ESPN's Stephen A. Smith was interviewed by his former network colleague Dan Le Batard in the latter's "Dan Le Batard Show" on Thursday, and among the things Le Batard asked Smith was about his relationship with LeBron James after making a strong stand on that topic at "Gil's Arena" recently.
According to Smith, his affinity with King James soured after he started criticizing his son, Bronny . However, Stephen A. insisted that he never said a single bad word against LeBron's son until that fateful game against the Philadelphia 76ers that triggered "LeDad" to confront him at courtside during a Lakers game last March at Crypto.com Arena.
"The one thing I will say is go back and look at the facts," said Smith. "Him in high school, him in college, him being drafted, him landing with the Lakers, him being there on opening night. I never said a negative word until he was put in the game in the first quarter against the Philadelphia 76ers and got scorched. That is the only time I've spoken a negative syllable against Bronny James, who I believe has the potential to be, not just a player, but a damn good NBA player someday."
Smith is talking about the game between the Lakers and 76ers in Philly on January 28th, 2025. In that game, the Purple & Gold were dealing with injuries to their guards, so with the Sixers racing to a 17-9 lead early in the first quarter, head coach JJ Redick inserted Bronny in the game because he had been coming off a 31-point game in the G-League.
However, LeBron Jr. melted during an extended 15-minute appearance, shooting 0-5 from the floor and committing three turnovers. Sixers guard Tyrese Maxey attacked him on every occasion, and either he scored or Bronny got called for the foul. The Lakers ended up losing the game 104-118, but more than the defeat, it was James Jr.'s performance that was heavily criticized.
"And so LeBron went about the business of painting it as me being somebody that would go after his son and got other NBA players to think that way, and stuff like that. And that's what he chose to do. I know it's false. I know it's not fair. I don't appreciate it. But it's not going to stop me from living my life. He's got his family. I got mine. He's got his job. I got mine. And when he does great things, I'll be there to applaud it. And when he doesn't, I'll be there to chronicle that, too. And that's going to be that, and that's the way it goes. And I can assure you, I'm not losing a minute's sleep over it and never will," he added.
However, looking at the timeline of their beef, that Sixers game wasn't the first time Smith went after Bronny and LeBron. As early as November, SAS was yapping about Bronny not doing anything to earn a spot on an NBA roster , much less the Lakers.
That month, he also blamed LeBron for 'forcing' Bronny to turn pro. Things came to a head in January after that Sixers game when Smith pleaded to James "as a father" to stop the madness.
"I'm really, really trying to be as respectful as I can possibly be towards LeBron James ," Smith said . "I am pleading with LeBron James, as a father: stop this. We all know that Bronny James is in the NBA because of his dad. The first game of the season, opening night, the Griffys in attendance, father-son duo playing in an NBA game for the first time. An absolutely positively wonderful story. And then reality sets in. We love what we're seeing from him in the G League because that's where you belong. As you hone your skills and you get better, and you legitimately learn, which I believe he has the potential to do."
It's clear that Smith went beyond the usual there. He could have just said that Bronny sucked and deserved to go back to the G-League. But he did not. Stephen A. faulted LeBron for Bronny's predicament and went on to plead to LBJ as a father.
However, being a father had nothing to do with Bronny playing in that game. It was Redick's call to play James Jr. and give him early minutes. JJ admitted his fault after the game. However, Stephen A. just wanted to talk about LeBron and Bronny regularly on his show. And when Bron got mad, SAS took it personally.
This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Aug 22, 2025, where it first appeared in the Latest News section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
