‘3 WHITE DUDES?!’ Stephen A. Smith Gobsmacked by LA Lakers’ Top Players All Being White

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Stephen A. Smith was stunned by the fact that three of the Los Angles Lakers’ top players in the 2026 season were all going to be white.

On Tuesday, ESPN’s Shams Charania broke the news that LeBron James informed the Lakers he’d be playing basketball else in 2026. The 41-year-old spent the previous eight seasons in Los Angeles, winning one NBA championship and earning All-NBA honors seven times.

With James gone, the Lakers will be led by 27-year-old Slovenian star Luka Doncic. The team’s second option will likely be guard Austin Reaves, who the team signed to a 4-year, $185 million contract last week. The team also acquired center Walker Kessler from the Utah Jazz.

Reacting to the Lakers’ recent moves, Smith argued Wednesday that the Lakers had no chance of winning a championship because their top three players were white.

Smith said:

Where the hell the Los Angeles Lakers think they’re going with a bunch of white dudes? Your three top players are white dudes? Really? This ain’t golf! This ain’t baseball! Hell, it ain’t even soccer! What do y’all think this is? This is basketball!

In NBA history, when have you seen your three most prominent players on a basketball team all be white, and that takes you to the promised land? Somebody got to say it, so I’m saying it! This is basketball. I’m not complaining. I’m simply making the point. The Los Angeles Lakers, you ain’t going anywhere being led by three white dudes in today’s generation of basketball!

Smith went on to praise the Lakers’ white players, emphasizing that he still believed they were good. He did, however, accuse Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka of turning the team into “white central.”

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