Stephen A. Smith has claimed American NBA stars would reject the idea of an international All-Star break.
Both the NBA and NHL had their respective All-Star breaks over the past week but the hockey world emerged with the upper hand.
The NHL introduced its initial 4 Nations Face-Off, featuring the USA, Canada, Sweden and Finland battling it out on the international stage, which, amid a backdrop of rising political tensions, resulted in a massive increase in interest in the sport.
The international tournament’s final thriller between the USA and Canada smashed records with 9.25 million tuning in in America, while viewership for the NBA All-Star Game was almost at an all-time low.
However, Smith claimed that the USA basketball stars would resist trying to replicate the success of the 4 Nations because they’re too scared of their international rivals, despite claiming gold at last year’s Olympics.
‘Team USA fears they’d get their a** kicked by those international players. I’m going to say it on national television: the international players will bust their living behinds. Yes they would,’ Smith said on ‘First Take’ Friday.
Stephen A. Smith claimed US NBA stars will reject the idea of an international All-Star break
Canada and Team USA played out a thrilling final in the NHL’s inaugural 4 Nations
‘Not just because their skillset is on par with them, but because they care, and they’re compelled by their audience from their homelands more so than (the Americans).’
It was a controversial take from the sports analyst, considering the USA has won eight of the last nine Olympic gold medals.
But Smith believed the medal tally would prove irrelevant as he claimed the competition was getting tighter and tighter.
‘Look at the Olympic competition and how stiff it has gotten,’ he continued. ‘Those players collectively on their respective teams don’t compare to Team USA but they gave them a run for their money. Why? Because they go all out. Because they ain’t playing.’
The NHL’s 4 Nations finished in thrilling fashion when the USA and Canada went head to head in Thursday’s final.
With tensions between the two countries at a boiling point thanks to President Donald Trump’s recent threats to impose tariffs on their neighbors and ceaseless taunting, the final, which Canada won 3-2 in overtime, made for primetime viewing.
The overtime thriller was a rematch of a brutal round-robin clash between the two nations, which saw three fights in the opening nine seconds.
Furthermore, Trump’s comments have led to frayed relations between the two countries, with Canada booing the American national anthem in Montreal during the tournament.
American fans returned the favor to ‘O Canada’ at the 4 Nations Face-Off final in Boston Thursday, which itself was altered by a Canadian singer as a form of protest against Trump.
