Shannon Sharpe has two successful podcasts, so he is familiar with what makes a good show. However, the success of Nightcap and Club Shay Shay is not really due to anyone's intelligence of any specific subject matter. Of course, Sharpe has an edge and offers insight and understanding about football that goes beyond the surface. The same is true for Chad (Ochcino) Johnson. However, each show's entertainment value is its primary selling point. Shannon Sharpe said on First Take today that Lebron's podcast with JJ Redick won't survive because it is solely about Xs and Os and not entertainment.
For this reason, Sharpe provided his evaluation of the Mind the Game podcast with LeBron James and JJ Redick. On Monday's First Take, Sharpe contended that James and the Los Angeles Lakers' prospective head coach would need to change their conversational approach from discussing Xs and Os. Sharpe appears to believe that the podcast won't last very long if that's all they talk about. The podcast is more of a mission of educating and celebrating the game of basketball by sharing knowledge, but Shannon Sharpe does not care and says it won't last long doing that.
Shannon Sharpe Says LeBron James And JJ Redick's Podcast Will Fail
“I know you said that he and JJ had that podcast — Mind the Game — and it’s supposed to be Xs and Os,” Sharpe said. “Let me tell you something: if you ever want to start a podcast, and this is what I tell Stephen A., you’ve got to be able to adapt. You’ve got to be able to branch out. Because if all you talk about is Xs and Os, it ain’t gonna last very long.” Smith concurred, pointing out that Kendrick Perkins has been making similar statements for months. Even if a video of them drawing Xs and Os from three days ago on the account's official YouTube channel has 428k views as of the writing of this piece, a basketball podcast about basketball seems like a bridge too far.
Even if a video of them drawing Xs and Os from three days ago on the account's official YouTube channel has 428k views as of the writing of this piece, a basketball podcast about basketball seems like too unique a notion. The podcast probably won't appeal to everyone, but James would have launched a podcast much sooner if he felt the need or wanted to discuss other topics. Not to mention Redick's incredibly popular podcast, The Old Man and the Three. Overall, Shannon wants more hot takes and opinionated arguments in his podcast consumption.
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