Stephen A. Smith is never shy about making his opinions known.
On Thursday, the ESPN analyst chimed in on the Ime Udoka situation in Boston. He called out what he feels is a racial double standard in the expected one-year suspension for the Celtics head coach.
“There’s plenty of white folks in professional sports that’s doing their thing. And I say that not complimentary,” he said on First Take. “I don’t see the information out about them. Why are we talking about this guy? It ain’t none of our damn business. It should’ve never been put out there by the Celtics organization.”
Udoka reportedly had an “improper intimate and consensual relationship” with a female member of the Celtics staff. His actions were deemed a violation of franchise’s code of conduct.
The second-year head coach is expected to be suspended for the entire 2022-23 season. An official announcement is expected later this afternoon, per Adrian Wojnarowski.
Smith isn’t the only person to point out this double standard.
“The way they hyping this Ime Udoka situation you’d think he stole 5 mill in welfare funds from Mississippi,” one fan wrote in reference to the recent welfare-fraud scandal involving former NFL quarterback Brett Favre.
“If you are more upset about Ime Udoka and the Celtics situation than Brett Favre STEALING MILLIONS IN WELFARE MONEY FROM THE POOREST PEOPLE IN OUR COUNTRY IN MISSISSIPPI then you are part of the problem,” ESPN analyst Robert Griffin III added.
In his first season as an NBA head coach, Udoka led the Celtics to a Finals appearance.