The sports world is still buzzing over the courtside confrontation between LeBron James and Stephen A Smith, but just when it seemed like things were finally cooling off, the whole situation took an even weirder turn. Instead of letting it slide, ESPN’s loudest analyst decided to double down, giving his version of events in the most Stephen A way possible—with a dramatic, over-the-top retelling on live TV. And if that wasn’t enough, Sean Hannity of all people jumped in, dropping a take so bizarre that it had the entire internet making the exact same joke about LeBron.
Stephen A Smith had a front-row seat to the action—literally—when LeBron confronted him courtside during the Lakers-Knicks game on March 6. And according to Smith, the whole thing went down because LeBron thought he was taking shots at Bronny James.
“[LeBron said] ‘You f—n’ with my son.’ No I wasn’t. I was talking about you,” Smith explained on Gil’s Arena. “I know he’s No. 55, I know he got work to do… But I’m talking about your a**. You the one who had us as reporters, as a league, as an NBA franchise, we got to sit back and capitulate to your s. You did that.”
Smith admitted he understood why LeBron, as a father, would be protective—but he still didn’t like how he handled it.
“All you had to do was say, ‘Yo, I need to see you after the game.’ Instead, you do this at courtside?” Smith said, clearly still annoyed. “I had no idea everybody saw it until I woke up the next morning.”
While Smith was fired up about how LeBron approached him, his ESPN colleagues and other media personalities weren’t exactly rushing to his defense. A lot of people actually sided with LeBron, arguing that confronting someone in person isn’t weak at all—it’s actually the way to handle it.
And then, out of nowhere, Sean Hannity decided to get involved. Look, nobody expected to hear Sean Hannity weigh in on an NBA beef. But here we are. The Fox News host took a break from his usual political debates to throw his support behind Stephen A in the most Hannity way possible.
Stephen A Smith on LeBron James: He thought that I was insulting his son when in fact that is not what I was doing… He confronted me, it’s his prerogative.
Hannity: If I was there I would’ve had your back, I’m just saying. pic.twitter.com/EJcSbhJtzP
— Acyn (@Acyn) March 13, 2025
“If I was there, I would’ve had your back,” Hannity declared. Wait… what?
A Fox News primetime host offering backup for an ESPN analyst during an NBA game? This random, unexpected alliance between Hannity and Stephen A Smith sent fans into a complete meltdown. The reactions? A mix of disbelief and straight-up comedy.
Fans Are Calling Out Both Hannity and Stephen A Smith
People weren’t buying any of it. In fact, Hannity’s weirdly aggressive defense and Smith’s dramatic retelling only made things worse. The overwhelming reaction? Stephen A is playing the victim, and Hannity’s backing isn’t helping.
“In a world with AI, I would have guessed this was made up… I’m in disbelief this is real. The code-switching by Hannity is HILARIOUS. Also, anyone who ‘has SAS’ back’… LeBron can obliterate. How can ANYONE support SAS? This is wild.” At the center of all this? Bronny James. A lot of people believe Bronny, who is averaging just 1.4 points per game, is only in the NBA because of his father. Whether that’s fair or not, LeBron’s instinct to protect his son makes sense. But Hannity jumping in? That just made things so much weirder.
“Nobody hates LeBron more than Fox News, Skip Bayless, and Rashad McCants, and Stephen A had to go see them all in one week…” Fox News has never been shy about coming at LeBron—especially when he speaks on social issues. Back in 2018, Laura Ingraham famously told him to “shut up and dribble.” Skip Bayless has spent decades making his entire personality about discrediting LeBron. Rashad McCants? He’s thrown his fair share of shade too.
So now, with Stephen A Smith making his rounds in the media and finding himself in the company of some of LeBron’s biggest critics, people are noticing. And they don’t like what they’re seeing. “Steve playing the victim, and now pandering to his favorite racist crowd.” This isn’t the first time Smith has been called out for catering to a certain audience. Remember when he suggested Shohei Ohtani needing an interpreter was bad for baseball? Yeah, that take didn’t age well. And even though he apologized, a lot of fans still feel like he tries way too hard to appeal to the wrong crowd. His latest media tour? It’s only adding fuel to that fire.
Oct 23, 2024; Inglewood, California, USA; Stephen A. Smith (Stephen Smith) on the ESPN NBA Countdown live set at Intuit Dome. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
“Mr. ‘Come see me in person’ said nothing to the man when confronted, but is now doing a media tour trying to puff his chest out.” And this? This is the real reason fans aren’t letting him off the hook. At 6’9”, 250 pounds, LeBron James is not someone you casually step to. And yet, when he did just that, face-to-face, Stephen A didn’t have much to say. Now, days later, he’s running to every microphone he can find to talk tough? That’s exactly why people are clowning him.
At the end of the day, LeBron confronted him in person. And now, Stephen A is doing a media tour trying to explain himself. Whether or not that makes him “weak” is up for debate.
But the fans? Yeah, they’ve already made up their minds.
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