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Speaker 1: love and support y'all. Thank you so much. Let's get
Speaker 1: started with the latest in Los Angeles, California, where tensions
Speaker 1: are escalating to a fourth day after protest against immigration
Speaker 1: and Customs enforcement better known as ICE. Demonstrators and police
Speaker 1: faced off and scattered protests in downtown LA has. More
Speaker 1: than one hundred people were arrested just last night. According
Speaker 1: to Mayor Karen Bass, damage to the area appears to
Speaker 1: be limited to a portion of downtown, while most of
Speaker 1: the city has not been affected by the protest at all. Meanwhile,
Speaker 1: President Trump has now deployed four thousand National guardsmen and
Speaker 1: now marines to Los Angeles as well. All this while
Speaker 1: Governor Gavin Newsom is suing the administration saying they unlawfully
Speaker 1: trampled over California's sovereignty when they federalized the state National Guard. Meanwhile,
Speaker 1: Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth went to Capitol Hill today to
Speaker 1: address the overall cost of sending troops to southern California. However,
Speaker 1: Hegseth repeatedly did not answer questions about the court or
Speaker 1: what resources were being taken away in other areas to
Speaker 1: send troops to LA. First things first, that's both. You
Speaker 1: get some in the Capitol Hill. You're the Defense Secretary
Speaker 1: of the United States of America. You're in front of
Speaker 1: representatives who control our budget, the legislating body that controls
Speaker 1: our budget. They ask you a damn question about what
Speaker 1: it costs. You're supposed to have the answers, supposed to
Speaker 1: have the answers. You're supposed to be willing to answer
Speaker 1: those damned questions. That's BS. Let's get that out the way. Secondly,
Speaker 1: I'm gonna have my man, Kevin Fraser on in just
Speaker 1: a few minutes, who is a Los Angeles resident. He's
Speaker 1: a host for entertainment tonight, and obviously he's been on
Speaker 1: the ground on the scene throughout this ordeal because it's
Speaker 1: right in his area. He lives there, so he would know.
Speaker 1: Soh what's truth and what's falsehood as it pertains to
Speaker 1: several things. Number one, was it really really necessary to
Speaker 1: send two thousand National guardsmen initially. Was it really really
Speaker 1: necessary to send an additional two thousand Was it really
Speaker 1: necessary to send seven hundred marines? Is this all pomp
Speaker 1: and circumstance or are things really really that bad that
Speaker 1: we have to prioritize making sure federal properties, federal buildings, etc.
Speaker 1: Are protected? And Donald Trump is doing the right thing
Speaker 1: by taking this kind of stands. We have to look
Speaker 1: at Democrats when it comes to the leadership, that of
Speaker 1: Governor Gavin Newsom or Mayor Karen Bass. Less about Bass,
Speaker 1: more about Newsom. Let's get the Bass first. It's Los Angeles.
Speaker 1: You know, we've seen riots there before. We understand how
Speaker 1: things can go down, and so engaging in preventative measures.
Speaker 1: I don't know how awful that is for the Trump
Speaker 1: administration to do. If they are honest and open about
Speaker 1: that's why they're doing it, as opposed to giving a
Speaker 1: picture that something is more egregious than it really really is.
Speaker 1: It seems a bit of sensationalism and embellishment is entering
Speaker 1: the equation, at least in some people's eyes. She's saying
Speaker 1: that the LAPD did not need the help of the
Speaker 1: federal government and did not need to help with the
Speaker 1: President and did not need National guardsmen and Marines there.
Speaker 1: All you're doing is exacerbating a situation. My response to
Speaker 1: that would be fair enough, that's a reasonable conclusion. But
Speaker 1: having Marines and a National Guard there shouldn't incite people
Speaker 1: to engage in lawlessness. Even more so, it should be
Speaker 1: a deterrent. And if it's not a deterrent, while the
Speaker 1: Marines and the National guards are there, why are we
Speaker 1: to believe that them not being there would be a deterrent.
Speaker 2: That doesn't make sense to me, mayor Baths. It just doesn't.
Speaker 2: So I don't want to hear that it's exacerbating the situation.
Speaker 2: Lawlessness is lawlessness.
Speaker 1: And if you have law enforcement officials, national guardsmen, US Marines,
Speaker 1: federal participation in the mix, and they believe that this
Speaker 1: is what they need to do, breaking the law doesn't
Speaker 1: cut it. That doesn't mean everybody. That doesn't even mean
Speaker 1: most people are not being peaceful peaceful protesters. But for
Speaker 1: those who are not, who are throwing bricks and stuff
Speaker 1: at the cops, nor arrest there as arrest them, You've
Speaker 1: got no business doing something like that, not to National guardsmen,
Speaker 1: not to US Marines, not to LAPD, not to any
Speaker 1: law enforcement official, you engage your father. Protesting is one thing.
Speaker 1: Peaceful protesting is one thing. Engaging in mayhem, contributing to mayhem,
Speaker 1: Instigating Mayhem is another matter entirely.
Speaker 2: So I wanted to say that.
Speaker 1: Let me get to Gavin Newsom, Sir.
Speaker 2: We kind of see what's going on.
Speaker 1: You know that, right, you're challenging the borders, are Tom
Speaker 1: Homan the arrest you. You're bringing up fourth grade children
Speaker 1: being bothered and what have you. California is a sanctuary state,
Speaker 1: which means there are laws in place for you to
Speaker 1: defy the federal government, a president's order essentially federalizing the
Speaker 1: state National Guard, which is what you're taking the Trump
Speaker 1: administration to court over. Just like you have the right
Speaker 1: to do that. Trump has the right, as President of
Speaker 1: the United States to say I don't like what I'm
Speaker 1: seeing and I feel this is necessary.
Speaker 2: Now.
Speaker 1: Do I believe that's as objective?
Speaker 2: Of course, I don't.
Speaker 1: We heard the arguments over dollars being stripped from medicaid
Speaker 1: and whether there was a debate going on as to
Speaker 1: whether or not that was true or not. We saw
Speaker 1: what was going on between Trump and Elon Musk over
Speaker 1: the last week. We still see the war in Ukraine
Speaker 1: with Russia going on, okay, tariffs, that situation hasn't been
Speaker 1: totally resolved. So if you're Trump, with the midterms a
Speaker 1: year away, and with you not necessarily being the most
Speaker 1: popular individual in the polls, this being a subject that
Speaker 1: you're tackling, which happens to be right in your wheelhouse,
Speaker 1: where most Americans are siding with you in a Republican
Speaker 1: party in this day and age. I mean, boo boo,
Speaker 1: the fool can see why you would want to tackle
Speaker 1: this issue.
Speaker 2: It's a very winnable issue for the Trump administration.
