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- [00:01]
Steve Nash
Jason, anything you want us to hit or you go back over, or do you want us to close it out?
- [00:06]
LeBron James
No, I don't have anything.
- [00:07]
Steve Nash
I guess the only question I have.
- [00:08]
LeBron James
Is who decided to go with the boy band look first? Was it you or was it Dirk? The whole the Backstreet Boys look. The old NSYNC look.
- [00:35]
Steve Nash
Welcome back to Mind the game. Today we got an opportunity to sit down and talk to LeBron virtually. He's away with his family. I'm here at home. Some of our subsequent conversations this summer will be virtually. So bear with us if there's any technical issues that we iron out along the way. But hopefully we'll be in person some, but also definitely virtual as we are today.
- [00:59]
LeBron James
We.
- [01:00]
Steve Nash
We got a great opportunity to sit with LeBron, talk to him about the series he just played versus the Minnesota Timberwolves, what he experienced, what he faced, what he thinks of the T Wolves. I thought they were very impressive. Throughout the series, we've seen a team here mature. They made a big trade last summer. Kat going to New York and DiVincenzo and Julius Randle going to the T Wolves. And I think they've done an amazing job this year finding an identity with those new pieces. Not easy to do. So big shout out to their coaching staff and players for how they've been able to kind of matriculate through the season, find this identity, be an incredible team when it counts the most. And we'll also talk a little bit about Anthony Edwards and the leap he's made recently from, you know, primarily a scorer to a playmaker. And Lakers did a lot of things in this series to try to slow him down, to try to take away his impact, to keep him off their rim. And he showed, I think, some incredible growth and maturity, moving the ball, making simple passes, playing with different paces, changing gears. A growth and maturity that, you know, I think we love to see in all of our young stars in this league. So great conversation with LeBron today. Looking back on the series with the T Wolves. Hope you guys enjoy. Mind the game.
- [02:16]
LeBron James
Yes, sir. Back again, baby.
- [02:18]
Steve Nash
Back at it. Hey, first of all, condolences. You know, obviously sad to see you guys go out of the playoffs.
- [02:25]
LeBron James
Yeah, man.
- [02:26]
Steve Nash
Before we. Before we dig into that, though, I think it's probably appropriate that we send a major congrats shout out to Coach Pop.
- [02:34]
LeBron James
Oh, wow. Yeah, for sure. There's no way we even start this conversation without even talking about Pop and what he means for the game. What he meant, obviously, for just the NBA, San Antonio West Point. I mean, all the stops that he had, I mean, you know, to be able to cross paths. I mean we, we've crossed paths with Coach Pop so many times, you know, and I had one opportunity to actually play for him in the Olympics in 2004 and obviously going against him three times in the NBA finals. And I mean, what can you say? I mean, you could say, I mean he has. You talk about the superlatives when it comes to Coach Pop, man. He has, his list is, you know, out of this world. But I think what a lot of people have found out, if you ever got an opportunity to encounter a one on one with him or even just in crossing how great of a fucking guy that guy is, man. And it makes sense of why. How unbelievable a coach he was, you know, because of this person he was.
- [03:34]
Steve Nash
That's right. Yeah. I mean you look at the, the superlatives as you say, winning his coach in NBA history, five titles, 1850 win seasons.
- [03:44]
LeBron James
That's insane. Insane.
- [03:45]
Steve Nash
170 playoff wins. 170, right. So over two NBA seasons in wins, in the playoffs. What about playing for him? Coach, Coach Pop had you at Team usa. Tell us a little bit about that experience.
- [04:02]
LeBron James
Yeah, you know, it's just, you know, the admiration like for me, I was an 18 year old kid, you know, and you know, I got an opportunity to, to see it, you know, when they won a championship in 99 and then when they won it again, I believe in 2000, was it 2003, maybe. So how can. I had already had admiration, you know, for Pop and his San Antonio teams. And you know, I was on the team, I was a young guy alongside, you know, Carmelo Anthony, we were young guys. Dwyane Wade, we were super young and you know, to be a part of, you know, that team, you know, obviously we didn't succeed like we wanted to succeed, but to be on a team with like Allen Iverson and Tim Duncan, you know, and Coach Pop, you know, Larry Brown, like, that was a. That was just like, it was like another welcome to, you know, to what greatness is all about, you know, and you know, to, to, to see where Coach Pop have left this game, you know, as far as him patrolling the sidelines for as long as he did and you know, the amount of wins that you just mentioned, the amount of championships, the amount of great players that he's seen come through the San Antonio franchise, it's just been a complete honor, man. And for me to have like a real personal relationship with him that every time I see him it's like, you know, just so much respect and. And so much honor and, you know, definitely will be missed. You know, definitely will be missed. But obviously, we know, most important, his health is most important. But, you know, we can't. We cannot shy away from the fact that what he was able to accomplish on those sidelines, man.
