Stephen A. Smith has proudly admitted to booting Max Kellerman off First Take, and he doesn\u2019t appear to appreciate anyone trying to bring him back.<\/p>\n
Friday morning on ESPN\u2019s First Take, Jay Williams claimed that Indiana Pacers All-Star Tyrese Haliburton \u201cis spitting in the face of the narratives.\u201d Williams cited narratives about Haliburton\u2019s superstar status, his being overrated, or\u00a0playing injured<\/a>.\u00a0Some of those narratives have notably come from Stephen A. Smith<\/a>.<\/p>\n Smith, however, didn\u2019t react much to Williams implying Haliburton is spitting at his narratives, but he did react when Williams cited Max Kellerman while making his point.<\/p>\n .@RealJayWilliams<\/a> is taking Tyrese Haliburton over SGA in clutch moments \ud83d\ude33<\/p>\n \u201cIf it comes down to the wire with the body of work, I trust Tyrese Haliburton in those moments more than I trust SGA.\u201d pic.twitter.com\/8N07JwC3sj<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 First Take (@FirstTake) June 20, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n \u201cI will also say this,\u201d Williams began. \u201cWhen it comes down to the wire, Max Kellerman used to have this line, \u2018If the death beam was focused on the earth and it\u2019s the Martians against the U.S.,\u2019 If the NBA Finals\u2026comes down to the wire, with the body of work, I trust Tyrese Haliburton in those moments more than I trust SGA. That\u2019s how I feel about it! I\u2019ve seen it!\u201d<\/p>\n After Smith broke up with Kellerman, citing a\u00a0lack of chemistry,<\/a>\u00a0nearly three years ago, his former ESPN co-host\u00a0hasn\u2019t been mentioned much<\/a>\u00a0on\u00a0First Take. And as soon as Williams named Kellerman Friday morning, Smith appeared to roll his eyes with a bit of a huff before uttering, \u201cright\u201d with a dismissive tone. Maybe Smith\u2019s apparent displeasure stemmed from hearing Kellerman\u2019s name, or perhaps it stemmed from having to hear Kellerman\u2019s \u2018Martians vs the Earth\u2019 analogy again.<\/p>\n Williams\u2019 take on Haliburton vs. Shai Gilgeous Alexander, although not nearly as provocative, was a sort of ode to Kellerman, famously claiming he would take Andre Iguodala over Steph Curry<\/a> if one basket was needed to stop the Martians from pointing their death beam at Earth.<\/p>\n Smith rolled his eyes at Kellerman\u2019s take six years ago, and he rolled his eyes again at Williams referencing the take Friday morning.<\/p>\n \t\n