John Stockton Surprised by Kendrick Lamar’s Super Bowl Mention

SALT LAKE CITY – Former NBA star John Stockton experienced a unique moment during Super Bowl LIX when rapper Kendrick Lamar mentioned his name during the halftime performance. Lamar’s performance prominently featured his Grammy-winning track “Not Like Us,” which references Stockton, a legendary point guard for the Utah Jazz.

The song, released in May 2024, emerged from Lamar’s ongoing feud with fellow rapper Drake and includes a clear shoutout to the basketball player. In the song, Lamar raps, “It’s too many options, I’m finna pass on this body, I’m John Stockton,” surprising fans who may not have been aware of the lyric, but not Stockton himself.

“I knew of the song; I have young people in my life. My kids all know about this song and we frankly knew it was coming,” Stockton shared on the Ultimate Assist Podcast.

Despite his historical reluctance to embrace media attention, the shoutout drew considerable attention. “Everybody was kind of huddled around the TV to see if my name got mentioned at halftime of a Super Bowl, which it did,” Stockton said.

Following the performance, Stockton’s wife, Nada, received a surge of messages from friends and family eager to express their excitement over the mention. “My wife’s phone started ringing kind of incessantly after that. She spent the rest of the game texting back and forth for all the people that saw it so apparently it was a big deal,” Stockton recounted.

During his illustrious career with the Utah Jazz, Stockton achieved significant accolades, being named to 10 All-Star teams, 11 All-NBA teams, and five All-Defensive teams.

The Super Bowl performance not only served as a nostalgic acknowledgment for Stockton but also highlighted the intersection of sports and pop culture in contemporary society.