Stephen A. Smith of ESPN First Take recently addressed to the fans if there was any beef between him and JJ Redick, his co-host.
Stephen A. spoke on his Know Mercy podcast about the matter, and defended JJ Redick for his comments after First Take aired Tuesday morning. He would tweet it out later in the day:
You know why I love @jj_redick?
He is always unapologetically himself.
He isn’t one of those phony, inauthentic asses that smiles in your face and stabs you in the back. pic.twitter.com/ZyDIuR7QOb
— Stephen A Smith (@stephenasmith) May 24, 2023
“I love JJ Redick because JJ is always JJ unapologetically. He’s gonna say what he feels, he’s gonna mean what he says. He ain’t one of them phony, inauthentic asses that smiles in your face, and sits there and stabs you in the back in every turn. If JJ don’t like something you said, he’ll look you right in your face and tell you. Sometimes he could come across as arrogant as s**t, and I love that too. It’s not like he doesn’t have a reason to be. He is always welcome to come at me, and if he steps out of line or does something that gets a little personal, I’ll check his ass. Just like he’d check me. That’s why First Take’s number one.”
Ever since joining ESPN in 2021, JJ Redick has been playing the persona that most often challenges the narratives that Stephen A. proposes on First Take, especially when it pertains to basketball. However, it reached a boiling point when the two talked about the possibility of LeBron James' retirement.
This is because JJ criticized Stephen A.'s lack of knowledge when it comes to the mortality of athletes, even going as far as bringing up his limited basketball career when he played for Winston-Salem State university.
“You didn't play Stephen A. You don't understand our athletic mortality. 3 games at, wherever, South Dakota, Winston-Salem State doesn't count.”
– JJ Redick 😬pic.twitter.com/2Wk7NJzlPd
— NBACentral (@TheNBACentral) May 23, 2023
Redick would go on to retract these comments later in the show, apologizing to Stephen A. and his alma mater while clarifying his comments about his argument.
Redick later offered up an apology to Stephen A for his earlier comments.
Is this friction intended, healthy, and all in the game. Or are these two genuinely starting to wear on each other? pic.twitter.com/WtTRQh9KJr
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) May 23, 2023
Turns out authentic conversation draws TV ratings.
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