North Carolina-born rapper J. Cole recently popped back up with the announcement of his latest project and documentary, The Off Season. But, it looks like the entertainer has been preparing more than hit classics. According to The New Times Rwanda, Cole will soon be suiting up for an appearance on Rwanda’s Basketball Africa League team, the Patriots.
He has been spotted in Kigali and his name was also found on the team’s roster.
The Basketball Africa League is a partnership between the NBA and FIBA to bring more awareness to the sport in African nations. There are currently 12 teams in the league, and each team must have at least 8 local players, leaving room for only 4 foreigners. Countries include: Angola, Egypt, Morocco, Nigeria, Senegal, Tunisia, Algeria, Cameroon, Madagascar, Mali, Mozambique and Rwanda.
J. Cole is said to be taking one of the foreign slots for Rwanda for at least one game.
While the Dreamville rapper, nor his team, has yet to officially confirm his participation in the league, he has been known to express his desire to play professional basketball at some point in life. In 2019, rapper Master P spoke on a conversation the two had where Cole described plans to go out for an NBA team.
With former NBA tryout experience himself, Master P told Cole, “…this is a different time we’re in. They’re going to pick you apart! You’re gonna have to be able to hit every shot and if you don’t hit every shot, they — you know in the NBA, they don’t hit every shot but they believe in them. So, you’re gonna have to go somewhere where the team really believes in you and the players believe in you.”
This announcement comes at the perfect time to go hand-in-hand with the rapper’s documentary set to release today. There is no word if he will feature his time in Rwanda in the film, but we sure hope he does.
