Stephen A. Smith has spoken out on his courtside confrontation with NBA superstar LeBron James on Thursday night.
Cameras caught the ESPN personality and Los Angeles Lakers star in a heated exchange of words with Smith sat courtside for the game against his beloved New York Knicks
James, the NBA’s all-time leading point scorer, appeared animated as he came over to the sideline to speak to Smith after Los Angeles had triumphed 113-109 at Crypto.com Arena.
Smith addressed the courtside clash during Friday’s episode of ESPN’s ‘First Take’ as he revealed that James confronted him about remarks the analyst had made about his son, Bronny.
‘That was Lebron James coming up to me, unexpectedly, I might add, to confront me about making sure that I mind what I say about his son,’ Smith began after the clip of their interaction played. ‘I can’t repeat the words because they aren’t suited for airwaves.’
Smith went on to claim that he had intended to avoid discussing the altercation publicly but after the clip took the internet by storm, he admitted it was inescapable.
Cameras caught LeBron James having a heated exchange with ESPN star Stephen A. Smith
Smith addressed the courtside altercation during Friday’s episode of his ‘First Take’ show
‘I thought long and hard about this over the past few hours because I had no intention of talking about this at all,’ he continued. ‘The reason is because it was a one-on-one, I wouldn’t say it was a conversation, but it was a one-on-one confrontation. But then I wake up and everybody from ESPN and my agent and everybody else were telling me that this thing had gone viral so ultimately it was unavoidable. That is why I have to discuss it now.
‘That wasn’t a basketball player confronting me. That was a parent. That was a father. And I can’t sit here and be angry or feel slighted by LeBron James in any way in that regard. By all accounts, he’s obviously a wonderful family man and a wonderful father who cares very, very deeply about his son.’
Smith did however, appear to take a sly dig at James when he suggested that the conversation should have taken place out of the public eye.
The host claimed that James could have reached out to him earlier to discuss his issues, instead of allowing tensions to boil over in such an exposing manner.
‘Lebron James knows how to get in contact with me if he wanted to,’ Smith went on. ‘He never called. Because had he called and wanted to talk to me, I would have accepted that call. Had he wanted to see me, I would have flown out and seen him and had a conversation man-to-man. But that is not what he elected to do.
‘Instead he elected to confront me while I was sitting courtside. He walked right up to me and he said what he had to say.’
Initially many NBA fans believed that the clash was a consequence of the war of words that the pair have allowed to publicly play out through the media over the past week.
The Lakers star last week took aim at members of the NBA media, claiming: ‘All the people that cover our game and talk about our game on a day-to-day basis s*** on everybody.’
Smith addressed the courtside altercation during Friday’s episode of his ‘First Take’ show
Smith revealed that James’s fury stemmed from comments he made over his son, Bronny
That prompted Smith – who this week agreed a $100million deal with ESPN – to accuse James of talking ‘b.s.’. He also claimed NBA stars have become overly sensitive.
However, Smith revealed that James was in fact acting as a protective parent. Smith has criticized James’ son Bronny in recent weeks, questioning whether the rookie, who was drafted to his dad’s Lakers last year, deserves his place in the league.
But the longtime analyst backtracked Friday when he insisted he had no issue with Bronny’s NBA fate.
‘I was not going to engage in a confrontation at that particular moment, in that setting, but if we had had that conversation, I would have said to LeBron James, “I never would speak negatively about your son. I was talking about you,’ Smith claimed.
‘I have nothing but the best wishes for Bronny James. I wish him nothing but the best. I hope he flourishes into an NBA star. […] By all accounts he’s a wonderful kid and I don’t know anybody who roots against him and it certainly isn’t me.
‘He’s a rookie, he’s going to take some time to get himself together. He’ll be just fine, especially with J.J. Redick and the staff coaching him. I was talking about the position that he was put in. By his dad.’
Smith claimed that James had put his son in the precarious position due to his own comments to the media in the buildup to last year’s draft. He accused James of warning other teams off drafting Bronny in order to allow the Lakers to swoop in.
Bronny did ultimately become a Laker alongside his dad with Los Angeles selecting him with the No. 55 overall pick. James fulfilled a lifelong dream in October when the pair became first-ever father-son duo to suit up alongside each other in an NBA game during the Lakers’ season opener against the Minnesota Timberwolves.
And Smith, after feeling the wrath of James, scrambled to clarify his previous comments on the rookie.
James made no secret of his desire to play on the same team as his son ahead of the draft
‘My point months ago was that because of who you are, one of the top two players in the history of basketball in my estimation, there’s an immense amount of pressure that comes with that for his son,’ Smith added.
‘There’s going to be a microscopic eye even more intensified on Bronny James because of his dad and what his dad had said. That’s what I was talking about – the situation that you’re putting him in. That’s where I was coming from.’
More to follow.
