After putting Mat Ishbia on the same path as Donald Sterling, Stephen A. Smith apologized to the Phoenix Suns owner.
Earlier this week, Smith watched the Suns miss the playoffs despite having the highest payroll in the NBA, before proceeding to fire their third head coach in three years and determined Ishbia is on the verge of becoming the worst owner in NBA history.
“Mat Ishbia needs to understand that right now you are on the verge of being recognized as the worst owner in the history of basketball,” Smith claimed. “That’s saying a lot. Donald Sterling once owned an NBA franchise. James Dolan, until he recently hired Leon Rose, was on that trajectory. That’s the trajectory that you are on right now. Being recognized as arguably the worst owner in the history of basketball.”
Ishbia was asked about Smith’s rant while meeting with the media Thursday morning and the Suns owner said he expects an apology from the ESPN host, noting he doesn’t deserve to be named with owners who have been kicked out of the league.
Friday morning, Smith agreed with Ishbia, and issued an apology on First Take.
“Mat Ishbia is absolutely right. I do owe him an apology, because I mentioned Donald Sterling,” Smith acknowledged. “I thought I was making it clear I was talking about basketball. I certainly did not mean to compare him to a person that was thrown out of this league and has been widely recognized as a racist. I should not have mentioned Mat Ishbia’s name in the same breath as Donald Sterling in that regard. I did not mean to do that. I was not talking about that Donald Sterling.
“I was talking about the Donald Sterling that would be sitting courtside, heckling his own damn players and never winning anything and didn’t give a damn. That’s the Donald Sterling I was talking about in terms of how ineffective he was as an owner on the basketball court. I certainly did not mean to do that, so Mat Ishbia is absolutely right and for that I apologize. I’m a man, if I’m wrong, I’ll say I’m wrong. Unfortunately, for you, sir, that’s the only thing I’m wrong about.”
It may have been the only thing Smith was wrong about, but it was a big one. When Sterling’s name is mentioned as a bad owner, no one thinks about it from a basketball operations perspective, they think about the racist recordings that got him banned from the NBA.
In 2014, Sterling was banned from the NBA for life after a recording emerged of him making racist remarks. And in 2022, then-Phoenix Suns owner Robert Sarver was fined $10 million dollars and suspended a full year following an investigation into allegations that he repeatedly used racist and misogynistic language. Shortly after the investigation, Sarver sold the Suns to Ishbia.
There are plenty of things Smith can rightfully criticize Mat Ishbia for. He purchased a team that was one season removed from making the NBA Finals in 2021 and quickly erased their draft capital while plunging them into salary cap hell. But he doesn’t deserve to be mentioned in the same sentence with Sterling or Sarver. Credit Smith for recognizing the misstep and issuing a strong apology.