TORONTO — Hours before the Toronto Raptors take to the court during their historic playoffs run, a cat-and-mouse game unfolds outside the team’s arena. On the other, a crew of NBA executives, private investigators, city bylaw officers and police try to enforce the league’s property rights. “They basically do a bait and switch.”The top items being sold without the NBA’s permission are T-shirts, jerseys and caps. A city analyst couldn’t say how many violations bylaw officers have handed out related to selling Raptors merchandise, but Jones — who called the role of bylaw officers “minor” — believes they’ve laid a few fines. A recent operation during an all-star weekend in Charlotte, N.C., for example, gathered $100,000 in fake goods, he said.

Source: National Post June 04, 2019 20:03 UTC