Canadian NBA team picks region as home base for upcoming season

TAMPA — Tampa Bay sports teams are on a hot streak, with a Stanley Cup championship from the Lightning, a World Series appearance from the Rays and a buzz around the Buccaneers, courtesy of signing iconic quarterback Tom Brady.

Now the region has another victory: The NBA’s Toronto Raptors — the team won the league championship in 2019 — announced it will play the 2020-21 season at Amalie Arena in Tampa Bay, home of the Lightning. The team made the decision after failing to come to an agreement with Canadian officials to play games in Canada, due to the pandemic.

The Raptors worked diligently with public health officials at the local, provincial and federal level to secure a plan that would permit us to play our 2020-21 season on home soil and on our home court at Scotiabank Arena,” Raptors president of basketball operations Masai Ujiri says in a statement on the team’s website. “These conversations were productive, and we found strong support for the protocols we put forward. Ultimately, the current public health situation facing Canadians, combined with the urgent need to determine where we will play means that we will begin our 2020-21 season in Tampa.”

“So we’ll be away from our home and our fans for now,” Ujiri adds in the release. They say absence makes the heart grow fonder. I’m not sure that’s possible for us – we love Toronto and Canada, and we know we have the best fans in the NBA. For now, I’ll ask you to cheer for us from afar, and we’ll look forward to the day we are all together again.”

Tampa and Amalie Arena officials welcomed the Raptors to town.

"The Toronto Raptors and their fans will not be disappointed here in Tampa Bay. Not only do we have the Stanley Cup Champion Lightning, the World Series runner-up Rays and the powerhouse Buccaneers, we’re going to have a chance to watch the magic of the Toronto Raptors play right here in our backyard,” Tampa Mayor Jane Castor says in a statement. “And although things may look a bit different this season, we look forward to cheering you on.”

“We are excited to host the Toronto Raptors at Amalie Arena for the start of the 2020-2021 NBA season,” Amalie Arena CEO Steve Griggs says in a separate statement. “While we would have liked to see them play their home games in front of their hometown fans, we are pleased they reached out to see if Tampa Bay would be interested in serving as a temporary home. It is a privilege and a great opportunity to bring NBA basketball to our community — we welcome the Raptors, their players, coaches and staff.”