According to Jason Whitlock, Stephen A. Smith just “very politely played the race card.”
The ESPN host of “First Take” told Clay Travis that he deserves to be the network’s highest-paid personality, and if he isn’t, he could take his talents elsewhere.
Smith currently makes $12 million a year from the five-year, $60 million deal he signed in late 2019.
However, commentators like Joe Buck, Troy Aikman, and Pat McAfee make more — and Smith isn’t happy about that.
“Is it important to you, based on the way the first time ended at ESPN, that you are the highest-paid person on ESPN given the work that you’re doing for them? Do you think that should be the case?” Travis asked Smith.
“Yes,” Smith responded.
“I’m not stuttering. Hell yes, that’s absolutely true.”
“Now,” he continued, “I respect the fact if they feel differently. It’s not going to be animosity, it’s not going to be something where I’m looking at them and I feel like I got screwed; it’s a business.”
While he claims he wouldn’t be upset, he lets Travis know that he’s been “number one for 12 years come April 1” and that not only has he been number one every year, but number one every week and every month.
“I’m not just a talent. I’m a business,” he added.
Smith has launched his own YouTube channel with the intent of going his own way if he needs to, and Whitlock believes that if ESPN fails to pay up, Smith has the guts to do it his own way.
“Stephen A. is willing to play that game with YouTube,” Whitlock says. “He’ll support the vaccine, he’ll support whatever he’s supposed to support to get YouTube success.”
“But all this beat-his-chest, I’m-number-one,” Whitlock continues.
“There’s a lot of guys with strong followings, and Stephen A., his level of expertise on sports is just so weak that I’m not sure if he could topple a lot of these guys that already got a head start on him.”
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