ESPN’s Stephen A Smith hit with tough question during show

Stephen A. Smith had a tough question put onto his lap during Wednesday’s edition of “First Take” – would he rather be president of the United States or the next New York Knicks head coach?

Smith had to think about it as he’s floated the possibility of running for president and has added his voice to some of the hot-button political issues debated in that particular arena. But the Knicks also fired Tom Thibodeau and have a position open.

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Stephen A. Smith on the ESPN NBA Countdown live set at Intuit Dome on Oct. 23, 2024.  (Kirby Lee-Imagn Images)

The ESPN personality didn’t necessarily like the idea of working under Knicks team owner James Dolan and said he may like to be president more than the next head coach for the team in orange and blue.

“Can you see Stephen A. trying to negotiate the Ukraine-Russia situation?” Chris “Mad Dog” Russo asked. 

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New York Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau speaks during a media day press conference at the MSG training facility in Tarrytown, NY. (Brad Penner-Imagn Images)

“I wouldn’t try to negotiate it. I would work with the European Union. I would work with the United Nations. I would do what I could to empower us. I don’t want to give Ukraine unlimited funds, but I know that Russia’s ultimate quest is to recapture Europe and I don’t want that to happen. Therefore, I would help out Ukraine.”

Russo applauded Smith but hedged on going any further in the political realm.

Smith told ABC News in April that he had no choice but to consider a presidential run.

Stephen A. Smith in 2021. (IMAGN)

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“I have no choice, because I’ve had elected officials — and I’m not going to give their names — coming up to me. I’ve had folks who are pundits come up to me. I’ve had folks that got a lot of money, billionaires and others, that have talked to me about exploratory committees and things of that nature. I’m not a politician. I’ve never had a desire to be a politician,” Smith said.

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