Raptors will have purple court for some games this year
When the Toronto Raptors took to the Scotiabank Arena court on Wednesday night, they were wearing throwback-inspired purple and black jerseys that fans had clamoured for many years to return.
But while those in attendance got a free purple shirt with a 30th-anniversary logo to mark the occasion, observers were quick to notice that the Raptors’ actual court itself was nothing out of the ordinary.
Instead of matching the purple colour scheme, Toronto opted to stick with red accents on the traditional hardwood floor.
Stage is set. pic.twitter.com/SI5FVeHmI6
— Toronto Raptors (@Raptors) October 23, 2024
It turns out Toronto will be getting a purple court for the in-season tournament games, officially known as the NBA Cup.
The Raptors will be getting a purple court after all, for NBA Cup games, at least.
Not sure why they went red last night, but alas. https://t.co/EK0APHgePk pic.twitter.com/SZ3CD429AM
— Adam Laskaris (@adam_la2karis) October 24, 2024
The courts will be used on November 15 against Detroit and December 3 against Indiana. No word yet on whether the Raptors have future plans for an alternative purple court for non-NBA Cup games.
A way to spice up the sometimes monotonous NBA schedule, the new tournament was introduced last year, with Toronto having a black-and-grey court for those games and 29 other designs in place for the other teams in the league.
The courts weren’t without their issues when introduced last season, including in Toronto. Boston’s Jaylen Brown, who suffered a minor injury on the Scotiabank Arena floor during an NBA Cup game, felt the court was to blame.
“That was a slip, and I think I might have strained my groin a little bit,” Brown said at the time. “We’ll see how it feels, but the court was just slippery all game. I think we all as players are here for the in-season tournament. It’s going to generate revenue, excitement, competition, etc, but we’ve got to make sure the floor is safe to play on. We can’t put our players out there and risk their health. Tonight, I thought the floor was kind of unacceptable. I think guys were just slipping all over the place, not just me.”