← Straight Shooter with Stephen A.
Straight Shooter with Stephen A.
Full Show: Stephen A discusses why Shannon Sharpe stepped away from ESPN and First Take.
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- [00:00]
Stephen A. Smith
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Stephen A. Smith
Casino Purchase necessary VGW Group Void where prohibited by law 21/ terms and conditions apply all right folks, I need you all to stop what you're doing and listen up. You know how much I love this time of year. The NBA playoffs. It's in full effect and with all this action jumping off, the Stephen A. Smith show wants to make sure you take advantage of it all. That's why we partnered with Prizepix. The Best Place to Win Cash While Watching Sports the app is easy to use. Just pick more or less on a few player stats and you can win up to 2000 times your cash on a single lineup. Best of all, Prize picks will give you $50 when you play your first $5 lineup. Win or lose, you'll get 50 bucks for playing. So use promo Code SAS and download the app now. Again, download the app and use Code SAs to get $50 instantly after your first $5 lineup. Prize picks hey, hey. Run your game today. I'll give you my picks for Sunday's game between my beloved New York Knicks and and the Detroit Pistons. So let's get to it. First up, will Jalen Brunson score more or less than 29 and a half points? Have you seen the way Jalen Brunson has been playing? Please. That brother is a closer. Clutch player of the Year in the NBA showed up in Game three and showed you exactly why I'm going with more on this particular answer. Next up, will Karl Anthony Towns Catman score more or less than 23 1/2 points? He just finished dropping 31, hit 10 to 18 shots. Why would I believe he's going to be any differently in game four. I think he's going to show up. He's going to score more than 23 and a half. I'm going with more on this one, too. Next up, Will Tim Hardaway Jr. Score more or less than 10 and a half points? He got hot in the first half, tailed off in the second half in game three. But that only calls for a few threes. He can score more than ten and a half points. I'm going to go with more on this one. And finally, will Cade Cunningham score more or less than 27 and a half points? I'm going with more. So that's it. You see what I said? Jalen Brunson, Karl Anthony Towns. Okay. Tim Hardaway Jr. And of course, the one and only Cade Cunningham. More, more, more and more. That's what we like on Prize Fix. We love that word more. Cause it means more money for everybody. We like that. We like that. It's been a rough week. There's been a lot of things going on. Not just in the world of politics. Of course, there's the NFL draft as well, along with the NBA playoffs. But needless to say, on a personal level involving Shannon Sharpe, there's a lot to talk about. I'm here for it. Gotta do the job. Gotta do the job. The Stephen A. Smith show in the house. Let's go. What's up, everybody? Welcome to this latest edition of the Stephen A. Smith Show. Coming at you as I love to do at the very least three times a week over the digital airwaves of YouTube and of course, iHeartRadio. As always, I like to pause to take a moment to thank my subscribers and followers for continuing to support the show. We've now eclipsed more than 1.19 million subscribers on YouTube. Of course, there's millions of downloads over the last several months, courtesy of iheartradio. Can't thank y'all for the love and support Enough. Keep it coming. And I'm gonna keep on coming to continue to like and follow the show. Just click the right hand. Just click the bell in the lower right hand corner and you too shall be considered the latest member of the Stephen A. Smith show family, courtesy of being updated on all of our newest content. And while you're doing that, make sure to pick up a copy of my New York Times bestselling book, Straight Shooter, A Memoir of second chances and first takes, now in paperback. Let's get to the latest news, and it's involving Mr. Shannon Sharpe, who announced yesterday that he would be stepping away from from ESPN and ESPN's First Take my daytime job, at least until the NFL preseason sometime later on this summer. As you may recall, a lawsuit was filed against Shannon on Sunday by a woman using the name Jane Doe or using a Jane DOE pseudonym. The 13 page civil complaint filed in Nevada alleged that Shannon Sharp committed assault, sexual assault, battery and sexual battery. Shannon and his attorneys responded with evidence of the relationship being, quote, unquote consensual. And Jane Doe's attorney, Tony Busby responded by releasing audio of an alleged conversation between his client and Shannon. For those that don't know, Tony Busby is the same attorney that filed a lawsuit against Jay Z and Diddy alleging they both sexually assaulted a minor, which has since been withdrawn. Jay Z has now countersued. Busby, needless to say, the headlines this week took on a life of their owner and as a result, Shannon announced he was stepping away from espn. Here's a portion of Shannon's statement that he posted on social media. Quote, I will be devoting this time to my family and responding and dealing with these false and disruptive allegations set against me. I plan to return to ESPN at the start of the NFL preseason. I sincerely appreciate the overwhelming and ongoing support I have received from my family, fans, friends and colleagues, end quote. It's been a difficult week from a sports media perspective, certainly as it pertains to first take, Shannon Sharp became a friend when I recruited him to come on board on ESPN's First Take. He came on board and he did a sensational job. No matter the amount of success that we enjoyed for the 12 years prior to his arrival, he helped take it to another level last year and we were doing our thing this year as well. And so when the news came down that he and ESPN had mutually agreed that he would need to come off the airwaves of espn, it was a blow, blow to the show, a blow to me personally, because I'm going to miss them. But it was not a surprise. When I was on the air just a few days ago, a lot of people were looking for me to say something. I'm not going to go there. I'm not going to speak to one's innocence or one's guilt about something I have absolutely, positively no knowledge of whatsoever. Do I believe that Shannon Sharp is guilty of what he has been accused of? Absolutely not. That is my personal opinion. The brother that I've come to know I don't believe would assault or rape anybody. And I'm going to state that emphatically, but just as emphatically I'm going to remind everybody it is my opinion because of what I feel about him, not in any way implying that I know a damn thing beyond that, because I don't know. I've seen the text messages released by his