Stephen A. Smith made news and drew the ire of an entire city with his comments about Memphis. The ESPN personality asserted that NBA players do not want to play for the Grizzlies because of safety concerns.
The crew at Gil’s Arena tackled the subject of Smith’s comments.
Nick Young seemed to disagree with Smith’s take saying “Everywhere is a bit dangerous.”
Panelist Norris Cole agreed with Smith’s accessment, saying “He told the truth. I mean Memphis is cool for certain people, but like for others, like, it ain’t.
Kenyon Martin added, “The city is ravaged by gun violence. People [are] dying daily in Memphis. I would not have wanted to play there as an NBA player. I didn’t feel safe. Even though I ventured out and certain things, but certain environments I did not feel safe. Not to say the people of Memphis are bad people [but] as the old saying goes, ‘ a few bad apples can ruin a whole bunch’ right?
Although Memphis has a reputation as a crime-addled city, one that was well earned, as we previously reported violent and other crimes have been trending down, but continue to occur at a high rate.
