Kevin Durant and the Golden State Warriors won an NBA title on Monday night, and that means Stephen A. Smith owed an apology to someone very special to Durant: his mother. Smith, who called Durant arrogant and disrespectful, was given the business by Kevin’s mother after the Warriors won it all.
Wanda Durant defended her son against Smith’s criticisms earlier in the Finals, and on Tuesday she joined ESPN’s First Take and received an apology from the Crab Rangoon King himself.
Ever the proud mother, Wanda appeared on First Take wearing a championship shirt to face her foe on national television. She was then given the first chance to speak, and she didn’t disappoint.
“If I had a mic I would drop it,” Wanda said. “It’s over. My son said it last night. He said it.”
“Just read my shirt,” Wanda continued. “It says it all.”
As the Oakland crowd cheered and some in the audience said “get him, momma,” Smith finally spoke.
“Now let me say this, first of all we started off the show in obvious appropriate fashion — your son is a champion, he deserves props for that,” Smith said.
Smith continued:
Now keep in mind I did say he would be the MVP and he showed up. Now you got in me because I said the move to go to Golden State was weak, but momma Durant I have to say this to you — I still sit up there and say ‘I don’t back off that statement’ because the reason I made the statement.
It was then that a very pointed “BOOOO” came from the crowd, which was hilarious. But Smith continued.
“He’s so great,” Smith continued. “He’s so great. Joining that team to me was almost unfair. And we’ve witnessed his greatness and seen how lopsided it made things. That’s all.”
Wanda had a rebuttal to the “lopsided” comment, saying her son is “one player.”
The two agreed that Durant is “phenomenal” and Wanda Durant held her own, pointing out major stars making moves like LeBron James going to Miami. She meant to say Kevin Garnett joining Paul Pierce in Boston, though she said Pierce instead.
The point remains, this isn’t the first time a great player has found a new team, it just happens to be the rare time one of the greatest players joined the best team.
The crowd was on Wanda’s side the entire segment, chanting her name and just generally ready to support anything she says over Stephen A. Smith. But things calmed down when Smith clarified his thoughts on Durant and his role as a commentator on the league.
Being in this position, being somebody that speaks and commentate and we talk about guys a lot of times. Let’s talk about Kevin Durant in this respect: always a model citizen. Always class. Always conducts himself right. Always an elite player and now he’s a champion. So I just want to be clear, while momma Durant is sitting across from me, my issue is competition. My issue is ‘oh my goodness somebody tipping the scales.’
Under no circumstance is there anything, and I mean anything, else to say remotely negative about your son not just as a basketball player but as a person. And I just want to make sure you understood that’s exactly how I feel about him. I always have, I’ve always been consistent about that, and that will never change.
Durant’s mother was clear that she doesn’t think Durant joining the Warriors makes his first title less valuable than others.
“I don’t think it’s fair to minimize what Kevin offers Golden State and what they offer him,” Wanda said. “To say that it was the weakest move in NBA history, I think you’re wrong. You’re too harsh.”
She did, however, thank Smith for his kind words about Durant’s character. The back and forth continued before the crowd got back into it, asking Smith to “say you’re sorry” to momma Durant.
“For you,” Smith said. “I’m sorry.”
The two then held hands, the crowd cheered, and all was right with the universe once more.
