Vince Carter remained unfazed by the drama between Drake and DeMar DeRozan. In fact, as Carter’s jersey was raised to the rafters at Scotiabank Arena last week, he was completely unaware of the controversy surrounding them. It was only after the ceremony that he learned about Drake’s remarks during the television broadcast of the Toronto Raptors’ game against the Sacramento Kings. Drake claimed he would remove DeRozan’s banner if the Raptors ever retired his No. 10 jersey and referred to him as a “goof” on the TSN broadcast. This altercation drew attention away from the evening dedicated to celebrating Carter’s legacy with the Raptors.
I get where Drake is coming from, but I can see DeRozan’s perspective too,” Carter commented on FanDuel’s “Run it Back” show, attempting to navigate the middle ground between the two. “It’s an emotional situation.” The tension dates back to last summer when DeRozan appeared in Kendrick Lamar’s music video for “Not Like Us,” which largely targets Drake with lyrics that make various allegations and suggest Toronto did not appreciate DeRozan. Former Raptors guard Lou Williams labeled Drake’s comments as “selfish,” reiterating on the FanDuel show that he was frustrated by Drake stealing focus from Carter’s moment. “You felt like you received your flowers in that building, but on social media, the conversation shifted,” Williams told Carter. “I wanted that night to be about you.” Carter tried to sidestep the conflict, recognizing that he appreciated Drake attending the ceremony, though he acknowledged that Drake would likely support his hometown in a similar situation.
While Drake and DeRozan have been friends since DeRozan’s time with the Raptors, DeRozan and Lamar have a longstanding friendship dating back to their childhood in Compton, California. Carter humorously remarked that it would require some impressive climbing skills to actually take down a banner from the arena’s rafters, as Drake suggested he would. “We were watching that jersey rise higher and higher,” Carter joked. “You’ve got to be fearless to pull that off.” Drake was also seen mocking DeRozan following Sacramento’s loss to Toronto. The conflict prompted Sacramento Kings owner Vivek Ranadivé to wear a shirt featuring the lyrics “they not like us” while sitting courtside during the Raptors’ road game against the Kings this past week.
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