Stephen A. Smith is still thinking about the courtside confrontation with LeBron James, telling a former NBA player why he felt the league’s all-time leading scorer “set him up” in that instance.
Earlier this year, Smith and James went viral during a Los Angeles Lakers game. James confronted Smith in his courtside seat, seemingly to address Smith’s critiques on how the Lakers were handling Bronny James, the superstar’s son.
In March, Smith revealed that the incident stemmed from his televised criticisms of Bronny.
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Smith said on ESPN at the time, “That wasn’t a basketball player confronting me. That was a parent. That was a father. I can’t be angry or feel slighted by LeBron James in that regard. He’s obviously a wonderful family man and father who cares very, very deeply about his son, by all accounts.”
During a recent episode of “7PM In Brooklyn with Carmelo Anthony,” Smith spoke about the moment with the New York Knicks icon, saying that he still doesn’t feel right about the circumstances of the conversation with James and how it appeared on camera.
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Smith said on the podcast, “The day that he rolled up on me courtside was the day my contract was announced, that I had stayed with ESPN. Look at the camera angle…We got technology everywhere in 2025. TNT is a nationally televised game. How is it that we only have one angle, and the only angle you see is of him and his face, but you see the back of my head?”
Smith thinks that, given James’ star power, there would’ve been many more camera angles of the courtside meeting.
Smith added, “There’s no way you’re in an arena, you’re LeBron James, and the only angle anyone sees is a straight up shot of you getting in my face. They see no reaction. They see nothing. And that’s an accident?”
Smith went into conspiracy territory here, but he stood his ground as he aired his feelings about the confrontation potentially being orchestrated.
“Damn right, I did,” Smith quickly replied to a question about whether he felt set up or not. “That’s how I feel. But it’s no big deal because I go on the air the next day and I’m like, ‘That’s a dad reacting to his son.’”
And if you’re wondering, Smith and James have not made up. Smith stated clearly how he feels about James.
He said, “I don’t like his a–, not even a little bit. This dates back more than a decade. I’m not gonna go into detail about what this man has tried to do to me. You don’t understand the lengths this man would go to… If it was up to him, I wouldn’t be where I am today. It’s some low, low stuff.”
The beef between these two is real, and it doesn’t look like they will patch things up heading into the 2025-26 season this week.
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