Canadian rapper Drake would have fit in well celebrating the NBA championship alongside players Kawhi Leonard and Kyle Lowry as one of music鈥檚 biggest stars and the Toronto Raptors鈥� unofficial mascot.
But the self-proclaimed 鈥�6 God鈥� watched the NBA Finals victory on home turf Thursday night.
鈥淭he fact that Drake chose to watch the game at Jurassic Park instead of court side says a lot about ,鈥� wrote one Twitter user.
Instead of watching from courtside at Oracle Arena, the Raptors 鈥済lobal ambassador鈥� was spotted watching the game from a private area near the Jurassic Park outdoor viewing space near Scotiabank Arena in downtown Toronto. Instead of popping bottles with NBA royalty, he drove around wearing a Canadian flag under the brim of a 鈥淐hampions鈥� hat interacting with fans from a car sunroof.
鈥淭his is poetic,鈥� he said speaking to reporters after the game. 鈥淭onight belongs to Toronto.鈥� He commended the team for 鈥渂ringing the chips to the city.鈥�
鈥淚 want my chips with the dip, that鈥檚 all I know. I don鈥檛 want my chips plain. I want my chips with the dip,鈥� he said. 鈥淪o bring them dips. That dynasty鈥檚 over. We did what we had to do.鈥�
Drake, who later announced he plans to release , has been a major off-court (and courtside) presence during the NBA season. He has faced criticism for his behaviour, which some deemed a distraction. The NBA even reportedly called the Raptors to discuss his sideline antics, including a moment when he rubbed the shoulders of Toronto head coach Nick Nurse.
The rapper wasn鈥檛 seen at any away games during the NBA Finals, and while he hasn鈥檛 commented about the decision to watch at home, it鈥檚 clear Drake may not have received the warmest of welcomes at most opponent arenas. During the series with the Milwaukee Bucks, a local radio station banned his music. Ahead of Game 3 of the series with the Golden State Warriors, the team was heard playing Pusha T鈥檚 鈥淭he Story of Adidon,鈥� an apparent Drake diss track, during .
Plus, the star has repeatedly been called a bad omen after losses, which some dubbed the 鈥淒rake curse.鈥�
Whatever the reason, the rapper was focused on a message of sportsmanship and 鈥渓ove鈥� post-game, including during a call to Warriors star Stephen Curry. 鈥�,鈥� he was heard saying during an apparent FaceTime video conversation.
鈥淪end my love,鈥� he said.