- [05:40]
Steve Nash
Yeah, I mean, just greatness, you know, organizational greatness, you know, his role as a coach, but also as a GM or president or all the different roles he's taken on there. You know, the type of program, organization they built. A big part of that DNA is him and his personality, his standards, not just what he demands from players on the court, but also the type of people he tries to recruit or develop or, you know, influence. And you look at that family tree over there, how many coaches around the league, you know, Steve Kerr obviously played for him. IME played and coached with him. For him, you know, it goes. It goes on and on and on. Dozens of them, you know, But I think your point about. About him being a great man, you know, and he. And look, he's still with us, and hopefully he's going to have a big impact going forward and his health can continue to improve. But we just want to take this time to talk about, you know, his success and who he is. One little story that I always loved is we played them in the playoffs. Can't remember. Conference finals, semifinals. And me and Tony Parker bumped heads. Was it. I can't remember. I had. I'm sure I was bleeding as usual, leaking blood. And it was my nose, right? It was my nose. And it was. It was right down the stretch of the game, you know, last five, six minutes of the game, I believe. And trying to get the blood to stop, it's like right on the crease of my nose and, you know, this, like, really thin skin through there, so blood's flying out. So I come in the game, like, I made a three. It's bleeding. The refs get him out, come back in the games, bleeding again. Papa's over there, like, just let him play, right? Just let him play, you know, and so they obviously not going to let me play until you get up. But, like, I believed him, that he wanted me to play. He's like, I want to beat them with their full strength.
- [07:36]
LeBron James
Exactly. Full strength.
- [07:37]
Steve Nash
We're here to win against them with their best punch. And so I always admire the type of human being he is, the way he stood up for what he believes in, you know, human rights.
- [07:48]
LeBron James
Yeah, for sure.
- [07:50]
Steve Nash
For people. For people that are Underserved or, you know, under advantaged. And so I agree with you. I think you make a great point. It's not just the accolades as a coach and an organizational leader. It's the type of human being. The way he did it, I think he did such a service to our community, but also to our league, you know, as an example for how we want to, you know, behave. We're all different. We're all going have different ways of doing things, but he set a hell of an example for what success looks like and the way you approach it.
- [08:20]
LeBron James
Yeah, and you always hear this. You always hear this. This term culture, you know, in our league, who does it have a good culture? Does this franchise have a great culture? And I think, you know, when you look at it, if you can think of one franchise that the culture has always been, you know, the stability of that culture, this is how the culture is going to be ran. You automatically think about the San Antonio spurs. And the one common, you know, denominator has been Pop. You know, you can look at all the players that's come through there, you know, when Pop became head coach, from, you know, Vinny Del Negro to, you know, Avery Johnson to, you know, David Robinson to, you know, you know, obviously then Tim Duncan, then Manu, then Tony, then all these guys, you know, all the way down to, you know, DeMar DeRozan and all these guys, Wemby, you know, all these guys towards, you know. But the one common denominator has always been Pop, you know, and you think about culture and what everybody's, you know, trying to build. Now you hear a Heat culture, you hear, you know, all these other franchises that's building a culture. And, you know, I think it started, man, and, you know, like you said, the early, you know, 1990s, you know, when Pop took over. And it's been there to this 2025, man. Right, it's 2025. And I think, you know, people try to, you know, in all sports, you know, in all sports, you used to hear about the New England Patriots, you know, with Belichick, but I think it started with Pop as well, you know, you know, and having that influence, just being able. This is how things are going to be ran. No single person is bigger than this culture and what we're trying to build here. And I think that's. That. That has a lot to do with success. Obviously. We've seen.
- [10:06]
Steve Nash
Yeah, well, coming from the both of us, you know, we hope we see and hear a lot more from Coach Pop. Congrats on an Incredible career. But hopefully his influence will continue to take an impact on our league and our communities for a long time.
