The ESPN personality acknowledged his past criticism after Jalen and Josh brought it back on stage.
Stephen A. Smith spent years questioning the New York Knicks’ direction, particularly when the team invested in Jalen Brunson and long before Josh Hart reached the NBA. Now, after the franchise captured its first NBA championship in more than five decades, the veteran broadcaster is publicly admitting he got it wrong.
Smith appeared Friday night at a live recording of The Roommates Show, the podcast hosted by Brunson and Hart, where thousands of celebrating Knicks fans packed the Infosys Theater inside Madison Square Garden. The event came one day after New York’s championship parade and raised money for the Garden of Dreams Foundation.
As Smith walked onto the stage, fans greeted him with loud boos, a reminder of years of criticism aimed at the team and several of its players. The atmosphere quickly shifted into a lighthearted look back at predictions that did not age well.
2 moments Stephen A. Smith had to answer for
Hart revisited two of Smith’s most memorable takes involving the Knicks’ current stars.
The first dated back to 2016 when Smith questioned whether Villanova’s national championship roster featured any legitimate NBA prospects. That team included Brunson, Hart, Mikal Bridges and Donte DiVincenzo, all of whom eventually reached the league and built successful careers.
The second came in 2022 after the Knicks signed Brunson in free agency. At the time, Smith openly doubted whether the point guard could become the player capable of changing the franchise’s fortunes.
With an NBA championship trophy sitting nearby during the live show, Hart challenged Smith to acknowledge those predictions.
stephen a smith loudly booed at ‘the roommates show’ with jalen brunson & josh hart pic.twitter.com/MXMlBZdnid
— Marlow Stern (@MarlowNYC) June 19, 2026
A championship changed the conversation
Smith did not hesitate to accept responsibility for his previous evaluations. He acknowledged that his assessment of Brunson and the Knicks proved incorrect and expressed his happiness that the team’s success made those opinions look outdated.
A lifelong Knicks supporter, Smith also reflected on finally seeing the franchise win another championship after decades of waiting. The title marked New York’s first since 1973, ending a 53 year drought that frustrated generations of fans.
Although he admitted his mistakes, Smith also suggested his passionate criticism came from wanting to see the organization return to championship form. In his view, if challenging the franchise eventually led to another title, he would not regret speaking honestly about the team’s struggles.
2016 Stephen A Smith: “Villanova doesn’t have a real NBA prospect on this squad”
Skip Bayless: “No, they don’t, mm-mm”
2016 Wildcats = 7 NBA players:
—Jalen Brunson
—Mikal Bridges
—Josh Hart
—Donte DiVincenzo
—Eric Paschall
—Ryan Arcidiacono
—Daniel Ochefu pic.twitter.com/5eMtb9Ttzd— New York Basketball (@NBA_NewYork) August 31, 2023
The celebration became another memorable Knicks moment
The live podcast featured several familiar faces from the championship team and franchise history, including Karl Anthony Towns, Miles McBride and Carmelo Anthony. Together with Brunson and Hart, they reflected on a season that restored excitement around one of the NBA’s most recognizable franchises.
For Smith, the evening became less about defending old opinions and more about embracing the fact that New York had finally delivered the result fans had waited decades to celebrate.
His appearance also underscored how dramatically perceptions can change in professional sports. Players who once faced skepticism now stand as champions, while one of their most vocal critics willingly acknowledged that this time, the Knicks proved him wrong.
SOURCES: TMZ, Yahoo