lawyer, who, by the way, I don't think has been impressive in this at all because some of the information that was let out to the public, I have no idea why a lawyer would advise such a thing. But that's a different subject for another day. And we're allowed to deduce from an opinion perspective what we believe and what we don't, so long as we concede that we have no way of knowing definitively what the truth is. What I can speak about is the fact that this three time super bowl champion and this hall of Famer who emphatically stated to me over the phone how innocent he is of these allegations that have been levied against him, insisting repeatedly, repeatedly, repeatedly that anything you read, anything you see, anything you hear was fully and totally consensual in the same breath. What's inescapable is that without us knowing all the merits, he was working with Disney, where I've worked since 2003, excluding my departure from 2009 to 2011, when I was gone for those two years. Outside of that, I've been at Disney since October of 2003. I know this place. I know the worldwide leader that is ESPN, who's under the umbrella of Disney. And it wasn't difficult for me to figure out what was transpiring. As I sit here before you today discussing this matter, ESPN and Disney have a wait and see attitude when it comes to whatever evidence they may learn about this entire situation involving Shannon Sharpe from a legal and from a civil perspective. What they didn't need, as it pertains to those two things that I just mentioned, they didn't need any definitive evidence at this particular moment in time about all of that stuff. Once all the things Shannon Sharpe's lawyer put out there, it was uncomfortable to listen to. And it was not something that Walt Disney once associated with its brand. So to have him on the airwaves while all of that stuff was put out there was not something that Disney was going to take. That is what I mean when I say I am not surprised in getting to know Shannon Sharpe. I know a lot of things that he has articulated that he has been through in his life. I can't imagine too many things in life tougher than what he's going through now. And there's a lot of people out there talking a lot of smack, a lot of stuff about him. You will never hear that from me. It will not happen. I don't give a damn if we speak a day from now, a month from now, a year from now, years from now. He's my friend, and it's always gonna be that way. I'd say the same thing to you about anybody else that I know to be my friend, I don't have to work with you. I don't have to be around you. I don't have to be around you all the time, talking to you all the time to have love for you and to wish you the best. And that's exactly what it's going to be for him. I sincerely hope that all of this goes away and we find there's a bunch of falsehoods to these allegations, and he's able to come back in this industry and do what he has been doing, which has been phenomenal. I hope Club Shay Shay and Nightcap and all of these other things that he's associated with, that he continues to thrive in his life and move forward. And whatever mistakes he may have made along the way, I'm not talking from a legal or civil perspective. I'm talking about in his eyes or that of others, whether it be moral or something else. I hope that he corrects whatever he feels he needs to correct and he moves forward. But in the process of doing all of that, I hope we're all reminded of a few things, and this extends far beyond a Shannon Sharpe or anybody else. One of the things that we need to remind ourselves of is that in this day and age, very few things are private. In this day and age, there's very few things that won't come to light because most things do. But thinking beyond Shannon, thinking beyond myself, just thinking about the world that we live in, in terms of the podcast stratosphere and everything like that, a lot of people want to walk around thinking, you could do what you want to do, when you want to do it. You could your own operation. You don't have to answer to anybody. That's not true. I've had people open their mouth and they've said, stephen A, you work for espn. What kind of control do you really have? This is my podcast, this is my YouTube show. I own this. But if you think for one second that I could just do what I want to do, when I want to do it, how I want to do it, and there's not going to be any repercussions, you're Clueless. And you're destined to fail and fall on your face. I'm not talking about Shannon Sharpe. I'm not talking about Shannon Sharpe. I'm not talking about anybody in particular. I'm talking about a climate that we're living in. Some people sit up there and they look at me and they say, stephen A. Don't get himself in this kind of trouble. How does he pull it off? Well, first of all, there's certain behaviors and proclivities that you never have to worry about me engaging in. But most importantly than that, I often say this about Walt Disney. I'd rather work for a place with standards than one looking for them. You know why? Because lines are drawn and I never have to worry about crossing them. Because guess what? I've got something there reminding me. Hold on, hold on. You don't need to do that. It's not a silo. I'm not by myself. I don't get to operate in any way that I want without having to worry about ramifications or repercussions. I always have to be concerned about that. So I'm challenged every day to come on the airwaves and think about the ramifications and repercussions of anything that I do constantly. And because of that, that's an additional guardrail to secure me from putting myself in a position that could jeopardize myself, my show, my brand, my family, the company that I work for, anything like that. Again, I'm not talking about Shannon right now. I'm talking about what people say when it comes to people like myself and others who unapologetically explain that we have people to answer to. And all you folks out there with your own podcast, running your own operations, if you have advertisers and sponsors, get what? You answer to somebody, too. And I'm here to tell you, don't be upset about it. Feel good about it, because you need to view it as an extra line of security that enables you it being a guardrail. It enables you to watch lines that you want to make sure that you don't cross. Because when those lines are always there, you usually know it, and you usually make sure you don't cross it, because the bigger picture is always staring in front of your face. I've seen a lot of stuff happen over the last few months. I've seen a lot of stuff happen over the last few years, and in almost every case, guardrails were pretty much absent. I'm glad I have guardrails. The people that work for me the people that work with me, the people I work for, the