Stephen A. Smith on viral postgame confrontation with LeBron James: ‘It was all about his son’ | USAEMALL.com

LeBron James notched a double-double for the Los Angeles Lakers in Thursday’s overtime win over the New York Knicks, but a tense discussion with Stephen A. Smith courtside after the game proved to be the viral moment of the evening. The ESPN commentator addressed the confrontation Friday, saying James approached Smith to discuss his prior comments about James’ son, Bronny.

“That was LeBron James coming up to me, unexpectedly I might add, to confront me about making sure that I mind what I say about his son,” Smith said on Friday’s “First Take,” when discussing a clip of the moment. “Can’t repeat the words because they ain’t suited for FCC airwaves. That’s what he was doing.”

“That wasn’t a basketball player confronting me. That was a parent, that was a father,” Smith continued. “And I can’t sit here and be angry or feel slighted by LeBron James in any way in that regard. By all accounts, he’s obviously a wonderful family man and wonderful father who cares very deeply about his son. And based on some of the comments he had heard — or shall I say I think he thought he heard — he clearly took exception to some of the things that he heard me say. And he confronted me about it.”

While Smith appeared to have no issue with James defending his son, he did take exception to James approaching him publicly, saying James did not call him or set up a meeting to discuss the matter, though James “knows how to get in contact with (him) if he wanted to.” Smith, who was sitting courtside with Endeavor CEO Ari Emanuel and comedian Larry David during the game, added that “apparently (James) feels like (Smith) was slighting his son.”

Smith said if he had a one-on-one conversation with James, he would have told him that he’d “never speak negatively” about Bronny, who was drafted to the Lakers last year in the second round. “I was talking about you, meaning you, LeBron James,” Smith added.

“I have nothing but the best wishes for Bronny James,” Smith said. “I wish him nothing but the best. I hope he flourishes into an NBA star. … But in the same breath, in the time we were talking about him, he was percolating to such a degree that the Bronny James stories had gone viral. And so we had to talk about it (on “First Take”) and so when I said the things that I said, I wasn’t talking about Bronny James because my attitude is he’s a rookie, he’s gonna take some time to get himself together. He’ll be just fine, especially with J.J. Redick and the staff coaching him. I was talking about the position he was put in by his dad.”

Smith said during a January episode of “First Take” that he was “pleading with LeBron James as a father: stop this” and “we all know that Bronny James is in the NBA because of his dad.”

During Friday’s show, Smith brought up prior quotes from James about his son’s talent, including James saying in past years that Bronny could play for the Lakers “right now” and that Bronny was better than current NBA players.

“My point months ago was that because of who you are — one of the top two players in the history of basketball in my estimation — (there) is an immense amount of pressure that comes with that for his son,” Smith said Friday. “And when he talked like that, and what have you, anything that goes awry, as it pertains to his son, there’s gonna be a microscopic eye even more intensified on Bronny James because of his dad and what his dad had said.”

Smith said “it was all about his son” regarding the recent conversation with James and, “As a father, I get it. I’m not offended. I’m not insulted. I don’t have animosity or animus toward LeBron James for this. Nothing like that.”

“I don’t think he cares but neither do I. … If I was in his position, I can’t definitively say I would not have done the same thing. I’m not blaming him one bit. I get it. I understand it. And there’s a part of me that aches and hurts because of it,” he continued.

Smith — who recently agreed to a new contract with ESPN worth at least $100 million for five years, in a deal that’s expected to free him up to talk more about politics — closed his comments by saying he’s “not upset” but that he wished the confrontation was in a private setting.

“I don’t blame LeBron James for being upset. I don’t blame him for being angry. I don’t blame him for wanting to confront me because that wasn’t a superstar basketball player. … That was a daddy,” he said.

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(Photo: Tim Heitman / Getty Images)