In a day and age where controversy sells and headlines put food on the table, people are bound to wind up in the occasional bit of trouble due to their word choice. After a series of criticisms were made about the status of Bronny James’ performances and overall existence within the NBA, that proved to be the case for the king of controversy himself, Stephen A. Smith.
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While the on-air comments did seemingly little to shake the confidence of Bronny himself, they did, however, manage to provoke the young player’s father, the king of basketball in his own right, LeBron James. Following a courtside confrontation, James appeared on the Pat McAfee Show to discuss his issues with the First Take host.
During the most recent episode of the Nightcap podcast, NFL Hall of Famer and fellow broadcaster Shannon Sharpe gave his reaction to LeBron’s suggestion that Smith was on “a Taylor Swift tour”-like media run. Believing that the entire debacle has been a series of missteps by the longstanding ESPN sensation, Sharpe is now calling for an end to the nonsense.
“I wish Stephen A. would have just left it alone. Once he addressed it, once it happened… address it now and be done with it. Because, as my grandma used to say boy, stirring up old ish, it still smells. Every time Stephen A. talks about it, he stirs it up again. I see both sides of the equation, but Stephen A. just needs to let it go. He needs to let it go.”
Asserting that “He loves his family, he’s always going to protect his family,” Sharpe made it clear that he believes LeBron had every right to address Smith in the manner in which he did. Unfortunately, his co-host and former Cincinnati Bengal, Chad “Ochocinco” Johnson, suggested that the feud was far from over.
Suggesting “that’s not how that’s going to go,” Johnson had little hope for Sharpe’s wishes that Smith remain silent on the matter moving forward.
“When you go back to the way things happen with LeBron actually addressing Stephen A. courtside, what Stephen A. said was obviously said on public forum, on TV, so he addressed it the exact same way, publicly… I think knowing Stephen A. and the person that he is, LeBron said what he had to say, I’m sure Stephen A. is going to respond to that… He’s going to have an answer to whatever is being said.”
Despite Smith having mentioned that he understood James was coming to him as a father rather than a disgruntled player, Sharpe maintained that there was little to no need for the host’s comments about the altercation potentially turning physical.
“Man, I’m about to be 57, you’re about to be 58. That’s not even your MO, you ain’t gonna fight nobody. LeBron wasn’t going to swing on you.”
Nevertheless, as Johnson mentioned, the next episode of First Take is likely to feature a segment continuing the Smith-LeBron saga. Should fans hope to be up to date with the latest information, they’ll have to play into Smith’s hands and simply tune in.