public at large, I found a way to be me while in the same breath guarding myself against some of the things I need to be guarded against. Just a thought, just a thought back to Shannon. I'll always be here for him if he needs me. Just the same way I said that about Skip Bayless when he departed from Fox. Just the same way that I would say about any of my friends. That's what friends do. Even in the toughest of times. Sometimes, especially the toughest of times, they ain't telling you you're right all the time. And hell, sometimes they may not stop you from falling into that abyss, but they're there to lift you up when nobody else will. That's all I have to say, other than I hope he's back in this business real soon on linear television talking some football. Because that man knows his football and he certainly knows how to entertain us while he's talking about football. I'm gonna miss him. I hope he's back soon. But if by some happenstance that doesn't happen, I'm always gonna be wishing the best for him, no matter what. Coming up, longtime Trump supporter Candace Owens is turning her back on the President. I'll get into exactly why that is straight ahead. But first round one of the NFL draft toward Travis Hunter, go back to Florida. While Shador Sanders was left out, still looking for a team to draft them. We'll break down what we saw in Green Bay last night with the one and only Adam Scheffler, the ultimate insider from espn. He's right here. Up next on the Stephen A. Smith Show. Don't go away. All right, everybody, listen up. With all the big time sports action that's happening each and every day, the Stephen A. Smith show wants to make sure you are taking advantage of it all. That's why we've partnered with Prize Picks. The best place to win cash while watching sports. The app is really easy to use to make a lineup. All you have to do is pick more or less on a few player stats. Choose from any of your favorite players, Luka Doncic, Jimmy Butler, and Zach Lavine, all in the same entry. Then sit back and watch. The list is absolutely endless. You can play prize picks in over 40 states, including California and Texas. Best of all, Prize picks will give you $50 when you play your first $5 lineup. Win or lose, you'll get 50 bucks. Just use promo code SAS and download Prize picks right now. Again, download the app and use code SAS to get $50 instantly after your first $5 lineup. Prize picks run your game.
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Ryan Seacrest
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Stephen A. Smith
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Ryan Seacrest
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Stephen A. Smith
See full terms@mintmobile.com every morning brings a fresh new energy. This is today, and no matter what the day holds, we come to the.
- [21:42]
Ryan Seacrest
Today show for all of it. When things are tough, we talk about it. When there's something to figure out, we dig into it. And when there's joy, we celebrate it.
- [21:52]
Stephen A. Smith
Because today is where it's all happening. We get the best start to every morning because we start it together. Watch the Today show with Savannah Guthrie and Craig Melvin, weekdays at 7am on NBC. Welcome back to the Stephen A. Smith Show. Now let's get to Round one of the NFL draft. As expected, Cam Ward went number one overall to the Tennessee Titans. And not too long after the pick was announced, news broke that the Jacksonville Jaguars traded with the Browns to acquire the second pick in acquiring Heisman Trophy winner Travis Hunter. Meanwhile, my Steelers are still looking for a quarterback after day one, and Shador Sanders is still on the board for round two. So joining me now to break it all down, break all down, the headlines we saw last night is the one and only Adam Schefter. What's up buddy? How you doing?
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Ryan Seacrest
Stephen A. Always great to be with you. Nice to see you.
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Stephen A. Smith
Shador Sanders didn't even get drafted in round one. Were you surprised by that?
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Ryan Seacrest
The longer this went on, the more it seemed like this was a possibility. It felt like the Giants weren't going to take him at 3, the Saints weren't going to take him at 9, and the one shot he had was 21 to Pittsburgh. And the Steelers talked about the idea of taking him, but there was nothing consensus within the organization. They needed help along their defensive line and they opted for the Oregon defensive lineman Derek Harmon. And so Shador Sanders was left sitting on the board watching other quarterbacks like Jackson DART Go number 25 to the new York Giants. So when you ask if we're surprised, I think the longer this went on, the closer we got to the draft, the more we all recognized that this was possible. And when the Steelers passed on him at 21, it became a reality.
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Stephen A. Smith
What about Jackson Dart? The Giants moving up to grab him? I didn't hear from anybody other than our very own Dan Orlovsky that Dart was going to be somebody that possibly would be taken ahead of Shador Sanders was. I mean, that didn't throw you for a loop at all.
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Ryan Seacrest
We talked about it in the pregame show on college game day. Pete Thammel pointed out that there was a possibility that Jackson Dart could go ahead of Shador. And look, the Giants and Saints and I believe the Cleveland Browns as well, all really like Jackson Dart. So much so that I think each of those teams would have taken Jackson Dart ahead of Shador Sanders. One of the three did, and I believe the other two are in the same category as well. And so Shador Sanders is still sitting there right now going into round two on Friday night. I really think we're at the point now the Steelers don't have a second round draft pick. Their next pick is number 83 in the third round. And you say, well, could he, would he, would he last till then? And it's hard to imagine that he would. But strange things have happened. And I also think that people are reacting like, oh my God, he didn't go in round one. And he is Mel Kuiper junior's top rated quarterback. Guess what? There have been a lot of quarterbacks over the years that have slipped into the second round that have gone on to have successful NFL careers. When Mel Kuiper first started ESPN his very first year, his third rated prospect in the entire board was Boomer Siason. Boomer Siason went into the second round and all he did in the National Football League was win mvp. Drew Brees fell into the second round, Jalen Hurts fell into the second round, and now Shedor Sanders has done the same.
