Stephen A. Smith Can't Stop Talking About His Exes, Skip Bayless And Max Kellerman

Stephen A. Smith cannot stop talking about his former co-hosts, Skip Bayless and Max Kellerman.

He has made more headlines this month discussing Bayless and Kellerman than from any take he's had on the NFL season.

Notably, Smith bragged about having Kellerman removed from First Take after he threatened to quit.

“I walked upstairs and said, ‘If is so important to you, then give him First Take. I will leave. Two hours later, I got the call he was being removed."

"Max is neither a former athlete nor a journalist. People asked, 'Why should I care what he has to say?'"

" didn't have cachet."

What a strange series of comments to make about someone who is now unemployed because of you.

Almost as strange as Smith's coverage of Bayless.

For weeks, Stephen A. has accused Skip of mistreating Shannon Sharpe.

“I didn’t want you to be in the situation where the sports world looked at you and said ‘what did he do? He must have done something.’ I said if he ends up here, he ends up here. The honchos know I want him. More importantly than that, this is a brother that I think has done a lot of good work on television that has helped our community. As a result, it’s incumbent upon me because of the perch I sit on to let them know he’s wanted,” said Smith.

Without a hint of irony, Smith accuses Bayless of doing to Sharpe what he admits he did to Kellerman.

We recently asked Stephen A. about his blatant hypocrisy. He didn't have a comment.

He'd rather talk about Bayless than himself. In fact, Smith invited Sharpe on his podcast last week to discuss Bayless some more.

Stephen A. urged Shannon to comment on his relationship with Skip. He eventually did, to the glee of Stephen A.

The episode turned into an hour-long smearing of Skip Bayless.

Sharpe called Bayless "disrespectful," said he almost beat him up on set, and joked Bayless could never compete with Stephen A. in the ratings.

"Y’all not going to be better than me and Stephen A. That’s not going to happen. I promise you, that is not going to happen. Ever. EVER,” Sharpe claims.

"Now, if Stephen A says, ‘Shannon, I want to go in a different direction,’ you all are still not (going to beat us). Because Stephen A is that dude. If Stephen A ever decides to leave and turn the reins over to me, you all know I’m that dude. I’m him."

Here are some more soundbites from the episode:

Stephen A. Smith is a former journalist. And thus should be ashamed of that interview.

He allowed Sharpe to levy several accusations against a former co-host, and not once did he question, challenge, or ask him for proof.

Nor did Stephen A. try to supply or learn Bayless' side of the story.

That's journalistically. The interview is also questionable on personal level.

Stephen A. Smith is famous because of Skip Bayless.

In 2012, Smith returned to ESPN to host a local radio show. He was at the bottom of the network barrel. ESPN had no plans to put him back on television.

However, Bayless fought to make Stephen A., a personal friend of his, a full-time contributor to First Take. Skip had enough juice, given his ratings, to make the move official.

While Smith proved worthy upon the opportunity, Bayless was the reason he received the opportunity.

Likewise, Shannon Sharpe was out of media in 2016. He failed to garner any market interest after CBS fired him for poor performance years prior. Then, Bayless signed with FS1 and invited Sharpe to be his co-host.

Ultimately, Bayless made both Stephen A. and Sharpe the TV stars they are today. Yet they've now teamed up against him. And it sounds personal.

Stephen A, Skip Bayless, Max Kellerman

At least in Sharpe's case, we can understand why he had have sour feelings toward Bayless. But we can't understand why Stephen A. does. In fact, Bayless only praises Smith to this day.

So, why is Smith determined to damage the reputation of the person who made his career (Skip Bayless) and the person whose career he ruined (Max Kellerman)?

Again, we have not heard back from Stephen A. to say for certain.

That said, former ESPN host Marcellus Wiley suggested Stephen A's venom is racial, that Smith believes white pundits deserved to be mistreated.

“It’s hypocritical of Stephen A. to be sensitive to Shannon, and Shannon getting pushed out of FS1, and all that happened there, and not Max, when you did the same thing to Max,” Wiley said last week. "Please do not tell me it’s different because Max is white. Please don’t say that. I know you’re not gonna go there."

Perhaps that's it.

Or perhaps he's just competitive. Or he wants to convince the public he never needed Bayless or Kellerman, whom he handpicked to replace Skip.

Either way, the current batch of First Take contributors ought to be wary.

If nothing else, Smith has proven he's not a civil ex-girlfriend. He's begging his peers to believe he was not at fault, that he is better off, and that they miss him.

Though the more he disses his exes, the more we are led to believe otherwise.