The Three Eras of the Toronto Raptors

The Toronto Raptors, the only current Canadian basketball team, have had a short but storied history.

Steadfast and loyal, Raptors fans have been through thick and thin for a franchise that seems on the cusp of becoming playoff contenders. The new Jermaine O'Neal-Chris Bosh' tandem could be the wave that pushes the Raptors over the edge—or the weight that sends them crashing down like Vince Carter did.

With Raptors fans, including myself, brimming with anticipation, it's a good time to look back at the three major eras the Raptors have been through:

1. The Beginning

On September 30, 1993, alongside the Vancouver Grizzlies, the Toronto Raptors were unveiled as the twenty-eighth NBA franchise. The name "Raptors" was chosen due to the popularity of the movie Jurassic Park.

On May 15, 1994, Isiah Thomas was named general manager. He named former Pistons assistant Brendan Malone as the first head coach of the Raptors.

In the Expansion Draft, the Raptors picked some solid players—including a marquee name in BJ Armstrong. However, Armstrong refused to play for the Raptors, and was traded for Carlos Rogers and Victor Alexander.

With the seventh pick in the 1995 NBA draft, the Raptors selected their first face of the franchise—Damon Stoudamire.

Many expansion teams struggle mightily during their first few seasons, and the Raptors were no exception. Finishing with twenty-one wins, the Raptors had a few positive moments in the course of season. They were one of the few teams to beat the Michael Jordan-led Chicago Bulls, and Damon Stoudamire averaged nineteen points and nine assists to claim the Rookie of the Year award.

With the second pick in the 1996 Draft, the Raptors selected future Defensive Player of the Year Marcus Camby.

The following season, Toronto won thirty games. Damon Stoudamire showed great strides, averaging about twenty points and eight assists in his sophomore season. The Raptors showed great potential and seemed to be on the rise.

The Raptors looked to be ready to take the next step and contend for a playoff spot during the '97-98 season, but Toronto took their first step backwards. With the resignation of Isiah Thomas, Damon Stoudamire demanded a trade.

Stoudamire, Carlos Rogers, and Walt Williams were traded for Kenny Anderson, Alvin Williams, Gart Trent, two first-round draft picks, a second-round draft pick, and cash considerations.

The Raptors were back to square one—rebuilding. They finished the season with the worst record in the franchise's short history, 16-65. On June 25, 1998, the Raptors traded center Marcus Camby for veteran enforcer Charles Oakley to bring some credibility back to the team.

Then, later that summer, in a trade that included draft pick Antawn Jamison, the Raptors received one of the greatest players in franchise history.

2. The Vince Carter Era

Following the draft, the Raptors had a solid corps surrounding UNC standout Vince Carter. One of the key role players on this new team was rookie standout Tracy McGrady, who would form a potent one-two punch with Carter, his cousin. The Raptors finished a mediocre 23-59, but were on the right path.

The 1999-2000 Toronto Raptors Roster

The '99-'00 season was a breakout year for this young franchise. With a formidable veteran front court playing alongside the Carter-McGrady tandem, the Raptors finished 45-37 and made the playoffs for the first time in franchise history.

The Raptors were swept by the Knicks—but for the first time since the Damon Stoudamire days, the Raptors seemed on the cusp of regular playoff contention.

In the '00-01 season, the Raptors looked to be in contention to win the East. Beating their proverbial vulture—the New York Knicks—in five games, the Raptors went up against MVP Allen Iverson and his 76ers. Toronto stayed competitive, and took the MVP to seven games, almost claiming the series via a Vince Carter in-and-out jump-shot miss.

For the next two seasons, the Raptors constantly revamped the team, which led to another rebuilding phase and a very unhappy superstar. Not pleased with the constant losing, Vince Carter did not give it his all, and soon garnered the animosity of fans, management, and teammates. 

The franchise seemed to be a mess, especially when Vince Carter was traded to the Nets during the middle of the '04-'05 season. All seemed dark in the tunnel, except for one bright light—a young and extremely talented forward taken in 2003, one of the deepest drafts in NBA history.

3. The Chris Bosh Era

At the start of the '05-'06 season, Bosh was not surrounded by much talent. Thus, the Raptors struggled mightily, starting the season with a nine-game losing streak.

