Members of the basketball community in P.A. think the Raptors win will help the game (File Photo/Canadian Press)

By Michael Joel-Hansen

Raptors effect

Raptors win could help encourage sport locally

Jun 14, 2019 | 3:15 PM

The Toronto Raptors clinched their first NBA Championship in the history of the franchise last night.

Canada’s sole NBA team brought home the Larry O’Brien Trophy defeating the defending champion Golden State Warriors 114-110 taking the best of seven series 4-2.

The victory Thursday night has some members of the local basketball community talking about what the championship means for the game.

Dwayne Gareau, coach of the senior girls’ basketball team at École St. Mary said the victory is a big moment.

“I liken it to myself when I was younger and I got to witness the Jordan era and all my buddies and I we want to be like Mike, Michael Jordan. In Canada, it’s going to have that same impact, I think on the youth,” he said.

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Gareau remembers when the NBA came to Canada in 1995 with the Raptors and Vancouver Grizzlies. He said the Raptors have come a ways since they were established and played their games on a makeshift court at the Skydome.

“It’s funny that Drake is kind of the Toronto Raptor ambassador, but it’s starting from the bottom now you’re here sort of bit,” he said.

The St. Mary coach added the Raptors have been helpful growing the game already given how more Canadian-born players are now playing in the NBA than before.

Jenn Ferguson, coach of the senior girls’ basketball team Carlton Comprehensive Public High School, and also a club basketball coach in the city, said she is seeing a buzz amongst her students at Wild Rose School as a result of the win.

“The school I work in, which is full of Grades 7 and 8’s, it’s all they want to talk about this morning is the Raptors and what a game it was and how exciting it was,” she said.

In her time being involved with basketball locally, Ferguson saw quite a bit of growth in the game. She said the Raptors championship will likely be helpful for high school basketball. In regards to the quality of play, Ferguson said there have always been some strong players but the quality of players overall has been getting better.

“What we notice now is, when we’re picking a high school team, those 11th and 12th players that are chosen on the team are a lot more skilled than the 11th and 12^th players we were choosing five to 10 years ago,” she said.

Brennan Dupre, who played on the senior boys’ basketball team at St. Mary this year said watching the game was a good experience.

“Basketball’s always been a big deal in my family and it’s just awesome to watch it, it was a great game,” he said.

Dupre said he started taking basketball more seriously as a sport when he was in Grade 8. He added the growth of the sport has been helped in the city by people like Derek Smith, who has gotten camps going to help players develop their skills.

“My older brother he enjoyed basketball and he was talking about when he was younger, there wasn’t that much and now that it’s great to see that it’s a growing community,” he said.

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MichaelJoel.Hansen@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @mjhskcdn