Stephen A. Smith, renowned for his outspoken commentary and passionate opinions, unexpectedly found himself in the spotlight this week for an entirely different reason. During a live broadcast of ESPN's "First Take" on Monday, he inadvertently became the victim of a parody social media post.
On Tuesday, Smith apologized to the producers of the show for his comments about the fake X (formerly Twitter) post attributed to Shai Gilgeous-Alexander:
"That was not his post, that was a fake post. I know that, the producers told me that, I just forgot... Let's get that out the way first in fairness to him."
Explore the NBA Draft 2024 with our free NBA Mock Draft Simulator & be the GM of your favorite NBA team.
The incident took place on Monday during a discussion with analyst Shannon Sharpe regarding the OKC Thunder's 2019 trade involving Paul George and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
Smith referred to a supposed Instagram post by SGA expressing discontent with his former team. However, the post was fake, created by the sports parody account "@TheNBACentel," known for its mischievous posts.
Smith soon realized his gaffe. On Tuesday, he admitted that the SGA Instagram story was fake, and he also admitted that the show's producers had informed him that the Instagram story was a fake post, but he forgot.
Stephen A. Smith goes back-to-back, cites Shai Gilgeous-Alexander's fake post after apologizing to producer
Just when it seemed like the saga had come to an end, Stephen A. Smith once again sparked a flurry of social media mockery.
After attributing a fake social media post to Shai Gilgeous-Alexander on Monday and apologizing a day later, it appears déjà vu struck the "First Take" set once more on Wednesday.
In a debate with analysts Chris “Mad Dog” Russo and Tim Legler, Stephen A. Smith again referred to the fake X post about the OKC Thunder's 2019 trade involving Paul George and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
That was even though Smith had issued an apology to the producers of the show during an earlier segment with Molly and Shannon Sharpe.
Social media, true to form, responded swiftly and mercilessly, with fans seizing the opportunity to poke fun at Smith's blunder.
"no way LMAOOOO "As one fan said
"bros losing all credibility" wrote by another.
Stephen A. Smith's on-air theatrics might be fun for some fans, but his latest mistake makes him look less reliable. While some fans love his loud personality, others raise concerns about his journalistic integrity.
OKC Thunder Fan? Check out the latest OKC Thunder depth chart, schedule, and roster updates all in one place.