Kanye West likes to hoop. And if you didn’t know that then you haven’t been paying attention.

Basketball references dot his discography. Pickup games, like the ones he would run in Hawaii while making My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, have fueled his creativity. And this past June, wife Kim Kardashian West rented out the Staples Center for Kanye's 38th birthday so he could run full-court with his boys—about one month after he decided to change the name of his upcoming album from So Help Me God to Swish.

Basketball and Kanye are almost as synonymous as controversy and Kanye.

But for all we know about Kanye and his love for the game, we don’t really know whether he can actually ball.

Until now.

The answer to that important question and many more comes courtesy of Los Angeles-based music writer Josh Herwitt, who—along with yours truly—balled with Yeezus 11 days after the now-infamous 2009 VMAs.

Yes, those VMAs.

Granted, since we’re talking about West’s skills from six years ago, we’re willing to give Kanye the benefit of the doubt that he’s improved. But consider what you’re about to read a good baseline for West’s basketball talents.

Here’s our scouting report on how to beat Kanye West at basketball:

Illustrations by Henry Kaye