Live 95 (Basketball Diaries)

My hero wore a blowout on the cover of Slam
Not even six foot tall yet he feared no man
Took a hobby and perfected it; used it to feed his fam
Got dragged through the mud so players today could stand
Ever since the night mike switched hands on the Lakers
We been on the move like bank robbers that's pulling capers
Before I was staying up late grading papers
Momma said to cut the noise so I ain't wake Up the neighbors, yeah
I remember it all
Summer ninety five, three years after the Sixers had traded Charles
We would pray to the Gods for some favor to fall
Maybe alter the direction of that lottery ball
On Point, feeding off these emotions
Heart rate thumping and bumping just like Barkley and Moses
I'm David Stern when I'm approaching the podium
A silence falls over the crowd at the moment they notice him
I'm from where they hold toast
And argue all day about who's the goat
MJ Bron or Kob'
But we rebuild, a process, new beginning
Been a Couple struggle seasons, but now my dudes is winning
Gotta power forward, but my Guards in the center
A stand up dude, that take a charge like defenders
Hooping at the park till the street lights flicker
Timed the route to make it home so I could eat my dinner
Mama celeste pizza for one, microwaveable
Couldn't touch the stove, though I was probably capable
We ain't have money for skates, rackets or pads
But a basketball was only twenty dollars on the ave
We would split it -No hoop no net, no problem
We grab an empty milk crate and hammer out the bottom
Stock life, nobody in my neighborhood was balling
Best friends prolly a game boy and that Spalding
Scuffed up knees from glass on the court
But we'd still rock religiously for the love of the sport
Copping instrumental tape from the African stand
Nothing to gain but we were so passionate man
It Infiltrated the hood like - liquor on closed campuses
Bouncing basketballs off my living room oak paneling
Life happens, just handle it, no panicking
Five kids just two beds, that's load management
Struggling to make it like high pressure free throws
Couldn't ask a soul for assistance, man that's the ego
My upbringing was gun slinging, intense living
Only cat in Philly that didn't shoot was Ben Simmons
If you know what's up, you know I never sold a drug
But do I know the plug
I give that Jordan shoulder shrug
It's me
Ex sinner, Guinness award winner
Balling repeatedly, highlights on SportsCenter
What's up