Matt Barnes Rips ‘Republican Tap Dancer’ Stephen A Smith for Criticizing LeBron James

Matt Barnes was irked by Stephen A. Smith's comments targeting LeBron James in a very sensitive matter.

Matt Barnes Rips ‘Republican Tap Dancer’ Stephen A Smith for Criticizing LeBron James

Matt Barnes on LeBron James (Image credits - Firstsportz)

In Short
  • Matt Barnes criticized Stephen A. Smith for his comments on LeBron James' remarks about Memphis.
  • Barnes accused Smith of disrespecting prominent Black figures while catering to Republican voters.
  • The controversy sparked reactions on social media, with opinions divided on Barnes' statements.

Stephen A. Smith and LeBron James have no love lost between them. The two don’t have a great history with one another. James’ recent comments about the Memphis Grizzlies stoked some controversy.

The city and the team have been criticized by various NBA players in the past. However, James’ comments gained a response from the ESPN host, who was unhappy with the four-time champion’s comments as Memphis has a large black community.

Former NBA champion Matt Barnes went off on Smith and said the personality tap danced for the whole Republican Party.

I saw a video of SAS having an issue with LeBron on a golf course with a bunch of white boys as he put it. I played in Memphis, got a lot of love for the city. There’s no doubt that the city needs an upgrade, but SAS shouldn’t have a problem with that. You’re talking about his words and what they mean to the black community but you’ve been the same man in front of the camera, disrespecting Serena Williams, Jasmine Crockett, and Kamala Harris and tap dancing for the whole White Republican Party.

Matt Barnes reacted to Stephen A. Smith’s comment

This is not the first time that Stephen A. Smith has targeted LeBron James when it comes to being racist towards the black community. He accused James being racist towards black journalists in the past.

In an appearance on Bob Does Sports, James said he would have to pull off an Eli Manning, if the Memphis Grizzlies had the lottery pick in 2003. With the NBA looking to expand the league, he even suggested that the Grizzlies should move to Nashville.

His comments gained reactions from Memphis Mayor Paul Young and SAS. The ESPN host took offense to James’ statements and believed that the four-time champion was undermining the black community.

However, Matt Barnes was having none of it and went at the controversial personality. Barnes called out the ESPN analyst for going after powerful black women and build an image for himself in front of the right-leaning voters of the country.

Fans react to Matt Barnes calling out Stephen A. Smith for going after LeBron James

Over the last few months, Stephen A. Smith has made some controversial statements that have not resonated well with the black community. Barnes believes it is his strategy to grow his popularity among the Republican voters in the country.

Barnes’ recent statements against SAS were quick to catch fire across social media as the fans got involved in it as well.

The comments were as expected split on social media. With Barnes bringing up a political party, some sided with his statements while some called him out, considering the sensitive nature of the topic.

Rich Paul reacts to LeBron James’ comments on Memphis

LeBron James is not the first player to take shots at Memphis. Marcus Smart, who has played in Memphis, called them the ugliest fans and even Draymond Green suggested that Grizzlies should move to Nashville as it had a better sporting culture.

LeBron James with his agent and long-time friend, Rich Paul (Via Sports Illustrated)
LeBron James with his agent and long-time friend, Rich Paul (Via Sports Illustrated)

James’ longtime friend and agent, Rich Paul, reacted to James’ comments of not wanting to go to Memphis in 2003.

There have been several NBA players to talk about this. It is unfortunate to the organization because my man, Zach, actually does a great job down in Memphis as he leads from a decision making perspective. But it is funny to me because I actually get it. People don’t understand what happens in the NBA travelling cycle.

Rich Paul said

The Grizzlies are out of playoffs contention as they sit at 11th place in the Western Conference standings with a 25-52 record. With just four games to go, the Grizzlies cannot make it to the play-in tournament as they are nine games behind the 10th seeds, Golden State Warriors.

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