Stephen A. Smith is a man who always seems to find himself in conflicts with others.
The ongoing feud between Marcellus Wiley and Stephen A. Smith takes another turn as the former NFL defensive end delivers the next blow. Just one week after Smith countered Wiley’s comments about Max Kellerman during an appearance on “The Breakfast Club,” Wiley has now called out Smith for “dodging the truth” and manipulating his remarks to appear “hypocritical.” This, according to Wiley, is in light of what regularly occurs on “First Take.”
“I couldn’t let you keep doing that to Max Kellerman because that dude has earned his stripes,” Wiley said Thursday in a video posted on X. “So I’m just giving you that energy, that same energy you gave to Max Kellerman and that same energy you give to countless athletes. To say that I was wrong as a black man to question another black man’s intellect on a public platform, which I didn’t do, I didn’t question it, but I do know that you do question the intellect, the heart, the talent of black athletes every damn day on that show.
“That’s very rich of you, to try and make what I said into something you do every single day, which is highly hypocritical of you, Stephen A.”
The ongoing exchange between them originated when Marcellus Wiley, a former host on ESPN and FS1, criticized Stephen A. Smith for not addressing the departures of Max Kellerman, whom Smith pushed off “First Take,” and Shannon Sharpe, who left “Undisputed,” in a consistent manner.
Wiley even went so far as to speculate that Smith might have ousted Kellerman because he didn’t fulfill the specific “role” that the long-time host had in mind.
“Stephen A. gets a salute from all, especially me, because I respect his work ethic,” Wiley said on his “More To It with Marcellus Wiley” podcast last month, “but right now, and a lot of people are seeing it right before our very eyes, no love and no respect for your ethics.”
Then, in the preceding week, Smith reacted by asserting that he would never make a statement suggesting that one black man is intimidated by the intelligence of a white man.
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He acknowledged that Wiley’s remarks crossed a line but expressed sadness that Wiley chose to adopt that approach, especially given the mutual respect they have built through their collaborative work.
“Here’s my only issue: For a black man to stand up there and say another black man is scared of somebody’s intellect, come on bro,” Smith said. “That’s just a line you’re crossing. I have nothing to say other than that. That’s sad that he would go that route. I guess he’s going to get attention because everybody watches ‘The Breakfast Club’ every chance we get and you’re going to see us talk about it.”
Kellerman found himself among those affected by ESPN’s extensive layoffs in June, a development that transpired less than two years after The New York Post’s Andrew Marchand had initially reported that Kellerman was likely to be replaced on “First Take” by a rotating roster of co-hosts to join Stephen A. Smith.
In June, Sharpe departed “Undisputed” following a buyout arrangement and subsequently made appearances on “First Take.” Smith, in September, contended that Sharpe had been forced out at FS1, as the tension between Sharpe and his co-host Skip Bayless became increasingly apparent in the lead-up to their separation.