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Stephen A. Smith
Adam Schefter, I always appreciate the knowledge that you drop, so help me with your perspective because I'll certainly take it from you verbatim. Covering this league the way that you have me covering the NBA and just overall sports over the last 30 years, certainly your talent and your skill is paramount. That's primary issue number one. We got. You've got to have the ability. But I've seen many executives sometimes make decisions because they didn't want to deal with potential headaches. Somebody that could have the ear of folks, somebody that could have the kind of influence and cachet that could disrupt whatever their vision was for their franchise. That brings me to Deion Sanders did that play. Did his presence, his aura, his cachet, and the fact that he's a relatively loquacious individual when he needs to be and he will speak up for himself, his son, etc. Did that play any role in your mind at all in the possibility of shadow falling out of the first round?
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Ryan Seacrest
Well, probably did. I mean, again, I don't want to blame DeAndre. That's not what we're doing. But I think when a team is drafting Shador, it recognizes what would come along with that. And you'd have a very famous, very accomplished father that would come along. And we wrote this in our ESPN Draft intel column that ran on ESPN plus last week. I said, short of Mike Tomlinson, there aren't many coaches around the league that might be comfortable drafting Shador. And knowing that if and when their seat gets warm, people in that city could be calling for his job and calling for Shador's dad to replace him. Like that definitely could happen in time. I don't think Mike Tomlin would care about that, but I think there might be other coaches who would. And beyond that, I just feel like for whatever reason, Shedeur didn't have the best interview process. There are some teams that did like him. There were more that didn't. For whatever reason. It's strange to me because again, he does have the support. And when you watch him, you see how talented he is. And the bottom line, Stephen A. Is the facts speak for themselves. Every team had a chance to pick him in round one. Nobody did. We're back at it again Friday night. More teams will have another chance to draft him. And so that's the great part about the NFL draft. You got to put your cards on the table. You see where teams stand on certain individuals and right now you're seeing where teams stand on Shador Sanders.
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Stephen A. Smith
His collegiate teammate didn't have that problem. Travis Hunter, Jacksonville Jaguars moving up to the number two spot, making a deal with the Cleveland Browns that ultimately landed them. Travis Hunter. You broke that story. Can you talk about that? Travis Hunter and what they told you or why they told you they like this kid so much?
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Ryan Seacrest
Oddly enough, I think we could first lean into what the general manager, the Cleveland Browns, said about him. Despite the fact that he traded away the draft pick, he called Travis Hunter a unicorn. He compared him to Shohei Ohtani.
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Stephen A. Smith
Wow.
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Ryan Seacrest
A two way player. And I think those are some of the things that the Jacksonville Jaguars were drawn to. In the end, they saw what they felt was like the best player in this draft. They saw somebody that they thought could come in and play wide receiver at a high level for them. They're going to onboard him as a wide receiver. They're going to have him play defense. I think they're going to do everything they can to get the value out of the number two pick in this draft. And they felt like they were getting a star player, a dynamic presence, a great personality. You saw him last night dancing on the stage once he was selected. They loved everything about him. So much so that they were willing to give up their second round draft pick today and their first round draft pick next year, which is quite a lot. But Jacksonville would tell you, hey, there's no price that's too great for a star that has been compared to Shohei Ohtani and that's why they paid up and they're going to play him on both sides of the football.
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Stephen A. Smith
How are the Jacksonville Jaguars feeling about Trevor Lawrence right now? They're $55 million quarterback.
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Ryan Seacrest
Well, Stephen, what I would tell you is they have a new head coach, Liam cone, who they brought in to elevate Trevor Lawrence. They have a new general manager, James Gladstone, the youngest general manager who pulled off that trade on Thursday night. That's a huge swing to take. Think about that. The first trade of draft picks in the 2025 NFL Draft comes from the youngest GM in the league and somebody who's making his first draft day trade. And that was a doozy. There aren't too many people that start that big, but he comes from the Rams, don't think he cares about taking big swings, not as concerned about keeping the draft picks. And I think that they feel like he can help elevate Trevor Lawrence. And so that's the idea and the thinking gear. They're giving Trevor Lawrence a restart, a reboot with a new head coach who has worked in elevating the play of quarterbacks. They're giving him a new GM who obviously thinks differently and aggressively than a lot of other GMs. And they're hoping that between the new head coach, the new gm, new assistant coaches and the changing culture, that Trevor Lawrence can turn out to be the quarterback that many thought the Jaguars were getting when they selected him with the number one overall pick.
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Stephen A. Smith
That would be crazy. The new GM is 34 years old, so it's going to be really interesting to see how that works out for them. Switching to the Cleveland Browns. They're on the other side of this deal. They passed up on a Travis Hunter to make this deal move down to fifth in the draft ultimately got a first round pick for next year, sort of recouping some of the losses that they have to, you know, they have to suffer from the Deshaun Watson trade, wouldn't you say? Adam Schefter, isn't that how you would break it down?
