Est. and General Information

The raptors were established in 1995 and were one of the two NBA teams not in the US (Vancouver Grizzlies - now in Memphis since 2001). This was a big step in the NBA as it showed its expansion from the United States.

1993

In 1993, a formal application was made out to create a new Ontario-based NBA team. The application was filled out by former premier of Ontario, David Peterson, as well as former Detroit Piston, Isiah Thomas, who then became the Raptors VP. this made Toronto the 28th team in the league.

Team Name

In 1994, the Toronto fans were tasked in choosing a name for their team. The top ten finalists included the Beavers, Bobcats, Dragons, Grizzlies, Hogs, Scorpions, T-Rex, Tarantulas, Terriers and Raptors. On May 15, 1994, Toronto unveiled their new team name, the Toronto Raptors, on national television. The name was assumed to be widely influenced by the Jurassic Park movie which was popular at the time.

A few days later, they unveiled their logo

Damon Stoudamire

In 1995, Brendan Malone was hired as head coach approaching the ‘95 NBA draft. With the team being new, they were able to acquire the 7th pick in the NBA draft. They chose Arizona Point Guard Damon Stoudamire who quickly became the face of the franchise.

Damon Stoudamire met expectations when he showed that he was the team leader and led the Raptors in points (19) and assists (9.3). Unfortunately, the Raptors still did not have a very successful season, having a 21-61 record. At the end of the season, Stoudamire won the MVP of the Rookie challenge on all star break and the Rookie of the Year award for his performance throughout the entire season.

After the season, Isiah Thomas was not impressed with the Raptor’s performance and made a few changes, he acquired players Doug Christie and Sharone Wright and replaced Brendan Malone with Darrel Walker. They also selected Marcus Camby at the ‘96-’97 NBA draft.

By the end of the 1996/97 season, the Raptors had greatly improved with a 30-52 record. Although it was not an amazing record, people had thought that it showed a start to a pretty well rounded team. However, this was not the case. When Isiah had left the Raptors, Damon Stoudamire requested a trade, leaving the Raptors no choice but to trade him to portland in a six player deal.

The Darkness Before The Dawn

In the 1997/98 season,it was one of, if not the worst seasons the Raptors have experienced to date. They were in a clear ‘rebuilding’ phase and fans had nothing to do but just pray for a win. The Raptors ended up winning 16 of the 82 games that season. With the Raptors struggling so much, it allowed them to clinch a lottery pick with the new system that allowed worse teams to land higher picks. They acquired the 4th pick and went home with, soon to become Raptors legend, Vince Carter.

To read more, go to the '99 Raptors / Vinsanity page explaining the Raptor's years with Vince Carter as well as the 2001 ECF and the 2000 dunk Contest.