Former hockey player P.K. Subban didn't hold back today on ESPN's First Take.

There's been a big debate in the sports world lately, and it has to do with the comparison between the NBA and the NHL - specifically their respective mid-season, all-star festivities. To be frank, the NBA's All-Star weekend this year was a disaster. The league had fans shooting in the three-point contest, a G-League player won the dunk contest (because NBA stars won't participate anymore), and the format of the All-Star game itself led to abysmal ratings and many writing it off as a joke of an event.

On the flip side, the 4 Nations Face-Off has been an incredible success for the NHL and the sport of hockey at large. The league has managed to create a seismic event, pitting the United States, Canada, Finland and Sweden against one another in a round-robin tournament that replaced this year's NHL All Star event. They'd be dumb not to permanently replace the All-Star break with the 4 Nations Face-Off, or at the very least, something like it.

One big difference between the two leagues is that the NBA has a problem with its stars wanting to participate in the All-Star festivities. If they do, it's a half-assed effort at best. As for the NHL? The players in the 4 Nations tournament are playing with a pride that's overwhelmingly contagious, and the round-robin event has turned these mid-season games into must-see-TV.

When asked on ESPN's Get Up if the 4 Nations could inspire the NBA, former NHL D-man PK Subban basically said no, and blamed the lazy culture of the NBA. He essentially said that the NBA players don't have enough heart to compete in a must-see all-start event, and he blamed the leaders of the league for establishing this soft culture:

And then on Thursday's edition of First Take, P.K. Subban (a Canadian) ripped into the NBA and it's current climate, saying that the NHL is the league that should be looked to as an example of how things should be done:

"If you're really about sports, then you're about two things, your teammates and the fans. I'm sorry, it doesn't matter how much money you're making. When you do not show up to play, you're letting your teammates down. When you do not show up to play, you're letting the fans down, and they're paying you $40, $50, $60 million.

I don't care if you're getting paid $300 million. Congratulations, but these people in here are paying $2,500 a ticket, $5,000 that are blue-collar, hard-working people. If you don't get your head around that, then you shouldn't be in pro sports. How are we going to grow? How do we expect for you to be an example? Oh, you don't want to be? Well, you are one. You're on the biggest stage. They make the most money. You're an example, you've got to show up and you've got to take that on."

Can I get an amen?

First Take gave Subban the floor, and he made the most of it. He continued by saying he was appalled that NBA players are looked up to by younger kids, and he makes a decent point. The role models young minds are supposed to look up to get paid a bunch of money and don't always want to do their job? While the NHL players get paid much less and continue playing in games even when they're teeth get knocked out?

Subban makes a very sound argument:

"I'm sick and tired of making athletes greats, all-time greats that aren't the best examples! Those are the people that we want our kids to follow. That we want athletes to follow. That helps our game... you want athletes to be educated on this and understand this. They've got to understand the importance of showing up to the all-star game and being on the court, and playing banged up sometimes. Playing injured at times and participating,.

Because here's the thing... because you are making $200 or $300 million, you should be out there banged up. That's why we pay you... to max out. We talk about greatness and it being the longevity of someone's career. I don't care if you play 50 years. I want your best 10. I want you on the court dominating. I want you to go all out. I want Michael Jordan. I want Kobe. That's what I want in every sport."

I couldn't agree more with what he said there, and every other sports fan was also on board with what the media personality had to say. The only thing that people weren't in agreement with Subban about was this post that he sent out earlier this morning. The former Canadian hockey player shared a screenshot of President Donald Trump's message regarding tonight's USA-Canada championship game, and P.K. shared that the "Trizzy Train" could be coming through soon.

No one knows if he meant Prime Minister Justin Trudeau or President Donald Trump... both last names start with "Tr," and I don't think I've heard either of them called the "Trizzy Train." Some Canadians were calling him a sell out for sharing Trump's post, while Americans celebrated that he did so. Though I don't think anyone really knows what he meant.

And I don't share that to take away from Subban's rant against the NBA. That was what the kids call "on point" (I don't think the kids actually say that anymore).

Subban mentioned Kobe earlier, so I thought I'd throw this in there to finish out this NBA versus NHL story. Bryant, who tragically passed away in a helicopter crash in 2020 at the age of 41, had something in common with the toughness that most NHL players exhibit... he knew how important it was to show up and play with all of his heart. Kobe did so in every regular season game, and he's one of the last guys to ever take the NBA's All-Star game seriously.

Bottom line, we could use some more "Mamba Mentality" in sports: