Hoopla: Inside the Raptors' First Season

by Jack Batten

Professional basketball is a very recent phenomenon in Canada and the new NBA franchise in Toronto brought new players into the field of high-stakes professional sport the group headed by 32-year-old John Bitove, Jr., and its team, the Raptors. A wide variety of problems have dogged Bitove, but the Raptors, backed by an impressive promotional effort and starring Rookie of the Year, Damon Stoudamire, captured the imagination of fans and generated massive...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0771010672
• ISBN13: 9780771010675
• Release Date: November 1996
• Publisher: McClelland & Stewart
• Length: 239 Pages
• Weight: 0.77 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 6.0" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

Excellent title!

This is one of the best books I have found on basketball teams in a while. The author gives you all aspects of the Raptors franchise: playing field and the home office. I liked the author's detailing of the players personalities as well as the outlining of the various games they played. He also goes deeply into the minds of the creators to give the reader as sense of what it is like to start a franchise. After reading this book, I felt like I was a part of the franchise in its first year. Highly recommended if you like basketball or especially if you like the Raptors.