the latest episode of the Dishes & Dimes podcast, disgraced former NBA referee Tim Donaghy said that players never looked forward to going to Toronto.
“When I was there anyway, when you saw Toronto on your schedule, you kind of cringe a little bit because there wasn’t much to do there, you had to go through customs, you didn’t really know anyone there,” Donaghy said. “It was kind of tough when you saw Toronto or Vancouver on your schedule.”
Donaghy refereed in the league from 1994 to 2007. In that time, the Canadian teams weren’t particularly exciting outside of the dominant Vince Carter run in the late nineties to the early aughts.
Given the Raptors difficulty to keep their all-stars and bring in new star players, it’s not exactly a surprise that people weren’t excited to visit Canada.
Donaghy then briefly conceded that Toronto was a fun city, but diminished its impact on a global scale.
“It is a fun an exciting city, but from a global attention, I don’t think the league is hoping they win too many more championships.”
Donaghy resigned from the league in 2007 after allegations surfaced that he bet on games that he officiated. Donaghy later admitted to betting on games and plead guilty to two federal charges related to the investigation. He served 11 months originally, but was sent back to prison for violating release terms.
The Raptors have lost out on several players who elected to go elsewhere despite having success in Toronto. Vince Carter infamously forced his way out of the city and went to New Jersey. Chris Bosh left Toronto the same year LeBron James went to Miami. Most recently, the team lost out on a chance to defend its title when Kawhi Leonard went back home to California and joined the Los Angeles Clippers.
Despite all that, the Raptors will enter the 2023-24 season with a new coach in Darko Rajaković and with Pascal Siakam at the helm of the offence.
The team opens its season tomorrow against the Minnesota Timberwolves tomorrow night at 7:30 P.M.
