ESPN analyst Stephen A. Smith denied that a video of himself insulting Kevin Durant was authentic. The veteran took to social media to warn fans and the player about footage showing him going off on the Phoenix Suns star.
After being under heavy criticism for not fact-checking his claim about LeBron James missing Kobe Bryant’s memorial in 2020, Smith is paying extra attention to whatever he’s linked with, especially on social media.
The video he mentioned has seemingly gone viral on Instagram, prompting the “First Take” analyst to clear up the situation before it became bigger than it already was.
“We are living in dangerous times,” Smith wrote on X. “There is some b.s. floating around on Instagram with me talking about @KDTrey5 — using profanity, cussing him out, etc. For the record, that is a LIE. It is A.I Generated or something.
“I just letting everyone know ahead of time…..THAT WAS NOT ME! No truth to it. Just so everyone knows. Complete Fabrication. Have a nice day.”
We are living in dangerous times. There is some b.s. floating around on Instagram with me talking about @KDTrey5 — using profanity, cussing him out, etc. For the record, that is a LIE. It is A.I Generated or something. I just letting everyone know ahead of time…..THAT WAS NOT…
— Stephen A Smith (@stephenasmith) April 3, 2025
Smith has starred in controversial moments with NBA stars in recent times. Last season, he insisted Kawhi Leonard should retire and took shots at him during the 2024 Finals, which warranted a clap back from Paul George.
More recently, he went at it with James after Smith criticized the Los Angeles Lakers star for putting his son Bronny in a complex position when he pushed for the guard to be drafted by the Lakers last year.
He shot down the potential comments about this fake video before Durant and others heard of it.