And Charlotte is a really bad comparison. Why? Because the best college basketball teams are all in the area and those are where most people's attention and allegiance is devoted to. Ignoring issues of population, market size, and ownership, Charlotte was always going to have a hard time. It was easier for them in the early years. They were a new product and then experienced some decent success. Then inconsistencies started, and fans all flocked back to college ball instead, where globally popular strong teams like Duke and NC (and Wake Forest and NC state to a lesser extent) are consistently playing for higher stakes.
This is also tied to economy. Charlotte ain't exactly wealthy, so why would fans spend twice the money to watch both NCAA and NBA? THey won't. THey'll cut off the worse product, which in their area is NBA ball, and stick to the powerhouse NCAA teams in their area. Pretty basic substitution effect really.
This is pretty damn unlikely to occur in Toronto. So again, a lot of shit would have to go wrong to destroy the Raptors viability in Toronto.
This is also tied to economy. Charlotte ain't exactly wealthy, so why would fans spend twice the money to watch both NCAA and NBA? THey won't. THey'll cut off the worse product, which in their area is NBA ball, and stick to the powerhouse NCAA teams in their area. Pretty basic substitution effect really.
This is pretty damn unlikely to occur in Toronto. So again, a lot of shit would have to go wrong to destroy the Raptors viability in Toronto.
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