In this edition of Last Take, we’re looking at sports hot takes sent in by students. We received lots of takes, so we’re going to divide them among multiple parts. We’ll break down everyone and give it unbiased analysis and a rating out of ten. Some of these are extremely bad and some are impeccable. If you want to add you take you can do so here.
“LeBron is bottom 5 in the NBA.” – Marcel Williams
Rating: -100/10
Carter: Starting off, we have quite possibly the worst take of all time. LeBron is the greatest athlete to ever grace this planet. King James has been putting up GOAT numbers in the NBA for the past two decades. Put some respect on the 4× NBA champion, 4× NBA Finals Most Valuable Player, 4× NBA Most Valuable Player, 21× NBA All-Star, 3× NBA All-Star Game MVP, 20× All-NBA selection, NBA Rookie of the Year, NBA All-Rookie First Team, NBA scoring leader, NBA assists leader, 3× NBA minutes leader, J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award, NBA Cup winner, NBA Cup Most Valuable Player, NBA Cup All-Tournament Team, 4× Olympic medalist, FIBA Men’s Olympics Most Valuable Player, FIBA World Cup medalist, FIBA AmeriCup medalist, USA Basketball Male Athlete of the Year, 3× State champion, 2× Gatorade National Player of the Year, 2× Mr. Basketball USA, 2× USA Today High School Player of the Year, 3× Ohio Mr. Basketball, 3× USA Today All-USA First Team, 2× PARADE High School Player of the Year, 2× First-team Parade All-American, Second-team Parade All-American, Gatorade Male Athlete of the Year, Naismith Prep Player of the Year, McDonald’s National Player of the Year, McDonald’s High School All-American, McDonald’s Slam Dunk Contest (Powerade Jam Fest), McDonald’s All-American Game MVP, EA Sports Roundball Classic MVP, Jordan Brand Capital Classic MVP, Morgan Wootten National Player of the Year, Sports Illustrated Sportsperson of the Year, Sporting News Athlete of the Year, Sporting News NBA MVP, Sporting News Rookie of the Year, Sports Illustrated NBA All-Decade First Team, 7× Best NBA Player ESPY Award, 3× Best Male Athlete ESPY Award, Best Breakthrough Athlete ESPY Award, 4× Best Championship Performance ESPY Award, 6× BET Sportsman of the Year, 3× Associated Press Athlete of the Year, 2× Hickok Belt, Jackie Robinson Sports Award winner’s name please and thank you. LeBron’s impressive resume is truly unmatchable and has solidified him as a Top-2 player of all time. This take is atrocious and gets a -100/10, which is probably higher than it should be.
“Football sucks.” – Anna Lowder
“Football is just a bunch of grown men dogpiling on each other, over a piece of leather.” – Eddie David
Rating: 0/10
Carter: I’d have to heavily disagree with this take. Football is a beautiful game. These takes are simply slandering without any thought or reason. “Football sucks” is a simply statement has no true depth to it, which makes it a horrible hot take as it is unarguable. Calling football “a bunch of grown men dogpiling on each other, over a piece of leather,” immediately discredits your take, as this is a gross simplification of an extremely complex sport and shows an extreme lack of ball knowledge. American football is not “grown men dogpiling,” as most tackles are one-on-one scenarios that are the result of a high-speed play. If you want to call a sport “dogpiling,” go hate on rugby, as that is true dogpiling. Also, in modern American there is little actual fighting over the “piece of leather,” which is actually four pieces of cowhide leather and a PVC lace. Modern football is more a fight over yardage. This shows your extraordinary lack of ball knowledge. Both of these takes are extremely basic, due to this they both get a 0/10.
“Cricket is better than baseball.” – Elias Adams
Rating: 2/10
Carter: “Cricket” in the big 2025 is so unserious. Cricket is a wacky sport that is mostly watched by older generations. Its longer, confusing to new watchers, and has less exciting moments than baseball. This pales in comparison to “America’s Pasttime,” which has been back on the rise the past few years. I’d rather watch a mid-June White Sox-Marlins game than watch cricket. This take gets a 2/10 due to it being very weak to support.
