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TORONTO -- Over the years, the Toronto Raptors have heard all about the perceived disadvantages of NBA life north of the border. The complaints have run the gamut -- from the long, snowy winters, to concerns about taxes to the lack of ESPN on cable TV. Instead of playing defence when it comes to perception, the franchise is going on the offensive. The Great White North is embraced and the Ontario capital takes centre stage in the teams new "We The North" campaign, which features a 60-second video that kicks off a massive franchise rebrand over the next two years. "This is the statement we want to make to Canada and I think this is the chip we have, which is were the north and theres no one else," Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment president Tim Leiweke said Wednesday from New York. "Its just us and everyone looks past us. But were OK with that now." The video is not meant to be an advertisement for a team preparing to make its first playoff appearance in six years. Instead, the franchise wants the spot and the campaign to serve as a foundation for a team revolution. "This is a crusade now," Leiweke said. "This is not just a rally cry, this is, I think, our identity. "I think thats what we like about this is for the next two to three years, this is who we are and this is who we represent and this is who we fight for." The team is still finalizing release plans for other components of the campaign. However, new colours and a new logo will be rolled out "in short order," Leiweke said. Toronto hip-hop artist Drake was "heavily involved" in the inspiration for the spot, and Leiweke said the teams global ambassador was also involved in logo plans and the decision to stick with the Raptors name. "He thinks that the Vince Carter generation, those kids that grew up and got inspired by Vince, these are now the (Anthony) Bennetts of the world and the (Andrew) Wiggins of the world," Leiweke said. "And they relate to the Raptors in a very different way than that Barney dinosaur or Jurassic Park marketing campaign. "Now this is a cultural thing and Drake said, Stick to it and just define your culture and make it you." In the video, clips of the city skyline are mixed with snippets of basketball action from local neighbourhoods and highlights of the Raptors in action. "And far from the east side, miles from the west side, nowhere near the south side, we are the north side," a narrator says in the piece. "A territory all our own. And if that makes us outsiders -- were in." "My favourite shot is the kid bouncing the basketball through the field of ice," Leiweke said. "And its like, Thats it right there. Thats what we want. People dont understand we have a revolution going on in Canada. Were producing great players. Weve got kids inspired that are playing the sport in record numbers. We have the highest growth level in North America. "We are a team that suddenly people are rallying around and are excited about. And by the way, all of our guys love playing for Canada and were it. Weve got 35 million people. No one has 35 million people in their marketplace." It has been a remarkable rebound season for a franchise that has been hamstrung by mediocrity. Toronto opened the current campaign with a poor 6-12 record but things turned around last December after Rudy Gay was dealt to Sacramento in a seven-player trade. The Raptors were energized by the move and have been one of the strongest teams in the Eastern Conference since. Toronto recently clinched the Atlantic Division title and took a 48-33 record into the regular-season finale Wednesday night in New York. The Raptors turnaround has been a pleasant surprise in a city where post-season action in any of the major sports is a rarity. Fans are still stinging from the Toronto Maple Leafs late-season collapse that cost them a playoff spot this year. The NHL club has made the post-season just once in the last decade. Down the road at Rogers Centre, it has been over 20 years since the Toronto Blue Jays last made the playoffs. The Blue Jays are coming off a last-place finish in the American League East division and are not expected to contend this year. The Raptors will take a page from the hockey teams playbook by hosting a "Party in the Square" in Maple Leaf Square outside Air Canada Centre for playoff games this spring. It was a hotspot last year during the Maple Leafs first-round playoff series with the Boston Bruins. Ticket demand also appears to be quite high for Canadas lone NBA team. Torontos average playoff ticket price is $125. However, a recent Forbes website report said the Raptors have the highest average playoff ticket price ($370.62) on the secondary market. "To me its less about what people are paying on the secondary (market) and more about we have a greater demand for NBA playoff tickets than any market today in the NBA," Leiweke said. "So out of those 16 markets, right now Toronto is the hot ticket. I think that bodes well." Toronto has reached the NBA playoffs on five previous occasions, the most recent being a first-round loss to the Orlando Magic in 2008. The Raptors lone series victory came in 2001 when they beat the New York Knicks before