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Nipsey Hussle loved the culture — and basketball was his favorite
Tragically, the artist went from courtside to being inked on players’ shoes in remembrance
From celebrity basketball games to Los Angeles Lakers games with Young Jeezy and YG, Nipsey Hussle was an unabashed lover of basketball and a huge fan of his hometown team. Legendary Laker and current president of the franchise’s basketball operations, Magic Johnson, mourned Hussle yesterday. “I was so proud of Nipsey Hussle,” Johnson wrote on Instagram, “who became an astute businessman and created jobs for people who lived in South Central.”
The relationship between the game and the Grammy Award-nominated Hussle was deep: He performed at halftime at the Staples Center; helped Russell Westbrook‘s foundation at Thanksgiving; partied with James Harden and Baron Davis (and Odell Beckham Jr.); and refurbished, with Puma, a basketball court in his own beloved Crenshaw neighborhood.
Most indelible, though, are the many images of Hussle and his longtime partner, Lauren London, sitting courtside at Lakers games. They seemed a kind of royalty, yes, but more like good people who made good with their creative work — people who’d created a family with each other. In these troubled times, the couple modeled for us a deep, fun and glamorous love. And then Hussle would stand to chop it up with Denzel Washington, or some other legend.
On Monday night, Hussle’s name was scrawled on the sneakers of NBA players across the league. In remembrance. The sadness and disbelief continue. As Johnson himself said: “Nipsey Hussle’s legacy will last forever.”
Rappers Nipsey Hussle (left) and Trinidad James (right) attend a celebrity basketball game at Crenshaw High School on June 6, 2015, in Los Angeles.
Photo by Maury Phillips/WireImage
From left to right: Nipsey Hussle, Young Jeezy and YG attend a basketball game between the Houston Rockets and the Los Angeles Lakers at Staples Center on Oct. 26, 2016, in Los Angeles.
Photo by Noel Vasquez/GC Images
Denzel Washington (left) and Nipsey Hussle (right) attend a basketball game between the Houston Rockets and the Los Angeles Lakers at Staples Center on Oct. 26, 2016, in Los Angeles.
Photo by Noel Vasquez/GC Images
Nipsey Hussle attends a basketball game between the Houston Rockets and the Los Angeles Lakers at Staples Center on Oct. 26, 2016, in Los Angeles.
Photo by Noel Vasquez/GC Images
Nipsey Hussle (right) greets Houston Rockets star James Harden (left) at Staples Center on Oct. 26, 2016, in Los Angeles.
Photo by Noel Vasquez/GC Images
Russell Westbrook (right) and rapper Nipsey Hussle (second from right) serve Thanksgiving dinner at Russell Westbrook and Why Not? Foundation’s fifth annual Thanksgiving dinner on Nov. 21, 2016, in Los Angeles.
Photo by Lilly Lawrence/Getty Images
Nipsey Hussle attends a basketball game between the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Los Angeles Lakers at Staples Center on Nov. 22, 2016, in Los Angeles.
Photo by Noel Vasquez/Getty Images,
Nipsey Hussle (left) and Lauren London (right) attend a basketball game between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Minnesota Timberwolves at Staples Center on Dec. 25, 2017, in Los Angeles.
Photo by Allen Berezovsky/Getty Images
Nipsey Hussle (right) shakes hands with Julius Randle (left) of the Los Angeles Lakers before a game between the Lakers and the Minnesota Timberwolves at Staples Center on Dec. 25, 2017, in Los Angeles.
Photo by Josh Lefkowitz/Getty Images
Rapper Nipsey Hussle attends a basketball game between the Los Angeles Clippers and the Denver Nuggets at Staples Center on Jan. 17, 2018, in Los Angeles.
Photo by Allen Berezovsky/Getty Images
From left to right: Dom Kennedy, Baron Davis, Jay 305 and Nipsey Hussle attend Hussle’s private debut album release party hosted by James Harden at The London West Hollywood at Beverly Hills, California, on Feb. 16, 2018.
Photo by Earl Gibson III/Getty Images
Nipsey Hussle attends the annual YG and Friends Daytime Boogie Basketball Tournament at the Shrine Auditorium on Feb. 17, 2018, in Los Angeles.
Photo by Scott Dudelson/Getty Images
Nipsey Hussle watches from courtside at the Toyota Center in Houston on March 3, 2018.
Photo by Bob Levey/Getty Images
Nipsey Hussle performs during halftime of a game between the Los Angeles Clippers and the Cleveland Cavaliers on March 8, 2018, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles.
Photo by Adam Pantozzi/NBAE via Getty Images
Nipsey Hussle performs during the launch of EA Sports’ NBA Live 19 at Goya Studios in Los Angeles on Aug. 24, 2018.
Photo by Tommaso Boddi/Getty Images for EA NBA Live 19
From left to right: James Harden, Nipsey Hussle and Odell Beckham Jr. attend Rihanna’s fourth annual Diamond Ball benefiting the Clara Lionel Foundation at Cipriani Wall Street on Sept. 13, 2018, in New York.
Photo by Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for Diamond Ball
Nipsey Hussle poses with kids at the Nipsey Hussle x PUMA Hoops Basketball Court Refurbishment Reveal Event on Oct. 22, 2018, in Los Angeles.
Photo by Jerritt Clark/Getty Images for PUMA
Jay-Z of Roc Nation Sports (left) and Nipsey Hussle attend the PUMA x Nipsey Hussle 2019 Grammy Nomination Party at The Peppermint Club on Jan. 16 in Los Angeles.
Photo by Vivien Killilea/Getty Images for PUMA
Montrezl Harrell of the Los Angeles Clippers wrote a tribute to Nipsey Hussle on his basketball sneakers.
The shoes of Dwyane Wade of the Miami Heat on April 1 with a message commemorating rapper Nipsey Hussle, who was shot and killed on March 31.
Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images
Toronto Raptors player Kawhi Leonard’s sneakers, seen prior to the game against the Orlando Magic on April 1, 2019, at the Scotiabank Arena.
Photo by Ron Turenne/NBAE via Getty Images
.@russwest44 paying respect to #NipseyHussle tonight. ✊🏽 pic.twitter.com/U0oPvyqeJo
— Michael Eaves (@michaeleaves) April 2, 2019