Stephen A. Smith’s war against LeBron James took a new twist on Monday when he accused the NBA superstar of orchestrating the on-camera interaction when James confronted Smith during a Lakers game in March.
The outspoken ESPN host declared “I don’t like his ass” when discussing James during an appearance on the “7PM in Brooklyn” podcast, hosted by ex-Knicks star Carmelo Anthony, claiming the tension between the two dates back more than a decade.
“I believe he’s going one way publicly and another way privately,” Smith said. “He may not be interviewed or quoted, but the things he says and the things he’s said to people have come back to me. The things he’s tried to do. If it were up to him, I wouldn’t be where I am today. It’s a bit low, low.”
James confronted Smith last March during a game between the Knicks and Lakers at Crypto.com Arena, and Smith had previously stated that the incident stemmed from the ESPNer’s criticism of James’ eldest son and Los Angeles teammate Bronny.
Smith had previously condemned the Lakers’ handling of Bronny and his development.
During the podcast interview published Monday, Smith accused James of setting him up.
“The day he came to my job was the day my contract was announced that I had stayed with ESPN,” Smith said. “Go back and look at the camera angle… This is 2025, we have technology everywhere. TNT is a nationally televised game. How come we have one angle, and the only angle you see was of him and his face, but you see the back of my peanut head?”
During the interview on “7PM in Brooklyn,” Smith said the “last straw” was James suggesting he “need to protect his family” while appearing on “The Pat McAfee Show” on ESPN.
“Is that the story you’re playing? If I tell you, you can’t measure how angry I’ve been about that,” Smith said. “There has been no level of disrespect shown to me in my life more than what he did. To portray me as someone who would attack someone’s family, knowing I’ve never done it, I can’t tell you how insulting I find that.”
The final salvo comes next Smith accused James of treating white and black journalists differently during a chat on the podcast ‘The Pivot’.
James has not responded publicly to either comment.
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