LeBron James' first appearance on the "New Heights" podcast with Travis Kelce of the Kansas City Chiefs and his brother, retired Philadelphia Eagles center Jason Kelce, was released Wednesday. And when it's one legendary NBA player talking to two legendary NFL players, the subject of NBA vs. NFL had to come up.
This conversation focused on Christmas, which has traditionally been known as an NBA holiday. However, the NFL has been encroaching on Dec. 25 for the past few years, trying to make it a football holiday as well.
"Who owns Christmas?" Jason asked LeBron. "Because according to you, 'I love the NFL, but Christmas is the NBA's,'" Jason said, hitting a laughing LeBron with his own quote from Dec. 25 about how Christmas is still the NBA's day despite the NFL's efforts.
LeBron talks big, but he knows what's real and what's not.
"I saw the f***ing numbers after the fact," LeBron said. "You guys kicked our a**. Alright? Okay? From a viewership standpoint, y'all kicked our a**. The games weren't as great as they should have been."
And don't forget, LeBron is saying that about the games despite his Los Angeles Lakers beating the Golden State Warriors 115-113 on Christmas Day.
Even though Travis said he thought it was a "pretty good game," LeBron hit on the main thing that may have caused viewers to turn off the NBA and switch on the NFL: Beyonce.
"When you have f***ing Beyonce come out there, Pat Mahomes and Travis, you guys go there and kick Pittsburgh's a**."
It's hard to argue that Beyonce's incredible country-themed halftime show didn't steal some eyes from the NBA. It is Beyonce, after all, and she performed in the middle of a game between the Houston Texans and the Chiefs, who are currently trying to win their third Super Bowl in a row.
LeBron insisted he wasn't ignoring reality when he said "Christmas is the NBA's day" on Dec. 25. He just felt the urge to defend his own league and sport against a mightier foe.
"You know when you go out there and you got your little brother, and he gets beat up one time, and you're like 'Hey! We didn't lose that fight! We're here and we're staying here!' I had to stand up. I had to stand up for the NBA."
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