Confrontation; lies; and verbal swipes. The LeBron James vs Stephen A. Smith has every rule from a drama playbook you would expect. And now, it has reached to a point where not just the world but even the NBA Commissioner Adam Silver is also talking about it. But how did it reach this point? Here’s a brief breakdown:

• January 28, 2025, Planting the seed: Three months after LeBron and Bronny, LA’s 55th pick in June, shared the court to create NBA history as the first active father-son duo to do it, Stephen A. Smith’s monologue on First Take mentioned, “I am pleading with LeBron James, as a father, stop this. Stop this. We all know that Bronny James is in the NBA because of his dad.” The video also had a slight hint of how Smith would never think Bron is the GOAT, which for him, is an honor he saves for Michael Jordan.
• February 28, 2025, Setting a fire: LeBron James talked to the media after his game where he mentioned that he didn’t choose to be the face of the league but was pushed into the role. Reasoning with Anthony Edwards’ thoughts, he also mentioned, “Why do you wanna be the face of the league when all the people that cover our game and talk about our game on a day-to-day basis s— on everybody?” As were the predictions, Smith took it all personally.
• March 6, 2025, The confrontation: As the forever New York loyalist Smith stood courtside in a Lakers vs Knicks game in the Crypto.com Arena, Bron runs to him in a time out during the third quarter where he assertively suggests Smith to “Keep my son out of this s— bro.”
• March 7, 2025, The speech: On First Take, Stephen A. addressed the confrontation with James and explained that he cannot be mad at what he said because a father said it to him, and not an NBA player. But he further added, “Apparently he feels like I was slighting his son. When I said the things that I said, I wasn’t talking about Bronny James…I was talking about the position that he was put in by his dad.”
• March 26, 2025, Fuming the flames: In Bron’s appearance on the Pat McAfee show recently, he clarified that he has no problems with the journalists and analysts criticizing players who do not perform. But he warned, “But when you take it and you get personal with it, it’s my job to not only protect my damn household, but protect the players” as he also laughed off calling Stephen A.’s multiple coverages on the topic as a “Taylor Swift tour run.”
• March 27, 2025, The lies and the fists: Stephen A. added a 52-minute-long video to his YouTube show where he called LeBron a liar and challenged him, “You want this to be a reincarnation of Chris Rock and Will Smith?… If that man put hands on me, I would have immediately swung on him.” This was followed by Bron posting an Instagram video where Smith is trying his hooks, but the carousel included mimicking a losing horn.
• March 28, 2025, The GOAT debate and the apology: Stephen A. has always been vocal that he would give the crown of the greatest ever to Michael Jordan and no one else which he circled back yesterday. And according to him, this is what LeBron does not like. However, what he did next was what made it personal, again.

Smith, never one to back down, took it up a notch. He pushed the drama even further by saying LeBron skipped Kobe Bryant’s funeral and Dwyane Wade’s jersey retirement ceremony. The only issue? The Los Angeles Times reported LeBron was at Kobe’s memorial. And then comes the apology.

During First Take on Wednesday, Smith initially suggested that the Lakers star was absent from the ceremony but later corrected himself on air, acknowledging that James was, in fact, in attendance. He also took it to his X account, tweeting, “My apologies and clarification. I misspoke in Hour#1 of @FirstTake today when I intimated that LeBron did not attend Kobe Bryant’s memorial. I corrected myself in Hour#2 when I acknowledged he was indeed in attendance. My mistake. Should not have even broached that subject. It was not my main point. I retract NOTHING else that I said. Have a nice day!”

While Smith admitted his mistake, he made it clear that he wasn’t backing down from the rest of his criticism toward LeBron. Despite the correction, the back-and-forth between the Lakers star and the ESPN commentator shows no signs of slowing down. And now, even NBA commissioner Adam Silver has weighed in.

After a Board of Governors meeting, Adam Silver weighed in on the LeBron James-Stephen A. Smith feud that’s been dominating headlines. Instead of choosing sides, he simply pointed out, “We’re a particular sport in which that kind of debate seems to be part of the DNA of this league.” But he also recognized that while it drives engagement, it also has its drawbacks.

“And I’m jealous, sometimes it seems that other sports that I’m a fan of, and when I watch the coverage, particularly around the games, it seems to be more celebratory often than it is in the NBA. And I accept it. I mean, we’re often the beneficiary too. There’s seemingly as much social media interest in this league, at times, than all the other leagues combined.

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I’m really sick of the whole thing to tell you the truth it’s nothing other than mine is bigger than...more

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“Sometimes it’s measured in column inches and it’s wonderful to see so much interest in our sport. Other times, I cringe at a lot of the coverage. I would say in terms of that back and forth … I of course would like the focus to be on the play on the floor. And I feel particularly protective of our players, of course.”

Silver’s take? The NBA’s constant media buzz is both a blessing and a curse. It keeps the league in the spotlight, but sometimes, it pulls attention away from the game itself. So, he would rather that the coverage is more focused on the sport. And no feud proves that better than the ongoing clash between Stephen A. Smith and LeBron James.

Will ESPN let Stephen A Smith speak his mind on First Take every time?

Stephen A Smith has built his career on debates, and now he has free rein to go after LeBron James across First Take, NBA Countdown, and his YouTube show. If Skip Bayless made a name for himself by criticizing LeBron, Smith could take it even further. By engaging, LeBron may have fallen into Smith’s trap—challenging him in his own arena.

A rival network executive was stunned that LeBron took the bait. “He’s playing right into Stephen A’s hands,” they said. In the short term, it’s a win for ESPN—on MLB’s Opening Day, Stephen A. vs. LeBron was trending over Aaron Judge and Juan Soto. But long-term? This could backfire.

Does ESPN really want its top personality feuding with the face of the NBA? LeBron is still dominant at 40, and if he becomes an owner, he’ll hold real power. Michelle Beadle once claimed he tried to have her removed from NBA Countdown—imagine his influence in the boardroom.

With ESPN set to share NBA rights with NBC and Amazon under a $77 billion/ 11 years deal, the league will be watching. Commissioner Adam Silver already dislikes how analysts focus more on drama than the game itself.

Leagues don’t forget. The NFL reportedly punished ESPN with weak schedules after its concussion coverage. If ESPN lets Smith keep hammering LeBron, the NBA might take note when it’s time to distribute marquee games.