March 9 marked 20 years since Hip Hop lost one of its shining lights, a tragedy that was remembered on Sunday (March 12) by the Brooklyn Nets, who retired The Notorious B.I.G.’s symbolic number in his honor during the team’s “Biggie Night.”
Diddy, Lil Kim, Faith Evans, Ice Cube, Biggie’s mother Voletta Wallace and several other members of his family were all present at Barclays Center to see the Nets pay tribute to Biggie by putting his number, #72, the year of his birth, out of commission.
Voletta Wallace thanked the crowd and the franchise for inviting her, telling the crowd it was her “very, very first professional basketball game.”
“From the bottom of my heart, I have to remember what my son said in the past: ‘Brooklyn, we did it.'”
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A giant banner was unfurled revealing a Nets jersey with 72 on the back, alongside a caption that featured one of Biggie’s best-known quotes from his hit “Juicy” — “Spread love, it’s the Brooklyn way.” The number of the jersey is also the one he wore in 1994’s “Juicy” video.
According to reports on Twitter, the banner will become a permanent fixture of the Barclays Center when the Nets play.