- [10:20]
LeBron James
Absolutely. Shout out, Coach Pop. Man, we miss you. Miss you, brother.
- [10:23]
Steve Nash
Yes, sir. This episode is sponsored in part by American Express. American Express knows that for an obsessive basketball fan like me, the playoffs mean a lot of travel time. Between broadcasting games and catching up with old teammates, I'm on the road almost every week from Boston to LA and everywhere in between. After all these years, I've learned the journey is as important as the destination. That's why I've always tried to find a spot to stretch, grab a coffee, get my mind right before heading over to the arena. Fortunately, there's a car that makes every part of that journey better. With amex Platinum, you earn five times membership rewards points on prepaid hotels and flights. Book through amextravel.com on up to $500,000 on flight purchases per year. Plus you get access to the Centurion Lounge, which makes travel that much more enjoyable. That's the powerful balcony of the American Express. Terms of that. For more information. More. First, how's the knee?
- [11:36]
LeBron James
Oh, man, this is my, this is my first in my 22 year career. This is my first knee injury, right? You know, I've had, you know, the regular tendonitis and the patella, all that stuff, but this is the first time I've ever had a, like, sustained knee injury where I had to like, okay, you got to get off your feet, you know, you got to kind of be shelled for a minute. And, you know, I knew as soon as when the impact happened with me and Divicenzo, you know, I felt it right away. My knee locked up and that's why I kind of stayed on the ground for quite a minute to see, you know, if the, if the knee will kind of release a little bit, you know. But I knew right in. And there was a pain that I hadn't felt before. And I think obviously when I was running back to close out and he collided to me, you know, my knee bent inward and that's the, that's the MCL injury that I had. So, you know, four to six weeks. The docs told me I have four or six weeks now. That's the benefit, that's the benefit of not, you know, going over, going on in the postseason. Obviously, I wish I was still going, but, you know, unfortunately, even if we would have won game, you know, at five at home, you know, I would have probably missed six and seven, you know, and, and even, even Further. But, you know, I have some time, though. I have some time to get it right and you know, and get back to full strength as far as my knee. But it's definitely, it was a pain that I, that next morning, man, you know, after I had told the docs, I was like, listen, you know, it feels, it's sore right now. Yes. And you know, this is Wednesday night after the game. And I said, you know, if I wake up Thursday morning and it's filling and it didn't feel any better than, you know, Friday morning. Let's get it, let's get an MRI Friday morning. Well, when I woke up Thursday morning and trying to get out of bed, I was like, holy. And I, and I called doc right away, I said, I, I can't wait till Friday. We need, I need to go today.
- [13:30]
Steve Nash
So that, I mean, that, that really was it for your season?
- [13:35]
LeBron James
Yeah, yeah. I mean, pretty much. Yeah. Yeah, unfortunately.
- [13:38]
Steve Nash
But, well, at least it's, you know, it's containable. You know, it's non surgical four to six weeks. You get yourself right in this wheelhouse of trying to get some, some time off. And in that respect, like, what is your mindset right now? Like, it's always weird. Like when I played, you know, you add a new variable to it. Getting healthy now.
- [13:57]
LeBron James
Right, right, right.
- [13:58]
Steve Nash
You have a forced variable.
- [14:00]
LeBron James
Right, right.
- [14:00]
Steve Nash
Like when I was in your shoes, you lose a series, like, you'd have these different kind of thoughts. One, sometimes you'd be, you know, devastated. Other times you'd be over analytical. Other times you just want space. You know, my bandwidth is done. I need to get away. Like, where are you right now with the way this kind of season. I was a big season for you guys, right? Like a big trade. Trying to ram this team together as quickly as possible. Had a hell of a run getting into the playoffs and you know, styles make fights and it's, it was a tough matchup for you guys. But where's your mindset before we talk about the series?
- [14:38]
LeBron James
Like, you just, you know, like you just said, Steve, I think it's. You unravel all of those emotions, you know, and you know, I've unraveled all of them in a sense of like, give me space, you know, going back, you know, analytically, seeing if there was ways I could have. What could I have done better? What we could have done better. Thinking about the individual matchups, thinking about their team versus our team, things where we could have did better, you know, and it all, it all has entered my mind since, Since Wednesday night when. When it was over with. So, you know, I've had a few days that kind of just, you know, each day has been something different, you know, and I've. Obviously, I've. I've come to grips with it now, you know, with it being, you know, quite a few days after the fact and watching a lot of the other series now and seeing how they unfold. But, yeah, you said it, man. I've. I've had all those emotions, you know, to the point where it's like we, you know, we entered the season well. But like you said, you know, when it comes to the postseason, man, matchups sometimes doesn't determine how well of a regular season you had. You know, it's the matchups, and we. We ran into a. A damn good matchup. A team that's been battle tested, a team that's hungry, a team that. That a lot of. A lot of youth, but also experienced at the same time, and another team that's trying to make the next step. And, you know, they were a worthy opponent, that's for sure.
