Stephen A. Smith put himself in a terrible position on Monday after making controversial claims about the Nigeria national team. They faced Team USA over the weekend, beating them in one of the biggest upsets in USA Basketball history.
A lot of people were unhappy with that situation, including Smith, who picked the wrong way to vent his frustration, disrespecting the Nigerian players’ names.
“There’s no excuse to lose to Nigeria… [To lose to] some dude Gabe Nnamdi, who goes by Gabe Vincent and plays for the Miami Heat. Or Caleb Agada. Or Nma… however the hell you pronounce his name,” Smith declared. “You give up 60 points on 3’s? Excuse me, you can do better than that.”
Of course, this didn’t sit well with the Nigerian players, who came back at him asking for respect after playing a great game and beating the incredible favorites when nobody believed in them.
You can critique the other team without disrespecting us. Put some respect on the flag and the mother land! Don’t forget where your ancestors came from !!!! 🇳🇬😁 https://t.co/d7B1lK0nLW
— Josh Okogie (@CallMe_NonStop) July 12, 2021
Most disrespectful thing I’ve heard in a while. @stephenasmith is violating over 200 million 🇳🇬’s with statements like this. Those 3 men that he mentioned worked way to hard to be dismissed like that. Say our names properly or don’t say them at all. https://t.co/ybaHJohJmq
— Stan Okoye (@StanOkoye_) July 12, 2021
Sweat
— #NBBF (@nbbfonline) July 13, 2021
Stephen A offended Ohtani and Nigeria. In his apology to Ohtani, he identified as “African American”. Don’t claim the culture if U want to disrespect it. If U can say Krzyzewski, U can say Agada. Unprofessional, period… https://t.co/NswnX8wE73
— Jordan Nwora (@JordanNwora) July 13, 2021
We don’t subtweet. So yes we are talking to you @stephenasmith
— D’Tigers | Nigeria Basketball (@NigeriaBasket) July 12, 2021
Josh Okogie, Stan Okoye, and more reacted to those remarks, calling out Smith on social media.
The analyst made sure to piss everybody off on Monday, making controversial comments on MLB star Shohei Ohtani. Stephen A. said the Los Angeles Angels’ star couldn’t be the face of the league simply because he uses a translator wherever he goes. Nevertheless, he had no more remedy and apologized to the 27-year-old slugger.
“Let me apologize right now,” he wrote, in part. “As I’m watching things unfold, let me say that I never intended to offend ANY COMMUNITY, particularly the Asian community — and especially SHOHEI Ohtani, himself. … I screwed up. In this day and age, with all the violence being perpetrated against the Asian Community, my comments — albeit unintentional — were clearly insensitive and regrettable.”
He’s yet to address his comments on the Nigerian squad, especially after they beat another talented team, Argentina, on Monday. This is a very unfortunate situation, but that’s what you get when you want to make headlines at any cost.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7lx9-ig3zd4
