NBA: Toronto Raptors planning name change

The Toronto Raptors may not be known by their nickname for much longer, as they are looking into the possibility of changing the team’s nickname.

Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment (MLSE) president Tim Leiweke told reporters, on Tuesday, that he is considering ditching the only moniker the franchise has used in its 18-year existence.

“We’re definitely going to take a look at it. It doesn’t mean we’re committed to it. It means it’s a good conversation. I saw those generic uniforms today in the paper. … That won’t be the uniform, by the way. I can assure you of that. I think we need to have this conversation,” read excerpts from a report in The National Post.

According to the team’s website, a nation wide contest was conducted to pick out a name, and influenced by the popular dinosaur-themed movie Jurassic Park, the team ended up with its reptile oriented name – Raptors.

The Raptors entered the NBA in 1995, and following the relocation of the Vancouver Grizzlies in 2001, is the league’s only franchise in Canada.

Leiweke was hired with the intent to execute a rebranding effort that makes the Raptors appeal to all of Canada. That effort will include a bid to host the 2016 All-Star Game in Toronto.

The franchise had even considered the name “Huskies”, after an erstwhile Toronto-based basketball team.

The decision to change the name was inspired by the examples of two NBA franchises that recently revamped their monikers.

The New Orleans Hornets are also changing their name to the “Pelicans” at the end of the 2012-13 season and the Charlotte Bobcats have also announced that they will be referred to as the “Hornets” from the starting of the 2014-15 season.

Source: Sports Illustrated