Toronto Raptors

The Toronto Raptors have discussed moving their home games to the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey, amid the COVID-19 pandemic, which has restricted travel across the United States-Canada border.

Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News reported the news and also discussed other cities in the mix:

"The Raptors have spoken to the operators of the Prudential Center about using their 19,500-seat arena, according to a source. It's one of a few options for Masai Ujiri's squad, and a preference for the NBA because of its close proximity to all of Toronto's division foes.

"The Raptors have also discussed playing in Tampa Bay or Nashville or as tenants in another NBA team's arena, according to a source. Kansas City pitched its T-Mobile Center. Louisville was floated and reportedly shot down. There's been speculation about the team moving over the border to Buffalo, just like the Toronto Blue Jays during the last MLB season. While some of those destinations offer a warmer climate, none can match the geographical sense of The Rock."

The New Jersey Devils call the Prudential Center home. The Nets did as well from 2010 to 2012 prior to their move to Brooklyn.

The Raptors play their home games in Toronto's Scotiabank Arena, but the United States and Canada reached an agreement to limit non-essential travel across the border amid the COVID-19 pandemic. There were 97,080 new cases in the United States alone Friday, per the COVID Tracking Project.

Travel restrictions forced the Toronto Blue Jays to call Buffalo home for the 2020 MLB season. The Jays played at Sahlen Field, the home of the Triple-A Buffalo Bisons.

The Raptors have time to spare to figure out their home for the 2020-21 season.

The NBA is looking to start the campaign Dec. 22, per ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.

However, Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports reports that many players want to begin Jan. 18 (Martin Luther King Jr. Day).

Either way, the season will be shortened from its usual 82 games to give the league enough time to finish prior to the planned 2021 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, per Wojnarowski and ESPN's Brian Windhorst.

As Bondy noted, a move to Prudential Center might be the best best for the Raptors, as it would reduce travel. In a typical year, teams play their division opponents four times.

The Raptors are in the Atlantic Division with the Brooklyn Nets, New York Knicks, Boston Celtics and Philadelphia 76ers, so 16 of their games could be knocked out without much travel at all if the team uses North Jersey as a home base.

The Raps finished second in the Eastern Conference standings last year and reached the Eastern Conference Semifinals, where they lost to the Celtics in seven games.

The Toronto Raptors issued a statement Friday after Terence Davis was arrested in New York City on Tuesday and charged with seven misdemeanors including assault and harassment.

The Raptors said they "take these issues very seriously" and "will fully cooperate and support" the NBA's investigation:

Raptors release statement pertaining to Terence Davis: pic.twitter.com/3Nv9pAwSJ9

— Ryan Wolstat (@WolstatSun) October 30, 2020

Per ESPN's Tim Bontemps, Davis' girlfriend told police the couple got into a verbal argument. According to detective Sophia Mason, Davis "then hit the woman in the face, hurting her eye, and grabbed her phone and broke its screen." The woman's son was with her at the time and she told police he fell when Davis hit her.

TSN's Rick Westhead shared the full complaint:

New: Raptors G Terence Davis was released after his arraignment, the NY DA’s office says.
He faces 7 charges, inc. two counts of assault, harassment, endangering the welfare of a child and criminal mischief.
Davis’s next court date is Dec 11.
The criminal complaint against him: pic.twitter.com/zASAIHzWoa

— Rick Westhead (@rwesthead) October 28, 2020

The 22-year-old was formally charged with two counts of assault, attempted assault, endangering the welfare of a child, criminal mischief, aggravated harassment and harassment. He's due in court Dec. 11, and denied the charges through his defense attorney.

The Athletic's Eric Koreen shared some of the steps available to the NBA under the collective bargaining agreement. The league could place Davis on administrative paid leave during the investigation, and it can bring in outside investigators and legal counsel to aid in the inquiry.

Pleading guilty or no contest would qualify as a violation of the domestic violence, sexual assault and child abuse policy.

Davis signed with the Raptors in July 2019 after going undrafted and playing for the Denver Nuggets' summer league team. He averaged 7.5 points and 3.3 rebounds in 72 appearances.

Toronto Raptors guard Terence Davis was arrested Tuesday in the Midtown Manhattan area of New York City after allegedly punching his ex-girlfriend.

According to TMZ Sports, Davis was staying with his ex-girlfriend when an argument ensued and he allegedly punched her in the face repeatedly. Davis is also alleged to have broken the woman's phone when she refused to stop filming him.

