Rapper J. Cole signs with CEBL's Scarborough Shooting Stars
American rapper J. Cole will be taking his basketball talents to Canada.
The CEBL announced Thursday that the 6'3" guard, born Jermaine Cole, has signed a deal with the Scarborough Shooting Stars to continue his professional basketball career.
Cole, 37, is set to begin his second consecutive pro basketball stint after playing with the Rwanda-based Patriots BBC of the Basketball Africa League last season.
The rapper recorded five points, three assists and five rebounds in three games before leaving the team due to family obligations.
He joins a Scarborough, Ont., team that will be playing its inaugural season after being announced as a new CEBL expansion club last summer.
The Shooting Stars are part-owned by Nicholas Carino, one of the co-founders of famed clothing and lifestyle brand OVO (October's Very Own).
Among the staff of the Shooting Stars are Jamaal Magloire, a former NBA player and Toronto Raptors basketball development consultant and community ambassador who is the team's vice president and senior adviser, as well as Brady Heslip, a former sharpshooting Canadian national team member, who is the club's general manager.
Cole will likely have to step away from the team for much of the season.
The Shooting Stars' first game is on May 26 as they visit the Guelph Nighthawks which can be be seen live on CBCSports.ca. Their first home game is June 4 against the Hamilton Honey Badgers.
After that, there's one more game, June 7, at home versus the Newfoundland Growlers before Cole would be able to play prior to going on tour.
Cole is to begin touring on June 10 in New York. When he begins his tour, Scarborough will still have 15 more games left to play.
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