Nick Wright challenged Stephen A. Smith for igniting another feud with a star athlete.
Smith has instigated a war of words with Boston Celtics star Jaylen Brown. After Brown beckoned Smith to retire, the ESPN analyst seemingly threatened to report damning information about him during a lengthy rant on First Take.
While Wright applauded Smith's tireless work ethic, the Fox Sports pundit took issue with Smith's confrontational approach toward athletes. Wright warned his peer that they're not nearly as popular as the players they're covering.
"There's a lot of Stephen A. that I think is admirable and young people can learn from," Wright said on his What's Wright? podcast. "But these last few years, where he has convinced himself, it appears, that we the commentariat, we the critics, we the people who give opinions on the actual games, are equal stars and equal of important to the people who are playing the actual games, is delusional."
"We are the ring toss and the dunk tank at the circus"
© Jerome Miron-Imagn Images
Wright joked that Smith sounded like a "mob boss" when going after Brown and other players, recalling a similar situation when Smith warned Kevin Durant not to make him an "enemy" of him in 2015. While Wright can laugh off ESPN filming Smith's entrance into an arena as if he's an athlete, he thinks the verbal jarring goes too far.
"The audience appreciates us as side attractions to the big tent they came for," Wright said. "We are the ring toss and the dunk tank at the circus, but we’re not the lions jumping through flaming hoops. We are added benefit to the main event."
Wright believes that most of Smith's audience, even those who also think Brown has handled the situation poorly, could turn against the ESPN pundit.
"Are you telling this superstar athlete to stay in his lane?" Wright asked. "Are you a late-50s, early-60-year-old man getting in a war of words with a 29-year-old? Is that what’s happening? And it makes all of us look bad. And also, here’s the other thing. You're the only guy who does it."
While Smith chose to elevate the situation, Wright backed down after receiving pushback for calling LaMelo Ball a "clown."
"When they fire back, even if it is in your opinion inaccurate, misleading, unfair, the answer is not to go to the mattresses and escalate," he said. "The answer is to stand by what you said, have a smile on your face, and recognize people are here to see them."
