Joe Burrow’s Cleveland another LeBron Kid Cudi Browns journey

CLEVELAND – NBA Star Donovan Mitchell had just settled into his new life in Cleveland when an Instagram direct message caught his eye.

It’s a note from Cincinnati Bengals midfielder Joe Burrow Welcome Mitchell to Cleveland. Since the two weren’t following each other on Instagram at the time, Mitchell wasn’t even sure how he saw the message. But he knows how he feels when he does.

“For me to have that, it’s been a great welcome to the city and it shows how much Cleveland loves their sport,” said Mitchell, who was traded from Utah last month. with ESPN. “He was a Cleveland fan growing up, and to still reach out even when he’s in Cincinnati, still reach out, I’m happy to be a part of that. I think that’s pretty dumb. stupid.”

The city of Cleveland, three hours north of Burrow’s adopted hometown of Athens, Ohio, was a major influence on Burrow’s sports and musical interests. The Southeast Ohio native grew up a huge fan of the Cavs and has a picture of him wearing a bad suit. LeBron James jersey went viral to prove it. He became good friends with Grammy-winning musician Kid Cudi, the Cleveland rapper, with whom Burrow listened to music growing up. And in high school, Burrow even had a brief stint as a fan of Cleveland Browns – the team he’ll be facing on “Monday Night Football” (8:15 p.m. ET, ESPN/ESPN2).

The game embodies Burrow’s dual loyalty. The man shaped by Cleveland is now building his legacy against the city’s internal rival.

Of all the things Burrow has achieved in his career, there is one that has kept him shunned – victory over the Browns. Cincinnati lost both meetings in 2020, and Burrow’s only appearance against Cleveland in 2021 was a 41-16 Week 9 game.

Jimmy Burrow, Joe’s father, said: ‘You can bet he’s aware of that and wants to change that. “It’s one of those things that he hopes to check off his to-do list.”

MITCHELL WELL WELL acquainted with the feats of Burrow at the time Utah Jazz Swapped the three-time All-Star for Cleveland on September 1. He watched Burrow – in his second season – lead the Bengal team to Super Bowl LVI, where they lost Los Angeles Rams 23-20 February 13.

“I’ve never met him, but just from the outside looking in, he seems like a confident guy,” Mitchell told ESPN. “To do what he did last year, it’s really impressive, and I have a lot of respect for him.”

And yes, he saw that photo of Burrow – a photo of a teenage Burrow wearing a LeBron Cavs number 23 shirt.

In 2014, James announced he would return to the Cavaliers after four years with Miami Heat. Ryan Luehrman, Burrow’s longtime friend, recalls when they discovered Athens High. Burrow immediately ran home, found his old LeBron jersey and took a selfie in front of the mirror with the simple caption: “He’s back”. The message sent to his group of friends on Snapchat eventually found its way back on the social network, where it circulated.

“I started seeing it on Twitter,” Luehrman said. “I said, ‘What the hell? I haven’t seen that picture in forever, who got it?’ People post all the time now. I found it quite funny. “

During college at Ohio State and LSU, Burrow loved the color red Matthew Dellavedova shirt, one-time cult hero of the Cavs.

“He’s in a hurry,” Burrow said in 2016 when Burrow was in Ohio. “He’s lying on the floor. My kind of man.”

And then as Burrow began to make a name for himself in the second of his two seasons at LSU, the admiration began to reciprocate. After Burrow’s stormy 2019 season that included a national championship and Heisman Trophy, Dellavedova sent Burrow an e-frame depicting some of the midfielder’s best moments, from his touchdown to the game. Burrow’s final appearance at LSU’s Tiger Stadium and his Heisman Trophy speech.

Things went to another level last year. When Burrow led the Bengal team in their best playoff in three decades, he captured national attention. After Cincinnati beat Kansas City in the AFC championship game, James called Burrow a talent of his generation, just like himself. In a Tweet, Los Angeles Lakers the star said “Joe B is the absolute TRUTH! We’ve all seen it and know it.”

