Editor's note: In honor of hip-hop turning 50, ESPN tapped the culture's top voices to write about their favorite athlete name-drops in hip-hop history.
"Being good is good, that'll get you Drew Gooden / But me, I want Jordan numbers, LeBron footin'" J. Cole on "Return of Simba" (2011)
Growing up a '90s kid, being Michael Jordan-level great was the absolute platinum standard. He dominated the courts, commercials, films and even our feet.
My team for life was and still is the New York Knicks, but like any other kid back then, I wanted to be "like Mike.