Stephen A. Smith was recently named one of the coaches for the NBA All-Star Celebrity Game 2024 to be held on Friday. His First Take co-host Shannon Sharpe will also be sharing a similar responsibility on the court. Smith was quite excited about this new gig and was preparing himself and his team to put on a unique show on the night of February 16. However, as per the latest reports, the ESPN analyst injured himself while practicing against Dallas Cowboys linebacker Micah Parsons just a day before the game.
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This surprising injury update was first revealed on First Take by host Molly Qerim, who joked that the reports are yet to be confirmed by NBA insiders Adrian Wojnarowski and Adam Schefter. However, Schefter ended up replying to Qerim’s quip on X, confirming that SAS indeed injured himself during the All-Star game practice and was taken to the hospital immediately afterward.
Injury update: After a trip to the hospital, @stephenasmith is in an ankle brace for an injury he suffered practicing against Micah Parsons for the NBA All-Star Celebrity Game. Smith will, however, coach tonight’s game. “Definitely,” he texted. pic.twitter.com/Z9WGXzCxKg
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) February 16, 2024
The veteran sports analyst is now reportedly wearing an ankle brace. But he has still shown confidence in coaching tonight’s game. According to Schefter, when Stephen A. Smith was asked if he would still be coaching tonight’s All-Star celebrity team, the veteran analyst replied, “Definitely.” SAS also has hip-hop superstar Lil Wayne and 2x WNBA champion A’Ja Wilson in his coaching team to back him up.
Interestingly, in his appearance on First Take following the injury, SAS denied all claims of being “crossed” by a Dallas Cowboys player. Though SAS did confirm his injury status, he called Molly Qerim a ‘pathological liar’ for making up things about his injury.
Stephen A. Smith confirms he suffered an injury during Celebrity All-Star Game practice, but denies that a Dallas Cowboy could ever cross him up. https://t.co/xQ46xyPRYc pic.twitter.com/h4adajB3FH
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) February 16, 2024
Nevertheless, it would be interesting to see Stephen A. Smith and Shannon Sharpe engage in heated banter and a competitive game with their team in tonight’s showdown between the invited celebrities.
The All-Star Celebrity game rosters
The All-Star weekend will officially begin with the Ruffles All-Star Celebrity Game 2024, scheduled for tonight at the Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. A total of 25 celebrities are headlining this event and are divided into two teams coached by Stephen A. Smith and Shannon Sharpe. Here is a look at the rosters for both sides.
Team Stephen A
Coaches: Stephen A. Smith, Lil Wayne, A’Ja Wilson
Players:
- Adam Blackstone – Grammy-nominated musician
- Natasha Cloud – Phoenix Mercury guard
- Jennifer Hudson – Singer, actress, and the youngest female EGOT winner
- Tristan Jass – YouTuber
- AJ McLean – Grammy-nominated recording artist
- Metta World Peace – Former NBA player and 2009 NBA champion
- Kwame Onuwachi – James Beard Award-winning chef
- CJ Stroud – Houston Texans quarterback
- Jack Ryan – Basketball entertainer/streetballer
- Gianmarco Tamberi – High Jumper
Team Shannon
Coaches: Shannon Sharpe, Curtis ’50 Cent’ Jackson
Players:
- Kai Cenat – Online Streamer
- Anuel AA – Rapper
- Walker Hayes – Recording Artist
- Quincy Isiah – Actor
- Jewell Loyd – Seattle Storm guard
- Micah Parsons – Dallas Cowboys linebacker
- Lilly Singh – YouTuber and Emmy-winning entertainer
- SiR – Recording Artist
- Dylan Wang – Actor
