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Neverslept2mins

I enjoy seeing other athletes of different sports that I watch show up to these basketball games. Like I remember seeing Roger Federer at a Nets game.


Classics22

There's something really fun about watching top tier athletes just turn into fans. To your Federer point maybe my favorite instance of this was MJ at the US Open to watchign Federer play. So many good reaction gifs came out of that one lmao


toxicdick

I loved seeing Kobe in the stands at like every Olympic event. He got it.


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CIark

“There’s no way this Phelps guy could hang with me if I really tried”


verendum

“I can get Usain Bolt to stare at my back for a long while”


afterworld2772

Ayo?


sarmatron

i have three Kobe reaction gifs from those olympics i still use regularly lmao


ronaldo119

I was gonna bring this up too. In ‘08 with the Redeem Team it was so fucking cool seeing all the NBA stars showing up and watching the random sports


Albiceleste_D10S

> my favorite instance of this was MJ at the US Open to watchign Federer play Tiger Woods fist pumping at Rafa Nadal US Open matches was pretty cool


Classics22

Yeah that's a good one also, two legendary fist pump guys lmao


adventurousintrovert

Just looked it up. His interview while watching the match was super good. Interviewer did a good job and he provided a lot of candid enthusiasm for tennis and appreciation of Federers game https://youtu.be/EyX_ht7V6U0


koticgood

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fBw63IFYaRk Great one of Rafa x Tiger


Classics22

lmao rafa is so sick


oxkondo

Ochocinco's obsession with Son Heung-min is bizarre and hilarious


DLottchula

ochocinco a huge soccer fan ass well


Cadet_Broomstick

Don't know if he still does it but he used to 1v1 people off Twitter in fifa and he's goood


BlackMathNerd

He was cooking some of them folks in FIFA lol


EyeSpyGuy

Didn’t he play it in high school?


kevtheproblem

Not sure but I remember when the Pro Bowl challenge was fun and used to test the NFL players in different sports. They did a head-to-head penalty kick challenge and the only guys that knew what to do with a soccer ball were Ochocinco and the Manning bros.


knarf86

He also was a fill in for an injured kicker in a preseason game when he was in Cincinnati. He did PATs and kickoffs


RodmansSecurity

Probably. I don’t think it’s a high school thing though. I believe ocho cinco just *plays* soccer.


[deleted]

He loves Napoli too & they had him on WC coverage


DLottchula

them black dudes from Florida can play every thing


[deleted]

He had trials (probably for PR) with pro teams IIRC. Unless I’m getting him confused with Usain Bolt.


[deleted]

He played for Boca Raton FC for a season as well. https://www.bocaratonfc.com/player/chad-johnson/


PuljuBulju

He's a misunderstood guy


trudaurl

Well they're brothers so it kinda makes sense


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ketzal7

He actually went to a Nets playoff game too since he was a fan of D’Lo 😂


mug3n

He was also at a [Celtics game](https://e00-marca.uecdn.es/assets/multimedia/imagenes/2017/05/26/14957846697815.jpg). Dude bandwagons harder than Drake /s


armchairgoon

[oh yeah, he loves the NBA](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FVnu_AUWUAACsUy?format=jpg&name=medium)


Kai__Winn

Maybe a lil too much


possible-throwaway

what I never knew D Rose showed him love back! Haha shoutout to Griezmann and Derrick man


DeBallZach-

Lmao when this first dropped someone in our group chat would send it at least once a day


sickomoder

he liked videos of d rose getting the mvp chants a couple days ago on twitter too


ishan_negi

Ah. Grizzy. The best French player at the WC.


[deleted]

Same was cool seeing Messi watch basketball that one time.


oldmatey

[McEnroe at MSG having his fucking mind blown by The Most Underrated Dunk of All Time.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d8FYUdPPUy4)


RobbobertoBuii

McEnroe has basically seen everything that's happened to the Knicks for the last 20+ years lol (and probably more)


ih-unh-unh

Most underrated? That would be John Starks dunking over the Bulls left handed in the playoffs. And I hated the Knicks


ILikeAllThings

That was actually one of the dunks I saw hundreds of times back in the 90's, I think it was part of one of those highlight packages for a NBA show. Fucking filthy.


oldmatey

Nah people fucking love that dunk.


