As I sat in the freezing cold foyer of Scotiabank Arena for Toronto Raptors Media Day, I couldn’t help but think about how different it felt this year in comparison to last season. In 2023, it almost felt like we were hanging onto the threads of the ‘We The North’ era — Pascal Siakam and O.G. Anunoby were being cryptic about their contracts. Masai Ujiri did his usual speech of winning again in Toronto, believing in this team.
This time around, the evidence of being deep into the Raptors’ latest transitionary phase was all around us.