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Reviewing All the Cool Stuff LeBron Said About the Sixers on the New “Mind the Game” Episode
By Matt Schultz
Published:
LeBron dropped a new episode of his Mind the Game podcast with Steve Nash on Friday, and he said some really great stuff in this one. Here are the two LeBron clips with the most interesting quotes in them.
LeBron on why he chose Philly
STEVE NASH: “First I wanna hear, like, how did you come to Philly?“
LEBRON: “My relationship with Tyrese Maxey goes beyond the court.”
NASH: “You can tell every time you mention him on the pod.”
LEBRON: “And by the way, when I mentioned in the past on the podcast, Philly was not even a question. Like that was just like —“
NASH: “You didn’t even know they would —“
LEBRON: No, absolutely, I didn’t even, you know — And obviously, and it’s way before the JB trade, as well, which was another intriguing piece I don’t think anybody seen coming. People saw that something was going to happen there, but I don’t think anybody thought it would be Philly that would be part of that trade package. I love the way he approaches the game too, you know, both sides of the floor, what he brings to the game, his insight on the game, I watched him kind of misunderstood, and that is absolutely okay. I think we’re all individuals for a reason, like, you know what I’m saying? And everyone is always trying to put everybody in the same box and I love what he stands for and what he brings to the table.
“And one of the most important, to be honest, is the big fella. And the only thing he has not done is win a championship. And I want to try to help him get that first one. He’s been the MVP of our league, has a gold medal, All-Stars, signature shoes, bunch of money, beautiful family — he has everything. He has the city on his back, he’s been the Process, you know, for what, 10 years? 12 years? However long he’s been there. I think it’s time now that we even dig even deeper into the process, and I hope that I can be kinda that final little piece that can help him get over the hump, and have him see maybe just see little bit differently than the way he’s seen it in his career, as far as like the day-to-day process, the day-to-day what it takes to get there.“
LeBron on how much he loves Tyrese Maxey
LEBRON: “I just love everything about Tyrese Maxey, man. Like, every day you get the same person. And that is very rare in sports, and obviously super rare in life. And I’ve always talked about how great of a person that he is, and obviously we know what he brings to the basketball court, but like — he was def — when I became a free agent, and we decided to let the Lakers know that I wouldn’t be returning, he was one of the first people that was on my line, calling me, ‘Yo what we doing? Yo, what’s up? What’s up, OG? What’s up old head? You know, come on down here, man. We can use you down here.’ You know, so — and our relationship, like, it’s a lot of times that I just don’t answer the phone for a lot of phone calls. Because I don’t even want to be swayed in one way, or I don’t even want — I already know what you’re calling about. But, I mean, he’s just such a great person. I cannot not talk to him.”
Hell yeah. This is what’s up. Overall, I’d say I lean slightly cynical when it comes to LeBron-talk — I figure the guy’s been world famous since he was like 16, so he’s had decades of practice creating narratives and spinning his own PR and all that sort of stuff — but after watching these clips, I’m throwing all cynicism out the window. I am buying what LeBron is selling here. I believe every word. Something about it all feels honest to me.
Is it because he’s talking about my favorite team/players, and I’m actively choosing to believe what he said because I want it to be true? Sure. It’s possible. But I don’t care. I’m not going to interrogate this any further. I’m just going to keep on thinking about all the good stuff LeBron said in these clips and nodding and lightly shaking my head in an “I can’t believe how good we have it” kind of way.
Getting into the nitty-gritty of what LeBron said, my first big takeaway is that Tyrese truly sounds like the nicest guy on the planet. It’s pretty incredible to hear LeBron talk about him so glowingly. I don’t know Maxey personally, of course, but it seems like the player we watch on TV is exactly who he is in real life: full of joy and good energy and always nice to everyone and all that good stuff. Which is great. Like, if you take basketball out of the equation, everything LeBron says about Tyrese here is pretty much the highest praise you can give a human being. That’s gotta feel nice to hear if you’re Tyrese. Also feels good to hear as a fan. This is the exact kind of guy you’d hope to have in your locker room, especially with the influx of big egos this new-look Sixers team is about to have.
My second big takeaway was how emotionally invested I still am in Joel Embiid. I haven’t thought about it much recently, but this LeBron clip reminded me that even after all we’ve been through with Jo, if he were to actually win a ring with the Sixers, it would almost certainly be the most sports elation I’ll ever feel in my life.
And hearing LeBron talk about wanting to help him do it was a real trip. Watching the clip the first time this morning was the most I’ve smiled at my computer in a very long time. Halfway through, I said “This is so awesome,” out loud to no one, alone in my office, and let out a hearty laugh. Exciting times. Good podcast, LeBron.
Matt Schultz is a comedy and sports writer from Philadelphia. He’s written extensively for ClickHole, The Onion, and Conan O’Brien’s Team Coco. His work has been featured in Vulture, Deadspin, The A.V. Club, Paste Magazine, and other publications. Much of his sports journalism can be found on college basketball websites that don’t exist anymore (PhilaHoops Heads rise up…) email: M.Schultz@sportradar.com