NBA all-time leading scorer and four-time MVP LeBron James has joined forces with former NBA sharpshooter J.J. Redick in a new venture.
The unlikely duo is set to debut its new podcast titled “Mind the Game,” which is set to air its first show Tuesday on YouTube. In conjunction with James’ Uninterrupted production company and Redick’s ThreeFourTwo Productions, the two highly intelligent basketball minds are hopefully set to take us on a journey through the game and the state of the game.
In a press release James said, “I’m really proud of what we’ve done to innovate in sports media. When I do a project, the only thing I think about is whether me and my friends would watch it. That is definitely the case with Mind of the Game. Everything doesn’t need to be designed for internet culture and clicks.”
Redick seemingly piggybacked James’ statement:
“It’s meant to be a very free-flowing conversation about the sport and about the game. If you look at it in a very simplistic way, it’s just about basketball.”
How Will This Go?
In the debut episode the LeBron and Redick talk basketball strategy over wine.
With the James and Redick dynamic it’s gonna be very interesting to see how things go with this podcast. With so many now doing or saying anything to get clicks and views, one can only hope it’s basketball talk in its purest form.
With these two, that goal is highly attainable because James is a savant of the game, and Redick has become one of the more prepared and outspoken NBA analysts around.
He spots weekly on ESPN’s “First Take,” and let’s just say he does a great job of setting Stephen A. Smith, Shannon Sharpe and Kendrick Perkins straight. What makes it even better is he does it tactfully. That type of energy had to garner the attention of James, who isn’t going to sit and chop it up with just anyone. He definitely sees something he likes in Redick, and that’s why we’re here.
Hopefully, we get some insightful stories and analysis from James, who’s still playing at a high level in Year 21 and Redick, a retired NBA player, analyst and podcaster (“The Old Man and the Three”).
Idea Came About Recently
Per reports, the idea to create this podcast came during the league’s inaugural in-season tournament, won by the Lakers. Redick has become the de facto Lakers game color analyst for ESPN, spending a lot of time around James and the team.
Redick and James pride themselves on being students of the game, and that’s something you’ll likely see with both talking strategy and in-game adjustments, something Redick does with regularity as a color analyst.
James is very detailed in his approach, and few people would be influence enough to persuade him to sit and talk basketball weekly. Redick has seemingly earned that respect from his strong and fact-driven opinions. But what sets him apart is his willingness to not back down on ESPN with SAS, Unc Shay Shay and Big Perk usually yelling and screaming, while the former Duke sharpshooter plays it cool while spewing facts.
It also doesn’t hurt that Redick has called James the GOAT since 2017. With so many choices of who to do a podcast with, he chose Redick, and that says a lot.
Savannah James Starts Her Own Podcast
Bron, 39, isn’t the only James Gang leader who is venturing into the podcast business. His 37-year-old wife and rock, Savannah James is coming out of her shell of anonymity and using her voice. King James’ longtime queen recently announced her venture will be called “Everybody’s Crazy” along with co-host and Crown + Conquer founder April McDaniel.
Fans were given a number to call to have a live conversation with the hosts.
