With little to discuss concerning last night's affair, the HQ talks to Natasha Alibhai about her social media creation, RTZ...
I got up this morning to write the recap of the Raptors' 110 to 92 loss to the Suns last night...
...and nothing.
The team was horrible from top to bottom outside of Andrea Bargnani's offence (26 points on 12 for 15 shooting) and it was as if that win over the Chicago Bulls on Wednesday night never happened.
Of course fans should expect that from a young team to a certain extent, as inconsistency is the name of the game at times.
But when you play zero defence, get down 35 to 14 after one quarter, and get outrebounded by the third-worst rebounding club in the league...
...well, maybe you don't even deserve a recap.
Maybe I should just mail this one in too.
Maybe I should draw some funny photos, compose a poem or haiku...you know, do something that looks ok, but really offers little in terms of substance.
That would equate with last night's performance by the Dinos.
The Rapid Recap done post-game sums things up pretty well and it's safe to say that this is a game that Triano and co. would like to forget.
I figured it was probably best for us to do the same thing here at the HQ, and instead, discuss something a little more positive this morning, something like the emergence of RTZ.
RTZ?
Many of you have seen these three letters bandied about on Twitter, but may not know what exactly they stand for, or what they have to do with the Toronto Raptors.
RTZ in fact stands for Raptors' Tweet Zone, a collective of Raptors' fans who employ social media as a fan presence medium.
I asked one of the co-heads of the RTZ Fans, Natasha Alibhai (who also runs the blog, Heels on the Hardwood), about the initiative, how it began, and a little about tomorrow's big social media event, a first for the Raps:
Natasha: RTZ came together when myself (Natasha Alibhai) and Joel Reilly approached the Toronto Raptors to see if they were interested in an idea where we brought together fans and gave them a voice. Social media and sports go hand in hand these days and we felt this would be a great chance to create conversation between some of the most rabid NBA fans around. This community of Raptor fans has banded through Twitter. Using the hashtag #RTZ, this like-minded community has formed to support our Toronto Raptors and for the first time ever, the team has been kind enough to let us host a social media night at a game. This coming Sunday, February 27th at 6:00pm, we want true Raptor fans to unite as one for our first #RTZ Tweetup.
The first 30 people to purchase tickets will be welcomed courtside for pregame shoot around. Postgame, all attendees will be invited for a meet and greet with a Raptors player. Each purchased ticket also gives you a RTZ t-shirt, a chance to win tickets at a future game, a chance to be moved to platinum seats during the game and lots of giveaways.
Here is a link to the poster -- http://on.fb.me/h0oMoq
They can use the code RTZ to purchase tickets.
A big thanks to Natasha for this blurb, and I'm hoping the event is a big success tomorrow.
It's great to see the Raptors finally moving in a more social-media conscious direction, and I'm hoping that #RTZ becomes a permanent presence in the Raptors' media and marketing mix.
I'd argue that especially in a season like this, where the team has struggled to win many games, initiatives like these that help connect the Raptors' brand with the fanbase are even more important...
...especially if they have to witness many more games like last night's...