Club Shay Shay - Club Shay Shay - Stephen A. Smith Part 2 REWIND

Episode Date: June 25, 2025

Legendary sports journalist Stephen A. Smith visits Club Shay Shay to chop it up with Shannon about everything going on in the sports world. Both have experience working with Skip Bayless, so Stephen A. and Shannon share stories from their respective experiences working with Skip at "First Take" and "Undisputed". Stephen A. also dives into the importance of HBCUs, Jayson Tatum being better than Luka Dončić, Devin Booker's "Mamba Mentality" being stronger than Jimmy Butler's, and the real GOAT of the NBA. Is it LeBron James or Michael Jordan?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an iHeartRadio app or wherever you get your podcasts. I'm Michael Kassin, founder and CEO of 3C Ventures and your guide on Good Company. The podcast where I sit down with the boldest innovators shaping what's next. In this episode, I'm joined by Anjali Sood, CEO of Tubi. We dive into the competitive world of streaming.

What others dismiss as niche, we embrace as core. There are so many stories out there. And if you can find a way to curate and help the right person discover the right content, the term that we always hear from our audience is that they feel seen. Listen to Good Company on the iHeartRadio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hi, I'm Sarah Spain, host of Good Game with Sarah Spain and the co-author of the new book Runs in the Family, an incredible true story of football, fatherhood, and belonging written

with and about Las Vegas Raiders running backs coach Dylan McCullough. It's the story of a football coach and father of four who sees his life forever changed by the unsealing of his adoption records. And it's got a twist you won't believe. Based on the viral ESPN story I did a few years ago, this book will blow your mind and bring you to tears. Buy runs in the family wherever books are sold. Thank you for coming back. Part two is underway. You're talking about Mayweather, right? Mayweather. I would say the same about Jordan,

but that's a different story. Oh, there you go. No, no. I'm glad that you heard that. I mean, that's what I'm talking about. That's what I'm saying, you know, because Jordan will make you look like you're less than what you are. Like, with Frome Scotty?

LeBron would just... With Frome Scotty? LeBron would beat you. I know he ain't a... But MJ would make you look like less than what you are. Like, before Scottie? LeBron would beat you. I know he ain't. But MJ would make you look like less than what you are. I know Scottie. You see the difference?

Scottie, I know Scottie's gonna don't call this and don't invite, cause what's transpired and everything, you know. But that ain't Scottie's fault. Scottie was wrong, Scottie was wrong. Oh yeah, Scottie, but no, no, no, no, no, no. Let me tell you how it started. Okay.

You know it started in the last dance. Okay. Because the last dance was supposed to be about Jordan's last dance Why are you putting Scottie Pippen in there for an event that you weren't even on the team on? Let the journalist in me correct you go ahead the last dance was about the last season for the Chicago Okay, the last season yes, so what happened, is that they all on their way out, so you're telling different stories about them and their careers with the Bulls while they're fading into the twilight. So that kind of stuff does make it relevant.

But you know you're gonna make Scottie look bad. Well, Scottie deserved to look bad. But you don't have to tell it. There are a lot of times, Stephen, ain't there? Well, wait a minute now. It ain't like he said, yo, man, this the woman he was messing with or something. No.

He said, yo, you passed up this contract. You wanted more money. I mean, damn, that's public information. Ryan Stork, don't sign this deal. Because if you sign this deal, you can't come back to me, because I'm not going to renegotiate your deal. I mean, damn, Michael Jordan's gone. You want to be that dude, and then you're going to sit up there

and refuse to enter the game because of Tony Kukoc. I mean, damn, that happened in front of millions of people watching. It did. You don't got to tell the story, though. Why not? It's part of the story. But Jordan wasn't there. You're telling information that we weren't even around. Excuse me. Excuse me. Jordan was still around. He me ask you a question. You telling information that we wasn't even around. Let me ask you, excuse me. Excuse me.

Jordan was still around. He was coming to visit the team. Scottie Pippen wearing his sneakers, kicking his feet up. Look at the bottom of the soles of the shoes. Jordan, come on back, come on back. All that other stuff. Hell yeah, Jordan wasn't there. Then you didn't say nothing about that.

By the way, where did you play? Did you play in Denver? Yes. Did you play in Baltimore? Yes. So we shouldn't talk about that. We shouldn't talk about it. So whatever happened in Baltimore,

we need to be quiet. No. Whatever happened in Baltimore. We need to be quiet. No, whatever happened in Denver, we need to be quiet. Keep that quiet. But here's the thing. It's a part of your story. But here's the thing. Just the way I look at it, I'm not going to tell an event that I wasn't a part of. So anything that happened in Baltimore from 2000 and 2001, if I tell it to my story, I can tell it to my story. Cause I was there when Ray went through

what he went through in Atlanta. I was there. I was picking him up from the courthouse. He was living with me in my basement. So if I want to tell my story, I should be able to include that. But that's a far, that's a far different angle. The man was accused of a crime,

it was off the field, it was very personal, and even though you were involved, that's his personal business. There's nothing about Scottie Pippen turning down a contract, or Scottie Pippen refusing to enter a playoff game that's personal. No, but he's saying-

That's life. But he's saying when Scottie was talking about having the back surgery, and he wanted the contract, but he said when Scotty was talking about having the back surgery and he wanted the contract and Jordan said he's being selfish, even though I might agree with, I ain't saying nobody's gonna be selfish because I want everybody to get as much money as they can.

So I'm not gonna say that, but I'm just saying, I'm not saying Jordan, I just think that Scotty was surprised that Jordan took the stance that he took and said what he said. That's fair, but I will tell you this, Jordan wasn't only the star of the show, he was also an executive. Yeah, he had follow say.

So we all know that, that's number one. Yeah, we all know he had follow say. It's an important component to bring up. Number two and more importantly, you gotta remember that was in the aftermath of him turning down the contract and then being bitter about it. You're right.

I'm sorry, taking the money rather. He took the money, yeah. And then being bitter about it. You're right. I'm sorry, taking the money rather. Rejecting money, yeah. And then being bitter about it, right? And so you took the money that Jordan and Rhinestop essentially advised you not to take. You ended up being bitter about it and then was willing to let the team suffer because you gotta remember where it's personal with Jordan.

If you're a tight end, which you are, and your quarterback, you say, yo bro, don't take this money because you're gonna be bitter about the contract. He doesn't listen to you, he takes the money anyway, then he's bitter about it later on, and refuse to step on the field with you, leaves you out there hanging by yourself.

You gonna have something to say. Whoa, you mean to tell me Jordan they went on to the championship by himself? No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, I'm talking about this at the time he complained. Whoa, you mean to tell me Jordan they went on a championship by himself? No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. I'm talking about at the time he complained. Oh, I know, yes. You know what I'm saying, at the time he complained. Yes.

At the time he was complaining about Scotty being selfish. Right. He was on the court without him. But that's what- And he was like, come on, you leaving me out here because of the decision I told you not to make, but you didn't listen and you made it anyway. But I think you will agree,

that hurt Scotty more than anything to hear Jordan say that. Okay, fair enough. Are we sure that that's all that's hurting Scotty? No, there's some other things that's going on behind this. There you go. I just said, I didn't say what. You were just saying no such thing as just.

