On Monday, we at The Athletic dropped our debut column for the hip-hop and NBA project.
Today, in honor of the 24-second shot clock, we present our list of the 24 greatest NBA drops, the lyrics that defined the tracks and our rankings. We spanned almost five decades worth of music and lyrics. We explored artists all the way from New York to California. Our panel — Shakeia Taylor, Jason Jones and Tony Jones — takes stock into the impact, the creativity and the historical importance of the lyrics that intertwine the genre with the NBA as a whole.
This is an important segment of the project. Seeing the words on paper, seeing the diversity of the artists, means something. The mentions are ample and versatile, from mentioning individual players to mentioning teams. Our writers even take a few jabs at each other.
The writers compiled their own rankings, using a scoring system in which 24 points were given to their top lyrics and one point to the lyrics at the bottom of their list. The numbers in the parentheses are the points assigned to where that voter placed those lyrics on their personal list. If two songs had the same amount of overall points, we placed the song with the single-lowest vote below the other.
Dig in, read and opine on the lyrics in the comments, or add your favorites as there are countless NBA-based bars not on this list.
Let’s have some fun.
Kurtis Blow name-dropped nearly two dozen NBA athletes in the 1984 track “Basketball.” (Theo Wargo / Getty Images)
24. Kurtis Blow: ‘Basketball’ (4 total points)
“I used to go to dinner, then take the girl/ to see Tiny play against Earl the Pearl/ And Wilt, Big O and Jerry West/ play basketball at its very best.”
Jason Jones (2): This is the first basketball reference in music that I remember hearing, so it’ll always have sentimental value. And even in 2026, a basketball date is a good thing.
Shakeia Taylor (1): I love that one of the first basketball references in rap includes taking a woman on a date to a game. That’s right, hoops and hip-hop for the ladies!
Tony Jones (1): Maybe the first hoops reference to come out of hip-hop: We can never downplay the importance of that.
Listen: Spotify | Apple Music | Video | More: WhoSampled.com
23. The Sugarhill Gang: ‘Rapper’s Delight’ (12 points)
“So after school, I take a dip in the pool, which is really on the wall/ I got a color TV, so I can see the Knicks play basketball.”
J. Jones (7): One of the early hoops references in rap. But this isn’t my favorite part of the song. Nothing is going to top the chicken tasting “like wood” and that whole scene around dinner.
Taylor (3): An OG reference, but one of those that’s time-stamped. Getting a color TV to watch the Knicks! Not something a lot of new fans can even appreciate.
T. Jones (2): This came out in, what, 1979? And the Knicks still haven’t won an NBA title. I give up.
Listen: Spotify | Apple Music | Video | More: WhoSampled.com
22. LL Cool J feat. Method Man, Redman, Canibus, DMX and Master P: ‘4, 3, 2, 1 (Remix)’ (20 points)
“Snapping on you amateur MCs/ Don’t you know I’m like the Dream Team touring overseas?”
Jones (13): For some, he’s known as the guy from “NCIS,” but LL’s contributions to hip-hop and its growth are undeniable. But even in the rap game, LL doesn’t always receive the props he deserves, so he has to remind MCs of his place in the game among the greats. It’s fitting that LL would be on a rap Dream Team, because he’s just that important to the game.
Taylor (2): We couldn’t not include LL, and I think the line illustrates where he sees himself among MCs. The beat is also memorable as hell. For funsies, I looked this video up, and it has 21 million views since 2009. Whew.
T. Jones (5): It’s not the greatest bar in a vacuum, but it was important because it got one of the best posse cuts in hip-hop history on this list.
Listen (explicit lyrics): Spotify | Apple Music | Video | More: WhoSampled.com
21. Fabolous: ‘For the Love’ (22 points)
“I’m into having sh–/ turning dreams to average sh–/ Bring your trophy to the club, Dallas Mavericks sh–/ Niceeee!”
Jones (3): Sometimes I wonder what Fab did with all of his throwback jerseys. But seriously, he’s one of the best wordsmiths in rap who managed to blend elite lyricism with the ability to make music that became commercial hits. This isn’t one of those big hits, but it’s the kind of braggadocious line I love from Fab.
