“Does Stephen A. deserve a max deal?” – Kyrie Irving says Stephen A. Smith is not worth $100 million extension he signed with ESPN originally appeared on Basketball Network.
Dallas Mavericks superstar guard Kyrie Irving took a shot at ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith during a recent livestream.
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Smith recently signed a reported $100 million five-year deal with the network. With an average salary of $20 million, he makes more than many NBA players, even stars.
“I’m going to discuss his contract. I’m going to discuss Stephen A’s contract and I’mma say: ‘I don’t think you’re worth it,'” Irving said. “Does Smith deserve to earn more than Wemby?”
Stephen A. makes more money than Wemby
In comparison, San Antonio Spurs phenom Victor Wembanyama signed a four-year $55 million rookie contract after he was drafted No.1 overall in 2023. With an average salary of $13.7 million per year, he makes significantly less money than Smith.
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Knowing his words would go viral, Irving expanded on his statement, saying that he only used Smith as an example to see how the latter would react when the roles are reversed.
“Now that may be controversial,” Irving continued. “Obviously, this is just for… someone might try and clip it up. Watch the whole clip. But if I were the one to say that ‘Yo, you don’t deserve your contract. You didn’t show up to work.’ Does Stephen A. deserve a max deal?”
Smith thinks Dallas lowballed Irving
Recently, Smith talked about Irving’s recent contract extension with the Mavericks.
He mentioned that the 33-year-old deserves way more than the three-year $119 million deal he signed and would have gotten what he’s worth if the team ownership hadn’t changed.
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“In today’s economy, where you got cats getting paid $55, $60 million plus, you couldn’t give this guy at least $43 to $45 million a year? Remember, he was supposed to be getting a player option that would have given him $43 million. So, to me, at $119 million, that is a fraction less than $40 million per. Kyrie Irving deserves more than that,” Smith said.
“And so it has me looking at ownership because I’m saying, ‘Okay, if this were Mark Cuban, he would’ve had more.’ No question about it. He would’ve made that investment,” he added.
Some media outlets are saying that Irving was indirectly calling out Smith for his unapologetic takes, using him as an example, or that he was trying to point out how people who merely talk about the NBA are getting paid more than those who are actually in it. But the underlying message seems to be about accountability.
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NBA stars are called out by media members for not living up to their salaries. It should be the same for NBA analysts.
After all, Smith was recently caught playing solitaire on his mobile phone during Game 4 of the 2025 NBA Finals. And although he did receive some backlash, the criticism wasn’t nearly loud enough as it would’ve been had a player done something similar.
Was he held accountable? Probably not enough. And he should’ve been.
Media, in general, controls the narratives that often have a big impact on players as well. That’s why they should be held to the same standards as those they criticize. That was the biggest message behind Irving’s words.
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Related: “A healthy Kyrie Irving with a ball in his hands?” – Stephen A. believes a healthy Mavs squad will be the biggest threat to the Thunder next season
This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Jul 13, 2025, where it first appeared.