Davis is now facing seven charges: 

New: Raptors G Terence Davis was released after his arraignment, the NY DA’s office says.
He faces 7 charges, inc. two counts of assault, harassment, endangering the welfare of a child and criminal mischief.
Davis’s next court date is Dec 11.
The criminal complaint against him: pic.twitter.com/zASAIHzWoa

— Rick Westhead (@rwesthead) October 28, 2020

When police arrived on the scene, they arrested Davis and booked him on misdemeanor assault and misdemeanor criminal mischief charges.

The woman was reportedly taken to the hospital after complaining of swelling to her left eye. After being treated for her injuries, she was released.

Davis, 23, was an undrafted free agent out of Ole Miss who signed with the Raptors prior to the 2019-20 season. He quickly became a key part of Toronto's rotation as a rookie.

Per Spotrac, Davis is set to make $1.5 million next season, but his deal is non-guaranteed. He would then be eligible to become a restricted free agent after the 2020-21 season.

If Patrick Mahomes gets his wish, the "Kansas City" Raptors will be playing in the NBA next season.

The Kansas City Chiefs quarterback reacted to a report that the Toronto Raptors may play in Louisville, Kentucky, in 2020-21 because of Canada's COVID-19 travel restrictions and pushed for the Eastern Conference team to come to Kansas City:

Bring them to KC! 💪🏽 https://t.co/di5r6bIAh7

— Patrick Mahomes II (@PatrickMahomes) October 26, 2020

Mahomes is an advocate for Kansas City sports and is part of the Royals' ownership group in Major League Baseball.

There are few bigger voices in all of K.C. than Mahomes, who has already established himself as an icon in the city by taking home an NFL MVP and Super Bowl trophy in his first two years as a starter. His Chiefs are once again in position to battle for a Lombardi Trophy following a 6-1 start in 2020.

If the Raptors did come to Missouri, fans would have the opportunity to watch one of the best teams in the NBA.

Despite losing Kawhi Leonard from their 2018-19 championship squad, the Raptors finished with the second-best record in the East at 53-19 last season and pushed the Boston Celtics to seven games in the second round of the playoffs.  

The Toronto Raptors reportedly held discussions about playing their home games in Louisville, Kentucky, during the 2020-21 season, but decided against it after their players expressed discomfort playing in Louisville following the killing of Breonna Taylor by police in March. 

Vincent Goodwill of Yahoo Sports reported earlier this week that Louisville was being considered as a temporary home for the Raptors next season provided the COVID-19 pandemic prevents them from playing their home games in Toronto.

WDRB's Rick Bozich reported Friday that sources indicated discussions between the Raptors and KC Yum! Center officials broke down because of the players' feelings regarding Taylor's killing and "the social unrest that followed."

The 26-year-old Taylor was shot and killed by police officers in her Louisville home after they entered the apartment on a search warrant.

According to Richard A. Oppel Jr. and Derrick Bryson Taylor of the New York Times, the police were issued a no-knock warrant to search Taylor's home, which meant they didn't have to identify themselves. The police were given permission to search the house on suspicion that a man suspected of selling drugs had used Taylor's apartment to receive packages.

Taylor's boyfriend, Kenneth Walker, fired one shot at the police using a gun he was licensed to carry. Walker said the police did not identify themselves before breaking the door down and he thought they were intruders. The police, who said they did identify themselves, fired at least 15 shots into the apartment, and five hit Taylor.

Former Louisville police officer Brett Hankison, who was fired following Taylor's death, was indicted on three counts of first-degree wanton endangerment last month for shots he fired that entered a neighboring apartment. However, no officers were directly charged for Taylor's killing.

The NBA finished the 2019-20 season inside the NBA bubble in Orlando, Florida, but with the league preferring teams to play in their home arenas during the 2020-21 season, it could create an issue for the Raptors.

MLB's Toronto Blue Jays were forced to play their games in Buffalo, New York, during the 2020 season since travel restrictions in Canada precluded other teams from entering the country.

If the Raptors face a similar situation, they will have to find a temporary home within the United States to play their home games during the 2020-21 campaign.

It isn't yet clear when the 2020-21 NBA season will begin, but ESPN reported that the NBA Board of Governors is meeting Friday and plans to discuss the possibility of starting the season on Christmas Day.

So long as travel into Canada from the United States is banned during the COVID-19 pandemic, there will be the question of where the Toronto Raptors will play their home games next season. 

According to Vincent Goodwill of Yahoo Sports, Louisville, Kentucky is one possibility: 

"MLB's Toronto Blue Jays played their home games in Buffalo, and the Toronto FC of the MLS played its games in East Hartford, Connecticut.

