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Toronto Raptors fans draw Brooklyn envy, set TV record

Raptors fans are loud, proud and the envy of the NBA.

The dedication and passion of Toronto fans has been the talk of the league throughout the playoffs. That talk got a little bit louder Wednesday when a Brooklyn Nets employee challenged his team’s fans to take a lesson from their Toronto counterparts.

“#Nets fans take note- this is what a playoff crowd sounds like..set your DVD and take notes #RAPTORSvNETS – LR,” Nets writer Lenn Robbins tweeted from the official Brooklyn Twitter account during Game 5.

Brooklyn faithful quickly registered their unhappiness with the tweet on social media, and the team distanced themselves from Robbins’ words.

“Lenn Robbins’ tweet last night didn’t represent our organization’s feelings. We have great fans. Looking frwrd to seeing u Friday for Game 6,” read a message posted on the team’s Twitter feed Thursday afternoon.

But some Raptors players say Robbins was just speaking the truth.

“That (tweet) just shows you how great our fans are,” Raptors forward Amir Johnson said after practice Thursday.

Those fans set a record Wednesday, when an average audience of one million viewers tuned in to Game 5 on TSN, making it the most-watched Raptors game ever. More people watched the Toronto win than any of the three NHL Game 7s that were played on Canadian television Wednesday night.

Boisterous crowds have packed both the Air Canada Centre and Maple Leaf Square during Raptors games. Their chants and cheers are deafening, seeming to only get louder and more creative as the playoffs continue.

“They’re feeling alive, I’ll tell you that,” said Toronto superstar DeMar DeRozan, who kept the crowd roaring Wednesday night with big baskets and a two-handed dunk.

“There’s definitely an energy that you feel as soon as you pull into the arena, honestly . . . I honestly think we have one of the best fan bases in the NBA and just to have them behind us has definitely been big.

Source: Toronto Star