Donald Trump has been in legal turmoil after Joe Biden replaced him as the President of the United States. He has been accused of racketeering and various other charges, culminating in his arrest in October 2023. In the latest setback, New York County Supreme Court Justice Juan Merchan slapped him with a $9000 fine for continually violating a gag order. Amidst Trump’s legal troubles and his arrest, last month, ESPN analyst Stephen A. Smith went to Fox News and likened his treatment to that of Black Americans who are harassed by authorities. He argued that Black Americans can relate to Trump who posited that his relentless encounters with courts and authorities are similar to what African Americans face in the USA.
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The 2017 NBA champion, Matt Barnes, found Smith’s comments absurd and called him out for his stance. On his ‘All the Smoke’ podcast, Barnes discussed these comments with co-host Stephen Jackson. He also lamented how the veteran analysts’ thoughts have resonated with controversial commentator Jason Whitlock. Whitlock and Smith have disapproved of each other repeatedly. For Barnes, their mutual stance on the issue sums up the problematic position taken by the 56-year-old analyst,
“And the sh*t was so outlandish that motherf*king Sh*lock[Jason Whitlock] agreed with him. Didn’t Stephen A. had a diss track on Whitlock three months ago? Now, he got this n***a agreeing with him, defending him, agreeing with him, he was looking for a little rope and he found it.”
The ‘First Take’ host also drew flak from the 2003 champion Stephen Jackson. He argued that the veteran analyst wouldn’t have said the same thing in front of “10 brothers“. The 46-year-old wished that he had never made such comments. Apart from Barnes and Jackson, American Sportswriter Keith Olbermann also criticized Smith’s comments.
Keith Olbermann wants ESPN to take action on Stephen A. Smith
Olbermann stated that Stephen A. Smith was effectively endorsing Donald Trump for the 2024 presidential elections when he gave the statement. He believes that such endorsements usually draw punitive actions for sportscasters. The former SportsCenter host was befuddled that the network allowed their employee to make such comments. On his X, he wrote a long thread lamenting ESPN’s lack of response to their veteran analyst’s actions,
“Why is today’s ESPN letting Smith do it? Why is he campaigning for Trump on Fox News? ESPN must make him choose advocating for a despot or keeping his job saying nothing particularly relevant about sports – not both.”
WHY ESPN MUST EITHER SILENCE OR FIRE STEPHEN A. SMITH: Its longstanding policy – no, you can’t be a sportscaster on one station and an advocate for a presidential candidate on another station – is right. I know: I helped to author it because the day when you (or I) could straddle… pic.twitter.com/TKLrPCXmOH
— Keith Olbermann (@KeithOlbermann) April 23, 2024
Thus, the ESPN analyst is now under fire for his non-basketball comments. Even though he tried clarifying his stand in a recent video, his reasoning hasn’t sat well with many people especially in the build-up to the elections later this year. It will be interesting to see if he tones down his narratives revolving around Trump or continues to stand his ground.
