The NC State Wolfpack are on one heck of a run right now, as the team won the ACC Tournament to earn a berth in the NCAA Tournament and has kept on winning. Despite being an 11 seed, the Wolfpack have made it out of their region and will play Purdue in the Final Four on Saturday evening.
It’s been a joy to watch, in large part because they might have the most fun player to watch in America. NC State’s starting center is D.J. Burns, a 6’9, 275 pound big man with unreal footwork, some incredible instincts as a passer, and a big smile that seems to always be on his face. He came up huge in the team’s Elite 8 win over Duke, as the big fella went for 29 points, four rebounds, three assists, and two blocks.
Burns’ college hoops career ends when this season does, and apparently, there are NFL teams with some level of interest in seeing if he could suit up along the offensive line. The problem: Burns isn’t particularly interested in that, telling reporters he has “zero” interest in trying his hand at football.
“Until I got my first scholarship offer (for basketball), and then I quit immediately,” Burns said when asked if he ever played football. NC State’s coach, Kevin Keatts, is also pretty confident that football isn’t in his future.
Kevin Keatts laughs off DJ Burns getting NFL attention:
“Yeah, no way he’s playing football.”
Said he’s fielded no calls about DJ playing pro football, he thinks his future is on the court. pic.twitter.com/KQqcPP601G
— Travon Miles (@TrayABC11) April 4, 2024
Word of Burns drawing NFL interest came earlier this week from Peter Schrager of Fox Sports, who cited his size and footwork as things that make him an appealing prospect in a sport he doesn’t play.
