Jamie Nye: A generation away from seeing what Raptors title means to Canada

The Toronto Raptors championship isn’t the biggest sports moment in Canadian history, but it could be the most significant for what it means to a sport in this country.

In 1972, Paul Henderson didn’t get kids playing hockey. Neither did Sidney Crosby in 2010. They were already playing.

Did the Blue Jays spark a big uptick in ball players in Canada in the early 1990s? Not really.

While basketball is one of the most-participated sports in Canada, it doesn’t have the elite push many of the other sports have had. It’s growing with the Biosteel prospects game, but now that the Raptors are NBA champs and a nation has rallied around the sport, it will be interesting to see what programs grow or become because of this monumental Raptors win.

We have already seen the wave of Vince Carter-influenced players hit the NBA court representing Canada.

I can’t wait to see where basketball goes from here, thanks to a Canadian first with the Larry O’Brien Trophy coming north.