Will Smith Just Gave An NBA Team A Pep Talk
Will Smith met with the NBA Lakers to speak about the importance of teamwork amid their streak of losses.
Life imitated art when Emancipation star Will Smith gave the Los Angeles Lakers a pep-talk earlier this week. Known for his breakout role in The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, in which he played a teen with a skill for the sport of basketball, Smith showed up to a Lakers meeting where he spoke to the group about the importance of teamwork and staying strong. No doubt hoping to put his Academy Awards assault and the memes that came to follow behind him, it seems as though Smith was hoping to inspire the team which have lost their first three games of the season.
While he was there, TMZ revealed that Will Smith not only met with members of the world famous Lakers, but also posed for some shots with the team’s owner Jeanie Buss as well as their general manager Rob Pelinka. Gaining the highest honor a sports fan can have, Smith was presented with a No. 14 Lakers jersey, complete with his last name written across the top. Clearly planning to stand by his beloved basketballers, the stop was an exciting chance for Smith to help pump the players up for their upcoming games.
Will Smith next appears in Antoine Fuqua’s historical drama, Emancipation, a true story that centers around an enslaved man named Peter who breaks free from a Louisiana plantation and flees to the North in order to enlist in the Union Army. Penned by William N. Collage, the picture takes its story from the true tale of an enslaved man named Gordon who, through photos of his whipped and deeply scarred back, played a major role in driving the abolitionist movement by proving the horrendous and atrocious acts carried out by slave owners. Already gaining praise and considered a shoo-in for the awards circuit, the feature will hit select theaters on December 2, prior to its Apple TV+ streaming release on December 9.
Unfortunately for Will Smith, it wasn’t a blockbuster feature that saw his name landing on the headlines of websites, newspapers, and thought pieces this past year – it was his actions at the Academy Awards. Back in late March, Smith attended the event with his wife Jada Pinkett Smith and would ultimately win the Best Actor award for his role in tennis tale, King Richard. Sadly, his big win would be overshadowed by a terrible choice the actor made during the reveal of Best Documentary.
As comedian Chris Rock took the stage to announce the category’s winner and do what comics do best – roast the audience – he made a joke at the expense of Jada Pinkett Smith referring to her buzzed hair look as G.I. Jane. As the cameras cut back to Rock, Will Smith soon appeared on the stage, strutting directly up to the comedian before winding his arm back and delivering a slap that looked like it would leave a mark. Stunned, Chris Rock and the rest of the audience exchanged confused looks as Smith marched back to his seat and yelled at Rock to keep his wife’s name out of his mouth.
It was an absolute mess, with Will Smith keeping his own mouth shut on the topic for quite a while after the event. The assault cost Smith his privilege to attend Oscar events for the next decade, and cast a shadow on the future of his career. With his on-screen comeback in Emancipation just around the corner and his recent chit-chat with the LA Lakers, it’s clear that Smith’s star is beginning to light back up.
