NBA Legend Charles Barkley Says 'Hard No' To Voting For Stephen A. Smith As Next President

Most of us probably dig the idea of ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith rattling the Democrat Party. 

But while kicking the Dems when they’re down sounds fun to many, treating Smith as a legit presidential contender has become a laughable idea overhyped by too many.

Enter: Charles Barkley.

Charles Barkley Smacks Sense Into Stephen A. Smith

Done with the chatter, the Hall of Famer and Inside the NBA star sent a blunt message to Smith — who’s been racking up media time like a wannabe candidate — to drop the act and quit dreaming of being Commander in Chief.

Speaking with Sports Illustrated’s Jimmy Traina, Barkley unloaded on Smith’s recent political fantasies.

"Calm down, Stephen A. — and Stephen A. is one of my friends," Barkley told Traina. "C'mon, man. Stop it. C'mon. It had to start out as a joke and he started taking it serious. C'mon, man. All I would say is 'knock it off.' And that's the best way to phrase it.

"Hard no."

Guess what … Chuck got it right once again.

The situation is perfect, but Smith is no serious candidate.

Smith’s pitch to be the Democrat candidate was to act as their savior and revive the Party after it lost favor for pushing woke agendas. He's the "truth-teller" for the Party, or so Smith says.

READ: Stephen A. Smith Says He Has 'No Choice' But To Consider Presidential Run

Smith started preaching about "uniting" Americans after watching his pick, Kamala Harris, get crushed by Donald Trump. 

Smith, most notably, has also flirted with the prevalent race-baiting that marred sports media … yet, Smith is a self-proclaimed unifier.

The ESPN personality said he has no choice but to consider running.

"I have no choice because I’ve had elected officials, and I’m not going to give their names, elected officials coming up to me," Smith said on ABC News over the weekend.

"I’ve had folks that got a lot of money, billionaires and others that have talked to me about exploratory committees and things of that nature. I’m not a politician. I’ve never had a desire to be a politician."

You can’t knock him for aiming high with no clear leader guiding the Dems, who are still stuck in a power vacuum, but the guy (SAS) started caring about politics five minutes ago. Too slick to be Bernie Sanders but pulling Gavin Newsom’s tricks, Smith embodies what Dems want, which is still far from the priorities behind Trump’s massive win.

If Dems want to lose by way of Stephen A. Smith, let 'em have it.

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Alejandro Avila is a longtime writer at OutKick, living in Southern California. 

AA's insights on topics ranging from cinema to food and politics transformed the lives of average folks worldwide into followers of the OutKick Way©

Trying to out-wit this writer has been likened to staring at the sun and waiting for it to blink first. 

Interests: Jeopardy, movies, Jiu-Jitsu, faith, Los Angeles. (follow @alejandroaveela on X)