Stephen A. Smith slams Trump for ‘low IQ’ comments — and claims President ‘messed things up’ for Knicks
Stephen A. Smith and President Donald Trump continue to have words with each other.
On Tuesday morning’s segment of “First Take,” Smith blasted the President after he said the famous ESPN host wouldn’t be a good fit for President in 2028 and said he has a “low IQ.”
“Our President showed up to New York City last night … and needless to say, what I feared would happen ended up happening: The New York Knicks lost,” Smith said on the show Tuesday, mainly ignoring comments about his IQ for now. “Obviously I’m blaming him … The President disrupted our mojo. I’ve said this on many occasions over the last 24 hours and I am saying it again, ‘The man messed things up.’”
President Trump attended the Knicks’ 115-111 loss to the Spurs in Game 3 of the NBA Finals on Monday nigh at Madison Square Garden, and following the game he shredded Smith’s intelligence after the ESPNer was critical of Trump’s polarizing decision to attend the contest.
“I think he’s (Smith) a nice guy, but you need a certain aptitude to run for president,” Trump said of Smith, who had flirted with the idea of running for President in 2028.
“You need a high IQ, and I’m not sure Stephen has that.”
Trump’s remarks also come after Smith said he would blame the President if the Knicks lost Game 3 and after he said Trump would pose a distraction coming to Madison Square Garden.
“This president has no business showing up in New York City. I am dead serious,” Smith said on “First Take” on Monday morning. “It is selfish. It is narcissistic. It is ridiculous that he is coming to this game.”
Trump arrived at the Garden minutes before tipoff and sat in a suite with Knicks owner James Dolan, several members of his cabinet and his granddaughter Kai Trump.
The suite was surrounded by protective glass and at the back of the arena’s lower bowl, and Trump was loudly booed by the MSG crowd.
He became the first sitting president to attend an NBA Finals game, saluted NYPD officers carrying the American flag during the national anthem and received boos when introduced on the Jumbotron.
MSG tightened security ahead of Trump’s appearance, with fans being asked to get to the arena two hours early and the watch party outside of MSGbeing canceled.
After taking a 2-0 series lead and capturing momentum in San Antonio, the Knicks fell short Monday against the Spurs, scoring just 47 second-half points.
Spurs star Victor Wembanyama stole the show, scoring 32 points on 11-of-18 shooting with two 3-pointers. Stephon Castle added 23 points.
The Knicks and Spurs play Game 4 Wednesday night at 8:30 p.m. ET, where the Knicks have the chance to go up 3-1 while the Spurs can tie the series at 2-2..
