Nick Wright Accuses Stephen A. Smith Of 'Utter, Complete Fantasy'
It's rare enough to see sports media figures at major networks talking about their counterparts at other networks. But ESPN's Stephen A. Smith has always enjoyed doing things that others won't.
Recently, Smith went after FOX Sports' Nick Wright, seemingly accusing Wright of being biased in his war of words with Jaylen Brown due to Wright's ties to Klutch Sports. Smith has been at odds with the LeBron James-controlled sports agency for a while.
But Wright refused to take the insult laying down. On a recent episode of his What's Wright podcast, Wright admonished Smith for making such an accusation, stating that he prides himself on being honest and open about any biases and connections that he has.
He called Smith's accusations a "complete and utter fantasy" said that he didn't appreciate Smith trying to make "veiled threats" with his comments about having secrets of Wright's or Brown's that he can expose.
"I have spent my entire career building what I do think is a rather pristine reputation for honesty with the audience, for openness about what biases I may or may not have, and for not coming to any discussion without all my cards on the table," Wright said.
https://www.youtube.com/live/aHvnasolIUw?si=zJhr200ybnvgROmV
"And I've managed to do it without having one of my go-to moves be, what at least I think a lot of the audience perceives as veiled threats for anyone who comes back at me, about having kompromat that I could come back with at any time. So I don't take that sh*t lightly."
Wright vs. Smith
Wright further stated that he understands that it can be uncomfortable for people in sports media to be called out by other members of sports media like that.
"For a number of reasons, there are not many people in the space that feel comfortable calling out what they perceive to be bad actions by contemporaries in the space," Wright said. "And I think the playbook that I felt Stephen A. was running on Jaylen Brown was unfair to Jaylen Brown. I don't know Jaylen Brown, I've never talked to Jaylen Brown … but I thought it was bullsh*t what happened to him."
Ultimately, he said that he hopes Smith retracts or apologizes for what he said but does not expect it to happen.
"So I'll be waiting. I won't be holding my breath," he said. "But an apology or a retraction or a clarification, I think, is deserved. We'll wait and see if I get it."
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This story was originally published May 26, 2026 at 12:20 PM.