Skyzoo On Chris Paul: "I Wanted A Muhammad Ali Moment From Him"

Brooklyn-lyricist Skyzoo shares his reaction to the announcement that NBA Commissioner Adam Silver levied a lifetime ban against Los Angeles Clippers owner, Donald Sterling. In an exclusive conversation with HipHopDX, Skyzoo says that he hoped Clippers point guard, Chris Paul would have responded to Sterling’s racist comments with an “Ali moment.”

“I wanted him to have a [Muhammad Ali] moment,” Skyzoo says. “I’m like, ‘Alright, you’ve made it. You’re one of the best in the league. Your money is straight. Your family is straight and you’re still young.’ I wanted to see an Ali moment. I wanted to see him stand tall and be like, ‘Yo, you know what? I’m out. I’m not playing here. I’m only [28-years old]. I’ll get a chip. This year, ya’ll can have it. I’m not playing here. You can move me onto somebody else. You can take me to court, whatever it is. You don’t even have to pay me anymore for the rest of the season. You’ve paid me for the games I’ve played. I don’t want another check with your name on it.’”

Skyzoo says that he’s happy with the overall punishment Sterling received and understands why Chris Paul may have decided not to make a larger statement.

“I wanted an Ali moment from him. And I say him cause he’s the face of that team. If it was New York it would be Carmelo [Anthony]. If it was Miami, it would be [Lebron James]. And Bron stood tall and said, ‘I’d be out.’ It’s easy to say that when it’s not you. But I do believe in the passion as far as how he conveyed it and what he was saying when he was like, ‘Look, if that were me, I would not be able to play for them. I would definitely have to walk away. Hands down.’ And I would hope that he gained a lot more respect from that if people may have already felt a certain way, I would have hoped he gained something from that. But I wanted to see Chris Paul do something, man. I wanted him to put a piece of black tape on [the Clippers logo]. I wanted him to do something. I wanted him to peace out and say, ‘Ya’ll can play but I’m not.’ Something. And I think he could of but then once Adam Silver dropped the hammer he kind of got out of it. Which is cool because everything happened the way it was supposed to. They were on the road for that game so you can react a certain way. But if he didn’t drop that hammer for the home game, I wanted to see Chris Paul do something at the home game.”

Skyzoo is preparing for the release of Barrel Brothers, his collaborative album with Coney Island-emcee, Torae. Barrel Brothers will be available on May 27.

Additional reporting by Justin Hunte