J. Cole is officially taking his talents to China. The multi platinum rapper and Grammy winning artist just signed a professional basketball contract with the Nanjing Monkey Kings of the Chinese Basketball Association. Confirming the initial reports broken by Shams Charania at ESPN Cole committed to lacing up his sneakers for the CBA team to fulfill a promise he made to the organization last year.
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This exciting new signing marks the third formal venture into professional basketball for the 41 year old musician. Cole previously suited up for the Rwanda Patriots during the inaugural season of the Basketball Africa League back in 2021. The very next year he joined the Scarborough Shooting Stars in the Canadian Elite Basketball League. He continued to showcase his deep rooted passion for the game before eventually stepping away to fulfill his massive international touring obligations.
Addressing his continued pursuit of the sport Cole spoke candidly during a recent interview on the Talk with Flee podcast. He explained that this basketball journey is simply about trying to scratch a final itch and seeing if he can still compete at a high level. While acknowledging that international teams benefit heavily from his massive publicity he genuinely wants to test his actual abilities on the court. He noted that he is getting older and this might be his absolute last shot to play. The CBA is widely considered one of the top professional leagues in Asia. This major sports crossover arrives just months after the highly anticipated February release of his studio album The Fall Off.
