I Remember: My Toronto Raptors Story

Photos by Rocky Widner/NBAE via Getty Images (Bosh); Raptors Rapture (McGrady); Jed Jacobsohnn via Getty Images (Carter); The Comeback (Stoudamire); Gregory Shamus via Getty Images (DeRozan); Frank Gunn/The Canadian Press via AP (Leonard); Patrick Smith/Getty Images (Lowry)

I remember the beginning.

I was young, but I remember.

I remember being drawn to the striped orange ball, before knowing what it was going to mean.

I remember dribbling alone in the driveway, while the scraping of hockey sticks on asphalt echoed elsewhere.

I remember Damon Stoudamire, the Mighty Mouse, the Rookie of The Year.

I remember going to Raptorball camp at the downtown Y and high-fiving Doug Christie.

I remember when I didn’t care about winning, because all that mattered was that I had a team of my own.

Then I remember the 1998 draft.

I remember when things changed.

I remember when a hockey city evolved

I remember watching a man not just change a culture, but create one.

I remember seeing less kickball at recess, and more Bump — less ball hockey on Sundays, and more Around The World.

I remember what Vince Carter started for my city and my sport.

I remember the first time we got swept, and not feeling sad because I believed this was the start of something special.