1. While perusing social media on Wednesday, I saw some posts about Stephen A. Smith ripping Celtics forward Jaylen Brown, and Brown calling ESPN unethical and saying that Smith is the “head face of that.”
I didn’t read any of the stories or investigate the feud. I just chalked it up as Stephen A.’s feud du jour. It seems that there isn’t a day that goes by where Smith isn’t fighting with someone or responding to someone who criticized him.
THAT angle I decided to investigate.
I looked at Smith’s official YouTube page and went back two months. Just two months. Here’s a list of people just from the sports world who Smith has fought with in that time span:
- Jaylen Brown
- Rashad McCants
- Matt Barnes
- Josh Hart
- Draymond Green
What was even more jarring was seeing the headlines on the YouTube videos. Obviously, Smith does not write these himself, but he seems to go nuclear A LOT. Here is a sampling of the video teases over the past 60 days:
- Enough is Enough! Jaylen Brown, I Accept Your Challenge
- Stephen A. FIRES BACK at Rashad McCants & Gil’s Arena
- Stop the B.S. Bro! Own it! Stephen A. GOES OFF on Jaylen Brown
- Stephen A. goes OFF about Jaylen Brown and the Celtics after blowing 3-1 lead
- DON’T PUNISH THEM! Stephen A. GOES NUCLEAR on PGA After Liv Golf Crumbles
- Number Two is NOT an Insult!: Stephen A. Sounds Off on LeBron embracing the Victim Narrative
- “STRAIGHT B.S.!” Stephen A. SNAPS on Steve Stoute and Rich Kleinman
- They’re NOT athletes! Stephen A. Sparks MASSIVE NASCAR MELTDOWN
- THEY MAKE ME SICK. Stephen A. goes NUCLEAR on Knicks down 2-1
- They are HOT GARBAGE! Stephen A. GOES OFF on the Mets’ Disaster Season
- Stephen A. ERUPTS on Mike Vrabel Scandal: “That Was Bulls---!”
- I’m not backing down. Stephen A. STANDS FIRM after Charles Barkley criticism’
- Stephen A. UNLOADS: Lakers are DONE Without Help for LeBron James
- LeBron takes shot at Memphis… and STEPHEN A FIRES BACK
This is all within two months. And this is just the sports stuff. There are a ton of other videos with Smith “going off” on a variety of government officials and political people.
I don’t know how he does it. Isn’t it exhausting to constantly go off or go nuclear or fire back? I was exhausted just compiling this stuff.
Clearly, though, the strategy of fighting with people nonstop has paid off, literally. ESPN gave Smith a five-year, $100 million contract last year.
2. A brand-new episode of SI Media With Jimmy Traina came out Thursday morning. This show features a conversation with The Athletic’s sports media reporter, Andrew Marchand.
Topics discussed include Pat McAfee’s expected monster deal with ESPN; massive ratings increases for sports across the board; the significance of Fox buying Roku; who CBS should pair with Andrew Catalon on the NFL this season; CBS’s hiring of Russell Wilson and Kyle Long for The NFL Today; the breakup between Dan Le Batard and Stugotz; Linda Cohn retiring from ESPN, the lack of buzz surrounding Caitlin Clark and much more.
Following Marchand, Sal Licata from SNY TV and The Sal Licata Show joins me for our weekly “Traina Thoughts” segment. This week, we discuss coming off the high of the Knicks’ postseason run, the World Cup, my horrible U.S. Open betting loss, Fanatics Fest, Larry David’s new show and the massive stir I caused on social media over a Dunkin’ Donuts post.
You can listen to the SI Media With Jimmy Traina podcast below or on Apple and Spotify.
You can also watch SI Media With Jimmy Traina on YouTube.
3. During the podcast with Marchand, we had a discussion about ratings being up significantly year-over-year for pretty much every sporting event.
Right on cue, NBC says that Sunday’s Mets-Phillies game was watched by three million people, making it the most watched Sunday Night Baseball game since 2013.
4. Well, I’m certainly an idiot. On Wednesday, I wrote:
“Maybe I’m missing something, but I’ve seen so many people call this exchange between Richard Jefferson and Jay Williams at Tuesday’s NBA Draft ‘awkward,’ but I just thought it was regular busting chops.”
My read on the situation was totally wrong and Williams made it clear he didn’t love the comments from Jefferson during an interview on Wednesday.
ESPN basketball analyst Jay Williams tells FOS that "there was no real tension" during his viral interaction with Richard Jefferson, but that "it was awkward."
— Front Office Sports News (@FOS_News_) June 24, 2026
"I tried to stay above it frankly. I didn't want to get back into the jousting back and forth." pic.twitter.com/AwMNQGPl44
5. J.J. Watt is a former football player. His wife, Kealia Ohai, is a former soccer player. On a recent edition of Ohai’s podcast, the couple debated which sport was harder for a kid to pick up. Every person who has argued with a significant other could feel what Watt was going through while his wife made her case.
View this post on Instagram
For the USA Network analyst Debbie Antonelli to say “hand to the neck” instead of “fist to throat” might be the downplay of the century, not to mention giving a pass to the refs for no foul call.
7. RANDOM VIDEO OF THE DAY: Happy 65th birthday to the hilarious Ricky Gervais, who should host every award show.
Be sure to catch up on past editions of Traina Thoughts and check out the Sports Illustrated Media Podcast hosted by Jimmy Traina on Apple, Spotify or Google. You can also follow Jimmy on X and Instagram.
