NBA legend Tracy McGrady opened up about his 1997–98 rookie season playing for the Toronto Raptors, including a nod to the now-defunct Playdium in Mississauga.

In a recent interview with Uninterrupted Canada, the NBA Hall of Famer explained some of the ways he passed the time as an 18-year-old Floridian living in a foreign country.

McGrady was picked ninth overall by the Raptors in the 1997 NBA draft, and has previously described his rookie season in Toronto as "hell" to Sports Illustrated in a 2013 career retrospective following his retirement, telling the outlet he was "a frustrated, lonely teenager in a strange city, racking up huge phone bills and sleeping as much as 20 hours a day."

Now a decade out of the league, McGrady elaborated on how he spent those few hours awake during those tough early days in Toronto.

Like many depressed teenagers, video games proved an escape for McGrady, and many who grew up in the Greater Toronto Area in the late '90s will tell you that Playdium in Mississauga was essentially the centre of the universe for gamers.

T-Mac used to spend time in Mississauga at Playdium during his rookie season in the NBA 😅🇨🇦 @Tmac_213 pic.twitter.com/FyAR2QLDRv

— UNINTERRUPTED Canada 🇨🇦 (@UNCanada) February 1, 2024

McGrady explained in the interview that his time in Toronto "was a challenge, man. It wasn't basketball that I struggled with. It was the other stuff."

"It was 18 years old, and you go to shootaround for an hour — hour and a half — and then the rest of the day it's like, to myself, is like 'what am I gonna do at 18 years old — I don't have my parents living with me - it's just me and a friend of mine, and I'm in Toronto. How can I occupy my time?'"

"I was so bored. Video games were my thing at the time, but I wanted to get out of the house; I wanted to see the city," said McGrady.

And how did the great T-Mac see what Toronto has to offer? By going to Mississauga, apparently.

McGrady goes on to explain, "I would go to a place in Mississauga called Playdium; we used to just go out to Playdium. Go to an arcade place and play video games all the time."

When he wasn't gaming it up at Playdium in Mississauga, the seven-time NBA All-Star admitted he was fond of another suburban pastime, visiting the mall.

"I used to go out there all the time, and then, as an 18-year-old in the NBA, 'ay man, I'm in Canada, no one really knows who I am, I need to get out,' so I used to go to the mall."

McGrady would play three seasons in Toronto, signing as a free agent with the Orlando Magic during the 2000 off-season.