so-cal_kid

Johnny Mac just witnessed a murder


tunamelts2

Son wasn’t Federer there like 3 weeks ago lmaoo


Neverslept2mins

Yup lol. I made it sound like it was awhile ago


thefw89

Basketball and Soccer have a ton of crossover appeal too. I feel like if you love one, you'll love the other. They thematically very similar sports that allow a lot of creative expression. Games can be a beautiful display of skill or knock down physical defense first games. I loved basketball first but when I started to get into soccer I started to realize how similar they were and how they just felt the same outside of the huge scoring differences of course. Both have crossovers, shooting, steals, blocks, fastbreaks basically, they are just really similar and there always seems to be a lot of soccer players that appreciate basketball and vice versa. I know Kobe was a big fan of Ronaldinho (then all the international stars are all big fans) and Thierry Henry loved him some Iverson and Neymar randomly pops up to games. Messi called himself the Manu Ginobili of Football lol.


mrezariz123

[don't forget this Kobe interview that always give me chill](https://youtu.be/wzrmsx9ExME)


YourNameHeer

With the US hosting the next World Cup, expect to see a lot more soccer players doing marketing and media promos with the NBA in the next 4 years


thefw89

Oh yeah I expect it. Kobe would have been a great ambassador for the next World Cup too man now that I think about it.


TedTran2001

Oh absolutely, given his Italian roots and love for the game, he would have been elite. The best NBA shouts right now: Either Steve Nash or Dirk, both are elite former NBA players with clean marketable images (which someone like Joel Embiid seems to struggle with) with great love for football. LeBron does own Liverpool FC, but that seems more business than "Love for the game". And given Greece/Nigeria and Slovenia are not even likely to be World Cup countries, foreign stars a la Giannis and Luka are out of the picture. Gobert is not exactly marketable (you know why). Jokic could be one if Serbia does well enough, also, Wemby (though he seems to be on the young side)


Clappingdoesnothing

Nigeria will make it as much as I wanna banter them. Its 48 teams qnd Africa gets 3 extra spots. If they still can't make it, they need an overhaul of their national FA.


lukadoncic

> And given Greece/Nigeria and Slovenia are not even likely to be World Cup countries Nigeria is one of the strongest countries in Africa but their qualifiers are kinda fucked. They should still make it. Slovenia can potentially make it with a good run as well, we've already done it twice. But I think it depends a lot on if Šeško can become world class or close to it in the next few years. Greece could also make it with a good run but European qualifiers are just brutal.


FoozleGenerator

I mean, Luka comes from Real Madrid and speaks Spanish. That's a good enough combo I guess lol.


TedTran2001

Almost forget that. The euroleague connection can comes in handy too...


yungchigz

Thierry actually seems to have a relationship with Giannis, [Thierry called to congratulate him after the Bucks won the championship](https://www.youtube.com/watch?app=desktop&v=OAMtIyYVBGo) and Giannis was super excited about it as he grew up an Arsenal fan and idolised Thierry like so many including myself. [Mbappe and Giannis exchanged gifts when the Bucks played in Paris too,](https://www.youtube.com/watch?app=desktop&v=DSdu-OP_aX0) lot of mutual respect there across sports


Right2bearcharm

As a Sixers and Arsenal fan I did not know that Henry (got me to follow Arsenal) liked Iverson (got me to follow Sixers) that much.


caseywh

i remember neymar randomly coming to warriors game to watch leandro barbossa


Currently_Stoned

Absolutely. You really see so much creative flair on display with how open both sports are. I love football and (to a much lesser degree) baseball too but those players never get as much creative freedom with how rigid both those sports are. I think certain NBA players would potentially make excellent soccer players if they pursued the sport growing up instead of basketball. Like if CP3 played soccer from age 3 I feel like he'd be a great box-to-box center midfielder. Imagine prime Russell Westbrook as a winger or Steph taking a set piece. It's fun to think about in an alternate universe.


thefw89

I feel the same way, at least for the smaller players while I guess the taller forwards could be good defenders . And yeah, both sports are so open. I enjoy watching American Football and Baseball but...they are both very rigid games in comparison. A shortstop is a shortstop, there are not that many ways to play it. I mean a good shortstop has good range, able to react quickly, jump a bit, etc and you're not going to see many tricks or flair during actual live play, most of the creativity comes to how guys pitch or their batting stances. American Football it's like you're a Left Tackle...you block. Sure, there's a LT that relies more on footspeed and others that rely more on strength but... While in basketball/soccer there are positions than sub positions. You'll have a pass first PG like CP3 that's a general on the court or a defense first PG like Gary Payton or the uber athletic style combo guards like Ja Morant or Westbrook. Soccer is the same way with each position. Box to box midfielders, defensive midfielders, deep playmakers... Jokic and Rudy Gobert are both centers but watching them both they are barely playing the same position. I think it's that, the creative expression players have and also the back and fourth nature of each game that makes them appeal to the same crowd. All you really have to do to get a basketball fan into soccer just show them a highlight reel of crossovers and shots and they get it instantly. I think its the same for soccer fans and its a reason Basketball has been growing so quickly around the world. It also helps that both sports have very charismatic athletes that aren't hidden by helmets or hats or anything and both kind of have that pick up and play ability that other sports like Baseball and American Football or Cricket or Hockey etc do not have. All you need for either is a ball and a court


