Raptors NBA TV is a Canadian English language category 2 digital cable specialty channel owned by Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment Ltd.
Raptors NBA TV broadcasts programming related to the National Basketball Association (NBA) with an emphasis on the Toronto Raptors as well as other basketball leagues; including live games during the regular season and playoffs, classic games and other NBA related aspects. Regular hosts for shows include Paul Johnson, Sherman Hamilton, Chuck Swirsky, Leo Rautins and Jack Armstrong.
Unable to find a major, national carrier for a significant number of Toronto Raptors regular season games (TSN, The Score and Rogers Sportsnet largely broadcast games in the Ontario region only), MLSE has recently put more and more games exclusively on Raptors NBA TV (24 in 2006-07). This move has been criticized by many fans, as the digital channel, while technically available across Canada, is subscribed to by few households at present (about 600,000 in total). The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation obtained the rights to 10 games in 2007-08, meaning that Raptors NBA TV will show only 12 games exclusively. As well, distribution has been pegged to that of MLSE's other digital channel Leafs TV, broadening its availability.
