In 1995, the NBA expanded into Canada, giving the country two basketball franchises whose fates could not be more different. While the Toronto Raptors survived long enough to enjoy a competitive decade in the 2010s, culminating in a in the 2019 NBA Championship, the Vancouver Grizzlies lived a troubled six years before moving to Memphis in 2001.
A new documentary named The Grizzlie Truth by filmmaker Kat Jayme aims to uncover what went wrong during the Grizzlies’ tenure in Vancouver and what led to their eventual move to Memphis.
Jayme will host a screening on Dec. 10 at Hot Docs Ted Rogers Cinema in Toronto, enlisting former Grizzlies’ #2 overall pick Steve Francis and one of the original Toronto Raptors Jimmy King to answer questions following the showing.
In October, former Grizzlies players attended the film’s premiere with Francis commenting on its quality.
”I thought Kathy did a great job of the whole timeline from when they came in ‘95 to ‘01 explaining the whole story with a great group of basketball players,” Francis said.
Prior to the screening, fans can attend an open court for a shootaround and different skills competitions. The documentary will begin showing at 7:30 p.m.
While this event is only taking place in Toronto, the film will be available to watch in various locations in British Columbia, Alberta, Manitoba, and Ontario.