Stephen A. Smith Trolled by Pelicans About Solitaire With Basketball Video After Zion Comments

The New Orleans Pelicans had some fun at the expense of ESPN's Stephen A. Smith following his comments regarding Pelicans star Zion Williamson.

The Pelicans told Smith to "stick to solitaire" while posting a video of his mishaps in several sports on X.

Smith was spotted playing solitaire on his phone during Game 4 of the 2025 NBA Finals in a viral social media photo.

He responded with a comment underneath Tuesday's video that led to another post from the Pelicans using Max Kellerman, his former co-host on ESPN's First Take.

As promised, Smith addressed the situation on First Take on Wednesday:

All of this comes after Smith called out Williamson on Tuesday's episode of First Take.

"He's played in 259 games in his career, he's missed 275," Smith said (12:34 mark). "You're looking at him right now and you're saying to yourself, 'Of course he's not a bust,' because the brother can ball. He's averaging 21 a game which is down from last year, down from the year before. ...When he's healthy and on the basketball court we know what he can do, it was just about his dedication to being available to do it."

"They were losing games because you wasn't on the court, now they're losing games with you on the court," he added.

New Orleans holds a 19-43 record during the 2025-26 season.

Williamson was ruled out ahead of the Pelicans' matchup with the Los Angeles Clippers on Sunday due to an ankle injury after playing in a career-high 35 consecutive games.

The two-time All-Star has dealt with availability issues throughout his career, as he's made more than 65 appearances in just one season since New Orleans selected him with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2019 NBA draft.