- [16:06]
Steve Nash
How does kind of these, like, media narratives enter your frame of mind at this time of year? Like, for example, because it's the Lakers, because it's you and Luka, it's like, it's all about, how did the Lakers lose this series? When really what happened here is Minnesota's a hell of a team and they won the series. Like, how do you deal with some of that when you try to process.
- [16:27]
LeBron James
Yeah, yeah. For me, I've definitely learned over the years that teams win championships. And, you know, it's never, you know, always, always, always. Teams always win championships. And yes, individuals get a lot of the accolades and the praise, but a collective group, you know, wins championships. Now, you know, you have your big guys that make big plays at the end of games, throughout the game or whatever the case may be, but ultimately, you know, teams win championships and. And I understand that. And it's never just about me and Luca. It was never just about, you know, Anthony Edwards and Julius Randle. You know, it was always Minnesota versus the Lakers. And I understand that. And I. And I am at a point in my career now where I, you know, I don't lose sleep over that. Like, how did me and Luka lose? Like, well, yeah, well, there's. There's eight other guys on the floor, you know, so.
- [17:22]
Steve Nash
Of course.
- [17:22]
LeBron James
Yeah. Yeah.
- [17:23]
Steve Nash
So it's always, you know, it's the nature of the business. It's the nature of the business when you. When you've played 22 years. You've heard that. You've, you know, you've seen that before. But, but it's, it's, it is a, it is an interesting talking point in general is that like, you know, you guys are a developing roster. You know, you traded for a big generational piece, but that doesn't mean the roster is balanced, is fully formed, and you don't have time, once getting Luka to make moves necessarily, that are going to allow you to kind of fulf. Fill that roster. Like, like a way Minnesota is like. Minnesota could trade pieces out, but essentially they're a, They're, They're a balanced roster.
- [18:00]
LeBron James
Yeah. Yeah.
- [18:01]
Steve Nash
You know, you could say, I'd rather this guy than that guy, but positions covered.
- [18:05]
LeBron James
And the only thing they changed, you know, in the off season, they, they, they brought in two guys. They kind of lost a big piece. They lost, you know, obviously Cat, but brought in Julius and DiVincenzo, you know, and the other guys came back, you know, so the experience of being in the Western Conference finals last year, you know, DiVincenzo's played in big games, you know, and those guys just learn and continue to build their, Their regular season. I don't think their regular season gave them an. It didn't give any of us or, or the, the, the narrative that how good of a team they were actually were. You know, they were dealing with a lot of injuries. They were dealing with trying to learn each other. But you know, when the, when the postseason, when the postseason comes and you have that team of collective group, they. They have a strong, they have a strong eight to nine guys, you know, from their starting lineup to nas Reed to DiVincenzo, to Nikhil Alexander Walker. And those guys just, they come in and they just play extremely hard, you know.
- [19:01]
Steve Nash
So, yeah, from my perspective, two things I think that they had that you guys are looking for. One is an identity. They formed one this year. You guys are just trying to figure yours out, right? And those collective experiences of being there, looking at each other when you're down 15 in game three or whatever it is and say, we've been here before, we know what to do. Instead, you're looking at each other like, I've never been here with you. How are you feeling? How am I? You know, that stuff, those scars, those lessons. So I think they built an identity this year. You know, I think the other part of this was just speed. They have foot speed to defend, to attack. You guys had positional size, even though you'd play small for the most Part in the playoffs, you guys are six' six, six' ten across the board. Other than gab, you know, they. You have the size, you tried obviously, as you did in the regular season, to a lot of success. Kind of zone up, get up in the gaps, try to take the primary ball handler out of the game. But you know, when they have that quickness and ant, I mean, he's so explosive and he's improved. The playmaker.