Speaker 1: Nobody's blind, except possibly Gavenouso. Because where it gets interesting
Speaker 1: is that you being a governor of California, you knowing
Speaker 1: about your budget deficits, You knowing about how homelessness in
Speaker 1: the city, although it has decreased somewhat, is being depicted
Speaker 1: over the national airways. You knowing that being a sanctuary state,
Speaker 1: how many immigrants and undocumented immigrants have entered the state
Speaker 1: of California and reside there even though they're taxpayers, even
Speaker 1: though they're hard workers and what have you. And no,
Speaker 1: most of them are not criminals. And the way they're
Speaker 1: being depicted and talked about. Has been very, very egregious,
Speaker 1: no doubt about it. But you exacerbating the situation, not
Speaker 1: in terms of what you're saying, but how you're saying
Speaker 1: it and how you're coming at the president. You're trying
Speaker 1: to tell me that people are not looking at you
Speaker 1: and they're not going to assume you're trying to politicize
Speaker 1: all of this to your advantage, especially since you're due
Speaker 1: to come out of office and you desperately want to
Speaker 1: be a candidate for the election in twenty twenty eight.
Speaker 1: All I'm saying about Gavin Newsom is that I don't
Speaker 1: know how much this is going to work. Republican poster
Speaker 1: with Airs in a Wall Street Journal says, as is
Speaker 1: so often the case, Donald Trump's opponents are playing right
Speaker 1: into his hands, exactly the kind of fight that Donald
Speaker 1: Trump loves. With his opponents carrying Mexican flags past burning cars.
Speaker 1: That's a Republican strategist, We know this. Democrats counted that
Speaker 1: Trump's decision to initially send two thousand members of the
Speaker 1: National Guard into the nation's second largest popular city over
Speaker 1: the weekend only inflame the situation while raising legal issues
Speaker 1: about states rights. The administration on Monday also deployed about
Speaker 1: seven hundred marines to Los Angeles to protect federal property
Speaker 1: and personnel and authorize an additional two thousand National Guard members.
Speaker 1: What are they saying here, are Democratic strategist every day
Speaker 1: that Donald Trump is talking about immigration and now talking
Speaker 1: about kicking thirteen million people off insurance in Medicaid, he
Speaker 1: knows he is winning. He wants to see people standing
Speaker 1: on top of burning cars waiving the Mexican flag. That's
Speaker 1: the exact imagery that can help him overperform in the
Speaker 1: mid term elections. So, whether it's the democra A strategists
Speaker 1: or it's a Republican strategist, they're essentially both saying the
Speaker 1: same thing. This is a winning hand for Donald Trump.
Speaker 1: So maybe, just maybe we need to be a bit
Speaker 1: more judicious and more careful and our verbiage and our
Speaker 1: temperament when we're attacking this issue. Because the next thing
Speaker 1: is Republicans are gonna say is you know they're for lawlessness, right,
Speaker 1: They're gonna show these images, They're gonna say they're for lawlessness.
Speaker 1: Folks are gonna buy at hook line and Sinker and
Speaker 1: their issues of safety is going to usurp any other
Speaker 1: concerns they have.
Speaker 2: I'm talking about the voters, and before.
Speaker 1: You know it, them are gonna lose the midterms. They're
Speaker 1: not gonna regate any seats in the House of the Senate,
Speaker 1: and Trump will be able to operate with relative impunity.
Speaker 1: To twenty twenty eight. I'm sitting here months after the election,
Speaker 1: seeing what's transpiring in Los Angeles, still waiting for the Democrats,
Speaker 1: in this case Gavin Newsom to show me a strategy
Speaker 1: that's going to work. Still waiting, that's my opinion, But
Speaker 1: obviously there are opinions that matter more than mine, And
Speaker 1: in this case, it'll be my next guest, who happens
Speaker 1: to be a Los Angelean. He lives there. He's been
Speaker 1: right there in the streets, drove down to the riots,
Speaker 1: the quote unquote riots last night. How do I notice
Speaker 1: because I was on the phone with him right before
Speaker 1: he decided to hop off the phone to get in
Speaker 1: his car to go there. I'm talking about the host
Speaker 1: for entertainment tonight, one of my best friends in the world.
Speaker 1: I've known him many many years, and he's a contributor
Speaker 1: to this show, the one and only Kevin Frazer for
Speaker 1: entertainment tonight, he had to talk about what's going on?
Speaker 2: What's going on?
Speaker 1: Man? What is going on in Los Angeles, California. We
Speaker 1: see CNN, we see msmb's, we see Fox News, we
Speaker 1: hear political pundits on both sides of the op telling
Speaker 1: us what's going on? What's really going on in Los Angeles?
Speaker 1: Is it really as bad as it looks?
Speaker 3: That's been the disappointing thing watching national cable news and
Speaker 3: watching the way they have inflated the situation at night.
Speaker 3: Things are getting a little ugly with a few agitators
Speaker 3: that are in a very small sliver of Los Angeles.
Speaker 3: I have to understand, Los Angeles is a large, sprawling city.
Speaker 3: Downtown is a small part of it, and in a
Speaker 3: small part of downtown there are issues. And let me
Speaker 3: put it to you this way. Last night I was
Speaker 3: at the Peacock Theater for the BET Awards. Now you're
Speaker 3: talking about big, major stars moving in and out and
Speaker 3: around the city. There were no problems, there were no issues.
Speaker 3: There was a convention going on in downtown Los Angeles,
Speaker 3: and I was so disturbed by what I saw on
Speaker 3: the national news that I drove up to where the
Speaker 3: protests were going. I drove right up to the police
Speaker 3: barricade and then I turned around.
Speaker 4: What I saw is a lot of youngsters walking around videoing.
Speaker 3: I saw people that had reraffeited all over the place.
Speaker 3: The people who are doing the graffiti and causing any
Speaker 3: damage at all need to go to jail, a sap
Speaker 3: and they needed to put They need to be put
Speaker 3: under the jail. But the narrative that is being sold,
Speaker 3: the narrative that is being pushed out there that La
Speaker 3: is in chaos, that the city is burning, that it
Speaker 3: would have burned down if it wasn't for the President
Speaker 3: sending in troops is a false narrative. And I'm telling
Speaker 3: you that because I've seen it with my own eyes,
Speaker 3: and so it's very bothersome that La.
Speaker 4: Is functioning as normal.
Speaker 3: But I see the national news and on both sides,
Speaker 3: I'm not saying that it's one and not the other.
Speaker 3: On both sides are inflating this situation. And that has
Speaker 3: been horrible.
Speaker 1: And that's the thing that's been driving me crazy about it,
Speaker 1: because I saw Fox News, and you know, naturally, two
Speaker 1: thousand National Truth National Guards have been sent by Trump.
