The San Antonio Spurs not shaking hands with the New York Knicks after Game 5 quickly became a major talking point from their NBA Finals defeat.
Victor Wembanyama sat at the centre, with critics asking whether the Spurs had failed a basic test of sportsmanship after losing the series.
On ESPN's First Take, Kendrick Perkins downplayed it, arguing that rivalry needs personal dislike and that Wembanyama's behaviour should not be under so much fire, but Stephen A. Smith challenged him.
Photo by Arturo Holmes/Getty Images
Smith made clear his issue was not Perkins' competitiveness, but the message he was sending on national television.
The controversial analyst said: "Here's what I mean when I say that I'm disappointed in your take. You're one of the best people I know. Like you always joke, 'I talk slow, but I'm smart as hell.' That's what you say about yourself, and you're damn right, you are smart as hell. And you are one of the most decent people that I've ever known."
He added: "But as ferocious as you can be in between the lines, you said 'When the game is over, the game is over.' You can't have yourself on national television talking about you don't give a damn about sportsmanship. You can't do that. You can't do that. That part is wrong."
Smith's stance matched Draymond Green, who criticised San Antonio for leaving without acknowledging the Knicks.
Green said the Spurs should have stayed, shaken hands and shown respect after trading blows with the team that beat them.
That is why the debate followed Wembanyama. Perkins saw edge, but Smith and Green saw a missed standard from a future face of the NBA.
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