The hip hop world was stunned when the news of Beastie Boys co-founder Adam Yauch filtered its way through the internet. While his cancer had caused him to hold out from the public eye over the past few years, the resulting shock of his death only pointed to how powerful and influential Yauch's hand in music had become over the years.
It's a boldness that permeated through the hip hop/basketball culture hybrid, and his death also reminded me of just one of his many other projects, the one that was a to-the-point example of how basketball is perhaps the only sport so wired with music culture.
In 2008, Yauch's debut documentary "Gunnin' For That #1 Spot" featured eight high school basketball players, including future Arizona Wildcat Jerryd Bayless, hitting the asphalt at Rucker Park.
The best moment? Michael Beasley pulling down Bayless' old-school Arizona basketball shorts.
The film is about many things -- the pressure of young high school basketball players, the shoe contracts, the history of Rucker -- but as of today it's a reminder that Yauch's influence went beyond music or basketball.