If you watch Stephen A Smith these days and feel like he is more self-centered and absurd than ever before, you are not alone.
The celebrated ESPN television star made a name for himself with bombastic on-air performances and polarizing opinions. But as he grew into the star of First Take and the face of ESPN, Smith frequently got bogged down in personal beefs and self-aggrandizing stunts.
The same year that Smith celebrated signing the biggest contract in ESPN history, he made bigger news for a courtside confrontation with LeBron James (which he is still talking about) and for teasing the idea of a run for president (which he is still talking about).
The latest drama around Smith has far lower stakes, but is driving home the reality of Smith’s increasingly self-centered content. Because his first go-round of fat-shaming NBA star Zion Williamson and kicking him while he is down seemingly wasn’t enough, Smith is once again engaged in an unnecessarily personal fight with Williamson as well as New Orleans Pelicans staffers.
The saga drove prominent sports content creator and Speakeasy anchor Kieran Hickey-Semple to shred Smith in a rant on the show this week. Watching Smith claim to be more relevant than the entire Pelicans organization during a long response on First Take, Hickey-Semple said he felt “ashamed” that Smith ever served as an inspiration for him as a young sports commentator.
“As a dude at 58 years old who always dreamed of playing in the NBA, to sit there after talking about the athletes for 20, 30, 40 years, however long and then just be like, ‘Well, I’m more popular than y’all,’ you’re lame,” Hickey-Semple said.
Hickey-Semple has accrued nearly 1 million followers on TikTok, posting spoofs of SportsCenter-style broadcasts under the moniker @carebearkieran. Since last year, Hickey-Semple has served as the anchor and emcee for Speakeasy, the live YouTube show launched by former FS1 analysts Emmanuel Acho and LeSean McCoy.
Taking a look at Hickey-Semple’s social channels, it is no surprise he drew inspiration from ESPN and commentators like Smith. But while Hickey-Semple is clearly a passionate sports fan, he feels Smith is being disrespectful by talking down to athletes who he covers and makes money off of covering.
“I’m not here to discredit Stephen A. for what he’s done in his career. I’m in this business because of Stephen A. Smith,” Hickey-Semple explained.
“But all that I’ve seen since becoming a sports reporter, analyst, whatever you want to call what I do, all I have seen from this man is being an absolute embarrassment. I’m ashamed to say that he’s the one that inspired me to get into this business.”
During the segment, Hickey-Semple briefly mentioned meeting Smith, revealing that it was “discouraging” that a successful Black man in the industry would create such a bad situation for a younger up-and-comer who looks up to him.
“He is an absolute cornball. You’re lame. It’s ridiculous the amount of ego you have. And it’s really quite discouraging. It’s kind of disgraceful, for anyone who looks up to anybody else in this business, especially as a Black man. I met you, and it was one of the worst experiences I’ve ever had in this entire business. I’m dead serious. Stephen A. Smith, you continue to be an embarrassment.”
Hickey-Semple explained that while he may be critical of an athlete on social media or while hosting Speakeasy, he is transparent about his role in the sports ecosystem. And he said that even as a young content creator, he tries to keep a positive perspective toward athletes given what they accomplished to even be competing in the pros.
“There’s a level of respect that you’re supposed to have for the players that you made your career covering,” Hickey-Semple added. “Have fun in politics, bro, because I don’t want to hear sh*t else you’ve got to say.”
“Shut up. … You’re a 58-year-old having a popularity contest with 19, 20, 21-year-olds, who are living out a dream that you could never accomplish. You f*cking cornball.”
While Smith has plenty of critics among his past ESPN colleagues or his competitors across national sports media, the comments from Hickey-Semple are a rare instance of a young commentator losing respect for Smith in the more recent past.