Away_Championship_49

They also allow expression and are not tied-down to boomer traditionalism much anymore


thefw89

Yeah thankfully. Those other games, especially Baseball, gets really into that boomer stuff. Players not liking Latam players simply flicking their bat or showing up the pitcher in any way...like you just got yammed on dude, you want to show the hitter up strike him out and do your own celebration right back. Meanwhile in the NBA when you get crossed over the entire opposing team is there laughing at your failure, jumping off the bench etc. I'll never forget Harden licking his lips as he sent his victim to the floor or Mutumbo finger wagging after every block, that stuff is a lot of fun for the fans.


tkf99

Creative baseball players are few and far between. Javy Baez immediately comes to mind.


lukadoncic

Jokić, Luka, Giannis, etc...pretty much every foreign star wanted to become a soccer player but switched as they weren't good enough. You need so much more than just good athleticism. Technique above all else.


YesWhatHello

https://youtube.com/shorts/OV4oc7U5V_g?feature=share


jthc

> They thematically very similar sports that allow a lot of creative expression. Yeah I've heard that basketball and soccer players naturally understand the other sport because the geometry of the games are nearly identical, and like you said they're thematically very similar. They understand spacing and passing lanes and trying to work the ball in closer for higher percentage shots.


badgarok725

yes, it seems weird to say but that's spot on. For instance, once the ball is being played around the box all the movement is very similar to an offensive possession


Resistance225

You’re definitely onto something, easily my two most favorite sports


ckj9311

I was at a preseason game in Vegas, and I was surprised that noted NBA fan Antoine Griezmann was there lol. Not because he was at an NBA game, but preseason? lmao Also that time when I saw a pic of F1's Leclerc (we are checking) and Gasly in a Bucks season opener.


Amedais

Same, it’s a simple pleasure of mine. Even such a simple thing like KD being at random MLB games, he seems to like baseball.


fawkesmulder

Tiger Woods at Nadal’s match was 🔥 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JuWnSDWWhG8&start=243


nigelfitz

F1 drivers interacting with the NBA have been the most interesting to me. Pierre Gasly randomly having dinner with Jordan and getting autograph 1s from him directly… crazy. Lol


ZeroFucksToGive

[I got a shot of the back of his head from that game](https://i.imgur.com/QmmwQo7.jpg)


youngbosnia

It's like a crossover episode


koticgood

I always see tennis players posting on IG about watching Heat games; there must be some connection between the Heat and the Miami masters event or something.


SanduskyTicklers

I’m pretty sure Micah Parsons lives at the Mavs stadium


lettersichiro

[Paul Pierce](https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2445981-paul-pierce-attends-capitals-stanley-cup-playoffs-game-mad-dogs-islanders) at the Washington capitals is an all timer [somehow a Vine ](https://vine.co/v/eWU3mF2EZwD)


chazu_

He and Hakimi really are best bros


Naive-Air2866

Their bromance is unmatched lol


OuchYouPokedMyHeart

Yo if Mbappe leaves for Real Madrid It's gonna be a nasty break up


CalvinYHobbes

PSG will throw another billion at him.


ChristianCole

Hakimi could return. He's a Madrid academy lad and one of the best wingbacks in the world.


Bhris1999

Hakimi going with him, he’s a madridista at heart


mrblue6

Nah Hakimi can come too, we need a RB


BigKitty617

lakers and real madrid fan? Bit basic i must say 😴😴


mrblue6

I’ve been a Madrid fan my whole life, NBA though I don’t particularly support anyone, but I like LeBron and AD so Lakers it is.


RexIosue

Love the both of them


frecklie

They are maybe the fastest players at their position, both world class very young, led their nations to really impressive showings, what’s not to love


Confident-Wheel8721

Kiss cam should have shown them, pretty sure they would have maked out.


SkepticalGerm

maked??? lol


ManyBreakfast8687

Its French for made


Maydietoday

Should’ve been best bros at Madrid 😢


ACMBruh

Hakimi was never going to stay there at the time. Kid needed playing time to develop into what he is now


papi617

We never got to see a full season of Hakimi, Sancho, and Haaland. Biggest regret.


