The Buzz Latest NewsDrake and OVO Collaborate on Raptor’s Apparel for One Night Only Over the weekend, the Toronto Raptors hosted “Drake Night,” an evening dedicated to the team’s global ambassador as they faced off against the Brooklyn Nets. Notwithstanding earlier reports that Drake himself wouldn’t be in attendance at said “Drake Night,” not only did the hometown rapper show face, he also brought his new apparel collaboration of the Raptors x OVO T-shirt that was given away to all the fans who turned up to the big game. Those very T-shirts look a little something like this…  ​The new shirt is all part of Drake’s rebranding efforts for the Raptors, with the design oozing the same black and gold colour scheme associated with Drizzy’s music label, October’s Very Own. There’s also a dinosaur mascot balling through block-lettered "OVO" and "416" designs, making this shirt not only a coveted piece of sporting memorabilia, but also a fashionable addition to any styled-to-rock ensemble.

Hopefully it’s a sign of new things to come as the basketball team consider an even more dramatic redesign under Drake’s guidance; particularly in anticipation of the 2016 NBA All-Star Game that will be hosted in Toronto."Exclusive OVO Raptors shirt for everyone attending! Me and @futuretheprince hosting/Dj'ing at halftime! Birth of the 416 section! #Raptors #416 #Toronto," Drizzy wrote on Instagram ahead of the big night, but if you couldn’t make it out to the game, be sure to keep an eye out for the limited-edition tees on eBay, Kijiji or Craigslist. Their prices are predictably rising fast.Images via Toronto RaptorsWith basketball season in full swing, you can now show your love for the Toronto Raptors and the team's brand ambassador (yes, it's Drake) simultaneously thanks to the new OVO x Toronto Raptors x Mitchell & Ness clothing line that went on sale at noon today. If you're reading this, it's not too late to get your hands on one of the many jacket ($349 and $399) t-shirts ($64.99) and hats ($64.99) that make up the collection.

Drake sported the Raptor's new uniforms on stage at his OVO Fest this past summer. But this new line is in collaboration with the Raptors, OVO and the American company Mitchell & Ness.You can buy it at Real Sports, the OVO Store on Dundas West or online. bukowski hoodiesWhat do you think of this new line? mickey mouse hoodie kohlsLet us know in the comments.kite buggy hoodie Drake, Raptors Release Commemorative Shirts for ‘Drake Night’ Rapper named marketing partner of organization Jan. 11 is coming, just wait on it. ‘Drake Night’ is coming to the Air Canada Centre this Saturday, and everyone who attends is supposed to get a OVO commemorative shirt. Drake has already been expressive about his team, which has been on the rebound since trading Rudy Gay to the Sacramento Kings, but perhaps not even he could have expected the success that followed.

The boys are ballin’ regardless #GoRaptors #HardFought — Drizzy (@Drake) January 6, 2014 Said Drake via his Instagram account: “Exclusive OVO Raptors shirt for everyone attending! Me and @futuretheprince hosting/Dj’ing at halftime! The Internet is already abuzz that many of the shirts will end up on eBay where they’re expected to sell for hundreds. That would be quite a media coup for the Raptors, who are 17-17 heading into Saturday night’s match up with the Brooklyn Nets. Check out the merch below.This is what the Toronto Raptors’ relationship with Drake was supposed to be: rooted in relevance with key demos and brand exposure to both players and consumers alike. Yet even Tim Leiweke couldn’t have foreseen how symbiotic the much-talked-about Raptors rebranded jersey launch would have been when Drake revealed them on stage on the last day of his OVO Fest concert Monday. It seemed the moment Drake rolled on stage wearing the new Raptors alternate “October’s Very Own” black and gold uniforms, the internet exploded along with the packed house at Toronto’s Molson Amphitheatre.

The Raptors released the jersey along with Drake and popular video game franchise NBA2K, so fans could see their favourite players in the new look when they are playing the video game and what it looks like on the street when their celebrity fan wore it on stage. “We The North stands for being disruptive, strong and proud,” said David Freeman, head of brand for Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment, who echoed the jersey unveil was a strategic part of building the brand. “In collaboration with Sid Lee and OVO we launched our logo and uniforms in a way that would capture the attention of our fan base.” Timing is everything, and Drake has been heavily in the news lately for his beef with Philadelphia rapper Meek Mill and his diss track “Back to Back”, the cover art of which was Joe Carter celebrating his World Series-winning home run. In the previous diss track, "Charged Up", Drake referenced the new generation Raptors by saying, "I get a ring and I bring it home like I’m Corey Joe" in reference to Torontonian and Raptors free-agent signing Cory Joseph.

That's whose jersey Drake was wearing when he proudly strolled on stage to perform both songs at the Amphitheatre. Joseph has decided to wear the No. 6 in reference to the city of Toronto, now commonly known as “the six” -- and it's a nickname bestowed by Drake himself, as a reference to not only the number being in both the city’s 416 and 647 area codes, but also because it's made up of six municipalities. The show last night was crazy. The homie @champagnepapi had the city charged WAY up A photo posted by Cory Joseph (@coryjoseph) on Aug 4, 2015 at 4:04pm PDT But what is the power of Drake rocking the uniform on stage for the first time? For the jersey to be seen on a rapper before an actual Raptor player? For starters, there was a massive spike in search activity on Google coinciding with Drake taking the stage wearing the new threads. The Raptors were trending (along with Drake) on both Twitter and Facebook. The unveil garnered 3.3 thousand "Likes" on Facebook, 2.6 thousand "Favourites" on Twitter, making it the second-most favourited @Raptors tweet of 2015, the fourth-most viewed @Raptors tweet of all-time and generating more than 125 million social media impressions.

