Stephen A. Smith may appear mostly in suits, breaking down the performances of NBA players. But the 58-year-old recently displayed his shirtless snaps, which spoke volumes about his weight loss journey, and earned a plethora of reactions from fans.

Smith went candid about his transformation process during the June 4 episode of ESPN's First Take. He disclosed that the alarming physical condition he had reached during COVID propelled him to pay more attention to his body. However, it was his transformation that allowed him to accept being shirtless for his upcoming appearance in the popular ABC soap opera, General Hospital.

A total of three snaps of the NBA analyst appeared during the broadcast of First Take. The first one displayed his unfit phase during COVID, with a bulging belly. He looked a lot fitter in the second one in a sleeveless sports inner, but then arrived his shirtless snap from the shoot of General Hospital, which earned a loud pop from the crowd.

Besides allowing fans to witness his transformation, Smith also narrated the background story about when and why he decided that it was high time to take better care of his health. He revealed, "[About the first photo] That's me four years ago, when COVID almost killed me. And that is me now [the shirtless snap]."

Subsequently, Smith also said, "I was 0.1 points away from being a full-blown diabetic, where they were going to have to put me on medication for the rest of my life. And there are so many people that I have to thank for [my transformation]."

Well, just like Smith's shirtless snap caused an uproar among fans in the studio during the First Take broadcast, fans on social media also had a lot to say after watching Smith's transformation.

What did fans say after watching Stephen A. Smith's shirtless snap showcasing his weight loss?

A plethora of fans took to the comments section of the aforementioned Instagram post by New York Post Sports that displayed Smith's weight loss journey. One of them praised his decision to go for a transformation, writing, "Very smart millionaire live healthy and long champ."

Another one expressed similar thoughts and wrote, "The Knicks got Stephen A. Smith looking like Hulk." A third one said, "Good for unc tbh."

Lots of others shared appreciative responses after watching and learning about Smith's weight loss journey. However, some chose not to be so wholesome in their approach.

Quite a few fans derided him, referring to his sometimes unnecessary criticism of the NBA icon, LeBron James. One of them wrote, "He's training for a boxing match against LeBron," while another one penned, "Dude got picked on by LeBron and went straight to the gym."

But now that you have also witnessed the snaps, what would you like to say about the NBA analyst's transformation?

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Written by

Souvik Roy

Edited by

Ashvinkumar Patil