Who’s the Rap Game Tim Duncan? Posted by Nathan S. on 07/25/13 | Filed under Debates, Rap Game

Listen, I'm not in denial. I completely recognize that I the extent to which I'm willing to debate the parallels between rappers and athletes is some sort of undiagnosed mental illness.

But, I know for a fact that most of RefinedHype Nation suffers from the same mental illness, so let's all get fucking crazy together. In the course of trying to figure out if Drake is the Rap Game Kobe Bryant, one question kept coming up and bothering me. So much so that I (obviously) just couldn't resist making it a separate post.

Who's the rap game Tim Duncan? Constantly overlooked, fundamentally sound, won some championships...

— Refined Hype (@refinedhype) July 25, 2013

OK, as always, first let's make sure we're all operating from the same premise. Tim Duncan is a four-time champion, two-time NBA MVP, 14 time NBA All-Star and the only player in NBA history to be named to both All-NBA and All-Defense teams 13 years in a row. In other words, his resume is right up there with Kobe Bryant, but he almost never gets mentioned in Greatest Player Alive discussions, let alone GOAT discussions.

Why? Because true to his nickname, he's the Big Fundamental. Both on and off the court, Duncan was never flashy, never loud, never gimmicky. His go-to move wasn't a post up dunk like Shaq or a cross-over dribble like Iverson, it's a turn-around bank shot. Duncan never gave a fuck about what would make a Sportcenter highlight, he only cared about playing basketball as well as it could be played. Don't mistake his quiet nature for softness though, Duncan would tear your face off to win.

So in trying to figure out who the Rap Game Tim Duncan is, we're looking for a rapper with a GOAT-level resume that almost never gets mentioned in GOAT discussions, cares about the fundamentals of rap (lyricism, flow) above all else, was never flashy or overtly drew attention to himself, but is also widely regarded as someone not to fuck with.

Got it? Good, onto the nominations:

@refinedhype Black Thought? Common?

— George Gervin (@Negrodamus93) July 25, 2013

My gut reaction is that those are both fantastic nominations.

Upon further reflection though, don't think Common really fits. Yes, he's got an outstanding resume (at least three classic/outstanding albums), is unquestionably an elite emcee and rarely gets mentioned in GOAT discussions. On that level he's a perfect fit. But now that he's so focused on acting, he's disqualified. Duncan would never stop playing b-ball even anywhere near his peak to try another career.

BlackThought on the other hand....goddamn, that feels like a flawless comparison. He's the ultimate team player, never wants the glory just for himself, has never been a "superstar" in the popularity sense but has multiple classic albums, is a favorite among people who really know and care about the game, isn't afraid of battling anyone.

Frankly, right off the bat I don't know if we're going to do any better than Black Thought, Rap Game Tim Duncan.

@refinedhype fabolous

— Tommy (@tommyt_th3_kid) July 25, 2013

I see where you're headed with this. Loso's career as a whole is under-rated (do you realize he's got multiple number one albums), but first and foremost the man named himself Fabolous, which is about an inherently un-working man, Tim Duncan as you can get. Also, his rhymes are really punchline heavy, which as a rap move feels like something closer to the AI cross-over than fundamental post up game.

Also, he got shot in the leg that one time. I'm not exactly sure why that matters, but I feel like it does.

@refinedhype Lupe fiasco

— Cody Drake (@CDrake5) July 25, 2013

Again, I don't think you're completely off-base here. But in a lot of ways Lupe and Duncan are complete opposites.

And I ended up writing to Cody about on Twitter, you really have to completely ignore your personal feelings about a rapper if you want to make some truly accurate NBA/rapper comparisons. Someone hears Tim Duncan was under-rated and they immediately want to compare him to their favorite under-rated rapper. But you've got to dig deeper.

Lupe is insanely talented, lyrically complex, a bit of a loner, prone to erratic and emotional outbursts, etc., all things that are the anti-thesis of what Duncan is as a player. I don't know why I've got Iverson stuck in my head so much today, but I think Lupe Fiasco, Rap Game Allen Iverson would be far more accurate. (Hopefully their careers don't end up the same way.)

@refinedhype big boi?

— J. Rick (@jrick1017) July 25, 2013

Fuck, now that's a great nomination too. I'm not sure it's better than BlackThought, but it's definitely worth of some discussion.

First, Big Boi is obviously a team player; I don't know how many people could put up with Andre 3000, he's proven he's a team leader, he's horribly under-rated as an emcee, has an even more under-rated resume, Oukast has classics and over 25 million albums sold, solo he now has two very good to excellent albums, the list goes on.

The only thing thats that make me pause are his style - compared to Andre his still is fundamental and basic, but on the whole he's actually a pretty experimental emcee - and the actual level of his under-ratedness. True, his name doesn't come up in GOAT discussion as much as it should, but I feel like he's still a legit superstar in his own right.

Ultimately, I have to give the slight edge here to Black Thought as the true Rap Game Tim Duncan, but it's pretty damn close between Thought and Big Boi. Of course, someone might hit the comment section with a nomination that kills 'em both, we'll just have to wait and see.

After this, I promise, no more rap/NBA analogies for at least a few weeks. This shit is addictive, I could easily see myself turning RefinedHype into nothing but "Who's the Rap Game J.R. Smith?" posts, and from there it's only a matter of time before we're talking Rap Game Darko Miličić.

So this will be your last chance to really fufill all your rap/NBA comparison needs. Have at it people...

* Gunplay.
** Papoose.