J. Cole makes Nanjing Monkey Kings debut

J. Cole officially made his debut in the Chinese Basketball Association, suiting up for the Nanjing Monkey Kings.

It was announced on April 1 that he would join the CBA and the rapper played his first game for the Monkey Kings on Saturday (April 11). The Monkey Kings faced the Guangzhou Loong Lions, where The Fall Off rapper had one rebound and one assist in the eight minutes he was on the court. The game, however, did not end in Cole’s favor as the Monkey Kings lost 95-81.

Cole shared how exactly the opportunity to play for the Nanjing Monkey Kings came about.

“Last summer, they came to me,” Cole explained to the Nanjing press two days prior to his start on the team. “They give me an opportunity to come play on the court. It’s a blessing to me.”

According to ESPN’s Shams Charania, Cole committed to playing a few games for the team last year. Recruiting Cole for the Monkey Kings was a strategic goal of the team’s general manager, Zhen Wang, who is hoping to give his players an opportunity to go to the NBA.

“Since he’s the minority owner of the Charlotte Hornets, we’re hoping that through his position, he can maybe help more of our domestic players get opportunities to train and play in the U.S.,” Wang said.

Fans have already welcomed Cole with open arms, which was captured in video footage of the rapper participating in pregame warmups.

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J. Cole hits the court in China for the Nanjing Monkey Kings #jcole #basketball

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Prior to the official report of Cole joining the Monkey Kings, the rapper appeared on Talk with Flee about wanting to go back on the court before his summer tour.

“The basketball s–t is like me just trying to scratch a last itch of, let me see if I can do this,” Cole said during the interview. “Could I train and be able to go play professional because these teams in these leagues are looking at it like, ‘He’s not ass. He can come be on the court and he can give our league some publicity.”

Cole spoke to NBA Hall of Famer and former New York Knicks alum Carmelo Anthony, recently on his appreciation for the game.

“I just love the competition of it,” Cole acknowledged on an episode of 7PM in Brooklyn. “But more than a competition against somebody else, it’s really against yourself. It’s like a mastery or an ability, because I never mastered anything. But I know what it’s like to get better than I was yesterday, or a week ago, or a month ago, or a year ago.”

This will be the third time that a platinum award-winning artist has played basketball overseas. He previously played in the Basketball Africa League in 2021 and the Canadian Elite Basketball League in 2022.

Cole is set to embark on his summer tour in support of his latest studio album, The Fall Off, starting in Charlotte, North Carolina, on July 11.

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