- [20:07]
LeBron James
Playmaking. Exactly. He's improved so much with his playmaking. And you've seen him make the jump, you know, just from, from, from last year's playoff run all the way to just one, just one playoff, you know, series right there. You know, he, he was super patient. You know, even when we were getting up in the gaps and you know, he. Sometimes we would double them, sometimes we would smoke, sometimes we would just be up in the gaps just trying to make him think, you know, and we did. You know, there was a, you know, he had one quote where he was like, you know, their defense is confusing and making me think. And he figured it out, you know, you know, and you know, so I commend him, man. He just, he grew throughout our series. That I think is going to benefit him throughout the, you know, the rest of this run.
- [20:45]
Steve Nash
But 100% and your guys strategy felt like for me, whether you were in a soft blitz or just in the gaps, you were leaving guys in the corner, coming high loading to the ball, trying to bait him into those passes that maybe he's not sure the guy's going to get a look or he's got to throw it over hands trying to confuse him. And I think to your point, he did a lot of things better this year than he has in the past. He slowed down, he changed paces, he would drive and he would hesitate slightly instead of just all one speed to give him a chance to see is he coming? Is he not coming? Where's this pass? Where's my window? Do I have a layup or do I need to get off it? He also, I think sometimes got into a crowd and instead of making a difficult pass, he made simple passes, which in the past I don't think he was as willing to make. You know, that's a huge step, right? Just the simple one, get off it and allow your teammate to have a closeout, you know, or a two on one, right? Like that's the way to bust the way you guys were trying to load to him.
- [21:45]
LeBron James
Yeah, yeah.
- [21:46]
Steve Nash
Tricky because the foot speed piece. So for me, I'd love to Hear, you know, how you guys approached it. But, you know, even when you tried to double him a little bit, guys were reluctant to run out and double him because he's so explosive.
- [21:59]
LeBron James
Yeah. Yeah.
- [22:00]
Steve Nash
To look around and pick his spot.
- [22:02]
LeBron James
Yeah. And that's why we kind of change pitches. We want to try to change pitches on him as much as possible, because we want, you know, you don't never give one player, no great players, one steady diet of the same thing, you know, but, you know, even when you try to double him, his. His. His ability to. To race double teams, to. To split double teams, to get creative, he. And he's. And he's still strong, too. So it's not like he's a frail guy where you can double him and be more. Be super aggressive with him and get him on. He's, He's. He's. He's definitely. He's learned over the time, but he's strong. He has. He has low center of gravity. He has a great handle. He can shoot the ball extremely well. And, you know, to add on to what we said a couple of times before in some of our older episodes, about believing in your teammates, making them feel even better than what they are as well, and he's trusting his teammates to make plays, I think, you know, that's a man. Listen, we get. We got to give Minnesota their flight. That's a damn good team, man, and Good team. You know, I'm looking forward to seeing their next matchup, you know, either between, you know, going to State or Houston.
- [23:06]
Steve Nash
Yeah, for sure. There was a clip of you telling Ant after the game, take the next step.
- [23:12]
LeBron James
Yeah.
- [23:15]
Steve Nash
Tell me, like, in your words, as somebody that you have played with on the USAB stuff and the Olympics gold medal together, obviously there's some mentorship. Like, what did that moment mean to you when you say that to a young player that you've shared the floor with?
- [23:32]
LeBron James
You know, I think that moment for me is like, you know, understanding and recognizing the next generation and someone who can. Can do it and be great and be great for a long time in our league. I think that's what our game is all about, is being able to pass it down to the next generation. They can continue to do great things. And for me, you know, being out there, you know, in my 22nd season, playing against a young up and coming, you know, superstar in the. In the flesh, you know, and Anthony Edwards, and watching him in the postseason last year make those steps to get to the Western Conference finals and fall short to Dallas, you know, and Then have a full summer with him in an Olympic team and seeing how great he was, just listening and just soaking in everything from myself, from myself to KD to Steph, you know, he was just, he was, you could just see was just like a little kid in.
- [24:19]
Steve Nash
A candy enthusiasm for him.
