Kendrick Lamar, Stephen A. Smith and Serena Williams.
By Ben Axelrod on

While not everybody seemed to understand Kendrick Lamar’s performance during the Super Bowl LIV halftime show, those who did get it especially enjoyed Serena Williams’ cameo.

For the uninitiated, Lamar’s performance built to hit song “Not Like Us,” which doubles as a diss track directed at rival rapper, Drake. And in the middle of his performance of the Grammy Awards’ reigning Record of the Year — which both explicitly and implicitly accuses Drake of being a pedophile — Williams could be seen crip-walking to the song in an apparent nod to her and Lamar’s shared Compton roots.

As is often the case in such situations, Williams’ cameo was hardly a coincidence. As many were quick to point out, the 39-time majors winner was previously romantically linked to Drake, who has alluded to their past relationship in several of his own songs.

But while ESPN’s Molly Qerim made it clear that she was a big fan of Williams’ surprise appearance in New Orleans on Sunday, the same couldn’t be said of her First Take co-host. Rather, Stephen A. Smith took issue with the 23-time Grand Slam champion’s cameo, noting that while she may have previously dated Drake, she’s been married to Alexis Ohanian since 2017.

“If I’m married and my wife is going to join trolling her ex, go back to his ass. ‘Cause clearly you don’t belong with me,” Smith said on Monday’s episode of First Take. “What you worried about him for and you’re with me? Bye. Bye.”

Qerim was quick to defend Williams’ participation in the performance, as was Ryan Clark.

“If you were with Serena Williams, you’re going to be a kept man anyways,” Clark responded. “Don’t start that.”

“Really? You sure about that?” Smith replied with a knowing smile.

Meanwhile, Shannon Sharpe jumped in to point out that Ohanian is hardly a slouch, as the founder of Reddit lays claim to a reported net worth of $150 million.

“I think Alex is doing pretty well,” the Hall of Fame tight end said. “You know he founded Reddit and he sold Reddit for a good chunk of change. I think he OK.”

As for Dan Orlovsky, the former NFL quarterback (and pending sports media free agent) was unsurprisingly unaware that Williams had previously dated Drake in the first place.

For what it’s worth, both Williams and Ohanian took to social media to celebrate the performance on Sunday. So while Smith may not have enjoyed it if he was married to Williams, the same can’t be said for her actual husband, who appears to be much more secure in their marriage than the ESPN star would be.

About Ben Axelrod

Ben Axelrod is a veteran of the sports media landscape, having most recently worked for NBC's Cleveland affiliate, WKYC. Prior to his time in Cleveland, he covered Ohio State football and the Big Ten for outlets including Cox Media Group, Bleacher Report, Scout and Rivals.

View all posts by Ben Axelrod