Stephen A Smith Reveals Larry Bird was Disrespected by All Stars. At the 2024 All Star game Larry Bird was disrespected in the locker room during a speech. ESPN First Take Stephen A Smith NBA Today, NBA on ESPN.
the allstar game is well behind us I didn’t want to talk about it again I already said it should just be cancelled but I couldn’t believe what Stephen A said on first take today take a look there were people that came before these guys now you know as well as I do Mike one to two guys that have the right attitude about this that is a superstar changes everything remember what happened last year in last year’s allstar game Dr J and Larry bir you heard the story just like I did will they made sure we know Dr J and Larry Bird walked into the locker room and talked to the players and they talked to the players and the NBA thought yes the players are really really listening they’re really really getting it and then one of the superstars who will remain nameless but everybody can surise who that was gave a side eye to those guys while they were talking and then the players went out there and let 400 points be scored and the league ain’t letting that go and so what happens is it just show you if one player could have that kind of an impact negatively they can also have that kind of impact positively to correct Stephen A it wasn’t Dr J it was Larry Bird Oscar Robertson and Reggie Miller we already knew that last year they tried to give the players a pep talk and it didn’t work at all but to find out that one of the best players disrespected them while they were talking and gave them a dirty look just to go out there and have the worst All-Star game of all time that’s crazy to me they didn’t have to do that what that tells me is they’re not holding back from playing hard which throws the injury excuse right out the window they are purposly playing with as little effort as possible to make a statement to the league when you hear stories like this with open blatant disrespect you start to realize why Oscar Robertson would go at a player like Draymond Green the fact that the fans the media and NBA legends all want them to show more effort is only making it worse in their eyes if they do what everyone wants even if it’s just for one night they’re giving up their power even though players Like Larry Bird and Oscar Robertson are the only reason they have that power they don’t care about that I know how Stephen A and some of his sources can be but Larry Bird went into that game hopeful that they would put on a show now he calls it a joke he said he’s done with it and he didn’t go this year which adds validity to what stepen a said he likely felt disrespected the effort was better this year but that’s only from two factors one Victor wanyama and two the ogs didn’t want to be embarrassed by a bunch of rookies that’s not going to happen every year that’s why I still say it should be cancelled and when they talk about celebrating the game today and appreciating it for what it is stop being so critical this is the problem it’s not just about preferences and how the game has changed it’s that the players today go out of their way to purposely disrespect the game and the fans which hasn’t happened in any any other era of basketball
40 Comments
the league sucks so bad. Boring soft ball.
The nba's best years are long in the past. The tv ratings shows me that people are tired of watching todays soft, boring, cowardly players flop, bitch and cry. The wnba plays tougher d than the soft, entitled, lazy ass wimps of todays nba. I can only dream of the 89 pistons playing a pathetically weak ass team like the memphis grizzlies. The pistons would have them in uncontrollable tears hiding behind the refs begging for fouls. Todays players are not better than the 80s and 90s players. They are exponentially weaker mentally and run from confrontation. They flop, complain, beg, and act like entitled jr. High school girls. Jordan paid his dues and got beat up when he went into the paint, but so did everybody else. Today the lack of defense by todays multi-millionaires has me tuning out the boring, soft nba. I think past playoff series were scripted in new york. Adam silver is the edward smith if basketball
Get A Real Job Gawd Damn IT!
These players today are boring. Other than Jokic imo
I loved playing basketball when I was a kid and young adult. But I never watched the NBA with any great interest. It was ugly basketball 50 years ago. Now it is insufferable. The Joker may have a positive effect but don't count on it. Fun to play, boring to watch.
Get rid of the "one and done" That has ruined todays NBA
Today's nba is a league of entitled, overpaid, overrated, bitch made lazy 🐈s. Not even worth watching these losers. They should cancel all games and substitute them for 3 point contests. The game has been ruined by "success" being manufactured instead of earned, i.e. lebioch james
That Stephen A Smith is nothing but a suck ass , he’ll say any thing to be noticed .
It's because they're making way too much money…. Stop paying them so much
They didn't put a white guy on him in practice did they. But seriously Bird is very complimentary of the new generation so it's disappointing to see.
BS – the superstars today – make too much money – and they get that money being lazy and sitting on the bench, resting. Lazy on Defense and throwing up bricks. It’s all a joke.
