Full Show: Will Smith returns as Grammy presenter. Can Diddy get a fair trial? Trump playing politics with DEI claim.

Stephen A. Smith is a New York Times Bestselling Author, Executive Producer, host of ESPN's First Take, and co-host of NBA Countdown.

Stephen A. discusses President Donald Trump’s assertion that the American Airlines/Black Hawk helicopter crash over the Potomac River could have been due to DEI hiring policies. He comments on two new victims in a superseding indictment against Sean “Diddy” Combs, the five-part MAX docuseries, “The Fall of Diddy,” and entertainer Will Smith’s return as a Grammy Awards presenter. In the NBA, he talks about Colin Cowherd on Bronny James’ place on the Los Angeles Lakers, the Memphis Grizzlies 119 – 120 win over the Houston Rockets, and the Charlotte Hornets LaMelo Ball not being selected for the NBA All-Star Game, as well as NBA Commissioner Adam Silver floating the idea of 10-minute NBA quarters.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Donald Trump, P Diddy, Will Smith. The list goes on
and on. What the hell is the day's show gonna
be about? You're about to find out it's right here
in The steven A. Smith Show.

Speaker 2 (00:12):
Ill let you boy. What's up? Everybody? Welcome to the
latest edition of The Steven A.

Speaker 1 (00:28):
Smith Show, coming at you over the digital airs, A
YouTube and iHeartRadio. As always, I like to take a
moment to thank my subscribers and follow us. We've now
eclipsed one point zero seven million subscribers. Can't thank y'all
for the love and support enough there not just to mention,
not to mention. Also, iHeart radio that's had millions of
downloads over the last few months. Keep helping the show.
Can't thank y'all enough for the love and support. Keep

(00:50):
it coming and I'm going to keep on coming. To
continue to like and follow the show, just click the
button and you'll be notified for all of our new
newest content on The steven A. Smith Show and YouTube.
Will be the newest member of the family. And don't
forget to pick up a copy of my New York
Times best selling book, Straight Shooter, a Memoir of second
Chances and first takes. Now in paperback. Just go to
Straight Shooter book dot com to get yourself a copy.

(01:10):
Let straight you to book dot com to get yourself
a copy. P Diddy, there's a docuseries out. I gotta
talk about it. I gotta talk about it. You'll be
surprised at what I have to say about it, considering
the salacious details that have been alleged in the docuseries.
I'll definitely talk about that. Will Smith is making an appearance.

(01:31):
I'll be talking about that. Some NBA and NFL action.
I'll touch on that as well. But the first order
of business is to get in the trumpet. I'm not
gonna even call it politics. I'm gonna call it social
commentary because that's what I feel it is, and that's
where I need to get started. First, the news, the
tragic news out of Washington, DC, Wednesday night, the plane
crash between an American Airlines commuter jet and.

Speaker 2 (01:53):
A black Hawk helicopter.

Speaker 1 (01:55):
All sixty seven people aboard the American Eagle flight and
Army helicopter were killed when an aircraft collided over the
Potomac River. Victims on the American Airlines flight included Russian
Olympic figure skaters youth skaters and their parents, just to
name a few. The cause of the collision is unclear,
and the National Transportation Safety Board is investigating. However, a

(02:18):
preliminary report by the FAA by the FAA indicated that
air traffic control staffing was quote not normal end quote
at the time of the crash. Meanwhile, President Donald Trump
spoke to reporters and implied that diversity, equity and Inclusion
programs DEI may have been the cause of the tragedy.
He's what President Trump said before reporters at the White

(02:41):
House yesterday.

Speaker 3 (02:42):
So, as you know, last week, long before the crash,
I signed an executive order restoring our highest standards for
air traffic controllers and other important jobs throughout the country.
So it was very interesting about a week ago, almost
upon entering office, I signed something last week that was

(03:04):
an executive board. Are very powerful on restoring the highest
standards of air traffic controllers and others. By the way,
then my administration will set the highest possible bar for
aviation safety. We have to have our smartest people.

Speaker 2 (03:18):
It doesn't matter what they.

Speaker 3 (03:19):
Look like, how they speak, who they are matters intellect, talent,
the word talent. They have to be talented, naturally talented geniuses.
It can't have regular people doing that job. They won't
be able to do it, but will restore faith in
American air travel.

Speaker 4 (03:37):
I'll have more to.

Speaker 3 (03:38):
Say about that. I do want to point out that
various articles that appeared prior to my entering office, and
here's one. The FAA's diversity push includes focus on hiring
people with severe intellectual and psychiatric disabilities.

Speaker 2 (03:58):
That is amazing.

Speaker 3 (04:00):
And then it says FAA says people with severe disabilities
a most underrepresented segment of the workforce, and they want
them in, and they want them they can be air
traffic controllers. I don't think so.

Speaker 2 (04:13):
This was.

Speaker 3 (04:15):
In January fourteenth, so that was a week before I
entered office. They put a big push to put diversity
into the FAA's program.

Speaker 1 (04:26):
Now, before I get to my comments, because I got
a lot to say about that we just saw. I
want to play some sound from New York Senator Chuck
Schumer reacting to Trump's comments.

Speaker 2 (04:37):
Take a listen.

Speaker 4 (04:38):
I just watched President Trump's news conference. Listen. It's one
thing for Internet pungits to spew off conspiracy theories. It's
another for the president of the United States to throw
out idle speculation as bodies are still being recovered and
families still being notified.

Speaker 2 (04:59):
It just turns your stomach.

Speaker 1 (05:01):
Amen, Amen, and let me stay for the record. I'm
not one that usually agrees with Chuck Schumer. I don't
like a lot of things he says. It does personally
because I think a lot of it is pomping circumstance
and not much to do about anything. Half the time,
I know how knowledgeable and formidable he is and has
been in the United States Center, but nevertheless, there are
things that I disagree with him about.

Speaker 2 (05:22):
This is not one of them.

Speaker 1 (05:25):
To say that President Trump was utterly irresponsible in the
rhetoric that he spewed is an understatement. You don't know
if DEI had anything to do with it, He admitted
he didn't know. Well, do what the hell you say
it for? Whytch you open your mouth? Why would you

(05:48):
do that? Because you see the more he opens his
mouth about stuff like that, and the quickness with which
he's willing to throw in DEI, it's crystallizing what ultimately
your gender in terms of your administration.

Speaker 2 (06:05):
Is really really all about.

Speaker 1 (06:06):
If you're going to go that direction, and let's understand
what we're talking about and what we're listening to when
we hear him spew this diversity, equity and inclusion, regardless
of the fact that when you talk about diversity, usually women,
primarily white women, benefit from such things, just as they
had benefited from affirmative action because they were labeled a minority,

(06:29):
we're never including them when we're talking about this stuff.
When you say diversity, equity, and inclusion, when you say DEI,
you know what that means to people outside of the.

Speaker 2 (06:38):
Minority communities, unqualified to minorities.