Taylor (10): Dirk Nowitzki, Mark Cuban, Jason Terry, Jason Kidd and other Dallas Mavericks took the Larry to Club Liv in Miami in 2011. Goated post-championship celebration, and I’m with Jason on the level of braggadociousness. I wonder if Rick Carlisle was there? Would love to see Rick in the club.
T. Jones (9): Maybe my favorite Fab line ever, one maybe my favorite Fab track ever. This is just special stuff.
Listen (explicit lyrics): Apple Music | Video | More: WhoSampled.com
20. A Tribe Called Quest: ‘Steve Biko (Stir It Up)’ (23 points)
“Hip-hop scholar since being knee high to a duck/ The height of Muggsy Bogues, complexion of a hockey puck.”
Jones (4): The more I listen to this line from Phife of ATCQ, the more I think I rated it too low. It’s hilarious! Phife was a real sports fan, too. I appeared on his radio show back in the day when I covered the Oakland Raiders. A true highlight in my career.
Taylor (12): I will never have anything bad to say about ATCQ — ever. I think we could’ve had a list of just Phife’s best references, and I would’ve been OK with it.
T. Jones (7): I love this bar. Phife has so many great ones, it’s difficult to choose. This one is top tier.
Listen: Spotify | Apple Music | Video | More: WhoSampled.com
19. Ludacris: ‘Undisputed’ (25 points)
“Back to put rappers on one knee like they ’bout to run 100-meter dash/ Bow down to greatness/ before I get pissed and run up in the stands like the Indiana Pacers.”
Jones (12): I don’t think Luda gets enough credit for his creativity. I’ve always been a fan of his wordplay and how he always sneaks in some nice sports references. I’m sure the NBA would love it if no one mentioned the Malice at the Palace again, but Luda did.
Taylor (7): There aren’t many Pacers references to draw from, but this is one of the best, from one of the best.
T. Jones (6): Gotta love the Indiana Pacers reference.
Listen (explicit lyrics): Spotify | Apple Music | Video | More: WhoSampled.com
18. The Game: ‘Too Much’ (27 points)
“So we rock it like Tracy McGrady/ Send it to Houston in a gray Mercedes.”
J. Jones (10): The Game might be hip-hop’s most prolific name dropper. But he’s clever with it. Who remembers those gray Houston Rockets jerseys? This is one of my favorite Game songs, especially with Nate Dogg on the hook.
Taylor (13): Underrated reference! Takes some skill to rhyme McGrady.
T. Jones (4): I don’t associate The Game with his rhyme schemes. This is OK. Nothing more.
Listen (explicit lyrics): Spotify | Apple Music | Video | More: WhoSampled.com
17. Big L: ‘MVP’ (27 points)
“And every time I’m jammed, I always find a loophole/ I got a crime record longer than Manute Bol.”
J. Jones (5): I’m here for any Manute Bol love.
Taylor (9): Manute Bol is one of the tallest players in league history. That’s a long-ass crime record.
T. Jones (13): The track that introduced us to the “139 & Lenox” album contained this beauty of a bar. Some were ducking and dodging the cops at this age, so Big L gave us the visual here. Elite stuff.
Listen (explicit lyrics): Spotify | Apple Music | Video | More: WhoSampled.com
16. Travis Scott feat. Drake: ‘Sicko Mode’ (28 points)
“See the shots that I took/ wet like I’m Book.”
J. Jones (8): At his best, Drake had a legion of NBA fans that he shouted out. So, I get why his feelings were hurt watching Russell Westbrook, James Harden and LeBron James grooving to Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us” for Juneteenth in 2024, or seeing DeMar DeRozan in the video for the song. Doesn’t take away from this cool shout-out to Devin Booker, but I don’t know if he’ll win back some of those hoopers in the same way.
Taylor (5): This one gets another ehhhh from me.
T. Jones (15): I love Drake, but this one is another that I feel aged kinda poorly, and I’ll leave it at that.
Listen (explicit lyrics): Spotify | Apple Music | Video | More: WhoSampled.com
Chuck D (left), with Public Enemy teammate Flavor Flav, delivered a musical bar in 1987 that included Charles Barkley. (Mike Coppola / Getty Images for MTV)
15. Public Enemy: ‘Rebel Without a Pause’ (30 points)
“Simple and plain, give me the lane/ I’ll throw it down your throat like Barkley.”