- [24:20]
LeBron James
Yeah, like super energetic and happy and just like super like he was just grateful that he was in that, in that opportunity to be there. And for me to just like, you know, telling to take the next step, like, you know, it doesn't always mean, okay, well, Western Conference finals and now you got to be in the finals. It's like take the next step and just you as a person, you as a player continue to get better, better and better. You know, your time's going to come. Whenever I am not, I can't decide when that's going to be. Sometimes we have no control over when that next step, as far as being, you know, going to the finals and winning, you know, we're not always have the opportunity to do that but like we do have control over making the next step in our own individual journey, you know, and I think that's, that's what it was about because I love seeing that man. I love seeing, you know, I love seeing Jason Tatum take that next step. You know, I love seeing, you know, you know, now I see Ant taking that next step. It's just, it's a proud, proud feeling for me, you know, as a player been in the league for so long.
- [25:17]
Steve Nash
Yeah, you admire it when you see someone's putting the time in and they're improving. Like you, like you said, for Ant to have that type of openness and attitude around usab, you know, coming in with like this is a great opportunity, like immediately it's going to give you excitement for his journey because he wants to learn, you can tell. But I think that buy in of continually improving someone, like he can rely on his athleticism, but to take the next step, he's got to be a great teammate, he's got to be coachable. He's got to make his teammates believe he's bought in. I think you could see that there's always been a little chatter around Rudy or around Randle. And I thought they both were, were laser focused, simplified, their games were efficient. And that's a lot of it comes from the head of the snake. Is he willing to make the simple play pass, make his teammates better? Because I mean, Rudy had a great game and he deserves all the credit in the world. But his opportunities came from the pressure. Ant Puts on the defense.
- [26:16]
LeBron James
Yeah, absolutely. Everything that Rudy did in that game five came because Ant approached the game the way he did those first four games. Now all the eyes was on Antique, you know, and. And everything was. Was. Was game planned around Ant, and Rudy was the. The beneficial area of that moment. And you know, and also, like, you know, when you have a guy like Ann who's. Who's. Who's growing and making that change and you can see him developing more and more, it makes guys want to come there, too. That's like, you know, you have to think long term, too, when it comes to, like, free agency and things of that nature. How did. How do you continue to get better, too, as a team is being able to get small pieces. When you're a good team that's trying to become a great team, it's literally one or two pieces, like in off season that if you acquire that makes the jump for you. And, you know, Ant has that. He has that. That bravada and that. That. That. That flair and that it factor, you know, that guys, you know, want to play alongside that because it's energetic, it's fun, and he competes.
- [27:16]
Steve Nash
He competes for sure. And we got to give some credit to their coaching staff. You know, they've done a great job. They've developed those guys. It's a symbiotic relationship. Right. Like, coaches develop, players got to buy in, and they've both done that. And I could kind of read between the lines, you know, Rudy was asked, you know, ant didn't shoot the ball well, you know, and his comment was, he made the right plays. We don't care if he makes or misses. You know, to me, that's an organizational language. That's the stuff they're hearing in film sessions in meetings. Like, Ant, make the right plays, make the right decision. His growth from last year to this year in that way. So I give credit to the whole organization, especially that coaching staff, for helping that team matriculate.
- [27:57]
LeBron James
Yeah.
- [27:58]
Steve Nash
How far do you think they can go?
- [28:00]
LeBron James
Wow. I personally think. I mean, I'm looking at the competition in the rest of the field, which is a lot of great teams left, but I could see them, you know, for sure getting into the Western Conference finals, if not the finals. I think obviously, health is wealth.
- [28:13]
Steve Nash
Sure.
- [28:14]
LeBron James
Health is wealth in the postseason, you know, but I think if they. They have all the makeups, they have shooting, they have toughness, they have size, they have foot speed, they have playmaking, defensive versatility. They have defensive versatility, which you need in the postseason. And Those guys, they play extremely hard, you know, and they have a. Like you said. Yeah, I give credit to the coaching staff too. They, they are putting those guys in the right position to be successful. So, you know, I think they have an opportunity if at least Western Conference finals. If not, they're in the finals. I mean. Yeah, they have, they have the makeup for that. I think so.
- [28:46]
Steve Nash
Yeah. It's going to be some exciting series. You know, I obviously think OKC's been outstanding this year.
- [28:52]
LeBron James
Oh, absolutely.