Speaker 1 (06:42):
It's automatically assumed that that's who you're talking about, and
nobody wants to take into account. As I reiterated and
regurgitated just the other day, how did it come about?
How was affirmative action? How did affirmative action ever come about?
How did stuff like the Ruiney Rule ever come about?
How did DEEI come about? DEI came about in the

(07:04):
aftermath of George Floyd's murder by a police officer in Minnesota,
Derek Chauvin, who kept his foot on Floyd George Floyd's
neck for more than nine minutes and twenty seconds, and
the other cops right near him did nothing as this
young as this man was calling for his mama and

(07:26):
losing his breath of life, and an uproar ensued, and
protest ensued, and riots ensued, and White America couldn't deny
how heenous that act was. So they stood up and
they raised their hands and they said, we're listening, we
want to hear you. And what they did is they
engaged in overkilled. Let's admit it. Let's call them what

(07:47):
it is. We're talking business now. Overkilled ensued and what
happened is you saw corporate America and beyond trying to
make amends for its negligence, for it's unfair. It's unfairness
the inequities that it had exercised, and they said, we
want to make up for it. So they went in

(08:07):
a overload and they poured money in resources into certain things,
in some cases DEI.

Speaker 2 (08:16):
And what you're seeing now is.

Speaker 1 (08:18):
The scaling back of that, because the momentum is died
down and you no long have to prioritize things the
way that you once did. You feel me air and
you feel me, Mikey, hear what I'm saying.

Speaker 2 (08:28):
And as a.

Speaker 1 (08:29):
Result, now you're saying Let's get back to normalcy per se.
Let's not engage in overkill. Let's not be a bit
too excessive. Let's not just throw money against the wall. Money,
by the way, most folks don't have. And now you're
seeing the scaling back of it. And in my opinion,

(08:50):
and it's just an opinion, there's a justification on the
part of the Trump administration to hide behind DEI, to
justify cut that you know inevitably have to come in
order for you to shave.

Speaker 2 (09:05):
Some of the overhead that.

Speaker 1 (09:06):
You have to have because of the national debt and beyond,
with thirty six trillion dollars in debt, you really really
think that immigration it's just about people feeling safe in
the streets. We've had immigrants in our country forever. Immigrants
helped build this country. That's why, for the most part,

(09:31):
we've been proposents of folks coming across our borders. We
just didn't want flagrantly open borders like President Joe Biden.

Speaker 2 (09:39):
Authenticated or okayed.

Speaker 1 (09:43):
But we've always had immigrants coming to this country, and
we've always benefited from their participation in this country, in
building this nation.

Speaker 2 (09:53):
So this is not new.

Speaker 1 (09:54):
What happens is you have an inordinate amount of bodies,
and because you had that in order, in about of bodies,
you're saying, Okay, that has to stop because it's costing
the tax payer billions of dollars. It's very simple when
you look at it, how it's handled is where the
crime kicks in. Because when you handle it the way

(10:16):
that the Trump administration is handling it, we want the
most qualified, we want the smartest, we want this, we
want that.

Speaker 2 (10:24):
What you're really saying is we want white dominance.

Speaker 1 (10:28):
Again, that's what you're really saying, you want white dominance,
because if you're pointing the DEI, and that's usually pointing
towards quote unquote unqualified minorities, because you're always using the.

Speaker 2 (10:42):
Word qualified, qualified, qualified, as if.

Speaker 1 (10:45):
Everybody they got a position through DEI is not qualified.
We know what you're implying, we know what you're insinuating.
And you got folks in the administrations and Pete heg saith,
Oh my god, the nerve of him to just join
into the frame and give his quote about making sure
qualified people have these jobs. You're the Defense secretary whose

(11:08):
only job prior to this was as a weekend host
on Fox News.

Speaker 2 (11:15):
I didn't bring up personal allegations against Pete Hegson.

Speaker 1 (11:17):
What I said was not being qualified for Defense secretary
all of a sudden going from a weekend host on
cable television to overseeing the department with over three and
a half million people.

Speaker 2 (11:28):
That's what I'm saying, not an accident, the nerve.

Speaker 1 (11:35):
Nerve Hell was truck qualified to be president. If we
want to get if we want to get down to
the beer.

Speaker 2 (11:41):
Bones of it, I'm talking about first go round.

Speaker 1 (11:44):
Was he wasn't Hillary more qualified? Just qualifications. I'm not
talking about who you prefer your vote for. I'm just
talking qualifications. Was not Hillary more qualified? But you decided
to go that route anyway? Right? But here we are
talking qualifications, and I'm all for qualifications and having the
best and the brightest, especially when it comeok to public safety,
no doubt about that. But what you had to bring

(12:05):
up DEI for every white person was qualified. Every white
person that got that job deserved that job. Every white
person that wasn't highed through DEI was exceptional and the
best and the brightest.

Speaker 2 (12:17):
You ain't got any black people, any Hispanic people that
you want to sprinkle into the mix. Could you do
that could you do that?

Speaker 1 (12:26):
No, you cannot, and I know why. But I'll get
to that in a second, right after we hear from
our sponsors.

Speaker 2 (12:37):
All right, folks, I need you to stop what you're
doing and listen up. You know. I love this time
of year.

Speaker 1 (12:41):
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(13:36):
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run your game now. Let's look at my picks for
today for the big game, the Kansas City Chiefs versus
the Philadelphia Eagles. First up, We've got the Philadelphia Eagles
running back sa Kwon Barkley more or less than one
hundred and sixteen and a half rushing yards.

Speaker 2 (13:56):
How can I go with less? I have to go
with more.

Speaker 1 (13:59):
It's sain Kwon barks the two thousand and five rush yards.
The brothers just running rough shot over everybody in the
playoffs opens the NFC Championship game of the first play
from scrimmage for the Philadelphia Eagles with a sixty yard
touchdown run. This brother is special and he's on a mission.
As his teammate said, to give the big finger to
his former team, the New York Giants, who will not
will not only let him go, but we're so dismissive

(14:20):
in doing so.

Speaker 2 (14:21):
The brothers gonna show out.

Speaker 1 (14:22):
I think it's it's almost damn sacriligious to think that
he's gonna run for less than one hundred and sixty
and a half yards. So I'm gonna go with more.

Speaker 2 (14:29):
Next up, we've got Eagles wide.

Speaker 1 (14:31):
Receiver Davonte Smith more or less than fifty one and
a half receiving yards, going with less on this. Here's
my deal. I think aj Brown's gonna be good. I
think Dallas God is gonna be good. I think they're
gonna utilize Saikawon Barkley catching passes out of the batfield.
One person might suffer, and that's Devonte Smith. That's just
a guess. Somebody's gonna step up for them. Somebody's not

(14:52):
gonna be able to. I think that's what we're looking
at here. Okay, That's where I'm at with it. Next up,
we have Kansas City's wide receiver Xavier Worthy more less
than fifty six and a half receiving yards. I'm going
with more on this because this brother can break away
one play for that, and I think he's gonna have
a couple of plays in this game where he'll do something,
so I definitely think he's gonna have more than that.
Let's last, but not least, We've got Chiefs running back

(15:15):
Kareem Hunt more or less than forty six and a
half rushing yards going with less on this, you have
to throw the football against the Philadelphia used to beat them.
I don't think you're running on them. It's my simple explanation.
Sometimes simple is more. Prize fix gets that.

Speaker 2 (15:32):
Why don't you.

Speaker 1 (15:39):
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is available by prescription only. Trump is catering to his base.

(18:04):
See there's a difference between the Magarite and the rest
of the people who voted for Trump. And where Trump
has an opportunity to really cement a legacy and to
push the Republican Party forward in a positive direction is

(18:25):
if he remembers how he got elected. Margarite is Magarit.
They gonna vote for him regardless. But it was those
swing voters that couldn't convince themselves to cast at the
ballot for Kamala Harris that ultimately won him the election.
And what has he done since, given executive orders all

(18:46):
over the place. Just today he sat up there and
talked about tariffs are coming away of Mexico and Canada
this weekend.

