Portal:Canada/Selected article/11
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The Toronto Raptors are a professional basketball team based in Toronto, Ontario. They are part of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association (NBA). The team was established in 1995, along with the Vancouver Grizzlies, as part of the NBA's expansion into Canada. When the Grizzlies relocated to Memphis, Tennessee in 2001, the Raptors became the only Canadian team in the NBA. They originally played their home games in the SkyDome, before moving to the Air Canada Centre (ACC) in 1999.
Like most expansion teams, the Raptors struggled in their early years. In time they saw success: following the acquisition of Vince Carter through a draft day trade in 1998, the team set league attendance records and made the NBA Playoffs in 2000, 2001, and 2002. Carter was instrumental in leading the team to their first playoff series win in 2001, where they advanced to the Eastern Conference Semifinals. During the 2002-03 and 2003-04 NBA seasons, they failed to make significant progress and he was traded in 2004. After Carter left, Chris Bosh emerged as a team leader, but they continued to struggle. However, with the appointment of Bryan Colangelo as General Manager and a revamp of the roster for the 2006-07 NBA season, they qualified for their first playoff berth in five years and captured their first division title.
