Fiery sports TV personality Stephen A. Smith recently addressed comments made by fellow sportscaster and former professional football player Marcellus Wiley, who called Smith a “hypocrite.” Smith said that his current position in his career resulted from the path he chose for success. The controversy began when Wiley defended Max Kellerman, Smith’s former partner on ESPN’s “First Take.”
Smith had recently admitted that his relationship with Kellerman was not ideal and the partnership wasn’t going anywhere. This eventually led to Kellerman leaving the show in 2022 and being laid off by the network this year. Wiley, who spent 10 years in the NFL, took issue with Smith’s comments and brought up the situation on his “More To It” podcast.
Wiley claimed that it was hypocritical of Smith to belittle Kellerman and yet be sympathetic to what happened to his current TV partner, Shannon Sharpe. Sharpe experienced a similar situation while with ‘Undisputed’ on FS1. Wiley’s accusation led Smith to reflect on his career and the choices he made to reach his current level of success.
In response to Wiley’s comments, Smith defended himself by reiterating that his career trajectory is a result of the choices he has made. He emphasized that taking tough decisions and learning from past experiences helped him propel his career to greater heights.
Despite the controversy, Smith remains steadfast in his approach towards achieving success in his career. The ongoing exchanges between Smith, Wiley, and other sports commentators will continue to shape the discourse within the sports broadcast industry.
