Stephen A. Smith is SLAMMED by co-host in furious exchange live on air – over his failure to properly cover the WNBA on First Take

Stephen A. Smith was brutally accused of not giving enough attention to women’s sports on First Take during Monday’s heated episode of the show.

Basketball analyst Monica McNutt joined the show in the wake of Chennedy Carter’s angry shove of Caitlin Clark during a controversial weekend for the WNBA.

The #1 overall pick was knocked to the ground by Carter near the end of the third quarter Indiana Fever’s victory over Chicago Sky on Saturday.

TV replays showed Carter shouting “you b***h” at Clark before pushing her to the ground. Clark’s former college foe Angel Reese also stood up to cheer the punch on the sidelines.

After discussing the incident on First Take and what might have fueled Carter’s behavior, McNutt ended the segment by questioning Smith’s reporting on women’s sports.

After Smith asked her “who talks more about women’s sports and the WNBA than First Take?”, McNutt responded with, “Respectfully Stephen A., with your platform you could have done this three years ago if you wanted to.”

Smith seemed noticeably furious at the claim and tried to fight back, telling McNutt that she had “missed a lot of episodes of First Take.”

Host Molly Qerim quickly intervened, ending the debate — which had lasted forty minutes — to go to a commercial break.

It comes after NBA veteran and former champion Matt Barnes leveled further criticism at Clark’s Fever teammates, telling them they must do more to protect the franchise’s star player.

He said, “I mean, she’s been getting beat up all season. Hard screens, elbows, knockdowns,” Barnes said. ‘It is what it is; She’s not the first, she won’t be the last.

“My problem and my question is: where the hell are her teammates? Where are you? Where’s the rest of the Indiana Fever?

‘I saw a few girls grinning when she got knocked down, half an hour to pick her up. For example, you have to protect the property, protect the star. And even though this is a team, you always protect your star.”

Barnes, who played with the likes of Kobe Bryant, Blake Griffin and Chris Paul during his 14-year career, was sometimes an enforcer herself and believes Clark’s teammates should stand up for her more.

‘I was someone who protected the stars. You f*** with Kobe, [Chris Paul]Blake [Griffin]the list goes on, it’s going to be a problem.

“You’re supposed to be a family. And you wonder why you guys are at the bottom of the league now, because you guys don’t protect each other, man. Coach doesn’t do anything with it, players don’t do anything with it. You should be ashamed of it.

‘But the rest of the competition will continue to test her. That’s what they have to do. It’s your boys’ damn job to have her back, and each other’s backs. I have to do better, ladies.”

While Carter declined to answer questions about Clark after Sky’s loss on Saturday, she had plenty to say on social media afterward.

Carter wrote of Clark on Threads: “…besides three-point shooting, whatever does that [Clark] bring to the table man.’

She also alluded to her feud with Clark in her own Instagram Story, writing, “I grew up with all brothers. All we did was fight and argue.

“I love the hate more than the love that y’all don’t understand. I’d rather you hate me [than] love me and I mean that to my late aunt.”

The situation also led to the idea that the Fever need an “enforcer” to protect Clark, as suggested by the Warriors’ Draymond Green.

Brittany Mahomes also supported Clark with the wife of Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes sharing a post on Instagram supporting the budding WNBA star.

The 28-year-old Mahomes – a former football player – wrote: ‘@caitlinclark22 keep doing your thing!!

“You are a baller and it is incredible to see what you do for the game and women’s sports!!”

Clark’s friend and brother have also both joined in on the feud, posting tweets criticizing Reese.

Clark is dating her college sweetheart Connor McCaffery, and fans noticed that he frequently ‘liked’ posts criticizing Reese over the past year.

In one post, Barstool Sports’ Dave Portnoy calls Reese a “classless piece of s***” after her infamous ring party at Clark’s during their college years.

In another post, McCaffery liked a post that referred to Reese as “highkey not good… she’s just bigger than everyone.”

Clark’s brother Colin hasn’t been afraid to make his own feelings clear either, liking a tweet in which Reese “jumped off the couch to stage a parade for Caitlin Clark’s murder.”

In another, he liked a tweet claiming Draymond Green would have received “jail time” if he had done what Carter did to Clark in the Fever-Sky match.