Stephen A. Smith forgot Golden State Warriors made playoffs last year

Stephen A. Smith might not be a Golden State Warriors expert; he plays one on TV.

Most NBA fans have watched the Warriors in the NBA playoffs quite a bit in recent years. But apparently, Stephen A. Smith hasn’t watched them in the playoffs since 2022.

On Monday morning on First Take, Smith discussed whether Steve Kerr has coached his last game with the Warriors after the team fell short in the play-in tournament this season, potentially ending a historic tenure. And while attempting to make his case, Smith severely undervalued Kerr’s recent seasons in Golden State.

“He’s a four-time champion who’s been to an NBA Finals six [times],” Smith aptly noted of Kerr. “Now, they haven’t been back to the playoffs since that championship in 2022. That’s four years away from the playoffs. And again, you can pay guys a lot less than $17 million a year to miss the playoffs.”

The glaring issue with that statement is the fact that the Warriors were in the playoffs last season. And not only were they in the playoffs, but they also won a round! Similarly, Golden State advanced to the playoffs in 2023, winning a first-round matchup with the Sacramento Kings before falling to the Lakers. They may not have been championship favorites or even contenders, but the Golden State Warriors have made two playoff runs with Steve Kerr in recent seasons.

Smith was on screen with Brian Windhorst for the segment, who surely recalls the Warriors being in the playoffs multiple times since their last championship in 2022. Windhorst, however, seemingly didn’t find a spot to interject.

After Smith completed his soliloquy, Shae Cornette chimed in to note, “the Warriors missed the playoffs for the second time in the last three seasons” as more of a transition statement than a correction. However, it still served a purpose, even if it didn’t acknowledge the mistake. A mistake that may not have been as big as forgetting Steph Curry is a top-10 NBA guard, but blatantly forgetting two recent playoff runs was still a notable blunder.

Sports fans have grown to expect these types of mistakes from Smith in other sports, who estimates he gives over 3,000 takes a year and close to 50,000 in his career. With numbers like that, he’s bound to have some gaffes. But the NBA is supposed to be his bread and butter. And knowing that the Golden State Warriors won a round in the playoffs just last season seems like a reasonable expectation.

Smith often boasts about his NBA expertise and know-how. Although some NBA fans will point to Smith playing Solitaire during the Finals, they question how much he actually loves the sport. Unfortunately for Smith, a simple mistake like forgetting the Warriors have been to the playoffs twice in recent years will do little to negate that narrative.