ESPN Pays Lil Wayne Tribute With NBA Finals Game 2 Graphic After ‘Tha Carter VI’ Drops

42-year-old hip-hop legend and prodigy Lil Wayne released 'The Carter 6' following Game 1 of the NBA Finals.

ESPN Pays Lil Wayne Tribute With NBA Finals Game 2 Graphic After ‘Tha Carter VI’ Drops

Lil Wayne got a tribute from the NBA after The Carter 6 released on June 6th (FS Image)

Beloved hip-hop legend and New Orleans native Lil Wayne received a touching tribute from the sports world. The 42-year-old rapper released the latest edition of his ‘Tha Carter’ series of albums in the hours following Game 1 of the 2025 NBA Finals, accompanied by features from the likes of Bono, mgk, Kodak Black, Big Sean and more.

The 2025 NBA Finals may have gotten off to the greatest start in league history. Tyrese Haliburton made a game-winning shot to give the Pacers their first lead of the game with 0.3 seconds remaining. The Pacers held on to hand the OKC Thunder a home loss and neutralize their homecourt advantage. All the talk that followed centered the incredibly clutch play from the Pacers, who were down 15 in the fourth.

Tyrese Haliburton and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had contrasting games that displayed their best attributes. Haliburton was relatively subdued on offense and had a sub-par game. However, he came alive in the final moments of the game, tightening up his decision-making and making the game-winner. He finished with only 14 points and six assists while turning it over thrice.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, meanwhile, was the only player from both teams to crack 20 points. He displayed his scoring prowess throughout the game, tallying 38 points on 14-30 shooting. SGA also had five assists and three steals, being the only player on either team able to make an all-around impact. However, SGA cooled off in the fourth quarter. His inability to close out a 15-point lead will leave him smarting.

The two of them will both look to raise their impact in Game 2 as the Finals look nicely set up for a great series. ESPN shared a graphic that showed an AI-generated version of the two star guards as kids with face tattoos. The graphic was styled in the fashion of the album artwork for the latest Lil Wayne album. ‘Tha Carter VI’ was made available for streaming across platforms at 12 midnight, the early hours of June 6.

The New Orleans native felt humbled by the love shown by ESPN for him. It was also an appropriate tribute. After all, Wayne is the defining hip-hop artist of his era, who has had the biggest influence on today’s hip-hop landscape. Wayne posted about the graphic on Instagram, thanking the network for their tribute.

Lil Wayne is receiving a lot of criticism for ‘Tha Carter VI’

One of the most valid and consistent criticisms of Lil Wayne has been his inability to put together a true classic album. Wayne’s best and most critically acclaimed bodies of work came during the mid- and late-2000s. Many believe that he hasn’t put out music that aged well since his imprisonment in 2010 for gun charges. Although ‘Tha Carter IV’ and ‘Tha Carter V’ were commercially huge, they don’t hold up as full bodies of work.

‘Tha Carter VI’ seems to be a step down from even those two albums. A number of hip-hop listeners and fans believe that Lil Wayne now sounds way too formulaic. The new album has a huge smattering of autotune, as was his trademark during his peak years. However, it is missing storytelling and intricate lyricism that were once salient aspects of Lil Wayne’s mixtape and album catalog.

Fans even believe that the new Carter album lacks a distinctively good song to redeem it. Wayne’s biggest strength was his ability to churn out club bangers and smash hits during his peak. But ‘Tha Carter VI’ is yet to have a standout song that showcases his biggest strengths. Fans are resigned to now believing that Wayne is not capable of producing a consistent, full body of work.

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