On Monday morning in Toronto, the NBA and MLSE convened a press conference studded by a single star to announce a bunch of things we all already knew. Yes, the 2016 NBA All-Star Game is officially coming to Toronto. Yes, Drake is the Raptors new “global ambassador.” And no, no one—Drake included—seems to know exactly what the global ambassador of a basketball team does. But there were still a few interesting bits of debris to cling to in the sea of confirmation. Here are five of them:
Raptors will stay “The Raptors” and change everything else
According to MLSE president and CEO Tim Leiweke, the Raptors are on the verge of submitting an application to the NBA to change the team’s branding, image and colours. Only once the application is approved will the team begin to work with the NBA to establish a timeline for the changes, but NBA commissioner–in-waiting Adam Silver, in attendance to make the All-Star announcement, estimated that the process would take about two years.
Crucially, though, Leiweke insisted the Raptors’ name will not be changing. Whether the team will abandon the purple and red in favour of a more accurate portrayal of its namesake or flip the script entirely and opt for birds of prey, remains to be seen. But all in attendance were insistent Drake would be very involved in the process. So there’s that.
Drake buys his suits at Harry Rosen
Sharing the stage with a line of sports executives and public servants wearing suits that ranged from dark grey to slightly darker grey obviously made Drake a bit self-conscious. In a brief speech to confirm that he was, in fact, aware the team had named him its global ambassador, the rapper couldn’t help but acknowledge that his blue two-button stood out: “I have to go to Harry Rosen and get some more neutral suits. The vibrant blue isn’t cutting it.”
Raps will try to make games more affordable for families
When? No one said. How? They didn’t mention that either. But when asked how the Drake and ASG announcements would impact the team’s community outreach efforts, Leiweke expressed a desire to “make it more affordable for families to attend games.” This was the best idea brought up at the event.
Drake has a lot of friends who are basketball players
Insisting that Drake would do his utmost to showcase the finer points of Toronto to his many professional basketball-playing friends, Leiweke jokingly told Silver, “that’s not tampering commissioner, Drake said it.” This prompted a flood of questions about the Ambassador’s role in landing the team big name free agents—all of which Drake managed to parry, while somehow letting the audience know that projected 2014 No. 1 “Andrew Wiggins is a good friend of mine.”
Tim Leiweke is “the ultimate closer in sports.”
So says Adam Silver. Also, Leiweke and Toronto Mayor Rob Ford put the estimated economic impact of the All-Star Game at $100 million. Now you know.