Toronto Raptors in History

Events in Sport

  • 1994-05-22 Toronto NBA franchise unveils name "Raptors" & logo
  • 1995-11-03 First NBA game at SkyDome in Toronto; Raptors beat New Jersey Nets, 94-79
  • 1995-12-10 1st meeting of NBA expansion teams, Raptors beat Grizzlies 93-81

Bryant Second-Highest Point Game

2006-01-22 Kobe Bryant scores 81 points in a 122-104 Lakers victory over the Toronto Raptors; second-highest game total in NBA history, behind only Wilt Chamberlain's 100-point game (1962)

  • 2006-06-28 NBA Draft: Italian power forward Andrea Bargnani is first pick by Toronto Raptors
  • 2016-01-03 Jimmy Butler breaks Michael Jordan's Chicago Bulls record for points in an NBA half, scoring 40 of his 42 points in the second half to lead the Bulls in a 115-113 victory over the Toronto Raptors
  • 2018-07-18 Kawhi Leonard is traded to the Toronto Raptors in exchange for DeMar DeRozan, Jakob Pöltl, and a protected 2019 first-round draft pick
  • 2019-06-13 NBA Finals: Toronto Raptors beat defending champion Golden State Warriors, 114-110 to win franchise's first Championship; last game at Oracle Arena, Oakland; MVP: Kawhi Leonard

Birthdays in Sport

  • 1926-09-27 Steve Stavro, Canadian businessman and sports executive (owner Toronto Maple Leafs, Toronto Raptors) and thoroughbred racehorse owner/breeder (Knob Hill Stable, Newmarket Ontario), born in Gavros, Greece (d. 2006)
  • 1937-03-26 Wayne Embry, American Basketball HOF center (5 x NBA All Star; NBA C'ship 1968 Boston Celtics) and executive (NBA Executive of the Year 1992 Cleveland Cavaliers, 1998 Toronto Raptors), born in Springfield, Ohio
  • 1942-04-21 Brendan Malone, American basketball coach (RI Uni; Toronto Raptors, Cleveland Cavaliers), born in New York City (d. 2023)
  • 1958-02-16 Herb Williams, NBA center (Toronto Raptors, NY Knicks)
  • 1961-04-01 Sergio Scariolo, Italian basketball coach (NBA: assistant Toronto Raptors; head coach Spain; World Cup gold 2019), born in Brescia, Italy
  • 1962-07-22 Alvin Robertson, NBA guard (Toronto Raptors)
  • 1967-07-24 Nick Nurse, American basketball coach who won NBA C'ship 2019 Toronto Raptors; Philadelphia 76ers, Canada men, born in Carroll, Iowa
  • 1969-03-01 Vincenzo Esposito, Italian basketball guard and coach (2× Italian League MVP 1999, 2000; 3× Italian League Top Scorer 1999–2001; NBA: Toronto Raptors), born in Caserta, Campania, Italy
  • 1970-04-06 Oliver Miller, NBA forward/center (Toronto Raptors)
  • 1970-04-16 Walt Williams, American NBA forward and guard (Toronto Raptors, Miami Heat), born in Washington, D.C.
  • 1970-05-09 Doug Christie, NBA guard/forward (Toronto Raptors)
  • 1970-06-15 Zan Tabak, NBA center (Toronto Raptors)
  • 1970-06-17 Ron "Popeye" Jones, American NBA forward, 1992-2004 (Dallas Mavericks, Toronto Raptors, and 4 other teams), and assistant coach, 2013-present (4 teams), born in Dresden, Tennessee
  • 1970-06-23 A C Earl, NBA center (Toronto Raptors)
  • 1971-02-06 Carlos Rogers, American NBA forward/center (Toronto Raptors), born in Detroit, Michigan
  • 1971-04-30 B J Tyler, NBA guard (Toronto Raptors)
  • 1972-02-06 Shawn Respert, American NBA guard (Milwaukee Bucks, Toronto Raptors), born in Detroit, Michigan
  • 1973-01-30 Sharone Wright, American basketball player (Toronto Raptors), born in Macon, Georgia
  • 1973-08-09 Jimmy King, American NBA guard (Toronto Raptors, University of Michigan Wolverines Fab Five), born in South Bend, Indiana
  • 1973-09-03 Damon Stoudamire, American basketball guard (NBA Rookie of the Year 1996; Toronto Raptors) and coach (University of the Pacific 2016-21), born in Portland, Oregon
  • 1974-03-22 Marcus Camby, American NBA forward (Toronto Raptors), born in Hartford, Connecticut
  • 1975-02-23 Chris Garner, NBA guard (Toronto Raptors), born in Memphis, Tennessee
  • 1975-06-19 Anthony Parker, American basketball guard (EuroLeague Final 4 MVP 2004, EuroLeague MVP 2005, 06; Maccabi Tel Aviv; Toronto Raptors, Cleveland Cavaliers), born in Naperville, Illinois
  • 1977-01-26 Vince Carter, American basketball forward (8 x NBA All Star; NBA Rookie of the Year 1999, Toronto Raptors; Olympic gold 2000), born in Daytona Beach, Florida
  • 1977-12-19 Jorge Garbajosa, Spanish basketball forward (FIBA World C'ship gold 2006; Mr. Europa 2006 Unicaja; Toronto Raptors) and executive (president Spanish Basketball Federation 2016-23), born in Madrid, Spain
  • 1979-05-24 Tracy McGrady, American Basketball Hall of Fame forward (NBA All-Star 2001–07; NBA scoring champion 2003, 04; Toronto Raptors, Orlando Magic, Houston Rockets), born in Bartow, Florida
  • 1985-01-29 Marc Gasol, Spanish basketball center (NBA C'ship 2019 Toronto Raptors; NBA All-Star 2012, 15, 17; All-NBA First Team 2015; NBA Defensive Player of the Year 2013), born in Barcelona, Spain
  • 1985-10-26 Andrea Bargnani, Italian basketball player (Toronto Raptors), born in Rome, Italy
  • 1988-08-23 Jeremy Lin, American NBA player (Toronto Raptors), born in Torrance, California
  • 1993-05-25 Norman Powell, American NBA player (Toronto Raptors), born in San Diego, California
  • 2001-08-01 Scottie Barnes, American basketball forward (NBA Rookie of the Year 2022; Toronto Raptors), born in West Palm Beach, Florida

Deaths in Sport

  • 2006-04-23 Steve Stavro, Canadian businessman and sports executive (owner Toronto Maple Leafs, Toronto Raptors) and thoroughbred racehorse owner/breeder (Knob Hill Stable, Newmarket Ontario), dies at
  • 2023-10-10 Brendan Malone, American basketball coach (RI Uni; Toronto Raptors, Cleveland Cavaliers), dies at 81