Plus the third verse is on point...

You've also got to give him at least some credit for being at the peak of his commercial status and putting out a song that was so unlike just about everything else on the radio at the time. Wasn't the safest choice in the world for the lead single of your most anticipated album (after just throwing rocks at a sleeping dragon in Nas and knowing there was really no margin for error) to be produced by a total unknown and having a sound that was a pretty big departure from the mainstream sound of that era. If that shit flopped in the midst of that "battle" it would have been a major L.

Obviously none of that necessarily makes the song itself good, but overall it's still one of Jay's least offense singles, IMO. (For example, the Lead Single Which Shall Not Be Named from his subsequent album is about 1000 times worse...)