Bounce … bounce … bounce-bounce.
Everyone held their breath.
And then thousands of Canadians jumped to their feet and screamed with excitement.
That was the scene inside Toronto’s Scotiabank Arena, and outside the arena in what’s known as Jurassic Park where fans watch the game on big screens, and across Canada in countless homes as people watched the game on their TVs.
It was Sunday, May 12. The Toronto Raptors basketball team was playing the Philadelphia 76ers in Game 7 of a series that would decide which team would go on to play in the Eastern Conference finals.
The Raptors and 76ers were tied with seconds left on the clock. And then, “The Shot” happened.
The Raptors’ Kawhi Leonard threw the ball toward the 76ers net. It sailed high in the air and the buzzer sounded to end the game.
But, with the ball still in the air, it wasn’t over.
The crowd went silent as the ball arched toward the net and then came down and hit the rim. It bounced back up into the air. And then back down, hitting the other side of the rim. It bounced a third time and then a fourth.
And then … it dropped into the net.
As if everyone had been holding their breath and suddenly let it out, the air in the stadium suddenly erupted with elated screams as the ball dropped down and scored the winning point. The Raptors beat the 76ers 92 to 90.
The Raptors would go on to the Eastern Conference finals against the Milwaukee Bucks.
The Raptors need to win four of seven games against the Bucks in order to be allowed to continue to the next round. They have played three games so far, winning one of them.
The Raptors and Bucks face each other again on Tuesday, May 21 as the Eastern Conference series continues.
UPDATE, June 2019: The Toronto Raptors went on to win the Eastern Conference series and then won the NBA Championship over the Golden State Warriors. They won game six to take the championship on June 13, 114-110 over the Warriors. On June 17, more than two million appreciative fans poured into the streets of Toronto to celebrate the Raptors as well as the NBA Finals’ MVP (most valuable player), the Kawhi Leonard.
Related Links
CBC article about “The Shot”
https://www.cbc.ca/sports/basketball/nba/kawhi-leonard-shot-1.5133751
CURRICULUM CONNECTIONS
By Jonathan Tilly
Writing/Discussion Prompt
When sports are at their best, they provide moments–win or lose–that you will never forget. Reflect on a time where you witnessed something that you will never forget. What made that moment so memorable?
Now think of a memory that seems entirely unremarkable. Why do you think you still remember that event? What might your two, seemingly different, memories have in common?
Reading Prompt: Making Inferences
Given the retell in today’s story, do you like Toronto’s chances to succeed in round 2 against the Bucks? Why or why not?
Primary
Make inferences about texts using stated and implied ideas from the texts as evidence (OME, Reading: 1.5).
Junior
Use stated and implied ideas in texts to make inferences and construct meaning (OME, Reading: 1.5).
Intermediate
Use stated and implied ideas in texts to make inferences and construct meaning (OME, Reading: 1.5).
Language Feature: Elipsis ( … )
Eplises are punctuation marks that tell the reader that something more is going to come. In this way, they are a very powerful tool to create anticipation and drama. In fact, for this reason, make sure not to overuse them as well, because, just like anything, if you use it too much, its effectiveness will diminish (become less).
Elipses are used twice in today’s article:
Bounce … bounce … bounce-bounce.
And then … it dropped into the net.
Try your own sports related sentences that use elipses to drum up some tension. Rewrite them without the elipses, and use a coma instead.
What is the difference in your reading and comprehension between the two?
