Drake Is Reportedly Upset About the Toronto Raptors' New Logo

Drake claims that the Raptors' redesign had nothing to do with him.

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Complex Original

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Last Monday, the Toronto Raptors held "Drake Night" at the Air Canada Centre. The event featured the rapper introducing the team's starting lineup, joking around with the play-by-play announcers and having an all-around good time. Somewhere between then and now, things have turned sour with Drizzy and the Raptors. 

On Friday, the Raptors unveiled their new primary logo which looks a lot like the Brooklyn Nets' current logo. Cathal Kelly, sports columnist for The Globe and Mail, commented on the franchise's familiar new look on Twitter, calling it "the Drake-inspired...redesign." 

One day later, Drake reached out to Kelly, saying, “Actually this redesign was executed without me. My collaboration with [clothier] Mitchell & Ness comes out next season.” Kelly adds that, according to sources within Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment, the company which owns the Raptors, Drake isn't happy with two things in particular. 


First, the “execution.” By that, he apparently means the way in which the images were released. They were first shown briefly in a video released on Friday afternoon. That was quickly followed by a colour image posted to the team’s Facebook page. That was hastily pulled down, replaced by a black-and-white image. Then, much later in the day, a variety of logos were released, in varying colour schemes.

Kelly goes to claim that Drake is even more upset with the color scheme, which he had wanted in black and gold. “He wasn’t overruled,” said an MLSE source. “Overruled isn’t the right word, because it’s not like he had the final say.” As global ambassador, Drizzy gets nothing in return other than his own section in the ACC. So, maybe this should've been expected when dealing with those individuals in the Raptors' front office. Or, could this be a turning point in what has been a budding relationship? 

Send all complaints, compliments, and tips to sportstips@complex.com

[via The Globe and Mail]

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