Stephen A. Smith knows how to ruffle some feathers.
The First Take host has taken some potshots at the likes of Kawhi Leonard and Ben Simmons , amongst others. It’s nothing personal, but the ESPN personality has never shied away from calling it from how he sees it, and if that involves ruffling some feathers, then so be it.
Smith said recently on The OGs Show podcast with Udonis Haslem and Mike Miller that he would never disrespect them by saying that somebody’s injury was fake. That being said, the only injury he’s ever questioned is that “damn Ben Simmons.”
“That damn Ben Simmons. Don’t get me started on that damn Ben Simmons,” Smith said. “This brother…I’m just not gonna even go there. He’s lucky he’s not in prison for theft.”
Haslem responded that Simmons has been training in Miami and offered to show Smith where.
“Really? I’m sure he did work out down here,” says Smith. “I’m sure of all the places he could really get focused and zero in on his basketball prowess, he gonna pick Miami. I’m sure he is down here, his Zoolander a**. I mean, don’t get me started. This brother right here. I mean, come on, man. The skill set that he has — I know he couldn’t shoot — but everything else he has.
“He don’t want to play. He don’t love the game. He don’t love the game. I’m not saying he wasn’t injured, but I’m talking about an absence of love for the game. Remember, he was missing games before he was injured.
“They pointed to mental health. We can’t dismiss the importance of mental health. The reason why I’m critical of it is because that never prevented you from making sure that check was in your account every two weeks. He never missed it…He always made sure that cash was there. But he wanted to play? So, don’t get me started with him.”
The only thing that got Smith started was criticism from Simmons’ agent, Bernie Lee. Lee is an agent to numerous players who are currently unrestricted free agents. Still, perhaps the most prominent name he represents besides Simmons is Jimmy Butler of the Miami Heat.
In any event, Lee didn’t hold back as he took aim at Smith’s Quite Frankly with Stephen A. Smith . The daily hour-long show on ESPN was launched in Aug. 2005. While there were over 100 episodes, it never did big ratings, leading to its cancellation in Jan. 2007.
Here’s the statement Lee provided to NetsDaily:
“Quite Frankly…I think Stephen A is an idiot and I only wish he still had he’s TV show so I could sit in his audience and voice my opinion to him while he attempted to do his job…alas.. it got canceled…”
With Smith’s fiery criticism and Lee’s scathing response, it’ll be interesting to see if Simmons himself enters the fray. But more likely than not, we’ll get a response from Smith on his The Stephen A. Smith Show , while the Brooklyn Nets forward let his agent do the talking.
[ The OGs Show , NetsDaily ]
The post Ben Simmons’ agent calls Stephen A. Smith ‘an idiot’ appeared first on Awful Announcing .
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