Speaker 1: Seven hundred United States Marines have been sent by Trump,
Speaker 1: and so you think it has twenty seven hundred plus,
Speaker 1: they're say an additional guard guardsmen are going to be
Speaker 1: sent to protect federal property. You see that onslaught of
Speaker 1: troops coming into a major city in the United States
Speaker 1: of America, It would certainly give that impression. And Fox
Speaker 1: News didn't hesitate to do that. But then I look
Speaker 1: around and I see Aaron Burnett and others from CNN
Speaker 1: in their own way doing somewhat the same thing. Why
Speaker 1: are people doing that in your estimation, Kevin, if that's
Speaker 1: not truly what's going on in the.
Speaker 3: City of Los Angeles, Hyeball Steven And if you're watching
Speaker 3: our good friend Stephanie Elam this morning on CNN, she
Speaker 3: has really done a great job of second setting the
Speaker 3: record straight. She was down near the damage. She talked
Speaker 3: about the incredible cleanup that has gone on in Los
Speaker 3: Angeles today in the areas that were affected, how graffiti
Speaker 3: is being wiped away. The biggest problem right now is graffiti,
Speaker 3: and there are agitators out there. They can be arrested.
Speaker 3: I will tell you last night, as I drove around
Speaker 3: at ten thirty pm, there was a large police presence,
Speaker 3: especially around the downtown police station. There was no one
Speaker 3: interacting with those police. There's just a large police presence.
Speaker 3: The police force in Los Angeles is one of the
Speaker 3: nation's largest. They have this situation under control. We heard
Speaker 3: the head of the LA Police Department say that he
Speaker 3: wouldn't have sent in if it was up to him,
Speaker 3: He wouldn't have sent in the National Guard because he
Speaker 3: knows he has more than enough resources. So what is
Speaker 3: happening is is that and you've seen this before, Say
Speaker 3: somewhere floods and the people go to the flood. In
Speaker 3: one neighbor, their house is underwater. A block over they're dry.
Speaker 3: You stand by the house that is underwater. And so
Speaker 3: a small sliver of Los Angeles, and I will say
Speaker 3: this again, a very tiny sliver of Los Angeles a
Speaker 3: three block radius.
Speaker 4: There were issues, but during.
Speaker 3: The daytime there was a peaceful protest in Grant Park
Speaker 3: with many people there.
Speaker 1: But is it possible that it wasn't as big of
Speaker 1: an issue as it's being made out to be because
Speaker 1: of the presence of the National Guard and Marines and
Speaker 1: as a result people Is that possible?
Speaker 3: No, no, no, Before they got there, Before they got there,
Speaker 3: things are tampered off. You have to go back and
Speaker 3: look at you know, when you see these shots of
Speaker 3: chaos and a car burning or something like that, if
Speaker 3: you notice they are interestingly framed shots. Here's all I'm saying.
Speaker 3: Where cars set on fire, was concrete thrown at police
Speaker 3: and other things.
Speaker 4: Horrible. Arrest those people immediately.
Speaker 3: I posted earlier today from the celebrations after the Super
Speaker 3: Bowl in Philadelphia where they took a furniture where they
Speaker 3: took a laundry truck and they stopped it.
Speaker 4: They pulled all of the towels.
Speaker 3: And everything out, and they set it on fire in
Speaker 3: the middle of the street in Philadelphia. It looked like chaos.
Speaker 3: The same thing after Yukon won the men's National championship.
Speaker 3: They were tearing down street lamps and other things. They
Speaker 3: set furniture on fire on the campus. It looks like chaos.
Speaker 3: What we need, and all I'm asking from journalists is
Speaker 3: to give us a clear and honest picture of what's
Speaker 3: going on. If I can walk around there, if I
Speaker 3: can go and get a juice from the juice bar,
Speaker 3: then everything's okay.
Speaker 4: It's we have to stop the graffiti.
Speaker 3: We have to stop the craziness and the agitators that
Speaker 3: are going out at night, but the citizens of LA
Speaker 3: are going about their business everywhere else, So that's all
Speaker 3: they're inflaming the situations.
Speaker 1: I'm gonna ask how Los Angeleans feel about their leadership,
Speaker 1: from Governor Gavin Newsom down to Mayor Karen Bass, because
Speaker 1: Karen Bass was on MSNBC. I saw her last night.
Speaker 2: Saying it's overblown.
Speaker 1: We do not need all of this. But Gavin Newsom
Speaker 1: basically threatened and borders Tom Holman to come and arrest
Speaker 1: them going off about Trump the way that he has.
Speaker 1: Some people believe is political grandstanding. Other people believe it's sincere.
Speaker 1: I would say this keV. As overblown as it may be,
Speaker 1: the reality is that it is not a look.
Speaker 2: It is not a good look.
Speaker 1: If you see folks in Los Angeles walking around with
Speaker 1: flags that ain't American, whether it's Mexican or something else,
Speaker 1: passing by burning cars, you know that's going to be
Speaker 1: something that's utilized by the right. Because Trump has us
Speaker 1: talking about this instead of other issues that we should
Speaker 1: and could have been talking about, seems to be working.
Speaker 2: To his advantage.
Speaker 3: Let me say this, Okay, first of all, there's a
Speaker 3: lot of theatrics in grand standing going on, and can
Speaker 3: the situation get under control, of course, but to villainize
Speaker 3: people because they are carrying a flag of another nation,
Speaker 3: let's think about that.
Speaker 4: Now.
Speaker 3: We don't villainize the police in New York during the
Speaker 3: Saint Patrick's Day Parade if someone is carrying an Irish flag.
Speaker 3: We don't villainize the people at the Puerto Rico Day
Speaker 3: Parade when it is one of New York's great moments.
Speaker 3: And we can't villainize the people who carry around Mexican flags.
Speaker 3: All that is is celebrating your heritage. And that's one
Speaker 3: of the things that America is about, celebrating your heritage.
Speaker 1: So to say the.
Speaker 3: Flags or a problem or other things like that, that's
Speaker 3: crazy talk. Remember where Los Angeles is. Remember that the
Speaker 3: state of California was once let's it go, And so
Speaker 3: to villainize the people.
Speaker 4: Who celebrate their heritage is ridiculous.
Speaker 3: Now to be upset with the people who are causing
Speaker 3: damage and destruction, one arrest them tonight, put them under
Speaker 3: the jail. I have no problem with that. These are
Speaker 3: the wrong people. These are agitators who are coming out
Speaker 3: for different reasons. Besides what the people who are joining
Speaker 3: the peaceful protests are out there for us. And so
Speaker 3: let's not conflate or confuse the two things.
Speaker 1: Got it the city of Los Angeles and your estimation
Speaker 1: standing with Governor Newsom and Mayor Karen Bass or are
Speaker 1: there an abundance of folks that are siding with Trump
Speaker 1: and his position and that of his administration and with
Speaker 1: their stances, how would you say things are looking in
Speaker 1: that regard amongst Los Angeles.
Speaker 4: I'll say this. I'm not a polster, but i will
Speaker 4: tell you this.
