Holiday Comparisons to Pro Athletes

As we celebrate the holiday season throughout this month, I wanted to get in on the celebration. Similarly to most things in my life, I found a way to relate the holiday season back to sports. One of the best parts of the holiday season is watching Christmas movies to really get in the spirit. These movies have provided a long list of iconic characters that make us look forward to the winter months. So, as my mind is always dwelling on sports, I wanted to compare 10 of these holiday icons to 10 current stars in the sports world. Enjoy these comparisons and let me know if there are any good ones I missed!

LeBron James - Santa Claus

Santa Claus and LeBron James are two iconic individuals who seem to be ageless wonders that silence the doubters and non-believers each year. LeBron James is in his 22nd season in the NBA reminding people that he is still a force to be reckoned with. One of the greatest players of all time, LeBron can do it all even in this late stage. When it comes to true greatness, age doesn’t matter and neither does public perception. What’s really important is delivering when it matters most and King James is still delivering at an elite level. You know who else delivers at a high level? That’s right, the big man in red. He gets it done year in and year out with an efficiency that seems absolutely impossible. Not to mention both distinguished individuals have a glorious beard.

Shohei Ohtani - Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer

The Dodgers star pitcher/designated hitter is a one of a kind talent that baseball has never seen before. When healthy, Ohtani is a potential Cy Young candidate and a perennial MVP contender. In a time where players are deservedly praised for being elite at one skill or position, the Japanese sensation somehow dominates at two positions. In terms of holiday characters, Rudolph is a one of a kind talent in the world of reindeer. Have you seen or heard of another red nosed reindeer? Didn’t think so. Not to mention the pure athleticism possessed by Rudolph. He runs as point guard on Santa’s sleigh, but my scouts have confidently told me he can fill any position in the lineup. Rudolph has been dominating for decades, but Shohei is just getting started. These two individuals are great reminders to enjoy generational talents while we can.

Joe Burrow - Kevin McCallister

This one is fairly obvious as many people have made the comparison based off looks alone. In fact, the actor who portrays Kevin McCallister, Macaulay Culkin, dressed as Joe Burrow for Halloween this year. Although physical appearance is the biggest connection between the two, there is another. In the movie, Kevin is accidentally left alone by his parents and had to defend his home against two robbers trying to break into his house. Unfortunately for Joe Burrow, this is exactly what the Bengals have done to him this season. The Bengals superstar is statistically having an MVP-caliber season. The rest of the team is not playing up to par which will likely result in the Bengals missing the playoffs. Joe Burrow is simply “home alone” this NFL season.

Aaron Rodgers - Ebenezer Scrooge

One of the most infamous holiday characters, Ebenezer Scrooge, is a selfish, grouchy older man who hates Christmas. I am not sure what Aaron Rodgers’ feelings towards Christmas are, but he sure is a cranky older athlete that talks about himself a lot. The former MVP quarterback is having a troublesome year with the Jets and has seemingly gotten several people fired throughout this season. This is comparable to Scrooge not caring that he’s potentially screwing up the family lives of one of his employees. Both individuals are always doing what is in their best interest which often leaves destruction in their wake. In A Christmas Carol, Scrooge is visited by three ghosts to help him see the error in his ways. For the sake of Rodgers and the New York Jets, lets hope the ghosts of Christmas Past, Present, and Future get him back to winning soon.

Dan Hurley - Heat Miser

These are two of the angriest individuals that I have ever seen in my life. Heat Miser just looks angry and if you’ve seen him in action he clearly runs hotter than most. This makes him a potential locker room problem for any team he’s a part of. His counterpart in this equation, Dan Hurley, also gets incredibly heated at officials during games. The UConn coach was extra naughty during the week of Thanksgiving as his Huskies went 0-3 in Maui. Hurley got a technical foul, complained about the refs, and threw absolute fit on the sideline in just about every game. It nearly crossed the border from Heat Miser-esque to childlike. While both are great at their respective jobs, Heat Miser bringing hot weather to the world and Hurley winning National Championships, this behavior can be kind of distracting. For Hurley, he’ll need to find his Snow Miser to help even him out.

