“You have no choice?” - LeBron James’ ex-teammate Kevin Love takes pointed shot at Stephen A. Smith for addressing viral confrontation
On Thursday, after LeBron James and the LA Lakers completed an overtime comeback against the New York Knicks to keep their win streak alive, the future Hall of Famer took some time to confront ESPN First Take host, Stephen A. Smith.
The situation, which Smith described as a confrontation rather than a conversation on Friday's installment of First Take, stemmed from on-air comments Smith made about Bronny James following a game against the Philadelphia 76ers on Jan. 28.
Once the footage began to go viral, Smith replied that he didn't want to address the matter, but because it had gained traction, he would be responding on First Take.
His post prompted a response from Kevin Love, who aimed at Smith on X:
"You have no choice? lol. Because it went viral? lol. You didn’t want to have to? lol. You wouldn’t have? lol."
Since the above-mentioned post, Smith hasn't posted on social media. On Friday morning's episode of First Take, he reiterated that he didn't want to address the situation. Because the clip of James confronting him went viral, Smith felt compelled to address it.
"That's where you belong as you hone your skills," - Looking back at Stephen A. Smith's previous comments about Bronny James that sparked LeBron James confrontation
As previously mentioned, Stephen A. Smith's run-in with LeBron James on Thursday was a direct result of comments he made about Bronny James in January.
At the time, Bronny and the Lakers were fresh off a loss to the Philadelphia 76ers, with Bronny notably getting 15 minutes of action in a nationally televised game. Instead of just playing late-game minutes when the outcome had already been determined, coach JJ Redick put Bronny in to guard Kyle Lowry in the first quarter.
Throughout 15 minutes of action, Bronny went 0-5 from the floor, which led to criticism from Stephen A. Smith the following morning on First Take.
While he made it clear that Bronny was playing well in the G League, he pleaded with LeBron James to not allow his son to be put in positions like he was against the 76ers.
"I am pleading with LeBron James as a father: stop this. Stop this. We all know that Bronny James is in the NBA because of his dad. ... We love what we’re seeing from him in the G League because that’s where you belong as you hone your skills and you get better, ... which I believe he has the potential to do.
"I am rooting for Bronny James, it would be cruel to root against him. He’s a wonderful kid, I wish him nothing but the best. But he’s LeBron James’ son and everybody knows what attention that brings.”
From the sounds of things, Smith's plea may not have fallen on deaf ears, as LeBron confronted him courtside on Thursday night.
So far, LeBron James hasn't shared his side of the story.