J. Jones (14): Chuck D’s delivery makes this line so tough. I really thought Chuck was going to knock me out when I heard this as a kid. Also in the late 1980s and early 1990s, Barkley had a reputation for doing what he wanted — wait, he still does that. It’s just on television where he’s unfiltered.
Taylor (8): Chuck on Chuck. Barkley was definitely a dawg, so this one hit hard.
T. Jones (8): I think this is a bar that went over better in 1987 than it would in 2026. I’ll leave it at that.
Listen: Spotify | Apple Music | Video | More: WhoSampled.com
14. 21 Savage featuring J. Cole: ‘a lot’ (35 points)
“I pray for Markelle ’cause they f—-d up his shot.”
J. Jones (21): Markelle Fultz was drafted during the Philadelphia 76ers’ “process,” which didn’t even yield a berth in the Eastern Conference finals. Fultz was the first pick in the 2017 NBA Draft, but injuries — and his eventual unorthodox shooting technique as a result — had me feeling bad for him.
Taylor (11): This is in the right spot to me. Cole is a quality rapper; I just don’t think this is one of the better references we pulled.
T. Jones (3): Cole has had better bars than this.
Listen (explicit lyrics): Spotify | Apple Music | Video | More: WhoSampled.com
13. Jay-Z feat. Alicia Keys: ‘Empire State Of Mind’ (40 points)
“Me? I gotta plug Special Ed, “I Got It Made”/ If Jeezy’s paying LeBron, I’m paying Dwyane Wade.”
J. Jones (17): This line had the streets talking, mainly because the conspiracy theorists love to debate the extent of Jay-Z’s history in the drug game. Did he really have a connect charging him half the price? But that’s the beauty of music … who says it has to be true? Who says it has to be literal?
Taylor (4): Ehh, the reference is perfectly OK to me — but I wasn’t a fan of the song.
T. Jones (19): Agree with Jason here. (This is a first.) The conspiracy theory of this line is what made it hard.
Listen (explicit lyrics): Spotify | Apple Music | Video | More: WhoSampled.com
12. Kendrick Lamar: ‘Not Like Us’ (40 points)
“I’m glad DeRoz came home, y’all didn’t deserve him neither.”
J. Jones (23): Let me say my colleagues are tripping here. How is this so low? K. Dot shouted out his Compton homie while going in on Canada’s greatest rapper. This is also easily a top-three diss song of all time. It won Grammys! I demand a recount.
Taylor (6): Another perfectly OK reference to me, Grammy or not.
T. Jones (11): This was nothing to write home about. Dot clearly owed DeMar, because he danced on stage with him that one time.
Listen (explicit lyrics): Spotify | Apple Music | Video | More: WhoSampled.com
11. A Tribe Called Quest: ‘8 Million Stories’ (42 points)
“With all these trials and tribulations, yo, I’ve been affected/ And to top it off, Starks got ejected.”
J. Jones (6): I imagine John Starks is the definition of joy and pain for New York basketball fans (don’t mention Game 7 of the 1994 NBA Finals). Now he’s adding to someone’s bad day in a song. Ugh.
Taylor (22): Phife forever. The storytelling is top tier, and Phife was one of the game’s best at sports references.
T. Jones (14): Phife embodied every single long-suffering Knicks fan with this bar. We never knew where the John Starks roller coaster was going to take us on a given night.
Listen (explicit lyrics): Spotify | Apple Music | Video | More: WhoSampled.com
10. Cam’Ron: ‘What Means the World to You’ (44 points)
“Top balla in every state/ In Chi, I’m Mike/ Boston, I’m Kenny/ In Miami, I’m Timmy, in Phoenix, I’m Penny — damn.”
J. Jones (9): This isn’t bad, it’s just not my favorite Cam’Ron song. Too bad this song wasn’t in a time machine, because the Orlando Penny Hardaway and New Jersey Kenny Anderson were big-time.
Taylor (14): I’m with Jason here. Not bad, just not my favorite.
Jones (21): Jason and Shake are both bugging here. This is one of my favorite bars ever. Cam saying that it didn’t matter where he was geographically, he was elite … just great, great bars. They still hit 26 years later.
