Determining The Ultimate NBA Player And Rapper Comparisons
(Eminem in black by Sebastian Vital / Russell Westbrook by Keith Allison / Jay Z by NRK P3 / Drake at Bun-B Concert 2011 by thecomeupshow / LeBron James by Xynn Tii / CC BY-SA 2.0. Photo Illustration by Nathan Graber-Lipperman)
In the words of Rick Ross, former prison guard and the Teflon Don: “Rappers wanna be ballers, and ballers wanna be rappers.”
Of course, guys like The Game and 2 Chainz have dominated the rapper/celebrity game circuit; in turn, Damian Lillard and Lonzo Ball have dropped tracks of their own. Even LeBron and KD got in on the action during the 2011 NBA lockout:
I feel like this might’ve been that time in LeBron’s life where he needed an outlet like, I dunno, making mediocre rap? No, mom, I’m not sad that everyone hates me after The Decision! I’m just going through a phase! Gosh! It’s okay, ‘Bron — even you can’t be good at everything.
Anyway, with a young NBA season on the horizon, I decided to sift through the ranks and create the most important list you’ll read all offseason. Let’s begin!
Stephen Curry is…Drake
Drake has always marketed himself as the Nice Guy of rap. And it’s worked: his seven №1 solo albums ranks fourth behind only Jay-Z, ‘Ye, and Eminem. Drake’s penchant for bringing talent together and standing out among the greats has been obvious ever since he assembled the crew for his breakout single back in 2009, “Forever.” Still, Drake is such a mainstream draw that he’s somehow almost become…unpopular.
Of course, he still has his boundless amount of fans, similar to Steph Curry. Yet the Warriors’ star turned from lovable underdog to the face of the team you root against. Maybe it was the shimmy; maybe it was the evil goatee he grew straight out of Community.
Nevertheless, even after struggling with injuries throughout the 2017–18 season, he still came out on top, capturing his third title in four seasons. And while many pronounced Drake done after Pusha T’s The Story of Addidon, the rapper is headed to his fourth no. 1 song since Daytona released. Winners stay winning.
James Harden is…Kendrick Lamar
Kendrick is coming off an MVP-like run of success. Between DAMN. getting a Pulitzer nod and the Black Panther soundtrack generally just, ya know, kickin’ ass, there may not be a hotter name in all of rap right now. Besides, Kendrick is still only 31; after minting a deal with Nike last summer, we’re set to see Kung-Fu Kenny in the spotlight for years to come.
James Harden finally won the actual MVP last season, as it seemed like we’d been waiting to name him among the league’s royalty for too long. The Beard somehow combines a throwback, Ginobili-esque style with the definitive modern NBA offense run by the Rockets. Harden is still on the right side of 30, too, and there’s no reason to think his game can’t stay at the top as he transitions into the second part of his career.
Both Harden and Kendrick seem laid-back at first glance, but let your guard down, and they’ll attack you with everything they got.
Kevin Durant is…J. Cole
Did you know J. Cole went platinum with no features? You did? Well, good. Just checking.
Cole has been at the top of the game for quite some time now. His third studio album, 2014 Forest Hills Drive, debuted at number one on the U.S. Billboard 200 and sold 371,000 copies within the first week; it also set a record for the most streamed album on Spotify with over 15.7 million streams in the first week. Since then, the release of 4 Your Eyez Only and KOD have only bolstered Cole’s candidacy for status as rapping elite. Something’s holding him back from the GOAT conversation, though — is it truly because he’s too corny?
Durant, too, is one of the unquestioned elite talents in the game. He won four out of five scoring title from 2010 to 2014, along with the NBA Finals Most Valuable Player in the last two years. Still, how does the second-best player of a generation only have one MVP award? Maybe it’s a product of playing with Russell Westbrook in OKC and Steph Curry in the Bay. But it certainly weighs down on Durant when we start pitting him against the all-time greats.
All in all, Cole and Durant will always perform with a chip on their shoulder until they get their due.
