"You aren't Michael Jordan" - Stephen A. Smith torches LeBron James' GOAT status with 'choke job' tag while blasting him for dodging accountability

Stephen A. Smith and LeBron James aren't on the best of terms with each other since their altercation in March. The ESPN analyst has been critical of the Lakers star whenever there is a comparison between him and Michael Jordan in the GOAT conversation.

On Friday, during a guest appearance on "The Pivot Podcast," Smith called out James when the show's host asked him to explain what he meant when he asked fans to hold James accountable.

"You don't like me because you see me calling it like I see it. You aren't Michael Jordan, you are not the GOAT," Smith said (Timestamp: 31:21). "You did choke in an NBA Finals, four consecutive fourth quarters. In an NBA Finals, this man was scoring four points. In one game, he scored zero points.

"In an NBA Finals fourth quarter with Jason Terry or J.J. Barea guarding you. There is no explanation for that. To anybody who knows basketball, that's a choke-job."

Later, Smith gave LeBron James his flowers for overcoming the drawbacks he found in his game and winning four championships. However, he questioned the Lakers star's decision to join great players like Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh, Anthony Davis, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love to win those championships.

"Won't take one back step when it comes to him": Stephen A. Smith refuses to end his beef with LeBron James

LeBron James had a heated confrontation with Stephen A. Smith during a game against the New York Knicks in March. It was the first time that the world had seen the Lakers star go directly at a media personality during a game.

Seven months later, the ESPN analyst refuses to end his beef with James. During the seven months, Smith has revealed a lot of details about the confrontation. However, James has only talked in detail about the incident once, during an appearance on "The Pat McAfee Show" in April.

On Friday, Smith referenced James' comments about him on McAfee's show and revealed that he would not be backing down against James ever.

"The closest that I've ever come to backing up in my life has evaporated," Smith said (Timestamp: 21:00). "I won't take one back step when it comes to him in life ever again because I've done my job. He took it personal and took it to another level.

"To come on ESPN, just to insult me with a show that comes on after me, we know what you were doing. So, my attitude is fine, f*** it, this is how you wanna do it, we good."

Later, Smith accepted that he did not like LeBron James, and he was good with it.