There's never just, there's always a reason. I didn't say what, and I ain't gonna say what. I just asked you a relatively rhetorical question that I know you know the answer to. I think it's safe to say that we all know. Yes. There's other things Scottie's a little bit upset about. Yes, yes.

Okay. Okay. You and, what is it with you, like every time you say something, you say, my sources say this. Right. And it seem like players go out of their way to try to refute what you said on there.

Well, first of all, when your voice is potent and it's gonna go viral, and it's gonna resonate, and they think it's gonna compromise their brand, that's what they're gonna do. I understand that. I remember, I tell you a story one time. I had a coach go up in front of reporters. Stephen A's wrong.

He don't know what the hell he's talking about. I can't believe they even let him report on the team. Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. And then walked by me and winked. Because he didn't, because he didn't want people to know he was the one who gave me the story. I've been a journalist for 30 years. I got sources all over the sports world.

Every single segment of every single show, I get text messages. It's a player, it's a coach, it's an executive, it's a player personnel director. In my case, sometimes it's owners, because I know quite a few. And so I have sources all over the place. Does that mean I'm always right? Absolutely not. What happens, though, is I never said I was. I said, this is what I was told.

Told. And when you make that judgment call, what are you making the judgment call about? I ain't making a call about your personal life. I ain't making a call about something ultra invasive or whatever. You know, the other day when I made the news about Lonzo, I'm like this.

They said, yo, Stephen A. They said, sometimes it's like it's hard for him to stand up from the sit position in the chair. All right? I'd heard the same thing on several occasions. Well, two years ago, you missed 42 games due to injury. The next season, you didn't miss the entire season. This season's coming up.

The team announced, think about this, the team announced in June that he wouldn't be available before the new year. Think about that. So I'm going like this. You gonna literally sit poolside and hop up and down on a chair from a seating position

when you done missed 48% of your games in just your fourth or fifth year in your career? Brother, you clearly are not healthy. Okay, you wanna get literal with it. Maybe I shouldn't have said, or whatever, that's what they said. But that ain't playing basketball. But you ain't, exactly.

So I'm like, really, that's what you wanna refute? And I like Lonzo. I got nothing against him. I have nothing against his daddy, whatever the case may be. But I would say to you, go back to the days when I've covered, I was a beat writer for the Philadelphia 76ers, and I'm covering Allen Iverson and beyond. I've been a journalist for 30 years, I was a beat writer for 10. I was a general sports columnist for another seven or eight. I've been around. And so there's been plenty of times when people have refuted what I've said and then years later come to find out I was telling the truth all along. You go ahead and you denied that. I remember one time I had a player,

I'm in St. Thomas, this is where my family's from. And if you go to St. Thomas, there's a spot called Red Hook. And Red Hook is where you go and you take the boat from St. Thomas to St. John's. It's only a 15 minute boat ride. And I'm literally docking away from Red Hook going into the ocean. I get a call, I'm worn out and they're saying I'm lying.

I'm like, what the hell do you care? You already told them you leaving. It's hurting my brand. And you realize how a lot of cats are thinking. They're thinking about their social media following. They're thinking about the connections that they have. They're thinking about how that's gonna be parlayed in the monetary value for themselves down the line

and how I could be compromised. And so when you see these denials, let's say you say, all right, it makes sense. I got it, I leave it alone. But my attitude is, I'm not giving you a death sentence and I'm not talking about your personal business. I'm talking about relatively obvious stuff, calm the hell down and stop making it bigger

than what it is and you'll be fine. Right. The conversation that I saw, I saw a little bit of it about where Steph Curry, I think on Gill with Arenas, Agent Zero's podcast, said he's the greatest point guard. You agreed or disagree? I agreed, but I was mistaken. And the reason why I say I was mistaken

is because what I wanted to elaborate on is when you're talking about a typical quintessential point guard, you're talking about a facilitator. Magic Johnson's great as ever. There's no question. What I was talking about was impact from the position. And to me, Steph Curry's marksmanship, combined with his ability to move without the ball, puts a defense's head on a swivel.

And as a result of that, because of the panic he creates, because of his extraordinary marksmanship, you have to pay rapt attention to him. You can't afford to barely pay attention to anybody else. And that to me is a similar impact to Magic Johnson's ability to get to the basket, throw no look passes, and especially Magic Johnson in the open court on a fast break. But if you put Magic Johnson in the half court setting, he backs you down. He throws the ball to Kareem F. Dujabal.

Open court is worthy as Byron Scott as Cooper. You know what I'm saying to stuff like that. Pick your poison. I was talking about impact. I wasn't talking about a quintessential facilitator that's a point guard. Because Steph Curry is clearly not that. Because that's what I'm saying.

I don't really look, I look at Steph as a two. Right. I understand that. Because all these guys, new age guys, Fame Lillard, Steph Curry, all these guys are two age guys, Lame Lillard, Stev Curry, all these guys are two guards masquerading. They're not the point guard. I'm looking at point guard like Magic,

John Staughton, Jason Kidd, Mark Jackson. When I think point guard, that's what I think. I got you. We agree. We agree. We agree. I mean, listen, Magic Johnson is so phenomenal, and Michael Jordan's been arguing with me about this because Magic Johnson's the greatest in his eyes as well. So you know what I'm saying? It's one of those...

And ain't no changing that dude's mind. Ain't no changing Michael Jordan's mind. You ain't got no snowball chance in hella Portland at all. But he's right. And Eddie Johnson does NBA radio. He's absolutely right. He was talking about a mad dog, Russo, a historian. He was talking about it. He was absolutely right.

We know that as a pure passer, Magic Johnson is the greatest facilitator the game has ever seen. But I'm saying as an impact, you could talk about Steph Curry being a two guard, but I would tell you he has the ball in his hands enough, the offense runs through him, and the impact his marksmanship creates,

creates just as much havoc as Magic Johnson created. For sure, yes. And that's all I was trying to say, which is why even though if you're talking about a prototypical point guard, you would pick others before him. If you're talking about impact, it's him and Magic Johnson. Yeah.

Oh, there's no question. There's no denying that. Exactly. When you look at LeBron, let's take LeBron, and you were covering the NBA when LeBron got in. I said LeBron is overachieved, because no matter what you thought he might be, ain't no way in hell you thought he would be this good, Stephen A.

No, I didn't. That's why I got him number two all the time. LeBron James is one of the greatest to ever do it. And listen, we're gonna miss him when he's gone. I can sit up there and I can have my basketball decisions as Michael Jordan won him too. But I gotta tell you, man, I got so much love and respect for LeBron. And a lot of people, they misconstrue,

you know, what I mean by that. When I say I got love for a brother that I barely know, cause it's not like I talk to him every day or whatever, even though we accord you to one another in the whole nine. I'm saying I appreciate who you are and what you've meant. Yes. To our community, to basketball, to young men, particularly young black men everywhere. This dude is phenomenal, man. And to be a guy that was on the cover of Sports Illustrated and the only blemish in his entire career is that I'm taking my talents to South Beach. That is literally the only stain on his career. And he raised money for the Boys in Glow. I mean,

it's ridiculous. A businessman, extraordinary actor. He did a great job. I'm joking when I put the ticker on him, great actor, great, because you know, we so sensitive about LeBron James, actually had a ticker creator for first take. Great actor, great businessman. You already said what he said. I was like, oh, it's gonna be there for you.

