Stephen A. Smith faced the music on Friday in Manhattan, where the ESPN pundit happily admitted to being wrong about the New York Knicks’ title hopes amid a chorus of boos from gloating fans.
A day after the Knicks championship parade, Smith was a surprise guest at Madison Square Garden’s Infosys Theater, where New York teammates Jalen Brunson and Josh Hart hosted a live taping of their podcast, The Roommates Show.
The tension between Smith and the longtime friends dates back about 10 years to when Brunson, Hart and fellow Knicks star Mikal Bridges played together at Villanova. Under legendary coach Jay Wright, the trio won a national title in 2016 before Brunson and Bridges captured a second two years later.
At the time, Smith was unimpressed and famously predicted the Wildcats stars would fall short in the NBA.
And when the Knicks signed Brunson to a massive free-agent contract in 2022, Smith still remained skeptical despite the young point guard’s meteoric rise from second-round pick to legitimate NBA star. Not even the subsequent acquisitions of Hart and Bridges could turn Smith into a believer in the ‘Nova Knicks,’ as they’re known among fans.
‘We are now sitting here with this golden trophy there to your right,’ Hart asked Smith as the boos subsided. ‘Can you sit here and admit you were wrong?’
Stephen A. Smith (left) gets booed while Jalen Brunson encourages the crowd to continue
Brunson (left) and Hart (right) have now won titles together at Villanova and in New York
To his credit, Smith took his proverbial medicine.
‘I’m a grown-ass man. I was beyond wrong,’ the native New Yorker said. ‘I’m apologizing to this brother on national television; I’m apologizing to you; I’m apologizing to the entire Knicks organization.
‘Let me be very, very clear — I have never been more happy to be wrong in my life,’ he continued. ‘Let me be very, very clear — I came out of the womb a Knicks fan. I’m 58 years old. The last time the New York Knicks won a title before last Saturday, I was four.
‘So, I apologize for being wrong. But let me be very clear: if it means another championship, I would do it again.’
Villanova’s Hart (left) and Brunson (right) are pictured during a 2017 game at MSG
Nobody enjoyed the moment more than Brunson, who milked the boos as much as possible during the on-stage interview.
‘Wait, they’re not done,’ Brunson interjected at one point, cutting off Smith to allow for more booing.
And when Smith apologized, Brunson took the opportunity to stress the words to the crowd: ‘You were wrong.’
The Roommates aren’t done with their public shows. After welcoming Smith, Carmelo Anthony and current teammate Karl-Anthony Towns this week, the crew is planning a public block party for Thursday.