Speaker 3: The city of Los Angeles is based on working people.
Speaker 3: This city works because there are working people of all nationalities,
Speaker 3: and many of them Latino that.
Speaker 4: Help keep this city moving.
Speaker 3: When you make those people afraid to go there to
Speaker 3: send their kids to school, afraid to go to work,
Speaker 3: afraid to go and do the essential jobs that they have,
Speaker 3: and that's a problem.
Speaker 4: Because you are crippling the city.
Speaker 3: We are seeing this with farmers all over the country
Speaker 3: who are losing their workers, construction sites who are losing
Speaker 3: their workers. And when people applaud that in American productivity plummets.
Speaker 3: And that's a problem because you're working against our own
Speaker 3: best entry. So look violent criminals, get him out of here.
Speaker 3: People who are doing bad things, get him out of here.
Speaker 3: But there are lots of people who are violent of
Speaker 3: all race, creeds, and color, and so let's just keep
Speaker 3: that in mind before we single out certain people. Is
Speaker 3: President Trump doing what he said he was going to do.
Speaker 3: He is, And I'm not mad at him for doing
Speaker 3: what he said he was going to do. If we
Speaker 3: had a problem with it, we should have gone to
Speaker 3: the polls and.
Speaker 4: Taken care of that.
Speaker 3: And now everyone has to get ready for the midterm elections.
Speaker 1: There you go, Kevin, I will say this, Stephen voted.
Speaker 4: No one voted.
Speaker 3: I don't think anyone voted for him to usurp the Constitution.
Speaker 1: And is that what is believed he's doing.
Speaker 3: The Constitution is there for a reason, and I believe
Speaker 3: that if you are creating laws and things that allow
Speaker 3: you to work around it, through it, or push it
Speaker 3: to a side, then that's a problem because that's the
Speaker 3: most un American thing there is. You know a lot
Speaker 3: of people were upset before and when they were saying
Speaker 3: unconstitutional things were being done on both sides. And if
Speaker 3: you are if you are not following the constitution of
Speaker 3: the law of this land. I have a problem with you.
Speaker 3: I don't care what party you are from. And by
Speaker 3: the way, just like you, I'm disgusted by the way
Speaker 3: the Democratic Party has conducted itself.
Speaker 4: It's been horrible. What they have done to this nation
Speaker 4: is horrible.
Speaker 3: I am disgusted by some of the things that the
Speaker 3: Republican Party is doing right now. What we need is
Speaker 3: we need people who actually care about the people in
Speaker 3: this country and are not putting their self interest first.
Speaker 1: See, I'm gonna stop you right there. We gonna end
Speaker 1: this interview because then the next thing you're gonna say,
Speaker 1: you're gonna try to get me to run agains. See,
Speaker 1: people don't know behind the scenes, even trying to get
Speaker 1: me to run for office, it ain't happening.
Speaker 4: How it talks about Steve.
Speaker 3: We've got a lot of talks about this and we
Speaker 3: and I have said that there has to be a change.
Speaker 3: There has to be a voice that is coming from
Speaker 3: the mall and can see both sides. We can't be
Speaker 3: afraid of each other, or we can't be afraid to
Speaker 3: talk to each other. And one of the things I
Speaker 3: love about this show, and you know why we are
Speaker 3: so close, is because it's about bringing everybody on to
Speaker 3: speak their mind and let them speak their peace. I'm
Speaker 3: not gonna interrupt you. I'm not gonna argue. I'm gonna
Speaker 3: let you speak your piece, and that's what it's about.
Speaker 3: You have to hear the other side to know what
Speaker 3: they're thinking. So in that way, I do think that
Speaker 3: there are things that we are discussing and you need
Speaker 3: to think about, and we'll get into that later.
Speaker 4: There's more of that.
Speaker 1: Maybe I'll be lucky enough to get Gavin Newsom to
Speaker 1: stop running and come on the show. Maybe that'll happen,
Speaker 1: but we'll talk about that.
Speaker 4: I don't think he's running, Steve. I don't think he's running.
Speaker 4: I don't think it's okay.
Speaker 1: Though I understand Kevin Frazer, appreciate you. Man, stay safe
Speaker 1: out there, even though it's not as bad as it's
Speaker 1: trying to be.
Speaker 2: Paid it out to be.
Speaker 1: Y'all spoke to you last night while all of this
Speaker 1: stuff was all over the news. You're like, I'm right
Speaker 1: here in near downtown. I'm absolutely fine. That's what you're saying.
Speaker 1: That's why I had to have you on the day.
Speaker 1: Thanks a lot man be Et Awards.
Speaker 3: Do you think Mariah Carey is gonna come into a
Speaker 3: riot to accept an award.
Speaker 1: That's true, That's true. Appreciate you, bro, thanks a lot, man.
Speaker 1: We'll only give them phrase you right here in the
Speaker 1: House of stephen A. Smith Show. Coming up, the NBA
Speaker 1: Finals head to Endy for Game three with the Pacers
Speaker 1: and Thunders splitting the first two games, which squad has
Speaker 1: the advantage in the series so far. I'll get into that,
Speaker 1: but first some more bars and Roley Gaines get into
Speaker 1: a ward words over the inclusion of transgender athletes in
Speaker 1: women's sports. Rodley Gaines joins me next on the show
Speaker 1: with her side of the story. Stick around. It's boy,
Speaker 1: stephen A in the house. Why would you go any
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Speaker 1: Hey, Hey, run your game. Welcome back to the Steven A.
Speaker 1: Smith Show. My next guest is a former NCAA All
Speaker 1: American swimmer turned conservative pundit who now hosts the Games
Speaker 1: for Girls podcast on OutKick dot com that focuses on
Speaker 1: current events, social issues, and topics related to women's rights
Speaker 1: and gender equity. Please welcome to The Steven A. Smith Show.
Speaker 2: Miss Riley Gaines, Riley Howard you, how's everything?
Speaker 5: I am fantastic, super excited to be on with you today,
Speaker 5: So thanks for the opportunity.
Speaker 1: Please my pleasure, thank you for coming on. Let me
Speaker 1: give the audience some background on the story. Last week,
Speaker 1: a transgender softball pitch in Minnesota named Marissa Rothenberger led
Speaker 1: Champlain Park High School to a state championship. This athlete's
Speaker 1: participation in the girls' softball season was in defiance of
Speaker 1: President Donald Trump's executive order of keeping biological men out
Speaker 1: of women's sports. The high school league removed comments from
Speaker 1: a post showing the winners of a softball state championship.
Speaker 1: So I know you reacted to that. I want to
Speaker 1: know what was your reaction when you saw all of that.
Speaker 1: Could you remind how audience of what it was?
Speaker 6: Absolutely? Well, this was about two weeks ago at this point.
