30 Players, 30 Stories, 30 Years

We the Raptors: Thirty Players, Thirty Stories, Thirty Years is about the grinders, glue guys, bench heroes, and more. Alvin Williams, José Calderón, T. J. Ford, Jonas Valanciunas, Danny Green — whether regular or part-time starters, role players, key cogs, or even short-term stars — all of them felt blessed to call Canada home.

Amir Johnson immediately fell in love with the diversity of the country. From special events with fans to Zombie Walks down Yonge Street, few players connected with Toronto — on and off the floor—more than Amir. At the age of thirty, Anthony Parker — known as the “Michael Jordan of EuroLeague”—finally found his place in the NBA with the Raptors, a role that had eluded him as a young draftee and during his six seasons overseas. NBA vet and Toronto native Jamaal Magloire mentored younger players in the shadow of his brother’s murder in Regent Park. Bismack Biyombo, a fan favourite for his big, burly play and endless energy, couldn’t decide which team to sign with as a free agent, until a phone call from Masai Ujiri made the choice easy. The Junkyard Dog, Jerome Williams, drove himself to Toronto in a snowstorm, becoming in the process one of the most recognizable players in franchise history. Matt Bonner, dubbed the Red Mamba by none other than Kobe Bryant, emerged as a national hero after going toe to toe in the post with Kevin Garnett. Jorge Garbajosa, a superstar in Italy and his native Spain, gambled on a second career at the age of twenty-eight, becoming the hustle and heart of a playoff-bound Raptors squad only to see his NBA dreams crumble in a career-ending on-court injury.

Every team has unheralded but dogged players but none more so than the expansion-era Raptors, a team that many NBA players and free agents often ignored — until the Raptors became one of the most interesting and winningest teams in the league.

This rich tapestry comes alive in We the Raptors, as told by Raptors radio voice Eric Smith and Andrew Bricker through thirty exclusive interviews with former and current Raptors. Every bounce, every rebound, every elbow to the face — this is a rare view of the NBA through the eyes of those who made it to the pinnacle of their profession.

As the Toronto Raptors turn 30 this year, long-time Toronto sports journalist Eric Smith has teamed up with Andrew Bricker to present 30 profiles of 30 players — former and current — to present a picture of a beloved, franchise. Obviously, this was of considerable interest to me. And, I’m happy to report, it’s a very good read.

When I first read the Table of Contents, I admit to being a little disappointed. I didn’t recognize as many of the thirty players who were interviewed for this book as I thought I might. From the first player-profile (Tracy Murray), however, I appreciated what Smith & Bricker have done: this is a great way to get to know the history of the team — and, I’m sure, remember it, if you have been following them since their launch in 1995. The 2015-20 team(s) will always have a special place in my heart, but I really enjoyed reading these stories of unknown-to-me players. As the synopsis notes, We the Raptors is the story of “the grinders, glue guys, bench heroes” who played for the team — in not a few instances, for relatively short periods of time, as is not uncommon for NBA role-players.

The players interviewed here talk about how much they loved Toronto: the city, the people, and the fans. As a (new-ish) Torontonian, it’s nice to read how much they loved it here (it’s a maybe bit repetitive, but we do like to wallow in how great our city is). After initial trepidation about being shipped/draft to a Canadian team (not a few worried about the tax implications, and most known little-to-nothing about Canada before arriving here), they came to love their time in Toronto and were moved by how they were embraced by the team’s organization, their teammates, and the fans. (It’s probably not surprising that Goran Dragić is absent from the book…) The Toronto food scene also gets many shout-outs. (It’s true: we have excellent food.)

Of the players profiled for We the Raptors, I was only really familiar with a handful of them: Bismack Biyombo, Jonas Valančiūnas, Danny Green, Norman Powell, Garrett Temple, and RJ Barrett. (I’ve only been in Toronto for a little over a decade.) I was also familiar with José Calderón’s history with the team, having read other books about the Raptors. Of course, I am also familiar with The G.R.O.A.T., Kyle Lowry, who provides a very good foreword to the book. These profiles were great, but as mentioned, I also enjoyed many of those about little-known players. For readers who might be inclined to just look for the players they recognize, I’d encourage them to read the other profiles in the book — especially from the “eras” before you found the team: doing so will give you a great picture of the evolution of the team and organization, as well as the city.

[As an aside, and illustrating an interesting link between the Raptors and the Toronto food scene: my favourite Thai restaurant, Pai, has one of Bismack Biyombo’s shoes on a shelf behind their bar.]

We the Raptors is a must read for die-hard Raptors fans, but it also contains plenty of information and profiles that would appeal to general-NBA enthusiasts and also the casual fan. I have a feeling it would work best as something one dips into from time-to-time, as it can feel just a bit repetitive if you read it through. The authors provide some good contextual introductions to each new ear/phase of the team, too, which will help situate readers who aren’t familiar with different parts of the team’s history.

Definitely recommended.

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Eric Smith & Andrew Bricker’s We the Raptors is due to be published by Simon & Schuster in North America and in the UK, on November 4th.

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