Lakers forward LeBron James receives shock treatment from Drake after being unfollowed on Instagram.

Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James standing next to hip-hop artist Drake with crying emojis and cell phone notification emojis around them.Years of a friendship between Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James and rapper Drake might be coming to an end after a social media post on Tuesday. The post showed the Canadian rapper no longer following him on his Instagram account.

There might be some explanation for it. For starters, Drake and fellow rapper Kendrick Lamar engaged in a rap battle that fed content for ages. James, as well as former teammate Russell Westbrook, were present for Lamar’s one-night concert. Even former Toronto Raptors guard DeMar DeRozan was present after he had a solid relationship with the Canadian rapper.

Also, James loved playing the Drake diss song “Not Like Us” throughout the Olympics. James played it so much, that it even became too much for Stephen Curry to handle. However, it’s more than just the rap beef between Drake and Lamar. It’s also on the court too.

What happened on the court with Lakers’ LeBron James and Drake?

Drake unfollows LeBron James on Instagram© John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Images
James has been a thorn in the Raptors side since he returned to the Cleveland Cavaliers for the second time. He eliminated the Raptors in three consecutive seasons. In the last two seasons (2016-17, 2017-18), James swept the Raptors. He even was nicknamed “LeBronto” during the 2017-18 playoff match against Toronto.
Something about Toronto seems to make the greatness come out. In 14 games against the Raptors, he has averaged 31.1 points, 8.4 rebounds, and 7.6 assists in his career. To make things sweeter for the Lakers forward, he has a 12-2 record in those 14 games as well.

A combination of on-court dominance and supporting Lamar through the rap beef could have been the nail in the coffin for the two’s friendship. As of writing this, James seems to have no hard feelings about the matter. It’s probably the last thing he’s worried about, considering the Lakers preseason opens up on Sunday against the Phoenix Suns.

Hayden Cilley joined ClutchPoints in August 2024 as a Phoenix Suns and Mercury reporter, as well as an Associate Editor. Hayden graduated from Arizona State University and recently covered the Mercury for The Next Hoops and PHNX Sports.