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Stephen A. Smith Calls Out LeBron James For Missing Kobe Bryant Memorial Service

Shandel Richardson

Jan 20, 2025; Atlanta, GA, USA; ESPN personality Stephen A. Smith on the ESPN First Take set at the CFP Fan Central at the George World Congress Center. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
Jan 20, 2025; Atlanta, GA, USA; ESPN personality Stephen A. Smith on the ESPN First Take set at the CFP Fan Central at the George World Congress Center. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
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This Stephen A. Smith vs. LeBron James feud is getting more heated than the Chicago Bulls vs. Detroit Pistons rivalry in the 1980s.

Smith returned fire to James during a Thursday appearance on ESPN's First Take. He was critical of James missing the celebration of life for NBA great Kobe Bryant in 2020. Bryant was killed in a helicopter crash.

"I thought he'd be happy for the things that I handled for him," Smith said. "I never brought up really and never really discussed why you were not at Kobe Bryant's memorial service."

Smith was responding to the criticisms James made during Wednesday's Pat McAfee Show on ESPN. James claimed Smith is just seeking attention.

"He’s like on a Taylor Swift tour run right now," James said on the McAfee Show. "It started off with, 'I didn’t want to address it … but since the video came out I feel the need to address it.' "

The whole feud started when video surfaced of James scolding Smith courtside earlier this month while the Los Angeles Lakers were playing the New York Knicks. James publicly expressed his problems with the way Smith has covered Bronny James.

James' son was drafted by Lakers in the second round last summer. It was met with much criticism from fans and media, including Smith. It appears this is only the beginning of what is the NBA's newest rivalry.

Shandel Richardson is the publisher of Back In The Day Hoops On SI. He can be reached at shandelrich@gmail.com

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Shandel Richardson
SHANDEL RICHARDSON

Shandel has covered the NBA since 2010, with previous stops at The Athletic and South Florida Sun-Sentinel.  He has covered six NBA Finals, one Super Bowl, the NCAA basketball tournament. He has also been a beat writer for the Miami Hurricanes and contributed on every major beat in South Florida since 2003, including the Miami Dolphins and Miami Marlins. He can also be read in the Sportsbook Review for gambling coverage from around the NBA. A native of Bloomington, Illinois, Shandel attended Southern Illinois University in Carbondale. He's also worked for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and Kansas City Star.  TWITTER: @ShandelRich EMAIL: shandelrich@gmail.com