We The North - Maybe The Only True Team Brand In Pro Basketball

I have been a basketball fan since way back in the days of Larry Bird and Magic Johnson and even before that, to the era of Wilt Chamberlain, Julius ‘Dr. J’ Irving and Bob Cousy.

Way before the expansion that made it a 30 team league and elevated its status to #3 in the big time sports world.

But, in all that time, with all those teams, I honestly have to say that IMHO, I have never seen a team branded in the way that the Toronto Raptors have, with their We The North.

A lot of teams have what I call T-shirt lines, which are little inspirational things that give them collectability. One of the better ones I have seen lately is the Milwaukee Bucks, Fear The Deer T-shirt.

But, and I’m speaking as a marketing guy, while this is powerful line, it is by no means a branding line, although it is pretty cool. Sadly for them the Raptors did not heed the t-shirt’s advice and took them down in a really rugged 7 game series.

What Makes ‘We The North’ So Unique?

Well, first and foremost, it’s because it makes a lot of sense to people in this area. Ever since I can remember, as a sports fan, Canada has been considered some sort of faraway outpost.

This has a lot to do with the fact that most Americans don’t actually know much about anything beyond the boundaries of their own country. But that’s a whole other story.

So the ‘We The North’ positioning creates a certain amount of clarity.

Thirdly, it is inclusive, because of the ‘We’. And judging from the size of the crowds that come downtown to watch the games outside the arena, the huge TV audience and the sold-out seats for every game of these playoffs, there are a lot of people that want to be included.

The ‘we’ also has a reflexive property, meaning that any fan can be part of the overall process here. It unites the team and its audience because it taps into the reality of what we are considered to be by America, and makes that statement with a good deal of swagger.

When I first saw the line, as few years ago, it was really nothing more than a passing mention on a Sportcentre show. But the advertising guy in me saw it and thought…wow, they could really make something out of that.

Evidently, I was not the only person who saw the branding possibilities of the line. Because in a relatively short span of time, it has virtually become the brand itself. And, like I said earlier, I cannot recall any other pro basketball team that has done anything quite like this.

As I write this the Raptors are going into their 4th game in the Championship series against the reigning champ Golden State Warriors, up 2 games to 1 in the series and with home court advantage, which leads me to believe that they have a better than 50% chance of winning this.

Which, of course, will then add a new dimension to the many meanings of We The North. Not to mention light up almost every igloos in the country.

jim out…Go Raptors!

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