There's no doubt that Stephen A Smith is one of the most recognizable sports media personalities today. So much so, that the 52-year-old has reportedly put pen to paper on a deal with ESPN that will pay him just about $10 million per year. That's certainly a pretty good deal, as there has been no other sportscaster in history that has earned this much in a single year. As a matter of fact, Smith has an ever bigger paycheck than most NBA players.
Smith's rise to fame has been nothing short of meteoric. However, it is worth noting that his road to fame was anything but a walk in the park.
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Stephen A. Smith was born in October 14, 1967 in Bronx, New York. He grew up in The Big Apple and has been a life-long New York Knicks fan. he started his career in sports broadcasting as a writer for several publications. It was in 1994, however, that he would get his first break when he joined The Philadelphia Inquirer, as a beat writer for the Philadelphia 76ers. This was where Smith would cut his teeth as a reporter, spending over a decade with the newspaper.
It wasn't until 2005 that Smith began venturing into radio. He would host a number of radio sports shows before finally hitting it big in 2009 as a contributor for Fox Sports Radio. This was where Smith would first make a name for himself, breaking the news of Allen Iverson's retirement (his first) in that same year. Later on, he would also predict the formation of the Miami Heat Big 3 starring LeBron James, Chris Bosh, and Dwyane Wade.
Throughout his time as a radio personality, Smith would also being entering the world of television. As early as 2005, he was already hosting his own program on ESPN entitled “Quite Frankly with Stephen A. Smith.” The show did not fly, though, and was cancelled by the network two years later. Fast forward a few years later and due to a difference in directional aspirations, Smith would announce that he would be parting ways with ESPN in 2009.
Smith would continue building his name outside the walls of ESPN, and would eventually make his triumphant return to the network in 2012 as part of the “First Take” program. He had hit it big at this point, and was already considered as one of the prime talents of ESPN. This, however, did not take away from the fact that wherever Smith was, controversy followed.
Stephen A Smith would make headlines for all the wrong reasons on more than a few occasions with his rather contentious statements. There's too many of them to mention here, but there's no denying that he is one of the most polarizing personalities in television today. As a matter of fact, Smith's controversial nature is what makes him so popular. He animatedly speaks his mind and is not one to keep his feelings to himself — regardless of whatever consequences they may bring.
No matter what critics may say about him, there's no doubt that Stephen A. Smith has found the recipe for success in today's worlds of sports media. Fortunately for him, this came to the tune of a whopping $10 million per year.
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