It's gonna be there when you bring him out. I said, can we get it out the way? Because I wanna make sure he knows I recognize all the greatness about him. Listen, the movie Trainwreck, did you see what he did? He was great, he was great what he did in Trainwreck? He was great, he was great. He did a great job, you know?

With Amy Schumer, I believe. I mean, he was fantastic, you know? I got it. But the point is, is that the dude is phenomenal on a multitude of levels. And what he has done for us as black people in this nation, in terms of his business acumen, his commitment to excellence, you know, this brother takes terms of his business acumen, his commitment to excellence.

You know this brother takes care of his body. He's always in shape. I mean, I looked at, he's the reason that I got mad at Anthony Davis last year. Cause I'm looking at Anthony Davis. You know this brother vouched for you, right? You know this brother has put his name on the line for you, right?

I know you got him to ring in the bubble, but you understand it don't stop there, right? How is he in better shape than you? How is he more focused and dedicated than you? Could you take your ass over his house and mimic his workout? Use his trainer, use his nutritionist, do something. Are you understand what I'm saying?

I'm like, it's like, come on now. Look, man, I'm the star first day. Let me tell you something, Shannon Shaw. I'm gonna do some more pushups, bro. Ah! You understand what I'm saying? I'm gonna change my diet even more. You understand what I'm saying?

I ain't gonna let you down, bro. You understand what I'm saying? I'm not gonna be there. And I got Shannon and an RC sitting across. Welcome to the You Versus You podcast. I'm Lex gonna be there and got Shannon and run on RC sitting across Welcome to the You vs You podcast. I'm Lex Borrero and every week we sit down with some of the biggest names in entertainment to talk about the real stuff. The struggles, the doubts, and the breakthroughs that made them who they are. We go deep, flowing childhood trauma, family, overcoming loss, and the moments that shape their journey. These honest conversations are meant to take the cape off our heroes, with the hope that their humanity inspires you to become a better you

and therefore set you free to live the life of your dreams. Here's a sneak peek. I'm trained to go compete. I'm trained to go harder. But sometimes that mentality stops you from stopping and smelling the flowers in your own garden. Is it wrong to want more? We migrated, our family migrated here. I'm like second generation.

Who's not going to have a trauma coming from a foreign country and coming to the United States and not speaking English? Listen to You vs. You as part of Michael Tudor Podcast Network, available on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. I'm Michael Kassin, founder and CEO of 3C Ventures and your guide on Good Company, the podcast where I sit down with the boldest innovators shaping what's next. In this episode, I'm joined by Anjali Sood, CEO of Tubi for a conversation that's anything but ordinary. We dive into the competitive world of streaming, how she's turning so-called niche into

mainstream gold, connecting audiences with stories that truly make them feel seen. What others dismiss as niche, we embrace as core. It's this idea that there are so many stories out there, and if you can find a way to curate and help the right person discover the right content. The term that we always hear from our audience is that they feel seen. Get a front row seat to where media, marketing, technology, entertainment, and sports collide. And hear how leaders like Anjali are carving out space and shaking things up a bit in the most crowded of markets. Listen to Good Company on the iHeart radio

app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. For me, with him with his fitness facility in Louisiana and all of this other stuff, and I'm a roll around with a belly and looking all, oh, no, no, no, it ain't going down like that. It ain't going down like that. I'ma be in shape, bro. I been getting in shape. I already lost some pounds. I reduced my potty fat in half.

I did all that. But I'll never be the black Hulk that you are. I ain't trying to do that. But you ain't gonna look at me and go like this. Damn, he need to get in the gym. He ain't in shape. Steve, let him go home. I ain't gonna do that. I ain't gonna do that.

How am I gonna bring it down? You got Molly sitting in the middle and stuff like that, you sitting across from me, I'm like, and I'm looking shabby? No, it ain't going down like that. And I'm looking at Anthony Davis like, ain't there's nothing inside of you that said that I need to be in shape.

You gonna drop 41 game in 11 and next. Come on, bro. Come on, bro. You know, it's like, you looking at LeBron, and I literally almost went on the air and was like, you know, LeBron, I'm sorry. I felt that bad for him because I'm like, in his 20th year in the league,

he's in better shape and he the the best player and he actually don't want to be. He actually wishes you were in better shape. He actually wishes you were the better player, which you are when you bring your A game. But it's sporadic because of a lack of dedication in my opinion. I don't know that. But I'm like, what did you think that? If you were LeBron, you're like, wait a minute,

we're missing, you ain't doing something right. Bro, I'm almost 10 years more in the league with more wear and tear. Come on, man, come on, man. And you in LA and you know this because you've been out here, you live out here now. LA, a different flavor. You know, you got to be disciplined to be out here.

You can't easily locate the distractions. I mean, they are easy to find. There's distractions. Well, that's the thing with discipline. It requires you to do your best when you think no one is watching. There you go. There you go. You know what I'm saying? Listen, when I'm in L.A., bro, I don't come outside until I finish my workout.

Other than first take, I don't come outside until I finish my workout. Because I first take, I don't come outside until I finish my workout. Cause I know once I get outside, it's gonna be a while before I get back. You know what I'm saying? I'm just not gonna- Without you here, you gonna be here, you gonna be with that? There we go, I'm just not gonna wanna,

I'm just not, you know what I'm saying? You know, my girl, my girl's with me in the whole- That's right. We gonna be, hey, we gonna be in the gym together. I'm not going in the gym with you, Shandon. I'm not doing that. I'm not, listen, you want a meme that people will be laughing at me

for the next two decades? Have me in the gym with Shannon Sharp. Come on, man. You know what I'm saying? That's like the Rock standing next to Snoop Dogg. We ain't doing that. We ain't the Snoop is my dog. You know I love you, baby.

You know I love you. I mean, come on, man. I ain't doing that. I'm not getting in the gym with you. But. Just one workout. Just one workout. Huh? Just one workout. I'm gonna workout every, listen, I work out,

you know what, I might do that. I might, I'ma wait a few months though. I'ma wait a few months. I'm not gonna do that just yet. Okay, Dane. Yeah man. In James Harden's situation. Yes sir.

Dane is, you know, he, look, he saw James Harden get fined 100,000 for calling Darrell Murray a liar. He's like, I ain't trying is, you know, he, look, he saw James Harden get fined 100,000 for calling Darrell Murray a liar. He's like, I ain't, I ain't trying to, you know, lose any of my money. So what's your take on those situations? Well, when I think about Dane, it's more sensitive for me because Dane could have demanded out on several occasions and he never did and it's Portland It ain't like he didn't demand out of LA on my end, right? He didn't demand out of Portland, right? Okay, and he was never gonna get anybody to come to Portland He was never gonna get anybody to come to Portland. So now that he's been there a decade and he's like it's time

Look out for the brother now now should he have handled it a tad bit differently in terms of, all right, I shouldn't have said just Miami, try to work behind the scenes to get this done. Maybe, maybe he shouldn't have done that. Right. But the bottom line is he's given Portland everything he's had. Right. And you know, you move it in a different direction. You drive your number the third overall pick is your brother, Scoot Henderson. Play your position. Come on, y'all, get it done. And so that's how I feel.

