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Reading: Stephen A. Smith Calls The Lakers ‘The Biggest Idiots On The Planet’ Amid Reports Of Phil Jackson’s Involvement With Front Office
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Home > NBA News & Analysis > Stephen A. Smith Calls The Lakers ‘The Biggest Idiots On The Planet’ Amid Reports Of Phil Jackson’s Involvement With Front Office

Stephen A. Smith Calls The Lakers ‘The Biggest Idiots On The Planet’ Amid Reports Of Phil Jackson’s Involvement With Front Office

Nico Martinez
May 5, 2022
4 Min Read
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Credit: FanBuzz

Phil Jackson is a basketball legend. As an 11x Champion with experience coaching some of the game’s greatest players, there are few coaches in the sport who even get mentioned in the same breath as him.

Still, that doesn’t mean people want him involved with running a team.

Amid reports of Jackson’s role in L.A.’s coaching search, ESPN NBA analyst Stephen A. Smith went out of his way to flame the former coach and the entire Lakers organization for looking to Jackson during the decision-making process.

(via First Take)

“If they were looking for a new general manager or a new president of basketball operations, I would call the Los Angeles Lakers franchise the biggest idiots on the planet,” Smith said. “Because Phil Jackson should never be allowed to be an executive again. A matter of fact, I’m still so salty about the job he did in New York. I’d prefer that he’d be banned from New York. I don’t think he should be allowed in the state. That’s how bad of a job he did.”

Phil Jackson had a great coaching career but left much to be desired as President of the Knicks. He made some wrong moves and grew a toxic culture that pushed out one of the team’s best players. Stephen A. Smith isn’t so quick to forget all of that, and Jackson’s history with the Knicks explains why Smith is so against him advising the Lakers’ front office.

In the same segment, Smith also (shockingly) announced his belief that the Lakers should “strongly consider” trading LeBron James.

“I have an announcement I’d like to make. It is involving LeBron James,” said Stephen A. “I wanna announce to the American public that I think the Los Angeles Lakers should strongly consider trading LeBron James. That is what I believe. Now a lot of people are gonna lose their minds because the brother is 37 and in his 19 years and just averaged 30 and all this other stuff and if the team was better, he would have been a league MVP candidate without question. This is not throwing a speck of shame on LeBron James… I’m telling you, this is no shade to him at all.”

To be honest, the Lakers are in a pretty dire situation. They just ended an abysmal season and are very limited in how they can change the roster.

LeBron James is 37, Anthony Davis is unreliable, and Russell Westbrook may be more of a liability than anything else. Amid all of this, they’re bringing in various different voices to collaborate on a solution.

Still, to go off on Jackson like that, and suggest trading James, might be overstepping for the esteemed ESPN journalist. It will be interesting to see if he lightens up his stance on the Purple and Gold as the summer goes on.

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TAGGED:New York Knicks ArchiveStephen A. Smith
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ByNico Martinez
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Nico Martinez is a veteran staff writer for Fadeaway World from Brooklyn, New York. He joined Fadeaway World in 2016 and is currently residing in Columbia, South Carolina. Nico holds a degree in Sports Management from Columbia International University where he built a strong foundation in the inner workings of sports media and management. Nico's contributions have significantly enhanced the credibility and depth of Fadeaway World's content, earning him recognition across the sports journalism community. His work has been discussed in prestigious publications like Sports Illustrated. A dedicated follower of LeBron James, Nico often leads coverage on news related to the basketball star. With nearly a decade of experience in sports journalism, Nico consistently provides comprehensive and timely basketball news, engaging a wide audience of basketball enthusiasts.Nico's most desired player to interview, past or present, is Kevin Durant. He is particularly keen on asking Durant if he has any regrets about his career, especially concerning his departure from the Oklahoma City Thunder, and why he engages so much with fans on social media. 
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