{"id":61901,"date":"2025-08-11T16:59:07","date_gmt":"2025-08-11T16:59:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/61901\/"},"modified":"2025-08-11T16:59:07","modified_gmt":"2025-08-11T16:59:07","slug":"why-is-the-beloved-former-toronto-raptor-back-in-the-city","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/61901\/","title":{"rendered":"Why is the beloved former Toronto Raptor back in the city?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Former Toronto Raptor Serge Ibaka was back in the city this past weekend and basketball fans couldn\u2019t help but ask: \u201cCould this be the return of a veteran?\u201d <\/p>\n

In a post to his Instagram Stories, the 35-year-old centre, who was part of Toronto\u2019s first-ever championship<\/a> in 2019, was seen working out at the Raptors gym.<\/p>\n

\u201cMaybe he\u2019ll be in the coaching staff or very likely one last season?\u201d one person asked on a Reddit board, after the photo was posted there<\/a>. \u201cWe need Serge back working for the team for the culture,\u201d wrote another.<\/p>\n

However, it turns out the Congolese\/Spanish hooper wasn\u2019t in town for basketball business but instead focused on his other passion \u2013 food.<\/p>\n

In partnership with the Madri Excepcional, Ibaka has launched the \u201cSerge Stamp List,\u201d which saw him travel around town on Sunday to hand pick his top Spanish spots.<\/p>\n

This is where he stopped:<\/p>\n

The Spanish Pig \u2013 A Canadian retailer that sells authentic Spanish food on Roncesvalles Avenue La Paella \u2013 Once a catering company, this restaurant serves authentic Spanish dishes in Toronto\u2019s Leslieville nieghbourhoodTapas at Embrujo \u2013 Described as a \u201chot bed\u201d for Flamenco, Spanish arts and cuisine in Riverdale Campo Restaurant – Located on Jane Street, north of Bloor, Campo\u2019s fare is inspired by rustic Spanish cuisine, according to chef and owner Carlos VenturaCasa Barcelona \u2013 Opened 12 years ago, Casa Barcelona bills itself as an authentic Spanish tapas bar near Bloor and Royal York BoulevardCaf\u00e9 de Madrid \u2013 Located outside the city in Oakville, this establishment is bringing the heart of Spanish cooking and tradition to Canada, \u201cone paella at a time.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ibaka last played for Real Madrid Baloncesto after he left the NBA in 2023, following stints with the Milwaukee Bucks and Los Angeles Clippers. <\/p>\n

He played for Toronto from 2017 to 2020 and helped the team win its first Larry O\u2019Brien trophy in 2019. Ibaka became a fan favourite during his short time with the team, known for his defensive prowess on the court, and interesting culinary choices off of it.<\/p>\n

His cooking show, \u201cHow Hungry Are You?,\u201d<\/a> where celebrities from in and outside of the basketball world would be treated to dishes of animal brains or worms all while conducting an interview, became a viral hit.<\/p>\n

\"\"Serge Ibaka Toronto Raptors center Serge Ibaka, left, guard Kyle Lowry, center, and guard Danny Green celebrate with teammates after the Raptors defeated the Golden State Warriors in Game 6 of basketball’s NBA Finals in Oakland, Calif., Thursday, June 13, 2019. (AP Photo\/Ben Margot) <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Former Toronto Raptor Serge Ibaka was back in the city this past weekend and basketball fans couldn\u2019t help…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":61902,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[712,49,48,82],"class_list":{"0":"post-61901","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-sports","8":"tag-apple-news","9":"tag-ca","10":"tag-canada","11":"tag-sports"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/61901","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=61901"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/61901\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/61902"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=61901"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=61901"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=61901"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}