Listen (explicit lyrics): Spotify | Apple Music | Video | More: WhoSampled.com
9. Nas: ‘It Ain’t Hard to Tell’ (46 points)
“School a fool well, you feel it like Braille/ It ain’t hard to tell, I kick a skill, like Shaquille holds a pill.”
J. Jones (16): Nas is one of my all-time favorites. I’ve got one of his album titles tattooed on my arm (“Life Is Good”), because it was about the end of his marriage, and mine was ending, too. So, Nas name-dropping a Laker legend was perfect for the L.A. native.
Taylor (20): Nas is one of my favorites, so I was all too thrilled to see he was on our list — though I think it’s a bit low.
Jones (10): This was OK. I liked it, but he could have been a little more slick with it.
Listen (explicit lyrics): Spotify | Apple Music | Video | More: WhoSampled.com
Raekwon (front) and the rest of the members of the Wu-Tang Clan paid homage to Rod Strickland with a bar in the 1997 track “Triumph.” (Dimitrios Kambouris / Getty Images for Mountain Dew)
8. Wu-Tang Clan: ‘Triumph’ (46 points)
“Max mostly, undivided, then slide in, sickening/ Guaranteed, made ’em jump like Rod Strickland.”
J. Jones (11): The Strickland reference was so out of the blue, but perfect. Basketball aficionados know how nice Strickland was, and it was fitting it was the Wu shouting out a New York-born point guard.
Taylor (15): Wu-Tang again and again! I remember how much my classmates loved this song. A classic.
T. Jones (20): I loved this, because Strick was so underrated. This was a perfect underground kind of reference, and it showed that Raekwon truly knew his hoops, and truly knew how good Rod was.
Listen (explicit lyrics): Spotify | Apple Music | Video | More: WhoSampled.com
7. The Notorious B.I.G. feat. Jay-Z and Angela Winbush: ‘I Love the Dough’ (47 points)
“We hit makers with acres/ Roll shakers in Vegas, you can’t break us./ Lost chips on Lakers, gassed off Shaq.”
Jones (1): Here’s where you all throw tomatoes at me. I think Biggie’s “Life After Death” should not have been a double CD, and this might have been my least favorite song on the entire album! Am I still welcome in Brooklyn? Not even a Lakers/Shaq reference could save it for me. I just wasn’t trying to hear Biggie with Angela Winbush. No shade, just not my preference.
Taylor (23): You will never hear me say a bad thing about Biggie. It was a fun song!
Jones (23): “Lost chips on Lakers, gassed off Shaq” is a line that will almost never be duplicated. Remember. Biggie and Shaq collaborated on “You Can’t Stop the Reign.” They had a personal relationship. They probably talked about this very scenario. And Shaq sold. Big putting this on wax is simply phenomenal.
Listen (explicit lyrics): Spotify | Apple Music | Video | More: WhoSampled.com
6. Lil Wayne: ‘Kobe Bryant’ (51 points)
“Kobe doin’ work, two-four on my shirt/ He the greatest on the court and I’m the greatest on the verse/ Going for the fourth ring like it was his first/ Gotta get the gleam, do it for Kareem.”
J. Jones (20): This dropped when Wayne was during his peak run and establishing himself as one of the greats. Meanwhile, Kobe was trying to prove he belonged in that GOAT conversation by winning without Shaquille O’Neal. With the frequency Wayne was dropping mixtapes and albums and the desire Bryant had to win another championship, it was as if their desires for greatness mirrored each other.
Taylor (19): According to Kobe, Wayne was motivated by Bryant’s performance in Game 6 of the 2009 Western Conference finals. Kobe had 35 points, six rebounds, 10 assists and was perfect (9 of 9) from the free throw line. Absolutely a performance to draw inspiration from.
T. Jones (12): The definitive track of NBA 2K24, I simply loved what Weezy did with these bars. Great stuff.
Listen (explicit lyrics): Spotify | Apple Music | Video
5. Kendrick Lamar: ‘Black Boy Fly’ (51 points)
“I used to be jealous of Arron Afflalo/ I used to be jealous of Arron Afflalo/ He was the one to follow/ He was the only leader foreseeing brighter tomorrows/ He would live in the gym, we was living in sorrow.”