- [31:16]
Ryan Seacrest
Well, Stephen A. They have not had a top 50 pick in the pre three previous drafts. So when they selected Mason Graham from my University of Michigan in Thursday nights or first round, that was the first time in four years that they've had a top 50 pick and they're making up for it now because now going into tonight's draft they have two of the top four selections in the second round picks, 33 and 36. And they already have the Jacksonville Jaguars first round draft pick in 2026. So they're on the board with two first round picks next year. And that's why I know a lot of people are saying quarterback tonight for the Browns. They might go that route, they could certainly. But they also could opt to pick two really strong players and say we're punting on quarterback in what we consider to be a weak quarterback draft class. And we will revisit this topic a year from now when we have double once that is an option going into the draft tonight and we'll see how the Browns react to it.
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Stephen A. Smith
What's the NFL feeling about the draft that the Giants had last night? Carter and then obviously moving up to draft dart? How are people feeling about the Giants right now?
- [32:29]
Ryan Seacrest
Well, I think most talent evaluators felt there were two blue chip prospects in this draft, Travis Hunter and Abdiel Carter. Jacksonville got one, the New York Giants got the other and Abdiel Carter, who has been compared to Micah Parsons who wore number 11 at Penn State, plays like him, looks like him and if Micah Parsons, a version of that showed up on the Giants roster, that would be great. Jackson Dart, the quarterback they move up and Stephen A. I'm just telling you, I think that they jumped in front of the Browns. The Browns were happy to sit and wait and they jumped in front of the Saints who definitely wanted Jackson Dart. The Saints weren't scheduled to pick again to number 40. Saints weren't willing to use their number nine overall selection on Jackson Dart, but clearly there was something of an arms race to try to get the Jackson dart and the Giants won that. And the great part about that is that they did it without having to give up a first round draft pick next year. So if Jackson Dart comes in this year and they feel like he's a total bust which isn't going to be the case. They could always use their first round pick on a quarterback next year if that's what they want. That's not their plan, trust me. But all they had to do is trade, I believe was a couple of third round picks to move up to that spot. Whereas the Atlanta Falcons, one slot in front of them, wound up trading a first round draft pick for next year to go get draft James Pierce, the defensive lineman. Giants didn't have to give up the future one, the Falcons did, the Giants didn't. And the Giants moved up for a quarterback and the Falcons a pass rusher. So again, what they gave up in return they felt was more than worth it to get the quarterback that at least a few teams wanted.
- [34:09]
Stephen A. Smith
Here, there's a couple of minutes left with you, Adam Schefter. Very few things surprise you one can imagine because you're the ultimate insider. You know what the hell is going on better than anybody in the National Football League. Anything shock you last night?
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Ryan Seacrest
Well, that trade that came down was such a huge trade. It was one of the biggest on the clock trades that we've seen in NFL history. There have been only two teams that had top five picks traded. One was the Minnesota Vikings and Atlanta falcons. In the 80s when the Vikings traded their pick to go get Chris Dolman and the Falcons got Bill Froh. And the other time it happened was when the Chicago Bears traded up with the 49ers to go get Mitch Trubisky, famously in a draft where they drafted Mitch Trubisky ahead of Patrick Mahomes. That was the size and scope of this trade last night and was a trade that I think you look at. You say both teams win here because the Jaguars get a certifiable star in Travis Hunter and the Browns come away with so much draft equity for a team that hasn't had any draft equity in recent years and a chance to remake their roster. I, I was surprised that we saw two teams last night that were willing to part ways with their first round draft pick in the 2026 NFL Draft. For the record, if I ever were part of a front office, and I never will be, but if I ever were, I would never trade a future one unless I was some super bowl champion in some great position, I would hold on to those picks like my life depended on it. And we saw the Falcons, who haven't won a playoff game in any recent season, trade their one next year. And we saw the Jaguars, who haven't had recent playoff success, trade their one Next year, we'll just wait to see how that works out for the Cleveland Browns and LA Rams who hold those future picks in 2026.
- [35:53]
Stephen A. Smith
Speaking to the end of the NFL analysts and knowing the game the way that you do, who's the biggest winner of Round one thus far in your estimation? Is it simply Jacksonville and Travis Hunter is just somebody else?
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Ryan Seacrest
Well, Stephen, it doesn't really matter what I say as the winner right now, because we could go into any year and anoint some winner and all of a sudden some player turns into some star that we never saw coming. It's a fun exercise. I mean, it's always going to be about quarterbacks. So really, if Cam Ward turns out to be a star, then the Titans won the draft. If he doesn't, then they failed. If Jackson Dart turns out to be the quarterback, then the Giants get A. And if they don't, no one's keeping their jobs.
- [36:29]
Stephen A. Smith
So I mean, it.
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Ryan Seacrest
It's grades. To me, it's like giving a student a grade on the first day of school before they completed their first homework assignment, return paper. It doesn't mean anything. Like you got to take some tests before we're giving him a grade.
- [36:41]
Stephen A. Smith
Totally fair. Shador Sanders, Cleveland or New Orleans going to pick him up in the second round of your estimation? You think that's, you think that's likely?
- [36:49]
Ryan Seacrest
Not expecting New Orleans, and I don't feel overly confident on Cleveland, but I don't know that for sure. We'd have to see again, you get to certain spots in the draft where if Shador is the best player on your board, even if you didn't think you were going to take him, you go ahead and pick him. I Stephen A. I just got a feeling that, like I said to you, I'm not going to be surprised if he winds up on a team that we just never connected to him, whoever that is, unless, and this is hard to imagine unless he falls to number 83 in the Pittsburgh Steelers in the third round.
