It’s not often that you’d hear Travis Kelce admit that he was nervous. But the 10-time Pro Bowl tight end and two-time Super Bowl champ confessed to feeling butterflies at the start of his podcast Wednesday.
“I’m nervous but pretty pumped,” Travis told his brother Jason in the latest edition of “New Heights with Jason and Travis Kelce.”
That’s because their featured guest was someone who had “been a long time coming”: the one and only LeBron James.
Thanks to successful football careers and their hit podcast, the Kelce brothers are two of the most famous athletes — retired, in Jason’s case — in the world right now. But the Cleveland natives can’t even claim to be the most famous athletes from northeast Ohio. That distinction belongs to, of course, Akron’s own “King James.”
In between reminiscing about Cleveland-area basketball, the three Ohioans discussed LeBron’s almost NFL career, debated the NBA vs. NFL, and talked about LeBron’s biggest accomplishment.LeBron reveals when he considered playing in the NFL
LeBron James playing in the NFL has always been a fun topic for sports fans alike, but has it ever come close to being a reality? Well, James revealed one time that he gave sincere thought to stepping foot on the gridiron.
“The only time I’ve really taken it super-duper seriously was in 2011 when we had the NBA lockout,” James said. “And I didn’t know when we were going to make the deal with the owners and get our league back going, so I actually thought about it a little bit back then.
“I was still young enough to get out there with y’all, but that’s the only time I’ve actually seriously considered it.”
The 2011-12 NBA season didn’t begin until Christmas Day due to the lockout in what became a 66-game regular season that ironically ended with James winning his first NBA championship with the Miami Heat. James, who was 26 at the outset of the season, disclosed in 2021 that the Dallas Cowboys and Seattle Seahawks offered him an NFL contract.
LeBron weighs in on whether the NFL vs. NBA is “easier”
As one of the rare super-athletes who could have played both professional football and basketball, LeBron was the perfect person to ask a hotly debated topic.
“What is easier to do: An NFL player going to the NBA, or an NBA player going to the NFL?” Jason asked LeBron.
After a deep breath, LeBron braced himself to settle the argument once and for all (?).
“I want to say, I think it’s easier for a basketball player to try NFL over the NFL player trying to get into the NBA.”
LeBron gave a shout-out to Bills receiver Keon Coleman and Ravens receiver Zay Flowers — whose basketball highlights have gone viral — before backing up his stance.
“Yes, it’s going to take a transition period [going from the NBA to NFL],” he said, specifically mentioning having to get used to getting hit again. “Once you get into a groove, it’s like riding a bike.
“Football going to basketball, it’s such more coordination and running and jumping and it’s, like, consistent,” he explained, as basketball players don’t get as many timeouts between the action.
LeBron also revealed he thought Russell Westbrook or Anthony Edwards would be the other NBA players who could make the “cleanest transition” to the NFL.
“Russ would be an unbelievable strong safety or free safety,” he said. “He’s trying to hit somebody.LeBron admits the NFL dominated the NBA on Christmas
The NBA has been playing Christmas Day games since 1947. The NFL only recently turned it into an annual tradition, holding at least one Dec. 25 game in each of the last five seasons.
This year, despite Christmas falling on a Wednesday, the NFL scheduled two matchups and neither ended up being close. Travis Kelce’s Chiefs dominated the Steelers in a 29-10 win, while the Ravens routed the Texans 31-2.
Even so, fans tuned in, setting Netflix viewership records for Christmas Day. It also helped, of course, that global superstar Beyoncé headlined the halftime show in Houston.
Meanwhile, the NBA’s four-game Christmas slate was more competitive, highlighted by LeBron’s Lakers sneaking past Steph Curry and the Warriors in a down-to-the-wire finish. After the win, LeBron told ESPN, “I love the NFL. But Christmas is our day.”
Fast-forward a few weeks later, and LeBron took a slightly different tone when Jason asked him “Who owns Christmas?”
“From a viewership standpoint, y’all kicked our ass,” LeBron admitted. “The games weren’t as great as they should have been, but you had f—ing Beyoncé.”
Still, LeBron said, “I had to stand up for the NBA.” And to be fair, the NBA did have its best Christmas viewership in five years.
LeBron gushes over playing with Bronny
One of the most talked-about stories of the NBA offseason and the early portion of the regular season was James playing alongside his eldest son, Bronny James. The Lakers selected Bronny with the No. 55 pick in the 2024 NBA Draft, and the father-son duo made history when they shared a court in the season opener.
James gave his perspective on being teammates with his son.
“When it comes to the titles, that’s one separate thing,” the elder James said. “But to be able to be in this league and play in this league and also being able do it alongside Bronny right now, like that’s one of the biggest accomplishments — and probably the No. 1 accomplishment I’ve ever been able to do.”
He went on to expand on what makes it so special.
“To see him every day grinding, and going through the process of trying to become who he wants to become while I’m sitting there just watching him and doing the things he wants to do and being able to take it all in, it helps me get some of the minutes and hours and years back that I didn’t have with him because I was playing so much,” James said.
After Travis praised Bronny for handling all the scrutiny that comes with following in his legendary dad’s footsteps, LeBron acted like the proud father he is.
“Bronny doesn’t have to play basketball at all. It’s not like he needs the money. He can do whatever he wants to do,” LeBron told the Kelces. “He’s like, ‘This is my career, this is my goals, this is my aspirations, and I want to play ball. This is something that I love.’
“I love that kid. He’s awesome.”
Bronny James has been up and down with the Lakers and their G-League affiliate, the South Bay Lakers, this season. He has appeared in nine NBA games but has been unable to get consistent playing time.
The 40-year-old James, a four-time NBA champion, four-time MVP and 20-time All-NBA honoree, is averaging 23.7 points, 8.8 assists and 7.6 rebounds per game while shooting 50.9/39.1/76.2 for the Los Angeles Lakers, who are the seventh seed in the Western Conference this season at 20-17.
Meanwhile, Kelce’s Kansas City Chiefs are the No. 1 seed in the AFC playoffs and host the Houston Texans in the divisional round on Saturday.
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