Speaker 2 (18:56):
We know what other executive orders he's.

Speaker 1 (18:58):
Given as it pertains needs to being identified as a
man or woman and nowhere between and all of this stuff.
And I'm not saying I got a problem with some
of the stuff he's did.

Speaker 2 (19:08):
Some I did some I did it. I ain't got
time to get in all of that today. What I'm
saying is we got to know what he's doing.

Speaker 1 (19:15):
Fifty seven percent of the American population a minimum is white.

Speaker 2 (19:20):
He's making sure he caters.

Speaker 1 (19:22):
To them because somehow, some way, like Chris Rock pointed
out in his stand up comedic routine on Netflix, he
said white folks were trying to overthrow a government that day.

Speaker 2 (19:32):
Run It's what he said. But if you Trump, here's
the warning.

Speaker 1 (19:43):
I'm reading from an article by Jason Riley Jason L.

Speaker 2 (19:47):
Riley in the Wall Street Journal.

Speaker 1 (19:51):
I want to read a couple of paragraphs that he
wrote in this article because I want you to understand
and what he's saying. When I brought up the part
about Kamala Harris, the difference between Maggie Wright and swing voters,
here's what Jason Riley said, The distinction matters Trump loyalists

(20:13):
don't care if the president part is January sixth protesters
who assaulted police officers after he condemned George Floyd protesters
who assaulted police officers.

Speaker 2 (20:20):
It doesn't care that. It doesn't concern them that Robert F.

Speaker 1 (20:23):
Kennedy Junior, the President's nominee for Secretary of Health and
Human Services, declared as recently as twenty twenty three that quote,
there's no vaccine that's safe and effective end quote. They're
not bothered that he yanked security protection for former key
advisors involved in planning the lead through drone strike on
Iran's leading terrorists, Cassim Solomone or Solomone, not because it's

(20:44):
no longer needed, but because he simply doesn't like them anymore.
Mister Trump can't be confident that all his supporters will
ignore such rank hypocrisy, foolishness, and petty behavior.

Speaker 2 (20:53):
Quote.

Speaker 1 (20:53):
The threat to anyone involved in President Trump's strike on
Solomoni is persistent.

Speaker 2 (20:57):
It's real.

Speaker 1 (20:57):
Senator Tom Cotton, Republican out of Arkansas, said chairman of
the Intelligence Committee, and a strong Trump ally.

Speaker 2 (21:05):
That's what he said on Fox News Sunday last weekend.

Speaker 1 (21:08):
More all of it it's not just about these men
who helped President Trump carry out his policy in the
first term. It's about their family and friends, and it's
in bystanders every time they're in public. It's also about
the president being able to get good people and get
good advice. He ain't listening. He appears back to his
old ways. What has he learned? And so now, if

(21:29):
you're the Democratic Party, why am I bringing this up?
Because you have a perfect opportunity. Suddenly it's not about
woke culture, it's not about cancel culture, it's not about
proper pronouns and all of this.

Speaker 2 (21:44):
Now we're getting into the hearts of the real issues.

Speaker 1 (21:47):
My Man Roland Martin was on his show just the
other day talking about civil rights legislation in nineteen sixty
four and how you've got folks within the Trump administration
trying to roll that back sixty years of progress. That's
what you have minorities in this country fearing right now
that that was the agenda all along, and they're pointing

(22:07):
to these things and it's making it and it should
make the Democratic Party stand up and say, wait a minute, now,
now these are issues you can fight for because these
are issues that the American people can get behind. And
what you have to do if you're a Democratic party
is be centered thinking as in center left. Prioritize the economy,

(22:29):
prioritize national security, security, prioritize foreign relations, and forget all
that other stuff. We got battles in this country that
we have to fight. Why am I giving this advice
because some of y'all have walked around.

Speaker 2 (22:45):
Trying to castigate people like me. Now, gon't remind you
of who.

Speaker 1 (22:49):
The hell I am. Okay, I am a registered independent.
Put that damn thing up on that screen, grif for me.
Please remind these people who the hell I am. Republican Democrat.
I don't like none of your asses. I'm talking about
as a party, not as individuals. I don't like every

(23:11):
one of y'all. This two party binary system sucks. It
has contaminated our society in the United States of America.
It has gotten our eyes off the ball. You know why,
because you have to agree with everything. Think about that
for a second. Whatever workplace you are, whatever family you have,

(23:33):
whatever boys or ladies you hang out with each other,
y'all agree on everything, everything one hundred percent of line.
And you're thinking about everything. Of course, you're not, but
our system of government.

Speaker 2 (23:45):
Will have you thinking you have to be.

Speaker 1 (23:47):
All the Republicans vote with one another, all the Democrats
vote with one another. Nobody has to do any freaking work.
You don't even have to read the policies. All you
have to do is ask your sister, how did the
Republicans vote, vote to how did the Democrats vote vote
the opposite?

Speaker 2 (24:02):
That's all you have to do. That's why you got
folks in the eighties still in office. And I'm not
engaging in agism here, I'm just speaking real. The hell
you doing on Capitol Hill?

Speaker 1 (24:16):
You really think I believe you reading four or five
hundred pages a legislation? You think I believe you putting
the network. But you vote anyway because you don't have
to do any work. All you have to do is
take the side that you're on and vote against the
other side that ain't serving our country. That's why the
country pissed off, That's why they put somebody like Trump

(24:38):
in office, because they sick and tired of the cesspool
that is our nation's capital.

Speaker 2 (24:44):
And if you're the.

Speaker 1 (24:45):
Democrats, you've got an opportunity to say that although Trump
is different and he's a political The dominance with which
he's governing over his first two weeks on the job
is antithetical and very detrimental to us as a nation.

Speaker 2 (25:01):
You can say that.

Speaker 1 (25:04):
And as a result return to some level of normalcy,
But what is that. You're the Democratic Party? Where's your voice?
Who's your voice? Me calling you out about it? Has
you thinking or has you acting like I'm the enemy.

Speaker 2 (25:17):
I'm trying to help.

Speaker 1 (25:20):
I don't want you to see you get your ass
kicked in another election.

Speaker 2 (25:23):
I don't want to see you losing the mid terms.

Speaker 1 (25:25):
I don't want to see you lose four years from
now in advance with JD. Vance or Marco Rubio or
somebody being the next president of the United States just
because they're opposite you. I want the best candidate for
the country to win. That cannot happen. That can't happen

(25:45):
if you have no voice and you have no.

Speaker 2 (25:48):
Face for your party. I doubt I'll ever run. It's
not me.

Speaker 1 (26:00):
I live a pretty good life and I don't want
to ruin it by getting involved in politics. But I
gotta tell y'all something. The Democratic Party looks so pathetic
after this election, I might entertain running. I just might
change my mind one day.

Speaker 2 (26:15):
I don't. I doubt it, but I might, because how
much would it take to beat y'all? And Trump can't
run again.

Speaker 1 (26:29):
He's done, regardless of what some representatives want, a third
term for him, kissing his ass at every turn.

Speaker 2 (26:36):
Will you do your job? Please do your job.

Speaker 1 (26:40):
He been back in the office for two weeks, and
you got one representative caller.

Speaker 2 (26:45):
For him to get a third term, and you.

Speaker 1 (26:47):
Got another representative talking about him being put.

Speaker 2 (26:50):
On Mount rushmore.

Speaker 1 (26:51):
Will you do your damn job? Is that too hard?
Just do your job. Look at our country, look at
the state that's in Understand what policies may work and
what might not work, what's to the best interest or
what's to the detriment of the country, And make that
damn decision.

