A beat after Josh Hart sank a 10-foot jumper midway through the second quarter of a Dec. 27 game vs. San Antonio, a unique confluence in American pop culture occurred: An NBA player’s first home basket of the 2020-21 season was recognized by the Smoothie King Center sound system, with hip-hop lyrics featuring that player’s name.
Let us explain: During training camp, Hart was one of roughly a dozen Pelicans players to choose a “scoring soundbite” for whenever they get a bucket at New Orleans home games. The native of Washington, D.C., selected a line from rapper Wale’s 2018 song “Winter Wars,” in which the Washington-based artist says, “A real dawg sleep on me, I still ball.