Stephen A. Smith is pulling the “Do you know who I am?” card in response to Josh Hart.
The ESPN personality Smith was on the receiving end of some brutal shade this week by the New York Knicks swingman Hart. In response to Smith’s latest harsh comments about the Knicks, Hart ripped Smith for being a “part-time Knicks fan” and told Smith to “shut the hell up” (see his full remarks here).
On Friday, it was Smith’s turn to fire back at Hart … with an incredibly lame response. Speaking during the latest episode of his self-titled podcast, Smith went on a nearly four-minute rant listing off his credentials and his history as a Knicks fan. Smith then eventually warned Hart that he is close with the people who sign Hart’s paychecks.
“First of all, you don’t who I know,” said Smith. “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.”
Here is the full video of Smith’s rant.
Stephen A Smith responds to Josh Hart
— Fullcourtpass (@Fullcourtpass) March 27, 2026
“You don’t even know how close I am to the people who cut your checks… I have been a Knicks fan since I was 3, that would be 24 years before you were even born.”
(h/t @NBA__Courtside) pic.twitter.com/fulZfwl6lK
For one, it does not matter at all how close Smith is to the higher-ups in New York. Hart’s contract with the Knicks is fully guaranteed (though he does have a team option for 2027-28), and his money certainly will not be in any jeopardy just because he is mean to Stephen A. Smith.
For another, the longtime Knicks fan Smith did not really address Hart’s primary criticism of him — that Smith does not watch enough Knicks games these days to be able to give educated takes about the team. That much has already effectively been confirmed by some of the humiliating mistakes that Smith has made on the air about the Knicks in recent years.
