Stephen A. Smith & Skip Bayless – Source: Laura Cavanaugh / Getty
ESPN’s top personality, Stephen A. Smith, is coming to the defense of Skip Bayless amid sexual harassment allegations. Following the sexual harassment and workplace harassment lawsuit against Bayless, Joy Taylor, and Fox Sports, it’s hard for sports personalities to ignore the topic, and Stephen A. Smith has never turned down a chance to speak his mind.
On a recent episode of The Stephen A. Smith Show, the outspoken host addressed the allegation that Skip Bayless offered hairstylist Noushin Faraji money for sex. Not only does SAS believe the allegation is false, but he assured viewers Skip wouldn’t pay $1.5M for sex because he’s “cheap.”
“Here’s what I would tell you… I’ve known Skip for [25 years], I can’t imagine it. I can’t imagine it. Especially when they brought up the $1.5 million, the Skip Bayless I know has a hard time giving away $15. He’s one of the cheapest people I know,” said Smith. “But that doesn’t mean that I had any inside knowledge about any of this.”
After briefly defending Skip and dropping the disclaimer that he wasn’t getting involved, Smith said he was shocked by the lawsuit and discussed Faraji.
“Imagining him being in this kind of position is shocking to say the least,” Smith added. “All I can tell you is that it’s not the Skip Bayless I know. But obviously this is a legal matter he’s going to have to deal with because this situation doesn’t appear to be going away. This person who is a hair stylist, the people that I’ve spoken to in the last 24 hours that have some knowledge about her says that she’s meticulous with her details and she’s going to chronicle things and that’s how she operates.”
Ultimately, Stephen A. Smith made it clear that he would not use his platform to lobby for either side.
“I don’t know her. I know Skip and I’m very, very heartbroken that he finds himself in this situation being accused of these allegations. But I can’t be all over the airwaves being irresponsible and attaching truth or guilt to anything.” said smith.
Like Shannon Sharpe, it seems Skip’s former co-workers want zero part of the situation. This lawsuit isn’t going anywhere, and in due time, we will hear more from both sides in court.
You can watch Stephen A. Smith discuss the lawsuit involving his former co-host below.
