On Tuesday Night, the Toronto Raptors hosted the Milwaukee Bucks in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Finals at the Scotiabank Arena.
After losing in the first two games of the series in Milwaukee, the Raptors came back with a double-overtime win in Game 3 and they beat the Bucks 120-102 in Game 4, tying the Eastern Conference Finals series at two wins apiece.
Many people were distracted by Toronto superfan Drake’s courtside antics during the Raptors game.
READ MORE: Drake’s music banned by Milwaukee radio station during Raptors-Bucks series
Throughout the game, Drake frequently left his courtside seat to roam up and down the Toronto sideline, heckling the players on the Bucks, touching the Raptors players and even gave coach Nick Nurse a playful shoulder massage.
He was at his animated best, on his feet for most of the night, waving his arms in the air to get the crowd going. And he windmilled an arm after Giannis Antetokounmpo missed a free throw.
Even the New York Times covered the Drake display, calling him “Spike Lee 2.0.”
Many NBA fans took to Twitter to tell Drake to “sit down.”
Some Toronto fans were quick to stand up for The Language rapper.
Bucks fans also took to Twitter to debate deleting Drake’s music from their playlists and to criticize the rapper for his courtside antics.
READ MORE: Drake uses ‘curse’ to advantage, best reactions to Raptors’ Leonard’s series-clinching shot
A senior executive from Octagon Basketball Europe, Georgios Dimitropoulos, which represents Antetokounmpo tweeted (and deleted) a “hypothetical” scenario that matched the same interaction between his client and Drake.
Drake kept taunting Antetokounmpo during Tuesday night’s game and once Antetokounmpo missed his shot at the free-throw line, the rapper made sure the NBA player knew he was laughing.
In response to the taunting from the Toronto superstar, Dimitropoulos referenced “VIP seats, right next to the band.”
“Imagine a gig & an athlete on VIP seats, right next to the band, stands up on the stage just to show off during the entire game, knowing cameras are on him, occasionally even massaging the singer. Security&him both allow it. Never seen anything as disrespectful as this before…”
READ MORE: Raptors even up Eastern Conference finals with 120-102 win over Bucks
WISN’S Stephanie Sutton said that a fan conduct advisory, signed by NBA League Security, was placed on every seat on Wednesday morning at the Scotiabank Arena.
The notice read: “Fans who act inappropriately will not be tolerated and are subject to ejection from the arena and/or revocation of their tickets. Examples of inappropriate behavior include, but are not limited to: using abusive language or gestures directed at any player, coach, referee, fan, or person involved in our game; making or attempting to make any physical contact with any player, coach, referee, fan, or person involved in our game; disrupting or interrupting the game; entering the playing court, throwing objects, or any other form of improper conduct.”
“We encourage you to enjoy the game and to cheer for our players and teams in a respectful way. Thank you for supporting the NBA,” it concluded.
Drake clearly did not follow the fan conduct advisory.
The Raptors head back to Milwaukee for Game 5 on Thursday on the heels of two straight wins at home.
The series returns to Toronto for Game 6 on Saturday.
— With files from the Associated Press
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