Geno Smith - The Grinch

The Grinch, a holiday favorite, is known for his grumpy nature and general loathing of holiday spirit, but his heart is changed by a little Who girl who alters his perspective on life. Geno Smith started in New York, was given up on as a starting quarterback in the NFL, got a chance in Seattle, and now he’s never looked back. Both are incredible tales of redemption and personal growth. Geno and Mr. Grinch were written off and forgotten by the masses. Our friend Geno Smith said it best and it perfectly fits into this comparison, “They wrote me off, I ain't write back though.” These two heroes turned their stories around and will get to ride of into the sunset together as winners. I’ll put my own spin on a Dr. Seuss classic in regards to Smith’s career in Seattle to finish us off. What happened then? Well in Seattle they say, Geno’s skill grew three times that day.

Steph Curry - Ralphie Parker

This is another comparison that seems fairly obviously. For anyone that doesn’t know, Ralphie is the main character in timeless classic A Christmas Story. An iconic line from the film is “You’ll shoot your eye out.” So it’s only right to make Ralphie’s comparison the greatest three point shooter of all time. Steph Curry has the NBA’s all time record for most made three pointers. I think that makes it clear if any athlete was ever told they’d shoot their eye out, it would be Steph. Both are on the smaller side and were doubted by many, but managed to get the job done. Ralphie gets his Red Rider BB Gun and Steph has won four championships and is a future Hall of Famer.

Jameis Winston - Buddy The Elf

I challenge anyone to find two more likeable individuals than Jameis and Buddy. Each attacks their day with a level of joy that a normal person is envious of. In the movie Elf we see Buddy change the hearts of several people on a journey to spread Christmas cheer to all. Famous Jameis spreads cheer with his pregame speeches and overall joy he brings to the football field. The interviews from the Thursday night snow game alone were incredible enough. However, Jameis followed that up by balling out and creating an iconic highlight as he dives through the snow into the endzone. Which might remind us all of Buddy’s iconic snow ball fight. The final comparison is that both are questionable at their jobs. Buddy isn’t a great elf productivity wise and Jameis has had his struggles as a franchise quarterback. With that being said, I love them both and will watch them work their craft any day of the week.

Nikola Jokic - Adam Sandler’s Chanukah Song

To be completely honest, this is one of my more creative comparisons but I thoroughly enjoy it. The Adam Sandler classic “The Chanukah Song” is the only non Christmas item on this list. However, it is an absolute classic that has been making people of all religions sing along for generations. Someone else that has been constantly putting up numbers for years is Nikola Jokic. Similar to his musical comparison, Jokic is somehow recognized for his greatness while simultaneously not being properly appreciated. The Serbian star is unlike anything we’ve ever seen in the NBA and nobody has been able to recreate the magic of “The Chanukah Song” like Adam Sandler. This song and superstar are generational talents that represent a total antithesis to the normal holiday hit and NBA star. We are very Pro-Jokic and Pro-Sandler here at Biasedly Unbiased Sports so this comparison was an absolute joy to talk about. Finally, don’t forget the eternal words of Adam Sandler when it comes to Chanukah, “OJ Simpson… Not a jew.”

Eli Manning - Fred Claus

Both Eli and Fred are in the shadows of their famous brothers. Fred is the brother of Santa Claus and struggles to create his own life. Eli Manning was always known as Peyton’s younger brother rather than an athlete in his own right. Each is criminally underrated as Eli was a gunslinger and Fred Claus is hilarious and a fan-favorite for holiday movies. While being in the shadows for decades, each brother took advantage of their opportunity and became a legend. Fred saved Christmas and Eli beats golden boy Tom Brady twice in the Super Bowl. When the lights shined the brightest, Fred and Eli showed they weren’t the black sheep of their respective families. Greatness runs in the genetics of both the Manning and Claus families. On a smaller end with the similarities, each brother has more of a light-hearted, comedic approach as compared more serious brothers. Take some time out of your holiday season to rewatch some Eli highlights and experience the greatness of Fred Claus.

With this being one of the more ridiculous lists that I’ve put together, I hope there are some people out there that enjoy it. It was an absolute blast to think holiday movies and comprise similarities to the stars in the sports world today. Not all of these comparisons were probably winners. So as always, let me know which you thought were hits, misses, and any comparisons that I may have missed. I hope everyone has a Happy Holidays no matter what you celebrate and know I appreciate everyone who reads whatever I write down. Thank you!