TNT Uses Nelly's 'Roundball Rock' Remix, and Fans Are Bewildered

By Brian Jones

TNT had fans buzzing after playing a song that sounded very similar to the one used on NBC in the 1990s. During the NBA playoffs broadcast, fans noticed TNT playing a song similar to "Roundball Rock" by John Tesh. However, the song is actually called "Heart of the Champion" by hip-hop artist Nelly from his 2004 album Sweat. "Heart of a Champion" uses samples of "Roundball Rock," which first gained attention on The NBA on NBC from 1990 to 2002.

After 2002, Roundball Rock has been used sparingly on different broadcasts. "It's become a bigger part of my life," Tesh said in an interview with USA Today in 2018 when talking about the song. "I've got a show we're doing now — 'Songs and Stories from the Grand Piano' — and I'm in the middle of writing a memoir for HarperCollins. About a year ago, I got a clean bill of health after a three-year cancer battle. It was a struggle for me and the family and we got through it." Tesh then said, "Those sports years trained me to write music quickly and use pictures to create music, and as I look back on that, the way that theme was written, it just happened so quickly." Here's a look at fans reacting to Nelly's version of "Roundball Rock" being played on TNT.

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