Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports

Stephen A. Smith angrily reacts to New York Knicks' terrible shooting in Game 5

Originally posted on Hardwood Heroics
By Christian Alamodin | Last updated 5/1/24

Stephen A. Smith is one of the most popular fans of the New York Knicks. The sports broadcaster isn’t shy about letting everyone know where his loyalties lie when it comes to Knicks games and is constantly stirring up the trade mill with wild suggestions that would make his favorite team better.

He was over the moon when the Knicks won Game 4 against the Philadelphia 76ers, and he was confident that his team would make it to the next round in five games against a team that was struggling to get things together.

However, the Sixers managed to put together an incredible performance that saw them force a Game 6 and possibly extend the series to a full seven games. Like most Knicks fans, Smith was upset with how his team lost the game.

Their overtime defeat ticked him off enough to have him start an explicit rant about it.

Stephen A. Smith bashes New York Knicks for being careless in Game 5 vs Philadelphia 76ers

After the Philadelphia 76ers completed the second-half comeback that extended the series even further, Smith went on social media and unleashed an epic rant about how the Knicks fumbled the series with costly mistakes.

Smith had this to say in the video posted on his Instagram account, per Advait Jajodia of The SportsRush:

“Why did Mitchell Robinson foul Tyrese Maxey on that three-point shot? Why did Josh Hart make the turnover? Why did he not convert both free throws instead of just one? Why did he seem so erratic throughout the game? As great as Jalen Brunson was overall with his 40-point performance, did you not notice you had four teammates on the court with you in overtime to pass the ball to instead of taking every damn shot?”

It was clear with the Knicks’ performance that they shared Stephen A. Smith’s thoughts and wanted to end the series in five games. Jalen Brunson had a great game with a stat line of 40 points, three rebounds, six assists, and three steals on 47% shooting.

However, the rest of the team were misfiring on offense and defense. Josh Hart shot a wasteful 7-for-17 to finish with 18 points. OG Anunoby fared slightly better with 17 points, and Mile McBride provided scoring off the bench with 14.

Meanwhile, Tyrese Maxey carried the scoring burden with 46 points on 57% shooting. Joel Embiid also had an epic game with 19 points, 16 rebounds, 10 assists, one steal, and four blocks.

Tom Thibodeau and the rest of the New York Knicks must make the necessary adjustments to make sure they’ll finally finish off the Sixers on their own home.

This article first appeared on Hardwood Heroics and was syndicated with permission.

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