Toronto Raptors Tickets

Canada's NBA franchise in brief

The Toronto Raptors play their home games at Scotiabank Arena on Bay Street in downtown Toronto, and the regular season runs from October into April. They are the only NBA team based outside the United States, a distinction they have held since the Vancouver Grizzlies moved to Memphis in 2001.

The NBA awarded Toronto an expansion franchise on November 4, 1993, for a then-record fee of 125 million US dollars. The name came out of a fan contest with more than 2,000 entries and was announced on May 15, 1994, a year after the film Jurassic Park made the velociraptor famous. The team played its first game on November 3, 1995, beating the New Jersey Nets 94–79.

• Conference and division: Eastern Conference, Atlantic Division, alongside Boston, New York, Brooklyn and Philadelphia.
• Championships: one NBA title (2019) and one Eastern Conference title (2019).
• Division titles: seven, in 2007, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2018, 2019 and 2020.
• Ownership: Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment (MLSE), which also owns the NHL's Maple Leafs.

The roster turns over like any NBA team's, so check the team site for the current lineup and coaching staff. The constants are the building, the national fan base and the playoff atmosphere that spills into the square outside.

Where to sit at Scotiabank Arena for a Raptors game

Scotiabank Arena seats 19,800 for basketball, or 20,511 with standing room. The layout is a classic two-tier bowl: the 100 level (sections numbered roughly 101 to 122) wraps the court, suites occupy the middle of the building, and the 300 level (roughly 301 to 324) forms the upper ring. Courtside seats sit on the floor itself.

Courtside and the first rows

Courtside seats put you at the edge of the hardwood, close enough to hear the players and coaches. They command the top of the market. The trade-off is perspective: from floor level you lose the shape of plays developing on the far end, so they suit fans who want the experience more than the tactical view.

The lower bowl along the sidelines

For most buyers, the best balance of view and value is the 100 level along the long sides of the court, around 10 to 20 rows up. That height lifts you above the players' heads so you see spacing and defensive rotations, while keeping faces and expressions in clear view. Center-court sections cost more than those toward the corners; corner sections near the baseline are often a smart compromise.

Behind the baskets

Lower-level seats behind the baskets usually cost less than sideline seats at the same height. The angle flattens depth, which makes it harder to judge shots at the far end, and the stanchion can interrupt low rows. Higher rows in the end sections see over that clutter and are a reasonable budget pick.

The 300 level

The upper level is where most families and groups find room. The front rows of the 300 sections along the sidelines give a full, unobstructed look at the court and the scoreboard. The last rows in the end zones are the weakest seats in the building for basketball, so pay a little more to move toward midcourt or toward the front of the section.

The Raptors schedule and the games that sell fastest

The NBA regular season runs from October to April, with each team playing 82 games, 41 of them at home. The postseason starts in mid-April with the play-in tournament and the playoffs, which run into June. Preseason games are played in early October.

Demand at Scotiabank Arena follows a few patterns:

• Marquee opponents: visits from teams with national stars, along with the Lakers, Warriors and Celtics, draw the strongest resale demand.
• Atlantic Division rivals: games against Boston, New York, Brooklyn and Philadelphia carry extra weight in the standings. The Philadelphia series in 2001 and 2019 gave that matchup real history.
• Weekend and holiday dates: Friday and Saturday games, and games around the winter holidays, tend to sell tighter than midweek dates in January and February.
• Playoff games: the 2019 run turned home playoff games into citywide events, and prices for any postseason game move sharply with the series score.

Midweek games against non-contending Western Conference teams are usually the most accessible way into the building, especially in the upper level.

Getting to the arena and what to bring

Scotiabank Arena sits at 40 Bay Street, at the south edge of downtown, and connects to Union Station through the underground PATH network. Union Station is the hub for the TTC subway (Line 1), GO Transit regional trains and the UP Express airport train, so transit is the simplest way in. On cold nights you can reach the arena from the PATH without stepping outside.

On-site parking is limited and largely reserved for suite holders and tenants. A public underground lot sits under Maple Leaf Square at 15 York Street, and other downtown garages fill quickly on game nights.

As of the 2025 season, the arena enforces a strict bag policy: only small purses, clutches or fanny packs smaller than about 16.5 by 11.5 centimeters (6.5 by 4.5 inches) are allowed, and the venue is cashless. Check the arena's current bag policy before you go, since these rules change.

Gameday culture and Jurassic Park

Maple Leaf Square, the plaza next to the arena, carries a large video screen. During playoff runs it becomes Jurassic Park, an outdoor watch party where fans without tickets gather to watch the game together. If you cannot get into the building for a big playoff game, it is the next-best place to be, though crowds can be heavy and space is first come, first served.

Inside the building, the national scope of the fan base shows. As Canada's only NBA team, the Raptors draw fans from well beyond Toronto, and many visitors plan a game around a weekend in the city. The "We the North" slogan used in team marketing leans into that role as the country's team.

For road games, Detroit, Cleveland and New York are within driving or short-flight distance of Toronto, which makes them the easiest away trips for fans who want to follow the team.

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Raptors history and defining moments

The Raptors spent their first seasons in SkyDome (now Rogers Centre), a baseball stadium adapted for basketball, before moving into the Air Canada Centre in February 1999. The arena was renamed Scotiabank Arena in 2018.

• Vince Carter's arrival: Carter, acquired on draft night in 1998, won the 2000 Slam Dunk Contest and led the team to its first playoff series win in 2001, over the Knicks, before a seven-game loss to Philadelphia.
• The Bosh years: Chris Bosh, drafted in 2003, anchored the team until 2010.
• The DeRozan and Lowry era: DeMar DeRozan and Kyle Lowry led a long run of playoff teams and division titles through the mid-2010s, under team president Masai Ujiri, who arrived in 2013.
• 2019 champions: after trading for Kawhi Leonard on July 18, 2018, Toronto won its first title. Leonard's corner buzzer-beater in Game 7 against Philadelphia was the first Game 7 buzzer-beater in NBA playoff history. Toronto then beat the Golden State Warriors 4–2 in the Finals, with Leonard named Finals MVP.
• The Tampa season: COVID-19 border restrictions forced the team to play its 2020–21 home games at Amalie Arena in Tampa, Florida.

Sources

• Wikipedia – Toronto Raptors
• Wikipedia – Scotiabank Arena
• Scotiabank Arena – Bag policy
• Scotiabank Arena – Getting here
• A View From My Seat – Scotiabank Arena sections (orientation)
• Wikipedia – National Basketball Association