- [28:53]
Steve Nash
That's a great series. We got a Game 7 taping today on a Sunday, Warriors, Rockets, which has been a fascinating series. And the next round's even going to be more incredible. You know what I love more than the perfect assist? The perfect story. And I've got just the one for you. Audible knows that there's no greater thrill out there than yours. And Audible's gripping new original that'll have you right on the edge of your seat. Jon Hamm stars as Jack Bergen in the Big Fix, a Jack Bergen mystery. Think you know the story of Dodger Stadium? Think again. This noir thriller follows Jack, an ex FBI agent brought back into the game by an old flame to investigate a murder case. That's not what it seems. What starts as a simple homicide investigation unravels into a complex web of conspiracy surrounding a Mexican American community and the construction of Dodger Stadium. Trust me, this one's a game changer. Featuring an all star cast including Ana de La Reguera, Omar Epps and Aliya Shawkat. With a special appearance from John Slattery. From the brilliant mind of John Mankiewicz and the director Aaron Lipstad, comes a story that will keep you on the edge of your seat. Like any great play, timing is everything. And now's the time to listen. Go to audible.com thebigfix and listen. Now that's audible.com thebigfix I gotta ask. This 22nd season, playing an entire half in a playoff game, how'd it feel? I mean, you've done that before?
- [30:35]
LeBron James
Yeah, I've done it before.
- [30:36]
Steve Nash
You've done it before?
- [30:37]
LeBron James
Yeah. Yeah.
- [30:38]
Steve Nash
How'd you feel?
- [30:39]
LeBron James
I felt in the moment.
- [30:40]
Steve Nash
Yeah.
- [30:41]
LeBron James
You know, I. I wasn't. I wasn't tired, you know, I wasn't looking for a sub. I wasn't. If it came cool, I would accepted it. But we had an opportunity to, to tie the series at two to two, you know, on the road versus. Versus a great team and. And the coaches rolled the dice and we, and we roll with it, you know, and we just didn't we didn't make enough. We didn't make enough plays. But, I mean, I. I didn't. Well, I didn't leave. I left that game extremely tired and extremely, like, oh, because it was a postseason game, right? Not because I played the whole second half. You know, I was tired as hell because I gave my whole money, my body, my mind, my soul to the game for 48 minutes. I was extremely tired. But it wasn't because, oh, well, I played, you know, 24 straight minutes in the second half. No, you know, we had an opportunity and we didn't. We didn't. We didn't counter.
- [31:40]
Steve Nash
Yeah. And I totally agree. I mean, I think aside from, like, anyone's critique of shortening the bench to zero in the second half, like, you got to push buttons, you got to try things, right? Like, you can lose or the coaches have a feeling of what's going on, where the team's at, where the desperation is. The reality is they're a more complete roster at this stage of the story. So for you guys to win, you have to play above your level, always. Right? You have to make shots at a high clip. You have to be taking care of the basketball. Not giving up just didn't happen.
- [32:11]
LeBron James
Yeah, just didn't happen. And that's what we talked about. Like, you see, you're right, Steve. We just talked. We talked about that, like, the possession game. We lost the possession game in the series, and the possession game came down to offensive rebounds, turnovers, you know, loose balls. Like, we. They're a more complete team than we were. You know, we had our opportunities. And when you have your opportunities, you can't. You can't have a high turnover game and allowing them to get fast break points. You can't guard as hell as hard as we was guarding and then give up two or three straight offensive rebounds. You know, you just can't do that multiple times, which happened multiple times, you know, so you have to be able to control the controllables. And for the series, we didn't do that, you know, and that resulted even more of a reason why we weren't able to extend the series.
- [32:58]
Steve Nash
Yeah, it's always funny, though, the narratives and. Yeah, I mean, would it have made a big difference to put Gabe in for a minute here, there or whatever? Like. But, you know, we overreact. Yeah, we overreact. Coaches, they make it. They make an in the moment decision, and we always like to say, well, punish people when it didn't work. At the same time, what, you know, you lose that Game. And. And there's another problem. Right. So at the same time, coach. That's part of being a coach is you got to be brave. You got to make decisions on the fly sometimes.
- [33:30]
LeBron James
Yeah. And none of us. And by the way, none of us question. None of us question JJ and the coaching staff for what happened. Obviously, you know, Gabe and Vando, guys that come, you know, have given us so many great minutes. You know, they definitely felt the way. And, you know, because they're competitors, we all feel like we can get in and make a. A moment happened. But it wasn't. It wasn't a decision which JJ told us. It wasn't a decision that was based on guys not being able to do the job. It was a decision based on the feeling of the game and the momentum of the game. And none of us, we. None of us looked at him or the coaching staff anyway for the decision that he made and shit, it was our fault that we didn't. We didn't come through.
