Reggie Miller and Kenny Smith had a tense exchange when calling the one-on-one 3-point shooting competition between Stephen Curry and Sabrina Ionescu during NBA All-Star Saturday Night.
After Curry won 29-26 with both shooting from the NBA 3-point line, Smith said Ionescu, the New York Liberty star, should’ve shot from the WNBA 3-point line despite equaling the high score of everyone in the NBA 3-point contest moments earlier.
“She should’ve shot from the 3-point line that the women shoot from,” Smith said after Curry won.
“Why are you putting those boundaries on her?” Miller, who notably is the brother of women’s hoops pioneer and Hall of Famer Cheryl Miller, fired back.
“That’s what the game is, they have a smaller ball, don’t they?” replied Smith, later adding, “there’s a women’s tee in golf and there’s a men’s tee for a reason.”
Miller replied, “No, shooter’s shoot, isn’t that what you say?”
He continued shortly after, “Good job, Sabrina! Don’t let any man put boundaries on you like Kenny.”
Miller continued to pile on Smith, later adding, “well, according to you, you want her just playing with dolls.”
Smith denied that, reiterating, “No, I just want her to shoot from where she shoots from.”
It was an awkward exchange during the broadcast, with Smith’s remarks in particular drawing criticism from many on social media during the night, including 76ers star Joel Embiid.
“Kenny Smith been drinking lmao,” Embiid wrote on X.
Curry won the shootout with a late flurry against last season’s WNBA leader in 3-point conversions.
