Skip Bayless has established himself as one of the premiere hot take artists in sports media, a reputation that has made its way beyond the sports industry.
This week, Bayless commented on Giannis Antetokounmpo’s appearance on The Daily Show this week, where the Bucks star jokingly called out several NBA players, from Luka Dončić to Kevin Durant. Yet, that kind of trash talk didn’t sit well with Antetokounmpo, as he couldn’t end the segment without praising the stars he just trashed.
However, Bayless only talked about the trash talk, not the apologies, during a recent Undisputed airing.
Hasan Minhaj, who is guest hosting the Daily Show all week, was not happy with Bayless’s decision to cut out half the segment in his debate. Minhaj explained that he was the one pushing Antetokounmpo to be more arrogant, but the Bucks forward is so humble that he struggled to do so.
“Skip Bayless, this morning, just ripped out that little clip of Giannis going to camera and being like ‘KD you need to get stronger so you can carry a team on your back,’” Minhaj said. “And then Skip’s dumba– is like ‘See, that is so mean to Kevin Durant, because we all know he has thin skin.’”
Minhaj continued, saying that Bayless wasn’t even properly defending Durant, as he was criticizing the forward more than he was praising him.
“Wait a minute Skip, are you trying to big up Kevin Durant by talking s— about Kevin Durant? ‘We should be nicer to Kevin Durant, because he’s clearly a pansy who can’t handle it.’ Like, what are you saying?”
In all, Minhaj used Bayless as an example of why he doesn’t like the way sports media operates, ignoring context to use quotes and clips to their advantage.
“That’s the vexing thing I hate about being part of the media,” Minhaj said. “Skip is perpetuating the very same reason why professional athletes don’t go on these kind of shows.”
Minhaj closed the clip challenging Bayless to donate to Antetokounmpo’s charity if he was going to criticize the player. The Charles Antetokounmpo Family Foundation is a “global social impact foundation” that honors the Bucks star’s late father, who died in 2017.
