Knicks superfan Stephen A. Smith can't wait to watch ‘Michael McBride' on the court next year
Smith was listing off the Knicks' hiring of new head coach Mike Brown on 'SportsCenter' when he mentioned 'Michael McBride' — an unfortunate butchering of New York guard Miles McBride.
'You're talking about Jalen Brunson, Karl-Anthony Towns, Mikal Bridges, OG Anunoby, Mitchell Robinson, Michael McBride, Josh Hart,' Smith said, seemingly oblivious to his mistake.
Fans immediately took to social media in frustration.
'We gotta excommunicate this clown from the fanbase,' one user wrote on X.
'Someone revoke this man's ability to speak about the Knicks please,' another user wrote, with a third sarcastically adding, 'Diehard Knicks fan, right?'
Smith, a Bronx native, has been a high-profile Knicks supporter for years — but fans have criticized him for overhyping the team when they're good and ripping into them when things don't go well.
The Knicks' Miles McBride during a game on April 13.
Getty Images
There's also a notion that Smith's knowledge of the team is lackluster, which won't be helped by his 'Michael McBride' mistake.
The 'First Take' analyst has a long track record of going on rants about the team, most notably his rampage after the team picked Kristaps Porzingis fourth overall in the 2015 draft.
'We have been hoodwinked, bamboozled, led astray, run amuck and flat-out deceived by Phil Jackson and the New York Knicks!' Smith yelled in the viral tirade.
Porzingis went on to make an All-Star Game while with the Knicks before getting traded to the Mavericks in 2019.
Stephen A. Smith at Madison Square Garden on May 16.
Getty Images
Smith voiced his optimism for the Knicks next season after the hiring of Brown, saying he expects them to be back in the Eastern Conference finals with the Celtics navigating without Jayson Tatum, the Bucks operating without Damian Lillard and the Magic and Cavaliers still unproven.
'Why should we expect less from the New York Knicks?' Smith said. 'We should expect at least the same.'
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