‘When that ball went in? It was like, evil spirits be gone!’

“With each bounce, it was like you could feel the weight of every heartbreaking Toronto sports moment hanging in the balance,” TV analyst Leo Rautins said. “When that ball went in? It was like, evil spirits be gone!”

One year has passed since the Raptors’ win over the Sixers and much has changed.

Instead of another thrilling playoff series, the NBA is locked down as sports leagues navigate the dangers of the COVID-19 pandemic. Fans are left rewatching playoff series past.

Lockdown or not, it’s hard to imagine another moment quite as exciting as the one in Game 7 between the Raptors and Sixers.

The day leading up to Game 7 was full of excitement and tension.

John Tory, Toronto mayor: I remember I was watching the game from home, by myself, which was unusual. My wife was out of the country that day and my kids were off doing other things. So I settled in on the couch and turned on the TV.

Rautins: The buzz around the city was incredible that day. There was as much apprehension as excitement.

Matt Devlin, Raptors play-byplay voice: The whole series had been a nail-biter. Every time the Raptors won a game, the Sixers bounced back, sending the series to a Game 7 where nobody, really, was sure what would happen.

Bianca Andreescu, Canadian tennis star: I remember watching at a restaurant because all of the tickets were sold out. I would have been there if I could.

Devlin: We were playing a team that had high aspirations that year. Philly desperately wanted a championship and they’d put all their cards on the table … they had size, length, shooters and big defenders. (Raptors coach) Nick Nurse constantly needed to figure out how to go bigger. So we knew this game was going to be a chess match.

The game starts slowly with the Raptors leading 18-13 after the first quarter. At halftime, they’re still up by four points, 44-40.

Chris Walder, Toronto sports analyst: Toronto didn’t have an immediate answer for Philly’s size. … The question for the Raptors was: If these guys get momentum, how do we stop them?

Nav Bhatia, Raptors superfan: I didn’t think it would be such a close game, personally. We had home-court advantage and our team was feeling good. Kawhi, Kyle (Lowry), Pascal (Siakam) — they’d all worked hard for games like this.

Devlin: There were a few significant differences this game. Marc Gasol and Serge Ibaka were paired together, even though they’d only played 31 minutes together the entire regular season.

Rautins: It was like a throwback NBA game. It was physical, aggressive and every shot was contested. Every possession mattered.

Tory: It was a nail-biter. Only one team was coming out of this intact.

The 76ers slowly close the gap and the Raptors’ lead is 67-64 after the third quarter.

Walder: Philly gets some momentum in the third quarter where they pull ahead by about eight or nine points. At this point I’m thinking, OK, I’m not sure if we’re going to come back from this.

Bhatia: I started getting nervous. Philly had a lot of confidence.

Walder: You could tell both teams were reluctant to let anyone besides their stars shoot. Everyone not named Kawhi stopped shooting.

Devlin: But Ibaka stepped up. His performance was immense — by the end of the game he’d hit 17 points.

Walder: Ibaka is one of the unsung heroes of that game. He nailed a desperately needed three-pointer early in the fourth quarter that helped shift momentum.

As the clock winds down in the fourth, the game is tied 90-90.

Devlin: As a team, this is where you have to go back to the basics. You look at how much time is left, how many fouls are left to give and what’s on the line.

Rautins: Everyone in that building, inclusive of Philly, knows the ball is going to Kawhi Leonard. If the shot is missed, you’re headed to overtime.

Andreescu: Honestly, I got worried toward the end thinking they actually might lose the series. I initially assumed it was going to overtime.

Tory: I don’t like overtime. Who does? It’s so stressful.

With 4.2 seconds remaining, Gasol inbounds the ball to Leonard, who is defended by Ben Simmons and then by Embiid.

Devlin: Leonard gets the ball, he veers to his right and runs towards the deep right corner.

Rautins: All season long, Leonard had been making big shots and game winners in that very corner. You can tell, when he gets the ball, that he’s running toward his comfort zone.

Devlin: That’s where he begins the fadeaway shot.

Rautins: This shot is interesting, because normally Leonard’s shot is flat. It’s like a line drive. But, because he’s defended by Embiid, he knows he has to shoot this big arc over a seven-foot guy. Your goal, when taking a risky shot like that, is to give the ball as much of a chance as you can. You give it that arc. You give it backspin, so that it can angle towards the net if it hits the rim. Kawhi leans back and sends the ball soaring high into the air.

Devlin: The ball hits gently on the nearside rim once, then twice, before bouncing to the far rim. In the background, you can hear the sound of the buzzer cut off while the ball is still in the air.

Andreescu: It felt like an eternity watching that ball bounce around.

Tory: It was just agonizing. This kind of thing doesn’t happen in other sports. Then the ball drops. Rautins: The whole arena erupts.

Tory: Incredible. I’m sitting there, by myself, jaw on the floor.

Bhatia: Even Kawhi is celebrating.

Rautins: As an announcer, there just isn’t much you can say at that point. We just sat back and let the images speak for themselves.

Andreescu: I just thought, wow … shot of the decade.

Devlin: When you think of how big that shot was — for the Raptors that season, for Raptors history, for NBA history — you can then see it in proper perspective. For the Raptors, it means a chance at the Eastern Conference finals. Ultimately, it means a chance at the championship. It just doesn’t get any better or bigger than that.