Russell Westbrook and Paul George are…Andre 3000 and Big Boi
Before the duo known as Outkast broke up in 2007, they were a collective tour de force that dominated the genre. In 2003, their album Speakerboxxx/The Love Below — which was essentially two solo projects wrapped into one — won Album of the Year and pretty much redefined what it meant to be a popular artist. Part of that was Andre 3000’s morphing personality, as he became so unique and explosive that nowadays, it’s impossible to keep him out of the GOAT conversation. Big Boi, however, was always a skilled artist in his own right; his recent project Boomiverse somehow flew under the radar, even though its tracks and production rank up there with the best of ‘em.
In Oklahoma City, Russell Westbrook certainly channels a little bit of Andre 3000, down to his play-style and his actual sense of style. Some people won’t vibe with him, but for most NBA fans, watching Westbrook attack a team relentlessly is one of the most entertaining endeavors in the sport. Paul George, on the other hand, quietly just got named to his fifth All-Star appearance in 2018. Now, I’m not sure he’s a guy you could ever confidently place in your Top Ten, but if his and Westbrook’s games start to mesh as well as their apparent friendship, the Thunder could take the league by storm this year — pun intended.
LeBron James is…Jay-Z
“I’m not a businessman; I’m a business, man!” Jay-Z proclaimed in 2005. Almost 15 years later, it’s hard to disagree with the man, as his net worth inches closer and closer to gaining a third comma. It’s not like he’s done rapping, either. 2017’s 4:44 gained Mr. Carter a Grammy nomination for not just Rap Album of the Year, but Album of the Year, too. Combined with the wifey, Jay and Bey’s joint album Everything Is Love blew up the Internet when it released this summer, proving he’s still firmly entrenched in the public conscious.
And like Jay-Z — and the fine wine he enjoys consuming with his sons — LeBron might be getting better with age. He’s coming off a season in which he averaged 27.5/9.1/8.6 and an eFG% of 59.0, arguably one of the greatest campaigns of his already-illustrious career. But it’s clear that his decision to don the purple-and-gold in 2018 was about more than just basketball. He launched SpringHill Entertainment in 2017, and it feels like the next decade is set to feature films and television shows “from executive producers LeBron James and Maverick Carter.”
Plus, becoming the official star of Space Jam 2? Now that’s a business, man.
Draymond Green is…Kanye West
I don’t think anyone will attempt to claim that Kanye is in the discussion for greatest rappers of all time. Where the argument for Mr. West’s legacy becomes interesting, though, is when you consider his work as a producer and designer. His overall influence on the industry cannot be underestimated in the slightest, and he’s provided one of the most flamboyant personalities we’ve ever seen in popular culture.
The problem with Kanye is that it’s always been difficult to separate the artist from his work. Same with Draymond Green, the Warriors’ Swiss Army Knife who is invaluable in guarding all five positions yet does things like this. And this. Still, the way in which Golden State utilizes Draymond has revolutionized the NBA, and the league will keep accepting his fiery demeanor as long as he keeps producing.
That doesn’t mean we can’t hate him, though, right?
Bonus Round
These NBA players and rappers may have retired, but their legacies still live on today.
Kobe Bryant is…Eminem
Downright intense and insanely passionate about his craft, Eminem certainly shares the Mamba Mentality. Both have been obsessed with their professions for years, and they’ve accepted their position in their respective pantheons of greatness. ’Em is still kickin’, though, notoriously entering a back-and-forth beef with Machine Gun Kelly as well as dropping two albums in as many years. Nonetheless, knowing Kobe, can we really count out a comeback at this point in time?
Shaquille O’Neal is…Snoop Dogg
Both Shaq and Snoop love to change their nicknames around almost as much as they love to swap jerseys.
Also, the talent was always undeniable for these two. Did either of them ever fully realize it, however? I’d argue they didn’t. Nevertheless, their distinctive personalities are so embedded in the cultures themselves that you can’t possibly imagine the NBA without Shaq and rap without Snoop.
Magic Johnson and Larry Bird are…Tupac and Biggie
Before the ’90s, rap was a niche genre. That all changed when Tupac and Biggie exploded onto the scene and gave us the modern-day idea of what a rapper — and rap itself — could be. Magic’s Lakers and Bird’s Celtics transformed the NBA in a similar vein; plus, these two East Coast vs. West Coast rivalries are the stuff of absolute legend. It’s a shame that all four saw their careers cut short, in the end. We’ll always be left wondering what could’ve been.
What do you think? Who did we snub from the list? Comment below and make sure to tweet at us here!