Best Moments of Athletes on Late-Night Shows

Assuming you're anything like me when the days get late, there's nothing quite like a late-night show to provide some last laughs before hitting the sack.

Staying up late to catch one of the handful of options is never a bad idea, with the shows' hilarious skits and jokes that let me unwind.

Things get even more interesting when one of our favorite athletes is a guest on the show, which allows fans to see a lighter side of them.

And since there have been so many good appearances, I figured the only appropriate thing to do was list the best moments of athletes on late-night shows—these are sure to draw a few laughs.

Derek Jeter Gets Some Walk-Up Songs

One of the most beloved baseball players ever, former New York Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter had a number of memorable moments on late-night shows that demonstrated he has quite the personality.

With baseball players choosing some unique songs as their walk-up tunes each time they come to the plate, Jimmy Fallon thought he would give a few suggestions to The Captain to consider.

Giving the disclaimer that he's "really serious" when steps into the batter's box, Fallon and The Roots offered up a few songs that Jeter wasn't too fond of—but at least they made him laugh.

Drew Brees Talks Deflategate

With the New England Patriots being involved in the whole Deflategate controversy prior to this year's Super Bowl, it seemed that everyone wanted to hear from other quarterbacks about how a deflated football might affect them.

That's why Conan O'Brien asked New Orleans Saints All-Pro quarterback Drew Brees to see if he could tell the difference between three separate footballs, with the signal-caller throwing a few of them to some of the fans in the audience.

After Brees first hit a light and then passed a deflated ball to a fan, Conan gathered his final verdict—it's easier to throw and catch a deflated ball.

Charles Barkley Talks Brett Favre's Sexting

Anytime a camera is rolling and NBA Hall of Fame forward Charles Barkley is in front of it, most fans expect something gold to come out of his mouth.

So when Sir Charles made an appearance on the Late Show With David Letterman in 2010 following the whole Brett Favre sexting controversy, you just knew Barkley would have a few things that would cause some laughs.

Whenever one pro athlete talks about another pro athlete's business, it's usually pretty funny—especially when he says stuff like, "They don't keep you out of the Hall of Fame for being freaky."

Classic Barkley.

The Rock Whips Jimmy Fallon into Shape

He's one of the biggest—and most jacked—athletes and entertainers today, so when Jimmy Fallon got Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson to come onto his show, Fallon just had to ask how the guy got into such good shape for his movie Hercules.

Forming a fictional workout group named the Fungo Brothers, the two had the entire audience rolling with their various exercises, which included dancing to Chubby Checker's song "The Twist," performing a new dance craze called the squat thrust and, of course, poking fun at the Shake Weight ads.

None of these will get you jacked up like The Rock, but they'll be hilarious to try.

Mike Schmidt's Inside Pitch on Susan Dey

A three-time National League MVP and Hall of Fame third baseman for the Philadelphia Phillies after 18 seasons with the team, Mike Schmidt knew a thing or two about how to handle inside pitches.

That's why David Letterman asked Schmidt to deliver a few tips on actress Susan Dey prior to her appearance on Letterman, with the player giving Dave a scouting report-like rundown of all the things he should consider when talking to her.

It might have been a brief sketch, but you can't help but laugh while watching it.

Mike Tyson Fights Mike Tyson

I don't know who didn't have Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!! for Nintendo when they were younger. It's without a doubt one of the best sports video games ever made.

And with the real Mike Tyson making an appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, the host just couldn't have the former heavyweight champ leave without taking on his digital self as Little Mac.

Failing to even land a punch on himself, Tyson lost—and won—by TKO, lasting just over a minute, and showed just how difficult it is to be in the same ring with Iron Mike.

Shaquille O'Neal Doesn't Have the Touch

Remember that two-year-old kid named Titus who made an appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live a couple of years ago after becoming a real hot shot?

No, seriously, the kid was the king of draining buckets, with videos of the little guy hitting shot after shot, earning him some fame—and, if I had to guess, the attention of college hoops coaches who are probably already thinking of offering him a scholarship for 2030.

With former baller Shaquille O'Neal as the guest, Kimmel wanted to see if the toddler could outshoot the big man, who was just a 52.7 percent career free-throw shooter.

Wouldn't you know it, the kid did it, sinking eight shots in 30 seconds as Shaq built a house with all of his bricks.

Whether Shaq tossed the competition or not, this was memorable to see—and gives Titus bragging rights on the jungle gym.

Robinson Cano Gets Booed to His Face

After Robinson Cano left the New York Yankees in 2014 to sign a 10-year, $240 million contract with the Seattle Mariners, when the All-Star second baseman was about to make his return to the Big Apple for the first time, Jimmy Fallon knew he would hear some boos.

Rather than wait until he set foot in Yankee Stadium, though, the player was a good sport and hit the streets to find out just how ruthless New Yorkers can be.

With fans booing a cardboard cutout of Cano's face, Robinson was actually standing behind it, coming out to surprise the people who were giving him some smack talk and causing some hilarious reactions.

Dale Earnhardt Sr. Gives His Top-10 Reasons

A NASCAR legend, Dale Earnhardt Sr. was one of the greatest racers the sport had ever seen.

With 76 Sprint Cup victories in a career that spanned nearly three decades, The Intimidator had one victory that had always eluded him—the Daytona 500.

After earning his first victory at the famed race back in 1998, Earnhardt Sr. got on the Late Show With David Letterman and gave some hilarious reasons on why it took him 20 years to actually get it—which, of course, included a few mustache jokes.

Kobe Bryant Isn't Amused

We all know that Los Angeles Lakers future Hall of Famer Kobe Bryant is one of the most competitive athletes we've ever seen. We often see him barking at opponents and, yes, even cursing out his teammates.

So when The Black Mamba made an appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live last week, the host thought it would be funny to get his take on a few of his teammates going wild and acting a fool following a win that snapped a eight-game losing streak.

Kobe's reaction is about the most priceless thing I have ever seen. He looks like he wants to lay into his guys—in particular, Nick Young.

Matt Harvey Asks About Matt Harvey

Anytime a late-night show can get an athlete to go undercover, it usually produces some solid TV.

In this case, though, New York Mets ace Matt Harvey dressed in casual clothes and took to the street to talk with New Yorkers about the 2013 All-Star Game, which was being hosted in Citi Field.

Appearing on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, Harvey—who actually started the game in his home stadium—found out that he wasn't as well-known as he might have thought, with people unaware that the star hurler was actually the one talking to them.

Hearing another guy talk about seeing him naked in the ESPN Body Issue was probably a bit of a shock for Harvey, but he played it cool throughout.

Athletes Reading Mean Tweets

In a world where everyone uses social media to get their thoughts or opinions across, athletes are often targeted by fans who rip into them from the safety of their 140 characters and smartphones.

So what better way for athletes to have some fun with those types of comments than scripting fake, mean tweets that are directed at them and read them off?

That's what Jimmy Kimmel has done a number of times, with athletes giving some of the best reactions to the types of things trolls say on the reg.

This is hands down one of the funniest segments in late-night TV right now.