Boston Celtics guard Payton Pritchard caught a stray from Toronto Raptors superfan and Academy Award-winning artist Drake on Friday night. The Celtics and Raptors faced off at the Scotiabank Arena in the 2023 NBA In-Season Tournament.
Drake was courtside in his usual seat for the Raptors' first game in the inaugural In-Season Tournament. He received a headset early in the fourth quarter and joined the TSN broadcast team.
He might be taking a break from music but was still dropping bars and throwing strays right at Pritchard.
"Payton Pritchard's out there looking like a Crypto scammer," Drake said. "This is crazy. What's going on boys?"
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Drake was clearly enjoying his time at the game, as the Toronto Raptors were making things interesting against the best team in the NBA. The Raptors had an amazing third quarter as they outscored the Boston Celtics 32-19.
While waiting for the start of the fourth quarter, the 37-year-old rapper was shown on the jumbotron as the fans cheered. He was holding a drink, so he did the most sensible thing and chugged it.
However, the Celtics got the last laugh, as they took home a 108-105 win over the Raptors. Jaylen Brown had a team-high 23 points, three rebounds and four assists, while Jayson Tatum only had 17 points after an 8-for-22 night.
Pascal Siakam and Dennis Schroder scored 23 points apiece for the Raptors, but it was not enough to get the win. Gary Trent Jr. and Scottie Barnes had 14 points apiece, but there wasn't enough production from the others.
Toronto takes on the Detroit Pistons on Sunday, while the Celtics face the Memphis Grizzlies.
Drake is a lifelong Raptors fan despite bandwagon tag
Aubrey Graham, more famously known as Drake, has been called the ultimate NBA bandwagon fan. It's mostly due to his friendship with most players, but he's really a Toronto Raptors fan.
The Grammy Award-winning artist was born and raised in Toronto before making it big as a rapper in the late 2000s. He became an ambassador for the Raptors in 2013 and joined the franchise's executive committee. He has a lot of influence on the team's looks and marketing strategies.
When the Raptors won the 2019 NBA Finals, Drake received a championship ring from the team. He also bought a custom championship ring to celebrate Toronto's first NBA title.
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