Dwyane Wade will always be the most legendary player to have played for the Marquette Golden Eagles. Scoring the fourth triple-double in NCAA tournament history, the Flash was set to make history in the NBA as well. So, it’s understandable why famed rapper Fat Joe wanted him on his team for the most infamous game. This would have made the rapper’s team more powerful than his opponents. But what happened next?

Fat Joe is well known for his love for music and basketball and was quite passionate about both. When he got the chance to beat his arch-rival Jay-Z in a basketball game, the rapper was all in. And it all goes back to 2003 when both teams reached the Entertainer’s Basketball Classic, a streetball tournament.

Fat Joe wanted the Miami Heat legend D-Wade to join his team and asked him several times, but it was all in vain. Two decades later, the rapper recounted how the 3x NBA champ refused the offer.

“Somebody who I love, who never came, and I begged him 70,000 times is D-Wade. He would never come to Ruckers Park and I was with him. I’m in Miami every day…I was like, they want to see you. He never. That’s the one player that I really wanted to see in his prime at the Rucker and he just, he wouldn’t come,” Fat Joe said during his appearance at 7PM in Brooklyn.

In response, Carmelo Anthony replied that this game just wasn’t Wade’s “style.” Melo himself was part of Fat Joe’s Terror Squad alongside some of the most decorated NBA players, such as Allen Iverson, Stephon Marbury, Jermaine O’Neal, and Yao Ming.

The rapper’s opponent, Jay-Z’s S. Carter team also had equally talented players, including Shaquille O’Neal, Lamar Odom, Jamal Crawford, and more. These teams often had NCAA players as well. So, who won the game? It was Fat Joe—but for one reason, the game never took place! Here’s what happened.

New York’s blackout stopped the most iconic game 

Thousands filled the Harlem streets as one of the most anticipated showdowns was scheduled for August 14, 2003. However, due to a sudden, unexpected blackout across New York, the streetball matchup did not even begin.

Jay-Z even had his car headlights used to light up the court. But the police didn’t approve due to safety concerns. It was later rescheduled, but Jay-Z had already left for vacation. The referees eventually declared a forfeit victory in favor of Fat Joe and his team.

In an old resurfaced clip, Melo, who was on Fat Joe’s team, can be heard saying, “I was going to play with Fat Joe and the Terror Squad. We were supposed to play against Jay-Z, and then the blackout happened.” The same has now become a series The Blackout.

It also crushed fans’ hopes of seeing O’Neal, who had won three back-to-back titles with the Los Angeles Lakers, team up with LeBron James, the popular rookie. The two did ultimately team up much later in 2010. But as the signs and hype of this game that never happened hint, this would have been an iconic game.