In the last 24 hours, searches for "Raptors Jersey" outpaced "Meek Mill" by a factor of 2:1 in Canada. Not only is Drake’s battle with Meek Mill seemingly over, but so is the notion by detractors that the franchise's affiliation with Drake is silly and amateurish. The value he has brought as the “global ambassador” can’t be quantified. Aaron Brindle, Google Canada trends expert, noticed the Drake effect. “The moment Drake took to the stage," says Brindle, "we saw a surge in search interest on Google. Canadians went online to learn more and to search for additional images of the updated jersey.” , along with lifestyle sites like Pitchfork and Complex, all profiled Drake's reveal of the new look on the front page of their websites. On a civic holiday when everyone is feeling nostalgically Canadian, it was the right time and right place for the franchise to formally unveil its new identity. With Drake bringing a lot of NBA players to the city for his show, along with the Toronto Caribbean Carnival (previously known as Caribana) all eyes were on the city, the franchise and its fan base.

NBA players willingly attended Drake’s own basketball tournament “OVO Bounce” which is in affiliation with the AAU team, CIA Bounce, that produced Joseph, Andrew Wiggins, Tyler Ennis, Jamal Murray and Anthony Bennett. A photo posted by #ovobounce (@ovobounce) on Aug 4, 2015 at 9:31am PDT A photo posted by #ovobounce (@ovobounce) on Aug 4, 2015 at 9:28am PDT A photo posted by #ovobounce (@ovobounce) on Jul 31, 2015 at 2:39pm PDT A video posted by #ovobounce (@ovobounce) on Jul 31, 2015 at 4:30pm PDT Drake and fellow Toronto rapper P Reign’s OVO crew also took on a team composed of Lebron James and his “Klutch" sports agency in game of kickball at a local baseball field. A photo posted by Klutch Sports Group (@klutchsports) on Aug 2, 2015 at 10:03am PDT A photo posted by Cory Joseph (@coryjoseph) on Aug 4, 2015 at 7:57am PDT Had a fun time at the homie @preign charity kickball game A photo posted by Cory Joseph (@coryjoseph) on Jul 26, 2015 at 3:36pm PDT

With personal guests like Will Smith, Kanye West, Kevin Hart and a host of MLB and NBA players around, many of the world’s biggest tastemakers were on hand to see the uniforms of Toronto’s fastest-growing fan base on display. Only New York's fashion week rivals the amount of trendsetters assembled.#OVOFest with the boyzzzz @rgoins2 @a_sanch41 @hutch_36 @cc20rake @encadwin #Kawa @moosenal @nigeliciouss @gneglia_88 @robertoosuna18 A photo posted by Jose Bautista (@joeybats19) on Aug 3, 2015 at 3:18pm PDT Kevin Durant (who has already said that as a kid he wanted to play for the Raptors) was up close and personal for the jersey launch, after previously watching Toronto Blue Jays fans serenade David Price with ovations. Durant took in the concert with DeMar Derozan, and was seen wearing a Blue Jays Price jersey, only fuelling rumours the impending free agent will someday wear a Raptors uniform. Last year Drake and the Raptors were fined because of Drake probing the OVO Fest crowd with regards to Durant, which was ultimately determined to be considered tampering.

This year nothing had to be said. The crowd's reaction at both the Rogers Centre and the Molson Amphitheatre spoke volumes. Drake has proven he can move merchandise. At the OVO Fest, three stalls of his "October's Very Own" brand were barely able to keep up with demand. The Raptors are expecting to move similar units of their new uniform, which was designed to appeal to the entire nation; the maple leaf on the waistband is a constant reminder of the team’s heritage and cross-country fan base. Small detailing like expanding up on the successful “We The North” font type helps differentiating it from other uniforms rather than crazy colours like the new Atlanta Hawks rebrand that became a running joke online. “Drake has added a whole new orientation to the Raptors and that is to the millennials," said PhD Marketing professor Alan Middleton of the Schulich School of Business at York University. "He’s made them relevant with their core fan base, but beyond that he has transitioned to a broader Canadian pride.

Many non-Drake traditional fans petitioned Kanye West’s inclusion at the Pan Am’s by saying, 'Why isn't it Drake? He is one of ours.' The relationship is both to his benefit but to the benefit for the Raptors. They expose each other to unique fans across economic and social lines.” Remember when people were complaining about the colours and the name of the team? Tim Leiweke spent a good time of his introductory press conference talking about the possibility of changing the team’s name and colours. Remember when Drake’s relationship with the team was a punchline to either make fun of Drake or the Raptors? Now all of talk is a thing of the past. They have figured out they can grow their fan base by catering to their hardcore fans and asking them to co-sign their cool factor. For a weekend, at least, being in Toronto was cool; supporting the city and the country was cool; wearing anything Raptors-related was cool. Regardless if any of the talented NBA players ever don the new look Raptors uniform in the future is beside the point.