Rapper J. Cole Hilariously Squashes 'Beef' With Two-Time NBA Champion

NBA great Shane Battier is the furthest thing from a hip-hop historian.

He rarely listens to rap but his name appeared on the hit song "Rise And Shine" by Grammy winner J. Cole in the early 2010s. Battier's was mentioned in the lyrics in an unflattering way.

"He called me lame," Battier said during an appearance on his Glue Guy podcast. "He says, `Stay in your lane, you're Shane Battier you're lame.' Whatever, the line is. I'm not a rap guy. I got a stray. I figured he was a Carolina fan. We used to beat Carolina on the reg. He's probably just mad."'

A full circle moment with J Cole.

Posted by Shane Battier on Friday, January 24, 2025

The lyric actually read: "Brother, you're lame, you're Shane Battier."

Years later, J. Cole, who is from North Carolina, made a personal apology to Battier.

"I became known as the lame guy," Battier said. "So I was having dinner in Miami this past summer and the maitre d' came up to me said, `hey, there's this is a gentleman who wants to come speak to you and apologize to you. And I'm like, Ok."'

Battier, who never had a problem with the diss lyric, was appreciative of J. Cole even making the effort. The rapper is a huge NBA fan, often attending games and All-Star Weekend.

"He was like, `I was praying for this moment, that we could have this moment,"' Battier said. "...My bad, I'm sorry. I was young."'