It seems like the Washington Commanders have always had an unconventional approach toward adding players to their roster. Maybe that is why they didn’t hesitate to approach the Knicks legend, Patrick Ewing before he stepped into the NBA arena. It was back when the Commanders were still known as the Redskins. Expectedly, this revelation gives a whole new look to the NBA vs NFL controversy that Austin Rivers started recently.

No one in the football and basketball niche is unfamiliar with this conversation that Austin Rivers started. The hosts of the Roommates Shows picked up on it and asked the 11x NBA All-Star whether he thought he could make the roster. “No,” said Ewing without a shred of doubt. “Nor would I even try. I remember when I came out of, when I graduated from Georgetown, the Washington Redskins at that time wanted me to come try out for defensive end. ‘I’m like, are you crazy? I’m the No. 1 pick and you want me to come try for football? Nah,” said the 1986 Rookie of the Year.

Ewing is a mammoth of a human being, standing tall at 7 feet. Thus, it was not a surprise for Washington to offer an NFL place to the legend. But even for him, playing in the NFL was too much. The veteran last played the 2001 season with the Orlando Magic and chose to hang up his jersey. Ewing seemed to be clear about the fact that football wasn’t for him.

Ewing played 1,183 games and started in 1,122 of them. He has scored 24,815 points in his career. The 4x Big East Defensive Player of the Year spent 15 seasons playing for the New York Knicks, moved on to the Seattle Supersonics in the 2000 season, and then to the Orlando Magic the next year. It is not just Ewing who believes this transition from NBA to NFL is a difficult one but Shannon Sharpe also gave his two cents concerning the same.

On The Stephen A. Smith Show, Sharpe answered the Austin Rivers controversy with a strong refutation. He said, “Difference between football and basketball is the mentality. We go out there every Sunday and we try to move a man against his will. We ain’t trynna run around people. We are trynna run through people. You all not built like that.”

Now, the 7-footer Jamaican also affirmed how he declined to participate in football considering the intricacies of the game. Maybe that’s why it’s still hard to name 30 players who are willing to make that transition, even in this era.

Austin Rivers, his bold claim, and the famous NFL vs NBA debate

Doc Rivers’ son, Austin Rivers made a huge claim and got negative traction on the internet. During the Pat McAfee show, the former guard said, “I can take 30 players right now from the NBA and throw them in the NFL. You cannot take 30 NFL players and put them in the NBA.” The conversation led to a huge online controversy.

People like Patrick Mahomes, former NFL receiver, and Super Bowl winner James Jones, along with many others weighed in on the conversation. When Mahomes went to see a Dallas Mavericks game recently, it was revealed that the Chiefs QB thought about Lu Dort being a potential running back or a linebacker in the league, stirring the controversy more.

James Jones, however, came forth with a strong assessment. He did not hold back and gave Rivers a brutal answer. “You’re 6-foot-4, 200 pounds, maybe you should’ve tried football. You might’ve had a better career, homeboy, because basketball wasn’t your career,” Jones said, as Kendrick Lamar’s hit single “Not Like Us” blared behind him.

In addition to the former Green Bay Packers Super Bowl winner, the Kelce brothers also came forth to discuss Rivers’ comments. Just like Sharpe, the Kelce duo believed that it is the mentality that prevents the crossover of the two sports. However, the younger Kelce, Travis believed that “if there was one guy in the NBA that was tough enough, it was Draymond Green.” What do you think about the NBA vs. NFL debate? Tells us more about it.