Ballin' Line of the Week: Big L

Basketball and hip-hop music have a beautiful, symbiotic relationship. Each feeds upon the other. All basketball players want to be rappers, i.e. Shaquille O'Neal, Ron Artest, and all rappers want to be ball players. Basketball is part of rap culture, and rap culture is part of basketball culture. Regularly we see KD, or LeBron, or Kobe stroll in the arena, suited up, headphones over their ears. 

And regularly we see Jay-Z, J.Cole, or Hoodie Allen reference Jordan, LeBron, and many other NBA players throughout their songs. The intertwined role that rap and basketball have is, personally, one of the most interesting aspects of rap culture. When basketball is combined with hip-hop music, two of my favourite things are brought together, which is awesome. After the jump I delve into some of my favourite basketball rap lines.


This unique relationship inspired me to write this segment weekly, where I will bring you a line or lines that somehow relate to basketball, and I'll explain the reference. For me, it's good when Jordan, Kobe, or LeBron are referenced, but when a more obscure, lesser-known player is referenced, that is gold in my book. This brings me to my line of the week, which comes from the late, great Big L

"And everytime I'm in a jam I always find a loophole,

I got a crime record longer than Manute Bol."

Manute Bol was a Sudanese player in the NBA, the tallest ever at 7'7". And long....he had an 8'6" armspan!!! Now that is a long criminal record!