Speaker 2 (27:06):
Is it really that hard?

Speaker 1 (27:08):
Do you have to get on your knees and kiss
his ass at every turn? Did you see the crash
after it happened and Trump handed.

Speaker 2 (27:17):
It over.

Speaker 1 (27:19):
To one of the aviation executives. I forget his name
or his title.

Speaker 2 (27:22):
For the moment, don't matter every other word he was saying,
I want to thank Donald Trump. I want to thank
Donald Trump.

Speaker 1 (27:28):
I want to thank don Trump, thank you for your Lisia,
thank you for shut the hell up and do your job.

Speaker 2 (27:33):
How much ass kissing must y'all.

Speaker 1 (27:36):
Do before your breath starts smelling like shit?

Speaker 2 (27:40):
I mean, come on, it's ridiculous. Just do your job.
Do your job. If you Trump, that means you too.

Speaker 1 (27:52):
Swing voters got you elected, my man, and they got
you elected because they couldn't vote for Kamala Harris. But
you promise them to address inflation. You promise them to
address our borders. Trump promised them to address national security.
You promise the thriving economy, You promised.

Speaker 2 (28:14):
The peace in the streets.

Speaker 1 (28:19):
If your actions are to lean on DEI every chance
you get to point out some supposed discrepancy between white
individuals and minorities who got jobs as it pertains to
their qualifications and their intellect and their resume and their accomplishments.
You don't think that's gonna compromise peace. You don't think

(28:42):
that's going to create chaos. Be careful, mister Trump. Be careful,
President Trump, Be careful. Society is only as strong as its.

Speaker 2 (28:56):
Weak, as links you alienate for.

Speaker 1 (29:01):
There's a price that's going to be paid for that,
and it's going to be the compromising and the eradication
of peace and tranquility. Enough people from all different facets
of this country voted for you because they believed that
you were going to do a better job at galvanizing

(29:23):
our nation than the left ever. Could you owe it
to all of us to do that, not to alienate us,
because you're trying to roll back stuff from sixty civil
rights legislation from sixty years that was black folks, that was.

Speaker 2 (29:40):
Minority folks access to capital.

Speaker 1 (29:44):
That is what civil rights legislation did for us, amongst
many other things.

Speaker 2 (29:49):
To attack that in any way, it's sacrilegious.

Speaker 1 (29:55):
And if you're the left, you remember what the hell
I said and you pounce like on it like a
bunch piranhas. Hispanics and minorities in this country make up
more than seventeen eighteen percent of the population. Black folks
make up thirteen to fourteen percent of the population, and
the Hispanic populace is growing.

Speaker 2 (30:17):
If you lost them, get them back.

Speaker 1 (30:20):
Know what Cubans, Dominicans, Venezuela is, Guatemalians, Mexicans, Puerto Ricans.

Speaker 2 (30:27):
And blacks.

Speaker 1 (30:30):
No what they mean in this country and what they
bring to this country.

Speaker 2 (30:35):
And remind folks.

Speaker 1 (30:36):
Of that instead of getting caught up in your frivolous
stuff on the extreme left that compromised.

Speaker 2 (30:42):
Your power in the nation's capital. Get it together.

Speaker 1 (30:48):
I'm sick of tired of people listening to me and
talking to me, and by the way, that includes people
that work for me. I'm sick of tired everybody acting
like I'm somebody that's some right winger. I have conservative views.
I have liberal views. Trust me, I have plenty of
liberal views. But that don't mean I ain't gonna call

(31:12):
it like I see it. I've been doing that for
my entire career, and damn it, I ain't stopping, ladies
and gentlemen. I'm in the best health I've been in
the twenty five years. If you thought I wasn't going
away before, you have no idea how the hell I'm
not going away now. I'm just getting started, mister Trump.

(31:35):
President Trump, I'm sorry. I don't like what I'm seeing.

Speaker 2 (31:39):
In some cases, bruh, I don't.

Speaker 1 (31:43):
Like what I'm seeing. Democrats pounce on them. If you don't,
I'll find somebody who will, or I'll do it my
damn self. I'm gonna give President Trump all the credit
in the world when he deserves it, and I'm gonna
call him out when he deserves it too.

Speaker 2 (32:04):
That's how it's going down on this show. Get used
to it, because I'm coming coming up.

Speaker 1 (32:14):
Adam Silva talks about a shorter NBA game and LaMelo
Ball gets snubbed from the.

Speaker 2 (32:18):
All Star Game. I'll get into that just ahead, but.

Speaker 1 (32:21):
First, Sean did he comes is hit with a new
indictment in this sex trafficking case. Plus there's some stuff
going on with some docu series about him too.

Speaker 2 (32:29):
Oh my god, Oh my god. We got to talk
about that next right here on The steven A.

Speaker 1 (32:35):
Smith Show, back with more in a minute.

Speaker 2 (32:44):
All right, everybody, listen up.

Speaker 1 (32:45):
With all the big time sports action that's happening each
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Speaker 2 (32:50):
And the college football playoffs, The steven A.

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Speaker 1 (34:03):
I know you are Super Bowl fifty nine in New Orleans, Louisiana.

Speaker 2 (34:07):
Baby, the Philadelphia Eagles versus the Kansas.

Speaker 1 (34:10):
City Chiefs, Hurts sat Quan versus My Homes, Telsey and
the crew. I'm looking forward to it for several reasons.
Number one, I expected to be a good game. Number two,
guess what, I love New Orleans sometimes anyway, the food
is great. Number Three, I get to be away from
my damn nephew Josh.

Speaker 2 (34:26):
He's trying to come down there. I'm not letting him.
This little knucklehead right here, this is. This is Josh Junior,
my little nephew, Jase. He can't come to the super Bowl.
He's gonna be in school, just the way I like it.
He can't come. And you like that. You gotta stay
at home. You gotta stay home. That's how it goes.

(34:49):
See y'all at the super Bowl. Steven A. Smithial will
be in the house all week long. Holler at you boys,
welcome back to stephen A. Smith Show.

Speaker 1 (35:04):
I want to get into the latest on Seawan Ditty Combs, y'all,
I can't avoid this. Yesterday, federal prosecutors in New York
filed a new superseding indictment against Combs. The indictment contains
no new charged crimes, but includes additional conduct as part
of the alleged racketeying conspiracy, which prosecutors now say spanned
a longer timeframe of about twenty years. Did They's attorneys

(35:26):
responded to the amendment with the following statement, quote, The
latest indictment contains no new offenses. The prosecution's theory remains flawed.
The government has added the ridiculous theory that two of
mister Combe's former girlfriends were not girlfriends at all, but
were prostitutes. Mister Combs is as committed as ever to
fighting these charges and winning at trial.

Speaker 2 (35:45):
End quote.

Speaker 1 (35:46):
Meanwhile, did y'all see the new docu series The Fall
of Ditty by Investigation Discovery that's also streaming on Max.
The series is a comprehensive look at Shawn Combs's evolution
and music mogul, entrepreneur, and cultural icon. The many the
series also get into his alleged dark side that includes
accusations of rape, sex trafficking, and prostitution. One notable quote

(36:06):
came via Diddy ex girlfriend Kat Passon, who alleged did
he once told her a quote there's a little bit
of R Kelly and all of us end quote while
the two watched the surviving R.

Speaker 2 (36:18):
Kelly documentary.

