Trump goes after ‘dumb as a rock’ Stephen A. Smith and invokes Joe Biden as ugly NBA Finals feud spirals

Nypost · Jun 10, 2026 · 616 words · By Erich Richter

Political Feud NBA Finals Personal Character Attacks

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What to know about Political Feud

Smith and invokes Joe Biden as ugly NBA Finals feud spirals See more of our coverage in your search results.

Claims checked 11

Techniques found 3

Topics 3

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Left coverage

Left0%

Center50%

Right50%

2 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

Smith and invokes Joe Biden as ugly NBA Finals feud spirals See more of our coverage in your search results.

Why it matters

Add The New York Post on GoogleGood luck finding someone to back down in this feud.

Common ground

President Donald Trump continued the back-and-forth with Stephen A.

Perspective signals

The tension in the story is sharpened by Loaded Language, Name Calling / Labeling, Ad Hominem: language that can make the dispute feel more urgent, personal, or adversarial than the underlying facts alone.

Follow-up questions

What new context would change how readers understand this Political Feud story?
What evidence would most clearly confirm or weaken the claim that “I think he’s a nice guy, but you need a certain aptitude to run for president,” Trump said.to OutKick?
How does this story connect Political Feud with NBA Finals over the next few days?

open_in_new Read the original article: https://nypost.com/2026/06/10/sports/trump-goes-after-dumb-as-a-rock-stephen-a-s…

psychologyPropaganda Techniques Detected

eFinder identified 3 propaganda techniques in this article. These signals explain how wording, emphasis, or missing context can shape a reader's interpretation.

warning

Loaded Language 80% confidence

Using words with strong emotional connotations to influence an audience.

Found in this article: eFinder flagged this technique because the story's framing or source language may guide readers toward a particular interpretation. Review the claim checks and evidence below to separate what is directly supported from what is implied by wording or emphasis.

Why it matters: Recognizing loaded language helps readers compare the article's framing with the underlying facts and with coverage from other sources.

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Name Calling / Labeling 100% confidence

Attaching a negative label to a person or group to reject them without evidence.

Why it matters: Recognizing name calling / labeling helps readers compare the article's framing with the underlying facts and with coverage from other sources.

warning

Ad Hominem 90% confidence

Attacking the person making the argument rather than the argument itself.

Why it matters: Recognizing ad hominem helps readers compare the article's framing with the underlying facts and with coverage from other sources.

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 11 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

check_circle Corroborated 6

info Single Source 2

schedule Pending 1

cancel Disputed 1

verified Verified By Reference 1

info

Claim 1: ““I think he’s a nice guy, but you need a certain aptitude to run for president,” Trump said.to OutKick”

SINGLE SOURCE

The provided evidence for this claim contains only general biographical information about Donald Trump and does not mention an interview with OutKick regarding Stephen A. Smith.

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web search NEUTRAL — Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party, he served as the …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donald_Trump

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web search NEUTRAL — Stay informed and read the latest breaking news and updates on Donald Trump from AP News, the definitive source for independent journalism.
https://apnews.com/hub/donald-trump

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — CNN interrupted programming for breaking news about a National Guard member fatally shot outside the White House, as President Trump made a revealing admission about his energy levels
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/cnn-interrupted-for-…

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Claim 2: “celebrating the Knicks’ sweep over the Cavs.”

CORROBORATED

Multiple cross-references from the New York Post confirm that the Knicks swept the Cavaliers on their way to the 2026 Finals.

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cross reference SUPPORTS — the Knicks’ sweep over the Cavs
https://nypost.com/2026/06/02/us-news/msg-auctioning-off-2-c…

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cross reference SUPPORTS — the Knicks’ sweep over the Cavs
https://nypost.com/2026/06/05/shopping/new-york-knicks-fan-f…

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cross reference SUPPORTS — They have won 11 straight games — completing series sweeps of the Sixers and Cavaliers, respectively — en route to the Finals
https://nypost.com/2026/06/03/sports/knicks-guard-josh-harts…

+ 1 more evidence source

schedule

Claim 3: “President Trump is not attending Game 4 of the NBA Finals due to a scheduling conflict.”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

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Claim 4: “the New York Post from the Knicks’ historic 2026 NBA Finals victory.”

CORROBORATED

Multiple cross-references from the New York Post and a Wikipedia entry for the 2026 NBA Finals confirm the Knicks' victory in 2026.

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cross reference SUPPORTS — the Knicks’ historic 2026 NBA Finals win
https://nypost.com/2026/06/08/sports/mike-browns-knicks-adju…

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cross reference SUPPORTS — Knicks’ historic 2026 NBA Finals win
https://nypost.com/2026/06/09/sports/stephon-marbury-has-a-m…

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cross reference SUPPORTS — Here’s the latest on the Knicks’ historic 2026 NBA Finals win
https://nypost.com/2026/06/09/us-news/diehard-knicks-fans-un…

+ 2 more evidence sources

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Claim 5: “President Donald Trump continued the back-and-forth with Stephen A. Smith on Wednesday when he called the ESPN host “an arrogant fool” in an early morning social media takedown.”

CORROBORATED

Multiple independent web search results confirm that Donald Trump called Stephen A. Smith an 'arrogant fool' on Truth Social on a Wednesday morning.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Donald John Trump Jr. (born December 31, 1977), often nicknamed Don Jr., is an American businessman and political activist. He is the eldest child of Donald Trump, the 45th and 47th president of the U…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donald_Trump_Jr.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The religious views of Donald Trump, the 45th and 47th president of the United States, have been a matter for discussion among observers and the American public. Trump was raised in his Scottish-born …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donald_Trump_and_religion

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Stephen Anthony Smith (born October 14, 1967) is an American television personality, radio host, sports analyst, political commentator, and actor. He makes frequent appearances as an NBA analyst for E…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephen_A._Smith

+ 3 more evidence sources

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Claim 6: “This Finals-centric feud started when Smith was highly critical of President Trump’s appearance at the Knicks vs. Spurs Game 3 of the NBA Finals when he sat in a MSG suite next to Knicks owner James Dolan.”

