After dropping his long-awaited The Off-Season album on May 14, J. Cole also dropped in three points, three rebounds and two assists in his Rwandan Patriots BBC professional basketball debut on Sunday (May 16).
The rapper, who has long harbored hoop dreams, landed a short-term contract with the Basketball Africa League team, and No. 15 quickly got in the game, scoring just minutes after checking in against rival Nigeria’s Rivers Hoopers when he tipped in a teammate’s missed layup.
Cole, 36, was a star player at Sanford High School in North Carolina and was a walk-on for the St. John’s college basketball team, but he ended up bailing on college hoops to pursue music. The MC was reportedly signed to a three-to-six game contract in the inaugural season of the BAL, and played a total of 17 minutes in his debut.
Off the court, Cole’s album features a deep bench of hip-hop favorites dishing out assists, including Lil Baby, Cam’ron, Morray, Bas, 21 Savage and 6lack. The album’s artwork is in keeping with Cole’s roundball obsession, with the rapper standing in front of a burning basketball hoop on the cover and cradling a ball elsewhere in the package.
Check out footage of Cole’s debut below.