Speaker 5: Understand that week we saw in five different states California, Washington, Oregon, Maine,
Speaker 5: and Minnesota, boys take qualifying spots, state championships or podium
Speaker 5: spots from deserving girls. This case of Minnesota that you're
Speaker 5: referring to, this was a boy who pitched five games straight,
Speaker 5: thirty five consecutive innings, only two runs. Of those thirty
Speaker 5: five innings, I think he pitched twenty one shutout innings.
Speaker 5: They won the state championship. It was his team's first
Speaker 5: time ever even making the state tournament.
Speaker 6: Of course, they went on to win.
Speaker 5: He led his team in a way that I would
Speaker 5: describe not very valiantly. Nonetheless, to be very clear, this
Speaker 5: boy is following the rules that were in place by
Speaker 5: local leadership, state leadership, of course, at the interscholastic level.
Speaker 5: But nonetheless it violated federal law. That federal law being
Speaker 5: Title ninth. So I was quick to call this out,
Speaker 5: as I have done for years after experiencing personally the
Speaker 5: effects of competing against a man. So that's a little
Speaker 5: backstory here. The issue is still happening. It continues to
Speaker 5: persist with full steam ahead and no signs of slowing down.
Speaker 1: And how long have you maintained I don't want to
Speaker 1: say this is new to you, because, like you said,
Speaker 1: you've been speaking on this for quite some time. I'm
Speaker 1: assuming when you talked about having personally experienced competing against
Speaker 1: the man as a swimmer, I'm assuming you alluding to
Speaker 1: Leah Thomas. I want you to talk about the origins
Speaker 1: of your feelings and how outspoken you have been about
Speaker 1: this particular issue in the past.
Speaker 6: Yeah, yeah, I'll give you the thirty thousand foot overview.
Speaker 5: Swimming University of Kentucky did some great things in my career,
Speaker 5: twelve time All American, five time SEC champion, the SEC
Speaker 5: record holder in the two hundred butterfly, making me one
Speaker 5: of the fastest Americans of all time, two time Olympic
Speaker 5: Trial qualifier. The list goes on, but really, just to reiterate,
Speaker 5: it's a lifelong journey to be able to compete and succeed,
Speaker 5: really at the highest level. Senior year NCAA's we're geared up,
Speaker 5: ready to go. This is the meat you work all year,
Speaker 5: really all your life for championship final of the women's
Speaker 5: two hundred freestyle, meaning top eight women in the entire country.
Speaker 5: And I look over at the lane a couple lanes
Speaker 5: over for me, and there's a six foot four man
Speaker 5: standing there, his size fifteen feet taking up the entire
Speaker 5: diving block visible from his side profile is not only
Speaker 5: his Adam's apple, but to be pretty explicit here and
Speaker 5: again just describing what we saw and his women swim suit.
Speaker 5: I recognize this to be wrong, as did ninety nine
Speaker 5: percent of athletes on that pool deck, but everyone was
Speaker 5: terrified to say it. Jumped in the water, We swam
Speaker 5: eight laps of freestyle, touched a wall at the end,
Speaker 5: and almost impossibly enough, Steven, we went the exact same time,
Speaker 5: meaning tied down.
Speaker 6: To the hundred of a second, which is really rare
Speaker 6: in our sport. We get out of the water, we.
Speaker 5: Go behind the awards podium where the nc DOUBA official
Speaker 5: looks at both Thomas and myself, Thomas towering over me,
Speaker 5: eight nine inches taller than me, and the official says,
Speaker 5: great job, you tube butt.
Speaker 6: You tied. We don't account for ties. We only have
Speaker 6: one trophy and we're going to give that trophy to.
Speaker 5: Leah wo And when I asked the dread question of why,
Speaker 5: the question that they weren't prepared to answer.
Speaker 6: They weren't given a script.
Speaker 5: Of what to say when asked this question, he stumbled
Speaker 5: on his words, but ultimately was honest and said, look,
Speaker 5: we've been advised as an organization, as the NC DOUBLEA,
Speaker 5: that when photos are being taken, it's crucial that the
Speaker 5: trophy is in Leah's hands. And I'll tell you what.
Speaker 5: That's when I made my mind up that I would
Speaker 5: say something again. We all recognized it. My coaches, the athletes,
Speaker 5: athletic directors, the officials at the meet, they all knew
Speaker 5: it to be wrong, but everyone was terrified.
Speaker 6: To say something.
Speaker 5: So that was the competition piece on top of the
Speaker 5: locker room, which is again a totally violating experience, on
Speaker 5: top of the silencing that we faced. All those were
Speaker 5: contributing factors, and ultimately the stance that I've taken a
Speaker 5: little over three years ago at this point.
Speaker 1: How much resistance have you experienced since you've taken those stance.
Speaker 5: Man, I think back to twenty twenty two, where it
Speaker 5: was certainly not as favorable as it is now to
Speaker 5: say the controversial thing that men and women are different.
Speaker 5: I mean, I've been in situations where my well being, my.
Speaker 6: Safety is at risk. I've been held captive.
Speaker 5: For over five hours, four and a half hours is
Speaker 5: actually in San Francisco, where a mob of protesters demanded
Speaker 5: that I had to pay them money if I wanted
Speaker 5: to make it back home to see my family safely. Again,
Speaker 5: I mean, even just a month ago, not even a
Speaker 5: month ago, in Seattle, I had human feces thrown at me.
Speaker 5: In Portland, there were about five people arrested for trying
Speaker 5: to terminate my life. And again, Stephen, like, I think
Speaker 5: my take is just about the least controversial take on
Speaker 5: the entire planet. It's described as an eighty twenty issue.
Speaker 5: I think it's more drastic than that. I think it's
Speaker 5: a ninety ten issue, if not even more than that.
Speaker 5: Ninety percent of Americans of course believing that men don't
Speaker 5: belong in women's sports, but for saying that out loud,
Speaker 5: publicly and unapologetically, you're really met with some of the
Speaker 5: most hostile and oftentimes violent encounters that you could possibly imagine.
Speaker 1: Now See, I'm liberal when it comes to living and
Speaker 1: let living. Okay, that's my general stance. Well, when you're
Speaker 1: talking about women competing in sports against transgender women, men
Speaker 1: transitioning the women, I side with you one thousand percent.
Speaker 1: I have no problem with your position whatsoever, and I'm
Speaker 1: not scared to say it, and I've never been scared
Speaker 1: to say it. I think that's absolutely the right thing
Speaker 1: to do. Women should be competing against women, men should
Speaker 1: be competing against men, and transgenders should be competing against transgenders.
Speaker 2: I have no problem with it whatsoever.
Speaker 1: I don't know why that's controversial, But when you think
Speaker 1: about what you've been exposed to, on what you've had
Speaker 1: to deal with, it brings us to Simon Biles, which
Speaker 1: is why this is a subject that we had to
Speaker 1: tackle because your stance and your position recently when you
Speaker 1: spoke about the person from Minnesota that prompted Simone Biles
Speaker 1: to post this about you quote.