I support Dame on that. James Hart is a different animal, and I like James, but James gotta be more accountable. You got everything you want. They gave you everything but a pacifier and a bib in Houston. Whatever you wanted, they gave you. They did. Everything. Money, helicopter rides, massage therapists, masseuse, hanging at the strip club whenever you wanted. Everything. Go to Vegas

whatever you want. They gave you everything and Darrell Morey took care of you. Right. To the point where Mike D'Antoni didn't even show negative plays of James Harden when James Harden was in the film room. He showed about everybody else. He wouldn't even show up in the film room. This is me covering the NBA, I'm telling you what I know. Then you force your way out. You want to go to Philly because you want to go with Darrell Moore, you want to follow him there.

But they say no, so you want to go to Brooklyn. They tell you initially, you show up to camp out of shape, you make it very, very clear that you ain't trying to do anything because you're trying to get the hell out of town. So they ultimately trade you to Brooklyn. You get in Brooklyn, you force your way out of there because you want to go with Darryl Morrie in Philly, which is where you want to go all along. Now, although we can't absolve Darryl Morrie,

if you lied to the man, you lied to the man. Ain't nobody blaming Jay Carter for that. You're 15, 20 million back, but I'm serious, I'm gonna get this back. That's right, if you told him that, you owe him that. Correct. Period. But, why is anybody gonna be sympathetic to James Harden

with what James Harden has done on three separate occasions? Right. And now you're doing it a fourth. And you gotta remember when he was in Houston, I want the White Howard. I don't want the White Howard. I want Carmelo Anthony. Don't want Carmelo Anthony. Wanted Russ. I want the White Howard. I don't want the White Howard. I want Carmelo Anthony. I don't want Carmelo Anthony.

I want CP3. I don't want CP3. I want Russ. I don't want Russ. And not one single championship to show for it. It ain't like you a champion making these demands. You getting paid, you a show stopper, we get it, but you have no championships to show

for any of your efforts. At some point in time, somebody got to be willing to say to you, yo, can you give me a little bit more? Oh, by the way, don't get me started with closeout games in the playoffs. We just saw what you did in the game, seven nine points, three for 11 shooting

in a game seven closeout game against Boston. You had them for game six, you were up three, two on your home turf in Philadelphia, and look what happened. Those are the kind of things that I'm talking about. And so when something like that happens, man, I can't support that. I can like him and be cool with him, but I can't support those actions.

Some of the decisions that he's... Can't do it. What's KD's legacy going to be? What's Kevin Durant's legacy going to be? I think, Stephen A, he was up 3-1 on the Golden State Warriors. He's up 3-1 on a 73-win team. Lose game five, lose game six, lose game seven. And in games five and six himself, games five and six, he shot the ball terrible.

Yeah. I will tell you this. I think that Kevin Durant is one of the greatest players that I've ever seen. But when I saw how things materialized in Brooklyn, and then he went to Phoenix and got bounced out in the second round of Denver. What I said was, I can't put him above LeBron. I used to look at him and his offensive arsenal

and think that. But what I realized is that I'm not showing enough respect and appreciation to the leadership that LeBron has exerted and exhibited. LeBron has been the face of every franchise he's been on, even though D Wade was that lead in Miami. And when you look at LeBron, what he had to deal with with Kyrie, what he had to deal with when he arrived in LA, what he had to deal with with all the vitriol aimed in this direction in Miami and stuff like that.

Mental toughness, ultimately leadership, accountability, you know, of course, as he is in Cleveland, of course, when you look at all of these things, he showed an ability to deal with things Kevin Durant did not. Right. Kevin Durant is a phenomenal player, a good brother, really authentic in a lot of ways. I got a lot of love for him. He is a two-time champion, a two-time NBA Finals MVP. I don't care that he's playing with the Golden State Warriors.

He averaged 35. He was the MVP. Yes. He balled out. He averaged 35. He was the MVP. He balled out. You know, he showed his greatness. But the problem that I would tell you that was really put on display in Brooklyn, he needed to be a leader. But he doesn't want that. He's already told you that. And that's the difference. LeBron wants it. LeBron wants to be the leader. LeBron accepts it. You know, you know, Kyrie is Kyrie.

And you know, I'm not here to, I'm not going to throw no shame. Me and Kyrie have had our issues. That stuff has been resolved. But the point is, is that at the end of the day, Kyrie, that is somebody that Kevin Durant, if he were that leader, had to reel in. By simply saying, man, bump all this. We trying to win the chip. Kyrie doesn't hurt his ankle against Milwaukee

in the playoffs. Brooklyn might have won it all. Because I think they win that series against Milwaukee. And I think they could have beaten Phoenix. I mean, it's just that simple to me. And so when I'm looking at it from that perspective, I'm just saying to myself, you Kevin Durant, it's about living and let living

and I'll do my job. Nah, it's about making sure that the ultimate job is to try to win the chip and letting nothing stand in the way of that. If you're on the football field, Ray Lewis might have been the leader. You ain't gonna be quiet if you see cats blowing your opportunity to win the Super

Bowl championship. You're gonna be like, yo, and I remember when Isaiah Thomas, the great Isaiah Thomas, two-time champion, Hall of Fame, Isaiah Thomas was arguing with me one time about Kyrie, and I said to him, it was over the backseat there, and I said, I'm gonna end this conversation right now, Z, by one simple question. If a member of the Detroit Pistons that was such an integral part of your championship hopes took that position, what would you have done? Isaiah started laughing. He said, as a team, we had to snatch his ass up, we had sat him down, tied him up, and we had ejected the shit into myself. He said, now, he might have been mad at us. He might have been mad at us, but we would shit into myself. He said, now you might have been mad at us,

you might have been mad at us, but we would have done it. I said, I rest my case. All I'm saying is that at the end of the day, we trying to win and anything that gets in the way of that is secondary to that actually being the priority. That's all I'm saying. And I think Kevin Durant should have had that attitude and I don't think he did. You look at the West, the Nuggets won the championship. I like all I'm saying. And I think Kevin Durant should have had that attitude and I don't think he did.

You look at the West, the Nuggets won the championship. I like Nikola Jokic. I think he's one of the two best players in all of basketball. You got Phoenix. This is a year. Book and KD together. Bradley Bill-Joy. You got the Warriors, CP3. What's gonna be his role in that situation? The Lakers. If Anthony Davis is healthy, I like that they have depth. Austin Reeves? I like him, I like him. What's, how's the West gonna shake out? First of all, we always root for the Lakers,

because they're in Southern California. I mean, if you ask me, do I wanna go to San Francisco or LA, it's LA all day, every day. Twice on Sundays. So just for my own personal preferences, it's always LA. LA Miami is my dream scenario. That's why I was so miserable doing COVID, because the one time I wanted to get my dream,

LA Miami, it was in a bubble. It was in a bubble, I was so depressed. I was so depressed. But I'll tell you this, I don't believe in Anthony Davis in terms of his availability. I'm not talking about his skill set. I'm not talking about whether he cares or not.

I'm talking about injury prone, sporadic. There's something going on with him where instead of talking about me getting in the gym, you need to be talking to him to get in the gym. Because he's just up and down. It's like this brother sat up there and ate a healthy meal one day, and then ate a bag of Skittles the next, and it's just plummet, you know what I'm saying?

I don't understand it. And I can't have faith in that. I think they'll make the playoffs, I think they'll be formidable. I dismiss the Clippers because I just don't believe that Kawhi Leonard will ever be healthy. I just don't believe it. Well, Paul George has missed damn near as much time.

