Stephen A. Smith admits he was ‘wrong’ to mock Anthony Davis after Shaquille O’Neal and Charles Barkley appeared to laugh at Lakers star who ‘left in wheelchair’ after elbow to head
- Anthony Davis suffered a blow to the head on Wednesday as LA lost in Game 5
- And some broadcasters didn’t take his injury seriously after the Warriors won
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Stephen A. Smith has apologized for making light of Anthony Davis’ injury on Wednesday night, when the Lakers big man was screened for a possible concussion after sustaining a head injury in Game 5 against the Warriors.
Davis caught an elbow to Kevon Looney’s face with 7:43 left in the previous fourth quarter reportedly leaving the game in a wheelchair and go to the locker room.
And while Davis is apparently doing much better – like TNT’s Chris Haynes said he avoided a concussion – Smith couldn’t believe that outcome was even possible.
‘Concussion? I thought the NFL season was over? Now I understand that concussions can happen in other sports… but damn, I didn’t see anything yesterday that made me say concussions,” the ESPN personality said on First Take Thursday.
Stephen A. Smith couldn’t believe Anthony Davis was checked for a concussion after Game 5
Davis reportedly left court in a wheelchair after being punched in the face by Kevon Looney
“We just gotta stop it man, we gotta stop it. It’s the man of the playoffs. I mean, did he run down the middle and get hit by Ronnie Lott or something? Did I miss something?’
And while Smith added that he hoped the Lakers star was okay, he was criticized for his thoughts and eventually apologized on Twitter.
“Kickback is kickback,” he said said.
“Comes with the territory, peeps. I was in no way downplaying the severity of a concussion. I wondered if Anthony Davis really had one, given the play I saw and other hits I’ve seen him absorb. But, bottom line, it was the wrong thing for me to do. Period of time! My mistake.’
Smith wasn’t alone in finding apparent humor in the situation Shaquille O’Neal and Charles Barkley seemed to laugh at the idea of Davis in a wheelchair after what seemed like a fairly routine bump from Looney.
Shaquille O’Neal left in hysterics on ‘Inside the NBA’ after Game 5 loss to the Lakers
And Charles Barkley couldn’t hold back when the show went off the rails either
When their “Inside the NBA” colleague Kenny Smith began to speak, both O’Neal and Barkley couldn’t hide their laughter, with Smith stopping and saying, “These guys, man.”
While O’Neal and Barkley both said they laughed at each other instead of Davis, Smith told host Ernie Johnson, “You know what they’re laughing at,” while his two colleagues burst into hysterics.
Johnson in particular didn’t find their laughter funny, but either way Davis seems to be doing fine as Haynes later reported that he would be available for a crucial Game 6 barring any setbacks.
The Lakers lead the series 3-2 after losing 121-106 on Wednesday, but could face a Game 7 along the way if they can’t wrap things up in Game 6 at home.