Right after a historic ticker-tape parade, it was time for the New York Knicks to pull the receipts and collect the debts. There was no better way to do it than a live recording of the Roommates Show, where Jalen Brunson and Josh Hart got their ‘dream’ guest. The newly crowned NBA champions brought out ESPN veteran, lifelong Knicks fan and the team’s sternest critic, Stephen A. Smith, for one explicit purpose- to demand a public apology for years of skeptical takes.

With the Larry O’Brien trophy sitting proudly between them, Hart led the charge, bringing up past criticisms that dated all the way back to their collegiate days at Villanova up through their recent championship run. “I had some receipts,” Hart began, wasting no time setting the stage.

“Fortunately, I was able to win a national championship in 2016. Yeah, Go Cats. I think on that run, obviously, we had Jalen Brunson, Mikal Bridges, myself, and I think, you know, there’s not word for word, but I think the quote was, ‘They don’t have any real NBA prospects on that team.’ So, I think we had that.”

Hart then pivoted to the present day, recalling a mid-season slump where Smith took a direct shot at their teammate Mikal Bridges.

“Obviously, that’s my dog, so I come to his defense. I think you might have told me to be the hell quiet and shut up and go somewhere. But we are now sitting here with that golden trophy right there to your right… Can you sit here and admit that you were wrong?”

When Smith playfully pretended he couldn’t hear the question, Brunson stepped in with a definitive, one-word directive: “Apologize!”

This one hit different from the apology when Brunson was on ESPN, on Smith’s turf. The veteran ESPN analyst didn’t hesitate to give the championship duo exactly what they wanted.

“I’m a grown a– man. I was beyond wrong,” Smith conceded openly. and dare we say, with a little pride.

“I apologize to this brother on national television. I’m apologizing to you. I’m apologizing to the entire Knicks organization. Let me be very, very clear. I have never been more happy to be wrong in my life.”

Draymond Green had already folded earlier in the playoffs, apologizing for doubting him. Shaquille O’Neal owned up to underestimating the Knicks too, and Paul Pierce spent months publicly eating the words he’d served up about New York’s title odds.

But Smith’s mea culpa hit different: Green and Shaq cracked on neutral ground. Smith cracked on the duo’s own podcast, staring down the exact players he’d spent years counting out. (Becky Hammon, the Aces coach who doubled down on her doubts even after the East finals, may be the last holdout.)

Even the hosts approved it finally because the podcast’s official X page later tweeted, “The Stephen A apology was peak 🤣”

Stephen A. Smith reveals the root cause of criticizing Jalen Brunson

Stephen A. Smith’s dramatic, public U-turn comes after a turbulent season of vocal, historically rooted skepticism about these New York Knicks. To fully explain his premature doubts, the 58-year-old analyst recounted decades of heartbreak he’s endured as a Knicks fan.

Smith was only four years old the last time New York won a title prior to this past Saturday. He’s not experienced the excitement of the 1970s and 1973. Most New Yorkers didn’t either, because there was no parade both times due to budget cuts.

As an analyst following the Knicks, SAS witnessed all the draft misses, such as skipping Stephen Curry in 2009 and failing to secure Zion Williamson or Ja Morant in 2019, as well as the heartbreak of the 1994 and 1999 NBA Finals losses.

The boiling point that triggered his viral mid-playoff rant happened weeks earlier was when the Knicks found themselves trailing.

“The playoffs come and y’all down 2-1 to the Atlanta Hawks. I was about to have a stroke,” Smith explained.

Detailing the immense anxiety of a lifelong fan watching history seemingly repeat itself. In subtle terms, Smith implied he did what he had to do to get Brunson & Co. motivated.

“So, I went there and I said what the hell I said. And damn it, after that, I ain’t taking credit, y’all deserve the credit, but y’all went 13 and 0. 13-0.”

While on the outside New York’s gritty, defensive resurgence was a result of tuning out the noise, Josh Hart admitted that he does take criticism towards his teammates like Brunson personally. Clearly Smith’s panic fuelled the core of the roster to prove critics wrong.

Ultimately, the legendary 13-game win streak completely erased the deficit and powered the franchise straight to the title.

For Stephen A. Smith, eating a slice of humble pie in front of a crowded auditorium of New Yorkers was a small price to pay to see his beloved franchise finally break the 53-year drought. And despite that apology, Stephen A. proved he’s not a new man.

“If it means another championship,” Smith told Hart and Brunson, “I’d do it again.”