Speaker 2: This is her quote about you.
Speaker 1: You're truly sick all of this campaigning because you lost
Speaker 1: a race, straight up sore loser. You should be uplifting
Speaker 1: the trans community and perhaps finding a way to make
Speaker 1: sports inclusive or creating a new avenue where trans people
Speaker 1: feel safe in sports. Instead you bully them. One thing's
Speaker 1: for sure is no one in sports is safe with
Speaker 1: you you around end quote. What was your immediate reaction
Speaker 1: when you saw what Simone Biles had to say about you?
Speaker 1: The great Olympian that she is because nobody could question
Speaker 1: her gridentchus And now that you've had an opportunity to
Speaker 1: reflect even further on what she has said, what is
Speaker 1: your reaction now when.
Speaker 6: I first got this notification on my phone.
Speaker 5: Of course, as you just said, Simone her illustrious career,
Speaker 5: what she's done for the sport of gymnastics, what she's
Speaker 5: done for women's sports in general, much broader than gymnastics.
Speaker 5: I have looked up to her and admired her. I mean,
Speaker 5: I watched her compete in twenty sixteen, twenty twenty twenty four,
Speaker 5: the past eight ish, I guess nine years.
Speaker 6: At this point, I've admired Simone Biles.
Speaker 5: So when I got this notification on my phone that
Speaker 5: I had been tagged in something on X from Simone,
Speaker 5: I was like overwhelmed with excitement and starstruck. And I
Speaker 5: click on it and I read what you just said
Speaker 5: out loud, and I read it again and again, and
Speaker 5: I clicked the profile, and then I went back and
Speaker 5: I clicked the profile again to make sure it was
Speaker 5: it was really Simone Viles, This wasn't a fake account,
Speaker 5: and it really was Simone Biles. And I was heartbroken.
Speaker 5: And I'll tell you what. I wasn't heartbroken because of
Speaker 5: the personal attacks, because of her calling me a bully
Speaker 5: or saying that I'm disgusting or truly sick or whatever
Speaker 5: she said. It wasn't that that hurt my feelings because
Speaker 5: I'm a very secure person. I'm secure with myself, I'm
Speaker 5: secure with the side of history that I'm on, very
Speaker 5: happily married for three plus years. None of those personal
Speaker 5: attacks bothered me. But what did bother me is knowing
Speaker 5: the platform that she has, and how she was so
Speaker 5: quick in such a venomous way to sell out young
Speaker 5: girls like my little sister. My little sister's sixteen years old.
Speaker 5: She's an elite level gymnast. She's I come from a
Speaker 5: family of athletes like my dad played professional ball SEC
Speaker 5: Hall of Famer. My brother played football in college, of course,
Speaker 5: went to University of Kentucky. My mom was a Division
Speaker 5: one softball player. My oldest sister went to Ole Miss
Speaker 5: she played softball. My youngest sister is the best athlete
Speaker 5: out of all of us. She will go on to
Speaker 5: do incredible things whatever she does in college. And beyond
Speaker 5: why my heart broke in that moment, I'm sure you'll
Speaker 5: you'll continue to read the next tweet that Simone put out,
Speaker 5: which we can discuss, But in that moment, I was
Speaker 5: so just disappointed and disheartened to know a woman who
Speaker 5: has done so much for the sport was so quick
Speaker 5: to pull up the ladder behind her. Is how I
Speaker 5: would describe it.
Speaker 1: In your response to Bills, you brought up Larry Nasser,
Speaker 1: and that's where that's the only thing that you said
Speaker 1: where I took issue. I took Umbradguge with you said,
Speaker 1: because you brought him up. This is the former national
Speaker 1: team doctor who sexually abused multiple US gymnasts, including Biles,
Speaker 1: under the guise of quote unquote medical treatment. You wrote
Speaker 1: quote all the horrific sexual abuse Simone Biles witness and
Speaker 1: spoke out against caused by one man, yet believes women
Speaker 1: should be forced to strip naked in front of men
Speaker 1: to validate the man's feelings. You know how many gold
Speaker 1: medals you'd have if your inclusive dream came true? Zero?
Speaker 1: I want I that was the only thing that I
Speaker 1: criticized as you fought, because I thought that was really
Speaker 1: really below the bell, considering how heinous of an individual,
Speaker 1: how despicable Larry Nassa was, and what some o Biles
Speaker 1: was subjected to because of that man. Any regrets at
Speaker 1: all about saying that bringing out Larry Nassa is what
Speaker 1: I'm asking.
Speaker 6: I stammer what I said, but let me provide a
Speaker 6: little context.
Speaker 1: Okay, First of all.
Speaker 5: For clarity, I believe Larry Nasser is a monster and
Speaker 5: who should spend every single waking second for the rest
Speaker 5: of his life miserable and rotting away in prison. There's
Speaker 5: no me and Simone certainly agree there contexts here.
Speaker 6: For the situation. Again that my own personal.
Speaker 5: Experience that I can speak to. I don't know if
Speaker 5: you've ever been inside of a.
Speaker 6: Locker room, specifically a locker room on.
Speaker 5: A pool deck. Right, it's an open space. It's basically
Speaker 5: like a large square. There is no stalls beyond the
Speaker 5: stalls that you use the restaurman, but you're not putting
Speaker 5: your suit on or of course showering in those stalls.
Speaker 5: Does it get more perverted than being in a shower,
Speaker 5: which is typical for a swimming locker room, especially you're
Speaker 5: in the chlorine, you get out, you're in the pool
Speaker 5: five times a day, you rinse off. Does it get
Speaker 5: more perverted than standing in the shower totally undressed when
Speaker 5: a six six foot four man approaches you, stands in
Speaker 5: the shower head next to you, undresses himself fully naked,
Speaker 5: fully intact, and watches you shower. That's the context I
Speaker 5: was drawing, and to me, that is sexual abuse. What
Speaker 5: me and my teammates had to go through was certainly
Speaker 5: sexual abuse. Again, for clarity, I think what simone her
Speaker 5: teammates went through is condemnable and punishable beyond what we face.
Speaker 6: Again, there's no doubt in my.
Speaker 5: Mind there but to try to normalize this, or, in
Speaker 5: Simone's case, attempt to silence those who speak out about this.
Speaker 5: That's the conclusion I was drawing here. No girl should
Speaker 5: have to go through this, whether it is rape, whether
Speaker 5: it's unwanted touching, whether it's voyeurism, whether it's indecent exposure.
Speaker 5: And no woman should ever ever be shamed for pointing
Speaker 5: out when men are abusing women. I found a video
Speaker 5: of Simone testifying before Congress the same seat I have
Speaker 5: found myself in. I've testified before Congress in the Senate
Speaker 5: many many times, and I listened to the part of
Speaker 5: her testimony.
