The Toronto Raptors have discussed the possibility of calling the Prudential Center in Newark, N.J., their temporary home, according to Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News.
“The Raptors have spoken to the operators of the Prudential Center about using their 19,500-seat arena, according to a source,” Bondy reported. “It’s one of a few options for Masai Ujiri’s squad, and a preference for the NBA because of its close proximity to all of Toronto’s division foes.”
The NBA is clearly hoping to have teams play games in their home markets next season, but travel to and from Canada has been banned by the U.S. as the world deals with the COVID-19 pandemic.
As Vincent Goodwill of Yahoo Sports noted, the Raptors could follow the lead of baseball’s Toronto Blue Jays by temporarily moving home games to a facility in the United States. (The Blue Jays played home games in Buffalo this past summer.)
Goodwill linked the Raptors to Louisville, Ky., but officials later denied that report.
So perhaps New Jersey would be a fit.
“The Prudential Center, built in 2007, was already a stopgap home arena for an NBA franchise, hosting the Nets for two seasons just prior to their Brooklyn move in 2012,” Bondy wrote. “The building is home to Seton Hall basketball and the Devils of the NHL, but all its concerts were postponed.”
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