I remember as a child always asking my father what his days were like as a member of the Canadian Football League, as a player on the Saskatchewan Roughriders, to be exact. As a talented wide receiver, you would presume that his talking points would be consumed by his accolades and achievements. Instead, he would always tell me the more offbeat stories, like how some vehicles during the late-80’s needed external plugs to heat engine oil in order for it not to freeze during the frigid winters.
As a native Texan, I would take that story and extrapolate it to the entire country of Canada, viewing it as a winterized terrain of snow and despair.
Ironically enough, when you fast forward to 2016, Canada, and Toronto specifically, could very well be the hottest spot for culture on the map.
To get to where Toronto is at now, you can make a linear trajectory to the year of 1995. That is the year in which Toronto was rewarded an NBA franchise, making it the first NBA team within its border. Although the Vancouver Grizzles would emerge soon after, and the Toronto Huskies could be considered a forefather, the Toronto Raptors were different.
This franchise seemed to immediately appeal to American culture from the onset. For starters, its metropolis of a city resembled New York in many aspects and the franchise name itself, is speculated to derive from the 1993 summer hit, Jurassic Park.
With Chicago-bred Isaiah Thomas in the fold as well, plenty of NBA fans had their eyes fixed to north of the border, to see what this team would accomplish going forward. After years of low-level mediocrity, the franchise would usher in a new era with the 1998 NBA Draft, as Vince Carter would call Toronto home. With his cousin Tracy McGrady joining him, the arrival of a new arena would witness the Raptors sell out home games for three consecutive seasons and draw the admiration of American basketball enthusiasts looking for a niche team to root for.
By the year 2000, Toronto would be on their way, but not necessarily a household name amongst US citizens until Vince Carter and And 1 changed everything during the All-Star Weekend in Oakland. Rocking the And 1 Tai Chi in Raptors hues that coincided with their “Away” uniform, Vince Carter would turn in arguably the greatest dunk contest performance the world has ever seen.
From enlisting the help of his cousin T-Mac, to dipping his elbow in the rim, we witnessed an act of life coming “full circle” as Carter’s exploits got Isaiah Thomas on his feet in jubilation, despite technically being an official judge. Yes, that same Isaiah Thomas that helped construct the team years prior.
The very next season would witness a slight change to the aura of the Raptors, as Tracy McGrady would jettison to new endeavors with the Orlando Magic. In respects to Carter’s talents, the Raptors were still formidable members within the Eastern Conference. By the 2001 NBA playoffs, it was certain that the league’s MVP in Allen Iverson would face the Raptors in the Eastern Semis. In a matchup that was sent from the basketball heavens, Carter and Iverson would duel in respective signature models that would become fan favorites — most notably Iverson’s Reebok Answer IV.
Swapping 50-point performances that eventually led to a seven game series, Carter would average 30.4 points per game for the series, against one of the league’s more popular figures, subsequently boosting his profile as well as Toronto’s even further. Although Carter would miss a game-clinching bucket in Game 7, he would ink a lucrative 6-year, $94-million dollar contract extension that summer, seemingly tying together the city and its beloved star for the foreseeable future.As time would go on, Vince would further entrench himself within culture, by venturing over to Nike at the beginning of the 2000 campaign. Becoming the leading figure for the Shox movement, the Swoosh brand began to actively make this Northern star a priority with the likes of fellow All-Star caliber players.
It also boded well in Carter’s favor that arguably his most memorable moment in his illustrious career occurred in the Nike Shox BB4, during the 2000 Summer Olympics in which he soared over 7’2″ Frederic Weis.
Eventually, Carter would score his very own signature model with the Nike Shox VC series that would last through the mid-2000s. Although Carter’s tenure with the Raptors would end in 2005 with a trade to the New Jersey Nets, his stellar play helped lift the popularity of basketball north of the border.
Years would pass before the city of Toronto would become relevant again within American hoops culture. With their respective NBA franchise serving as the driving force behind previous ascensions, their lack of success during the mid-to-late 2000’s was apparent, despite having perennial All-Star Chris Bosh.
However, there would be a recording artist that would turn the music industry and subsequent sneaker industry on its ear — and that’s Drake. With the Toronto native emerging on the scene in 2007 and then on a larger scale by 2009 with his acclaimed mixtape So Far Gone, it was easy to see why he would become a mainstay in hip-hop.
With the Billboard #1s beginning to pile up at a historic pace, Drake made the remarkable business move to partner with Jordan Brand in December of 2013. The unveiling of several collaborative “OVO” makeups soon followed. Not to mention, this news arrived soon after Drake became a vital member of the Toronto Raptors brand, with his title of global ambassador. This would become the impetus of Toronto’s push for the 2016 All-Star Game.
Drake’s imprint would be felt throughout the NBA, and continues to do so, with a variety of current Raptors and former Raptors wearing his collaborative sneakers. While Drake himself sports the brand on numerous occasions, he even decided to “ether” a certain Philadelphia artist while sporting a Jordan Brand flight suit during the summer of 2015.
While the “inspiration” of Canadian influence is nice, some would suggest or beg the question: “How has that translated to the court?” Well, it has certainly boded well in the favor of Canadian hoops, as its transcendent talent continues to rise to the top of consciousness.
For starters, two of the last three #1 overall picks in the NBA Draft have been Toronto-bred players; those two being Andrew Wiggins and Anthony Bennett. In addition, the NBA has witnessed the rise of additional Toronto stars such as Tristan Thompson, Cory Joseph and Kelly Olynyk. This notion was also bolstered by the emergence of Steve Nash taking the reigns as GM of the Canadian National Team. The team is sponsored by Nike, and aims to push the United States within summer competition.
Trickling all the way down to the nuances of the Toronto community, the likes of The Vanguard TO has emerged to offer a keen interest in the hoops culture of the city. Blending the common theme of culture and hoops, this bubbling brand has witnessed the likes of Grammy-Award nominated producer boi1da, Anthony Bennett and more, spend time with their collective to boost the community and bolster the growing platform of Toronto hoops. Oh yeah, being in line with Nike has its perks as well.
With Toronto hosting their first NBA All-Star Game this weekend, it seems as though this country and city up north may be a bit “foreign” to many and seemingly something unto itself, however as documented above, “The 6ix” may be a growing epicenter of culture over the past decade-plus, and we haven’t even realized it.
Select Imagery via Getty Images and ESPN