Speaker 6: I posted a video of it, a little.
Speaker 5: Clip of it, where she's of course speaking to the abuse,
Speaker 5: speaking to how horrific, speaking to how no woman should
Speaker 5: have to go through this again. And our messages sounded
Speaker 5: the exact same when I sat in that seat. She
Speaker 5: got emotional in her testimony. I got emotional in my
Speaker 5: testimony describing this. That's the conclusion I was drawing here. Again,
Speaker 5: it is easy to condemn Larry Nasser, but I believe
Speaker 5: it should be just as easy to condemn those who
Speaker 5: attempt to normalize or think it's not on a scale
Speaker 5: of gross sexual offense against women and girls to have
Speaker 5: men undressing and showering next to women.
Speaker 1: Riley, I can push back, but I won't even try.
Speaker 1: And the reason why I won't even try is because
Speaker 1: you make a very very valid point. First of all,
Speaker 1: your personally experiences. Secondly, you're a lady. I am not,
Speaker 1: and so when you talk about what's offensive to you.
Speaker 1: One of the things that I have a problem with,
Speaker 1: particularly with people on Capitol Hill, is when men are
Speaker 1: trying to tell women how they should feel about their experiences,
Speaker 1: as if they know. It's one thing for you to
Speaker 1: have an opinion, but it's another thing for you to
Speaker 1: come across as if you know something, it's impossible for
Speaker 1: you to know. I can never know what Riley Gains
Speaker 1: just alluded to other than how you explained it. So
Speaker 1: I really appreciate that point, and I thank you for it.
Speaker 1: I got to ask you this question, is there a
Speaker 1: resolution when we think about the whole trans issue in sports.
Speaker 1: I don't have any problems with anybody from the LGBTQ
Speaker 1: plus community. Live your life, do what you do. I'm
Speaker 1: not trying to be invasive in that regard. But when
Speaker 1: we talk about transgender issues in the world of sports,
Speaker 1: it seems to me, from a society perspective, we're being
Speaker 1: a bit hypocritical because we go out of our way
Speaker 1: to talk about the protection that women need in terms
Speaker 1: of Title nine fair and equitable treatment under the laws
Speaker 1: of our land. But somehow, in a way, something like
Speaker 1: this comes up and we forget those very things with
Speaker 1: somebody like you essentially was reminding us we have forgotten
Speaker 1: about that, but you did it. So that's a testament
Speaker 1: to you. But when we talk about an equitable solution
Speaker 1: to the issue of trans athletes, is there a solution
Speaker 1: that you think exists out there, because it doesn't seem
Speaker 1: like there is one.
Speaker 5: It's a good point you bring up, and it's simone
Speaker 5: mentioned in her initial tweet, right creating a third category
Speaker 5: almost I'll tell you I initially supported this idea.
Speaker 6: I believe this was a way to prioritize inclusion, but
Speaker 6: not at the expense of safety.
Speaker 5: Number one in fairness number two. But I'll tell you
Speaker 5: when I changed my mind. This was done. FINA, the
Speaker 5: international governing body of swimming, created a third category at
Speaker 5: the international level, like a very high level of competition
Speaker 5: for people like Leah Thomas or those who are identify
Speaker 5: as trands, gender, nonconforming, non binary, whatever. It is a
Speaker 5: separate category for that no one can pete in it. Actually,
Speaker 5: Thomas went on to sue World Aquatics for this new rule,
Speaker 5: ultimately making the point that he doesn't want to compete
Speaker 5: if he can't trample on women in the process. Here
Speaker 5: then I began to really think about it. It is
Speaker 5: antithetical to sports to have a category based on identity.
Speaker 5: We don't have a category based on identity any other identity, right.
Speaker 5: We don't have a category based on race, and we
Speaker 5: absolutely shouldn't. We don't have a category based on religion,
Speaker 5: and we absolutely shouldn't. Sports aren't about your feelings ultimately,
Speaker 5: at the end of the day, they're just not.
Speaker 6: You can make the argument.
Speaker 5: About, of course pee wee leagues or twelve and under
Speaker 5: or whatever you know division that is, I think, especially
Speaker 5: before puberty, but you reach a certain point and sports
Speaker 5: are about winning.
Speaker 6: It's about success.
Speaker 5: And I don't know if you saw, even just this afternoon,
Speaker 5: some own biles issued an apology to me. I think
Speaker 5: it was a bit of damage control personally, but nonetheless
Speaker 5: I fully fully accepted her apoontology, but in her apology
Speaker 5: she mentions, you know, we need to be striving for
Speaker 5: inclusivity and competitive equity.
Speaker 6: The idea of.
Speaker 5: Sports inherently are inclusive, Stephen. Anyone can play sports. That's
Speaker 5: the beauty of sports. That's why I love them. It's
Speaker 5: really this unifying experience that again I got to be
Speaker 5: a part of, that I got to benefit from. But
Speaker 5: on the other hand, competition by definition is exclusive. So
Speaker 5: the idea of competitive equity is totally nonsensical. I believe
Speaker 5: the solution is what is at least has been in
Speaker 5: front of us the past, actually this month, it'll be
Speaker 5: in the past fifty three years since Title nine was implemented.
Speaker 5: You have a men's category and you have a women's
Speaker 5: category that allows for everyone under the sign to be.
Speaker 6: Able to compete.
Speaker 2: You know, that's a compelling argument.
Speaker 1: I would tell you that when you think about the
Speaker 1: Paralympics and other things, I mean, you see people with
Speaker 1: disabilities and what have you competing against people with disabilities.
Speaker 2: So that's where my idea came from.
Speaker 1: In terms of women, women, men, men trans in other words,
Speaker 1: compete against your own If you're a man, transitioning into
Speaker 1: being a woman then compete against other men transitioning into
Speaker 1: being a woman, and vice versa. It shouldn't be you
Speaker 1: infiltrating women's sports in that way. I've always agreed with
Speaker 1: that position. I'm not about the city and be a phony.
Speaker 1: A disagree with you now, Riley Gaines. I really really
Speaker 1: appreciate your time. Thank you very very much. Arguments with
Speaker 1: very reliquent. I got very little pushback to provide you
Speaker 1: new the one pushback that I had, but you explain
Speaker 1: that thoroughly, and I really appreciate it.
Speaker 2: Are you hoping to speak to Simone Biles soon?
Speaker 1: Look?
Speaker 6: I would love it.
Speaker 5: In my response to her apology today, I conclude it
Speaker 5: by saying, look, I welcome you to the fight to
Speaker 5: support fair sports and a future for female athletes. I
Speaker 5: would love to have a discussion to further elaborate again
Speaker 5: in the position that I have taken, the line that
Speaker 5: I have drawn in the sand, why I will never
Speaker 5: back down from that.
