If you watched the Raptors lay out the welcome mat for newly inserted head coach Darko Rajakovic on Tuesday, it was easy enough to get the impression that the franchise considered the arrival of its 10th coach a particularly big moment.
Team president Masai Ujiri heralded the occasion as the dawn of a “new era” of Toronto basketball, ending what amounted to a Jurassic Park pep rally with something akin to one of his famous pre-playoff rally cries, minus the profanity.
“I’m calling on all the fans,” Ujiri said. “Let’s go out and win.