Speaker 1 (36:19):
Ladies and gentlemen, let me tell you something right now,
I have an opinion that might not be popular, Have
an opinion that you may not agree with, but I'm
gonna say it anyway because somebody needs to say it.
I don't think the network should have been allowed to
air that. I don't think any network should be allowed

(36:41):
to air that before the trial. See, you can't convince
me that P Diddy showing P Diddy Combs is gonna
be able to find a jury of.

Speaker 2 (36:52):
His peers who have not seen that docu series.

Speaker 1 (36:57):
I find that impossible to believe.

Speaker 2 (36:59):
I find it impossible to believe.

Speaker 1 (37:01):
Why am I saying all of this Because I got
to tell you, ladies.

Speaker 2 (37:04):
And gentlemen, he looks guilty as hell.

Speaker 1 (37:06):
I don't know how guilty he is, but I know
that I'm not going to be on a jury, and
I know that if I saw that five part docuseries
that I just finished watching, and I was on that jury,
I would walk in here looking.

Speaker 2 (37:21):
At him like, man, please, your ass is guilty as hell.
This bullshit. That's exactly what I'd be thinking. That's exactly
what I would be thinking. Because of the docuseries.

Speaker 1 (37:34):
In this country, you're presumed innocent until proven guilty. I
understand that's for the purposes of the auspices of.

Speaker 2 (37:42):
The court of law.

Speaker 1 (37:42):
I get that part, but damn should you be allowed
to incriminate somebody to a point where it completely, completely
manipulates and dictates your opinion of that individual.

Speaker 2 (37:58):
There is no defense of the video.

Speaker 1 (38:02):
That you saw with Diddy hitting and kicking and throwing
stuff at Cassie Venturo.

Speaker 2 (38:11):
There is no defense for it. He will never live
that down.

Speaker 1 (38:16):
But a whole bunch of stuff on this docuseries were
people giving their takes. I'm not saying they're lying or
telling the truth. I have no cluel, I have no idea.
I'm just saying that for the purposes of the docuseries.
I gotta tell you, there's no way in hell you
walk away from that thinking he's anything less than a monster.

(38:37):
And because that's the reality, I got a real problem
with this airing before his trial, because you still.

Speaker 2 (38:45):
Got to go out there and find a jury.

Speaker 1 (38:48):
You still got to go out there and find a
jury of his peers. You've got to find people who
are willing to be objective and fair minded and what
have you, and be completely neutral thing their opinion strictly
on the evidence that the prosecution presents. Juxtaposing that to
what the defense puts forth, and that is what is

(39:09):
supposed to determine your decision, not stuff that's happening outside
the court and permeated and plastered all over the airwaves.
Prime Video five part series. Again, he looks guilty as hell.
I mean, damn, I mean, if this stuff is true,

(39:33):
I mean, damn, damn, damn. But should it be should
we be privy to at before the trial? With no
defense for himself, he has to wait until he goes

(39:53):
to court to plead his case and to defend himself.
Sex traff racketeering, people throwing out accusations.

Speaker 2 (40:03):
Of rape, sexual assault, et cetera. Even dudes.

Speaker 1 (40:08):
It ain't just women, It ain't just ex girlfriends. It's
dudes too, patting it behinds and feeling them in the
bathroom while he's taking showers, having meetings while he's in
the shower butt naked, bathing himself right in front of.

Speaker 2 (40:22):
Them, men and women. Damn.

Speaker 1 (40:28):
You know when he said he was really fed up,
it's time to believe them. I don't know what drugs
we could speculate, weed, marijuana, cocaine, adderall.

Speaker 2 (40:43):
I don't know. He definitely wasn't in his right mind,
that might be a part of his defense. For all
we know. All I'm saying.

Speaker 1 (40:54):
Is, damn, it's very incriminating, and I find it very
difficult to believe that anybody can watch that and then
walk away saying he in the sin. I'm gonna find
him not guilty. They gonna walk in there, you know, Listen.
I wish I had the video of when I was

(41:15):
on First Take My Day Job on ESPN, when the
Dallas Cowboys was losing and they had that sister just
sitting there with her face looking like totally disgusted, like
black sisters can look like like like our sisters can
look when they like.

Speaker 2 (41:27):
You know you are sorry, ass. You know that kind
of look, you know that only the sisters could give
you that kind of look. I wish I had a picture.

Speaker 1 (41:35):
Of that woman as a Dallas Cowboy fan wear in
the Dallas Cowboy jersey when they lost to the green
Bay package when green Bay gave her for when Dallas
theas called forty eight on Dallas. That look says it all.
It speaks ten thousand words for various different situations. This
would be wonderful. I don't like the fact that it's
over the air waves before his trial. I just thought

(41:56):
that needed to be said. Let me switch to another
subject before I in this segment. Moving on, the twenty
twenty five Grammy Awards are this weekend, and some of
the presenters have been have been announced. Earlier to day,
the Recording Academy revealed that Cardi B. Sizza and Will
Smith will join Taylor Swift among the presenters at the
award show. One could argue there's a big moment for

(42:16):
Will Smith, who hasn't presented on this big of a
stage since slapping comedian Chris Rock at the Oscars in
twenty twenty two. Smith did perform it the BET Awards
last summer, but that's been about it in terms of
appearing at major award shows.

Speaker 2 (42:29):
By the way, the Grammys will also celebrate the life.

Speaker 1 (42:31):
Of Quincy Jones, in addition to the resilience of Los
Angeles amid the ongoing fires in the city. But I
want to focus on Will Smith. Obviously, I've been critical
of Will Smith because I'm a friend of Chris Rocks
and I don't appreciate what Will did.

Speaker 2 (42:46):
But I want to thank several people.

Speaker 1 (42:48):
I want to thank my man Charlie Mack, who is
a bodyguard and a longtime friends span in decades.

Speaker 2 (42:54):
For Will Smith.

Speaker 1 (42:55):
I want to thank the great Antoine Fuqua, the director
and producer extraordinaire who did Emancipation with Will Smith. Would
have won an Oscar for that too, had Will Smith
not slapped Chris Rock. I want to thank Will Packer,
who produced the Oscars, that same Oscars that Will Smith
did what he did with Chris Rock.

Speaker 2 (43:17):
I want to thank my man Dougie.

Speaker 1 (43:19):
Cash, who used to work at Hulu and used to
work under Will Smith years ago, and stuff like that.
They weren't the only ones, but primarily those four brothers
reached out to me directly, and Charlie Mack was the
most profound because I had said something about Will Smith

(43:42):
prior to Bad Boys, Rod to Die Coming Out, which
by the way, was a fantastic movie I've now seen
about five times, and Charlie Mack said, what about Grace stephening.

Speaker 2 (43:58):
He made a mistake. And I explained to Charlie Mac that.

Speaker 1 (44:03):
As bad as I thought it was to be slapping
a black man on national television, what really vexed.

Speaker 2 (44:11):
Me most was.

Speaker 1 (44:17):
How it would affect Will Packer, how it would affect
Antoine Fuqua, how it would affect Chris Rock, and I
thought about the collateral damage that would take fold and
how it would detrimentally affect opportunities for all of us

(44:38):
down the line, and I just found myself asking how
could he do that? How could he lose himself and
hurt all of us like that? But Will Smith is
a fantastic artist who's done so much for so many

(44:59):
people in this world, especially stuff you know, folks from
our community that the reality is is they were right.
And I've known that for quite some times, which is
why I haven't said anything from Will Smith. To see
him in the movies is a great thing. To see

(45:22):
him still thriving is a great thing. Chris Rock has
moved on with his life. Who says Will Smith isn't
entitled to do so himself? And to think about him
coming back to the big stage and being at the
awards and what have you, I'm quite sure he'll get
a good ovation, and it'll be because none of us

(45:42):
want to be measured by our worst moment. All of
us are flawed in the eyes of God. I knew
that before, but I know that even now. And my
man Dougie, Antoine Fuqua, and the Will Packer, and especially.

