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We are in the middle of the summer sports season, with baseball in the middle of its season and then the NHL and NBA near the end of their postseasons. The excitement level has been incredible, especially with record viewership in the NBA postseason. Since both have taken center stage, ESPN asked which sport has the best athletes. It sparked a massive debate online, but emerging NBA star, Toronto Raptors forward Scottie Barnes, weighed in and gave his two cents on the topic, wanting to prove he can skate and represent NBA players in the debate.
ESPN's First Take is the world's preeminent debate show. While the sports world is still hectic, it's slowing down with hockey and basketball in their last season series. So, they waged a debate on which sports produce the best athletes.
Former basketball and hockey players Markieff Morris and P.K. Subban defended their respective sports, while Stephen A. Smith advocated for basketball players. The conversation summary went like this: Markieff Morris: “Obviously basketball.” Stephen A. Smith: “When you talk about pure athleticism… I'm gonna go with Markieff on this.” P. K. Subban: “Put LeBron [James] on skates.”
The Toronto Raptors star quoted the video post: “Put me on skates. I'll do it.” He also posted a GIF of Superman with a joking response.
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The argument on First Take essentially came down to skill versus athleticism. The NBA's athleticism is second to none, with players running up and down the court, catching passes easily, and being able to play at their size.
The difference is that hockey involves skating, and not everyone can skate as well as NHL players, let alone skate overall. Hockey is also more physically demanding, with hockey being a contact sport filled with broken bones and players losing teeth due to the high speeds at which players run into each other. Subban's argument in favor of hockey players also rested on the fact that hockey players play through numerous injuries, while basketball players use load management and regularly take days off. For example, NHL superstar Connor McDavid recently suffered an injury scare, but shook it off and kept playing.
This argument is fascinating, and when random NBA players like Barnes get involved, you know it has gone even more viral than initially intended. Regardless of who wins this argument, the Raptors star will show off his skills on the ice and go all out for the NBA players to try and win this argument, even if it was said light-heartedly.
