Saints Defensive End Cam Jordan Weighs In On The Great NBA-NFL Debate

New Orleans Saints star Cam Jordan recently revealed how he feels about one hot-button issue this summer on his Off the Edge with Cam Jordan Podcast. There is an ongoing debate about whether NFL players could play in the NBA and vice versa.

Former NBA player Austin Rivers started the discourse in May when he went on ESPN's Pat McAfee show to spark this summer-long discussion. "I can take 30 players right now in the NBA and throw them in the NFL", Austin candidly revealed. "You cannot take 30 NFL players and put them in the NBA."

Rivers' comments met immediate backlash from former and current NFL players. Future Hall of Fame defensive end J.J. Watt went to social media to directly address Rivers on his X social media page, writing, "You don't got a job in either right now, go ahead and try it." Other former NFL players like Randy Moss and Chris Long expressed similar displeasure over Rivers' statement. Despite the backlash, Rivers returned to the McAfee show to double down on his statement, saying, "I don't take anything back I said."

Saints defensive end Cam Jordan thinks few guys can transition from the NBA to the NFL. "They're (NBA players) tall. You catch that one pass over the middle and you're dying. It's over with". Jordan continued, "Anyone 6-foot-7 or above, you're just a red-zone threat, or your career is over."

His guest on the podcast, Pro-Bowl defensive end Josh Allen, played basketball in high school and agreed with Jordan's sentiment. Allen's sister, Myisha Hines-Allen, is a former WNBA player who won a championship with the Washington Mystics in 2019. Allen admitted that the mentalities of basketball and football are completely different, but he thinks more NFL players can play in the NBA.

"There are people in the NFL that can really hoop. And we (NFL players) are the same size as them (NBA players) weight-wise". Jordan went to his social media to praise another New Orleans sports star, Pelicans forward Zion Williamson.

Jordan posted that Williamson, at defensive end or tackle, could have a Hall of Fame career. Players and the national media have mentioned Williamson a few times in this debate as someone in the NBA who could carve out an NFL career if he chose that route earlier in life.

This debate seems likely to rage on for quite some time. Jordan was recently in Las Vegas hosting a Sack Summit Weekend with Las Vegas Raiders defensive end Maxx Crosby and Buffalo Bills edge rusher Von Miller. The Saints' training camp begins July 24 at the University of California in Southern California.