Suns' Mat Ishbia Expects Apology From Stephen A. Smith Over Ownership Claim

Smith said Ishbia was on the verge of being the worst owner in NBA history.

Phoenix Suns owner Mat Ishbia watched his team struggle again this season / Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

The Phoenix Suns were yet again among the most disappointing teams in the NBA this season, boasting the highest payroll in the league at $214 million yet finishing 36-46 on the year. And with another underwhelming result came plenty of criticism for owner Mat Ishbia, the driving force behind the failed nucleus of Kevin Durant, Devin Booker, and Bradley Beal.

On ESPN earlier this week, Stephen A. Smith really tore into Ishbia and said he's on the way to becoming the worst owner in the history of the NBA.

Meeting with reporters to discuss what went wrong and how the Suns planned to move forward on Thursday, Ishbia was asked about Smith's claim and bluntly dismissed it, while also noting he believed an apology was coming from the ESPN personality.

"Stephen A. Smith, I don't take much he says seriously. I don't think many people do, to be honest with you. The things he said about Kevin Durant, just wrong and disrespectful. The things he said about LeBron James were just disrespectful and inappropriate. With that being said, I don't really think Stephen A. believes that, what he said. He's doing his thing, he's on the mic.

"And I think he'll apologize to me. I think it's disrespectful to put my name aligned with anybody that was kicked out of the league... To even say that kind of stuff, like I said, I think he'll apologize. I think he's out of line and I think he knows that. I don't think he really believes that."

Phoenix Suns owner Mat Ishbia’s full response when I asked him about Stephen A Smith’s notion that he’s “on the verge of becoming the worst team owner in sports history.”

Video credit to @azfamily pic.twitter.com/6rNrI5jkZj

— Shane Young (@YoungNBA) April 17, 2025

A strong response from the Suns owner. For his part, Smith saw the clip and promised to respond on Friday's edition of First Take.

Another public sparring match between Smith and a prominent face of the NBA.

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