Stephen A. Smith dubs chemistry issue with Max Kellerman ‘more his fault than mine’

Stephen A. Smith may be the reason Max Kellerman is off First Take , but he won’t take total blame for their lack of chemistry.

Keep asking Smith about Kellerman and he’ll keep reminding you exactly why they broke up. It’s been nearly three years since Smith decided to move on from Kellerman on First Take . And in those three years, Smith has repeatedly told you he didn’t like working with Kellerman . In Smith’s defense, it’s a juicy topic. In Kellerman’s defense, just give him a break.

Smith addressed his break-up with Kellerman again this week on Cris Carter’s Fully Loaded podcast, when the Hall of Fame wide receiver and former FS1 debate show host asked what led to their split on First Take .

“Lack of chemistry. Believe it or not, it was more his fault than mine,” Smith bluntly stated of Kellerman. “I’ve seen his friend Marcellus Wiley bring up stuff. Marcellus Wiley knows one side. He certainly never spoke to me about it. Never called, never asked, or anything like that. And I’m not hating on him for it because that’s his man. Him and Max are very, very tight, but if you want to talk to me about it, I’m not hard to find.”

On his own podcast, Wiley has questioned whether Smith decided to take First Take in another direction three years ago because he feared Smith being smarter than him. Smith, however, claims he just didn’t like working with Kellerman. And while Smith blamed Kellerman for a lack of chemistry, he did blame himself as the show’s leader.

“It was a chemistry issue and I think that people need to understand, it was mostly my fault. I’m the leader, I’m the executive producer of the show. I’m the star of the show,” Smith told Carter. “I wasn’t looking at Max Kellerman and saying it was his fault that the show failed. I’m talking about us…The proof is in the pudding. Look at how I’ve vibed with the people that have been there since he’s been gone. Look at how I vibed with Skip Bayless as a debate partner before he arrived.”

Smith proceeded to state he’s rooting for Kellerman to make a sports media return, calling the partner he dismissed “genius-level brilliant.” However according to Smith, that genius level of brilliance may have hampered Kellerman’s ability to build chemistry and resonate with First Take’s audience.

“At some point in time, you’re talking and you’re talking and you’re talking and you’re talking above the audience to the point where they find themselves asking, ‘What did you just say?’ Now, I might get it because I know you…I’m watching an audience look at us for five years and the last three and a half years, minimum, they were asking, ‘What’s up with this?’ And it wasn’t resonating. They were watching, but it was almost like they were watching because that was the default position.”

That seems like a bit of an insult to their audience. Have a little bit of faith that your audience is capable of consuming intelligent conversations and something more than just quick hits about the Dallas Cowboys or Los Angeles Lakers. Smith admitted First Take’s ratings didn’t reflect his belief that they weren’t resonating with their audience, but he sensed a staleness when speaking with fans and reading the headlines being written about the show.

“I can’t debate myself,” Smith said. “Skip and I had set a standard and the audience had an expectation, fair or unfair, that he was going to live up to that standard that Skip had set.”

Smith decided to combat that expectation by replacing Kellerman with a rotating cast of analysts. And despite it seeming more difficult to build chemistry with several debate partners than just one, Smith made it work, to his credit. First Take has reached new heights, in ratings and prominence, since Smith decided to go with a cast of contributors.

[ Fully Loaded ]

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