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10 Best Athlete Guests Ever On The Daily Show With Jon Stewart

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By @nickmarsico

10 Best Athlete Guests Ever On The Daily Show With Jon Stewart

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Jon Stewart just announced that, after a 16-year run as the host of Comedy Central's The Daily Show, he will be leaving the show later on this year. He has interviewed a wide range of guests, from politicians, comedians, actors, athletes and more. Here are the 10 best athlete guests on The Daily Show with John Stewart.

10. Mariano Rivera

Mariano Rivera
The Star-Ledger-USA TODAY Sports

10. Mariano Rivera

Mariano Rivera
The Star-Ledger-USA TODAY Sports

The best closer of all time visited the best late-night host of the modern era and it was the Yankees' Sandman against a huge Mets fan. They spent half the interview making fun of the Mets, and Rivera came off, as he always does, as one of the most classy guys in sports.

9. R.A. Dickey

r.a. dickey
Anthony Gruppuso-US PRESSWIRE

9. R.A. Dickey

r.a. dickey
Anthony Gruppuso-US PRESSWIRE

Cy Young Award-winning knuckleballer R.A. Dickey joined Jon Stewart in December 2012. A big Mets fan, Stewart immediately asked how the Mets were going to screw up having such a great pitcher. Dickey was traded to the Toronto Blue Jays only 11 days later.

8. Amar'e Stoudemire

Amar'e Stoudemire
Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports

8. Amar'e Stoudemire

Amar'e Stoudemire
Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports

New York Knicks power forward Amar'e Stoudemire stopped by The Daily Show with Jon Stewart to promote his books intended to encourage kids to read. On top of looking cartoonishly huge sitting at Jon's desk, he was wearing a pretty sweet tie. Amar'e spent most of the time laughing at Stewart's jokes and was a good sport throughout the host's self-deprecating humor.

7. Mick Foley

Christina Ricci Attends A RAINN Fundraiser mick foley
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7. Mick Foley

Christina Ricci Attends A RAINN Fundraiser mick foley
Getty Images

Mick visited the show on a couple of occasions, and among other things, Jon Stewart used Ric Flair and Megadeth in the same sentence and Foley discussed using correspondent Samantha Bee's book as an instrument to hide his manhood on a plane. Foley also came on the show to promote his involvement in a documentary about being Santa Claus, a role in which the former wrestler assumed himself.

6. Mookie Wilson

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6. Mookie Wilson

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A member of the 1986 World Series Champion New York Mets, Mookie Wilson appeared on The Daily Show to promote his book about the victory. He also discussed the Donald Sterling situation, saying it was "kind of weird" that Sterling owned a team that was 80 percent black -- an understatement yet the perfect statement.

5. Phil Jackson

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5. Phil Jackson

Knicks lakers phil jackson
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Legendary player and coach Phil Jackson promoted his book about managing/coaching in 2013 on The Daily Show. So many people think of him as the amazingly successful coach that it can be surprising to see how big he is when he stands next to normal-sized people like Jon Stewart. Jackson is another New York athlete that the big sports fan Stewart has been able to have on his program.

4. Magic Johnson

Magic Johnson
Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

4. Magic Johnson

Magic Johnson
Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Former Lakers star and HIV/AIDS prevention advocate joined Stewart in 2012 and made it a point to immediately express how funny he thought Jon and the show were. He talked about his rivalry and friendship with Larry Bird. Jon Stewart's lesson learned from Johnson's story about how to be successful: "Find somebody to hate."

3. Misty May-Treanor

Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh Jennings
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3. Misty May-Treanor

Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh Jennings
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Misty was interviewed for the show after the London Olympics in 2012. She talked about how she wanted to dress up like Robin Hood or Katniss from the Hunger Games and become an archer after being done with volleyball. They also discussed the infamous condom shortage in the London Olympic Village.

2. Charles Barkley

NBA on TNT Inside the NBA Live from New York charles barkley
Steven Freeman/NBAE via Getty Images

2. Charles Barkley

NBA on TNT Inside the NBA Live from New York charles barkley
Steven Freeman/NBAE via Getty Images

Barkley was on The Daily Show three different times, including once to promote his book "I May Be Wrong But I Doubt It," which is one of the best book titles I can remember. He talked about how his grandmother told him that Republicans are for rich people. They discussed race and Stewart likened race relations to the differences between white chocolate and Swiss chocolate.

1. Shaquille O'Neal

Shaquille O'neal shaq
Ed Sczcepanski-USA TODAY Sports

1. Shaquille O'Neal

Shaquille O'neal shaq
Ed Sczcepanski-USA TODAY Sports

Shaq started his appearance by picking Stewart up like a child, so the tone for the fun was set immediately. Shaq is one of the best and biggest personalities in sports history and he's always a great interview. He talked about raising his hand like an excited kindergartner while in class, earning his PHD and how firm his derriere is even though he's no longer an active player.

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