While he recovers from a nagging case of sciatica, LeBron James has found ways to stay busy off the court. Even as he’s been seen sitting on elevated seats to ease the pain, his off-court ventures continue. Among those side projects, Mind the Game podcast with Steve Nash has become a cultural talking point. And now, one of the league’s most outspoken stars, has stepped forward as its newest admirer.

Draymond Green has expressed his feelings about LeBron James’ “Mind the Game” podcast on his own show. When asked about his top three favorite podcasts, Green ranked LeBron’s platform as number three. “With what Mind the Game brings – number one, you got LeBron James and Steve Nash talking basketball. Hard to beat that. Hard to get a better tutoring session than that. Hard to get better stories than that.”

And rightly so, that is 23 years of NBA brilliance breaking down games and experiences along with two times MVP Steve Nash, who comes with his own set of expertise. Recently they hosted Stephen Curry in the podcast, that combination alone sent shockwaves into the fandom.

When Stephen Curry appeared, a long-awaited conversation took place between two of the sport’s greatest rivals turned mutual admirers. Even before the full episode dropped, the teaser alone broke the internet.

While they circled around many topics, some thing worth noting was the way James was asking questions to Curry. For example, LeBron opened the conversation by asking Curry, “When did you figure out, holy s—, Steph, what you’re doing on the floor is transcending a whole generation of players?”

Curry’s humble response, “When Trae Young came into the league, that was the first person they said was like the ‘next’ me,” Curry said of Young. “Even though he’s a different player. I knew him when he was in high school…That might be the first time I thought about it or really realized what [my] impact was.”

As the conversation continued, Curry reflected on former coach Mark Jackson’s viral comment from 2015 that he had “ruined the game” by inspiring young players to attempt impossible long-range shots.

LeBron immediately jumped in, saying, “What Mark didn’t realize is he ruined the league, too. Everyone shoots 3s now. Everyone. Sixty 3s a game, 50 3s a game. It’s all Steph. It’s all Steph.”

Nash, meanwhile, being the man that he is, added a fascinating layer of analysis. He pointed out Curry’s mid-career leap from 646 three-point attempts in the 2014-15 season to 886 the following year. A shift that even Curry had not studied.

This was not even the full part of the episode. But it ended with the three breaking down film from Game 7 of the 2016 NBA Finals. The upcoming second part of their conversation is set to feature LeBron’s highlights from that same legendary game. One could say that Dray has good taste when it comes to podcasts.

Draymond Green’s list of favorite podcasts continues to grow

When Draymond Green started listing his favorite podcasts, he was ready with a list, outside of his own podcast. He marked Jeff Teague’s Club 520 as number one. “I think Club 520 is incredible. I think Jeff Teague is good. Really good,” he said with conviction.

He even went on to highlight Teague’s co-host, saying, “B Hen is incredible. B Hen kind of brings this vibe of like, ‘I ain’t Jeff Teague. I’ma say what the hell I want to say, and ain’t nothing y’all can do about it.’ I think it brings a great mix,” he added. “And they stay in their lanes. You know, host, B Hen, Jeff, DJ Wells – they all stay in their lanes.”

Green’s description perfectly describes what fans love about Club 520. The podcast, hosted by Teague with his childhood friends DJ Wells and Bishop “B Hen” Henn, has become a viral hit. Their episodes often feature NBA players and celebrities.

Their USP lies in the way Teague delves into personal stories. “I really enjoy Club 520,” he remarked before jumping onto the second podcast on his list.

And that is: All the Smoke. “All the Smoke, what they’ve built is amazing,” he said. “You gotta take your hat off to All the Smoke. It’s also not just a basketball podcast, but make no mistake about it, Stack and Matt Barnes are basketball players. Once you’re a basketball player, you always are.”

Two former players, Stephen “Stack” Jackson and Matt Barnes, have built one of the most influential shows in the athlete media space. “They’ve ventured off and built amazing [things] with what they’re doing in boxing,” Draymond continued.

“You gotta take your hat off, tip the cap to the OGs of All the Smoke.” Since its debut in 2019, the show has hosted a diverse range of guests, including Kobe Bryant, Kevin Garnett, and Snoop Dogg.

Finally, Draymond had a special mention that did not make the list. He addressed Paul George’s Podcast P, “I love Podcast P. I love that Podcast P got into the podcast space. I love that Podcast P finally showed the world his personality and who P is,” he said. “I’ve known P for years now, and I think the first time the world really got to see who P is was through his podcast.”

“I can’t put P in my top three no more because as someone who went through a podcast and won a championship and took a beating for it all year, you can’t quit, P. When the times get rough, you can’t gracefully bow out, P. You gotta keep pushing through the rough times.”

On the game front, Draymond Green is averaging 8.0 points this regular season. The Warriors will play the Nuggets next on Friday, and Dray is listed as day-to-day for the game.