RJ Barrett's mom spotted leading Raptors fans in chants
When RJ Barrett was traded to the Toronto Raptors last month, much ado was made of the homecoming for the 23-year-old forward.
Born and raised in Toronto but having spent the first five years of his career with the New York Knicks after being taken third overall in the 2019 NBA Draft, the trade offered a bit of a reset for the young Canadian.
And it appears that his family has been fully embracing the move back to Toronto for Barrett, not quietly, but quite publicly and loudly.
While his father, Rowan, is well known in basketball circles — he’s the current general manager of the Canadian men’s national team — it was his mother, Kesha, who was drawing all the interest on Monday night.
TSN reporter Kayla Grey captured footage of the supportive mother in the crowd at Scotiabank Arena during the team’s game against the Memphis Grizzlies last night, as she led “Let’s Go Raptors!” chants “throughout the entire night.”
One thing about @RjBarrett6 ‘s mom is that she’s going to cheer on her son regardless. She’s been leading “Let’s go Raptors !” chants throughout the entire night. pic.twitter.com/3qFbRvEIDG
— Kayla Grey (@Kayla_Grey) January 23, 2024
While some athletes might be embarrassed by their parents leading chants in the crowd, Barrett reshared the post — as much of an endorsement as you can ask for these days.
The new role in Toronto for Barrett has worked out quite well so far: he’s averaged 20.9 points, 7.2 rebounds and 3.4 assists in 12 games for the Raptors this season.
Last week, Toronto president Masai Ujiri recalled meeting a then-13-year-old Barrett at Scotiabank Arena via his father’s frequent introductions.
“Every single time he brought him to a game, he’d bring him to me. Every single time,” Ujiri said. “He’d say, ‘Here’s my son, he loves basketball, please say something to him.’ Every single time.”
The Raptors return to action Friday night at Scotiabank Arena, where they’ll host Kawhi Leonard and the Los Angeles Clippers. Tipoff is set for 4:30 pm PT/7:30 pm ET, and we can only assume the Barrett family will be there cheering loud and proud.
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