but there have been rappers who have been marketed and glorified just as much as 2pac, if not more (Jay-Z comes to mind)....but in basketball, never has any player been marketed and pushed with such an obvious league agenda as michael jordan. the marketing/media glorification he received during his playing days (and even now) is unrivaled.. Lebron is the closest, but still, even he isn't marketed half as much as Jordan was. with 2pac, rappers with the same marketing push have come and gone...the difference is that 2pac had an amazing work ethic and kept pushing on his own accord, which is attributed to his greatness more so than it is to the marketing factor.