I agree with you, that's totally, totally true. Troy, I healthy. I just don't believe it. Well, Paul George has missed damn near as much time. I agree with you. That's totally, totally true. Troy, I remember, I just saw the numbers recently. I think Paul George misses about 38% of his games and Kawhi's at 48%. So I think it's around that. Paul George talking about he gonna play bully ball and all that, so we'll see.

You understand what I'm saying? Especially he was talking to him and Devin Booker was going back and forth. I got to see that. Cause I know Devin Booker's coming. He that dude. Yeah, he's a real. Devin Booker's free and I'm talking about his mentality. He ain't scared of nothing. He coming for you. So I definitely respect that and we're going to see what Bill and KD do together as well. Phoenix to me should be the favorites. You look at Denver, they're obviously

formidable and you got that cohesiveness. So I would tell you a rematch between Denver and Phoenix and all likelihood to conference finals as opposed to the divisional playoff rounds, semi-finals rather, we'll see that. But that's what comes to my mind. I don't expect much from Dallas, even though Anthony Edwards is on the rise. I don't expect much from Minnesota. I don't expect much from Minnesota. I think Dallas, to me, they don't have the personnel.

Do you think Minnesota should now run the team through Anthony Edwards as opposed to Kat? Yes. I agree. I agree, totally. I think through Anthony Edwards as opposed to Kat? Yes. I agree. I agree, totally. I think that Anthony Edwards is one of those dudes. He's one of those dudes. He's coming. And I feel that way.

But I definitely think that when you look at the two teams, I would look at Phoenix and Denver, and then I would look at the Lakers and Clippers on the outside on the come up. That's how I view the West. You didn't mention the Grizzlies. Honestly, the Jaws situation, hopefully, I think they'll appeal.

I should have mentioned the Grizzlies. They're appealing his 25 game suspension. So I'm under the assumption that it's going to stick. Let's just say for the sake of this argument, it's going to stick. It's going to stick. You've been outspoken. I've been very outspoken.

And I don't know Jaws. But if I could sit down, I just think he was, I just thought he was moving in a direction that wasn't conducive to accomplish what he really, really wanted to accomplish. That's being an outstanding basketball player, be a brand, the Ja brand, being one of the faces of the NBA. I agree with you. What, if there's some advice you could give him, I don't know how well you know his dad. I don't.

Welcome to the You Versus You podcast. I'm Lex Perero, and every week we sit down with some of the biggest names in entertainment to talk about the real stuff. The struggles, the doubts, and the breakthroughs that made them who they are. We go deep, throwing childhood trauma, family, overcoming loss, and the moments that shaped their journey.

These honest conversations are meant to take the cape off our heroes with the hope that their humanity inspires you to become a better you and therefore set you free to live the life of your dreams. Here's a sneak peek. I'm trained to go compete. I'm trained to be like harder, but sometimes that mentality stops you from stopping

and smelling the flowers in your own garden. Is it wrong to want more? We migrated, our family migrated here. I'm like second generation. Listen to You Versus You as part of Michael Tudda Podcast Network available on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. I'm Michael Kassin, founder and CEO of 3C Ventures and your guide on Good Company, the podcast where I sit down with the boldest innovators shaping what's next. In this episode, I'm joined by Anjali Sood, CEO of Tubi, for a conversation that's anything but ordinary. We dive into the competitive world of streaming, how she's turning so-called niche into mainstream gold,

connecting audiences with stories that truly make them feel seen. What others dismiss as niche, we embrace as core. It's this idea that there are so many stories out there, and if you can find a way to curate and help the right person discover the right content, the term that we always hear from our audience is that they feel seen. Get a front row seat to where media, marketing, technology, entertainment and sports collide

and hear how leaders like Anjali are carving out space and shaking things up a bit in the most crowded of markets. Listen to Good Company on the iHeart radio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. I don't. I've met them both once. Ja is a great player. Ja is phenomenal.

And I think that Ja is going to come back with a vengeance. You know, I really, really believe he's going to come back with a vengeance. He's going to wreak havoc. And I love the acquisition of Marcus Smart. I got Boston, by the way, as my favorite overall. Really? Yes, I do. Wow. I think poor Zing is at 7-3 with the ability to step away from the basket and shoot combined with Tatum and Brown still keeping Al Horford. Okay. And Robert Williams in the mix with a Derek White, with a Derek White, with a Malcolm Brogdon, the reigning sixth man of the year.

I think when you look at their depth, their athleticism, their perimeter shooting, their ability to defend the fact that Missoula has a year under his belt coaching the team. I think all of those things bode well for Boston. They've been knocking on the door long enough. You Jaylen Brown, you just signed for $300 million, you damn well better show up. And if you Jason Tatum, who's in line for about $360 million, you damn well better show up. And so I'm going to assume that they will.

But I think Mark is smart. Losing him, it'll be felt to some degree, but I definitely think it's gonna help Memphis immensely. And I think that, you know, and I think that- And you get big Steve and Adams back and Clark. And people don't realize Adams and Clark being gone, Lakers don't beat them like that if Adams and Clark are healthy.

That just doesn't happen, because Adams and Clark are no joke. And so I take that into consideration as well. Having said all of that, I'm not sure on their shooting collectively. Right. Okay, so that concerns me. I think they're sporadic defensively, that concerns me.

I think their coaching concerns me to some degree. So I look at Memphis, but in terms of my advice to Jah, it's this man, some people you gotta leave behind. And I don't mean cut them off like you don't know them. I don't mean cut them off like you can't be with them. But I'll give you a perfect example. I got brothers that I grew up with in Queens, New York. Half of them are dead, because you know the drug game was real prevalent then, and I was blessed that I was never a part of it, but most of my friends were.

And I got a couple of bros that did some time. And I'll always look out for them. I'll always have love for them. Shannon, they can't hang with me. Shannon, they can't hang with me. No. They can't hang with me. You're not coming to work with me. You're not coming to a game with me.

That's not happening. Now I see you in the neighborhood, what's up, how you doing? You need me for anything, what's up, what you need. I can help you, I'm more happy to do that. So I'm not talking about ostracizing you, but the NBA is your business. What happened with John Moran cost him about $60 million.

$60 million. You ain't getting that back. No. No matter how much money you get, you ain't getting that back. And so for me, you know, with his dad, look, I'm a father, you're a father. Here's the deal. I know you can't tell your son, literally, tell him what to do. He's a grown-up.

Right. But certain things he don't need to be doing right in front of you. Correct. You the grown-up. You dead. And you are not supposed to be trying to live the life he living. You know what I'm saying? Y'all made it.

And you're gonna make it even more. And so it's not to cast dispersions, assault them, denigrate them in any way. Who wouldn't root for John Moran? Who ain't rooting for him to succeed? I don't know anybody that ain't rooting for him. I know I'm rooting for him. I know you're rooting for him.

But how are we helping you if we see you doing stuff that we know could potentially lead to your downfall and we say nothing? Are we really trying to help you if we say nothing? No. We're not trying to help you. And that's why we say something, because we want you to correct the errors so you can rise and prosper and live your life. I don't know what you feel about this, but I said this at the time, the 75th anniversary.

