Kevin Durant Called Out Stephen A. Smith for Playing Solitaire During NBA Finals

KD couldn't pass this up.
Phoenix Suns forward Durant smiles during an interview
Phoenix Suns forward Durant smiles during an interview / Brian Westerholt-Imagn Images

ESPN analyst Stephen A. Smith went viral for the wrong reasons during Game 4 of the NBA Finals between the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Indiana Pacers Friday night.

A photo surfaced online of Smith appearing to play solitaire on his phone during the game. Smith later responded to the photo on his X account and acknowledged it was him, saying that he can multitask and that the photo was shot during a timeout. A video surfaced that appeared to show he had the card game up on his phone during gameplay, so who's really to say for sure?

Phoenix Suns star Kevin Durant responded to the viral image with a subtle jab at Smith.

"C'mon Steve," Durant wrote on his Instagram story.

Durant recently called out Smith about a take he had on the NBA's All-Star weekend where Smith said the league could do away with the weekend if another format change doesn't work and called out current stars for their lack of effort. Durant simply called those thoughts "dramatic."

The Suns star has been at the center of endless trade rumors as of late that his tenure in Phoenix could soon come to a close. On Friday, ESPN NBA insider Shams Charania said there could be a trade involving Durant "in the next few days" with teams actively involved in discussions. He named the Miami Heat, Minnesota Timberwolves and Houston Rockets as the teams who have been the focus of the Suns' Durant trade talks.

We'll see whether Durant gets traded in the near future. In the meantime, he couldn't pass up an opportunity to dunk on Smith.


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Blake Silverman
BLAKE SILVERMAN

Blake Silverman is a contributor to the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. Before joining SI in November 2024, he covered the WNBA, NBA, G League and college basketball for numerous sites, including Winsidr, SB Nation's Detroit Bad Boys and A10Talk. He graduated from Michigan State University before receiving a master's in sports journalism from St. Bonaventure University. Outside of work, he's probably binging the latest Netflix documentary, at a yoga studio or enjoying everything Detroit sports. A lifelong Michigander, he lives in suburban Detroit with his wife, young son and their personal petting zoo of two cats and a dog.