Toronto Raptors head to Tampa Bay
The Toronto Raptors learned last month that they would be unable to play their home games in Canada for at least the start of the 2020-21 season. The restrictions put in place by the Canadian federal government mandate a 14-day quarantine for anyone entering the country. This does not work for the Raptors or the NBA, which means the team must play their home games in the United States for the time being.
“So we’ll be away from our home and our fans for now,” team president Masai Ujiri wrote in a statement when the decision was announced. “They say absence makes the heart grow fonder. I’m not sure that’s possible for us — we love Toronto and Canada, and we know we have the best fans in the NBA. For now, I’ll ask you to cheer for us from afar, and we’ll look forward to the day we are all together again.”
After learning of their fate, the Raptors announced that they would be playing their home games in Tampa Bay’s Amalie Arena – home of the National Hockey League’s Tampa Bay Lightning. With plans now firmly in place to begin the NBA season on December 22nd, the team has already begun preparations for the start of the upcoming campaign and life in Florida.
According to TSN’s Josh Lewenberg, the Toronto Raptors took off for Tampa Bay on Monday in order to begin their preseason on December 6th. According to Lewenberg, players must return 3-4 consecutive negative tests in order to be cleared to take part in individual workouts. The Raptors are hoping to have their first team practice on December 6th at Saint Leo University in Florida.
The Raptors are set to kick off their preseason schedule against the Charlotte Hornets. Toronto will play two consecutive preseason games on the road against the Hornets before playing their first preseason game at the Amalie Arena on December 18th against the Miami Heat.
The city of Tampa Bay jumped at the opportunity to house the Raptors for the start of the NBA season at the very least, once they first learned that the team may need to re-locate from Toronto. Even though the Raptors playing in Tampa Bay means the city has been knocked out of contention from potentially being an NHL hub, they have given Toronto access to all facilities for as long as needed.
Tampa Bay has never had an NBA team to call their own, but they do have professional basketball teams that play in the Tampa area. The Tampa Bay Titans play in The Basketball League (TBL) with their home games being played out of Pasco-Hernando State College. The St. Pete Tide and the Tampa Gunners of the Florida Basketball Association (FBL) also play in the surrounding area.
Toronto won their first ever NBA Championship in 2019, but were eliminated in the second round of the NBA playoffs by the Boston Celtics last year. They have already lost both Serge Ibaka and Marc Gasol to free agency but managed to ink point guard Fred VanVleet to a new contract. The team has hopes of being a contender in the Eastern Conference.
