"ESPN falling for fake sources" - NBA fans ridicule Stephen A. Smith for getting duped by phony Shai Gilgeous-Alexander tweet

Longtime journalist and NBA analyst for ESPN Stephen A. Smith has recently fallen victim to unreliable sources. In the most recent episode of First Take, Smith shared an alleged Instagram story posted by OKC Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. However, upon confirming, SGA never posted something related to or about what the journalist and network claim.

Using reliable sources is crucial in sharing information, as it could make or break an entity. Unfortunately, it looked like ESPN failed to confirm if SGA's social media activity matched what the "sources" had posted.

The alleged post came from X (formerly Twitter) account NBACentel, a parody page of NBACentral, that shares fake news. In the post, NBACentel claimed that the Thunder star posted the trade package that sent him to OKC.

But Smith and ESPN still fell for it and used it as their source on First Take.

Upon visiting his IG profile, there isn't any update from him on his stories. The latest activity he had on the social media platform was about his newborn son. Fans noticed this and called out the network for using an unreliable source. Here is what the fans had to say.

"Espn falling for fake sources," a fan said.

"They never learn," one fan claims that Smith and the network never learn.

"How do they fall for this," this fan is genuinely concerned about ESPN falling for fales sources.

Some fans couldn't help but be embarrassed by the network for falling for it.

"I’m ngl it’s mad embarrassing," one fan said.

"Number 1 voice of sports media getting duped AGAIN with false information," this fan wasn't happy that the network fell for it again.

"This is f***in sad LMAO," one fan didn't hold back in sharing his thoughts about it.

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This isn't the first time Stephen A. Smith has fallen for fake sources

Unfortunately, Smith has fallen victim to fake sources on multiple occasions. Back in 2022, X account Ballsack Sports posted that Kyrie Irving and James Harden (who were both with the Brooklyn Nets at that time) got into an altercation.

According to the post, Irving called his former teammate "washed," which led to them getting into it physically. It was posted in February 2022 and Smith used it as a source in April 2022.

Ballsack Sports, much like NBACentel, is a parody account that thrives in satirical headlines and semi-professional graphics that are not actual truths. But people, like Smith, have fallen for some of their claims ever since they entered the scene in 2021.