Stephen A. Smith storms off ‘First Take’ set in disgust

Stephen A. Smith might not be the biggest New York Knicks fan, but he loves to play one on TV.

In their quest to advance to their first NBA Finals since 1999, the Knicks met one of the teams that hope to stand in their way Thursday night. And the Knicks failed their test miserably, getting blown out at home by an understaffed Detroit Pistons team 126-111.

New York’s loss to Detroit was a blow to fans and had Smith feeling as if any hope of seeing the Knicks advance to the Finals was simultaneously lost.

“MSG, we’re watching our home team get punk’d. … This is not good!”

—@stephenasmith walks off set in disgust 😂 pic.twitter.com/pfiE07PQfD

— First Take (@FirstTake) February 20, 2026

“It’s over. They ain’t going to no damn Finals,” Smith said Friday morning on First Take. “It’s over! They ain’t going to no damn Finals! Because they ain’t good enough.”

The Knicks beat the Pistons in the first round of the NBA Playoffs last season. But after Thursday night, Smith sees no way of it happening again. The only way Smith believes the Knicks can advance to the Finals is if another team picks the Pistons off first.

“And by the way, they younger,” Smith said of the Pistons. “And by the way they balling, and by the way they got size and athleticism and tenacity and they don’t like you. They’re looking at you and like, ‘we don’t like you!’ They got Tobias Harris not liking them. He likes everybody! One of the nicest guys…this is what they’re doing, and the Knicks are doing nothing! MSG, we’re watching our home team get punk’d. Punk’d! This is not good!”

And with that, Smith stood up from the First Take table and marched off set while shouting, “I’m too disgusted, I’m going!”

No doubt, Knicks fans are reeling after this loss. But they don’t need to deal with it through Smith’s theatrics. Smith often tries to make himself out to be a sort of Knicks mascot on First Take. Knicks fans, however, are reluctant to claim him, wondering if his portrayed fandom is more of a show than passion.

This might not play well for Smith or ESPN, but in the words of Aaron Rodgers, “R-E-L-A-X.” The Knicks don’t look like a Finals team right now; they certainly didn’t look like one Thursday night against Detroit. But it’s February. Don’t talk about playoffs.

There are two things Knicks fans should be concerned with more than Thursday night’s game against the Pistons. Getting to the playoffs healthy and finding a way for Karl-Anthony Towns to look like the player he was a year ago. Because the All-Star center that played for Tom Thibodeau last season looks very different from the one playing for Mike Brown this season, and if Towns can’t be an elite offensive player alongside Jalen Brunson, then Knicks fans are going to be suffering through many more Stephen A. Smith rants and theatrics on First Take.