Stephen A. Smith turned his barrel towards LeBron James again. The Akron Hammer made an innocent admission. He finds Memphis boring and wishes they had moved to Nashville. He said it during a relaxing golf session. Yet, Smith turned it into something very serious. The ESPN analyst said James’ comments didn’t take Memphis citizens into account.

Matt Barnes wasn’t staying silent after those egregious comments. The former Memphis Grizzlies forward turned the tables around on Stephen A. Smith. Barnes shed light on the analyst’s past behavior, where he did the same thing that he is accusing LeBron James of.

“You’re talking about his words and what they mean to the Black community. But you’ve been the same man in front of the camera for the last handful of months, disrespecting Serena Williams, disrespecting Jasmine Crockett, disrespecting Kamala Harris, and tap dancing for the whole Republican Party, the whole white Republican Party,” Barnes said in his heated response.

Reddit founder Alexis Ohanian, husband of tennis legend Serena Williams, even confronted Stephen A. Smith for his comments against their marriage.

Criticising LeBron James for something this naïve felt forceful. The four-time NBA champion wasn’t having a genuine business conversation. It was a light-hearted moment of honesty. He’s been in the league for 23 years, making countless trips to different cities. Some will stand out, others won’t as much. That’s the natural order when players are travelling to different places every other week.

In doing so, Stephen A. Smith is damaging his own reputation. He’s already had a rift with LeBron James. Now, even Matt Barnes appears to be at odds with the way Smith is moving. He admitted he still has “love” for the ESPN analyst. At the same time, he can’t ignore his recent actions.

Memphis Grizzlies’ future tied to arena renovation

Since it all started with the Grizzlies, let’s talk about their future. The Grizzlies have been tied to the city since 2012. Robert Pera, the owner of the team, hasn’t spoken about wanting to relocate the team. However, there is a possibility that it happens. That is, if the team doesn’t renew its arena lease for the FedExForum.

Their agreement runs till 2029. But the government has been pushing to sign a new lease in order to begin renovations. The figure required stands at $550 million, which would be raised through public funding. As of right now, the Grizzlies haven’t acted, although the ball is virtually in their court.

Memphis’ mayor has spoken about wanting the Grizzlies to stay. Moreover, even FedEx executive, Richard Smith, is confident the team won’t move.

But it can’t be said for certain unless the Memphis Grizzlies extend their lease. That would be the sign of confidence that they are willing to stay. This comes amidst a horrific 2025-26 regular season, where the team ranks as an 11 seed in the West. They’ve won just 25 games this season.

This isn’t to say the Grizzlies will move. During the All-Star press conference, Adam Silver said relocating any team isn’t on the table right now. With time till 2029, the Grizzlies have time to sign a new lease. But even Barnes suggested the city needs to do better.

“I played in Memphis, got a lot of love for the city. But there’s no doubt that the city needs to upgrade when it comes to its facilities for pro players,” Barnes said in the same video.

There’s no fear of moving at the moment. But there’s a sense of urgency from the city to act to prevent the organization from moving someplace else.