Stephen A. Smith has taken a whole lot of shots at Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James over the last year or so, and he was back at it on Friday. James caused a stir when he criticized Memphis and stated the Grizzlies should relocate to Nashville during an appearance on Bob Does Sports, and Smith explained his issue with the comments on the Stephen A. Smith Show.
“I’m not even telling you that LeBron James can’t feel that way,” Smith said. “I’m saying to say it so flippantly amongst a bunch of white dudes on a golf course, knowing the cameras are rolling and videoing you without any regard for what kind of effect that would have on a Black populace, is problematic.
“Especially when I don’t know if it was your sneakers or whatever it was that you just finished promoting months ago about Black History and Martin Luther King and civil rights,” Smith continued. “I think you wore sneakers or something commemorating all of that. When I spoke, I spoke about what this city needs in order to look out for the vast majority of its citizens who happen to be Black that are living there.
“I did it right here on the mic with the cameras rolling,” Smith added. “Dead serious as hell, ’cause I ain’t trying to let nobody off the hook on that. I wasn’t dressed in shorts, lollygagging on a golf course with a bunch of peeps that don’t look anything like the folks that reside in Memphis. That’s where it was foul.”
Smith was referring to the Nike LeBron 23 ‘Honor the King’ sneakers. The teal color is a nod to the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, where Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated in 1968. Not everyone was a fan of honoring King in this manner, but that is a topic for another day.
Smith acknowledged here that everything James said wasn’t wrong. He has taken offense to the 41-year-old flippantly making comments without any regard to the Black people in Memphis.
While one could argue whether Smith is right or not here, former NBA player Matt Barnes certainly doesn’t consider him to be the right messenger. Barnes went off on the ESPN analyst on Instagram.
“So I just saw a video of Stephen A. Smith having an issue with LeBron on a golf course with a bunch of white boys, as he put it,” Barnes said. “Talking about Memphis and how they should move to Nashville, and if you’ve been paying attention on social media, it’s kind of a trending topic right now.
“I played in Memphis, got a lot of love for the city,” Barnes stated. “But there’s no doubt that the city needs to upgrade when it comes to its facilities for pro players. But Stephen A., you shouldn’t have a problem with that. You’re talking about his words and what they mean to the Black community.
“But you’ve been the same man in front of the camera for the last handful of months, disrespecting Serena Williams, disrespecting Jasmine Crockett, disrespecting Kamala Harris, and tap dancing for the whole Republican Party, the whole white Republican Party,” Barnes continued. “But you got an issue with LeBron talking about a trending topic and his words carry weight, and he doesn’t understand what his words can do to the Black community.
“Do you understand the bulls*** you’re talking and what that can do to the Black community?” Barnes added. “We all used to have a lot of love for you, bro, particularly me, because you looked out. But we’re not going to forget the bull**** you’re on right now.”
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Smith had faced a lot of backlash for claiming in 2025 that he’d have divorced his wife if she had joined in on trolling her ex-boyfriend, as Serena Williams had done when she appeared on Kendrick Lamar’s Super Bowl halftime show. Williams’ husband, Alexis Ohanian, even confronted him over it.
Smith sure is rubbing a lot of people the wrong way nowadays. Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green was among those who liked Barnes’ post. Current and former players had love for Smith at one point, but he’s getting on their wrong side now.
