Stephen A Smith has issued a correction after falsely stating that LeBron James skipped the memorial service for the late Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant during Thursday's episode of First Take. He made the accusation while responding to James' recent appearance on The Pat McAfee Show. Taking to X (formerly Twitter) afterward, he explained that he was incorrect and James was in attendance.
"My apologies and clarification. I misspoke in Hour #1 of @FirstTake today when I intimated that LeBron did not attend Kobe Bryant’s memorial," he wrote. "I corrected myself in Hour#2 when I acknowledged he was indeed in attendance. My mistake. Should not have even broached that subject. It was not my main point. I retract NOTHING else that I said. Have a nice day!"
Stephen A Smith & LeBron James Beef
My apologies and clarification. I misspoke in Hour#1 of @FirstTake today when I intimated that LeBron did not attend Kobe Bryant’s memorial. I corrected myself in Hour#2 when I acknowledged he was indeed in attendance. My mistake. Should not have even broached that subject. It…
— Stephen A Smith (@stephenasmith) March 27, 2025
While speaking with Pat McAfee, LeBron James called out Stephen A Smith for continuously bringing up their recent confrontation on nation television. He also suggested that Smith didn't understand why he was upset with his coverage of his relationship with his son, Bronny. He explained: "Never would I ever not allow people to talk about the sport and criticize players about what they do. That is your job to criticize, or to be in a position where if a guy's not performing, you know? That's all part of the game. But when you take it and you get personal with it, it's my job to not only protect my damn household, but protect the players."
First Take wasn't the first time Stephen A Smith addressed the comments. Initially, he went live on his YouTube show on Wednesday night. "I would have gotten my ass kicked, because had that man put his hands on me, I would have immediately swung on him. Immediately," he said at the time. "That, I'm not going to tolerate. But I knew he wasn't going to do something like that."
[Via]
