Stephen A. Smith of ESPN has commented on his connection with former colleague Skip Bayless at the moment. Stephen A. Smith and Skip Bayless co-hosted ESPN2’s “First Take” program for four years. Smith began appearing on the program in 2012, while Bayless served as its host for the first nine years of its run (from 2007 to 2016) before leaving for FS1.
Despite the fact that Bayless is a free agent after his shocking exit from FS1 last month, Smith and “First Take” are still generating high ratings at the Worldwide Leader in Sports. The “Undisputed” segment of the show was hosted by Bayless for eight years.
Stephen A. Smith speaks about Skip Bayless
In an intriguing update on his friendship with Bayless, Stephen A. Smith made an appearance on Cris Carter’s “Fully Loaded” podcast. Smith asserts that the two are seldom on speaking terms, despite their turbulent four years together on television. He said,
“We’ve only spoken once over the last year, a year and a half or so. We don’t speak much anymore. He got upset over something he thought I said to JJ Redick, and he went on his podcast and attacked me for about 45 minutes. And then I flew to California and approached him face-to-face, and we resolved that issue.
I’m never gonna speak against him per se, but our relationship admittedly hasn’t been the same since that moment. But it doesn’t mean I don’t love him; it doesn’t mean that I wish anything negative upon him because I don’t. He’s just going in a different direction, that’s what he chose to do and it’s cool.”
It’s commonly known that things frequently turned personal even though the purpose of “First Take” and “Undisputed” was for Bayless to have heated discussions with Smith and Shannon Sharpe, respectively.
During a Dec. 2022 episode of “Undisputed,” Bayless and Sharpe got into a furious argument about Tom Brady and the failing Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Reported Brady skeptic Sharpe objected to Bayless disparaging his Hall of Fame career. You can catch the whole interview here below :