Player	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
Araujo, Rafael Rafael Araújo	52	34	11.6	.366	.000	.536	2.8	.3	.46	.12	2.3
Barrett, Andre Andre Barrett*	17	0	15.4	.361	.154	.667	1.3	2.9	.59	.00	4.6
Bonner, Matt Matt Bonner	78	6	21.9	.448	.420	.829	3.6	.7	.63	.40	7.5
Bosh, Chris Chris Bosh	70	70	39.3	.505	.000	.816	9.2	2.6	.71	1.13	22.5
Calderon, Jose José Calderón	64	11	23.2	.423	.163	.848	2.2	4.5	.66	.06	5.5
Davis, Antonio Antonio Davis*	8	8	23.9	.452	.000	.350	4.5	.9	.38	.13	4.4
Graham, Joey Joey Graham	80	24	19.8	.478	.333	.812	3.1	.8	.46	.16	6.7
James, Mike Mike James	79	79	37.0	.469	.442	.837	3.3	5.8	.91	.04	20.3
Martin, Darrick Darrick Martin	40	0	8.5	.351	.400	.750	.5	1.4	.43	.00	2.6
Peterson, Morris Morris Peterson	82	77	38.3	.436	.395	.820	4.6	2.3	1.27	.18	16.8
Sow, Pape Pape Sow	42	25	14.0	.431	.000	.719	3.5	.2	.50	.45	3.5
Villanueva, Charlie Charlie Villanueva	81	36	29.1	.463	.327	.706	6.4	1.1	.74	.78	13.0
Williams, Alvin Alvin Williams	1	0	10.0	.000	.000	.500	3.0	.0	.00	.00	1.0
Williams, Eric Eric Williams	28	11	12.6	.387	.278	.737	1.8	.5	.25	.07	3.3
Woods, Loren Loren Woods	27	4	12.0	.475	.000	.429	4.1	.1	.33	.85	2.3

The Raptors seemed to be an ever-rebuilding team. All seemed lost—until a midseason firing of GM Rob Babcock lead to the hiring of highly regarded GM, Bryan Colangelo.

Bryan Colangelo is a winner. He built the Suns into contenders, and wanted to do the same to the Raptors. He did not want to wait, and he refused to do so.

The Raptors had the number-one pick in 2006, and drafted a talented but raw big man who played more like a three despite his height. Truly, Andrea Bargnani was the only true project on this team, because they established themselves as staples in the Eastern Conference the following season.

Bringing in a host of new players, the fresh new Raptors surprised the league by going from lottery-bound losers in 2006 to a fourth seed and home court advantage in the first round of the playoffs in 2007.

They won their first division title, and took the veteran New Jersey Nets to six games, the final of which came down to the last possession.

The 2007-08 season was a small step backwards for the Raptors. Finishing right at the .500 mark, there were chemistry and injury problems plaguing the Raps throughout the season.

The start of the season saw two double=digit wins in the first three games. A trouncing of the Nets and a solid win over the Sixers proved that the Raptors had what it took to take the next step.

Their third game against the Celtics was one of the best regular-season games in the NBA. The Celtics managed to squeeze out a three point victory because of a last-second shot by Ray Allen, when the game was on the cusp of going into double overtime. The Raptors could have had a chance to end the game before the first overtime if Carlos Delfino had known they had a remaining timeout in the last few seconds to reset their offense.

After the impressive start, the Raptors started to have numerous injuries to key players like TJ Ford, Chris Bosh, and Jorge Garbajosa. Unlike the previous season, the Raptors could not keep up with other teams without their key players, and started losing a lot of games.

Even after most of their players returned from injuries, a point guard controversy between Ford and Jose Calderon tore the Raptors apart, and the underachieving Raptors stumbled into the playoffs as the sixth seed. Playing against a team—the Orlando Magic—the Raptors had beaten in the regular season when on their game, Toronto was trounced in five.

Fearing a repeat of the chemistry problems, Bryan Colangelo orchestrated a trade to rectify the point-guard glut and bring in a man to solve the Raptors' key problems—rebounding and interior defense.

The Raptors traded TJ Ford, Rasho Nesterovic, Maceo Baston, and a first-round draft pick for a player they felt could team up with Chris Bosh to form one of the most potent front courts in the East. (See the article The Toronto Raptors: Jermaine O'Neal Deal Analysis.)

The Chris Bosh/Jermaine O'Neal Era:

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