Football wasn’t the only sport front and center at the Super Bowl LX Halftime Show. With Bad Bunny headlining the main act, his diehard fans were waiting for a shoutout to his pal. A certain someone who’s rattling the NBA MVP race but is currently nursing a hamstring injury. For Bad Bunny, sport has always played a big role in his musical styling, but did the Slovenian magic show up in his biggest performance so far?

The Puerto Rican hitmaker didn’t perform “La Jumpa” or “25/8,” the two viral hits mentioning Luka Doncic. But according to a fan on social media, he still gave the Los Angeles Lakers star a shoutout.

“Bad Bunny shouted out Luka Doncic in his Super Bowl halftime performance: ‘Luka Dončić es el MVP y el jugador con más talento de la liga,'” an X post by @lukalexicon read, followed by a translation, “Luka is the mvp and the most talented player in the league 😳💥”

It would’ve been a special moment for Doncic had this been true, but according to the comments, this didn’t actually happen. With his old friend headlining the Halftime show, something Doncic showed excitement about last week, he didn’t need a shoutout from the guy who’s namedropped him in more than one song.

However, two NBA players received shoutouts during his performance. One Lakers superstar and a Dallas Mavericks legend from a different era.

Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl focus was not on old friends, Luka Doncic and LeBron James

There was a lot to unpack in Bad Bunny’s performance that had the internet in a frenzy. One of those moments came when he said, “Y de Barea, el que fue campeón primero que Lebron,” which roughly translates to, “And Barea, the one who became champion before LeBron.”

That was a deliberate callback to JJ Barea, the Puerto Rico-born NBA legend who spent more than a decade with the Dallas Mavericks. He was part of the 2011 championship squad led by Dirk Nowitzki that dismantled the LeBron James-led Miami Big 3. Barea showed gratitude for the shoutout by sharing the clip and a picture on his official social media while he was hanging out with the rapper.

Now, it might sound like a diss to LeBron James, mentioning that Barea won a title before him. But that really wasn’t the case. The rapper is a big fan of the Ohio native. His admiration for James is as deep as his friendship with Doncic. He had no malice in that statement beyond showcasing the pride that he felt after a Puerto Rican player won a championship.

The admiration is mutual. James went viral after he was spotted dancing at a Bad Bunny concert last year, even though he was supposed to be recovering from sciatica. Around that time, he was asked about his friend headlining the Super Bowl Halftime show.

“I’m super happy for Bad Bunny that he’s able to represent the Super Bowl in San Francisco. That’s gonna be super dope, and hopefully I could be there, man, just to support him,” James said back in October. “He’s a great friend of mine, so it was great to see that.”

Neither James nor Doncic could be there in person to cheer their friend. But he probably didn’t mind. A video of the Slovenian, though, went viral on social media as he sang along during an Instagram Live while watching the Super Bowl Halftime show.

The shoutout rumors likely gained traction because Bad Bunny has a well-documented history of referencing NBA stars in his studio albums. He has specifically used Doncic’s classic stepback as a metaphor for pickup moves in his songs.

Bad Bunny’s performance centered on unity and his Caribbean roots. The show included guest appearances by Lady Gaga and Ricky Martin, with a set design that resembled sugarcane fields. Given that he was celebrating his heritage, it was only appropriate that Barea got a special shoutout.