falling to the Philadelphia 76ers in the second round. Denzel Perryman Jersey .com) - The game was all punts and field goals before Kodi Whitfields catch. Hayes Pullard Jersey . The Earthquakes (6-9-7) were coming off a 5-0 loss at home last Saturday to FC Dallas. Even with the draw, the Sounders (13-7-3) climbed back into a tie for both the Western Conference and overall top spot in MLS. Seattle, West co-leader Real Salt Lake and East leader Sporting Kansas City all have 42 points. http://www.chargersauthenticshop.com/Chargers-Kyle-Emanuel-Draft-Jersey/ . The Swiss won on the fastest run-time tiebreaker after the four-racer teams tied 2-2. Wendy Holdener and Reto Schmidiger won their final heats against Julia Mancuso and Tim Jitloff, respectively. Travis Benjamin Jersey .Y. -- Syracuse guard Trevor Cooney was mired in a shooting slump, and his woes coincided with a late-season swoon by the Orange. Kyzir White Jersey . During the furious first few hours of free agency Tuesday, the team agreed to terms with strong safety Donte Whitner, a Cleveland native who cant wait to play in his hometown.Dominic Cork says England should consider employing James Vince as their one-day captain. Vince has not played for England at senior level but has starred in the county game for Hampshire as a powerful one-day opener, cracking three tons and 13 fifties in his 80 matches. He hasn’t got any scars and there aren’t really that many senior players any more. Dominic Cork on James Vince And Sky Sports pundit Cork feels the 23-year-old would be capable of skippering his national side if current incumbent Eoin Morgan is relieved of his duties. “Are England looking at Morgan being captain in four years’ time or even two years’ time for the Champions Trophy? Or are they looking to bring in someone completely different?,” said Cork, in the wake of England’s abject World Cup exit.“The jury is out for me and I’d like to see someone who isn’t frightened of making different decisions, someone like Vince, who has captained Hampshire and England Lions.“Why not throw it to him? He hasn’t got any scars and there aren’t really that many senior players any more, when you consider Ian Bell might not be playing much one-day cricket anymore.”Peter Moores, meanwhile, has revealed his desire to stay on as England coach, despite his team failing to beat a Test-playing nation at the World Cup following Monday’s reverse to Bangladesh. Peter Moores told Nasser Hussain that hes bitterly disappointed with Englands exit from the World Cup And Cork thinks the former Lancashire chief should be given longer to stamp his imprint on the England team having returned for a second spell in charge in April 2014.“I think Moores will still be in control as [ECB Managing Director] Paul Downton has stressed that he thinks they’ve got the right man and that it was always going to be a building period to try and get these younger players more experienced,” added Cork.“You have to stick with somebody and can’t just blame the coach when we need to have a complete review of our domestic game and go with an IPL-style setup to gget the most competitive game we can in this country.dddddddddddd”Cork, who played 32 one-day internationals for England between 1992 and 2002, also had his say on why England’s World Cup campaign turned so sour: BOWLINGWhat are England’s bowlers conceding in the first 10 overs? How many wickets are they taking? People look at averages but that isnt really important – it’s about taking wickets early, bowling yorkers not length and getting the right bowlers on at the right time, so England need to change their mentality.It’s difficult to say there is no aggression but when you need to, maybe just up that aggression – not verbally but by setting aggressive fields and letting the batsmen know that it’s going to be a barrage of short balls. That comes from the captain but it comes from the bowler as well. Dominic Cork thinks the England selectors made mistakes in selecting their top six batsmen FLEXIBILITYWe haven’t had the right batting line-up for a long time now. I am Bell fan but when you look at his stats and see he has four hundreds in 160 ODIs, it’s simply not good enough as an opening batsman, so Jos Buttler needs to come up the order, Joe Root needs to come up the order.It’s the same with the bowling. Where was James Tredwell? He is someone we’ve relied on for quite some time but suddenly he can’t get a game. England are so rigid when they look at stats and it’s a load of nonsense. Do you think Aaron Finch and Glen Maxwell think about stats?BATTING AGGRESSIONI see players in domestic cricket hitting the ball out of the park but when they get into the international arena they freeze and are frightened to express themselves. It’s not about building a sensible innings with ones and twos, it’s about getting your front leg out of the way and hitting the ball as hard as you can.You need the balance of having someone who can bat through the innings but you don’t need Bell and James Taylor doing the same thing. You need a bit of flair at the top of the order, mixed in with grit and determination, and then people who can come in late on and hit it. 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