JAY-Z is being credited for the stellar LeBron James performance that helped bring the Lakers back from a 21-point deficit in the final quarter of their last game.
The Lakers beat their crosstown rivals the Clippers 116-112 on Wednesday night (February 28), and Hov was courtside to watch it all go down. The Lakers scored a whopping 39 points in the fourth quarter – with LeBron was responsible for 19 of them.
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And according to social media, it’s thanks to the inspiration Jay provided from a brief exchange they had mid-game.
“Jay-Z in the front row… I’ve should have known better!” one person wrote on Twitter/X. “This damn 39 year old senior citizen just put on a damn masterpiece on both ends of the floor. God Bless America!”
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Someone else wrote: “Lebron and Jay-Z [fire emoji] can’t lie right after he talked to hov he went crazy 34 points 8 assists 6 rebounds and 19 points in the 4th @KingJames.”
Watch a video of the pair below.
LeBron James has made his fandom of JAY-Z known over the years, and last year quoted the legendary rapper in a mysterious post that seemed to allude to an impending retirement.
Last May, King James took to his Instagram Stories to upload a throwback picture of himself either taking a breather or at the free throw line while at St. Vincent–St. Mary High School. He then stitched lyrics from Hova’s 2003 reflective track, “What More Can I Say,” off of The Black Album.
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“I’m supposed to be number one on everybody list, We’ll see what happens when I no longer exist,” JAY-Z raps over the sample heavy track. LeBron’s notion of wanting to be number one stems from the decade-long debate between who’s the greatest player of all-time between himself and Michael Jordan.
Back in 2003, JAY-Z decided to release The Black Album and retire at the top of the rap game, only to come back with 2006’s Kingdom Come.
And of course, this wasn’t the first time LeBron James utilized bars from his fellow peer and trusted confidant to send subliminal messages.
A month prior, LeBron posted lyrics from JAY-Z’s song “Trouble” from his 2006 comeback album Kingdom Come after his Lakers beat the Memphis Grizzlies and eliminated them from the NBA Playoffs.
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“Unlike you, lil’ n-gga, I’m a grown-ass man/ Big shoes to fill, n-gga, grown-ass pants/ Probably hustled with your pops, go ask your parents /It’s apparent you’re staring at a legend who/ Put a few lil’ n-ggas in their place before/ Tryna eat without saying their grace before,” Hov raps over the Dr. Dre production.
At the time, JAY-Z was coming out of retirement after previously releasing his “last album” The Black Album in 2003. He was in his mid-30s and had to remind the rap game that he still had it. The same could be said for LeBron James after Dillion Brooks of the Memphis Grizzlies previously called LeBron “old” and wished he played against a younger version of the legendary player.
