The fiery confrontation during a break in last Thursday’s win by LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers against the New York Knicks in LA between the four-time NBA Most Valuable Player and ESPN personality Stephen A. Smith continues to be the talk of the town.
That’s even after Smith addressed the heated face-to-face with the future Basketball Hall of Famer during an episode of “First Take.” Smith also spoke about it in a Friday edition of ” The Stephen A. Smith Show.”
A viral video showing the moment James and Smith having an exchange has since gone viral, with Smith later admitting that the crux of that encounter was something he said about the 40-year-old Lakers forward’s son, Los Angeles rookie guard Bronny James.
Another viral clip showing a pregame conversation between James and his former Cleveland Cavaliers teammate Richard Jefferson before last Saturday’s Lakers game against the Boston Celtics at TD Garden allegedly reveals what exactly James told Smith.
“That’s the only thing I’m tripping. I don’t give a f**k! once he [Smith] talked about by son. I’m pleading you as a father (h/t X account @legendz_nba).
LEAKED Audio Of LeBron James Talking About The Stephen A Smith Confrontation
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“Once he talks about: ‘I’m pleading you as a father,’ I can’t” pic.twitter.com/RJhi7gxuSa
— LegendZ (@legendz_nba) March 10, 2025
Jefferson and LeBron James are close to each other, even though the former has already retired from playing in the NBA.
The two played together for multiple seasons with the Cavs, even winning the championship in historic fashion in 2016, when they stormed back from a 3-1 series deficit in the NBA Finals against Stephen Curry and the Golden State Warriors to bring Cleveland its first — and still only — NBA title.
Another former LeBron James teammate with the Cavs, Kevin Love, has seemingly come to the 21-time NBA All-Star’s defense when he seemingly took a shot at Smith. The same can be said about Tristan Thompson, who used emojis to echoe Love’s point.
The Lakers will have to find a way to win games without injured LeBron James
James and the Lakers’ eight-game win streak came to an end in the Boston game, as the Celtics trounced their bitter NBA rivals to the tune of a 111-101 score. Making the night worse for the Lakers was the groin injury that forced LeBron James out of the game in the fourth quarter.
The former scoring champion is expected to miss one to two weeks to recuperate from his lower-body injury, which means he won’t be available for at least Los Angeles’ upcoming three games on the road, including Monday night’s showdown against the Brooklyn Nets at Barclays Center.
On the season, James is averaging 25.0 points, 8.2 rebounds and 8.5 assists per game while posting a 57.9 effective field goal percentage
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