Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James made headlines over the weekend on the ‘Mind the Game’ podcast with Steve Nash and special guest Luka Doncic with comments about the state of youth sports.
“I didn’t have a basketball trainer until second, third, maybe fourth year in the NBA,” started LeBron, “Like my basketball training was just being on the court, like let’s just go hoop. Five-on-five or two-on-two or three-on-three, a game that we played growing up was called 33 or 21.”
“That’s how a lot of creation started with me, being able to dribble around three or four guys, going behind the back, being able to shoot, getting physical with your friends. So, it definitely helped me out a lot,” James added.
Two-time NBA All-Star and former Denver Nuggets guard Isaiah Thomas built on that quote with a post on X.
“Sometimes I’m at the gym and there’s a trainer and kid on EVERY hoop,” Thomas said. “When I was [their] age we woulda just played 5s and got to it. Forget the training lol as a kid you get better faster by PLAYING with other kids or OLDER people.”
Luka Doncic’s foundation goes to supporting youth sports leagues and organizations, as he’s always played the game with a level of joy and happiness. That’s what sparked the initial conversation about youth sports, and it was important for LeBron James to say he thinks kids are being overworked. He even said that many kids get burned out of sports because of it.
Thomas last played in the NBA in the 2023-24 season, appearing in six games for the Phoenix Suns. He played for the Salt Lake City Stars this year, the G-League affiliate for the Utah Jazz.
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