TORONTO -- The fireworks between the Toronto Raptors and the Cleveland Cavaliers didn't end with the final buzzer in the Cavs' thrilling 113-112 overtime victory in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals, as entertainer Drake and Cleveland backup center Kendrick Perkins got into a shouting match when both teams made their way off the court.
The beef started between the two at halftime, when Drake, the Toronto native who often sits courtside for games at Air Canada Centre and serves as a Raptors global ambassador, overheard Perkins talking trash to Raptors center Serge Ibaka.
"I was f---ing with Serge, my old teammate," Perkins said after the game. "I wasn't talking to [Drake]."
Perkins and Ibaka both used to play for the Oklahoma City Thunder, reaching the NBA Finals together in 2012.
"[I was] telling him, 'We about to win this game,' and Drake butted in talking s--- to me," Perkins told ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski. "So I said something back to him."
What exactly was Perkins' rebuttal?
"He said something slick, so I said something back: 'Sit your ass down and watch the game.'"
In a comment on an Instagram post Tuesday night, Drake claimed, "I just said I like the hem on his capris."
Several members of the Cavaliers' security personnel approached Drake's bodyguard after Perkins had cleared the court and made his way to the Cavs' locker room. Drake could be heard saying, "I never said that s---," during that discussion.
After Drake initially left the court, through the tunnel and up the ramp toward the Raptors' locker room, he came back down the ramp yelling obscenities in the direction of the visitors locker room aimed at Perkins.
This is not the first time this postseason that the "Nice For What" rapper was not so nice to an opposing team's player. During the Raptors' first-round victory over the Washington Wizards, Drake took on Kelly Oubre Jr., shouting "You're a bum!" at the Wizards forward, and also called out Washington point guard John Wall, exclaiming "John, you're getting bodied by 20 tonight!" during Toronto's 130-119 victory in Game 2.
When Perkins exited the Cavs' locker room for good Tuesday night, a member of the team's security staff asked him if he wanted to be escorted to the team bus in case he might have another run-in with Drake along the way.
"I'm fine," Perkins said with a smirk. "What's he going to do?"