I said, Anthony Davis shouldn't have made it over Dwight Howard right Stan Van Gundy said you can't make a case to say is Anthony Davis career has been better than Dwight Howard what's your take on that I kind of agree Anthony Davis was a prolific scorer mm-hmm but at the end of the day he wasn't relevant until he arrived to the Lakers with LeBron. Correct. Dwight Howard was a three-time defensive player of the year, extraordinary shot blocker and eraser.

He was never the offensive player that Anthony Davis was, but certainly was just as impactful and more successful because he was on a squad that Anthony Davis won a championship with as a reserve Right, which means he's got a ring too. Right. And so you offset that and now look at their careers Yeah, even though the talent that is Anthony Davis I consider to be better. Hey, you're better the white Howard, right? The impact of your career is not greater than that of Dwight Howard. Dwight Howard took the team to the NBA finals. Yes he did. In his prime, he was one of the five best players

in the NBA. Absolutely, absolutely. So I can't disagree with that. I can't disagree. I can say Anthony Davis is a better talent, but it also highlights what you must not be doing because a lesser talent that is Dwight Howard was more impactful than you were.

Right. Players under 25, you got Luca, JT, Trey Young, Zion, Anthony Edwards. You know what, Zion, because you've been very, I've been very outspoken. Steven, you know I'm a nutritional guy. I'm in the body. And I said, he's just too big.

I said, y'all a cheap, oh, Shetty, you don't know what's going on? I say bro. The man is 300 plus I can tell he's not eating the way he should in order to maximize too many burgers But you know you in New Orleans, you know in New Orleans eating gumbo and a to say and jambalaya everything Yeah, so Beliah everything yeah, so Yeah, how do we get how do we get Zion to understand cuz I think the greatest person that he needs to sit down and have A hour long conversation with is Charles Barkley. He's a more athletic Charles Barkley I

Just gotta be honest I Don't think he cares enough Wow, I don't think he cares I. Wow. I don't think he cares enough. I'm not saying he doesn't care. I'm not talking about caring. I'm talking about that fire. That passion. That is the end all be all.

Because I believe he's in a market he don't want to be in. That's it. I believe if he was in New York or some place where he really, really wanted to be, we see a more dedicated Zion to his physicality. And the point is, is that I don't know that to be sure, but you can't walk around as big as he is and tell me you dedicated. You can't.

You can't. Because even when you're restricted in terms of your mobility, you know what you'll do? You'll eat less and you'll eat better because you'll fear bloating. No, you'll fear blowing up and not being ready when called upon. Once you hear that hasn't been the case because of you. If you eat bad while you're active and running up and down the court, what the hell you think you're going to eat when you can't run up and down the court?

That's right. So now the 30 pounds that you took off because you was healthy and athletic and running up and down the court, you better put 50 back on. Exactly, and that's exactly how I feel. And because of that, again, I love Zion's game. I believe he's a potential superstar in this league.

He's something to behold. But I think it's fair to question his commitment to his conditioning. And if you're questioning somebody's commitment to conditioning, you're questioning whether or not they care. And that's really what it comes down to. Right. We were talking about players under 25. Luca, Jason Tatum, Trey Young, Zion, Anthony Edwards, LaMelo, Shea Gild, D-Fox, or Jordan Poole. I'm gonna give you one guy of those guys I mentioned. Who you taking?

A lot of people would say Luca. I'm gonna say Jason Tatum. Jason Tatum's 6'9". Jason Tatum can shoot the three. I saw Jason Tatum drop 46 in a closeout playoff game, six in Milwaukee. I saw Jason Tatum handle his business in a game seven.

I've seen a young Jason Tatum, who ain't even 27 years of age yet, be a primary option on a team that's going to five conference championship games, of championship series, and an NBA finals I just look at him and I say and not only that we just talked about conditioning there have been times when we looked at Luka and we've said he ain't in shape he's getting in shape right the season progresses right we look at Jason

Tatum from day one and say he's in shape. Right. That matters to me. I will go with Jason Tatum. Andre Aguadala says, the player with the mentality as closest to Kobe Bryant is Jimmy Butler. You agree with that? Closest to Kobe Bryant is Jimmy Butler. As far as mentality.

You could say that, I would beg to differ. Who you like? Devin Booker. Jimmy Butler works. But the difference between Jimmy Butler and Devin Booker is Jimmy Butler doesn't care that much about offense until the postseason arrives. Right.

Kobe cared about it all the time. Yeah. And Devin Booker cares about it. Right. All the time. Right. Kobe cared about it all the time. Yeah. And Devin Booker cares about it all the time. Right. They coming out looking for their shot from opening tip off. Jimmy Butler, sometimes you literally feel like you got to throw something at him just to make him shoot the basketball.

Right. It's not a priority for him. And that is why I would say no on that Kobe comparison. Not much is known about Stephen A's private life. You, like myself, are very, very private. Yep. How have you been able to maintain that level of privacy? Number one, I'm quick to sell somebody

to mind their damn business. And that's a kind way of putting it and I will cancel a woman in the heartbeat that talks about my business she utters my name what publicly about us she gone I wouldn't have she happy for us I don't care I don't care you know why because I want you to know who my woman is when she's Mrs. Smith. I'm talking about publicly. I'm not talking about, you know,

Shannon gonna beat my girl. Jamie's met my girl. I'm not talking about that. I'm talking about announcing it, you see us and people talk. Oh no. Let them talk. You better not talk.

I will cancel you quicker than you. So she can't post nothing on IG? Never. She wouldn't make it to my crib. I'm not joking. She wouldn't make it to my crib. I'm not joking. She can live five minutes away.

She'd be gone by five minutes. I don't play that. Because here's the thing. I'm in the public eye. Let me tell you what I detest. and I've never done this to another man it makes me cringe when this happens to a man I can't get over how these stars be messing with somebody and then you with somebody else well that's who he used to mess with yeah nah they do that I mean you talk about it could be an ex I believe you

talking about that's a friend I don, who you talking about? It could be your ex. I'd be like, who you talking about? That's a friend, I don't know what you talking about. Steve, you just messed with her. Who? I ain't just messing with her, I don't know what you talking about. Ain't none of your business. Right.

I'm not doing that. Okay. You know, when she Mrs. Smith, you don't know who she is. Right. Until that time, I might have messed with her, I might not have messed with her. You'll never know.

Right. I don't do that. And I can't stand when we see people out here like sharing their information, and you know, it's on Instagram and Twitter. We grown ass men and women. When did your business become everybody else's business? I don't vibe with that.

I have no, no patience with that. And anybody who knows me, and I mean anybody who knows me, they'll tell you right now, I live in LA five minutes from where we are. They wouldn't make it to my cred being my woman if I saw something on social media that was initiated by them about me.

They out. I wouldn't hesitate. I have been that way my entire adult life and I will never change when in that regard. I could be getting ready to get married off wedding called off. So it was always. So it was always. It was always your. It was always as once you got into the public eye was to be private. Pre-pri. Absolutely. It's not everybody's business. It's not everybody's business. Look, I know people business. You see me, I'm on TV, I'm a professional journalist. I challenge anybody to talk about

Stephen A talking about their personal private business. Yeah. Now if you walking out in public and putting everything on display and all of that, all right, that's fine. You don't say I just talked about Megan Goodman find that stuff the other day. Okay, I get it. She's been fine for years. You know what I mean? I got it. You know, stuff like that.

