Shannon Sharpe Uses Dwyane Wade-LeBron James Photo Upon Joining First Take With Stephen A. Smith

Sports personalities Shannon Sharpe and Stephen A. Smith are pairing up for ESPN’s First Take. Both are individually charismatic and recognizable on their own, so having them together is going to be even more monumental.

To capture the significance of this moment, Sharpe used the famous photo of Dwyane Wade throwing an alley-oop to LeBron James in the Miami Heat’s 2010 win over the Milwaukee Bucks.

Sharpe, a frequent James defendant, left Undisputed with Skip Bayless after nearly a decade. Tension with Bayless created on-air tension with subjects like Tom Brady’s poor performances and Damar Hamlin’s health. Sharpe will now work alongside Smith, as well as other on-air talents such as Marcus Spears, Kendrick Perkins, and Ryan Clark.

Smith and Sharpe are also alums of historically black universities, which is another accomplishment to be celebrated. Sharpe graduated from Savannah State University before entering the NFL draft. Meanwhile, Smith came out of Winston-Salem State University before a decorated career in sports journalism.

Their debates will certainly draw viewers to a show already dominating network viewership. Smith's past co-stars were great but it now feels like he has someone on his level in terms of knowledge and personality.

And considering their stances on the NBA GOAT conversation, there will inevitably be argument about James vs. Michael Jordan.

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Jayden Armant is a contributor to Inside the Heat. He is a student at Howard University. He can be reached at or follow him on TikTok @jaydenarmant.