Stephen A. Smith says ESPN isn’t kicking him off NBA Countdown.
Stephen A. Smith woke up, saw rumors flying that ESPN was planning to remove him from NBA Countdown, and immediately did what Stephen A. does best, hopped on camera, raised an eyebrow, and shut it down with enough attitude.
Reports popped up claiming ESPN kicked him off the show. Stephen A. didn’t just disagree; he rubbished them like someone handed him a cold take live on air.
“So essentially, it’s talking about me no longer doing NBA Countdown. Let me say this. I had a contract negotiation last year that started in June and ended in March going into April. It was decided at that particular moment in time that I wouldn’t be doing NBA Countdown anymore because I didn’t want to,” Smith said.
“I love doing the show. But after the show is over, I got a whole bunch of other stuff that I want to do. And I didn’t want to be stuck in studio until midnight. No shade against ESPN,” he continued.
Stephen didn’t end there, he chipped in, praising the incoming crew Kendrick Perkins, Michael Malone, Brian Windhorst, and Shams Charania and host Malika Andrews.
“No shade against my wonderful colleagues. Malika Andrews is an exceptional host. Working with my man Big Perk is obviously something I always want to do. Brian Winters is absolutely fabulous. Shams Sharania is great. Mike Malone, former coach of the Denver Nuggets, I think is going to do an outstanding job. He did a great, great job with us covering the Western Conference Finals.”
He again made things clear on the viral removal reports.
Stephen A. Smith states that the reports from news outlets claiming ESPN has removed him from NBA Countdown are untrue, and he explains how, during negotiations for his new contract, he arranged to no longer be required to host the show. pic.twitter.com/bAbArCLz3w
— joebuddenclips/fanpage (@chatnigga101) November 18, 2025
“It was always my intent to come off. Something I negotiated. So just so we’re clear, this story is a non-story. This is not some epiphany that everybody is getting attached to, like, “Oh my God, this just happened, and he’s been yanked off the show. No, that didn’t happen like that. I’m available when needed. And when I’m not needed, I got other stuff to do on my own. That’s how that works,” Smith said.
Which is which? Is Stephen A. Smith telling the truth or we should stick to the reports? Well, we wait to see.
