Stephen A. Smith has a lot of candid conversations and opinions while appearing on his ESPN programs, and one of the biggest fallouts that's come from those hot takes this season has been his growing feud with Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James.
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The two NBA stars have had their share of public encounters and back-and-forth comments directed at one another over the years, and Smith took the time to set the record straight in an interview with Rolling Stone.
Stephen A. Smith admits that he doesn’t like LeBron James
“I don’t like him, and he don’t like me. He’s one of the greatest players who’s ever lived. I’m going to show him that respect, and I’m going to cover him objectively. When he does great, I’m gonna applaud. When he… pic.twitter.com/LYJDJf86sg
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) June 18, 2025
The long-time ESPN personality bluntly stated that he doesn't "like" James and he recognizes that the Lakers star doesn't like him either. At the same time though, Smith did acknowledge James' brilliance on the court despite not liking how the NBA legend handled his situation with Bronny James.
“He hid behind his son, tried to make something out of nothing, as if I was dogging his son, which I was not," Smith said of his encounter with LeBron. "The real issue was we don’t like each other. And he used that as an excuse to confront me. I got it.”
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