Speaker 2 (46:04):
To my man Charlie Mac. I just want to say
thank you.

Speaker 1 (46:09):
I want to say thank you for reminding me of
something I should have known all along. Despite what Will
Smith did, he's still wanted the great ones and he's
one of the genuine good guys.

Speaker 2 (46:26):
He made a mistake.

Speaker 1 (46:29):
And all of us should move on, especially since Chris
Rock has moved on, and we should just march ahead
and wish him nothing but the best to him and
his family.

Speaker 2 (46:42):
That's where I'm at with him. I just wanted to
say that. More to Steven A.

Speaker 1 (46:47):
Smith Show, NBA All Star, and who knows what else
I'll touch on.

Speaker 2 (46:51):
Just know I'm coming back at the minute. This is
Stephen X.

Speaker 1 (46:54):
Smith Show.

Speaker 2 (46:54):
Don't go over there, Welcome back to Steve A. Smith Show.

Speaker 1 (47:00):
I want to follow up on some comments I made
earlier this week on Bronnie James.

Speaker 2 (47:05):
The comments were.

Speaker 1 (47:05):
In reaction the Lakers head coach JJ Reddick, who said
he put Brownie in a bad spot Tuesday night when
the Lakers lost to the Philadelphia seventy six ers. Well,
with all the noise that I made about that, apparently
I wasn't the only one, because Colin Cowhard of FS
one also heard those comments and spoke about the Lakers

(47:27):
handling of their second round pick, who happens to be
the son of Lebron James.

Speaker 2 (47:32):
Take a look at this, please right here on the
full screen.

Speaker 1 (47:35):
In the NFL, media, coaches, fans, anybody, you can have
real grown up conversations. You can hold players accountable. There's
no walking on eggshells. There's a way to measure success
in the NBA. You have to pretend that Bronnie's an
NBA player, because otherwise you'll upset the King. Can we
stop pretending with this? Come on, let's just stop pretending.

(47:58):
This continues to be an unserious story. Cowherd continued, what
you don't want to become is an unserious league. The
NFL you take it seriously because they take it seriously.

Speaker 2 (48:13):
End quote.

Speaker 1 (48:14):
What's the interpretation for what Colin Cowherd was explaining. I'll
tell you what the interpretation is. The interpretation is that
you can't get away with having somebody who's clearly not
ready to be in the league be in the league
and put them on the field with dudes who are
putting their bodies and their livelihoods on the line. Can't

(48:34):
do it now Again, I want to reemphasize what I'm
trying to say. I'm not a person that believes that
Brownie James doesn't have potential. I'm certainly not rooting against them.
I think the money he gets paid is nobody's business.
His father's underpaid, grossly underpaid, continuously underpaid.

Speaker 2 (48:51):
With what he means to the league.

Speaker 1 (48:52):
The salary that lebron James is subjected to pales in
comparison to what his worth actually is, even though obviously
he makes god and gobs of money off the court.

Speaker 2 (49:02):
But the reality.

Speaker 1 (49:03):
Is that Bronnie James hasn't appeared to be ready to
play in the NBA. Just because you make a shot
here and there doesn't mean you're ready to play in
the NBA. On a night in a night out basis,
I used the Marvis Fraser going up against Larry Holmes
an analogy because Joe Fraser was criticized of putting his
son in a ring against former heavyweight champion of the
world Larry Holmes, and Larry Holmes was cold and saying,

(49:24):
ain't no dude with ten fights, Ain't no kid with
ten fights? Gonna beat me, and he went in there
and finished him off in the first round and called
for the referee to stop the fight, wave the referee
three times and hit him and wave for the referees
to stop the fight because he was clearly in over
his head. And that seems to be the case with
Bronnie James. Now, some people close to lebron James and

(49:45):
his camp felt that that was stepping over the line,
that that wasn't a good analogy, et cetera, et cetera. Well,
I asked this question rhetorically, what the hell did Tyree
Maxey look like the other day going against Bronnie James.
If that wasn't a Larry Holmes Marvis Fraze in comparison,
I don't know what is he had forty three. By
the way, all I'm saying to you is that Brownie

(50:07):
James has potential, and I think the potential is better
suited working your way in the G League and working
your way up so you ain't going back and forth,
but you're literally there permanently, You're in the G League
until you come to the NBA, as opposed to going.

Speaker 2 (50:22):
Back and forth, back and forth, back and forth.

Speaker 1 (50:24):
Because that's just reminding people that your Lebron James son,
as opposed to an individual earned the stripes. And I said,
Lebron James, your dad, and you're a basketball savon, why
expose him to this? Going into last night's game against Washington,
the hapless Washington Wizards. By the way, he doesn't even
resemble an NBA team. Don't get me started with them
in the sixteen game losing streak thirteen games, forty four minutes,

(50:50):
once for sixteen, shooting from the field, o for seven
from three point range, zero point three point, zero point
three rebounds or three assists rather zero point four rebounds
per game. Come on, That's all I'm saying. I want
Briannie James to make it. I want him to shut
up critics. I want him to succeed. I am not
rooting against them. You ever met Lebron james family, You

(51:14):
ever met Savannah, one of the most wonderful, wonderful human
beings you could ever meet. Have you really sat down
and talked to Lebron James at some point in time
A really good dude?

Speaker 2 (51:27):
Okay?

Speaker 1 (51:29):
I mean, we don't mess with each other because I
work in a profession that has to be critical of him,
and I understand that, but I know he's a great guy.
You ever met his mother, Gloria Love Miss Gloria, love
it to death, Maverick Carter, Rich Paul, Randy, Renny Memes.

(51:52):
These are good dudes. They're just loyal to him. I
see Randy and he looking at me all hard and
all this. I don't take that personally. He loves that's
this guy, Rich Paul. When he texts me and call
or calls me and he's complaining about something, that's his guy.
You know what if I was in Lebron James position,

(52:12):
y'all would hear from a boy Cardele, You would hear
from Jeff, you would hear from Mark, you would hear
from my man's spank, You would hear from you know.

Speaker 2 (52:21):
A whole bunch of cats.

Speaker 1 (52:25):
Because I got boys who love me too, just like
his boys love him.

Speaker 2 (52:29):
I understand take that personal.

Speaker 1 (52:33):
As long as I don't get personal, I don't worry
about it, because I'm never gonna do that. I am
a fan of Lebron James. I just got to call
it like I see it. And I think in the
case of his son, the dad needs to step in
and say this might not be you might not be
ready yet. That's okay, that's all I'm saying. That's all

(52:56):
I'm saying. But I was glad he looked decent against
the Wizards of other night. And I hope that he
continues to succeed. And I hope that Ronnie James makes
lives of a bunch of people.

Speaker 2 (53:05):
I'm rooting for the kid, never rooting against him.

Speaker 1 (53:08):
He and a lot about his brother, bryce younger brother,
and a lot about his potential.

Speaker 2 (53:12):
This kid is something.

Speaker 1 (53:15):
But I didn't even bring up Mello as in Carmelo
Anthony and how his son, who has committed to Syracuse,
who has a game and everybody knows has a game,
seems to be doing it the right way, just seems
to be doing it the right way.

