Stephen A. Smith didn’t waste anytime addressing his viral confrontation with LeBron James on Thursday night. But according to Barstool Sports’ Dave Portnoy, the ESPN star’s response to the 4-time NBA MVP left something to be desired.
Reposting a clip of Smith’s comments that was shared by Awful Announcing, Portnoy took issue with James’ defensiveness regarding the coverage of his son, Los Angeles Lakers reserve guard Bronny James. And in doing so, the Barstool Sports founder accused ESPN’s $100 million man of giving the 40-year-old forward the “kid glove” treatment, while calling the entire situation “one of the more insane stories of all time.”
“This is one of the most ridiculous controversies in the history of civilization,” Portnoy said. “LeBron doesn’t want Stephen A. or people or the media talking about Bronny, who is a professional basketball player on one of the most storied franchises in the league… what are we talking about here?”
I need to rant about the #bronny James story. I’ve always been fair and unbiased to Lebron but this story is one of the more insane stories of all time. Stephen A with the kid glove treatment https://t.co/6qVr0ZfsG9 pic.twitter.com/aw4pi9u7Vx
— Dave Portnoy (@stoolpresidente) March 7, 2025
Portnoy proceeded to point out that the elder James has previously expressed remorse over giving Bronny his name due to the pressure he would face, only to turn around and help manipulate the NBA Draft process to get his son on the Lakers. And while he expressed remorse over Bronny having to live up to said pressure, El Presidente also stated that he was only on the team’s roster as a “make-a-wish” to LeBron to keep the 21-time All-Star happy.
“He’s in a big boy league playing against big boy players and he stinks,” Portnoy said. “And LeBron doesn’t want the media to talk about it? He’s going to go up to people and get in their face? What are we doing here? And I’ve tried to give LeBron the benefit of the doubt. But if you don’t want the media talking about how your son is overmatched and it looks like a Make-A-Wish and how helpless he is in this big boy league against paid professionals, then don’t force him to go on the team.”
Much like Smith did earlier on Friday, Portnoy made it clear that his issue isn’t with Bronny, but rather his father’s handling of the situation. As for Smith, the University of Michigan alum criticized the First Take host for his measured on-air response to James, alleging, “if that’s anyone else, he’s ripping this guy apart.”
“I thought he was going to come out swinging, Portnoy said of Smith. “I get it, there’s a lot of pressure and you have connections and friends… [James’] kid is in the NBA. You can’t talk about a kid in the NBA? Oh this is disgusting.”
Portnoy went on to claim that Jayson Tatum’s six-year-old son is more important to the Celtics than Bronny is to the Lakers. It’s also worth noting that despite his sarcastic claims to have always been fair and balanced toward James, the Barstool head man has been a longtime public critic of James’, albeit in a fashion that’s typically been tied to his Boston allegiances.
While he may be polarizing in his own right, Portnoy’s criticism here is hardly an unpopular stance. Many — including Smith — have accused James of wanting to have it both ways when it comes to his son’s status as an NBA player, especially now that he’s actually in the league.
As fate would have it, the Lakers are scheduled to play the Celtics in Boston on Saturday night. It will certainly be interesting to see whether Portnoy is in attendance and if so, any fallout that ensues.