Former Raptor Alvin Williams brings NBA All-Star excitement to Regina

Every year the hype associated with the NBA All-Star game attracts tens of thousands of basketball-crazy fans to the host city. This year the league and host city Toronto are taking the hype on a cross-country tour, including a stop in Regina.

Toronto Raptors fans may remember Alvin Williams, a former NBA point guard. This weekend Williams is in Regina to host a series of basketball clinics.

It's awesome to see how the game has grown all over. I'dnever even heard of Regina before I even got here.- Alvin Williams

"Being a former Raptor I think it was just a good selection just to have some notoriety for the fans and a relationship with the Canadian audience from the basketball world," Williams told CBC Radio's Saskatchewan Weekend host Eric Anderson.

The weekend's events are part of the NBA's nationwide All-Star program which celebrates the game being held in Toronto this season.

• NBA star Jerome 'Junkyard Dog' Williams visits St. John's
• Muggsy Bogues brings NBA skills to Winnipeg court

It's also a chance for one Regina resident to shoot their way to the All-Star game.

On Saturday afternoon, qualifiers were held at Luther College for a Dunk Contest, a 3-point Shootout, and a Skills Challenge. The finals will be held at 5 p.m. at Luther. The winner will score a trip for two to the NBA All-Star game.

"You put kids in a situation where they can have fun and be free and learn something, they're going to embrace it," Williams said. "It's awesome to see how the game has grown all over. I'dnever even heard of Regina before I even got here, so just the idea of them being involved and receptive to a sport that I love ... it's going to be an awesome time."

It didn't take Williams long to also learn about Rider Nation:

The NBA All-Star weekend will be hosted in Toronto from Feb. 12 to 14.

'We The North'

This weekend's stop in Regina says a lot about how far the NBA has come in Canada.

When Williams first joined the Raptors, he said the team and professional basketball in Canada were still looking for an identity. As basketball in Vancouver failed, the Raptors started to flourish.

"We had a mega-star in Vince Carter. We had a star in the making in Tracy McGrady," Williams said. "So we had some buzz throughout the NBA and it just carried on after that."

Williams said it feels good to see Canadian basketball elevated in recent years.

"You see the success that Canadian-born players are having in the NBA and being drafted at a high level and they're playing very well," he said. "They revert back and say that those (Raptors) teams really brought them to being aware to basketball, that feels good being a part of something like that."

Find more on the NBA All-Star events in Canada here.