Stephen Smith slams Noah Lyles, calls his comments ‘very ignorant’ after NBA remark
Noah Lyles faces backlash from sports commentator and fans over NBA remarks following latest championship triumphs.
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Stephen Smith and Noah Lyles (Pic Credit: Imago/Variety)
ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith called out Noah Lyles for the latter’s recent swipe against the National Basketball Association. Earlier, Noah Lyles looked down on the NBA after winning three golds at the World Athletics Championship.
Noah Lyles, after his victory in a post-race interview, amidst his rant on under-support for track and field athletes took a dig at the NBA. Lyles commented that he’s hurt to see NBA winners being applauded as World Champions – “World Champions of what?” he noted.
Among the many voices, Stephen A. Smith added his own remarks to Noah’s comments. The ESPN Presenter did not hesitate to call out Lyles as flagrantly ignorant. Stephen also added that the NBA Players have more international competition than Lyles does.
Stephen Smith provides factual reasoning for his words
Stephen Smith’s words were not mere words in anger or defense but loaded with facts. He argued that the league has established itself as a globally iconic brand. Further, Smith adds that there are players in the NBA from Slovenia, and Greece by giving examples of Luka Doncic and Giannis Antetokounmpe.
Stephen Smith calls back to the NBA Report from last year which postulated that there are 120 players from 40 different countries and six continents playing in NBA. He compares the same to the total number of players in the NBA, 450, and makes a statement that a third of the NBA players are international and have descended upon America to join the NBA. Furthermore, the 55-year-old from The Bronx raises the question of how it is not global.
Smith also mentions that the NBA is the best basketball league on the planet. He bases his opinion on the above-mentioned facts and states that these international players rather than staying in their respective countries come to America. “They aren’t playing for the basketball leagues in their countries”.
Towards the end, Smith also mentions that NBA Players have more international competition than Noah Lyles did. Factual or not, Stephen clearly is distasteful of Lyles’ words and says that the comment Lyles made is “very, very ignorant.”
The top basketball players have all come against Lyles’ statement in the last few days. Kevin Durant wrote “Somebody helps this brother” in an Instagram comment while PJ Tucker added “Can’t make this (expletive) up” in another.
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Kaushani Chatterjee
(2165 Articles Published)