Stephen Anthony Smith is an American sports television personality, sports radio host, and sports journalist. He makes frequent appearances as an NBA analyst for ESPN on SportsCenter, NBA Countdown, and the network's NBA broadcasts. He has also hosted The Stephen A. Smith Show on ESPN Radio and is a commentator on ESPN's First Take, where he appears with Molly Qerim. Smith is a featured columnist for ESPN and The Philadelphia Inquirer.

NBA Countdown, branded for sponsorship purposes as NBA Countdown Presented by DraftKings Sportsbook for ESPN editions and NBA Countdown Delivered by Papa John's for ABC editions respectively, is a pregame television show airing prior to National Basketball Association (NBA) telecasts on ABC and ESPN. The networks have aired NBA games since 2002. Typically, the program airs 30 or 60 minutes prior to the game. ESPN2 or another ESPN network may also be used as an overflow channel for the show.