Jan 20, 2025; Atlanta, GA, USA; ESPN personality Stephen A. Smith on the ESPN First Take set at the CFP Fan Central at the George World Congress Center. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images Top sports commentator Stephen A. Smith had quite the Thursday, as ESPN’s top personality received a new $100 million contract and got roasted by LeBron James.
According to The Athletic, Smith agreed to a five-year contract extension worth $100 million on Thursday evening. If you’ve watched any ESPN programming within the last decade, you’d understand that he’s earned every single penny of that.
Smith told Front Office Sports in February that the monetary agreement had been settled for weeks, but they were working out “what Smith wanted to do.” Reports on Thursday stated that this new agreement would give him the flexibility to talk more politics — and the world is ready for that.
Earlier this week, Smith went viral for debating The View’s Joy Behar about former President Donald Trump’s victory and the current state of the Democratic Party.
In recent months, speculation has grown about Smith’s political interests and whether that could lead him toward running for office in 2028. He said “he could beat all of them,” in reference to top Democratic candidates but claims that he isn’t interested in or qualified to run for office.
ESPN gave Smith his way. He’s going to talk more about politics. His recent appearance on The View proved that he’s ready for that. But his new contract was not the only thing people were talking about on Thursday.
Smith sat courtside at Crypto.com Arena for the Los Angeles Lakers’ 113-109 victory over the New York Knicks last night. While taking in the game, he was confronted by none other than LeBron James, and the King wasn’t exactly congratulating him on that new TV deal. The confrontation was captured on cellphone video and immediately went viral.
On Friday morning’s episode of First Take, Smith confirmed online speculation that James confronted him regarding takes surrounding Bronny James. Smith said he could not repeat the exact words because they were not suited for FCC airwaves.
Oh yeah, he got cussed out by LeBron.
“That wasn’t a basketball player confronting me,” Smith said. “That was a parent. That was a father.”
On the show, Smith maintained his take from a few months ago that LeBron put his son in a tough position to start his NBA career because of the high expectations placed on Bronny before even being drafted.
Regardless of where you fall on this entire encounter, that’s a Thursday evening to remember—securing a massive payday, being given the green light to discuss politics and grow his media footprint even further, and getting into a dustup with the best NBA player of this generation.
Hang it in the Louvre of Stephen A. Smith moments. He wants all of our attention, and he has it.
