LeBron James, Draymond Green Send Message to Shedeur Sanders After NFL Debut

Cleveland Browns quarterback Shedeur Sanders caught the eyes of the sports world on Friday night, putting together an impressive performance in his preseason NFL debut against the Carolina Panthers.

Two of the many messages he received on social media came from NBA superstars LeBron James and Draymond Green. James is a Cowboys-turned Browns fan with an extensive background in football himself, while Green knows a thing or two about rising through the professional ranks despite a long wait on draft night after an illustrious college career.

Parallels With Green

Sanders played the entirety of the first half in Cleveland's 30-10 win over Carolina, completing 14 of his 23 pass attempts for 138 yards and two touchdowns. Sanders' performance got a stamp of approval from Green, who gave the young quarterback a well-deserved shoutout on Instagram Threads.

SHEDEUR SANDERS PUT ON A SHOW IN HIS PRESEASON DEBUT ⌚️ pic.twitter.com/yEhAL5YUxy
— ESPN (@espn) August 9, 2025

Sanders notably fell to the fifth round in April's NFL Draft, remaining on the board until the 144th overall pick despite being a top-10 selection in most reputable mock drafts. This was despite the fact that Sanders was a second-team All-American and won the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm award, a trophy that saw four of it's previous five winners get drafted in the first round.

Green fell to the second round when he was drafted by the Golden State Warriors with the No. 35 pick in the 2012 NBA Draft, despite being named the Big 10 Male Athlete of the Year and a consensus first-team All-American that season. He didn't have as dramatic a fall as Sanders did, but he can still recite the names of the 34 players drafted ahead of him.

"Love to see it Shedeur!! 🔥🔥🔥 some people just got it," Green wrote.

Praise From The King

As someone who was among the greatest players in the world at 16 years old and the most anticipated NBA Draft pick in history at 18 years old. LeBron doesn't know too much about earning a role off the bench or being passed up by any team, much less a league full of them. However, LeBron does know football, as he's displayed throughout the years.

"That young 🤴🏾 looking good out there! Keep going UP!!! HEAD down on the grind and HEAD high to the most high🙌🫡," James wrote.

That young 🤴🏾 looking good out there! @ShedeurSanders Keep going UP!!! HEAD down on the grind and HEAD high to the most high 🙌🏾🫡
— LeBron James (@KingJames) August 9, 2025

"And I don’t wanna hear that 'It’s only preseason' bs," James continued. "Cause if he was out there not going in y’all would be on his ass about it! So give credit and grace lames.🤷🏾‍♂️"

And I don’t wanna hear that “It’s only preseason” bs. Cause if he was out there not going in y’all would be on his ass about it! So give credit and grace lames. 🤷🏾‍♂️
— LeBron James (@KingJames) August 9, 2025

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Parallels With Green

Praise From The King

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