How Rapper J. Cole Helped Caleb Martin Sign With Miami Heat

• Caleb Martin has become a major player for the Miami Heat in their 2023 NBA playoff run
• His inspirational journey saw him close to being the 2023 Eastern Conference finals MVP
• Popular rapper J. Cole played a key role in Martin's path to Miami and success in the NBA

Caleb Martin was the hero for the Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference finals against the Boston Celtics.

Martin had 26 points and 10 rebounds in Game 7, helping the Heat crush the Celtics 103-84 to advance to the NBA Finals.

Martin's journey has been remarkable - he was almost out of the NBA a few seasons ago, but a phone call by Grammy award-winning rapper, J. Cole changed everything.

Jimmy Butler received five of the nine conference finals MVP votes. Martin narrowly missed out after getting the other four.

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Less than a year after signing that two-way contract, the 27-year-old is now a key player for Erik Spoelstra.

Martin averaged 19.3 points in the conference finals, shooting an amazing 60% from the field, including 22-for-45 (49%) from 3-point range, per Sporting News.

How J. Cole helped Martin

Before becoming a key player for the Heat, Martin was fighting to remain in the NBA.

He and his twin brother, Cody played college basketball for North Carolina State and then Nevada. After finishing their senior season in 2019, Cody was drafted 36th overall by the Charlotte Hornets, but Caleb went undrafted.

However, he signed an Exhibit 10 contract with the Charlotte Hornets in July 2019, per ESPN.

Caleb Martin signed a multi-year deal with the Hornets but was waived in August 2021, leaving him scratching his head about his predicament. Yet that was not the end of his story.

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J. Cole's relationship with Butler

The relationship between J. Cole and Heat assistant coach, Caron Butler helped Martin land a deal in Miami. Their relationship began in 2010 when the rapper dropped his song The Autograph on his critically-acclaimed 2010 mixtape, Friday Night Lights.

Butler was still a player with the Washington Wizards, and J. Cole gave him a shout-out on the song, after which they formed a solid relationship. Years later, Cole - a North Carolina native - gave Butler a phone call about Martin.

"It was just one of those things where I was like, 'He actually called me about this kid', and he's like, 'Yo, seriously, he needs that [opportunity]'."

Butler then invited Martin to a workout.

"He reached out to me and I just invited him to an open scrimmage in the summer and from that point on he really earned his way on. But J. Cole having the foresight in knowing Caleb can come and help a contending team was just amazing,” Butlet said, via The Charlotte Observer.

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The guard said he thrives when he has to prove himself.

"Definitely a back-against-the-wall type of feeling," Martin said of his tryout. "But I feel like that's when I operate best."

Martin signed a three-year, $20.4 million deal with the Heat in 2022. The Heat now have seven undrafted players in their ranks.

How Martin became a key player

Sports Brief earlier analyzed how Martin went from being an undrafted player to an important star for the Heat.

With Tyler Herro injured, Martin proved himself to the Heat and is set to play a key role in the 2023 NBA Finals.

Will he rise to the occasion in the NBA Finals against the Nuggets and complete a remarkable tale of success?