Stephen A Smith has really earned a reputation in the NBA community as a seasoned vet when it comes to Sports Infotainment. Having been in the industry for a few decades, Smith has had many storied battles with former NBA stars as well as other analysts live on air. Over the years, the ESPN personality has rarely backed out of debates, which has often prompted heated arguments in the studio. On the recent episode of Paul George’s Podcast P, SAS revealed the two people he would include for a hypothetical debate show. As revealed to co-host Dallas Rutherford, the 55-year-old expressed his desire to get into a healthy argument against NBA legends Charles Barkley and Kevin Garnett.
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Inside the NBA is one of the most-viewed analysis shows in basketball, mostly because of the hilarious banter and the seamless chemistry within its panel. Four months back, Stephen A Smith got caught in the crossfire when Charles Barkley and Shaquille O’Neal trolled Derrick White for his receding hairline on the TNT show. Trolling the Boston Celtics Guard for his expansive forehead, Chuck and Shaq drew similarities between him and Smith. Despite being annoyed by the wild comparison, the First Take host named Charles Barkley as a member of his dream team for debating.
Stephen A Smith wishes to debate Charles Barkley and Kevin Garnett
It was only natural for co-host Dallas Rutherford to ask Stephen A. Smith about his debating dream team, while the latter made an appearance on Paul George’s podcast Podcast P. Answering Rutherford, Smith selected two of the most ruthless trash talkers in NBA history – Charles Barkley and Kevin Garnett. Smith told the crew:
“Well, the obvious answer[for a debate show co-host] would obviously be Charles Barkley because of what we see him do. We see him on TNT for so long, we forget the brother is a Hall-Of-Famer and one of the all-time greats.”
“I would tell you this, the person that I would love to sit on a set with me or across from me any day of the week is Kevin Garnett cause he’s a real one. First of all, being real is one thing but your ability to articulate your position with presence and force matters,” he added.
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Of course, Barkley has been associated with Turner Sports for more than two decades. In all these years, Chuck has learned to mellow down on the cuss words while being on air. Unfortunately, that doesn’t seem to be the case with Garnett. Associated with Showtime, as interesting as KG’s takes are, his arguments are often filled with profanities. Therefore, Smith also threw in a FCC joke at the end of his comment.
It goes without saying that a discussion between SAS, Chuck, and KG would be entertaining to say the least. However, considering how all of them are tied up with different sports networks, we will probably never be able to watch these celebrities go at it on live television.
Smith believes he’s the #1 entertainer
While some of the most esteemed personalities in the industry recently lost their jobs, Stephen A. Smith survived the mass layoff at ESPN. Of course, SAS is a valuable asset to the company. And the 55-year-old is well aware of his significance at ESPN.
“Why the hell is Stephen A not laid off? Well, first of all, I am number one… I bring money to the company,” Smith said.
Talking about his worth, the NBA analyst confidently claimed that he was “number one”. As seen in the video above, Smith takes pride in the fact that he brings in money for the company.
