The hype surrounding this year's Duke team has brought even more attention to the legendary basketball program. However, Zion and the crew are creating such a buzz that they were able to pull JAY-Z away from Beyonce to make a rare public appearance.
On Tuesday (Jan. 22), Jigga surprised the students on Pittsburgh's campus by showing up at the Petersen Events Center to watch Pitt take on the no. 2 team in the country. He and good friend OG Juan sat courtside while Duke dismantled the unranked the Pittsburgh Panthers, winning the contest by a score of 79-64.
Although Hov is a professed sports fanatic, it is also known that he's mostly business before pleasure. Because of this, many are speculating that the God MC blessed the game with his presence as a tactic to recruit Duke's talented freshmen for Roc Nation Sports (RNS). Pitt coach Jeff Capel helped solidify this notion when he let it be known that this was not a spur-of-the-moment decision for JAY-Z.
"His people reached out to me a few weeks ago about them wanting to come... people from Roc Nation," Capel said.
Since establishing the sub-division in 2013, RNS has become one of the top agencies in sports. They manage the careers of Kevin Durant, Saquon Barkley, Todd Gurley, and more. However, adding one (or all) of Duke's three-headed monster, which consists of Zion Williamson, R.J. Barrett, and Cam Reddish, would boost the agency's powerful roster.
Roc Nation's shock and awe plan seemed to have worked as it caught the attention of future NBA lottery pick Zion Williamson who finished the night with 25 points.
"When he walks in, with his squad, you look over and you're like, 'Oh my God, that's him,'" Williamson told ESPN. "That was like a dream come true. To me, he's the GOAT."