"The Raptors face a similar dilemma, and league sources tell Yahoo Sports one alternate location that has been broached is Louisville, Kentucky. Former NBA player and successful businessman Junior Bridgeman has been in contact with the NBA, considering Louisville has the KFC Yum! Center that is NBA-ready."

The Raptors could also end up playing in an existing market like New York or a Chicago, though as Goodwill noted, that could run counter to the NBA's hopes of getting fans into seats next season. Would an existing market with fans who have existing allegiances be interested in Raptors games? 

That's where a city like Louisville or even Seattle—though Goodwill reported it would be "an easier sell to get the Raptors in Louisville for a short period," likely given their NBA-ready facility—would be appealing. It would be easier to market the Raptors playing in a totally unique market for a year. It's easy enough to envision the merchandising, with a "Louisville Raptors" City Edition jersey surely to hit the NBA store in such a scenario.

As for when the new league year will begin, Goodwill reported that a Martin Luther King Jr. start date on Jan. 18 is the frontrunner, though a Christmas day start is also a contender. But that is just one of many unknowns. 

Will the NBA be able to implement a full 82-game schedule and still start the 2021-22 season in October, its usual schedule? After having so much success mitigating the spread of COVID-19 in the Orlando bubble, how will the league handle the potential return to travel and fans in stands? Or will we get another bubble season? 

It's hard to imagine that players will sign up for another bubble. It worked incredibly well for a few months, but asking players to quarantine in a fixed location, away from their families, for an entire season is a different proposition altogether. 

The NBA has a lot of questions to answer between now and the start of the 2020-21 season. That includes where the Raptors will host their "home" games. 

Toronto Raptors forward Serge Ibaka, an impending unrestricted free agent, shot down rumors Friday that he removed Raps-related information in his Instagram bio:

I know the NBA and free agency news are slow right now but there is no need to make up news lol. I’ve had the same IG bio for years and did not change anything now. Be well everyone! #wethenorth

— Serge Ibaka (@sergeibaka) October 16, 2020

Ibaka's bio quotes Proverbs 10:22.

The 31-year-old averaged 15.4 points on 51.2 percent shooting and 8.2 rebounds last season for the Raps, who lost to the Boston Celtics in a hard-fought seven-game Eastern Conference Finals series. Toronto finished 53-19 last season, good for second in the East's regular-season standings.

Ibaka played an integral role on the 2018-19 NBA champion Raptors, averaging 9.4 points and 6.0 boards off the bench in the playoffs.    

Raptors president of basketball operations Masai Ujiri told reporters in September that re-signing Ibaka and fellow big man Marc Gasol are priorities, in addition to guard Fred VanVleet:

Ujiri: "Fred is a priority, a big-time priority"

He also said the bigs (Ibaka and Gasol) are a priority. Earlier he acknowledged the challenge of balancing bringing those guys back with maintaining long-term flexibility (even mentioned the important summer of 2021).

— Josh Lewenberg (@JLew1050) September 17, 2020

The only Raptor currently signed after 2021-22 is Pascal Siakam, who inked a four-year, $130 million contract extension last October.   

The Toronto Raptors will have a few new threads to choose from when the 2020-21 NBA season kicks off.

In a hype video released via Twitter on Thursday afternoon, the Raptors unveiled three new jerseys the team will wear for the upcoming season. The designs come in the team's primary colors—red, white and black—with its signature arrow design pointing north. 

Which North are you? #WeTheNorth pic.twitter.com/xmATeh0AaD

— Toronto Raptors (@Raptors) October 15, 2020

"We want to give our players—and our fans—jerseys they're proud to wear not just because they say Raptors on the front, not just because they're a symbol of our city and country," Raptors President Masai Ujiri said in a statement. "But because they also look great."

The jerseys are made using recycled materials with nearly 20 bottles going into each uniform. 

"As we began to think about the decade ahead, we aimed to create uniforms that not only reflected our franchise's historic accomplishment in 2019 but also inspired the pursuit of our next championship," MLSE Chief Marketing Officer Shannon Hosford said in a statement. "Our goal was to continue to evolve our ‘We The North' Raptors brand identity highlighting our key chevron design, which is synonymous with the North and our championship."

Irelyne Lavery of the Toronto Star noted the team will round out the upcoming season's collection with two additional looks. 

Alameda County sheriff's deputy Alan Strickland filed a court motion Tuesday in an effort to get a counter lawsuit filed by Toronto Raptors president Masai Ujiri dismissed. 

