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USA Today via Reuters

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USA Today via Reuters

Just last week, Minnesota’s Austin Rivers stirred the pot as he claimed that he could take 30 NBA stars and turn them into NFL athletes. However, he also stated that vice versa would not work out. While his comments got the entire football community worked up, it has become a bigger spacer. The baller’s words recently caused a debate between Jason and Travis Kelce during their time on their own podcast.

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In a recent episode of the New Heights podcast, the Kelce brothers seemed to explore the idea of NFL to NBA and the other way around. While neither of them had anything bad to say about either athlete, they could not help but agree that each sport builds different breeds of sportspeople. During the conversation, the 34-year-old stated, “It’s gonna be a debate that’ll never actually get proven right or wrong, but I don’t know, I got faith in NFL players.”

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However, the 36-year-old chimed in saying, “I got zero faith in that, simply for the fact that there’s more positions, there’s more spots, it’s NBA to NFL.” With the brothers delving into what the basketball stars could get from the switch, the tight end stated, “You put Zion on the f*cking D line, you might have another million-dollar contract.” After all, just last year the Pelicans star signed an additional 5-year contract with the New Orleans Pelicans for a $197 million total salary.

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Apart from the Kelce brothers, even the 34-year-old’s good friend, partner, and teammate, Patrick Mahomes found himself sharing his two cents on the matter.

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Patrick Mahomes’ thoughts on the NFL to NBA debate

Ever since Austin Rivers made his claims, the NFL world has been furious at the assumptions. While most athletes were taking to social media to shut down the narrative, the Kansas City Chiefs quarterback ended up surprising everyone with his take on the whole thing. Patrick Mahomes, unlike his fellow football stars, chose to address which NBA players could actually survive football.

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During a playoff match between the Mavericks and the Oklahoma City Thunder, the 27-year-old was seated courtside near the commentators. Dave Pasch and Hubie Brown revealed that the quarterback had shared which athlete had a shot at making it in the NFL. Mahomes had slyly said to them, “Lu Dort could play in the NFL.” While the basketball star had clearly caught the father of two’s attention on the court, the debate did not stop there.

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Apart from the Kelce brothers and Mahomes sharing their thoughts on the debate, there have been many other NFL stars who have been holding the fort down and dispelling Rivers’ claims. Most recently, Seattle’s Kenneth Walker and the Cwboys’ Micah Parsons have weighed in on the subject. The running seemed to think that some athletes from either sport could make it in the other.

However, the linebacker seemed to think rather differently. Instead of trying to level the playing field, he chose to add fuel to the fire by stating, “It’s not that hard to dunk.” After all, even Rivers seemed to be unbothered about the social media frenzy he has caused my sharing his claims.

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Prathika Prashant

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Prathika Prashant is an NFL writer at EssentiallySports. With over three years of experience in the field of writing, and a knack for storytelling, she dives into the game of football to provide fans with insightful analysis and engaging narratives worldwide. Whether dissecting game strategies, delving into player profiles, or unraveling the drama of the season, her articles add a dash of insightful commentary and a captivating narrative to ensure that readers get the whole story. When she is not working, you can find Prathika browsing new music or unwinding with old timey sitcoms and more.

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Tripti Sarda

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