NBA Players’ Other Option

By Guest Blogger Tyler Daly:

The NBA is locked out, both sides far away from an agreement anytime soon it appears. Deron Williams has opened the door for an exodus of NBA players to overseas leagues by signing a month-to-month deal with one of Turkey’s top teams. Other players have indicated that they could possibly be very interested in doing the same. But, what if instead of deciding to travel abroad, NBA players chose another league within our own borders: the NFL.

Many have speculated the basketball lockout will last at least until January, leaving the players plenty of time to get in potentially an entire NFL season. Imagine the likes of Lebron James as an intimidating safety or Dwight Howard as an explosive defensive end? I know in all reality this solution to their labor situation is not a likely one, but extremely intriguing to at least think about.

Lebron James would be an obvious choice because of his athleticism and speed. At 6’8” and roughly around 275 pounds, James would be a nightmare on the offensive side of the ball. He would be extremely hard to tackle in the open field and would be a very viable option down the field in the pass with an impressive vertical. You could also make a strong argument for James playing on the defensive side of the ball as well. I imagine him mostly in a secondary position like free or strong safety because of his ability to cover field and drop massive hits on opponents. Imagine running a slant route across the middle with Lebron waiting to hit you when you caught it?

Derrick Rose as a running back? Possibly… with his quick cuts and explosiveness out of them he could bounce around much like Chris Johnson currently does.

Dwayne Wade as a corner back? Definitely. The Flash’s speed would allow him to stick with the NFL’s top receivers, and his defensive instinct that gets steals in the NBA could turn into interceptions in the NFL.

These are just some of the options I thought of, but I’d be really interested in hearing some other ideas! List them in the comment box and discuss.