As the barrier between NBA players and NBA media dissolves, so too does the illusion that any amount of fame and success can prevent athletes from giving into the media's lamest impulses. It should not be the case that LeBron James and Steve Nash, two universally respected and accomplished world-class athletes with more money than they could ever possibly spend, care about how many people are listening to and enjoying their podcast. That is something that podcasters should worry about, not athletes. And yet here we are, in a media environment in which even these two greats cannot prevent themselves from thinking and acting like podcasters.
This is just unbecoming. The guy who famously and correctly smiles through it all because he can't believe this is his life should not ever be in a position where random YouTube comments are being clipped and compiled so as to demonstrate the value of his podcast. Certainly he should not care what Brian Windhorst thinks of his podcast, but even if he insists on making it known that he cares enough to put out a sassy little video about it, the video simply cannot end like this:
The guy who made The Block should never be associated with a phrase as debasing as "#9 on Trending." If we really care about making athletes cool again, we should start with making it illegal for them to become podcasters.
