Stephen A Smith is getting dragged for playing solitaire on his phone during NBA Finals

You really can’t make this stuff up. Stephen A Smith, one of ESPN’s highest-paid and most outspoken personalities, got exposed in embarrassing fashion during Friday night’s NBA Finals — and this one’s tough to defend, even for his biggest supporters.

While the Indiana Pacers and Oklahoma City Thunder were battling it out in Game 4, Stephen A Smith was spotted doing something far more important than watching the biggest game of the season: playing solitaire on his phone. That’s right. The face of ESPN couldn’t even be bothered to watch live game action. Instead, he was fully locked in on clearing digital cards.

How can you have all of these opinions while you’re playing solitaire instead of watching the game @stephenasmith? pic.twitter.com/fqjnQLOHXU

— Kimberly (@BleedBlue1986) June 14, 2025

A fan sitting in the upper bowl of Gainbridge Fieldhouse snapped the now-viral photo, showing Stephen A Smith deeply focused on his card game while the players were running up and down the court. The fan, Kimberly, later confirmed the photo was taken during live gameplay — not during a timeout like Stephen A Smith tried to claim when the backlash started pouring in.

“Yep! That’s me. Who would’ve thought….I can multi-task. Especially during TIMEOUTS! Hope y’all are enjoying the NBA Finals,” Stephen A Smith posted on X.

Problem is, multiple videos and additional photos completely contradict his weak excuse. Kimberly fired back almost instantly, showing more evidence that he was indeed playing while the game was going on. It’s hard to multi-task when the game you’re paid to analyze is literally happening right in front of you.

Stephen A playing solitaire during the NBA Finals. Yikes pic.twitter.com/bZ1fPptfpE

— Christian (@FreakyFunSize) June 14, 2025

Stephen A Smith Embarrasses Himself — And ESPN

Naturally, fans on social media absolutely torched Stephen A Smith for the stunt — and rightfully so. This is supposed to be the pinnacle of basketball coverage, the NBA Finals, and one of ESPN’s leading voices is casually playing solitaire courtside? Total clown show.

Shop Philly Sports Gear Here

“That’s embarrassing,” one fan said. “He is a disgrace,” said another. “ESPN used to be serious but have become such a gimmick-based sports network,” another fan perfectly summed up.

And honestly, they’re all spot on. This isn’t some meaningless regular season game in January. This is the NBA Finals — and Stephen A Smith can’t even pretend to care. The guy loves to lecture players about focus, commitment, and professionalism, but he can’t even sit through four quarters without reaching for his phone.

The Hypocrisy of Stephen A Smith

What makes this even funnier — and more pathetic — is that Stephen A Smith has been going back and forth with Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton throughout these Finals. Haliburton recently called out media personalities, questioning how much they actually know about basketball. Rather than take any of it in stride, Stephen A Smith fired back calling Haliburton “ignorant” and ran his usual victory lap.

Yet here we are, a few days later, watching Stephen A Smith blatantly prove Haliburton’s point.

You’d think someone getting paid millions of dollars by ESPN to cover the NBA Finals might actually watch the game. But no — solitaire took priority.

At the end of the day, this is exactly who Stephen A Smith has become. It’s not about the actual game anymore — it’s about viral moments, hot takes, and staying at the center of attention. And ESPN allows it because, well, clicks still rule the world.

But if you want to know why fans are tuning out from these networks and getting sick of the so-called “experts” they put on TV — look no further than Stephen A Smith playing solitaire during the NBA Finals. The guy has officially become a parody of himself.