Darius Bazley Coins Himself Best Rapper In NBA, Mike Muscala Offers In-House Competition
The Oklahoma City Thunder are filled with talent – both on the court – and on the mic.
As tweeted by Darius Bazley Saturday evening, the forward self-proclaimed himself as the top rapper in the NBA.
In the statement, the Thunder member caught some support, but also some flack from NBA circles when compared to the work of other league rappers in Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard and Charlotte Hornets forward Miles Bridges.
After Bazley’s statement, Bridges took to Twitter to show disdain, to which the Bricktown member replied, “Wait til I drop.”
Sunday evening, Bazley, who has yet to announce his stage name, released a 45-second sample of his work.
With his sample, the public were quick to show some support for the forward's lyrical ability. However, on Thunder lines, a potential competitor may loom in Bazley’s crosshairs – Mike Muscala.
Muscala was in the NBA rap game before Bazley had even earned his high school diploma. Under the stage name, “Mike Jaws,” he’s claimed to have made his mother cry in a mother’s day rap, written himself. With the family experience under his belt, he took to the stage in the Inside The NBA’s Hidden Talent Show during the 2016 All-Star Weekend.
In Mike Jaws’ single, he paid homage to his then hometown Atlanta Hawks, critiqued Charles Barkley’s golf backswing, and called himself “the best rapper in the league.”
The Inside The NBA crew, consisting of Charles Barkley, Ernie Johnson, Shaquille O’ Neal, and Kenny Smith, bit into Jaws’ performance, handing the forward a combined 26 points. Ernie Johnson was the only judge to score an eight while the three NBA vets dished out sixes to the scorecard.
In since-deleted tweets, Muscala showed some disdain towards the judges. Additionally, he mentioned his flow, which had been criticized, had been altered due to editing, with an entirely different beat placed on the track.
Former Dallas Mavericks forward Jeremy Evans, who earned an art degree from Western Kentucky, went on to win the contest with his sketch of Charles Barkley.
While Darius Bazley adds a fresher, new school flow to the table, Muscala is the old man on the block. And, with alleged audio altering in his national debut – Mike Jaws may want another bite in the rap game – and Mark Daigneault may want to mix rap sessions into the practice routine.
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