The Toronto Raptors opened the 2021-22 NBA season in their home city last night, and had rap royalty on hand in Drake, Lupe Fiasco and Kardinal Offishall to help celebrate the first NBA game played in Canada in 600 days.
Following a poem from Canadian spoken word artist Hannah Flores, Kardinal Offishall took the floor with a crew of dancers to deliver a new version of "The Anthem" loaded with lyrical references to this year's team from "T-Dot-O," ahead of introducing this season's Raptors roster.
Following a poem from Canadian spoken word artist Hannah Flores, Kardinal Offishall took the floor with a crew of dancers to deliver a new version of "The Anthem" loaded with lyrical references to this year's team from "T-Dot-O," ahead of introducing this season's Raptors roster.
Raptors global ambassador and Scotiabank Arena sideline fixture Drake was spotted in his usual courtside seats, presumably to give the team a talking-to about their OVO owl logo artistry. At one point during the tilt against the Washington Wizards, the broadcast cameras appeared to pick up an exchange between the Certified Lover Boy and Wizards forward Montrezl Harrell, which earned the latter a technical foul.Kardinal Offishall getting the #Toronto #Raptors crowd fired-up.#NBA #NBA75 #NBATwitter #WeTheNorth pic.twitter.com/XnujZnEjYH
— BasketballBuzz.ca 🇨🇦🏀🍁 (@basketballbuzz) October 21, 2021
"Me and Drake was laughing. There was no problems there," Harrell shared with reporters after the game. "We even talked after the game. It was a cool conversation, but it turned left when the coach started chiming in behind the bench, thinking that barking is something that's gonna shake me. It's all good. I don't need all of Toronto on my bumper now … Don't get on my Instagram now. Me and Drake are cool, y'all."
Raptors media reportedly saw Drake duck out of the arena at halftime. It was his loss entirely, as he missed a halftime performance from Lupe Fiasco, who made sure to document his time in the North right up to taking the floor in a sharp custom Raptors jersey.
Raptors media reportedly saw Drake duck out of the arena at halftime. It was his loss entirely, as he missed a halftime performance from Lupe Fiasco, who made sure to document his time in the North right up to taking the floor in a sharp custom Raptors jersey.
As acclaimed as the Grammy-winning artist is, was there no Canadian talent available for the homecoming? Game ops should give Exclaim! a call if they're in need of suggestions.
Last night's game also featured another milestone moment for Canadian basketball, with the Raptors becoming one of two NBA teams to have three Canadians take the floor at the same time for the same team. Chris Boucher, Khem Birch and Dalano Banton accomplished the feat for the Raptors, while ex-Raptor Cory Joseph, Trey Lyles and Kelly Olynyk did the same for the Detroit Pistons.
Banton, a Toronto native from the city's Rexdale neighbourhood who is also the first Canadian ever drafted by the Raptors, scored his first career NBA points in memorable fashion with a half-court heave at the buzzer.
Last night's game also featured another milestone moment for Canadian basketball, with the Raptors becoming one of two NBA teams to have three Canadians take the floor at the same time for the same team. Chris Boucher, Khem Birch and Dalano Banton accomplished the feat for the Raptors, while ex-Raptor Cory Joseph, Trey Lyles and Kelly Olynyk did the same for the Detroit Pistons.
Banton, a Toronto native from the city's Rexdale neighbourhood who is also the first Canadian ever drafted by the Raptors, scored his first career NBA points in memorable fashion with a half-court heave at the buzzer.
Ultimately, the Raptors would lose the game by a final score of 98-83, but while this year's team continues to grow together, we'll always have memories of the 2019 NBA Championship.
