TORONTO _ In the days leading up to the start of the NBA Finals, the too long of a breather that allowed rest, preparation and in the case of the Toronto Raptors, time for the young players who had never been on this stage to think of the enormity of the task.
Not only had most of them never been in the Finals, just as the franchise had never reached this in its history, but they were facing the Golden State Warriors, who were making their fifth straight trip to the Finals. The questions mostly focused around what the future held for the Warriors this summer after the formality of running by the Raptors.
And then, one minute and 14 seconds into Game 1, when the chills of the Canadian national anthem performed by The Tenors had subsided and only the nerves of the reality of their situation surrounded them, the Raptors put the ball in the hands of Danny Green. And he calmly drained a three-point field goal, the first points for Toronto.