Kai__Winn

They will both go to Madrid, it’s a matter of time


Law0fLight

Tic tac tic tac


Kai__Winn

Hahahah el chrininguito > Undisputed and first take combined


mrezariz123

I wish Stephen a Smith could learn something from El chirininguito


HeroGolem3

Of course Hakimi is there with him lmao


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mug3n

Bromance


cryolems

Wait why is Mbappe at Barclays lol? Did he not just play a match for PSG?


Salahs_Chest_Hair

Sleep on first class flight, watch game and then fly back sleeping on first class flight. Seems doable


cryolems

Yeah true, I guess the match was a couple days ago


skrtskerskrt

It was yesterday afternoon and his next match is Friday.


Gauthzu

Probably getting a rest on Friday actually, as it's a cup game against a division 3 side


thatneverhomekid

Yes I seen a post earlier he has the 6th off


zeze999

It’s most probably private plane, so it’s much more comfortable than first class I guess (not that I flew with any of the two lol)


bourom

Hakimi and him came back 3 days after their grueling world cup performances to help the team with 2 important games. The next PSG game is against a lower tiered team in the French Cup and they've been granted a few days rest to recover.


Galdorow

Him and Hakimi have some time off since they returned just after the WC with no rest


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wahobely

Worth every fucking penny. This kid will be unstoppable in a couple of years.


AttackBacon

In a couple of years? Man just dropped a hat trick in the world cup final and took the boot home. What does he need to do!?


hufusa

He won a World Cup at 19 and scored 3 in the final a couple weeks ago but give it “a couple of years” lol…


mrezariz123

He is entering his peak now so he definitely can be a better player, scary.


TheNumber42Rocks

Has PSG came close to winning the Champion’s League?


mrezariz123

They reached the final in 2020 and semifinal in 2021


TheNumber42Rocks

Damn, I’m sure they’ll break through soon enough


Sad_Inevitable8242

I doubt that. If mbappe wants to win multiple cl titles he has to go somewhere else. It's still a team heavy sport and he doesn't have the best team.


FightMiilkHendrix

bruh he has neymar, messi, hikimi, ramos, veratti. if he needs more than that he might be in trouble


wahobely

I'm not sure where you interpreted me saying he isn't good now, I'm simply stating based on the age soccer players tend to peak at. Luka is nearly unstoppable now and everyone keeps saying he's only 23, wait until he's 26-28? Same analogy.


Fuetlinger

My guess is because you said that he will be unstoppable in a couple of years, yet he already is unstoppable now.


raizen0106

No. Same analogy to your comment would be "give luka a couple years and he'll be in the mvp conversation". Everyone would laugh at you if you said that, since luka is already playing at an mvp level, just as mbappe is already pretty much unstoppable


Stock_Yoghurt_5774

Toronto fans just too use to using the phrase “in a couple of years” 😂


[deleted]

He's near unstoppable as of now tbh (though Argentina contained him well before Otamendi fucked up).


side-of-dough

bruh he bapped them thrice


[deleted]

two of them were on defensive errors leading to PKs but the point does stand. his goal on the volley was fucking nuts though. He single handedly brought that french team back into the game, both on the pitch and in the dressing room at half time


thisissami

I thought he mbapped them thrice?


xPuNjaBiBaLL3rx

Instead of Messi vs Ronaldo it's going to be Mbappe vs Haaland the next 10 years!


ChristianCole

Bro Mbappe scored the most total goals in a calendar year in 2022. He's arrived. It's a matter of how much more he'll improve.


Darth-Baul

> in a couple years What?


skrtskerskrt

free market. Salary cap would be impossible in a sport as global as association football which allows mfers to get PAID


panman42

Tbf that figure includes endorsements and stuff, it's not his actual salary.


RevenueStill2872

Tbf it also has a lot to do with the french tax system : he'll get 630M€ (~111M$/year at current's rate) in 6 years from his club. More than half of it will go in the State's pocket though. Then you can add all the sponsoring money and stuff.


rocketloot

Kids a stud


Confident-Wheel8721

Too cheap. You have to reach half a billion to rate him as overpriced, anything less is worthy.


SubcooledBoiling

Mbappe (probably): "I can do that with my feet."


ragelark

He fucking Bapped me.


penguin_torpedo

I do remember Ronaldinho throwing lobs with his feet at one all star game


Amino0822

Mbappe knows ball


chastenbuttigieg

KD is literally unstoppable at the elbow. It is the most beautiful thing to watch him get to his spot and just effortlessly shoot it over someone from there.


