By Julius Senyimba
This year, Uganda’s basketball fraternity witnessed two big milestones. Silverbacks did wonders at Afrobasket and the team forward Ishmail Wainwright joined NBA side Toronto Raptors.
The quarterfinals finish in Kigali settled for second with Wainwright joining the 2019 NBA Champions Toronto Raptors on top. This had many Ugandans follow Toronto on social media platforms.
Fast forward, with days left for the start of the best basketball league in the world, Raptors waived Wainwright, a thing that left many devastated hence blocking and unfollowing the franchise.
Others went on to curse the side for stabbing their own who joined as a free agent and has been part of the preseason games putting in a decent shift, but who did not make the final roster.
In short, without a doubt, Raptors fan base and NBA at large had gone up and this was going to reflect in the viewership, especially the regular season games having Raptors on court.
Now, as it stands, it will be the same story of viewership numbers going up during playoffs, but for Wainwright, he is confident another opportunity will come knocking.
“First and foremost I just want to thank the entire front office, coaching staff, down to the trainers and medical staff with the Raptors for everything. And to the fans, thank you all for the love and support this is just the beginning.”
