Kai Cenat made his First Take debut and was determined to leave an impression. The top streamer stopped by ESPN to share his sports takes, and as expected, found himself in an entertaining debate with Stephen A. Smith.
After some opening banter, the two got straight into it about two minutes in when Smith threatened to ban Kai for his opinion on Leandro Barbosa. Then, the 23-year-old turned it up a notch and exclaimed, “I ain’t gonna lie, Stephen. When it comes to LeBron James, you start hating! That’s how I feel!” He referenced their generation gap, adding, “I feel like you’re more of an older generation type of dude; you like Michael Jordan, cool. But listen, every time there’s a debate going on with Michael Jordan and LeBron James, you always got something to say about LBJ.”
He ended his rant by sharing his official stance on the two debated GOATs. “And I’m here to say it: LeBron is better than Jordan. I said it,” Cenat declared as co-hosts Elle Duncan and Molly Qerim exchanged shocked expressions. Watch the full episode below.
The acclaimed sports journalist was ready to defend his claims. “Something is wrong with you right now, don’t you even think about coming on this show with that kind of- don’t you even think about it!” Smith replied.
The duo began firing evidence back-and-forth to support their respective stances. “Michael Jordan ain’t ever have 50,000 points,” Cenat said to which Smith quickly shot back, “He ain’t play 25 years!”
Then, it was time for the veteran to Uno reverse and play the age card. “This is the problem with the young whippersnappers like yourself,” he said with a sly grin. “We started the show raving about his unparalleled greatness. We give him all the credit in the world and there’s some whippersnapper like yourself who comes on the show going, ‘You hatin’, you hatin’!’ It’s like wait a minute, you want us to give him a bib and an apron, too? We get that the man is one of the greatest players ever!”
Despite the rising tension, the two immediately joked it off as Kai changed the topic over to whether or not Smith can actually hoop.
Elsewhere in the episode, Cenat and the co-hosts discussed Kyrie Irving’s recent injury, compared Kai to Kevin Hart, and more.
Not only does Kai love to debate about basketball, he enjoys playing as well. Most recently, he made headlines for his appearance on the court at the 2025 NBA All-Star Celebrity Game. He played on Team Bonds, the winning team, alongside teammates like MVP Rome Flynn, Baron Davis, Mickey Guyton, and coaches Barry bongs and 2 Chainz. Check out some of his highlights above.
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