Cavaliers play Kendrick after Game 7
- Cleveland beat Toronto 114-102 in Game 7 on May 3, then blasted Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us” in Rocket Arena as the Raptors bowed out. - The trolling got sharper on the video board too, with an “ICEMAN” graphic mocking Drake just as Cleveland clinched a second-round date. - It mattered because Drake is the Raptors’ longtime celebrity face, so a playoff win instantly turned into a very online culture flex.
The basketball part ended with Cleveland moving on. The internet part started a second later. After the Cavaliers beat the Raptors 114-102 in Game 7 on Sunday, May 3, Rocket Arena played Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us” over the speakers, and the moment landed exactly how you’d think it would. Fans roared, clips spread fast, and the whole thing was read as a direct shot at Drake — the Raptors’ most famous superfan and global ambassador. Cleveland didn’t just win a playoff series. It turned the walk-off into a meme. ### Why did this hit so hard? Because the target was obvious. “Not Like Us” is the diss track most tightly attached to Kendrick’s 2024 feud with Drake, so using it right after eliminating Toronto barely needed explanation. Add in Drake’s long public connection to the Raptors, and the song choice felt less like generic arena music and more like a victory lap with a punchline. ### What happened in the game itself? For most of the night, this was not some silly blowout with room for jokes from the opening tip. Toronto led through the first half before Cleveland flipped the game after halftime and pulled away late. Jarrett Allen finished with 22 points and 19 rebounds, and Cleveland worked partly because the basketball stakes were real first. ### Was it only the song? No — and that’s what made the whole thing feel coordinated. Reports and viral clips pointed to an “ICEMAN” graphic on the arena video board, a nod to Drake’s current album rollout, layered on top of the Kendrick soundtrack. Basically, Cleveland found the cleanest possible overlap between playoff elimination, rap beef, and Drake branding, then pushed every button at once. ### Why are people calling it a Drake taunt? Because sports crowds have become part of the Kendrick-Drake afterlife. Since “Not Like Us”
