Sports

Drake shook hands with Paul Pierce and now Raptors fans are sad

by Tyler Munro

Raptors fans are in a dark place, looking for any excuse to brush off the team’s iffy play so far in the playoffs. It’s Dwane Casey’s fault! No, it’s the referees! But they’ve found their new scapegoat in aspiring basketball wife and team ambassador Drake, who toughed out a terrible game 2 courtside before—gasp—shaking Paul Pierce’s hand courtside.

If you’re not a basketball fan, here’s the thing: Paul Pierce is, like the T-Rex in Jurassic Park, a straight up Raptors killer. Last year, he sealed a game seven Brooklyn Nets win with a clutch last second shot and a series clinching block, and he entered this year’s series as a Washington Wizard claiming that Toronto didn’t have “it.” And while Raptors fans were quick to chant “Paul Pierce Sucks” throughout the early stages of game 1, his quick barrage of points in the second quarter was one hell of a silencer. Drake, it’s worth noting, was not at the game; he was performing at Coachella that night.

But Raptors fans shouldn’t be surprised. Drake is inarguably the biggest cultural influencer on the team’s popularity, but he’s still Drake. Remember when he hung out with Kobe early in the year after Black Mamba torched the team with an overtime triple double?

Look at that laughter! But Raptors fans saw that, and were like:

It only got worse when they caught Drake shaking the enemy’s hand on Tuesday. Of course it could just be a pleasantry, something NBA old timers would say is softening the league; Pat Riley, were he dead, would be rolling in his grave. Drake has, after all, be caught heckling Pierce in the past. Remember this gem from earlier in the year?

Paul Pierce probably does — it led to him shoving October’s Very Own, after all.

Imagine if Toronto somehow pulls through and Drake kisses Paul Millsap, or something? Raps fans will burn the Air Canada Centre faster than that meteor killed the dinosaurs.