Well, I'm back to stephen A. Smith Show before we get on out of here. This special edition of the stephen A. Smith Shaw where it's me with the peeps talking to the people's via videos, via tweets, It's now going to be via phone calls. I got some calls on the line, and obviously I got my little nephew sitting next to me, so it's possible you might hear from him as well. I'll see if I'll allow it or not. It depends on how ridiculous he sounds. But we're gonna get to some of the phone calls before
we get on out of here. Okay, let's go to Michael in Virginia, your Live with stephen A and his nephew. What's going on? Michael? How are you good?
Sir? How are you talk to me?
Talk to us?
All?
Right?
So you're in you're a coach of a three D three league. Who are you taking with your big three against Prime Lebron, James, Tequil O'Neill and Steph Curry.
Lebron, Steph and Shaq those are your three and I gotta come up with a three to go against them. Uh huh, Okay, I'm gonna tell you Kevin Durant, Okay, I want to tell you Kevin Durant, Michael Jordan, Okay, Michael Jordan first, always Kevin Durant, my producer, almost just got his as fired. He got in my ear and talked to me about Hakim like I don't know, I'm just trying to decide between Queen and Wilt and all
this stuff. He really really thinks, Shut the hell up, don't I want to hear another damn word from you? All right? Haquem the dream Olajuan between him and Kareem Abdul Jabbar. Hmm, I'm gonna say Haquem because Akeem has a psychological effect on Shaq as the one guy shack idolized as a big man. Those gonna be my throat.
Who's gonna guard Curry?
Well, the combination of Jordan and.
Kd they can't handle him.
Well, listen, kdu steph. Curtr's gonna move it out the ball. But when you put a taller guy on him, certainly nobody else height to guard him.
I pretty much had the same team. I would swap Kyrie with Michael Jordan because he's more skilled I need, Like you heard me, I need talent first. He's a better matchup for Steph Currie. Jordan ain't never see that type of talent. You're gonna be disappointed.
Oh that's your team, So you would say.
So what you're saying to me is that thank you for the call, Michael. I appreciate it. You're telling me, Josh that you would swap out Michael Jordan's for kyriev.
I would keep Kevin Durant, get a center for shock but one, and Kyrie Irving to be my one and match up with stuff. He shoots better than Jordan, better handle, and he finishes with both hands better. He's not a dunker, but Kyrie's more skilled three on three. We're not talking about Championship ten ten. Three on three Kyrie Irving taking them over. Jordan can't go.
You can't go left, Mitchell in Minnesota, You Steve.
And go ahead, Mitch, Thank Steve. And so I've got to fix for the n Season Tournament with the NBA that just ended. I liked the product. I don't have as so many complaints about it. I think the two primary issues facing the n Season Tournament are one the rest that you forego or lose by being good in the tournament, i e. Advancing to the finals. And secondarily, I think it's that it doesn't count for stats wins
or losses. And my proposed solution to those two problems is that you cancel the games later in the season against the opponents you faced in the semi final or the final of the n season tournament. So in this case, the Bucks game in February against the Hawks get canceled, and the Bucks game against the Oklahoma City Thunder in
March gets canceled. So then you you know, eliminate the issue of the games not counting for wins and losses because you apply it to the regular season and you give the team rest later in the season that they lost by being good at the end season tournament.
I just don't think there's a nobody was looking for a solution to the nd season tournament. Everybody was looking to a solution for the season. And I think that when you talk about giving cats rest or what have you, I mean it's not a matter of rest as to why you know they they they're not putting forth a full throttled effort. They give effort when they're on a court.
It's what they do when they're off the court. The more time they have off the court and away from the court, the more undisciplined they appear to be, which means the more lack of days ago thet come across when they're finally obligated to get on a basketball court. So I don't know if I agree with that, Mitchell. I appreciate the call. I'm not gonna waste more time on that. Let's go to Maddox in Illinois, your live of steven A. What's up, Maddox? How are you hey?
Stephen A huge fan, by the way.
Nephew, I'm here with my nephew. Say hello to Joshua.
Hey, Joshua, how are you doing?
I'm good? Go ahead, okay.
As you can play college basketball today, which team would you play for and why today?
