"I don't get paid to talk to you, I get paid to talk about you" - Stephen A. responds to Haliburton calling out media critics originally appeared on Basketball Network .
ESPN's Stephen A. Smith lashed out at Indiana Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton for the latter's comment about NBA media during the post-Game 3 press conference. According to Smith, Haliburton made a "very ignorant statement" when he said the NBA talking heads knew nothing about basketball when they criticized his low-scoring games.
Flanked by the Morris twins and former Chicago Bulls point guard Jay Williams on ESPN's First Take, SAS said that it wasn't just ESPN who called out Hali's previous performances but also ex-NBA stars like Shaquille O'Neal, Charles Barkley, Kenny Smith, and Kendrick Perkins .
"Win the damn chip, bro. In the first two games of this NBA final series, you had your moment with 0.3 seconds left. Other than that, you didn't play well," Smith said. "That ain't on me. That's on you, you know. And, oh, by the way, just in case he was talking about me, my brother, I'm not going away. I'm gonna be here for a while. So next year, and the year after that… I'm going to be here, and players far more accomplished and far more superior have made their efforts trying to call me out. How has that worked out?"
After three games in the 2025 NBA Finals, Haliburton is averaging 17.7 points, 7.3 rebounds, 7.7 assists, 1.3 steals and 1.3 blocks per game. However, many criticized him for his passive effort in Game 2, where Hali scored only five points through three quarters, and his Pacers were blown out 107-123. As Stephen A. mentioned, Tyrse was having a bad Game 1 before he hit the game-winning basket.
In his post-Game 3 interview, Haliburton said he couldn't care less about the criticism he was getting because the talking heads knew nothing about basketball. But while Hali mentioned ESPN, he did not mention Smith's name. Still, Stephen A. felt that Tyrese was talking about him, so he had to let him have a piece of his mind, too.
"Unfortunately, a lot of guys are not as fortunate as I am from this standpoint," Smith added. "They have to talk to you. I don't get paid to talk to you. I get paid to talk about you. Whether I speak or whatever it is, you don't stop this train. It is a locomotive because, you know, we've been No.1 for 13 straight years."
While he did not feel as "guilty" as Stephen A. sounded, Fox Sports' Nick Wright agreed with his ESPN counterparts that Tyrese's criticism of the NBA media was out of line. Wright said the talking heads merely said he was not aggressive enough on offense in Game 2, leading to a Pacers' loss. And they were correct because when Haliburton took 17 shots and scored 22 in Game 3, Indiana won. Nick, however, wondered who has the right to discuss basketball matters if Hali doesn't think the ones doing it right now are qualified.
"I do have this question," Wright said . "Who can talk about basketball? Because the answer can't be the retired players. Have you heard these podcasts? You might think some of our takes are out of line; I don't know if you guys have sampled some of the retired players' podcasts and what's happening in those streets…Bad basketball takes know no country. They can come from any source. And good basketball takes know no country, either."
Everyone has a right to talk about basketball. And everybody is entitled to say what they want about Haliburton. But Tyrese also has the right to say what he wants about them. Nick's reaction to Hali was how the media should respond — using facts to argue, not personal feelings.
Stephen A., meanwhile, is clearly so full of himself, talking about him being untouchable at ESPN and nobody stopping his train. That's just childish, coming from a guy twice as old as Tyrese. But then again, that's what sells.
This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Jun 13, 2025, where it first appeared.
