It's a sad day, indeed. According to The Big Lead, writer and on-air personality Stephen A. Smith has only about six weeks left at ESPN, when his contract will then expire. The two sides couldn't agree on a deal that fits Smith's different (and loud), if not hilarious, qualities:
Within the last month, a source says that ESPN and Smith went to the negotiating table and couldn’t reach an agreement. Apparently, ESPN’s offer was considerably lower than Smith’s previous contracts - which were multi-media faceted - and Smith passed. He was then offered the decision to work through the remainder of his contract, or walk away and still get paid, and a source says Smith decided to work.
If Smith does, in fact, have only six weeks left, then it will be cutting it pretty close to whether he'll be working the NBA Draft or not. I guess he probably won't be involved, but I definitely hope he is -- if not just for more moments like this.
Stephen A. Smith has been slowly losing responsibility over the last year at ESPN, and many have questioned whether his time with the "Leader" was up. Well according to The Big Lead, that time is upon us, and Smith's contract won't be renewed this May....
ReplyDeleteStephen A. Smith-going-bye-bye/While this is obviously still a rumor, it seems to make sense. SAS has been phased out of NBA work for the most part, and really only appears on First Take from time to time. So where does he go next? My first thought is that he will expand on his CNN appearances, but SI and Fanhouse are still out there. It's not like he doesn't have options.