CLEVELAND, Ohio — Larry Nance Jr.’s fondness for soccer has taken another step.

The 32-year-old forward has teamed up with the Men in Blazers Media Newtwork, North America’s largest soccer-focused media company, to launch a digital show called “Switch the Play” — a weekly program that involves fellow NBA players who are soccer fanatics shedding light on the root of that passion.

The inaugural episode, featuring Oklahoma City guard Alex Caruso, will debut Thursday.

“I entered the NBA in 2015, and I was probably one of only a couple of guys in the league that could tell you who won the Premier League the previous season,” Nance said. “Now, soccer is a constant conversation starter in the locker room.

“Soccer’s popularity has grown so much over the past 10 years, as has the international influence on the NBA, creating more and more players that follow the game consistently.”

Nance’s soccer love goes back years. He played until he was 16 years old, eventually giving up the sport to focus primarily on basketball. Even as a prep star at Revere High School in Richfield and then a first-round pick out of Wyoming, Nance’s enthusiasm for soccer never dissipated.

In 2023, he became a minority stakeholder of the newly-promoted Premier League club Leeds United along with Pacers guard T.J. McConnell — the two hoopers buying in through Leeds owner 49ers Enterprises. Since then, Nance has traveled to England whenever possible to take in the fervent atmosphere and support the club, wearing the blue and yellow, complete with a scarf and bucket hat. Almost every Leeds gameday, Nance becomes increasingly active on social media.

This new off-court venture gives him another outlet to express his fandom, breaking down the other sport he loves so much with fellow footy afficionados.

“This show will give stars from around the league the opportunity to let fans hear them talk about their soccer fandom, parallels in the two games, and how we see it as professional athletes,” Nance said.

More than two decades ago, LeBron James acquired a stake in Liverpool. Most recently, Dallas Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd joined Everton’s ownership group.

LeBron, Victor Wembanyama, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Jimmy Butler, Luka Doncic and Joel Embiid, among others, have expressed their soccer passion. Wembanyama, who was on the field for a Paris St. Germain-Manchester City match in Paris, went viral this summer while taking part in a few pickup soccer games.

The NBA even modeled its NBA Cup in-season tournament around European soccer.

“The connection between Basketball and Football is one of the most fascinating overlaps in sports today,” added MIBMN Founder and CEO Roger Bennett. “You can see its rise in the number of NBA stars who are obsessed with the Premier League, and the throng of Premier League footballers who race to sit courtside at NBA games during every international break.

“Both sets of players see the other’s game — their passing, and movement — with a unique perspective, and no one understands that better than Larry Nance Jr. who has long bridged the connection between the two sports and will use this show to invite some of the biggest names in the NBA to revel in their sporting passions in a style that is quite literally, Game Recognizes Game.”

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