Stephen A. Smith has distanced himself from Shannon Sharpe after Sharpe was hit with a $50 million lawsuit accusing him of sexual assault, battery, and emotional abuse.
Smart move on Smith’s part, says Jason Whitlock.
“Stephen A. Smith is a little bit scared. This is a bad look for him, and Stephen A. Smith has already admitted he went to Diddy parties, and Stephen A. Smith is probably cutting checks,” he says.
In a recent video, Smith responded to the allegations against Sharpe with the following:
“I also spoke to co-chairman of Disney — the boss, Jimmy Pitaro — who made it very, very clear we are taking this matter very seriously, and we are looking into this very, very closely, and once we gather as many facts as we possibly can, we will go from there. And that is all he said, and I can mention his name because I received his permission to say that. I don’t know what that means.”
Jason says Smith knows exactly what it means, which is why he’s “backpedaling.”
“A doo-doo storm is about to erupt and sweep Shannon Sharpe out,” he says, adding that he’s been looped in by certain journalists about “little leaks and other stories” that are coming down the pipeline.
“I think Stephen A. Smith knows what’s about to happen, and now he’s in full rear end kiss mode,” Jason predicts.
Not only does he think Smith is pandering to the boss, but he also thinks he might actually be happy about the lawsuit.
“Sharpe was building a YouTube channel and a career that was going to surpass Stephen A. Smith,” says Jason. “Smith wants to be a late-night talk show host. Shannon Sharpe was positioning himself to be a late-night talk show host. He’s more talented than Stephen A. Smith. Stephen A. Smith is very happy with what’s happening to Shannon Sharpe.”
That’s why he didn’t believe Smith when, in the same video, he expressed his hopes for Sharpe’s exoneration.
“In my perfect world, this equates to Jay-Z, where the case is ultimately dropped, and Shannon is allowed to continue on ‘First Take’ and continue to thrive and shine. … In my perfect world, he moves on and somehow, some way, we find this all to be false,” Smith said, adding, “But it doesn’t seem like that’s the way things are about to go down, considering who Mr. Buzbee is.”
“Stephen A. has let it slip that unless these charges are dropped, ain’t no more Shannon Sharpe on ‘First Take.’ That’s how I heard that,” says Jason.
To hear more of his analysis, watch the clip above.
Want more from Jason Whitlock?
To enjoy more fearless conversations at the crossroads of culture, faith, sports, and comedy with Jason Whitlock, subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest multi-platform network of voices who love America, defend the Constitution, and live the American dream.
The post Whitlock: Shannon Sharpe’s $50M lawsuit has Stephen A. Smith running scared appeared first on TheBlaze.
