“Why did we think you could get us a ring?” – Drake seemingly takes shots at DeMar DeRozan’s Raptors tenure amid Kendrick Lamar beef

Drake’s beef with Kendrick Lamar has trickled down to the NBA, with the Canadian rapper also taking shots at LeBron James and DeMar DeRozan. Another chapter was added between Drake and DeRozan after a snippet from the upcoming “Iceman” album was leaked.

In one of his leaked songs, Drake seemingly fired shots at the former Toronto Raptors star for not winning a championship for the city. DeRozan was with the Raptors for nine seasons but was traded for Kawhi Leonard in 2018, which resulted in the franchise’s first-ever title.

“When you was part of the team, we used to be planning our Mexico trips in the spring. We must’ve been dealing in the spur of the moment ’cause why did we think you could get us a ring?” Drake rapped.

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Drake seemingly takes shots at DeMar DeRozan in recently leaked song: “When you was part of the team we used to be planning our Mexico trips in the spring, we must’ve been dealing in the spur of the moment cause why (Kawhi) did we think you could get us a ring.”

While DeMar DeRozan was very loyal to the Toronto Raptors, he failed to lead them to the NBA Finals. The Raptors decided to gamble on Kawhi Leonard by sending DeRozan to the San Antonio Spurs, which was alluded to by Drake in the "spur of the moment" line.

Leonard, who led the Raptors to the 2019 NBA championship, was also part of the lyric, although indirectly, with the "cause why" line. It was a play on words since it sounded like "Kawhi," leading to DeRozan not getting it done with the Raptors lyric.

Things fell apart between Drake and DeRozan after the current Sacramento Kings star attended and participated on stage at "The Pop Out: Ken & Friends" concert last year in Inglewood, California. DeRozan also appeared in the music video for "Not Like Us."

It was personal for Drake even though he knew that Kendrick Lamar and DeMar DeRozan were both from Compton. LeBron James also attended the concert, which was the end of his friendship with Drake.

The rapper even famously threatened the Raptors to not retire DeRozan's jersey, or else he would personally remove it.

DeMar DeRozan still considers Drake a friend

Despite siding with Kendrick Lamar during the beef against Drake, DeMar DeRozan still considers the Canadian rapper a friend. DeRozan told The Sacramento Bee last year that Drake was still his "man" and the feud is just entertainment.

"Drake's still my man, still my man, none of it changed," DeRozan 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. Two of the biggest rappers in the world went at it from a competitive standpoint and they battled it out."

DeRozan even compared Drake and Kendrick to Kobe Bryant and Michael Jordan as two of the best at what they do.

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Juan Paolo David

Juan Paolo is a journalist for Sportskeeda who covers the NBA and WNBA. He's been writing about basketball since 2015 and has been with Sportskeeda since 2021.

Juan's allegiance lies with the Golden State Warriors and his journey with the Warriors began with their memorable victory over the Lakers in 2000, and he experienced the successes of the 'We Believe' era and the rise of Steph Curry. 

What Juan loves most about basketball is its ability to evoke a range of emotions, from adrenaline-fueled excitement to the highs of victory and the lows of defeat. To ensure complete accuracy in articles, he conducts thorough research before writing his articles.

The Warriors' victories in the 2022 and 2017 championships hold a special place in Juan's memories, as well as iconic moments like Baron Davis' dunk over Andrei Kirilenko and Goran Dragic's performance in the 2010 Western Conference semifinals.

Off the court, Juan enjoys watching football, TV and movies, caring for his numerous cats, and cooking whenever time permits.

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