Speaker 6: I would love the opportunity to do so.
Speaker 1: Okay, well, there's always a place here for you anytime
Speaker 1: you want to discuss these issues. I'm not running or
Speaker 1: hiding from it. Really, thank you. For your time. Thank
Speaker 1: you so much for coming on and explaining your position.
Speaker 1: I really appreciate it. And good luck with your show.
Speaker 1: Good luck with your podcast. I mean you're doing good
Speaker 1: things with it. Keep it going.
Speaker 6: Thank you, thank you. I appreciate it.
Speaker 2: Okay, one of the only Riley Gaines right here on the
Speaker 2: steven A. Smith Show.
Speaker 1: Coming up, the NBA Finals heads to Indy with the
Speaker 1: Pacers and Thunders splitting the first two games. So who
Speaker 1: has the edge heading into Game three? I'll get into
Speaker 1: that next right here on the stephen A. Smith Show.
Speaker 1: Don't go away, Welcome back to the Steven A. Smith Show.
Speaker 1: Now let's get to the NBA Finals, where the series
Speaker 1: shifts to Indy and the Pacers holding home court advantage.
Speaker 1: After stealing Game one from the Thunder on the road,
Speaker 1: Oklahoma City bounced back with an emphatic Game two win
Speaker 1: on Sunday night to even the series. It's not over.
Speaker 1: This is still a highly competitive series, and I give
Speaker 1: Indiana a lot of credit for that because I never
Speaker 1: anticipated that they would win Game one the way that
Speaker 1: they did, to be down fifteen, to come back, to
Speaker 1: be down fifteen with over nine minutes left, and to
Speaker 1: come back and to win that game. Gotta give a
Speaker 1: lot of credit that particular game. Nie Nie Smith, them
Speaker 1: Hard Miles turn Up, Pascal Siakam, all of them showed
Speaker 1: up with big buckets down the stretch, set in the
Speaker 1: stage for Tyrese Halliburton to hit his winner with zero
Speaker 1: point three seconds left in regulation. Deserves a lot of
Speaker 1: credit in that span this postseason, this brother, Tyrese Halliburton
Speaker 1: in fifteen seconds or left left in regulation or over time. Okay,
Speaker 1: this brother has gone five for five from the field,
Speaker 1: while the rest of the NBA in the postseason has
Speaker 1: gone four of twenty six. You can't say enough about
Speaker 1: that from Tyrese Halliburton and his performance in Game one,
Speaker 1: meaning that big time shot. But for the most part
Speaker 1: he's been relatively neutralized because the star of this series,
Speaker 1: made no mistake about it, has been Shaye Butter as
Speaker 1: in Shae Gil just Alexander as in the reigning league
Speaker 1: MVP just finished averaging thirty two point seven a game.
Speaker 1: He's averaged at least thirty over the left three seasons.
Speaker 1: He's twenty six years of age, Ladies and gentlemen, doesn't
Speaker 1: even shoot that many threes. But the brothers mister mid range.
Speaker 1: He's got a nasty handle, he can create his own shot,
Speaker 1: and he can get to the rim anytime he wants to.
Speaker 1: And the reason I'm bringing that up is because if
Speaker 1: you're Halliburton, who everybody's been talking about, is this young
Speaker 1: superstar and I said, no, he's not a superstar, not
Speaker 1: there yet. The brother can play. He's not overrated, he's
Speaker 1: not a scrub, but he's not a superstar. That would
Speaker 1: be Shay gil Just Alexander. Here's the flip side to
Speaker 1: all of that. Shay Gilgers Alexander is not only a star,
Speaker 1: a superstar, but he plays the same position as Tyre's Halliburton.
Speaker 1: They're damn near the same height. For crying out loud,
Speaker 1: You've got to step up and handle your business. This brother,
Speaker 1: Shay gilg Just Alexander dropped thirty eight in game one,
Speaker 1: drop thirty four in game two, averaging thirty six on
Speaker 1: the series.
Speaker 2: You got to answer that call.
Speaker 1: You can't be at averaging eleven points or fifteen points,
Speaker 1: rather shoot thirty three percent from the field. You can't
Speaker 1: go the first forty minutes of the game with just
Speaker 1: five points and you score twelve points in the fourth quarter.
Speaker 1: When the game is out of reach, that ain't good enough.
Speaker 1: So Halliburton's got to do more. Pascal Siakam, you can't
Speaker 1: be held to three four eleven shooting with Alex Caruso
Speaker 1: guard and you have the Tom. You gotta take advantage.
Speaker 1: You gotta find a way. Because Indiana, as potent as
Speaker 1: they can be, Oklahoma City is a different beast. This
Speaker 1: defense is elite. Lou Dort is an elite defender, Alex
Speaker 1: Caruso is an elite defender. Cason Wallace can defend. And
Speaker 1: then when you take into account that Shay Gilgers and
Speaker 1: Jalen Williams also do defend as well, and a Jalen Williams,
Speaker 1: your second best offensive player is a cat, only two,
Speaker 1: one of two in the entire NBA. Him and Evan
Speaker 1: Mobley are the Cleveland Cavaliers who will All NBA, All NBA,
Speaker 1: on an All NBA team, but also on an All
Speaker 1: NBA defensive team. Only two players did that this year,
Speaker 1: Evan Mobley and Jenden Williams. So there's no drop off
Speaker 1: with OKC.
Speaker 2: Everybody defense, everybody defense.
Speaker 1: And then when you got this cat Wiggins coming off
Speaker 1: the bench and he gives you eighteen points on five threes,
Speaker 1: and Caruso is opening a corner three or four times
Speaker 1: for his corner threes and he's given you twenty and
Speaker 1: not a single Indiana pacer has scored twenty points in
Speaker 1: games one and two of this series. Indiana has to
Speaker 1: show up. Game three is pivotal for them. They must
Speaker 1: at least split or it's over in five. Five, they
Speaker 1: gotta split or it's over in five. So you gotta
Speaker 1: wins game three or four. And I think they are
Speaker 1: better chances to win Game three as opposed to Game four.
Speaker 1: They gotta show up, will they?
Speaker 2: That remains the question.
Speaker 1: It's an intriguing one though, because Indiana can score, and
Speaker 1: because they can score, who knows how interesting they may
Speaker 1: make this. Oklahoma City is clearly the better team. That
Speaker 1: does not mean Indiana can't win. Keep that in mind.
Speaker 1: I'm still with those O, KC and six, but Indiana
Speaker 1: better win one of these games or they ain't going six.
Speaker 2: That's it for this edition of The Stephen A. Smith Show.
Speaker 1: Hope you like it. I got a head to the
Speaker 1: NBA Finals, But I'll holler at y'all in a couple
Speaker 1: of days and tell.
Speaker 2: Them, ladies and gentlemen, the peace of love. I'm not