The 2024 NBA All-Star celebrity game features some intriguing names. One team will be coached by Pro Football Hall of Famer Shannon Sharpe and rapper 50 Cent, while his First Take co-star Stephen A. Smith, rapper Lil Wayne, and WNBA star A’ja Wilson will head the other roster. On the latest episode of Podcast P, Los Angeles Clippers star Paul George and his guest, rapper Vince Staples, discussed the All-Star celebrity game. One of the co-hosts asked him whether he would consider playing in the celebrity game, and he replied that he had enough athleticism to dunk, but a back injury took away his explosiveness, and he hasn’t played since.
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They then discussed celebrities who could potentially light up the celebrity game, and one of the co-hosts brought up pop star Chris Brown. Staples dismissed the idea, saying,
“You can’t be throwing Chris Brown and stuff [in the celebrity game]. He’s not a regular human, bro. He’s got backflips and everything.”
George backed Staples’ claim and said Brown being talented at everything is unlike anything he’s ever witnessed. The rapper joked that the pop star should have to play with NBA stars and not celebrities. Co-host Jackie Long claimed that if Brown played in the NBA All-Star Celebrity Game, he would win the MVP and score 20 points. Staples responded,
“He gonna drop 50 just to say he did.”
Brown is a stellar basketball player. Videos of him hooping with his friends often go viral. The pop star is also a regular in the Crew League, a street rules basketball league founded by rapper and mogul Sean ‘P Diddy’ Combs. He’s significantly better than the average celebrity who participates in the All-Star Celebrity Game and would undoubtedly dominate and potentially win the MVP award.
Chris Brown almost played in the 2009 All-Star Celebrity Game
Given Chris Brown’s basketball prowess and immense popularity, it may come as a surprise that he has never played in the NBA All-Star Celebrity Game. He was scheduled to play in the 2009 All-Star Celebrity Game and perform during the All-Star weekend. However, a shocking incident that involved his then-girlfriend, pop icon Rihanna, forced him to pull out of the event.
A night before the 2009 Grammy Awards, Brown and Rihanna got into an argument in his car, which escalated to physical violence. He allegedly punched her multiple times in the face, and when she called her assistant and told her to inform the police, he reportedly said,
“You just did the stupidest thing ever. Now I’m really going to kill you.”
After a shocking picture of Rihanna’s injuries surfaced on social media, Brown canceled his performances at the Grammys and the All-Star weekend.
rihannna is chris brown finished Story because of injury on rihanna pic.twitter.com/wiGCPPDrgc
— RihannÃÃ (@AaRihann) August 2, 2014
Brown avoided a prison sentence after entering a plea deal. He pled guilty to one count of felony assault and was ordered to be under supervised probation for five years and commit six months of community labor. The assault charge ended his chances of being associated with the NBA as a performer or a player in the All-Star Celebrity Game.
