TORONTO _ Outside of Scotiabank Arena, fans started lining up in the early morning hours. Not to get inside the arena, but just to stand outside in the chill at Jurassic Park, the area outside of the venue where a large screen and a large crowd would unite for the game.
And it wasn't just the usual spot outside, but all over Ontario with 21 other cities getting permission to throw up a large screen and allow fans to gather to watch the first NBA Finals appearance by the Raptors. Theaters put the game on screens, too, turning the entire province into a community _ a very loud community _ in support of the only NBA team north of the border.
Despite the fervor, which is nothing new for the team, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver in a state of the NBA address before the game said that just like cities in the United States, there would not likely be any imminent expansion. After beginning his talk with a nod to the history of the city _ Toronto hosted the first-ever NBA game in a loss to the Knicks in 1946 and the inventor of the game, Dr. James Naismith was Canadian _ he put aside any thoughts of any other cities getting a team.
"My answer is, you know, and it's the same as it's been for other U.S. cities that have expressed interest, and that is that we are just not in expansion mode at the time," Silver said. "I mean, we're flattered that some other Canadian cities have expressed interest, as some other U.S. cities have, but again nothing new and I've said this before, that we, meaning the NBA collectively, all our team owners, are very focused on creating the best possible competition among the 30 teams. And I'm sure inevitably at some point we'll turn back to expansion, but it's not on the agenda at this time."
