Stephen A Smith is no stranger to controversy. It’s his life blood or his oxygen. He couldn’t live without it, which is why he says anything he can to get a little bit of attention anytime the camera is rolling, or somebody has a mic in his face. He is an old man living and trying to operate in a TikTok world. The most recent nonsense to spill out of his nonstop, dribbling mouth, involves women’s college basketball.
Smith fancies himself a low-level expert in the world of hoops, despite continually saying things that suggest he doesn’t even have knowledge of the game on a novice level. While talking to Shannon Sharpe on First Take, Smith saw and took the opportunity to sound uneducated about basketball, and life in general. He did do it with a great amount of confidence though, which may be his only admirable trait.
Sharpe, known for being loud and obnoxious, started by praising Watkins, which is totally fine, as she deserves all the praise in the world for the way she has been playing basketball. “I don’t know if I’ve seen a women’s college basketball player as polished as Juju Watkins,” Sharpe said. “Stephen A, the way she can put the ball on the floor, get to rim, euro step, one leg, three-point shot, mid-range shot, and she can play outstanding defense.”
There were no lies detected in Shannon’s comments, and Watkins has been nothing shy of elite since she made her NCAA debut last season. It would not be enough to agree with Sharpe, since that wouldn’t get any clicks or mentions in Sports Illustrated, so Smith took it further, definitely a little too far.
“We should be talking about Juju Watkins the way we talked about Caitlin Clark last year. Juju is special. I’m telling you that right now. She is the package. She is gonna be special.”
Through her first 46 games, Watkins is very similar to Clark statistically, even if she is a less efficient scorer. She is averaging 26.5 points per game to Clark’s 26.3 through her first 46 games, and 6.9 rebounds to to Clark’s 6.8. They both play about 34 minutes per game over the same stretch. Where Clark pulls away is in assists (7.3 to 3.4), field goal percentage (46.2 to 41.4), three-point percentage (35.8 to 33.1), and free throw percentage (87.3 to 84.5). As mentioned above, she is less efficient.
What makes Smith’s comment especially asinine, is he isn’t saying that Watkins should get the same attention 46 games into her career, that Clark got 46 games into her career. He is saying that Watkins should be getting the same attention now, that Clark got as a senior. He is saying that Watkins should be getting the same attention that a four-time All-American, and NCAA’s all-time leading scorer (men or women) was getting.
Unless the WNBA changes the eligibility rules for the Draft, Watkins could likely break every record that Clark set. Nobody is trying to take away from how talented a player she is. The problem is that thinking someone with the potential to accomplish greatness should be given attention as if they’ve already achieved it is nonsense. It shows a lack of understanding about how the world works, and especially about the game of basketball.
Somewhere out there in the world tonight is the next great NBA superstar. Should he be given the same kind of attention that Luka or Jokic gets right now? Stephen A Smith seems to think so. The sad thing about his comments is that Smith doesn’t even believe what he’s saying. He just knows that saying them will get him a few more clicks, a handful of more likes, and five more minutes in the spotlight he couldn’t live without.
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