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Is it possible for a college football tight end with just 45 career catches and three touchdowns to resemble NBA icon LeBron James? According to this draft analyst, apparently so.
Taking to Twitter on Friday morning, ESPN NFL Draft analyst Matt Miller said that University of Georgia tight end Darnell Washington — a member of their two-time defending National Championship teams — might be the answer to the question: “what if LeBron James played professional football instead of basketball?”
“At 6’7″ and 265 pounds, Darnell Washington might be the answer to the ‘What if Lebron had played football?’ questions that always come up. Watch Washington get into an NFL scheme and he’s an ultimate mismatch with his size, power, agility and open-field speed,” Miller said.
The debate around what it would have been like if LeBron played in the NFL instead of the NBA has existed for literal decades now, as the 38-year-old hoops legend played wide receiver in high school and was recruited by the likes of Notre Dame.
Over the years, tight end has been the position that is most often compared to the athleticism required to play in the NBA, with the likes of Antonio Gates and Jimmy Graham — who both played basketball in college — coming to mind.
At this time, Washington is projected to be either a late first or early second-round pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, which will be held at Kansas City’s Union Station from April 27 to April 29.
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