Jones (18): These lines were so dope to me when I heard it. It showed how athletes can evoke a multitude of emotions, including jealousy, amongst their peers. Afflalo was a big deal coming out of Compton and not in trouble, but a young K. Dot was jealous of that positivity — even if it also inspired him.
Taylor (17): Kendrick’s delivery on this was just really wise.
Jones (16): One of my favorite storytelling tracks starts out with one of my favorite references. Getting into how he dropped 30, how he matriculated to the league and how they grew up together was some lyrical genius that’s gone a long way towards defining K. Dot in the big picture.
Listen (explicit lyrics): Spotify | Apple Music | Video | More: WhoSampled.com
4. Nelly: ‘Hot in Herre’ (53 points)
“I got a friend with a pole in the basement (What?)/ I’m just kidding like Jason/ Unless you gon’ do it.”
Jones (19): The late 1990s and early 2000s were filled with rappers wearing jerseys and shouting out the nightlife. The song and video for “Hot in Herre” combined both, especially this line.
Taylor (16): This song was everywhere, all the time, when it first came out. The Kidd reference was just clever enough that people repeated it.
T. Jones (18): This line was good to me — just not as iconic as some. The track itself is iconic, for sure. But I do appreciate throwing Jason Kidd into hip-hop. He was special.
Listen (explicit lyrics): Spotify | Apple Music | Video | More: WhoSampled.com
3. Fu-Schnickens feat. Shaquille O’Neal: ‘What’s Up Doc? (Can We Rock?)’ (55 points)
“Now who’s the first pick? Me, word is born’in/ Not a Christian Laettner, not Alonzo Mourning.”
Jones (15): I still remember Shaq and Fu-Schnickens on “The Arsenio Hall Show” when this song dropped. This was a major moment as Shaq showed off his bigger-than-life personality on wax.
Taylor (18): This was just a super fun song!
T. Jones (22): Just an iconic, iconic line. When we heard this in real time, we all went crazy. Remember, in 1992, Shaq against Laettner was a real thing. Shaq against Mourning was a real thing. So when Shaq said this, it turned out to be as memorable as any line as he’s ever uttered.
Listen: Spotify | Apple Music | Video | More: WhoSampled.com
2. Jay-Z: ‘Encore’ (60 points)
“As fate would have it, Jay’s status appears/ To be at an all-time high, perfect time to say goodbye/ When I come back like Jordan/ Wearin’ the 4-5, it ain’t to play games with you.”
Jones (22): This was supposed to be Jay-Z’s retirement album, but this line was a hint that he’d come back to rap at some point. Serving as CEO of Def Jam Recordings was Jay-Z’s equivalent of Michael Jordan playing baseball.
Taylor (21): Jay-Z is one of rap’s best, no doubt, and at the time he was supposed to be retiring. So, the Jordan reference hit differently.
T. Jones (17): This was the lyric in its genius that told us all he wasn’t going to retire after dropping “The Black Album” in 2003. He told us in the middle of it that he was going to reappear, and that’s exactly what he did. “American Gangster” was a classic in 2007. Jay had a lot of gas left in the tank. This was the bar that told us so.
Listen (explicit lyrics): Spotify | Apple Music | Video | More: WhoSampled.com
Ice Cube’s “It Was a Good Day” was released in 1992 and lyrics in the song have been a part of basketball lexicon for more than 30 years. (Tasos Katopodis / Getty Images for Idol Roc Entertainment)
1. Ice Cube: ‘It Was a Good Day’ (72 points)
“Get me on the court and I’m trouble/ Last week, messed around and got a triple-double/ Freakin’ brothas every way like MJ/ I can’t believe today was a good day.”
Jones (24): I’m admittedly biased: Ice Cube is my GOAT rapper, but this is still my top choice. The song is Cube’s biggest hit, and “messed around and got a triple-double” has become a part of everyday lexicon for casually getting the job done.
Taylor (24): Cube’s MJ reference is hands down one of the most memorable, one of the smoothest and probably the coolest on this list.
T. Jones (24): This is the definitive hip-hop reference that intertwines with the NBA. It was a line that made Cube a household superstar as he moved to the forefront of hip-hop. That the video depicted him walking off the court in a “this is too easy” manner, is just more icing on the proverbial cake.
Listen (explicit lyrics): Spotify | Apple Music | Video | More: WhoSampled.com