- [34:08]
Steve Nash
And that's, that's part of making that decision is knowing that your guys have the maturity and the team first attitude to be upset because they're competitors, but at the same time to be like, I'll be ready for the next game.
- [34:17]
LeBron James
Yeah, yeah.
- [34:17]
Steve Nash
You know, that's, that's, that's a part of a winning mentality in a group.
- [34:21]
LeBron James
Absolutely, absolutely.
- [34:22]
Steve Nash
So what's, what's. How are you going to fill this gap of, you know, taking care of this knee? You got, you know, a little space, little rest and recovery. I know you don't like to sit still.
- [34:35]
LeBron James
No, no, I don't.
- [34:36]
Steve Nash
How are you going to feel your time here?
- [34:38]
LeBron James
Well, obviously, number one is to get back healthy. You know, I'll be able to do some small stuff within the next week or two just to kind of get the mobility back into the knee and things of that nature, you know. My youngest son is headed off to college soon, so, you know, that's another. Another bird out the nest. A very emotional moment coming up for Bryce, going off to Tucson to be an Arizona Wildcat. But my daughter is heavily in volleyball, so I'll be in a lot of gyms this summer. She's with her travel league team out in California. She, you know, they go all over. They've been to. They've been to Reno, Nevada. They're going to Las Vegas, they play all over California. So to spend a lot of time with her and then, you know, take some vacation times with the family. Some of the times that you lose, you know, you Know, obviously when you're in the eight, nine month season and, and see what this next, you know, what the next journey looks like. You know, I haven't had the conversation with the family yet as far as me going forward or whatever the case may be, but we will see what happens.
- [35:44]
Steve Nash
Yeah, no, it's good for you to get some space. I've done the volleyball thing, by the way. My wife played in college and my daughter daugh playing D3. So I've been in all those gyms, all those tournaments in Vegas and all that stuff. Those are fun times, man.
- [35:56]
LeBron James
Yeah, yeah, yeah, I'm looking forward to that. Which I heard. Listen, I heard you got a new thing. You want to speak about that? Congratulations to you.
- [36:07]
Steve Nash
Well, this is, you know, you got me rolling here in this media space, so. Gonna be on Prime Video doing NBA games next year and studio work. Thank you. Appreciate it. Excited, Great, great team over there. Taylor Rooks, Dirk, my buddy BG ud, a few others. It's gonna be an exciting project, you know, to create a new. A new show and a new way of covering the game, hopefully with new voices. So definitely excited. So you're getting me the early reps here.
- [36:39]
LeBron James
Listen, I got you, man. I got you, man. Listen, I cracked a smile and laughed a little bit when the news broke and I seen Dirk tweet out, Now I gotta carry this guy now I gotta carry this guy again. Like I said did all those years and died.
- [36:52]
Steve Nash
Yeah, I stayed quiet about that. I paid for every breakfast, lunch and dinner for six years. But, you know, that's just a part of the gig.
- [37:04]
LeBron James
That's a part of the gig, right?
- [37:05]
Steve Nash
Part of the gig, man. You got to take the youngster, you know, let him, let him become a man under your. Under your tutelage. And then what does he do? He shits on you.
- [37:15]
LeBron James
Oh, man, that's.
- [37:24]
Steve Nash
Jason, anything you want us to hit or you go back over or do you want us to close it out?
- [37:29]
LeBron James
No, I don't have anything.
- [37:30]
Steve Nash
I guess the only question I have.
- [37:31]
LeBron James
Is who decided to go with the boy band look first? Was it you or was it jerk? The whole back the Backstreet boys look.
- [37:41]
Steve Nash
Though NSync look, my brother and I, Rush, right before I got traded to Dallas, we, for whatever reason, bleached our whole head, like blonde. So of course when we went, when I got traded, it was like a month or two in or whatever, six weeks later. So it had almost grown out. So I had like the defrosted tips and, you know, sometimes you don't recognize how bad that's going to look one day. You know what I mean? You're just like, what's the big deal? I'll just rock up there like this, you know? Then Dirk had, like, the bowl cut with the. With the Jordan 1 hoop earring. I had the frosted tips, man. Just. History is history. Always reminds us.
- [38:22]
LeBron James
Mind the game. Mind the game.
- [38:26]
Steve Nash
Thanks for watching Mind the game. If you enjoyed the show, please subscribe for more content.
- [38:35]
LeBron James
Sam.