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What do NFL player Isaiah Likely and NBA star Kevin Durant have in common? Both have faced some heartbreaking moments thanks to wearing shoes that might just be a little too big!
The 2024 NFL season kicked off with a bang on Thursday night as the defending Super Bowl champions, the Kansas City Chiefs, clashed with the Baltimore Ravens in a rematch of last year’s AFC Championship. In an exciting game at Arrowhead Stadium, the Chiefs came out on top, winning 27-20 to start the season strong.
But the victory wasn’t without some last-second drama. The Ravens were this close—seriously, just inches away—from tying the game in the final moments. Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson launched a pass to tight end Isaiah Likely at the back of the end zone, and it looked like they might send the game into overtime. But heartbreak struck when Likely’s foot landed just barely out of bounds, ruling the play incomplete.
Fans immediately drew comparisons to an infamous moment in NBA history involving Kevin Durant. During the 2021 NBA Playoffs, Durant’s foot placement caused a similar kind of agony for his team, the Brooklyn Nets.
So, What’s Up with Isaiah Likely’s Shoe Size?
We don’t actually know Likely’s exact shoe size since foot measurements aren’t part of the NFL Draft Combine. They measure hands, wingspan, and arm length, but foot size? Not so much. But whatever size shoes Likely wears, being just a bit smaller could have made all the difference.
On that crucial play, Jackson’s pass reached Likely, and he managed to secure the ball. The problem? His larger-than-needed shoes had him stepping just a little too far, with one foot landing on the out-of-bounds line. A quick review confirmed it—he was out by inches, and the Ravens missed their chance to take the game to overtime.
The Kevin Durant Connection
Fans couldn’t help but flash back to Kevin Durant’s heartbreaking moment during Game 7 of the 2021 NBA Eastern Conference Semifinals between the Brooklyn Nets and the Milwaukee Bucks. In the dying seconds of regulation, Durant sank a nearly perfect shot, but there was a catch: his foot was just over the 3-point line. Instead of a game-winning 3-pointer, it counted as a 2-pointer, tying the game and sending it to overtime. The Bucks went on to win the game and knock the Nets out of the playoffs. Afterward, the internet was flooded with jokes and memes about Durant’s shoe size.
Much like Durant’s near miss, Isaiah Likely’s shoe size might have been the small detail that kept the Ravens from changing the course of the game. And just like that, both athletes now share a memorable (and unfortunate) moment linked to the size of their footwear!