If I could play college basketball, I would say to you, I've always been a Duke North Carolina fan. I love the rivalry. I think it's the best rivalry in college basketball. But if I was a college basketball team to day, in terms of strictly their coaching and their style of play, it would be Kansas with Bill self. They always have athletes, They're always getting up and down the court, they're looking to make things happen. That would be my style of play.
What about you, Josh, I'm going to rugs because I don't like the basketball. I want to be the best player and I'm going to be a bull hog. I'm gonna be star and that's how I was gonna go. Winning is not important, nonymore. It's about getting your stats to people that prospect like me.
I swear to God, I should throw you off this damn show right now. I really can't believe you said somethingay shit like that, Marcus in New York City. You're live with Steven and go ahead?
How are you?
Go ahead?
Yeah?
I just have thank for you, brother.
I wanted to know if you because I know I heard your your what's it called? Your podcast this week about Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson. I just wanted to know, who do you think is really going to come out on top of this year, not in general, like as the dominant one to really like lead their team to the victory, because you know Lamar states fall short.
I think I think I think whoever wins the super Bowl first, if you're talking about their careers, if you're talking about this season, I'm shocked at how great Buffalo has looked. It's a toss up between them and Baltimore. I don't trust Baltimore's defense, and I think in the case of Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson, he's looked better in the postseason than Lamar Jackson has looked in the postseason. So I got to look at it from that standpoint.
I know my man Cam Newton was talking about throw some respect on Lamar Jackson's name, but I am throwing respect. He's a two time league MVP. There's nine people that have preceded him in doing winning in such honors, and all of them have won Super Bowl Championships. But Lamar Jackson, So you got to be able to get that done. And Josh Allen is an absolute stud. Josh, I give you an opportunity to answer this question. Do you even know the answer to this question?
I do know the answer to this question. I would actually go with Lamar Jackson because of what you just said. We didn't expect the Bills to do much, and I think that's what's going to drag into the playoff. They'll show their true clothes when the games matter.
All Right, last call, Joe in New York City you live or Steven.
They would tell me, Hey, Steven, I'm just calling to ask what you think about the jet situation and if you think Aaron Rodgers should come back next year.
I think it's an atrocity. I think it's been very, very bad. I think that Aaron Rodgers should do everything he can to avoid going out like this. He's looked bad for the most part this year, even though he's in root to throw fowth for four thousand yards. The reality is is that he has now he's been a
shell of himself. He hasn't been great, despite having Breese Hall, despite having Garrett Wilson, despite acquiring Davonte Adams, despite that defense supposedly being elite, and then we learned that it wasn't. Because they their head coach. They elevated their defensive coordinated
into interim head coach status. That compromised their defensively and as a result, they haven't looked as good in the end, I think when you have this kind of a year, when you had the illustrious career that Aaron Rodgers has had, you don't want to go out like this. You don't want this to be the indelible mark you leave as a swan song to your career, so he has to come back. That's how I feel about the New York Jets.
What do you say, Well, I had I had texted my uncle two years ago during the Aaron Rodgers game and told him Aaron Rodgers about to fall of a cliff. No Max, tell him and stuff. But that's what I said. Then he went on first take the next morning and called me an idiot and said he felt like slapping me upside my head. Now we hit.
But you actually get You actually got me on it. Tell me when I'm right, you actually got. I mean, well, I mean dead clock is right twice a day. I mean it's a rare moment. But I give that to you. But at the time that you said that to me, Aaron Rodgers didn't have a down. He had an MVP caliber year. But you said that he was gonna fall because you were a bit premature with it. But obviously he comes to the New York Jets this year and we see what happened.
Y'all had him. You know, everybody had the Jets doing something like they're gonna be just like the giants here.
We are so you're feeling good, a bunch of TV care and time and stuff like that.
That's what I'm saying. I got addictions.
So you want to show show? What would you do with the show?
Like?
You really not like me. I'm educated, your ass ain't.
I just gotta be right.
That's what they care about.
I don't care about.
Educated, but they're usually not right what I just say about Ian Rogers. So he's as done as they come.
Exactly. You've been there for two hours and this first thing you said right all day? You give me anything for Christmas?
Yeah?
I did with your hoodie.
Book.
I'm I mean, I know it's after Christmas, but you didn't give me anything. You gave me some cheap hoodie.
That hoodie is not cheap. The message is expensive.
The messages be rich.
We we dismiss I'll signed our contract. Twenty twenty five is our year.
I told him, I ain't signing nothing until I disown you.