Sacramento Kings owner Vivek Ranadive wore a “They Not Like Us” shirt during his team’s 122-107 victory against the Toronto Raptors on Wednesday. This was likely not an accident or just the first t-shirt he pulled out from his closet, but instead it is the latest chapter of DeMar DeRozan’s beef with Canadian rapper Drake.
Although this is only DeRozan’s first season playing for Sacramento, Ranadive already has his back.
DeRozan was drafted by the Raptors in 2009 and played with the team until he was traded to the San Antonio Spurs in 2018. He was a beloved player in Toronto and also developed a friendship with Drake. When he left Toronto, Drake even referred to him as a “brother” on a heartfelt social media post. However, things have been interesting between the two lately.
Last weekend, the Raptors took a 131-128 win at home against the Kings and Drake was interviewed about Vince Carter’s jersey retirement during the broadcast. During that conversation, the Toronto rapper made a comment about how if the Raptors gave DeRozan the same treatment as Carter and put up a banner in his honor, he would “go up there and pull it down” himself.
DeRozan was asked about it after that game, and he joked that he wished Drake luck because he was going to “have a long way to climb” in order to take down the banner.
Their relationship, at least from an outside perspective, has not been the same since DeRozan appeared in the music video for Kendrick Lamar’s song “Not Like Us” — a song that was part of a feud between Drake and Lamar. DeRozan followed that up by appearing on stage during one of Lamar’s performances in Los Angeles while singing and dancing to the song.
Despite all of that, the six-time NBA All-Star told The Sacramento Bee in July that he still considers Drake a friend.
“Drake’s still my man, none of it changed,” he said. “It’s so easy to get overlooked and look at it for what it looks like, but at the end of the day it’s music, entertainment.”