“Bowling honestly hype.” – Kyler Richardson
Rating: 9/10
Carter: This is a great take. Bowling is an accessible sport that’s always a good time. Great strike animations and good food make for a memorable experience at your local lanes. While professional bowling isn’t large, casual bowling makes up the difference. Honestly, bowling could easily be a top-10 sport. Not quite perfect, but still deserving of a 9/10.
“Bronny is the next goat.” – Max Tippey
Rating: 10/10
This is a perfect take and is the only one on this list that is guaranteed to come true. Bronny has been putting up generational numbers in the G-League. There, he has been a lethal offensive threat with an Offensive Rating of 100.5. He has also been playing lock-down defense putting up a Defensive Rating of 106.2. He has never missed a shot in the famous Madison Square Garden, which will be a cornerstone of his legendary legacy. In his most recent appearance against the Jazz, Bronny scored nine points in eight minutes with an awe-inspiring 75% field goal percentage and a 67% three-point percentage. Give him some time, and he will surpass the current GOAT, his father.
“Jayden Daniels is already the best player in the NFL.” – Randy Villariza
“Jayden Daniels should of been MVP this year/ greatest rookie oat/ he best qb itl/ redskins will super bowl next year.” – Cole Ivey
Rating: 7/10
Mercer: Ok there are a few things to analyze here. First, Jayden Daniels is a good player, but he is not great. He has potential and leading his team to the NFC Championship game is a huge accomplishment but to say he is the best player, I need to see some longevity. Second, the redskins are no longer a football team, they are called the Commanders. Also not a terrible take! Do I believe that the Commanders will win next season: no. However, I understand one’s argument. They are a young team with one of the best young quarterbacks and one of the best front offices in the NFL.
“Mahomes is too emotional to be in the Super Bowl as many times as he has, should’ve been a baseball player.” – Lillian Patterson
Rating: 5/10
Carter: This is a valid take. Mahomes is a very sore loser, see the December 2023 Bills-Chiefs game, and is very annoying to watch and listen too. Since he was drafted by the Detroit Tigers in 2014, Mahomes could’ve been a baseball player. But, the reason this take only gets a 5/10 is I want Patrick Mahomes to stay as far away as possible from America’s Pasttime. If he were drafted into the NBA, this take would be much higher rated.
“Falcons are the best NFL team.” – Everett Landrith
Rating: 4/10
Mercer: This is a terrible take! Look, I love Big Kirko as much as the next man, but the Falcons are mediocre at best. The do have young rising stars in Bijan Robinson and Michael Penix Jr, but their roster lacks depth. They have absolutely no defense, and no o-line. Who cares if you have one of the best running backs in the league if you can’t use him properly. It is sort of a New York Giants Saquon situation if you will.
“The only reason UNC has NCAA basketball titles is MJ.” – Beckett Edwards
Rating: 2/10
Mercer: That is just a false statement. He won one singular championship for UNC that is it. UNC has 6 total NCAAB championships which is tied for the most with UCON. There are plenty of amazing players that have contributed to UNC being a “basketball” school and MJ is just one. Have you ever heard of James Worthy or Cole Anthony!
“I think that the Portland Trailblazers will be in the 2026 NBA playoffs because they have a team full of rising stars and they are getting better and better every year. I think that the Indianapolis Colts will make the Super Bowl next year because their color is in the Super Bowl logo.” – Isaiah Perlmutter
Rating: 8/12
Carter: The first half is a carrying this hot take. Scoot Henderson, who made an appearance in the Top-20 Athletes of 2025 List, will lead this Portland team to the promised land of the NBA Playoffs. How deep into the tournament is uncertain, but they undoubtedly will get there. Now to tackle the egregious second half. Any team with Anthony “Turnover Central” Richardson under center will never go far in the NFL, UFL, CFL, or ELF. The Colts need to abandon the Richardson experiment and move on from this draft bust. I would argue the blue in the Super Bowl logo is more indicative of the Detroit Lions and/or Buffalo Bills. This take gets a 8/12, which was Anthony Richardson’s 2024 abysmal touchdown to interception ratio.
