THE CANADIAN PRESS

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TORONTO - An off - season overhaul added to the Toronto Raptors' international flavour, but the club was just keeping with a growing NBA trend.

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THE CANADIAN PRESS/Frank Gunn

Toronto Raptors guard Jose Calderon (right) and Boston Celtics guard Rajon Rondo collide during first half pre-season NBA action in Toronto on Sunday October 18, 2009.

The Raptors open the 2009-'10 season Wednesday with five international players on their roster - Jose Calderon (Spain), Andrea Bargnani (Italy) and off-season acquisitions Hedo Turkoglu (Turkey), Rasho Nesterovic (Slovenia) and Marco Belinelli (Italy) - matching the Charlotte Bobcats and Sacramento Kings as second-most in the league.

The Milwaukee Bucks boast the most with seven.

The NBA tips off with 83 international players from 36 countries on official rosters, matching the record of international players on opening night rosters from 2006-'07.

Twenty-seven of the 30 teams have at least one international player.

Omri Casspi (Israel) of the Sacramento Kings, Jonas Jerebko (Sweden) of the Detroit Pistons, and Hasheem Thabeet (Tanzania) of the Memphis Grizzlies are making history as the first players from their respective countries on NBA rosters.

France has the strongest representation with 10 players in the league.

Phoenix Suns point guard Steve Nash, a Victoria native, leads the Canadian contingent, which includes Jamaal Magloire of Toronto (Miami Heat), and Montreal's Samuel Dalembert (Philadelphia 76ers) and Joel Anthony (Miami).

The NBA had just 36 international players from 24 countries in the 1999-2000 season.