When Luguentz Dort sunk his first shot against the Detroit Pistons during the NBA preseason game in Montreal, you might have thought the game was taking place in Oklahoma City.
The crowd roared in a way many might not have thought possible for a team that wasn't the Toronto Raptors, but the 21,000 people in the Montreal crowd cheered heavily for its hometown star.
Before the game started, Dort gave a speech to everyone in attendance thanking them for their support.
"It wasn't easy," Dort said at the press conference following the game. "I was repeating stuff in my head, I was practicing last night and when I was about to talk, the crowd kept yelling and I almost shed a tear."
The city also had fellow Canadian Shai Gilgeous-Alexander to cheer for, and while his time on the court was mostly limited, he was still productive and found room to feed the ball to Dort.
While the Thunder ended up losing to the Pistons, Dort scored 24 points in 24 minutes and addressed his performance in the postgame press conference.
"Just the fact that I had a lot of friends and family here, there are so many people who came to support me and the entire team," Dort said. "My teammates kept saying we're gonna give you the ball and I think I took the five first shots of the game, but it feels really good."
"I told them at the beginning, 'I just want the first shot. After that it's cool!' That just showed the chemistry we have."
As Dort continued to answer questions, Gilgeous-Alexander crashed the press conference in a Montreal Canadiens jersey.
Given the intense crowd, Dort was also asked if he thinks the NBA could bring a team to Montreal.
"Basketball is undoubtedly growing [in Montreal]," Dort said. "The fact that there are so many fans who come out and support, so I hope one day it happens. It'll for sure be difficult to come here and play but I hope that it happens one day."
In one of his last comments, Dort had hoped to play this game in Montreal against the Indiana Pacers who also have their own Montrealer in Bennedict Mathurin but hoped that he, and all the other Quebecois NBA players, get a chance to play in Montreal during their careers.
After Dort wrapped up his portion of the press conference, Gilgeous-Alexander said that Montreal should get an NBA team.
"I haven't been here in so long," he said when asked about the environment in Montreal. "I didn't know what to expect really. It definitely felt like it was a real NBA game. The NBA should put a team here."