But you don't hear me talking about people's private business. I don't do it. I don't, and I never ever will. I read what your daughters don't like when people come up to you and ask for autographs when they're in your presence. Oh, they, oh.

Oh my Lord. Hey, listen, man. Do they have a social media presence? A little bit but I try to monitor it and you know I leave that to their mom but I will tell you this for me. Oh my god being a dad for daughters, it's the greatest blessing and the worst curse. Because the blessing is you didn't know what love is until you thought you knew what love was. And then they came along and that's when you knew what love is. The curse is you didn't know what love is until they came along. So never had peace you always worried

You're worried about everything worried about everything and and they they they they did daddy's you know daughters So they like me from the standpoint like first of all, I'm not that special. I'm just dad What is so big about you? I mean, please. Yeah. Why all you do is talk on television I mean you can't oh lord, can we hurry up, please? What do they want your autograph for? I mean, every- Welcome to the You Versus You podcast. I'm Lex Perero, and every week we sit down

with some of the biggest names in entertainment to talk about the real stuff. The struggles, the doubts, and the breakthroughs that made them who they are. We go deep, throwing childhood trauma, family, overcoming loss, and the moments that shape their journey. These honest conversations are meant to take the cape off our heroes, with the hope that their humanity inspires you to become a better you and therefore set

you free to live the life of your dreams. Here's a sneak peek. I'm trained to go compete. I'm trained to be like harder, but sometimes that mentality stops you from stopping and smelling the flowers in your own garden. Is it wrong to want more? We migrated, our family migrated here. I'm like second generation. Who's not going to have a trauma coming from a foreign country

and you arrive in the United States and you don't speak English? Listen to You vs. You as part of Michael Tudor Podcast Network, available on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. I'm Michael Kasin, founder and CEO of 3C Ventures and your guide on Good Company, the podcast where I sit down with the boldest innovators shaping what's next. In this episode, I'm joined by Anjali Sood, CEO of Tubi, for a conversation that's anything but ordinary. We dive into the competitive world of streaming,

how she's turning so-called niche into mainstream gold, connecting audiences with stories that truly make them feel seen. What others dismiss as niche, we embrace as core. It's this idea that there are so many stories out there, and if you can find a way to curate and help the right person discover the right content, the term that we always hear from our audience is that they feel seen.

Get a front row seat to where media, marketing, technology, entertainment, and sports collide. And hear how leaders like Anjali are carving out space and shaking things up a bit in the most crowded of markets. Listen to Good Company on the iHeart radio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. But then they get attitude because it's like, they're taking our time.

Right. Hurry up. Right. Like literally. Right. But then they get attitude because it's like They're taking our time right hurry up right like literally right and it's like and I knew I knew from the time My daughter's was like seven eight years old. I came home and I had to do I had to get to Dallas I was supposed to go from LA straight to Dallas. I literally flew home on the Red Eye just to take them to school and to give them a hug and a kiss and I took them to school they were all happy and bouncing around and all that stuff and I drove them to school and I said okay um daddy you gotta go they like what? And I was like this, I probably, they gotta go to work in Dallas.

Ah! And the teacher's like, just go, just go. Right? And I get on the road, I'm going to the airport, and I call the school to speak to them, and they're like, could you call back later? They don't wanna talk to you. And I'm like, this is 70 years old. And I knew then, my life's over.

It belongs to them. They run my life. So I squeeze in things for me. But they're the generals. That's how it goes. Do your kids watch? Your kids, they're at the age now, they understand what you do.

15 and 14. Yeah, so they understand what you do. Yes. They know who dad is. That's right, that's right. And they see me lied on a lot, cause a lot of times I've been accused of saying something or doing something that they didn't know better.

Well, I was accused of being someplace, and they're like, daddy, you was with us. You know, but it's like, it is what it is. They understand it. And I tell them, it's about tough skin. Right. You can't overreact to everything you have to understand. you in the public eye people gonna lie on you all the time They're gonna invade your privacy. They're gonna instigate stuff

They're willing they're looking to provoke a reaction and I can't give it to them because if I do then I take the bait and it Can jeopardize what I'm trying to build and so you explain those things to them and you hope that they understand what I'm trying to build. And so you explain those things to them and you hope that they understand. What advice would you give young journalists? Because the newspaper business is not what it was when you got into it. Everybody gets their, you know,

because it's so instantaneous now, Stephen A. You got social media. So now ain't nobody just sitting there watching the six o'clock news. And there ain't nobody just reading the newspaper. So what advice would you give young journalists? First of all, understand that everything feeds off of information. You've got to be about the business of acquiring intel and information because that means you

have something to talk about. You have something to write about. You have something to express opinions about, whether it be via radio, television, podcast, newspaper, magazines, dot com, whatever, whatever, content is king. Content will never go anywhere. How people are receiving that content is what has changed. Linear television was once here, now it's dissipating before our very eyes.

There's some people that are projecting within the next decade YouTube will be more popular than some of the networks, if not already. And so you have to take that into consideration as point number one. Point number two is that you're trying to build something, build a brand, know who you are, know what you stand for, recognize what gravitates folks towards you and what doesn't. And that's how you go about the business of building something. Number three, master your business.

You gotta know what you're talking about. You gotta know what you wanna do. A lot of people want a podcast. Well, do you know what comes with a podcast? It ain't just a microphone and a camera. There's a production team that's behind the scenes. There's a sales and marketing angle. There's a sales angle that comes with it.

A marketing angle that comes with it. A technological angle that comes with it. There's people operating comes with it, a technological angle that comes with it. There's people operating these cameras, you know, these microphones, making sure the audio is right, et cetera, et cetera. Well, how much is that gonna cost? Okay, what level of cost comes with it, okay? One of the things that I would give advice

to a lot of students when they come up, no matter what major you take, minor in business, because everything comes down to business now. You've gotta be about the business of knowing what your business entails. That way you know how to do business. You know what you're negotiating. You have an idea what it entails. You know when you've made mistakes and how to pick up on it. I started my own podcast months ago. I've made a lot of mistakes. Why? Because I never had a podcast. I had to learn through osmosis. But I put

myself through that fire initially on purpose. So when it grew, as it's been growing, then I'm in a position to now make the proper decisions because I use that infancy period to really learn and gain knowledge about the industry, how much it's going to cost, what my losses and my profits look like, etc. etc. All of those things are things that you have to know because the business itself that used

to exist is no longer. Now they're looking for you to bring your business to them. Shannon Sharp, you own your own podcast, Club Shay Shay, over a million followers, doing your thing. Proud of you, my brother. Keep doing your thing. No doubt. You got to keep doing that. You own and operate your business

and there's people around you that's working for you. So you're gonna be attracted because you're bringing a business to a potential network to buy, to lease to, et cetera, et cetera. They don't wanna just employ people anymore. They don't wanna deal with that overhead. They don't wanna deal with the expenses

that come with the overhead. They want you to deal with that now. They don't want to deal with the expenses that come with the overhead. They want you to deal with that now. Pat McAfee, Pat McAfee, the deal he just signed with you has been, you got so many people hating on him. Shut up, all of y'all shut up. The man had his own business. He spent years developing his own business, betting on himself, just like you bet on yourself,

just like I'm betting on myself. I just started betting on myself because I was hindered contractually and I had a lot of obstacles to overcome in my career before I could get to this point. Although this was always the vision, I had to start late. This is what comes with it. When you know those things, you become a business.

