Article contentWith conditions too slippery to guarantee player safety, the hard decision was made to cancel the game.Article content“When condensation was starting to form on the floor, it was brought to our attention by both teams and the officials,” Stanford said.Article content“Then we had to have a conversation with the NBA office in New York on how we were going to handle this. It was decided with the NBA office and both teams that it was simply too dangerous for the players to continue. That’s when we decided to cancel.”Article contentWhile some local sports fans have come to accept the cancelled game as a quirky footnote in the career of a bona fide sporting legend, Stanford, even decades later, admits he struggles to see the silver lining. Article content“I’m sure those same fans who are saying it’s a neat thing now weren’t saying it was a neat thing 25 years ago,” he said.Article content“I don’t look at it like that. If you’re in the business of bringing in events, whether it’s a concert or an outdoor show or hockey, if the event doesn’t go off, it’s a major disappointment. You see it as probably the biggest disappointment that you’ve had. There’s no other way to look at it, at least from my perspective.”Article contentArticle content‘This LeBron James guy was like Gretzky’Article content You can almost hear the ‘boos’ in this photo of former Raptors general manager Glen Grunwald as he addresses the Mile One Centre crowd to inform them the preseason game between the Raptors and Cavaliers would be cancelled. Photo by The Telegram/File PhotoArticle contentWhen radio host Chris Batstone arrived at the arena that night, he figured he would be stuffed in the nosebleed seating in the Bob Cole Media Centre, but was thrilled to learn that his media credentials granted him courtside access alongside longtime Telegram sports reporters Robin Short and Brendan McCarthy. Article contentWhile he admits he wasn’t much of a basketball fan in 2003, Batstone couldn’t help but get excited to have a front row seat for the debut of one of the most hyped athletes of this generation.Article content“A bunch of my buddies were big into basketball, they were telling me this LeBron James guy was like Gretzky,” he said with a chuckle.Article content“We were going to see his debut, it’s incredible. I remember sitting there at the table, and the teams are coming out for warm up, and there he is. Everybody knows this is going to be LeBron’s professional debut, and everybody is super excited. Everybody’s heard about this guy.”Article contentArticle contentHowever, like many of the fans in attendance, Batstone’s prevailing memory of that fateful evening had nothing to do with LeBron James. Article content“I remember when the general manager of the Raptors, Glen Grunwald, came out,” he said.Article content“Remember, the building is absolutely packed. Grunwald gets on the mic and says, ‘Unfortunately, we’re going to have to cancel the game because of the moisture on the floor,’ and people just started booing lustfully. Then he says, ‘We’re going to be back here in five years.’ That turned into the longest five years ever. As I’m walking out of the building, kids are bawling. It was like Christmas morning, and all of your presents are there, and someone comes along and takes them and tells you you’re not going to get them back for five years.”Article contentGrunwald was fired by the Raptors later that season, and local basketball fans are still waiting for the club to come back and play its first game in Newfoundland and Labrador.
Kings Court: The night LeBron James career (almost) started in St. John’s
