Nick Wright and Stephen A. Smith (Photos via Youtube and Imagn Images)
FS1’s Nick Wright called out ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith as the latter’s public feud with LeBron James continues to escalate.
Stephen A. Smith was at Crypto.com Arena on March 6 for the New York Knicks’ road game against James and the Los Angeles Lakers. During a timeout, cameras caught James and Smith having a tense discussion:
The 57-year-old Smith later addressed the matter and claimed that LeBron was unhappy with comments the ESPN talent made about his son, Bronny James. Back in January, Smith suggested that Bronny was only in the NBA because of his father.
On a new episode of “The Stephen A. Smith Show”, the “First Take” host made headlines when he suggested he would have fought back if the 40-year-old James turned physical in their altercation:
“Had I done something, what do y’all want me to do? You want this to be a reincarnation of Chris Rock and Will Smith? And let me state for the record that while we bring up that, let me assure you it wouldn’t have gone down like that. I would’ve gotten my [expletive] kicked. Because if that man put his hands on me, I would’ve immediately swung on him. Immediately. That I’m not gonna tolerate.”
During the latest edition of his “What’s Wright? With Nick Wright” show, the FS1 personality called out Smith for “recreating” his interaction with James. And not without a hysterical “Seinfeld” reference:
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“He’s recreating in real time how the interaction should have gone. For our older audience, it’s (George) Costanza and the shrimp and the jerk store ran out of you. But in real time, in real life, against the world’s most popular athlete. That’s what’s happening! We are seeing it.
For those who are unfamiliar with the “Seinfeld” reference, there’s a season eight episode called “The Comeback” where George Costanza is teased by a co-worker for eating too much shrimp at a work meeting.
George can’t think of a comeback on the spot. Retelling the tale to his friends, George claims he told his co-worker, “Well the jerk store called; they’re running out of you.” And his friends are left unimpressed with the comeback.
So basically, Wright thinks Smith is using a similar playbook by telling people he “would have” thrown down with James if it came to that. And basically, Wright thinks Smith is exaggerating to make himself look better.
Stephen A. Smith Just Signed A $100 Million Extension
Stephen A. Smith (Photo by Kirby Lee/Imagn Images)
Regardless of how one feels about Stephen A. Smith, the bottom line is that ESPN still values him as a marquee talent. Earlier this month, the polarizing sports media personality signed a multi-year extension worth $100 million, allowing him to work a reduced schedule while discussing politics on other networks.