Daniel Wallach of The Athletic provided details from the filing, which relates to an altercation between Strickland and Ujiri following Game 6 of the 2019 NBA Finals:

Strickland compares Masai Ujiri to the terrorists who murdered 11 Israeli athletes at the 1972 Munich Olympics, and to the crazed fan who stabbed Monica Seles in 1993. He asserts that Ujiri posed "the same threats" as these terrorists by ignoring commands to show his credentials. pic.twitter.com/RLgTbsA9ld

— . (@PrograsiveXPlus) October 6, 2020

Strickland filed a lawsuit in February that accused Ujiri, 50, of hitting him in the face and chest during the confrontation in June 2019. In the lawsuit, Strickland claims his injuries are so severe he is no longer able to work.

In August, Ujiri filed the countersuit, which included video from the incident that showed Ujiri attempting to show Strickland his credential before the deputy pushes Ujiri multiple times:

https://twitter.com/diamond83/status/1295898422625566727

The Raptors executive told reporters Strickland's lawsuit was "malicious in a way":

"To me, it's incredible that things play out like that. I think something incredible was taken away from me and I will never forget it. It is one of the things that drives me to win another championship because I want to be able to celebrate a championship the right way. This thing will be settled. The truth will come out. The truth will come out of this.

"It's incredible that this malicious kind of claim, if I've been dismissed with the criminal case, then I really don't know what this means for me. There is no case there and I look forward to whatever is coming."

The Raptors clinched the 2018-19 NBA championship in Game 6 on the road at Oracle Arena in Oakland, California. It was the franchise's first title.

Ujiri joined Toronto's front office in 2013 as general manager and was promoted to president in 2016. He was previously named NBA Executive of the Year in 2013 while serving as general manager with the Denver Nuggets.

Following an equally unorthodox post-season, the 2020 NBA free agency period will be one for the books. 

There's still so much uncertainty around this year's offseason. The league still hasn't even set an official date for it to begin.

Free agency was initially set to start on Oct. 18, but that seems unlikely now that the tentative date for the 2021 season is still up in the air. In addition, the salary cap isn't set yet, and the COVID-19 pandemic will limit meetings. 

Nevertheless, there are some valuable players available heading into the NBA draft, which will take place on Nov. 18.

All eyes will be on Anthony Davis as the top unrestricted free agent, but names like DeMar DeRozan, Fred Vanvleet, and Montrezl Harrell could be major targets, as well.

         

Will Toronto be able to keep Fred VanVleet?

After two productive seasons, Fred VanVleet will be an appealing option for any team looking for a solid point guard. Vanvleet was instrumental to the Raptors' 2019 championship win. This season, he helped the defending champions remain a threat without Kawhi Leonard, averaging 17.6 points per game along with 6.6 assists and 3.8 rebounds.

The Raptor's backup guard is already linked to the New York Knicks and Detroit Pistons, but Nick Nurse seems to think he will return to Toronto. According to Steven Loung of SportsNet, Nurse said he would be "pretty surprised" if that wasn't the case. 

Per Spotrac, Toronto's salary cap is projected at $19.1 million after they offered Kyle Lowry a $30 million contract extension last year.

At just 26 years old, VanVleet is a good young player who still has a lot of upside. It would be a mistake to let him leave, so they will likely try to offer him what he wants. However, another organization, like the Knicks, could swoop in and present him with a contract that they simply can't match.

      

Montrezl Harrell could head to South Beach 

Montrezl Harrell will be a hot commodity following the Clippers' disastrous collapse in the semifinal against the Denver Nuggets. The 2020 Sixth Man of the Year averaged 18.6 points and 7.1 rebounds this season.

Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report suggested that the Miami Heat could offer Harrell "a big one-year deal" as they also plan to pursue Giannis Antetokounmpo. Straight away, that seems like a great destination for the 26-year-old power forward. 

Harrell won't bring the same defensive capabilities to Miami of someone like Jae Crowder, but he could give them a boost on offense. Toronto could also use him, but the Heat will likely be able to offer him more money. 

       

DeMar DeRozan's search for a new home 

Speaking of Toronto, DeMar DeRozan has been out of his comfort zone since the Raptors surprisingly traded him to San Antonio in 2018. DeRozan has had two solid seasons with the Spurs, but it doesn't seem like a perfect match 

If he decides to exercise his player option, he will become one of the top free agents this winter. There are no hints that he plans to do so or that he's unhappy, so far. So, it's safe to assume that he will opt-in ahead of the 2020-2021 season. 

However, the Spurs could decide to move him if they would like to rebuild following Kawhi Leonard's awkward exit. DeRozan is the team's most valuable asset, and he would net the best offers. 

Packaging him in a deal with an Eastern Conference team like the Chicago Bulls or the Charlotte Hornets could give the Spurs a chance to create a new young nucleus.