Stephen A. Smith continues to rip Zion Williamson for not being in shape.
Over the weekend, the ESPN host called out Zion for looking "fat" during the New Orleans Pelicans' loss to the Los Angeles Lakers in the semifinal of the NBA's in-season tournament on Thursday.
"You look like you showed up to the game having just ate a buffet," he said on The Stephen A. Smith Show. "Not something from the buffet, I said the buffet. Like you ate the damn table. I wasn’t going to touch on this, because I was embarrassed for him. But then Sports Illustrated wrote about it, and the New Orleans Times-Picayune, local newspaper, wrote about it. So it’s public information. He’s fat.”
On Monday, Smith reiterated his comments about Zion's love of buffets, claiming chefs in New Orleans have told him that the All-Star forward will "eat the table."
“It is shameful. I got chefs in New Orleans. I’m not exaggerating,” Smith said on ESPN's First Take. “I’m not exaggerating, I’m quoting people. You got chefs in New Orleans who love him. They’re looking for him. Every chef there wants to meet him because they know he’ll show up to their restaurant. The word out on Zion Williamson is that he’ll eat the table.”
Stephen A. isn't the only one who's criticized Zion's lack of conditioning.
During TNT's broadcast of the Lakers-Pelicans game last Thursday, Shaquille O'Neal and Charles Barkley emphathized with Williamson, sharing that they, too, struggled with their weight during the early stages of their careers.
Following New Orleans' win over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Monday, Zion was asked about Shaq and Barkley's comments. Williamson took the high road, stating that he doesn't have control over other people's opinions regarding his weight.
“If it comes from a great place and a place where they just wanna see me do better, thank you,” Williamson explained. “But if it comes from anywhere else, everyone entitled to their own opinion. Can’t control that.”
Elsewhere in his post-game press conference, Zion struggled to pronounce lackadaisical, which resulted in some good-natured roasting on social media. Check out both clips below.
