Stephen A. Smith apologizes to Teyana Taylor and Iman Shumpert over false divorce claims

Stephen A. Smith admitted that his claims about the divorce settlement were false

Stephen A. Smith has publicly apologized to Teyana Taylor and Iman Shumpert after admitting he shared false information about the former couple’s divorce settlement. The ESPN commentator acknowledged that the financial figures he cited were inaccurate and that statements he attributed to Shumpert were not authentic.

The controversy began during an October episode of “The Culture Table,” a podcast produced by Smith’s Straight Shooter Media. During a discussion about finances and marriage, Stephen A. Smith claimed Taylor received $25 million, an additional $10 million in property and other assets. He further alleged that Shumpert was left with approximately $2 million and nowhere to live, as reported by The Jasmine Brand.

Stephen A. Smith has since retracted those claims and apologized to both parties: “Those statements were inaccurate, and I want to sincerely apologize to both Iman Shumpert and Teyana Taylor.”

Smith also acknowledged that quotes attributed to Shumpert during the discussion had been falsely presented as his words. “The quotes attributed to him, however, were not his statements at all, and the financial figures presented were inaccurate.”

According to Smith, the information came from media reports and social media posts that attributed the claims to Shumpert. He said he personally spoke with Taylor, who confirmed that the circulating information was false. In his apology, Smith accepted responsibility for failing to verify the information before sharing it with his audience. “Straight Shooter Media and I, as the CEO, have a responsibility to ensure that information presented is properly sourced. We didn’t meet that standard here. Plain and simple.”

Stephen A. Smith also confirmed that he had personally apologized to Taylor and Shumpert. Reports say the original Culture Table episode was removed following the controversy. The correction is significant because the original discussion presented disputed financial details as facts and risked giving viewers the impression that Shumpert had publicly criticized Taylor over their divorce.

Taylor, a singer and actress, and Shumpert, a former NBA player who has also worked in sports media, married in 2016. Their divorce was finalized in 2024, and they share two daughters. In 2025, Taylor alleged that details of the divorce settlement proceedings had been leaked. Shumpert denied leaking the information. The settlement details were not established by Smith’s now-retracted claims.