- [37:23]
Stephen A. Smith
Last question. I love that I saw Ashton Genty, this running back, extraordinary, out of Boise State, landing with the Raiders. One of the things that I love about what I saw this week as they were talking about him, you brought up Saquon Bark. People brought up Saquon Barkley. I remember. I brought up Derrick Henry. I remember a few years ago, back in 2023, to be exact, when you had Austin Ecklund, these guys rallying the running backs to sort of make a case because they were being devalued just by their birth certificate alone. You collected enough dust. Excuse me, we ain't giving you a long term contract. We don't know if you'll be able to last. And you heard guys like Mel Kuiper Jr. And others never draft a running back in the first round, etc. Etc. To see him go in the first round it's like hope that running backs and being more appreciated with what Saquon Barkley did for the Eagles last year, with what Henry did for the Ravens last year, you just sort of find yourself hoping that the running backs there's going to be an elevated level of appreciation for them. What do you think about that? Is that possible?
- [38:16]
Ryan Seacrest
Well, I think it's interesting that there was an elevated level of appreciation. We saw the Eagles reward Saquon Barkley and redo his contra after one year. They're Ravens have talked to Derrick Henry about a new deal. We're here in Green Bay where Josh Jacobs came to Green Bay and had a huge impact on the packers roster and we are heading into rounds two and three in a draft where the strongest position in this draft was running back. And we're going to see a slew of running backs taken tonight and on Saturday that can come in and make a difference for teams. But you're going to get a bunch of running backs tonight that teams are counting on. This was considered the big press conference or the big draft for these running backs. Again, people texting me at press conferences, sorry, big draft for running backs and that's the strength of this draft. Stephen A.
- [39:06]
Stephen A. Smith
The best in the business. The one and only Adam Schefter live from the NFL Draft. Man, thank you so much for taking time out of your busy schedule. I know how busy you are. I really appreciate it man. Thank you so much.
- [39:15]
Ryan Seacrest
I appreciate you Stephen. I thank you for having me.
- [39:17]
Stephen A. Smith
All the best. Talk to you soon. When only Adam Schefter. There's nobody better when it comes to the NFL. Nobody better. Coming up, Candace Owens was once a big supporter of President Donald Trump. Now she's speaking out against him. What's up with that? I'll get into that and more next right here on the Stephen A. Smith Show. Don't go away.
- [39:39]
Ryan Seacrest
Ryan Reynolds here from Mint Mobile. I don't know if you knew this but anyone can get the same Premium Wireless for $15 a month plan that I've been enjoying. It's not just for celebrities. So do like I did and have one of your assistant's assistants switch you to Mint Mobile today. I'm told it's super easy to do@mintmobile.com Switch upfront payment of $45 for three month plan equivalent to $15 per month required intro rate first three months only, then full price plan options available, taxes and fees extra.
- [40:08]
Stephen A. Smith
See full terms@mintmobile.com every morning brings a fresh new energy. This is today. And no matter what, we come to.
- [40:17]
Ryan Seacrest
The Today show for all of it. When things are tough, we talk about it. When there's something to figure out, we dig into it. And when there's joy, we celebrate it.
- [40:27]
Stephen A. Smith
Because today is where it's all happening. We get the best start to every morning because we start it together. Watch the Today show with Savannah Guthrie and Craig Melvin, weekdays at 7am on NBC. Welcome back to the Stephen A. Smith Show. Now it's time for me to get into some political talk due to a headline that I just saw yesterday that I found very, very interesting. Far right conservative Candace Owens is speaking out against one of her favorite people in the world, supposedly Mr. President Donald Trump himself, and accusing the administration of fighting against free speech right here in the United States of America. The comments are a reference to Harvard University, who is suing the Trump administration for threatening to withhold federal funding if the school did not comply with its list of White House demands. As a result, lawyers for the university sued the administration earlier this week. In the suit, university lawyer claimed the Trump administration is unlawfully using billions of dollars in federal funding as, quote, leverage to gain control of academic decision making at Harvard, end quote. They also allege that the funding freeze violates the First Amendment and flouts federal law. And that is essentially what Owens is saying as well. Take a listen to her thoughts from her podcast yesterday.
- [41:50]
C
I never thought that I would see a day where I would be rooting for a university above Donald J. Trump and his administration. But I don't recognize this administration right now. I don't recognize what's happening. I have a theory. I do. We were kicking around some theories earlier, me and the team, and we were going, what? How could Trump be such a free speech enthusiast and being allowing these things to happen, going after college universities, trying to suppress speech while pretending that you're not suppressing speech while pretending that you're fighting dei. It's so messy. It's so obvious. Everyone knows what you're doing. People who are still trying to grift, I suppose, are not willing to challenge you on this, which is ridiculous because when you are out of office, we are gonna have to live with these consequences. Our children are going to have grow up in this America. Okay, so when you threaten our speech, it's not worth it. So that we can have pom poms and go hurrah for a couple of years, then go, okay, well, yeah, now it kind of stinks because, oh, we're getting arrested for wrong. Think that David Friedman. Yeah, arrest them. Arrest Tucker Carlson and Candace Owens. Get them. I love it. And if you think it's going to stop with college campuses, you're out of your mind. So you better buck up and root for Harvard University in this fight.
