Stephen A. Smith is known for his outspoken commentary and in-depth analysis of the NBA, but that hasn’t stopped him from getting roasted on Twitter after he overreacted to opening night between LeBron James’ Lakers and Paul George’s Pacers.
“Stephen A. Smith Gives LeBron James, Lakers Perfect Bulletin-Board Material With Outrageous Overreaction.” The “stephen a smith lebron james” was the headline of an article that Stephen A. Smith wrote for ESPN in which he made a comment about LeBron James and the Lakers. In his article, he stated that James had given him the perfect bulletin-board material to write an outrageous reaction piece.
On a regular basis, Stephen A. Smith distributes bulletin-board content to other athletes. On ESPN’s First Take, his role is to give hot opinions that may enrage some viewers, which might push celebrities to prove him wrong.
While Smith has provided LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers with plenty of motivating sound bites in the past, particularly this season, he recently provided them with the ideal amount of ammunition to blow his and anybody else’s doubts up.
The Lakers and LeBron James have had a poor start to the season.
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LeBron James and the Lakers have had a rocky start to the season so far.
They began the season with a 12-12 record, and James missed half of those games due to injury or other reasons.
In addition, LA has made things seem complicated.
The squad is having a lot of trouble on defense and has been turning the ball over a lot on offense. Its opponents have averaged 113.0 points per game, which is second-to-last in the NBA. The Lakers have also turned it over 15.8 times a game, resulting in a below-average offensive rating of 107.5 points per 100 possessions.
Although James and his teammates have had a difficult year, the NBA season is just about a fourth of the way through. There’s still plenty of time, which is why Stephen A. Smith’s latest view is so absurd.
Stephen A. Smith had a wild theory about the Lakers.
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Despite only having played 24 games up to that time, Stephen A. Smith declared on the Dec. 7 broadcast of First Take that LeBron James’ squad is on the cusp of obsolescence.
“The Los Angeles Lakers are the Los Angeles Lakers; there’s no comparison,” he said. “What I’m saying is that if I look at you as a team and say, ‘There ain’t no way in hell you’re going to win a championship,’ that’s my definition of a championship” (of irrelevance for the Lakers). … If it weren’t for the Clippers, I wouldn’t say that; if it weren’t for the Clippers, I wouldn’t say that; if it weren’t for the Clippers, I wouldn’t say that.”
“When LeBron James is the face of your organization, and you’ve got Anthony Davis and Russell Westbrook, and I’m looking at your franchise and I’m like, ‘Ain’t no way in hell, you’re winning the title,’ that’s irrelevancy,” he said.
Smith went on to say that the Golden State Warriors are the greatest team in the Western Conference, and that the Lakers have no chance of defeating them.
“It’s possible that the Los Angeles Lakers will not go beyond the first round,” Smith stated.
That’s a strong allegation, to say the least. However, it might simply be an outlandish exaggeration and excellent bulletin-board fodder for James.
LeBron James now has the opportunity to disprove Stephen A. Smith.
| Rodin Eckenroth/Getty Images; Andy Lyons/Getty Images | Stephen A. Smith and LeBron James (L-R)
Right present, a lot of individuals agree with Smith’s point of view. The Lakers have had a poor showing.
But it doesn’t guarantee they’ll keep looking like this for the remainder of the season.
With Russell Westbrook and others joining LeBron and Anthony Davis this year, LA nearly has a totally new squad. And James’ Big Threes have a tendency of getting off to a sluggish start. His Miami Heat Big Three suffered in his first season there, beginning 9-8 before reaching the NBA Finals, and James’ Cleveland Cavaliers superteam battled in his first year back there, starting 19-20 before reaching the Finals as well.
Saying the Lakers won’t get beyond the first round based on their first 24 games’ performance is a huge overreaction.
The Los Angeles Lakers won their first full game of the season against the Boston Celtics on the same day Smith made his remarks, 117-102, to climb to 13-12. Who’s to say this isn’t the start of something big?
Overall, we’ve seen LeBron James-led teams utilize hatred as a motivator in the past. His Heat teams appeared to like being the villains, and when his 2016 Cavaliers went down 3-1 to the 73-win Golden State Warriors, everyone thought their season was finished, but they still won the championship in seven games.
The King has flourished in the face of adversity throughout his career, and Smith’s outlandish outburst may be just what LeBron needs to start off a good run with the Lakers.
Basketball Reference provided the statistics.
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