The next time the collective bargaining comes up, I bet non-guaranteed contracts comes up from ownership. As it should.
Think those brothers know how to show respect in today's world? NBA players now are a bunch of babies.
Cancel the damn All-Star weekend save some money we're not paying anymore!!!!! what was once my favorite sport now you couldn't pay me to watch
its playoffs now and i dont give a flip
If Lary would be 20years younger he would teach them respect😂
Stephen A. recently started on the false narrative that whites in America have unfair advantages.
Hey, Stephen A., no, we don't.
The face of the NBA can't be a weak minded, arrogant, afraid of the moment, disrespectful to the spirit of competition, whiner, flopper, self proclaimed goat with an insecure unresolved personality disorder or this is what you get. In other words, the Lebron James experience.
Modern game sucks.
NBA is boring to watch today.
I’ve been around for an awful long time. I remember when the All-Star game was so competitive the west versus the east. Larry and Magic are telling them the truth. If y’all start game now is like not even watchable
A different level of respect should be given to a player who wins a championship with the team they were drafted to. That is a factor in why the NBA has lost many fans over the years.
Im glad that generation of players is aging out . We need new blood
It was legitimately LeBron who gave the side-eye convincing everyone to not try on defense
It's kind of a well-known story, I don't know why Stephen was being cryptic about it being LeBron
Today's NBA is pure garbage and it's loaded with absolute racists.
WHO was the player who side eyed ?
Today’s players would be embarrassed by prime J and Bird. They are terrible.
This generation is shit. I have not watched the last 5 AS games as it more entertaining to watch the WNBA instead. Not that I do watch WNBA because that also is shit.
The thing that I don’t like about todays NBA players (not all, but most) is the same thing that I dislike about a big % of todays youth here in America. Zero respect for their elders, zero appreciation for their elders, zero respect for the history of the game.
I recently heard a story about some young toolbox from the 76ers who actually thought that Dr J was the team doctor. How ?? How does this fool make it into the league and not know who Julius Erving is?? That’d be like joining the Military and not knowing who the current president was. Making the NFL and not knowing who Joe Montana’ was. Or Walter Payton. Now that I think about it there probably is some moranus rookie in the league who doesn’t know.
It’s disrespectful as F because if it wasn’t for these past players then these guys today wouldn’t have a league to play in. Much less making the millions upon millions that they do. It’s disgusting honestly.
All star game sux
Whoever it was is a chump!!!!!!
Used to watch every game for my home team when I was a teen. I haven’t watched a game in years. It’s unappealing and a waist of time. Looks like I’m not alone…
These players today SUCK, ALL AND I MEAN ALL THEY EVER DO IS “CHUCK” FORM THE THREE POINT LINE, NONE OF THEM COULD PLAY IN THE 70’S, 80’S , BUNCH OF “CHUCKERS” YEA I SAID IT, COULDN’T HOLD THE PLAYERS OF YESTERYEAR DIRTY LAUNDRY BAG, DONT WATCH AND NEVER WILL ANYMORE
The Big O, Magic, Bird, Dr, Russ et al knew how to play the game the way it should be played.
Its the exact same thing in today's NFL. It's a collection of rich people's kids who could care less about the game or the history of it. Which leaves the fans saying "if they don't care? Why should we?" They can sell merchandise,spin the ratings numbers,partner with mega corporations,ect…and make it seem more popular than ever. But the truth is everyone who knows the real game,loves and respects it…they aren't watching anymore. The leagues can comp tickets and fill the stadiums…but when the camera pans the audience (and you see this at boxing ppv's too) the fans are staring into their phones. Not even watching. They just either have the money to be there or were lucky enough to get a comped ticket. Any player that plays hard gets penalized and fined. The killer instinct is something you have to go to a museum to see. You won't find it in pro sports anymore. And it's not coming back. If you missed it? Sucks for you. But don't try to compare eras. Especially if you didn't witness the era you're downplaying. You only make yourself look foolish
I haven’t watched an All-Star game in decades. I quit watching when tied up thugs started to take over the league.
To call today’s NBA SOFT is a damn understatement !
Bird literally played when he had a broken back!
Who gave the side eye?
This generation of players are a bunch of spoiled disrespectful overpaid brats.
These players overall aren't worth two shits, the 80's and 90's players would cook these worthless people. The nba sucks and should be ignored,period!!!