Rapper Polo G Leaves Angel Reese Surprised With His Reasoning Behind Naming Kawhi Leonard as NBA Comparison

Angel Reese’s podcast “Unapologetically Angel” is off to a flying start. Rapper Polo G joined the WNBA rookie for the second episode. He initially admitted to being a highlight-viewer when it comes to basketball, but he also gave props to Reese for bringing more attention to the women’s game.

Reese took the compliment and decided to question the rapper on his own skills with the basketball. She asked Polo G to share which NBA player his friends would compare his game to. The 25-year-old chuckled before thinking about his answer.

“Imma say Kawhi Leonard,” he answered. The Chicago native had thought about it, and he even substantiated why he picked the Klaw. Polo G explained, “I’m probably quiet, just like him. I’mma play defense; I’m pretty long, my arms long, so I’m pretty decent on defense. And like, I got a decent mid-range.”

For a highlight viewer, he is clearly familiar with the versatile and stoic game of Kawhi Leonard. If it’s not from watching him on the court, the rapper might’ve picked up a thing or two during his studio sessions with the two-time NBA champion.

In 2021, Leonard collaborated with Eesean Bolden, Warner Records’ senior VP of A&R, to produce ‘Culture Jam’, an album that captured “the union of hip-hop, sports and community.” Though the softspoken All-Star didn’t rap on the project, he was creatively involved in its vision and handpicked the rappers that would feature on it, including Polo G.

‘Waves’, the second song from the album, was a collaboration between Polo and Gunna. Other prominent artists like Lil Uzi Vert, Ty Dolla $ign and A Boogie Wit da Hoodie lent their voices to the album too. After all, the project supported a very special cause.

As Kawhi revealed, “It just merges basketball and music together. It’s always been something on my mind that I wanted to do, so it’s just something that can uplift our community. A portion of each stream is gonna go to the Mamba & Mambacita Foundation.”

In the aftermath of Gianna and Kobe Bryant’s tragic accident, both hip-hop and basketball circles were mourning an icon. The Black Mamba briefly moonlighted as a rapper, but it was his legacy on the court that had earned him the respect of the community.

For Kawhi, Kobe had been the blueprint around which his offensive game had developed. Growing up just outside LA in Moreno County, it’s also likely that the young Klaw grew up watching Bryant’s career. “No words can explain the impact he had…You know, the emotional impact he had on everybody,” Leonard expressed upon Kobe Bryant’s passing.

It was his impact that spurred Culture Jam to a very successful first volume. Currently, there is no clear date for volume two, but Culture Jam did release ‘Can’t Get Enough’, featuring BIA, Lakeyah and Flau’jae earlier this year.