J. Cole's CBA Debut: Dreamville Rapper Joins Nanjing Monkey Kings

0:00It's April 2nd. Music news. Today starts now. AI powered and ready to play. I'm Cory with the story. J. Cole is chasing those basketball dreams again, signing a deal to play a few games for the Nanjing Monkey Kings in China's Basketball Association this season. The 41-year-old Dreamville rapper committed to this last year, and now he's making it official, according to ESPN's Shams Shirania. His build on his past pro hoops runs, like suiting up for the Rwanda Patriots in the Basketball Africa League back in 2021, then hitting the court with the Scarborough shooting stars in Canada's Elite League the next year. Fans win wild when footage dropped of Cole at the Monkey Kings this game on Thursday. He didn't play yet, just vibe with the crowd, sign some merch, and dropped his first post on China's Do-Yin, shouting out his excitement to be. Cole brings high school ball-cred from Terry Sanford in Fayetteville, North Carolina, joining

1:02a squad stacked with ex-college pros from spots like North Carolina, UCLA, and Arizona. The team's GMC's big wins here, boosting the league's global buzz and maybe linking Chinese players to U.S. chances through Cole's stake in the first Gus, Charlotte Hornets. His debut hit Saturday, April 4th, against the Giang Su dragons, so eyes on Cole World lighting up the CBA floor.