Karmelo Anthony will serve 35 years in prison after a Texas jury found him guilty of murdering Austin Metcalf at a high school track meet in Frisco. Anthony fatally stabbed the 17-year-old in April 2025, and Metcalf ultimately succumbed to his injuries.
The case drew widespread attention and sparked outrage across the country, with people debating racial bias, self-defense and the fairness of the United States’ justice system. ESPN analyst Stephen A. Smith recently reacted to the issue, saying his opinion depends on what the verdict is and the evidence presented.
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And after reviewing the facts of the case, Smith concluded that Anthony was guilty.
Smith’s stance on the case
According to reports, Anthony, 19, tried to seek shelter under the Memorial High School team tent because he did not have his own. However, Metcalf’s twin brother, Hunter, reportedly had asked Karmelo to leave before Austin stepped in and pushed the latter.
The encounter escalated into a heated exchange, during which Karmelo brought out a knife from his bag and fatally stabbed Austin in the chest. He fled the scene after the confrontation.
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Smith, who has dabbled in both sports and politics in his decades in the media, is no stranger to wrongful incarcerations, especially with black people — SAS said he wished he could offer a defense for Anthony.
“I would give anything to be able to say something definitively in Karmelo Anthony’s defense,” the analyst said. “If there was a shred of innocence to the incident itself, I would say so. I don’t want to see another black young man going to jail.”
However, as it stands, there is no such evidence, and Anthony murdered Metcalf. For him, it’s not an issue of race; this is about justice.
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“I don’t give a d—n about what your race or ethnicity is,” he said. “Just because you’re white and young doesn’t mean you deserve to be murdered. And just because you’re black and young … doesn’t give you a license to murder someone… That’s what happened.”
SAS has been outspoken about political issues this year
In January, the nation was stunned by the news of Renee Nicole Good’s death. The 37-year-old mother was shot dead by an ICE agent during an operation in Minnesota. And Smith also shared his thoughts on this sensitive topic.
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After reviewing the circulating videos of the incident, Stephen A. said the shooting was legally “justified.” However, he condemned the agent’s use of deadly force, saying that it could have been handled better and without ending Good’s life.
“Don’t expect him to be prosecuted. He was completely justified,” Smith said. “She wasn’t driving down the road, coming at you 90 miles an hour…Rather than get out the car, she wrongfully tried to drive off. And wrongfully disregarded a law enforcement official because that it was ICE is and as a result, lost her life because of it.
However, Anthony’s case is entirely different as it involved two teenagers. Still, for Smith, the evidence was straightforward: Karmelo murdered Austin with a knife and race had no bearing on that conclusion.
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Related: “Stay at the White House” – Stephen A. Smith urges Donald Trump to avoid the NBA Finals
This story was originally published by Basketball Network on Jun 13, 2026, where it first appeared in the Off The Court section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.