That Stephen A. Smith, he sure talks a lot about basketball, don’t he? I seen him on that there TV, yellin’ and hollerin’ about them players. Makes you wonder, did that fella ever even play the game himself? Well, I done some lookin’ and I’m gonna tell ya what I found. That man, he did play some ball, but not where you might think.
He went to some school called…Winston-Salem? Yeah, that’s it. Winston-Salem State. Sounds kinda fancy, but it ain’t no big-time NBA team, that’s for sure. It’s one of them college teams. Now, I ain’t too familiar with all them colleges, but I reckon it’s where the young’uns go to learn and play ball ‘fore they get to the big leagues.
He played for some coach, name was… uh…Clarence somethin’. They called him “Big House” Gaines. Now there’s a name! Sounds like a fella you wouldn’t wanna mess with. So, Stephen A. Smith, he played for this “Big House” fella, but he didn’t play much.
Seems like he got hurt. Busted his knee, they say. Cracked it right in half, poor guy, sounds like it hurt real bad. That will put a dent in your basketball playin’, I reckon. So, he only played in one game, can you believe it? One game! And they say he only scored… well, not much. Not even two points. But you gotta remember, he was hurt bad, so you can’t fault him too much.
So, no, he never did play in that NBA. Never went “pro,” as they call it. You know, them big-time players, makin’ all that money. He wasn’t one of ’em. But he sure does like to talk about ’em, don’t he?
After he left that college, he went on to write about basketball, you know, in them newspapers. Started at some small paper, I think. The Winston-Salem Journal or somethin like that, then another one, Greensboro News and somethin’.
Then he went to New York, that big city, to write for their paper. He finally got his big chance to write about basketball and all sorts of sports for a paper in Philadelphia, Philadelphia Inquirer, I think it was called. Must’ve been pretty good at it, cause then he got on TV, and that’s where I seen him.
So, that’s the story of Stephen A. Smith’s basketball career. He didn’t play much, got hurt, but he sure does love the game. And he loves to talk about it. And yell, sometimes. Mostly yell, now that I think about it.
Here’s a list of things I done told ya:
- Stephen A. Smith played college basketball, not NBA.
- He went to Winston-Salem State.
- He played for a coach called “Big House” Gaines.
- He hurt his knee real bad and only played one game.
- He became a writer for newspapers, like the Winston-Salem Journal, Greensboro News, and Philadelphia Inquirer.
- Then he went on TV to talk about basketball.
Now, I don’t know everything about that fella, but I reckon he’s done alright for himself, even if he didn’t make it to the NBA. He found a way to stay close to that game he loves, even if it’s just by talkin’ about it. And Lord knows, he sure can talk! And that’s all I gotta say about that.
It ain’t easy gettin’ old, you know. Your knees hurt, your back hurts, everything hurts. But you gotta keep movin’, keep doin’ what you love. Even if it’s just watchin’ them young’uns play ball on TV and yellin’ at the screen. That Stephen A. Smith, he’s somethin’ else. But I guess he knows a thing or two about that basketball, even if he didn’t play much himself, he sure watched a lot of NBA players. One thing is for sure: you can’t deny he loves this sport.
I remember back in my day, we didn’t have all these fancy teams and TV channels. We just played ball in the yard, made our own fun. Didn’t need no fancy shoes or nothin’. Just a ball and a hoop, that’s all you need. These young people don’t know how good they got it now. All this fancy stuff, NBA, college basketball, big stadiums… We didn’t have none of that. But we had fun.
Now, where was I? Oh yeah, that Stephen A. Smith. He’s a character, ain’t he? But he’s got that fire in him, you can see it in his eyes. He cares about that game, even if he can’t play it no more. And that’s somethin’, I reckon. That’s somethin’ to be proud of, even for an old lady like me. You gotta respect someone who is passionate about somethin’, even if you don’t understand it sometimes. It’s kinda like my garden, you know? I love tendin’ to my plants, even if my back hurts. It’s somethin’ I love, and I ain’t gonna let nothin’ stop me from doin’ it. I guess Stephen A. Smith feels the same way about basketball.
I just hope he takes care of himself, though. All that yellin’ can’t be good for his blood pressure. He needs to sit down, relax, maybe drink some tea. But I guess that ain’t his style, is it? He’s always on the go, always talkin’, always yellin’. That’s just how he is. And you know what? The world needs people like that, people who are passionate and loud and full of life. Even if they are a little bit crazy sometimes.