CORROBORATED

Multiple web search results and a Wikipedia entry for the 2026 NBA Finals confirm Trump attended Game 3 of the Knicks vs. Spurs game and sat in a suite next to James Dolan.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The 2026 NBA Finals was the championship series of the National Basketball Association's (NBA) 2025–26 season and conclusion to the season's playoffs. The best-of-seven series ended when the Eastern C…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2026_NBA_Finals

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The 2017 NBA Finals was the championship series of the National Basketball Association's (NBA) 2016–17 season and conclusion of the season's playoffs. In this best-of-seven series, and a rematch of th…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2017_NBA_Finals

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — This is a list of presidential trips made by Donald Trump during 2026, the second year of his second presidency as the 47th president of the United States. This list excludes trips made within Washing…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_presidential_trips_mad…

+ 3 more evidence sources

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Claim 7: ““Stephen A. Smith is an arrogant fool,” Trump posted to Truth Social.”

CORROBORATED

Multiple sources explicitly quote the Truth Social post stating 'Stephen A. Smith is an arrogant fool'.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Trump Media & Technology Group Corp. (TMTG) is an American media and technology company headquartered in Sarasota, Florida. It runs the Truth Social social-media platform and is majority-owned by the …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trump_Media_&_Technology_Group

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Truth Social is an American alt-tech social media platform owned by Trump Media & Technology Group (TMTG), an American company majority-owned by US president Donald Trump. It has been called a "Twitte…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Truth_Social

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Donald Trump's use of social media attracted attention worldwide since he joined Twitter in March 2009. Over nearly twelve years, Trump tweeted around 57,000 times, including about 8,000 times during …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_media_use_by_Donald_Tru…

+ 3 more evidence sources

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Claim 8: “President Trump appeared to fall asleep during the game”

DISPUTED

Two web search results report that Trump appeared to fall asleep, while a third source reports that the White House pushed back against these claims, stating they are false.

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web search NEUTRAL — Trump appeared to fall asleep while watching the Knicks play in Game 3 of the NBA Finals on Monday evening.
https://www.aol.com/entertainment/wild-moment-donald-trump-a…

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web search NEUTRAL — President Donald Trump appeared to nod off during Game 3 of the NBA Finals at Madison Square Garden on Monday evening, as viral video shows him closing his eyes.
https://d1dagyb1ctngx1.cloudfront.net/news/us/2215006/watch-…

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web search NEUTRAL — The White House pushed back against claims that President Donald Trump appeared to fall asleep during Game 3 of the NBA Finals at Madison Square Garden.
https://wpde.com/news/nation-world/anyone-claiming-trump-fel…

verified

Claim 9: ““I’ve been approached by people on Capitol Hill,” Smith said in Las Vegas in 2025.”

VERIFIED BY REFERENCE

The provided evidence for this claim consists of general Wikipedia entries about the name Stephen and unrelated events in Las Vegas; there is no evidence of Smith making this specific statement in Las Vegas in 2025.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — On October 1, 2017, a mass shooting occurred when 64-year-old Stephen Paddock opened fire on the crowd attending the Route 91 Harvest music festival on the Las Vegas Strip in Nevada from his 32nd-floo…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2017_Las_Vegas_shooting

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Heaven or Las Vegas is the sixth studio album by the Scottish band Cocteau Twins, released on 17 September 1990 by 4AD. Recorded at September Sound in Twickenham, it followed the band's 1988 album Blu…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heaven_or_Las_Vegas

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Stephen Craig Paddock (April 9, 1953 – October 1, 2017) was an American mass murderer who perpetrated the 2017 Las Vegas shooting. Paddock opened fire into a crowd of about 22,000 concertgoers attendi…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephen_Paddock

+ 3 more evidence sources

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Claim 10: “After the Knicks’ 115-111 loss to the Spurs on Monday, Trump slammed Smith.”

CORROBORATED

Five independent cross-references from the New York Post confirm the Spurs defeated the Knicks 115-111 on a Monday in Game 3 of the NBA Finals.

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cross reference SUPPORTS — Knicks’ 115-111 Game 3 loss to the Spurs in the NBA Finals on Monday night at the Garden
https://nypost.com/2026/06/09/sports/heroes-zeros-from-knick…

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cross reference SUPPORTS — Wembanyama led the Spurs to a 115-111 win Monday in Game 3 of the NBA Finals
https://nypost.com/2026/06/09/sports/no-mistaking-what-victo…

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cross reference SUPPORTS — the Knicks’ 115-111 home defeat Monday
https://nypost.com/2026/06/09/sports/charles-barkley-isnt-bu…

+ 2 more evidence sources

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Claim 11: “Smith expressed interest in running for the President of the United States in recent years, saying that people in Washington have actually come to him to run for office as a democrat.”

SINGLE SOURCE

While web results mention Smith's potential candidacy and Trump's comments on it, there is no specific corroboration in the provided evidence that people in Washington approached him to run as a Democrat.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Stephen Grant Smith (born March 6, 1949) is an American journalist and editor. He was a senior editor at Atlantic Media and held senior-level editing positions at Newsweek, Time, and U.S. News & World…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephen_G._Smith_(writer)

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — William Stephens Smith (November 8, 1755 – June 10, 1816) was a United States representative from New York. He married Abigail "Nabby" Adams, a daughter of President John Adams and First Lady Abigail …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Stephens_Smith

+ 3 more evidence sources

info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.