Callum Hamilton is a highly experienced gambler and poker player with over 15 years of experience in journalism, covering everything from sports to casinos and video games.
Read Full BioStephen A. Smith has fired back at FBI Director Kash Patel, escalating a public feud that blends politics, sports, and allegations of bias in a widening NBA betting scandal.
The spat began when Smith claimed the timing of the recent arrests of Chauncey Billups and Terry Rozier was part of a plot to deliberately target the NBA, a league which President Donald Trump has strongly criticized in the past over political protests. Smith also claimed that the arrests’ timing could not be accidental, but was to distract from current anti-Trump demonstrations.
In response, Patel dismissed Smith’s claims, telling Laura Ingraham on FOX News: “That may be the single dumbest thing I’ve ever heard out of anyone in modern history, and I live most of my time in Washington, D.C.”
Stephen A. Smith Fires Back at Kash Patel
However, on Friday, speaking on his Sirius XM show, Smith continued the war of words with Patel. “I would say he’s the director of the FBI, let’s just say I’m not trying to get on his bad side,” said Smith. “But having said that, I still stand by what I said. And I’m not changing my mind.”
“In the interest of being real and making you understand who I am as a journalist and a commentator spanning 30 years, I just want you all to know that it’s customary for people to say I don’t know what the hell I’m talking about, that I’m off my damn rocker, only to come down the pike weeks, months later and say, ‘Yeah, it was true’ or the facts bear those things out.”
The controversy centers on arrests that Smith believes were politically charged. Billups and Rozier, among other individuals, face charges of money laundering and wire fraud conspiracy. Meanwhile, several players face accusations of spot-fixing, where they deliberately altered their performance and passed on the information to bettors.
Politics & Sport Clash in Betting Scandal
Billups faces accusations of his alleged involvement in rigged high-stakes illegal poker games involving Mafia members. That includes four of the five prominent Sicilian families operating in New York. Smith did not suggest that the parties were innocent. Still, the pundit questioned the timing and nature of the arrests.
“We’ve seen accusations before,” said Smith. “We’ve seen athletes get in trouble with the law before. You don’t see the director of the FBI having a press conference.”
“This investigation has been going on (while) Biden was in office. They talked about how this stuff has been going on since 2019, which is when Trump was in office. I’m not implying that Kash Patel doesn’t have any legitimacy to the case that he’s pursuing against these individuals.”
“I’m simply making the point that in the end, you have a president in place that has a lengthy connection to the sports world, rife with friends and enemies. And those who are his enemies, he doesn’t mind inconveniencing one bit. And when it comes to the NBA brand, it doesn’t bother him.”
The case has sent shockwaves throughout the US, although beyond Smith’s accusations, political involvement appears inevitable. The House Committee on Energy and Commerce summoned NBA Commissioner Adam Silver, seeking a briefing.
While gambling is not typically within the purview of Congress, the letter from the Committee insisted that it has “jurisdiction over interstate commerce, consumer protection, and sports. Of note, the Committee has a long-standing role in oversight of the integrity and fairness of sport, including but not limited to investigations of steroid use in Major League Baseball, anti-doping measures in the Olympic Games, and sexual abuse of Olympic athletes.”