- [43:07]
Stephen A. Smith
See, it's moments like this that when the show is over and I go home and I have an opportunity to look at some content and then I see the comments that come in my direction, one of the things that grates my last damn nerves is when everybody's acting like, oh, I'm flip flopping or I'm timid or I'm scared to take a position. No, ladies and gentlemen, there's something to be said about exercising common sense, not living on the fringes or the extreme, and deducing that both sides can actually make sense. Because that's what we're going to do here. First off, to stop the presses and disappoint some of y'all, Candace Owens is not totally wrong. The President of the United States knows that Harvard receives billions of dollars in funding. He knows this, that last year, in fiscal year 2024, Harvard got $686 million in taxpayer dollars for fiscal year 2024. Now this is an institution with an endowment exceeding $53.2 billion. And so when you hear stuff like the president is trying to impose his will on the country's oldest university, accusing it of engaging in anti Semitism along with other things, wanting them to eradicate DEI programs, how far fetched is it to deduce that he's trying to control speech, he's trying to control what institutions of higher learning are actually teaching and disseminating to the masses. How far fetched is it to say that the present President of the United States of America, the 47th president, who campaigned on a lot of this stuff, is keeping his word yet again, albeit to the chagrin of millions of tens of millions of American citizens throughout the United States of America, it's not far fetched. And when Candace Owens sit up there and says, be alert, be alarmed, because if they get away with this, if you're not rooting for Harvard on this and the federal government and the Trump administration is successful in muzzling or dictating, dare I say, the kind of education that a university like Harvard is allowed to impart upon its student body. If they get away with that, one could easily argue it does interfere with free speech. Remember, Harvard University just sued the federal government this past Monday after Trump threatened to pull $9 billion in federal funding unless the school agreed to a set of demands that included broad changes to its admissions, its discipline, and its management policies. I'm reading from the story right here. The Trump administration says its actions, which include a threat to revoke Harvard's tax exempt status, are a response to unchecked antisemitism on campus. Remember, just a few weeks ago or a few days ago, Trump threw out two tweets. One, he said, perhaps Harvard should lose its tax exempt status and be taxed as a political entity if it keeps pushing political, ideological and terrorist inspired, supporting sickness. Remember, tax exempt status is totally contingent on acting in the public interest. Before that, Trump had said this about Harvard. Harvard is an anti semitic far left institution, as are numerous others, with students being accepted from all over the world that want to rip our country apart. The place is a liberal mess. Allowing a certain group of crazed lunatics to enter and exit the classroom and spew fake anger and hate. It is truly horrific. Now, since our filings began, they act like they are, quote, all American apple pie, end quote. Harvard is a threat to democracy with a lawyer who represents me, who should therefore be forced to resign immediately or be fired. He's not that good anyway. And I hope that my very big and beautiful company, now run by my sons, get rid of him asap. There's a word other than anger and hate to bring into this equation, and the word to bring into this equation is liberal. Why? Because Trump, although one would argue he's not necessarily a conservative, in the same breath, to me he is. Because you ran with the gop, you won representing that ideological body. And on top of it all, you've put three conservatives on the Supreme Court, basically registering the 6:3 majority. So again, you are conservative. Why does that liberal. Why was the word liberal throw me aback a little bit? I'd love to hear if Trump feels the way that Hillsdale College runs its operations as a conservative institution. How about Liberty University in Virginia? Hillsdale is in Michigan, by the way. How about Grove City College in Pennsylvania? How about Texas A and M University, a large public university with a strong military tradition and conservative student base? That's Texas A and M. How about Brigham Young University? That's just naming a few. Patrick Henry College of Virginia, University of Dallas in Texas, Pepperdine University. These are institutions that some would say are conservative. I'm saying it shouldn't matter. If you feel that way about liberal institutions, why are you not feeling the same way about conservative institutions? If you felt that way about both on either side of the ideological bar, then there's no argument. The problem is it only seems to be one side that's problematic.
- [49:45]
C
Now.
- [49:46]
Stephen A. Smith
That's Stephen A. On this side. Let me go to this side and bring this point up, because we like to be fair on this show. When we've seen some of the actions taking place on some of these campuses, it has looked like anger and hate. There's no way around that. When we think about speech, we don't talk much about the Israeli Palestinian conflict. We don't talk much about when Hamas or members of Hamas stormed into Israel and kidnapped and ultimately murdered hundreds, if not thousands of people. We don't talk about that. Nor have we talked about the fact that even though you want to go after any terrorist organization because no terrorist organization is a good organization, the flip side to it is that you have a lot of people out there lamenting the fact that innocent women and children are being harmed, if not killed, in the Gaza Strip and beyond. And that's where some of the protesters on these college campuses come from. I'm not taking a side. I don't know enough. I didn't bring that up for that reason. I brought it up because that's what folks on the right are saying. And they're accusing some of our prestigious universities, like Harvard, like Columbia and others in the United States of America of fostering thoughts of anti Semitism, building tents on campuses, blocking students from getting their education, pointing out Zionists when they see them, and impeding the ability to learn peacefully. Now, when the right brings that up, what do you say? I don't know. I'm simply saying that's the reason we got to watch the outcome of this case. Because if Trump wins this case, even though he's highlighting liberal institutions.
- [52:02]
Ryan Seacrest
Which will.
