Stephen A. Smith is responding after Jaylen Brown suggested the ESPN commentator retire during a heated social media exchange following the Boston Celtics’ playoff exit.
The beef kicked off after Smith blasted Brown’s comments following Boston’s first-round loss to the Philadelphia 76ers. Brown has been frustrated with the officiating and accused Joel Embiid of flopping during a Twitch stream.
On First Take, Smith said he had a “big-time issue” with Brown blaming referees after the Celtics blew a 3-1 series lead.
"He needs to be quiet … unless you're trying to get traded." @stephenasmith reacts to Jaylen Brown doubling down on his previous comments pic.twitter.com/3xV00b7tXo
— First Take (@FirstTake) May 7, 2026
“The first order of business is that he needs to be quiet,” Smith said.
Brown later fired back on X, writing, “I’ll ‘be quiet’ / stop streaming if you ‘be quiet’ and retire let’s give the people what they want.”
Smith addressed Brown’s response in another post shared on Thursday.
“Bro, I got love for you so I’m not going to even go there,” Smith wrote. “Folks are looking out for you and you don’t even realize it.”
Bro, I got love for you so I’m not going to even go there. Folks are looking out for you and you don’t even realize it. Here you are making this kind of noise and it hasn’t even been a week since you lost a 3-1 lead. You’re HOME. A champion and a Finals MVP saying his favorite… https://t.co/R7jHCtMpDI
— Stephen A Smith (@stephenasmith) May 7, 2026
He went at Brown again, calling this season his “favorite year,” despite winning an NBA championship and Finals MVP earlier in his career.
“A champion and a Finals MVP saying his favorite season is the season he’s home in the FIRST ROUND,” Smith added. “This is not about ME. It’s about YOU.”
