Stephen A. Smith is certainly known for his ability to dish out hot takes. The man has said some pretty outlandish things over the years but he still gets all of the ratings. For some, he is a detriment to sports conversation while in the eyes of others, he is the best in the business. He is someone who is incredibly entertaining and you cannot deny his ability to shine on TV.
Today on First Take, Smith debated Steph Curry's contributions to the game of basketball and whether or not he made the sport worse by ushering in the three-point era. In Smith's estimation, Curry actually helped elevate the game. However, Smith believes the game was made worse by someone, and that person just so happens to be Michael Jordan.
Rachel Luna/Getty Images
“Michael Jordan is responsible, as much as anybody, for changing the game for the worse," Smith said. The justification for this take was actually quite interesting. He notes that MJ ushered in the era of individuality and that as a result, players stopped treating basketball like a team sport. Smith thinks that if it weren't for Jordan, the game would still be like it was in the 80s, which is arguably a better product than what we have now.
Smith finished by saying that he has accepted the current state of the game, however, there are certainly people out there who feel like basketball is a lot worse for wear than it used to be.
Let us know what you think of Smith's take, in the comments below.