Speaker 2 (53:31):
But I'll leave that alone for now.

Speaker 1 (53:32):
I'll wait until I go on seven pm in Brooklyn
with my man Mellow to discuss that further. Let me
get to some quick hitters before we get on out
of here for the day. We'll continue in the NBA.
Did y'all see that game last night Houston Rockets Memphis Grizzlies.

Speaker 2 (53:45):
Did you see it? I know I saw it. Grizzlies
airs the Rockets.

Speaker 1 (53:48):
One twenty to one nineteen in the battle between the
two and three seeds in the Western Conference. Ladies and gentlemen,
if this is the Western Conference finals matchup, I'd love it.
I'd love it. John Morant didn't played last night. You'll
go in there and play last night for the Houston Rockets.
I don't give a damn. That kid, Jalen Green is
gonna be a star. That kid a Men Thompson. Remember

(54:09):
I keep telling y'all this brother turned twenty two January
thirtyeth This brother Amen Thompson, special, special, fierce defender, rebounder, competitor,
and he's got a game that's just blossoming. He made
Udoka than me. Is one of the best coaches in
the game. He's gonna win a championship in Houston. Houston Rockets.

(54:33):
I mean, Jenkins can coach his butt off Memphis. Memphis
to be respected. John Moran brings his game, make no
mistake about it. Memphis is formidable. But the Houston Rockets,
I'm telling y'all, I'm telling y'all, Houston is gonna make
some noise. Houston. I'm not even sure it's right to

(54:54):
say they're piece away. I just think their experience away.
I love what I'm seeing he Houston. I love what
Emai Udoka is doing. Keep your eyes on it, y'all.
Houston Rockets they come, and y'all they coming. Now, let's
talk about the All Star Game, please. The Eastern and
Western Conference teams have been named, but there's a glaring

(55:15):
omission on the Eastern roster.

Speaker 2 (55:17):
In some people's eyes anyway, it's LaMelo Ball.

Speaker 1 (55:19):
Ball is now the first player, the leader his position
group and fan voting that is not named an All Star.
The voting the voting format changed in twenty sixteen twenty
seventeen season. It's a factor in fans, media, and players, Okay,
and that's why LaMelo Ball didn't get in because the
media and the players didn't have him as the top guy.
The fans did because they want to see a brother

(55:40):
put on the show. He averaging like twenty eight points
a game, but he shooting like forty two percent for
the field, like thirty three percent for three point range.
He's a volume shooter. I'm not questioning in LaMelo's game.
The brother can ball. Here's what I would tell you.
Your team is twelve and thirty two. That's what happens.
You you you miss All Star games when your team
is twenty games under five hundred.

Speaker 2 (55:59):
That's what happened.

Speaker 1 (56:00):
That's the way it goes. And to me, that's not
the biggest snub, Ladies and gentleman. Kyrie Irvin for the
Dallas Mavericks. What about him? What about Kyrie Irving? I
got it even better. You see what he's doing. Twenty
four point two points, forty percent shoot from the fear,
forty two percent from three point range, and they win
when he's on the court, even with our Lukadancik. Kyrie

(56:23):
is special and he's made for All Star Weekend? Why
he ain't there? Here's another one. Ladies and gentlemen, you're
ready for this. How about the Clippers Norman Powell. I'm
not in any way saying James Harden doesn't deserve it,
because he does. He's had a great he's had a
damn good season and he's really resurrected his career and

(56:45):
it reminded us all of the respect that he deserves.

Speaker 2 (56:48):
James Harden I'm talking about.

Speaker 1 (56:51):
But how about Norman Powell brother averaging about twenty four
game shooting about forty three percent for three point range.
The Clippers are seven games over five hundred, and this
dude has been to reserve his entire career and has
worked his tail off. Never cheats you, always comes ready
to ball always. Norman Powell to me, that's the biggest

(57:17):
snub of them all. Clippers of seven games over five hundred,
Kawhi Leonard has missed about thirty eight thirty nine games,
and the Clippers of seven games over five hundred in
the top six seed in the Western Conference. Why the
hell ain't Norman Powell led He deserves it. He deserves it.

Speaker 2 (57:36):
I'm just saying.

Speaker 1 (57:38):
Let's talk about the NBA commissioner Adam Silver, who made
waves earlier this week. By the way, Silver appeared on
The Dan Patrick Show and said that he was in
favor of the league shortening the game for forty eight
minutes to forty minutes. Here's what the commissioner had to say, quote,
the NBA is the only league that plays forty eight minutes.
I am a fan of four ten minute quarters. I'm
not sure that many others are. I mean, putting this

(58:00):
what it means for records and things like that. I
think that a two hour format for a game is
more consistent with modern television habits. Incidentally, if you went
to a forty minute game with the minutes around load
management and resting, it would be the equivalent of I
don't know exact math, taking like fifteen games off the season.
I don't want to hear that. I get where Adam
silv is coming from. Limit the minute minutes. It amounts

(58:22):
to about fifteen less games a year when you take
into account the minutes because you chopping eight minutes off
of regulation.

Speaker 2 (58:28):
I get that part. I get the part about.

Speaker 1 (58:31):
The modern day era of television watchers and how it
appears to be viewer friendly with what he was suggesting,
Sir Commissioner, That is not the problem. The problem is
the effort. How many concessions are you going to make
for players who just don't want to come to work.

(58:51):
I mean, come on, come on, now, you give him.
You chop it down to forty minutes, it still ain't
gonna stop them from load managing.

Speaker 2 (58:58):
It's still not gonna stop them from missing.

Speaker 1 (59:01):
It's still not gonna stop them from being lack of
days ago at times. I'm not talking about all, I'm
not talking about most, but some it's still not going
to get them to prioritize stuff like All Star Weekend.
The commissioner somebody sent me a text yesterday and I
thought it was very, very profound, especially when they were
talking about All Star Weekend.

Speaker 2 (59:22):
They said, the players look at the.

Speaker 1 (59:25):
League like a bank, not like partners. The bank has
your money. We gotta go to the bank to get
the money. So okay, that's what we gotta do. But
we don't like going to the bank. We don't like
dealing with them.

Speaker 2 (59:45):
But we have no choice because they got our money.

Speaker 1 (59:50):
The person that sent me that text was absolutely right.
That's how the players view the league. And the sad
part about it is they get away with it only
because Adam Silver is an incredibly player friendly, nice man. Y'all,
lucky as hell commission to David Stern is in alive

(01:00:11):
and in that seat, and you didn't have to deal
with him. Y'all know, good and well, y'all wouldn't even
try it. Let me tell y'all something, and I want
everybody to listen. I want my whole team out there
to listen. I want my team right here to listen.
I want to tell you something about David Stern and
I'm not casting Anya Spurgeons on the man. I love
the man, and we had our battles and issues in

(01:00:34):
the past, but in the years leading up to his passing,
we cultivated a very close relationship and I grew to
just love him and respect the hell out of him,
and I appreciated the advice and the counsel in the straight, candid,
no nonsense approach he had with me.

Speaker 2 (01:00:49):
Okay, let me tell y'all a little story.

Speaker 1 (01:00:53):
David Stern once said this to a network head executive.
I'm not gonna tell you which network it wasn't mine.
I'm not gonna tell you which network. I'm not gonna
tell you the name of the person. I'm not gonna
tell you anything. I gonna give you an example of
who David Stern was. David Stern wanted somebody to come

(01:01:18):
to a game with him, fly out with him, and
go to a game with him one of the network executives,
and the executive said, Dave, I appreciate it, and I
will come with you, and I'll bring my kids, like
because David's trying to ask them to bring excuse me them,
Let's go.

