We’ve seen our share of good and bad when it comes to “rappers turned actors,” but Common is one of the guys that has made a seamless transition from the booth to the big screen. After supporting roles in American Gangster, Smokin’ Aces and Wanted, the Chi-town native and diehard hoops fan gets his first shot at a leading role in the romantic comedy Just Wright (in theatres May 14).

I’m a big Nets fan so I was glad to see you representing them in the movie.
Scott McKnight might be able to help out the Nets right now. [laughs] Let me just say, I’ve had so many editions of HOOP because I used to be a ball boy and I used to take those home after every game.

How did you get the job as a ball boy for the Chicago Bulls?
My father [Lonnie Lynn] played in the ABA for two years and he knew Rod Thorn who was the general manager for the Bulls at the time—who’s actually now the general manager of the New Jersey Nets. He mentioned to him that I was interested in the ballboy job, so I wrote a letter telling my story and Rod Thorn allowed me to get that job and I worked there for like two and a half years.

Were you able to see Rod Thorn on set at all and did he remember you?
Yeah, we did a scene where Rod Thorn and some of the other Nets’ brass were having a discussion about Scott McKnight, and I got to talk to Rod Thorn and I told him how everything came full circle. It’s really kind of amazing in some ways, serendipitous or even divine. I mean, not only was Rod Thorn the guy who got me the gig, but I come in and play for his team [in the movie]. But also the writer of the film, Michael Elliot, 10 years before asked me to co-write something with him and I never got the chance. Who would know that I would be starring in his film also 10 years later? There were a lot of things that happened that I just felt were meant to be.

Do you have any memories that really stick out of encounters with players when you were a ball boy?
I’ll say this, I remember Charles Barkley always being one of the coolest and nicest guys. He always played and had fun with the ball boys. I remember meeting Dr. J and him being a real gentleman, a real cool guy. I had a funny situation—one kinda crazy thing I did was I used to get gym shoes from all of the players and I would give them to my teachers so I wouldn’t get in trouble.
One time Michael Jordan was sitting on the bench and he had a cast on his foot and was still hitting shots from the bench. I also remember Michael Jordan first coming in and he was playing something on his radio and they told him he needed to turn it down, that it was an exhibition game and they didn’t need that in the locker room. By the third exhibition game he was playing whatever he wanted to because they knew it was Jordan time now.

Did you do any special training and conditioning to get prepared for the movie?
Man, I did some intense training. It started with me talking to the guys I knew in the NBA first, trying to get a feel for what it’s like as much as possible. Baron Davis is one person that I’m cool with that I really had a chance to follow around a little bit and pick his brain. I had some brief conversations with [Rajon] Rondo and was intending to get in touch with Dwyane Wade but we were both always on the move by the time I started shooting. I got to see him on the set though... I’m not gonna front, I was out there thinking I could do this, feeling really great playing against them. [laughs] It really was a dream.
I felt like I was in the NBA for a month and a half.

Who do you think is going to take it this year?
I might go with my emotions and say Cleveland. I think it will be good for the NBA.

If you had to compare yourself—not Scott McKnight, but Common—to any NBA player past or present, who would it be?
I would say Chris Paul because he’s a killer on the court and a great leader, and he hasn’t even peaked yet.

Web Extras
How long had you known Queen Latifah before shooting Just Wright?
We met years ago and she’s just a good person and I always respected her and had a lot of love for her.

Were you able to talk a lot with Dwyane Wade and Dwight Howard on the set?
Yeah, D-Wade hung out a lot and he was real cool and Dwight Howard was super cool too. D-Wade is like my homeboy. He’s from Chicago, so we just sat down and talked about everything.

Talking about the piano scene you have; you sounded pretty good there, is that something you want to play on future albums?
Yeah. I was actually interested in playing piano a while ago. I wanted to expand as a musician, but I saw that I wasn’t a naturally gifted pianist so I found another creative outlet, which was acting and that was more natural. I was more passionate about acting than playing the piano at the time, so I started pursuing that.

Are you working on any other movies and have you ever thought about writing screenplays?
I want to write—I don’t have anything secured right now, but I do have some things I’m about to do. I’m also in a movie called Date Night coming out with Steve Carell and Tina Fey. I’m also working on a new album with producers No I.D., Kanye West and Ynot, which are all my Chicago guys, so we’re gonna come with something strong. Somebody actually gave me a great idea to read the Connie Hawkins story because he would be a great character to play.

Is the album going to drop this year?
Yeah, I’m hoping it will drop this year.

Chicago’s always been known as a hotbed of talent; who are some of the best local guys you saw growing up?
The guys I looked up to were Isiah Thomas, players like Ben Wilson who passed—he played at Simeon which is a great school for basketball in Chicago. Also Marcus Liberty, Jamie Brandon, these are all Chicago legends. And as far as guys that made it to the pros it was Isiah Thomas, Maurice Cheeks and Doc Rivers.

In a lot of your songs and videos you mention or have cameos from basketball players; why do you think there is such a strong correlation between athletes and musicians?
One thing is rappers want to be basketball players and basketball players want to be actors. We both admire each other’s talents a lot. Me being an athlete too—people laugh when they saw I’m an athlete—but by playing sports, I know the energy that music can  bring. So when you’re an athlete you can listen to music and it can help you prepare for whatever battle you have to go into. Basketball players obviously relate to the story of hip-hop artists and a lot of us come from the same beginnings.

From the May/June 2010 issue