To say that Stephen A. Smith isn't a fan of Kyrie Irving and his outright refusal of the COVID-19 vaccine would be a massive understatement. The First Take headliner has been overtly critical of the Nets star in the past, which has drawn mixed reactions from various personalities on Twitter:

“So you don't have a problem with taking the vaccine? Your position is that you're going to sit up there and compromise the championship aspirations of a Nets organization you signed on to represent,” said Stephen A. Smith. “You coaxed Kevin Durant into signing on to represent. You played a role in coaxing James Harden to signing on to represent. You're gonna compromise all of that because you want to give a voice to the voiceless? …

“You asked KD and James Harden to come on board to Brooklyn to establish your own legacy, and then you leave them hanging.”

Of course, the ever-controversial Stephen A. drew a fair amount of reactions on social media, not all of which were positive. That's why he sent out a his own version of a warning over the backlash he's currently facing:

There's a very good chance that Stephen A. Smith issued this statement in large part to draw even more eyeballs to the next episode of First Take. But you'd be lying if you wouldn't want be entertained, whether ironically or not, to see how he reacts.