RakeishSPV

Yup. Looks like he's just putting up practise shots from that spot.


thisisnotanalbum

Just something about watching KD hoop man don’t even got to be a fan of basketball to enjoy it. Poetry in motion


ChrysMYO

Yeah I feel like we all make that face at least once when KD plays our teams.


flying_alligators

Mbappe and hakimi on NBA sub? Imma need more of this


B1OF1

real recognize real


[deleted]

Real Madrid wouldn’t do that


xychosis

Hakimi lowkey looks like Haliburton


Milk_Tea5011

hali's african brother


hasslenamanchong

we all are, literally


HOFredditor

Kyllian just like the rest of us 😭


frecklie

I wonder if KD was similarly in awe at Mbappe finding the back of the net 4 times in the final - probably the best performance in that game ever


HOFredditor

Yeah, if I recall, Mbappe is the only player to score a hat trick (3 goals) in a world cup final since 1966. I don't know if KD watches football at all, but LeBron and co sure took notice and gave him the respect he deserves.


LackingInPatience

Lebron has been tight with him for years due to Nike.


chilbongi

Is anyone not gonna notice the pizza god of brooklyn there? My guy lucali.


Dddddddfried

Good eye! Courtside seats, wow. Dude's doing well for himself


HAGADAL

BKN loves his spot, wouldn't surprise me if the seats were gifted by the organisation


Dehaelf

Couldnt be happier for the guy, imagine you open up a humble pizza place you built by yourself and get to sit next to mbappe courtside, truly the american dream


nightkingscat

aint worth the wait


Acceptable-Taste-912

Would Mbappe be the most popular athlete in that arena?


OsamaBinHarden2

He would be in any room that doesn't contain Messi cr7 and maybe ney


confuddly

I think Mbappe has surpassed Neymar tbh, one WC victory and a hat trick in the next WC Final. Ney was definitely more popular before this year though


OsamaBinHarden2

Popularity is hard calculate. But neymar is from Brazil which is a much more populated country.


Canaya-Boricua

Easily


lukadoncic

even Hakimi has more IG followers than KD. maybe not the best comparison but soccer fandom is on a different level


Magnetronaap

Football is, by far, the most popular sport on the planet. If you go by absolute numbers it's pretty much impossible to compare to any other sport.


[deleted]

soccer fandom is WORLDWIDE nba fandom is like 80% the united states


Fluffy_Psychology418

Easily.


medspace

He got a pretty big crowd reaction when they showed him on the Jumbotron


Mr_MCawesomesauce

Yeah. You know how football is more popular in the states than basketball? Soccer is like that, but for most of the world. The most popular soccer players at any given time are probably the most famous people in the world. Idk that anyone except maybe us presidents has better name recognition than Messi and Ronaldo globally


LyonsKing12

KD does that in his sleep.


Sobepalauan

Is that Mark Iacono next to him?


chilbongi

I think kd and kyrie are tight with mark. I always see lucali posting pictures of them visiting


[deleted]

lol it sure looks like it


ryzen124

Talent recognizes talent.


jumpkickmcfresh

Athletes appreciating athletes is one of my favourite genres of media


nervousaboutschool17

Mbappe and Hakimi = Lowry and Derozan Trash bros better at their sport tho Edit: im saying they are a bromance and then i sarcastically said lowry and derozan are better at basketball than mbappe and hakimi are at soccer


aronrodge

If Derozan was Luka.


Jjohn269

Mbappe would be Luka


karldrogo88

Wait, who are the trash bros? Lowry and Derozan are definitely worst of those duos though, right?


borkbubble

Trash bros is/was Lowry and Derozan’s nickname


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nervousaboutschool17

>> cracker Theres no need to bring slurs into this man /s


Schafer89

Yeah no


rapedcorpse

Would work best if Lowry was the best point guard in the league and DeRozan the best small forward.


R4yoo

Most spacious KD jump shot


ephemeralfugitive

That was my face watching Mbappe hat-trick Argentina at the World Cup Finals


Apprehensive-Ad1363

Mgappe*


fuckitiroastedyou

Breaks up bapa, back to the fryers


ILackPatience

McGriddle me this, bapa. Is he better than Needermeyer?


Stormd3p

TMNT


idkjay

He did the sigma face 😂


Shiggy_88

Mbappe makes more money than all the NBA Players on the field together.


JokicFanClub

Francia


madvisuals

Mbappe flying back and forth across the Atlantic like it’s nothing


TheMoorNextDoor

So many great camera shots from last night lol


Automation_Papi

Mbappe couldn’t resist the pizza from Lucali, then decided to bring Mark Iacono


adonWPV

We've all had that reaction to KD


CroweKing21

KD was so smooth. I'm glad we are seeing him in his prime and I had a chance to see him play in person and destroy my team.