Overview
- Bayless and Smith shared the First Take desk Friday on ESPN2 at 10 a.m. ET with Shae Cornette moderating.
- Bayless quickly targeted LeBron James, saying he begs for foul calls and has lost some respect from referees at his age.
- He unveiled a top-10 all-time NBA list with LeBron at No. 9, drawing a heated rebuttal from Smith, who called the claim asinine and blasphemous.
- ESPN presented the spot as a single appearance, though coverage cast it as a test that could bring Bayless back more often if viewership and social buzz warrant it.
- The reunion leaned into their familiar debates during the Lakers–Thunder playoff window, capping Bayless’s path from leaving ESPN in 2016 to FS1’s Undisputed through 2024 and into First Take’s rotating-contributor era.