10 NBA Teams That Should Align With Rappers
If you want to be a successful NBA franchise in 2013, you need three things: Good players, good coaches and a rapper in your corner. Why else do you think the Toronto Raptors just decided to team up with their new "Global Ambassador" Drake? They saw how guys like Lil Wayne, Rick Ross and even Drizzy himself helped propel the Miami Heat to two straight championships—and they saw all the hype surrounding Jay Z's ownership of the Brooklyn Nets—and decided that they wanted a piece of a rapper, too. So they aligned themselves with Drake and—voila!—they're suddenly relevant again.
Because of that, we don't think the Raptors are going to be the last NBA franchise to align with a rapper. So we assembled a list of 10 NBA teams who would also benefit from bringing a rapper on board in the near future. Who wants to give one of these rappers a title and a corner office first?
Photo Credit: CBC
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The NBA Team: Detroit Pistons
The Rapper They Should Align With: Eminem
Why It Would Work Out For Them: Unfortunately, the Pistons don't really have an identity right now. They've got some talented young guys who have bright futures ahead. But they don't really embody the spirit of the city of Detroit. What better way to help them along than by bringing Slim Shady into the mix? He's a big fan of the team and routinely sits courtside at games. Giving him a sliver of the team and letting him be the face of the franchise wouldn't be the worst idea in the world for the Pistons.
Photo Credit: The Score
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The NBA Team: Houston Rockets
The Rapper They Should Align With: Slim Thug
Why It Would Work Out For Them: When Dwight Howard was mulling over where to sign in the offseason, Slim Thug took to Twitter and tried to sell Howard on Houston using two things—the promise of strip clubs and malls! We don't know how much that factored into Howard's final decision, but the former Magic/Lakers center chose H-Town. So the Rockets need to hire Slim Thug as some sort of "Head Recruiter" or something. Yeah, we know that's frowned upon by the NBA. But do you really think David Stern or Adam Silver are checking for Slim Thug's Twitter account?! We doubt it.
Photo Credit: Keep It Trill
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The NBA Team: Atlanta Hawks
The Rapper They Should Align With: T.I.
Why It Would Work Out For Them: No one goes to Hawks game. Hell, no one goes to any Atlanta sporting events. We don't know why, but the city doesn't really support their teams like they should. We think that T.I. could change that almost instantaneously. Hell, even if he just brought the members of his immediate family to the games every night, he would almost double the average attendance! We're kidding, of course, but Tip is still the face and voice of Atlanta when it comes to rapping. He's also an avid Hawks fan. So it seems like he should have some sort of role within the team, no?
Photo Credit: iGossip
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The NBA Team: Chicago Bulls
The Rapper They Should Align With: Kanye West
Why It Would Work Out For Them: Can you even imagine what the Bulls uniforms would look like six months into Kanye's time with the team? We're talking designer jerseys, warm-ups with hoods on them, and, like, leather socks. It would be absolutely amazing to see.
Photo Credit: Chicago Tribune
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The NBA Team: New Orleans Pelicans
The Rapper They Should Align With: Lil Wayne
Why It Would Work Out For Them: At this point, Lil Wayne will support just about any NBA team if they're somewhat successful. Last year, he showed up courtside at, like, 591 games and cheered for a different team during every one. In order to get him to pick a side and stick with it, the Pelicans should hire Wayne to sit courtside at their games in order to generate interest in the team. Additionally, they should have him come up with a new nickname. Because "Pelicans" already isn't working.
Photo Credit: Gum Bumper
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The NBA Team: Los Angeles Clippers
The Rapper They Should Align With: Tyga
Why It Would Work Out For Them: The Lakers have all the star power in L.A. If you've ever watched one of their games, you've seen all of the celebrities in the crowd. Tyga—who changed the words to his hit song, "Rack City," to create "Lob City" in 2011—is one of the few rappers who rides with the Clippers instead. So he should be rewarded for that. We're pretty sure that, if nothing else, he could help the Clippers dance team become the best in the league if he was given the opportunity to do so.
Photo Credit: Young Money HQ
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The NBA Team: Philadelphia 76ers
The Rapper They Should Align With: Meek Mill
Why It Would Work Out For Them: Like the Detroit Pistons, the 76ers are one of those teams that has a lot of young talent but no real identity. They need someone to come in and show them how they need to play in order to satisfy the Philly fans. And who better to do that than Meek Mill? The guy oozes Philly and represents the tough, gritty approach to life that most Philadelphians have. He has also got some friends in high places that probably wouldn't mind catching a Sixers game or two courtside.
Photo Credit: XXL
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The NBA Team: Washington Wizards
The Rapper They Should Align With: Wale
Why It Would Work Out For Them: Don't you get the sense that Wale is just dying for someone to come out and ask him to join the Wizards organization? And at this point, what do they really have to lose? The Wizards haven't been relevant since Michael Jordan skipped town. So a celebrity like Wale who has a strong, faithful following might just do the trick and make them relevant again.
Photo Credit: Sports Business Daily
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The NBA Team: Los Angeles Lakers
The Rapper They Should Align With: Game
Why It Would Work Out For Them: For the better part of the last decade, the Lakers have been one of the best teams in the league year in and year out. But for the first time in a long time, they're about to go through a little bit of a tough patch. They will have Kobe Bryant for another year or two (or maybe three) but after that they're going to drop to the bottom of the league. And when they do, all of the celebrities who show up for games now are going to magically disappear. That's where a guy like Game comes in. He could sit courtside, find other celebrities to join him, and make the Staples Center the place to be…even when the Lakers are 30-52.
Photo Credit: Diverse Hip-Hop
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The NBA Team: New York Knicks
The Rapper They Should Align With: Nicki Minaj
Why It Would Work Out For Them: The Knicks are finally good again! It took them long enough, but they finally attracted enough free agents and made enough good moves to put themselves into a good place for years to come. Now isn't the time to relax, though. Instead, they should bring in someone like Nicki to make sure that the young NBA free agents keep coming to New York well into the future. Who is going to say no to the Knicks when Nicki is running with them? Go ahead and try to come up with someone. We'll wait…
Photo Credit: Fantronomy
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