- [52:02]
Stephen A. Smith
Be alarming and concerning in and of itself because we know he's going to favor the right over the left. He's going to leave some other institutions alone while he bothers others, it's problematic because there's a bigger, grander issue here. If he wins the case, then guess what? He's showing an ability to impede upon one's right to the First Amendment, which is free speech. And if he could pull that off, what can he do to anybody that opens their mouth and dissents in any way that this is that is displeasing to him. What will he do then? We don't know. But it's scary. It is scary. My thing is, we also have to be mindful that when somebody brings up the fact that Harvard received $686 million in taxpayer money for fiscal year 2024, when they ask the question on the right, why does an institution with an endowment of over $53 billion, which is the largest in this country, why do they need taxpayers pay a dollar's close to 700 million of our money? That is a legitimate question. I'm not saying I know the answer. I'm not saying that it doesn't benefit our society, considering the students and the quality of the students that emanate from places like Harvard and Columbia and come out into American society and make a contribution to this country. I'm simply saying it's a legitimate question. This is not Stephen A. Casting the spurges are casting judgment. You have some folks on the right that believe some of these universities are engaging in anti Semitism and beyond, which is what Trump articulated. You got Candace Owens, a renowned Trump supporter, unapologetically so suddenly going against the administration because she says they're impeding on free speech. Which side do you roll on and why? You want me to give y'all a piece of advice on this subject? Bump the individuals. Don't think about Donald Trump. Don't think about Candace Owens. Think about the issue. Think about the potential policy, not the people. Because if you really, really think about what has ailed our society, that's really what it comes down to. We don't like him or her. We love him or her. And that's what the issue is. And a lot of times our emotions are dictated by people we do or don't like as opposed to the actual policy and issues that will affect lives far extended beyond ourselves. This is one of those times. Candace Owens is bringing up the issue of free speech. And Donald Trump, who she has supported for years, is challenging Harvard's right to do whatever it wants as an institution of higher learning, which, by the way, is a private institution. Who's right, who's wrong? The courts will decide. And if the courts decide that Donald Trump is right, Candace Owens is arguing that the courts will be giving him the right to impede on free speech, not just for institutions of higher learning, but for American citizens all over this nation. Is she right or is he right? Inquiring minds would love to hear what you think. That's why you gotta watch this. I know I am. Oh, I Know I am. Before we go, I want to quickly extend my well wishes to the family of Gilbert Arenas, former NBA star. Gilbert's son Elijah had been placed in a medically induced coma after he was involved in a serious car crash in the Los Angeles area early Thursday morning. As of this afternoon, he's now out of that coma. Elijah, by the way, is a five star recruit who committed to play for USC this fall. According to the Los Angeles Fire Department, Elijah was driving a Tesla cybertruck that crashed into a tree and fire hydrant and a fire ensued. Reports say it appears arena suffered no major bodily injuries, but he inhaled a lot of smoke from the burning cybertruck and putting a smoke inhalation victim in an induced coma is actually protocol. But again, he's out of that coma and on the road to recovery. I've gotten to know Gilbert Arenas. I was a guest on Gil's Arenas podcast. I know he was a star player in the NBA. I remember when he went into LA one time and dropped 60. The brother was a scoring machine, former All Star. He could really, really ball. I'm hearing a lot of special, special things about Elijah. I'm hearing this brother can really, really play. This young kid is something special. And so, thank God. Whether he could play or not is not the point in terms of him surviving this ordeal. Thank God he did and he was able to escape from that car safe and sound before the truck became completely inflamed. Thank the good Lord that he survived and he's going to be able to recover and recuperate and ultimately play basketball again. I saw that cybertruck. I'm one of those guys, young kids driving that thing. I don't understand that. That's a big, that's a big ride. It takes a lot to control that thing. You need to be an experienced driver to drive something like that. But that's neither here nor there. I'm just thankful that he's okay and that he's going to be able to resume his aspirations and continue to pursue those things. And I've grown to become very fond of Gilbert Arenas. And Gil's arena is a tremendous podcast with, with Swaggy P and Kenyon Martin and Rashad McCants and all of those guys. They do a hell of a job. Let's give props what props is due. They're different, little bit wild at times, but they know their basketball and they do a lot to promote the game. A game that I love and has been largely responsible for what I've achieved in my career. But more so than anything else. Gilbert Arenas is doing special things and his son seems destined to do special things. And it would have broken all of our hearts if anything catastrophic and fatal had happened to him. So thank God he's okay. Young fella, learn from this. Be careful behind that wheel and make sure you do everything to keep yourself safe and prioritize your safety in the future. That goes for all of y'all out there. Life is just beginning for y'all. Be very, very careful about everything that you do and how you do it. You never know what it can cost you. Thank God it didn't cost him much and he's okay and he's going to be able to resume everything. All right, that's it for this edition of Stephen A. Smith Show. I got to get on out of here because I got to get to LA to cover the NBA playoffs yet again for NBA Countdown over the weekend on ABC and espn. Until next time, y'all enjoy your week and be safe. God bless. Looking forward to talking to you on Monday. Until then, peace and love. Oh tasty high note oh hi. Don't mind me. I'm practicing my new baritone sax.
- [60:04]
Ryan Seacrest
I just heard PayPal's paying for people's.
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Stephen A. Smith
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Ryan Seacrest
There'S 10 million up for grabs.
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Stephen A. Smith
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Ryan Seacrest
So there's never been a better time.
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Stephen A. Smith
To buy a few things off the old wish list, like this leaf blower. PayPal could pay for your purchase. The Great PayPal Checkout no purchase necessary ends July 18th. The official rules@paypal.com the Great PayPal Checkout.
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Ryan Seacrest
Terms Participating merchants only must use PayPal.
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Stephen A. Smith
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