Stephen A. Smith was in attendance for the Oklahoma City Thunder's 111-104 win over the Indiana Pacers in Game 4 of the NBA Finals at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on Friday. While the game proved to be quite fascinating, Smith appeared to be playing Solitaire on his phone during it. A picture of him doing so went viral on social media, and Kevin Durant called out the ESPN analyst for this act.
"Cmon, Steve."
Kevin Durant's Instagram story.
Credit: Kevin Durant/Instagram
This was not a good look, to say the least, on Smith. It's his job to watch the games, and he was put on blast online for playing Solitaire instead. With this picture spreading like wildfire, Smith felt the need to respond. He claimed on X that he can multitask and was playing during timeouts.
"Yep! That’s me. Who would’ve thought….I can multi-task. Especially during TIMEOUTS! Hope y’all are enjoying the NBA Finals. This is going 7 games now, peeps!"
Fans weren't buying that, however. One of them accused him of lying and shared a video from another angle.
To be fair to Smith, it does look like he's watching the basketball game there. Sure, you can see the game on his phone, but he's not playing Solitaire in the clip.
With the backlash not stopping even after he put out that post, Smith felt compelled to send out another. He shared a screenshot to supposedly show that he was playing Solitaire and watching the game at the same time on his phone.
Stephen A. Smith's post on X.
Credit: Stephen A. Smith/X
Considering you can't really see the basketball game on Smith's phone in the viral picture or video, he might just be digging himself into a hole here. Also, why watch the action on the phone when you're in the arena?
Regardless, Smith has given more ammunition to his critics, and there is a good chance Durant brings this up at some point in the future. These two have had their differences in the past and don't really get along. During an interview with The Athletic in 2024, Durant called Smith a clown.
“Yeah, Stephen A., I don’t understand how people even listen to Stephen A. I’ve been in the league for 18 years. I’ve never seen Stephen A. at a practice, or a film session, or a shoot-around. I’ve never seen him anywhere but on TV talking s— about players. … He’s a clown to me. He’s always been a clown. You can write that, too.”
Smith later fired back at Durant by calling him sensitive. He then proceeded to rip him for his failures since leaving the Golden State Warriors in 2019.
Durant is now set to be on the move again, as the Phoenix Suns will be trading him. NBA insider Shams Charania reported that the trade could take place in a few days and named the Houston Rockets, Miami Heat, and Minnesota Timberwolves as the frontrunners to secure his services.
Durant would be hoping he gets to play in the NBA Finals instead of watching it next year with whichever team he ends up with. As for these Finals, the Thunder have now tied up the series at 2-2 and regained home-court advantage.
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