The Toronto Raptors‘ roller-coaster playoff run took Canada by storm, and nowhere was that more evident than on social media.
Whether it was criticizing the officiating or praising break out stars like Bismack Biyombo, Raptors fans took to Twitter throughout the playoffs to voice opinions and show support for Canada’s team.
Chris Doyle, head of media for Twitter Canada, put the team’s social media support in perspective: “The NBA does a great job with their social media and the Raptors have proven to have a young, digital savvy fan base. This playoff run was the perfect storm and although it didn’t have one signature moment like the bat flip, we really saw people rally around and care about this team as they carried momentum from round to round.”
Everyone from well-known athletes to Canadian celebrities to fans in Jurassic Park had something to say about the Raptors journey to the Eastern Conference Finals.
Celebrity Tweets:
After losing by nearly 20 points against the Indiana Pacers in Game 6, the Raptors faced possible elimination going into Game 7 at the Air Canada Centre. Cue Blue Jays players and well-known Raptors fans Marcus Stroman and Jose Bautista, who made it back in time from Tampa to show support for their fellow Toronto athletes.
The Raptors would go on to win Game 7 by a score of 89-84, moving on to the conference semifinals for only the second time in franchise history.
After his dominant performance in the Raptors Game 7 win over the Miami Heat — in which his 17 points and 16 rebounds helped move the team into the Eastern Conference Finals, Bismack Biyombo earned himself some new, famous fans.
With Biyombo dominating the glass and Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan combining to score 63 points, the Raptors won their second Game 7 of the 2016 playoffs in deciding fashion and found themselves in the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time ever.
With the Raptors record-breaking season coming to an end last week with a 113-87 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers in Game 6, fans across Canada flocked to Twitter to pay their respects and reflect on the team’s great run. Among the fans were some famous names, including Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
Most Retweeted Raptors Tweets:
After winning a franchise best 56 games during the regular season, expectations were high going into the Raptors’ first-round matchup against the Indiana Pacers.
The Raptors would go down early, losing Game 1 against the Pacers and sending some fans into a panic with the poor shooting performance of DeMar DeRozan and hot play of Paul George. DeMarre Carroll was quick to remind fans that one game does not a playoff series make.
Deja vu: Carroll would go on to echo the same sentiments after the Raptors got thumped 115-84 by the Cavs in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals.
The Raps bounced back big time in Game 2, beating the Pacers 98-87 off a strong performance from Jonas Valanciunas, who had 23 points and 15 rebounds in the win.
After beating the Heat 116-89 in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals, Raptors players hit up Twitter to celebrate their historic victory.
The most re-tweeted Raptors tweets of 2016 belonged to Jonas Valanciunas and DeMarre Carroll, who took to Twitter after the team’s loss to Cleveland to thank Raps fans across Canada for their support throughout the season.
