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For many Aussie sports fans, the footy season has wound down and the sporting calendar gets a bit sparser until our warmer months bring with it endless hours of cricket to fill the void. But for my fellow NBA fans out there, the preseason is currently in full swing, with NBA opening night officially ready to roll on October 22 (USA time) next week featuring a classic showdown for the ages: the reigning champs, the Boston Celtics, will take on the New York Knicks, while the Minnesota Timberwolves will go up against the Los Angeles Lakers.
Whether you're an NBA tragic like myself or not, chances are if you have a Netflix account, you may have spied the Starting 5 series which officially premiered next week, with the 10 episode doco following five modern-day legends throughout the previous season, including: LeBron James, Domantas Sabonis, Anthony Edwards, Jimmy Butler and Jayson Tatum. Delving into fame, fatherhood, fitness, and what it truly takes to survive and thrive in the NBA these days, the diverse range of personalities and ages on display proved for some interesting insights into five current superstars and their team journey in the 2023-24 season. The series also offered some tantalising on court mic action, alongside some revelations that Lebron James loves Beetlejuice, Jimmy Butler drinks an unholy amount of coffee, Jayson Tatum is a nice guy capable of channeling his occasional asshole when needed, Domantas Sabonis might just be the most upbeat (and underrated) bloke in the league, and Anthony Edwards shown with side-by-side comparisons alongside Michael Jordan certainly explains his confidence on and off the court.
For NBA fans, it's a perfect preseason entreè before the season kicks off with a bang next week. But for my fellow lovers of music, and particularly those of the heavy/rock/etc. persuasion, the revisit to Jimmy Butler's emo media day look last year also was accompanied in Starting 5 by the reminder that he also got tapped to star in Fall Out Boy's music video for So Much (For) Stardust earlier this year as a result.
Clad like a Prince-emo-cowboy hybrid in the clip, Butler is the main event throughout the visuals for So Much (For) Stardust, lip-syncing his heart out and living his best sparkly emo cowboy life before being joined by FOB bassist and lyricist Pete Wentz about halfway through. There's line dancing! There's charmingly awkward synchronised choreography! But perhaps also something noteworthy is that we have an NBA player publicly sharing his love (or at least a love for the aesthetic at a bare minimum) for music outside of the cultural legacy and associations with hip hop and R&B.
Butler certainly isn't the first NBA player to embrace some more alternative flair in his listening habits, and the NBA even tapped Metallica back in 2019 to perform the national anthem at the Finals between the Golden State Warriors and Toronto Raptors. But aside from some performances and the occasional heavy band shirt rocked in public (fans are still puzzling years later over whether Russell Westbrook is actually a fan after he rocked up to a game wearing a Slayer tee) overall, the NBA isn't traditionally known as a hub for heavy tunes. However! In honour of the NBA opener next week and my own love of heavy music, below are a few select NBA players who are confirmed or rumoured fans of rock, metal and/or alternative tunes - who knows, you may end up in the pit one day side by side with one of the below!
STEPHEN CURRY
Status: Active
Current Team: Golden State Warriors
Position: Guard
Number: 30
One of the most agile and adaptable players of his era, Steph Curry joined the NBA in the first round of the 2009 NBA Draft, going on to become a four-time champ (2015, 2017, 2018 and 2022), a 2 x MVP, a 9 x All Star and that's not even scratching the surface of his free throw and three point sweltering stats, as well as his reputation as a genuinely nice bloke.
But off the court, Curry is also a fan of some heavier tunes, with the hugely talented playmaker joining Paramore onstage to belt out Misery Business when the band took to the stage at Chase Centre in San Francisco back in 2023. Revealed by Curry's wife while she documented the moment, the pair listened to Paramore on one of their first dates, so the full circle moment of Curry performing a Paramore tune onstage in front of his wife in the centre where he also regularly hoops is a pretty lovely series of events.
Curry recently took home a Gold medal from the 2024 Paris Olympics, his Olympics debut, and is currently nursing a finger injury in the preseason; but with their new-look lineup and once again led by Steve Kerr, this veteran is set for a big season alongside Draymond Green and their fellow Warriors.
