As The Notorious B.I.G. said on “Things Done Changed,” “If I wasn’t in the rap game/ I’d probably have a key knee-deep in the crack game/ Because the streets is a short stop/ either you’re slinging crack rock or you got a wicked jump shot.”

With those bars, he was alluding to the lack of options available to young men of color who were trying to make it out of their neighborhoods. He felt that there were only two legal options: Hip Hop and Basketball. That may be why some of your favorite MCs used to have high school hoop dreams and why most of the successful athletes that turn into MCs come out of the NBA. But the connection between Hip Hop and basketball is much deeper than that.

Is basketball the 5th element of Hip Hop? Let’s break it down …