The problem with having a spat with a high-profile commentator is that they’ll always have a microphone in front of them to respond.
We’re officially onto Round 3 of the Stephen A. Smith-Josh Hart beef after Smith responded to the Knicks star’s comments that were in response to Smith originally calling out Hart for remarks about Mikal Bridges.
Got all that?
Let’s pick up this story Thursday night, with Smith, the ESPN talking head, responding to Hart calling him a “part-time Knicks fan” and telling him to “shut the hell up.”
“What did I say about the New York Knicks that requires me to know anybody?” Smith said on his titular YouTube show. “First of all, you don’t know who I know. Secondly, you don’t know who talks to me. Thirdly, you don’t even know how close I am to the people that cut your checks, Josh Hart.
“Clearly you haven’t done your homework, but that’s neither here nor there because I like Josh Hart. I got news for you, Josh Hart: I like Mikal Bridges too. I think Mikal Bridges can play. I think he deserved every penny of the $150 million he got. What I’m upset about is the seven picks that were given up to get him.”
Bridges and the astronomical cost to acquire him in a trade — five first-round selections, a pick swap and a second-round pick — are the root of this media vs. athlete back and forth.
Hart defended Bridges — whose play has come under fire this year — to The Post, saying his former Villanova teammate is fulfilling his role.
Bridges is averaging 14.7 points this year, down from 17.6 last year and his worst mark since the 2021-22 season.
“Last year, he didn’t have many plays called for him. This year, he probably has even less plays called for him,” Hart said recently. “So obviously there’s a mental hurdle he needs to get through and that’s something where some of us can help him. I think he gets some of that unfair flak just because he’s doing what’s asked of him. And if we were to sit there and say, go shoot 15 shots a game, he would be efficient and he could do it. But that’s not what’s been asked of him.”
Smith then went after Hart on Tuesday on “First Take.”
“I need Josh Hart to be quiet,” Smith said. “Sit down. The only time I want you standing up and talking is if you’re playing. Not when it comes to Mikal Bridges. You need to stand down.
“(He cost) seven picks. Seven. For a dude that can’t even give you 10 points per game (lately)? That’s unacceptable. I know Mikal Bridges is better than this. I know he’s going through a slump right now. …They brought you here for more than that with the assets they gave up.”
Hart responded by calling out Smith’s fandom.
“For me, Stephen A., as a part-time Knicks fan, needs to shut the hell up,” Hart said Thursday. “He barely knows guys that’s on the team.”
Smith defended his fandom Thursday note, saying he’s been a Knicks fan since the age of 3 — 24 years before Hart’s birth.
“You’re a Knick now,” Smith said. “Were you always a Knick?
“When you’re long gone from being a New York Knick, I’ll still be a Knicks fan. I’m not satisfied because the New York Knicks haven’t won a championship since 1973.”
Smith continued to drive home the point that the Bridges’ argument ties back to the acquisition cost, not the player.
Said Smith: “Those are assets you could have had with you and Mikal Bridges and Jalen Brunson and the crew in order to win a championship.”
