Category: NBA – English

Lionel Messi’s Inter Miami move has NBA star in disbelief: promises he’ll get season tickets


If anyone needs an example of the hype Lionel Messi’s rumored signing would bring to the MLS and US sports in general, they need to look no further than the NBA. The Portland Trail Blazer’s own Josh Hart is in literal disbelief at the prospect of living in the same country as the PSG star.

Despite Portland being over 3,200 miles from Miami, Josh Hart made a bold promise on Twitter: “Ain’t no way Messi is going to Inter Miami next year…if he does I’m getting season tickets for the summer.”

Josh Hart is a big Chelsea fan and the MLS is growing on him

Josh Hart is a big soccer fan and has already visited USMNT superstar Christian Pulisic in London when he visited the Chelsea facilities. He also went to Barcelona on vacation and took a tour of the Camp Nou. While the NBA player has a particular passion for soccer, it’s clear that Messi’s arrival to Miami would be of massive interest to fans from all walks of life.

Hart is an avid Chelsea fan and would get into tiffs with LeBron James when they were teammates on the Lakers over Bron’s ownership stake in Liverpool. He is also starting to follow MLS and was recently seen at a Portland Timbers game. His allegiance would definitely switch to Miami though if the South Florida team indeed secured Messi’s signing.

Messi’s signing for Inter Miami, a matter of time

For the time being, Messi’s signing for Inter Miami is still hypothetical. But is seems to be gaining momentum and makes lots of sense. The Argentine is one of the few names in soccer that resonates with people across all demographics in the United States, so the endorsement opportunities would be endless.

In Miami, where Messi already purchased a luxury condo for $7.3M, the footballer frequently vacations and even has a hamburger sold at Hard Rock Casino sold under his namesake: the Messi Burger.



Proof that Shohei Ohtani is a better athlete than Brady, Jordan, and Ronaldo


Perhaps we spoke a little too soon when we started comparing Shohei Ohtani with Babe Ruth, who is arguably the best player in MLB history. The Japanese phenom keeps proving that his level of comparison is only in par with the best athletes from all sports. It’s not just the pitching and the home runs, Ohtani is Top 5 in more than half of all statistical categories in the game today. And he is Top 10 in virtually all of them.

This level of efficiency can only be compared to other greats in many different sports, you already know the names we are about to mention. What makes Shohei different from the rest is not only his god-given gift to play sports, but also his centuries-old discipline that is embedded in Japanese culture. Ohtani is not interested in making money or being famous, all he cares about is greatness within the sport of baseball. If he wanted, he could be an even better version of the two-way players Bo Jackson and Deion Sanders were.

Can Ohtani he a better athlete than Brady, Jordan or Ronaldo?

Shohei Ohtani shares the discipline with these three legends of all sports, he also shares it with other all-time greats such as Muhammad Ali, Leo Messi, Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Pele, Usain Bolt, or Michael Phelps. Ohtani-san also has a similar level of obsession with his own sport, he has baseball for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. He even dreams about baseball. But all the other athletes don’t share that levelof humility Shohei learned since he was a little kid.

In the book of ‘Bushido‘ that explains the life philosophy of the Samurai, the word is literally translated to a phrase that means, ‘to serve’. Ohtani fully understands that his gifts were given to him in order to share them with the rest of the world. As such, he made the decision to dedicate his life to entertaining the masses with the smallest payout possible in return.

Baseball players tend to lead a long career in the MLB, Ohtani is only 28 and has at least another decade of skill to offer the world. Inside the ‘Fastball‘ documentary from 2015, legendary pitcher Nolan Ryan was featured as one of the players who retired at the oldest age. He was 46 years old.

Ryan is recorded to have thrown the quickest fastball in MLB history at 108 miles per hour (Shohei’s fastest pitch was 102mph). If Ohtani keeps this discipline as the freak of nature that he is, the sky is the limit for what he can accomplish as a pro athlete. He has the potential to be compared to no other big name when it’s all said and done.