When the Bengals beat Kansas City, it showed why the Bengals chose Burrow to convert the franchise. In the span of three years, the Bengals have gone from the worst team in the league to the AFC champions. But the reaction from people like James is what leaves Burrow speechless.

Burrow said during the post-match press conference after the AFC championship match. “In my head, I’m just an old man. Kid Cudi contacted me yesterday, you caught LeBron tweeting to me. That part was weird. The football part, not so much, but those things are real. foolhardy. “

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BURROW gets 11 when Scott Mescudi – aka Kid Cudi – dropped his first mixtape, launching his rap career. In a YouTube interview with audio company Bose last month, Burrow recalled being in sixth grade when he first heard Kid Cudi’s music.

“My friend Marcus came to me, and he said, ‘I have to show you this guy’s music – Kid Coodie“” said Burrow. “We started listening to it, and from then on, I was hooked.”

Kid Cudi grew up in Shaker Heights, about 10 miles east of Cleveland. Oladipo Omishore, one of the longtime producers of the rapper nicknamed Dot Da Genius, has toured with the artist from the very beginning.

Omishore told ESPN that the link between Kid Cudi and Cleveland was evident during his Moon Man’s Landing festival in the city in September. And the relationship between Burrow and his favorite artist is also evident. equally clear.

“You probably know they’re cut from the same fabric,” says the manufacturer. “It’s like they’re both the same je ne sais quoi that makes them X-factors in their respective fields. “

Before each game, Burrow listened to Kid Cudi’s “New York City Rage Fest,” a 117-second song with no lyrics, lots of synths, and motivating drum beats. Burrow and Kid Cudi have established a personal bond, so much so that Kid Cudi texted Burrow about his match shirt after winning the Bengals AFC title match.

Four days later, Kid Cudi tweeted a photo of a grass-stained white uniform. On top of Burrow’s number 9 is his signature. At the bottom was a two-word message: “Ohio Love.”

Kid Cudi said he is not a sports fan. But he had a point when he sat down to watch Cincinnati beat Kansas City.

“I’m invested in this because this is someone I know,” said the artist whose latest album “Entergalactic” features a song dedicated to Burrow. “It was the first time I’ve ever had. I’ve never had a friend play on a team where I was like, ‘Oh, I have to root for them.'”

After Team Bengal lost in Super Bowl LVI, Kid Cudi performed at the team’s after-party, with Burrow as the set-list manager. Omishore witnessed Burrow and some of his teammates standing on stage while Kid Cudi performed.

“It was a real relationship,” Omishore said. “It’s like Cudi really sees Joe Burrow as a family now. And I could say it’s the opposite. They both hold each other very high. [regard]. “

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BURROW FAMILY Southeast Ohio’s home sits between three AFC North rivals. Athens is less than 215 miles from Cincinnati, Cleveland and Pittsburgh, which has led to mixed loyalties at Athens Senior School.

Former idol Burrow New Orleans Saints midfielder Drew Brees. When New Orleans picked USC rerun star Reggie Bush to second overall in the 2006 draft, Burrow had a new NFL team to start with.

Then around high school, his allegiance switched.

“I liked the Saints for a while and then I became a Browns fan for a few years,” Burrow said at the 2020 scouting match.

Luehrman said the fandom of Burrow’s Cleveland is unique even within their circles.

“Our group of friends, no one is really friends with Cleveland,” Luehrman said.

Last year, Luehrman was a member of dozens of Burrow’s friends who bought tickets to see the Bengals play the Browns in Cleveland in the final week of the regular season. When they bought, they expected Burrow to lead Cincinnati in a game that could determine the team’s playoff fate. Instead, with the AFC North eliminated a week early and the players starting not to play, Burrow didn’t even travel.

“We texted [him] about it, like, “Thanks man, it’s really, really fun to watch you play with people,” Luehrman said.

Over the years, Cleveland has given Burrow plenty of reasons to celebrate, except the one he’ll be looking for on Monday night.