And as Jay-Z would say, I'm not a businessman, I'm a business man. And that's what people wanna see. I'm gonna get you out of here on this one. We both We both work with Skip. Yeah. You work with him I think a little longer than I have and we both have given him credit for opening up his platform and allowing us to be who we are and we could grow our own platforms become as you mentioned earlier businesses of our self. What's what's for the people I don't know how many people

have heard, and I'm gonna follow up after you. Skip, what's he really like? Because I think the thing is, if you've never met him, you just see him on television, you say, okay, that's him and who he is. Skip's a different beast. I don't know if you can just describe him in one simple way.

You can. You can. This dude's definition of advice is diet mountain dude. This dude was in the 60s and in the 70s running anywhere from five to eight miles a day. Eating the same meals for breakfast lunch and dinner. Introducing himself to his now wife and their first date. You will never be more important than my job. Get over that from now or don't bother. I mean, that's his definition of turning her on, I guess. So I'm like, I'm just like, that's, he's a different animal.

You know, and there are highs and lows that come with him. He knows that. There's highs and lows that come with me. There's highs and lows that come with you and everybody else. And that's the way it goes. But you know, I'm a man first. And it's about a core decency of appreciation.

The reality is, is that no matter how problematic and he can be problematic at times, no matter how problematic he can be. The reality is that I wouldn't be where I am today if he didn't give me that opportunity on first take. And so for me to be where I am and to know that it springboards off of something that he was directly involved in making happen, for me to insult him in any way is just disrespectful. It's wrong and it's something that I would never do. Now that don't mean I can't disagree with him.

That doesn't mean that I can't feel that he's wrong. And anybody like a Jamie Hardwick, yourself and others who know me have gotten to know me in your case, you know I would tell him he's wrong to his face. He knows where I stand, but it doesn't take away my love and appreciation for him and the fact that he will always be a brother from another mother to me. So I've always made that clear with everybody. Yeah, it's not often that someone can give you that opportunity.

And I've said this several times, for me I cannot let six months ruin six and a half good years. Because sometimes people are willing to throw everything away for one mistake, for one bad comment or one something like this and even though that was all we were supposed to get, my sister tells me this all the time, she says Shannon this was all we were supposed to get. About four months ago I had Tabitha Brown. She's great. I've interviewed her before. She's fantastic.

Steven A. She had no idea this was going on. So we wrapped the interview and I'm going to end it on this one. And I'm taking off my microphone. She says, is the mic's off? I said, well, I'm taking my mic off. You can take yours off. We took our mics off and she leans in close to me. She said, I had a dream last night. God told me it's gonna be okay and for you to go ahead and do what you need to do. She said, it's gonna be different, but you need to go on your own.

Now God told me that. She said, now you do what you want to do with it. But God just, she said, and when I get dreams like this and I'm ever in the person's presence, it's my duty to tell them a month later. And I'm like, when she's telling me to Stephen A, you see how you looking at me, I'm looking at her, how you know what's going on?

She said, God told me this last night. And it's funny that I'm sitting here doing this interview, I did this interview with you, and I needed to tell you this. Once she told me that, I was at peace. Because I'm racking my brain, I'm like, what did I do? Did I say something? Did I offend somebody?

I mean, I just, I think I'm doing a great job. She said, be at peace with it. Yeah, and that's what I told you. You did? That's what I told you. You did? That's what I told you because the reality of the situation is that you know I'm not gonna apologize listen I got a lot of friends over there all right we all know that I know a lot of people but that don't mean that what happened to you was fair. Plain and simple. Okay that ain't the end of the world.

Nope. But it is what it is. Yeah. you know, to me, it was just important for us in this industry to stand up and say, yo, he's one of us. You can't let him go out like this. And that was it for me. It was like, it was just that simple. You can go wherever you want. You wanna come first, take fine.

You wanna go somewhere else, fine. Cause I got my crew here first taken. I'm not trying to get rid of anybody. You understand what I'm saying? Because I'm not gonna do this forever. And when it's my time to go, it's my time to go somewhere else fine because I got my crew here first take and I'm not trying to get rid of anybody You understand say because I'm not gonna do this forever And when it's time when it's my time to go it's my time to go right and it's time for somebody else to step up But as long as I'm here my attitude was gonna be listen The people that have been a treasure and a tribute to this industry Are the people that I'm going to do all that I can to remind folks. This is what they do

I don't want to be one of those all that I can to remind folks this is what they do. I don't wanna be one of those dudes that I got these platforms first take and I got my podcast and I'm doing NBA countdown and I got more stuff coming down the line and everything like that. And all I'm talking about is what I'm doing. It's my job to highlight where everybody else is doing too. You one of the few Stephen A.

Cause I know a lot of people that have could have opportunities to help somebody but they want to be the only ninja with money. Nah. I don't want that. And I told you this and I'll tell the audience that I told you this. I said you might be a first take for one year, you might be a first take for years to come. It's

my responsibility and I'm dead serious. It's a heart attack. It's my responsibility to I'm dead serious. It's a heart attack. It's my responsibility to make sure that you are more successful with me than you were before you arrived. That's what you told me. That's my responsibility. And I'm gonna make sure it happens come hell or high water.

We ain't going down brother, we only going up. No, no, you know that dude. That's just the way it's gonna be. You know. That's just the way it's gonna be. Goat man coming. That's right, that's it. Uncle Steven A. You know what I do. That's the way it's gonna be. You know? That's just the way it's gonna be. Goat man coming. That's right, that's it.

Uncle Stephen A. You know what I'm saying? Aw, man. HBCU is the takeover. You know, I ain't trying to lose. No, we don't. I'm never about that. Anybody that knows me ain't about that.

I don't mean no disrespect to nobody. All right? Y'all heard it. But I was. That's him. As good as it gets right here, Stephen A. Smith. On Monday, September 4th. Don't die. That's why all my life I been grinding all my life Look, all my life, been grinding all my life

Sacrifices, hustle pay the price, want a slice Got the rolling dice, that's why all my life I been grinding all my life Welcome to the You vs. You podcast. I'm Lex Barrero, inviting you to go beyond the titles and the accolades of the world's most successful entertainers. Each week, we take off the cape and get real about the inner battles, childhood stories, and the moments that shaped our guests. Get inspired to become the best version of you.

Listen to You Versus You podcast on the iHeartRadio app or wherever you get your podcasts. I'm Michael Kassin, founder and CEO of 3C Ventures and your guide on Good Company, the podcast where I sit down with the boldest innovators shaping what's next. In this episode, I'm joined by Anjali Sood, CEO of Tubi. We dive into the competitive world of streaming. What others dismiss as niche, we embrace as core. There are so many stories out there. And if you can find a way to curate and help the right person

discover the right content. The term that we always hear from our audience is that they feel seen. Listen to Good Company on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hi, I'm Sarah Spain, host of Good Game with Sarah Spain and the co-author of the new book Runs in the Family, an incredible true story of football, fatherhood and belonging written with and about Las Vegas Raiders running backs coach Dylan McCullough. It's the story of a football coach and father of four who sees his life forever changed

by the unsealing of his adoption records. And it's got a twist you won't believe. Based on the viral ESPN story I did a few years ago, this book will blow your mind and bring you to tears. Buy runs in the family wherever books are sold. This is an iHeart Podcast.