SCOT POLLARD
Status: Retired
Former Teams: Detroit Pistons, Sacramento Kings, Indiana Pacers, Cleveland Cavaliers, Boston Celtics
Position: Center
Back in 1997, Utah-hailing Scot Pollard was drafted by the Detroit Pistons before going on to play for the Sacramento Kings, Indiana Pacers, Cleveland Cavaliers and, finally, the Boston Celtics before retiring after the team took out the championship in 2008.
While playing for the Celtics, Pollard rocked #66 on the court, with various stories as to why he chose the number ranging from allegedly joking in 2007 that he picked his number after being denied #666 to not being allowed to wear #69 (or, less outlandishly, because all of the "other fucking numbers were taken here"). But if the #666 rumour has any steam, teamed with his ever-changing hairstyles, including a mohawk at times, it comes as little surprise that Pollard also has a love for some heavier listening habits, including naming American rockers Clutch as his favourite band in the world back in 2020.
While his NBA days are behind him, Pollard went on to appear as a contestant on Survivor in 2016, and recently revealed earlier this year that he successfully underwent a heart transplant after a virus triggered a genetic issue inherited from his father.
TERRENCE ROSS
Status: Announced retirement in December 2023
Former Teams: Toronto Raptors, Orlando Magic, Phoenix Suns
Position: Shooting Guard / Small Forward
Joining the NBA following his selection in the 2012 NBA Draft, Terrence Ross took out the crown for the Slam Dunk Contest in his rookie year in 2013, and would also nab a surprise 51 point game in 2014, making both NBA and Toronto Raptors history in the process.
But it was back in 2023 that Ross also publicly professed his love for heavy tunes, rolling into a postgame interview after his Phoenix Suns tumbled to the Milwaukee Bucks blasting Metallica's Master of Puppets. After witnessing this, The Arizona Republic's Dana Scott followed up with Ross with a short but insightful interview centred around his listening habits, with Ross declaring he loves Rage Against The Machine, Pearl Jam and many more; and that his love of rock and metal constantly surprises people, leading Dana Scott to query if they were taken aback because of the fact that "he's a brother". Ross's response: "Absolutely".
In December 2023, Phoenix Suns Guard-Forward Terrence Ross announced his retirement after over a decade in the sport via his podcast, and recently threw his two cents in on the longstanding LeBron James vs. Michael Jordan GOAT debate via Twitch.
SHAQUILLE O'NEAL
Status: Retired
Former Teams: Orlando Magic, Los Angeles Lakers, Miami Heat, Phoenix Suns, Cleveland Cavaliers, Boston Celtics
Position: Center
Even if you aren't an NBA fan, the name Shaquille O'Neal needs extremely little introduction. The 7 ft 1 behemoth known as Shaq is undisputedly one of the all-time greats, and an enduring fixture on the game to this day.
From shattering backboards to smithereens in his rookie year playing for the Orlando Magic in 1993 (which led to the NBA establishing a new backboard structure), Shaq went on to become a four-time NBA champ, was named MVP three times, and has been a multiple Hall of Fame inductee - and his Shaqtin' a Fool segments continue to be a highlight alongside his other pursuits.
Off the court, Shaq has also released rap albums, toured as a DJ, works as an NBA analyst, and has also been a patron and supporter of youth programs alongside multiple charity endeavours. But as to his heavy music relevancy in this article? It may be a stretch here, but not only has Shaq been spied moshing at Belgium's Tomorrowland Music Festival, he also last year asked American DJ and metalhead Sullivan King to "teach me that scream you do" - aka a death growl. Sullivan released a short video showcasing the end results - and while the growl we actually hear may or may not be legit, imagine Shaq busting out some bleghs live onstage in a non DJ-setting?! No backboard would be safe with those pipes!
Shaq was most recently spied attending a college football game, with the Ole Miss Rebels taking on the LSU Tigers in Louisiana, and even took the time to photobomb ESPN reporter Molly McGrath while in attendance. And Sullivan King also recently dropped an EDM banger Never Come Back teaming up with Shaq and Kompany which you can check out below.
BY TIANA SPETER