Toronto Raptors support SFU teaching assistant union strike with $10K donation

In a show of support, Canada's only NBA team has donated $10,000 to the Simon Fraser University's Teaching Support Staff Union (TSSU), who are currently on strike. 

On Friday afternoon, Garrett Temple, Raptors player and vice-president of the National Basketball Players Association (NBPA) attended picket lines at SFU's Harbour Centre campus in Vancouver, encouraging students to "continue to fight."

His visit came ahead of the NBA team's practice session at SFU's Burnaby campus on Friday evening. 

"I applaud you guys for what y'all are doing. I understand the pain, I understand how much y'all do for the university," said Temple, adding he attended Louisiana State University for five years for his degree in business management. 

"I'm not one of the guys that was there for six months or a year … Teaching assistants were basically everything for us."

In a statement shared on X, formerly known as Twitter, Temple shared the donation was made on behalf of the NBPA and its members on the Toronto Raptors to support TSSU's fight for a fair contract. 

"We are hopeful they are soon able to return to the job they love, with a deal that respects their important contribution to student and university life," read the statement. 

The Toronto Raptors are in Vancouver for a training camp and for their first pre-season game against the Sacramento Kings at Rogers Arena on Oct. 8. 

Nearly 1,600 members of the TSSU, which includes teaching assistants, sessional instructors and graduate facilitators, have been on strike since Sept. 28, calling for cost-of-living adjustments, wage theft and pension for sessional instructors, in their ongoing collective bargaining efforts. 

For TSSU spokesperson Dalton Kamish, the support doesn't come as a