Raptors purple throwbacks one of many reasons to be excited
In any other season, talk of the Raptors preparing to celebrate their 20th anniversary campaign next year with this honorary patch and the occasional wearing of their original purple 'dino’ uniforms would draw ridicule. After all, this is a franchise that’s celebrating two decades of mostly futility and occasional mediocrity, and those purple uniforms are widely regarded as some of the worst in NBA history.
But this isn’t any other season. The Raptors, behind a starting lineup aged 21-to-27 and a regular bench almost entirely comprised of the Kings they were rewarded with for dumping Rudy Gay’s onerous contract, have surged to a 33-26 record, including a 27-14 record since said Rudy-dumping.
They currently hold the No. 3 seed in a weak and injury depleted Eastern Conference, but a real life NBA Conference nonetheless, and rabid Toronto (and Canadian) basketball fans who have stayed loyal to the team through thick and mostly thin are realistically talking about a possible second round appearance in the playoffs for just the second time in franchise history.
A much ballyhooed brand redesign (but not a rebranding because Raptors is actually an awesome name) is coming in 2015, the All-Star game is coming in 2016, DeMar DeRozan became the organization’s first All-Star since Chris Bosh, Kyle Lowry brings the blend of talent and toughness all fanbases crave, Terrence Ross has a franchise-record-tying 51-point game in the bag, Jonas Valanciunas has shown glimpses of one day becoming the legitimate franchise center this franchise has never had, Amir Johnson is one of the most likable guys in the league and the team is a virtual lock to end a six-year playoff drought (The Raps have a bigger cushion over ninth place than the Rockets and Clippers do, because Eastern Conference).
Heck, some fans have even opened their minds to welcoming Vince Carter back with a warm reception at some point in the near future and maybe even…gasp…’honoring’ VC in some form as part of next year’s celebrations.
No one here is naïve enough to believe that this team is a contender of any sort or that this young core, if left untouched over the next few years, can even become one. In that regard, there is still much work to do for reigning Executive of the Year Masai Ujiri and co. But for the first time in a long time, it’s genuinely fun to be a Raptors fan again and there is legitimate reason to be excited about the future in Toronto. And yeah, that makes the thought of celebrating whatever history this franchise has exciting – it makes celebrating those goofy, oh-so-90s purple uniforms exciting.
If you’re a Raptors fan, don’t let anyone ruin that excitement for you. Own it. I know I will.