Stephen A. Smith continued his tirade against LeBron James on yesterday’s episode of First Take. When speaking about what LeBron said about his relationship with Michael Jordan, Smith noted that the relationship between the two being poor might be LeBron’s fault. He brought up James’ lengthy negotiations with Warner Bros. to make Space Jam 2, the successor to Michael Jordan‘s iconic 1996 movie.
“It’s not about whether or not they [LeBron and MJ] have a relationship. The issue is why. A lot of times, we talk about LeBron James and their relationship or lack thereof. Sometimes, we look at both parties, and we don’t look at one party.”
“You’re LeBron James, you came into the league wearing 23. Now, eventually, it was to be the GOAT and to be supplanted. Just ask Hollywood about the negotiations for Space Jam and some of the stipulations he insisted in order for him to do the movie. You’ll find out some of the details. I won’t go there because we’re being nice this morning.”
It appears that Smith is insinuating that LeBron James is to blame for the poor relationship between him and Michael Jordan. What’s interesting here is Smith choosing to bring up James’ negotiations to be in Space Jam 2. Several fans questioned why Michael Jordan, who was in the first iconic movie, did not make an appearance in the sequel, or why the sequel wasn’t canon to the original.
Could Smith be hinting at James demanding that Jordan not be part of the movie or even be referenced? It would be a fascinating reveal, especially considering the initial conjecture was that Jordan didn’t want LeBron to be in the sequel. The movie even trolled fans by teasing an appearance, only for it to be actor Michael B. Jordan, something Don Cheadle hinted at months before the movie came out.
The director of the original Space Jam panned the unofficial sequel, and discredited LeBron James for not being as good as Michael Jordan.
In the end, it is hard to know what exactly happened. There was a lot of hysteria surrounding the release of Space Jam 2, not just from the kid audience it was targeting, but from several adults who grew up loving the original.
However, things got very embarrassing when fans of both players tried comparing the movies, the two stars as actors, and tried using the movie as some kind of determining factor in the long-running GOAT debate.
Smith had a lot to say about LeBron James in the aftermath of his wild interview with Pat McAfee. He threatened to swing at LeBron, said he would be forgotten once he retires, and falsely claimed that James was not in attendance for Kobe Bryant’s memorial service in 2020.
That last claim earned him a lot of pushback, not just because of its inappropriate nature but because of the fact that it wasn’t true. Smith even admitted to getting it wrong.
Channing Frye even called Smith out for lying about the situation just to perpetuate a negative reputation about LeBron James. Hopefully, Smith will take a step back and see how embarrassing his behavior has been over the last few weeks, as it has not been a good look for the ESPN analyst.
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