Speaker 2 (01:01:37):
Let's go to this game.

Speaker 1 (01:01:39):
And the executive said to him, only on one condition,
you can't call me a dumb motherfucker in front of
my kids.

Speaker 2 (01:01:51):
That's a true story. What is the lesson appeal from that?

Speaker 1 (01:01:58):
David Stern would say that to any He pulled no punches.
When we got in an argument one day early in
my career, he caught me a piece of shit and
he said, lose the number and hung up on me
and we didn't talk for two years. And ladies and gentlemen,

(01:02:20):
I'm one of countless victims of his diatribes and wraths.
Michael Jordan knows about his wrath. Alan Iverson knows about
his wrath. Dwayne Wade knows about his wrath, along with
countless others players, coaches.

Speaker 2 (01:02:43):
I saw him walk up.

Speaker 1 (01:02:44):
To a coach that was critical of the referees, and
he walked up to the coach and smiled right at
courtside as he was walking to his seat, and he says,
do you like your job?

Speaker 2 (01:02:56):
And the coach of course I love it.

Speaker 1 (01:02:58):
He said, Will you to shut the fuck up if
you want to keep liking it, because it won't be
here for long if you don't learn to shut up
and walk away right in front of me and other
media members David Stern in play. Adam Silver doesn't have

(01:03:21):
to be that. I don't think he's capable of being that,
but he cares so much about the players. My advice
to him would be care about those who care about
you and leave the rec bee to your discretion, because

(01:03:45):
you gotta lead to run. That would be my advice
to Adam Silver, who I also have a great relationship
with and I respect the hell out of and I
think he does a great job. Our last quick hitter
is a shout out to the one and only Dayne Wade,
the Miami Heat legend and Hall of Famer, revealed yesterday
that he had surgery on his kidney in twenty twenty

(01:04:05):
three to remove a tumor. Wade said doctors removed forty
percent of his right kidney and that test on that
tumor showed it was cancerous. He also said he was
thankful that he decided to go forward with the procedure,
while acknowledging the decision itself was a low point in
his life. I've been tired with d Wade for years.

(01:04:27):
I had no idea about this. Nobody tells you everything.
I'm just happy that my man seems well in the
good spirits. He was out of the country the couple
of days ago. He and I spoke. One of the
best people I've ever covered in professional sports. Just a
good hearted, soulful, decent at his core human being. Even

(01:04:51):
when he was mad at you, he didn't come at
you wrong. Class personified, one of the best human being ever.
Thank God he's okay. Thank God he's feeling well. Wishing
him nothing but continued health moving forward. I love this brother,
He's good people's one of the best people I know

(01:05:14):
and I've ever covered in professional sports in my life.
So I'm very, very relieved that he seems to be okay. Now,
let's get to your tweets before I get on out
of here. Let's see what you got for me. Three
tweets Lego at James Underscore six rights stephen A. Who's
Donald Trump's NBA player comparison? Oh god, oh my lord,

(01:05:39):
I have no idea of this question.

Speaker 2 (01:05:43):
I really really don't.

Speaker 1 (01:05:44):
I'm trying to think Donald Trump's NBA player comparison. One
of my producers ignorantly said, Jordan who left and came back.
You can't mention Michael Jordan and Donald Trump in the
same breath. No, they can't do that, can't do it.

Speaker 2 (01:06:07):
Hmm.

Speaker 1 (01:06:08):
Somebody else said big country remember him? You can say
Sean Bradley. No, I don't know. I honestly don't know.
I have to think about this. I can't just splat
out an answer when it comes to comparing somebody that
Donald Trump as a basketball but I can't do.

Speaker 2 (01:06:25):
It better yet. Who do you think is the NBA
player you could compare to Donald Trump? What y'all think?
Send in your responses.

Speaker 1 (01:06:34):
I swear to you no question has ever stuck me
like that before. I have no I can't think of
a player who I would mention that. Since the NBA
player that most resembles Donald Trump, I guess their play
compared to his actions is the commander in chief.

Speaker 2 (01:06:52):
I don't know.

Speaker 1 (01:06:54):
I'm interested oning what y'all think, though, tell you that much.
Let's go to the next tweet, which you got at Chief?
Be mad or cheap pot maggett C H E A
P I E M A C.

Speaker 2 (01:07:03):
Stephen A. Smith.

Speaker 1 (01:07:03):
My fiance is mad that I keep referring to our
future wedding as my first wedding. I don't understand what
she's upset about Now, that's some ignorant ass shit to
say my first wedding as opposed to my wedding. What
you planning on having a second wedding and a third
wedding and a fourth wedding. You're planning getting divorced and remarried.
If you're gonna sit up there and say my first wedding,

(01:07:25):
tell her because you have every intention of renewing your vow.

Speaker 2 (01:07:28):
Every ten or twenty years. Don't just say my first
wedding and just leave it out there.

Speaker 1 (01:07:34):
See you the type of person that's gonna have to
be deprived. It's some loving that's what's gonna happen here.
You're gonna get deprived. She gonna give you go cold
turkey on you. She gonna keep the sheets cold, she
ain't gonna keep you on, she ain't gonna take care
of you. And then she gonna train your ass to
get it right, because clearly you don't know any better.

(01:07:55):
That's just dumb. My first wedding. Stop saying that my wedding.
And if you say my first, just say baby, because two, three, four, five,
and six and seventh wedding are all gonna be with you.
When I renew my vals over the next seventy years,
say some smooth stuff like that.

Speaker 2 (01:08:12):
Don't just sit up there and say my first wedding
and just leave it at that. You're telling her you're
planning on getting divorced.

Speaker 1 (01:08:17):
At sometime down the line and somebody else gonna replace her.

Speaker 2 (01:08:20):
That's not smart. That's not smart. Last tweet, what you got.

Speaker 1 (01:08:27):
At young drol Right, Steven They Smith and Jalen Hurts
can't go in two weeks?

Speaker 2 (01:08:32):
Will you step in that quarterback? If you got the call?
Hell to the no. That's football.

Speaker 1 (01:08:37):
I got long legs, the first tackle, my knees is shot.
Hell no, Hell to the no. Now, basketball is a
different matter. But football, I've never put on a helmet.
I've never touched the football field in my life, and
I've never once had a desire to do so, Hell
to the no. That's just the way it goes. Okay,

(01:08:58):
by the way, I'll let y'all get on out of here.
I got something to tell y'all. Don't miss the Steven A.
Smith Show next week from New Orleans, where we'll be
broadcasting all week ahead of the Super Bowl. We've got
an all star cast of guests joining us throughout the
week as we count down the Super Bowl fifty nine
between the.

Speaker 2 (01:09:12):
Eagles and the Chiefs.

Speaker 1 (01:09:12):
So, by the way, tell us who you think will
win the game on our poll on my Twitter page
at Steven A.

Speaker 2 (01:09:19):
Smith. Okay, make sure you do that.

Speaker 1 (01:09:21):
I'll be looking for your responses. Until then, I gotta
sign off on here.

Speaker 2 (01:09:26):
Y'all be good.

Speaker 1 (01:09:27):
Hope y'all have an absolutely positively wonderful weekend. I will
see y'all Monday live from New Orleans. Until then, everybody,
that's it for this edition of The Stephen A. Smith Show,
signing off peace of love,