Stephen A. Smith Gets Heated With Former NBA Champion in Lakers, Knicks Debate |

New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson drives to the basket against Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James.

Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James recently said he has no expectations of the squad heading into the new season.

But regardless, people are anticipating a lot of things from the Lakers, being one of the NBA's most popular teams. The acquisitions of new coach JJ Redick and rookie Bronny James only added to the intrigue.

ESPN's "First Take" discussed LeBron's remark, with ex-NBA player Iman Shumpert agreeing with his former teammate. Shumpert said LeBron doesn't like setting expectations when he hasn't fully played with the roster.

"LeBron is exceptional in identifying how to use his team, how to motivate his team," said Shumpert, who won a title with James on the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2016. "He's not going to make an assessment on it until he sees a couple of weeks, maybe a couple of months of how they gel together."

Host Stephen A. Smith didn't agree, noting that playing for the Lakers always comes with expectations.

"It's the Lakers, what do you mean no expectations?" said Smith. "Laker Nation don't wanna hear that!"

They also debated about the New York Knicks. With the addition of All-Star big man Karl-Anthony Towns, it's safe to say that expectations for the squad shot up.

Shumpert, a former Knicks guard, said Towns and All-Star guard Jalen Brunson are a duo that's great on paper. He, however, added that they're not "scary enough" in the playoffs.

Smith, a known Knicks fan, reminded Shumpert that Brunson was "phenomenal" last season and an MVP candidate. Smith said he expects the shifty playmaker to do the same this year.

That's when things got heated.

"Are we doing expectations or wins?" asked Shumpert.

"We can't compare expectations for the Lakers compared to that of the Knicks,'" replied Smith. "The Knicks haven't won a title since 1973! We can't compare the two. C'mon, Shump!

"It ain't LeBron, it ain't Ant-Man, it ain't somebody like that. C'mon, that's a little different."

Shumpert and Smith, however, agreed that Towns will be a key piece for the Knicks with his ability to shoot from deep.

The Lakers and the Knicks will open their campaigns on Oct. 22 against the Minnesota Timberwolves and the Boston Celtics, respectively.

Paolo Mariano

Send me a news tip

Aaron Moody is a sports and general reporter for the News & Observer. Here is a second sentence for the bio because it will probably be longer than this. Maybe even longer I don't know. Support my work with a digital subscription

This story was originally published October 3, 2024 at 1:31 AM