Stephen A. Smith makes brutal gaffe while talking about the Golden State Warriors

For years, Stephen A. Smith's galore shot blunders person been casual capable to explicate away.

He's not an NFL feline (remember erstwhile helium said the 3 cardinal players for a crippled were 3 guys who weren't playing successful the game?)

Stephen A. Smith falsely claimed the Warriors haven't made the playoffs since 2022, but Golden State reached the 2nd circular successful some 2023 and 2025. (Jerome Miron/Imagn Images)

He's decidedly not a assemblage shot feline (remember erstwhile helium called Jalen Milroe Jalen "Milroy" aggregate times and past work the incorrect stat enactment aft a College Football Playoff game?).

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ESPN forces him into those conversations due to the fact that First Take has to speech football, and Smith knows that shot is the astir fashionable athletics successful the state and helium needs to beryllium seen arsenic an authorization (even though helium isn't).

But Monday's latest mistake is simply a batch tougher to excuse, due to the fact that this clip Smith wasn't talking astir the NFL oregon assemblage football. He was talking astir the Golden State Warriors, 1 of the defining NBA dynasties of the past decade.

In different words, helium was talking astir the athletics and the league that's expected to beryllium his breadstuff and butter.

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While discussing whether Steve Kerr has coached his past crippled with Golden State, Smith confidently stated the Warriors "haven't been backmost to the playoffs since that title successful 2022."

Golden State Warriors caput manager Steve Kerr looks connected during a crippled against the Sacramento Kings. (Robert Edwards/Imagn Images)

That's not adjacent adjacent to true. Not lone did Golden State marque the playoffs past season, but they besides reached the postseason successful 2023. Last year, the Warriors made the playoffs, bushed the Rockets successful 7 games and precocious to the 2nd circular earlier losing to the Timberwolves. In 2023, they bushed the Sacramento Kings successful the archetypal circular and earlier losing to the Lakers successful the Western Conference semifinals.

So, Smith wouldn't adjacent person been close if helium said they haven't won a playoff bid since 2022. But helium didn't accidental that. He said they didn't marque the playoffs successful immoderate of the past 4 years, but they did it twice.

Yikes.

This is not an obscure portion of NBA trivia that Smith could beryllium easy forgiven for not knowing. Perhaps helium was excessively engaged playing solitaire connected his telephone and conscionable missed 2 of the past 3 NBA postseasons. That's a pugnacious look for the feline who fancies himself arsenic the No. 1 NBA expert successful the country.

And it's a unspeakable look for ESPN, arsenic they support selling Smith arsenic 1 of the faces of their NBA coverage.

Stephen A. Smith made a brutal gaffe portion talking Warriors playoff history

If Smith made this benignant of mistake portion talking astir the NFL, cipher would beryllium shocked. At this point, sports fans practically expect him to butcher shot analysis. It's astir endearing that a feline with the ego of Smith tin beryllium truthful consistently incorrect portion besides delivering each "fact" with the utmost confidence. It's portion of the Stephen A. experience.

But this 1 hits otherwise due to the fact that the NBA is wherever he's expected to astatine slightest cognize the basics. This is wherever Smith prides himself arsenic being an authorization figure.

Stephen A. Smith incorrectly stated the Golden State Warriors haven't made the playoffs since their 2022 championship, contempt the squad reaching the postseason doubly since then. (Candice Ward/Imagn Images)

And yet helium couldn't support the caller playoff past of the Warriors straight. The squad whose caput manager is successful the quality each different week. The squad that has won 4 championships since 2014. Arguably 1 of the astir important franchises successful the NBA implicit the past 15 years.

Yes, Golden State missed the playoffs successful 2024 aft getting bounced successful the Play-In Tournament (although they won 46 games that season). And yes, it fell abbreviated again this season. But that's a batch antithetic from acting similar Steve Kerr has spent 4 years wandering the hoops wilderness since winning that 2022 title.

He hasn't. In fact, the squad is 175-153 successful the past 4 regular seasons.

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The Warriors made the 2nd circular successful 2023. They made the 2nd circular again successful 2025.

Before burying Steve Kerr connected nationalist television, possibly Stephen A. Smith could instrumentality 10 seconds to corroborate whether the Warriors were actually, you know, successful the playoffs.