STEPHEN A. SMITH has made another blunder after killing off a legendary college basketball coach.
The ESPN anchor has been at the centre of multiple controversies recently.
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And he landed himself in hot water once again by mistakenly implying Nolan Richardson is dead.
Richardson is regarded as the best to have ever coached the Arkansas Razorbacks.
Current head coach John Calipari oversaw a defeat in the NCAA Tournament on Thursday which saw the Razorbacks bow out of the competition, but Smith believes they are in a strong position.
He had glowing words for Calipari but in praising the coach he made an error, mistakenly killing off Richardson.
Smith said on ESPN’s First Take, “[Calipari’s] gonna be able to recruit better than anybody ever has [at Arkansas] outside of ‘Mr. 40 Minutes of Hell’ himself, the late great, Nolan Richardson. God rest his soul.”
Only Richardson is not dead – he is alive and well at 83 years of age.
Smith apologized for his mistake in the next segment on First Take.
He said, “I am fully aware that Nolan Richardson is alive. Trust me. I apologize for that.
“I don’t know why I said, ‘God rest his soul.’ I know he’s alive, I’ve always known that.
“So I just wanted to make sure I made that clear before we moved on to the show.
“I don’t want anybody thinking I thought the man was gone. I did not. I know he’s alive.”
It is the second time this week Smith has been forced to apologize for a slip-up.
In an ongoing dispute with LeBron James, Smith inaccurately claimed the Lakers star was absent at Kobe Bryant’s funeral.
He said, “I suggest that he be happy with the things that I haven’t brought up.
“I never brought up really and never really discussed why you were not at Kobe Bryant’s memorial service.”
Stephen A. Smith’s journey through media
STEPHEN A. Smith is now the face of ESPN and an executive producer on First Take having initially started working for the company back in 2003.
Smith has held various roles with the network, including hosting radio shows, SportsCenter contributions, and appearing on NBA Countdown.
He was a columnist for the Philadelphia Inquirer from 1994 to 2010.
His began as an NBA writer before becoming a general sports columnist.
Before that, Smith worked as a reporter with Winston-Salem Journal, the Greensboro News, and the New York Daily News.
Smith was later forced to apologize after realising he made a mistake.
He tweeted, “My apologies and clarification. I misspoke in Hour#1 of First Take today when I intimated that LeBron did not attend Kobe Bryant’s memorial.
“I corrected myself in Hour#2 when I acknowledged he was indeed in attendance. My mistake. Should not have even broached that subject.
“It was not my main point. I retract NOTHING else that I said. Have a nice day!”
