Five years ago, Magic Johnson collaborated with Stephen A. Smith for a good cause. Now their initiative has raised $70 million for HBCUs and helped about 12,000 students. During an appearance on It’s What It Is, Stephen A. Smith recalled all the people who supported his initiative in 2019 and how it has grown from there. Magic, known for his philanthropic initiatives towards minorities and women, featured prominently in that.

Smith revealed that his bosses at ESPN and Disney, “gave the okay for me to take the show to Delaware, where Magic Johnson and Troy Vincent, the executive VP of the NFL they both showed up as in-person guest. So that was a very very big deal.”

He’s referring to the 2019 broadcast of First Take. Johnson and Vincent were headlining HBCU Week in Wilmington, Delaware, and Smith, an HBCU product, was the ambassador that year. It was planned by Smith and he was grateful to the head honchos at ESPN and Disney for taking the show from the usual South Street Seaport studio in NYC on the road, south on the I-95 to Wilmington.

It was no different from a regular episode of First Take when he also had Shannon Sharpe on the show. Smith, as usual, was on fire with his opinions in the live broadcast in front of the 76ers G-League team, Delaware Blue Coats’ new arena.

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That year he made a bold prediction to Magic Johnson’s face. “The Philadelphia 76ers are going to the NBA finals.” As history is witness, the 2019 NBA Finals were between the Golden State Warriors and the Toronto Raptors, with the latter taking the title. The 76ers were shockingly eliminated in the Conference Semis.

Failed predictions aside, that was a fruitful trip by Smith and Johnson. A highlight of the show was when the ESPN crew surprised him with an on-air reunion with his Winston-Salem Rams teammates.

Stephen A. Smith and Magic Johnson uplift HBCUs

ESPN reported then that nearly 4000 people and 20 universities participated in HBCU week led by the two philanthropists. College aspirants received scholarships on the spot and earned admission into their schools.

Smith doesn’t laud Magic’s contribution for no reason. In 1989, Johnson received an honorary doctorate from Rust College for his contributions to HBCUs. For years, Magic Johnson has visited HBCUs, advised students, and endowed scholarships for young students. Sometimes Magic recruits a promising HBCU product into Magic Johnson Enterprises like Ryan L. Smith, the former director of investments in the billionaire philanthropist’s group.

Stephen A. Smith confirmed that his and Magic’s efforts to support HBCUs are still going strong. What do you think about the ESPN veteran’s initiative?

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