Duke basketball great lays waste to pundit in debate

It’s safe to say Duke basketball gem JJ Redick won’t back down to loud men.

This week, legendary Duke basketball sharpshooter and newly minted ESPN analyst JJ Redick appeared on First Take and found himself in a heated debate with renowned opiner Stephen A. Smith.

The recent retiree, who played 15 years in the NBA following a four-year college stint that put him atop the all-time Duke scoring list, took issue with Smith saying LeBron James doesn’t “instill fear.”

ALSO READ: Top 100 Blue Devils under Mike Krzyzewski

This discussion, of course, stemmed from a bloody commotion on Sunday night. Recapping, second-year Detroit Pistons big man Isaiah Stewart repeatedly tried to chase down Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James in response to a blow he received to his face during the Pistons’ eventual home loss to the Lakers.

JJ Redick making Duke basketball proud

Here’s what JJ Redick expressed to Stephen A. Smith in sparking the entertaining back-and-forth, which the former NBA Blue Devil seemed to win hands down:

“I don’t know whether to believe that you believe what you’re saying. That’s crazy.”

Smith then tried his usual boisterous tactics, perhaps in an attempt to scare Redick into silence:

“It’s not crazy, and you know better.”

Moments later, Redick pretty much had no choice but to interrupt the following Smith remark:

“If you watch the game, which you do…”

That’s when Redick put Smith, a mere NBA observer all his life, in his place:

“I played the game…I played against LeBron in the playoffs. I played against LeBron for 15 years.”

Shortly after that in-your-face reminder, the verbal battle cooled down. But in the end, by refusing to back down to Stephen A. Smith and instead embracing a war of words that has since gone viral, JJ Redick likely secured more frequent invites to the show in the future.