Stephen A Smith says 'I was wrong' about Michigan basketball

· Yahoo Sports

It takes a lot of courage to admit when you're wrong, especially when you're as prominent and opinionated as Stephen A. Smith.

The ESPN personality built his career in the early 2000s as an outspoken NBA analyst, and his star has risen steadily from that timeframe. And while Smith is knowledgeable about basketball, he admits he made a grievous error when it came to his opinion of Michigan basketball.

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Appearing on First Take on Monday, Smith went on a soliquoy, noting that he hadn't properly vetted the Wolverines, and now that he's seen what they can do, he's reversing course, thinking that it could be Dusty May and company who will hoist the trophy next Monday.

"I'm ashamed of my position, Jay, on Michigan. I owe the Michigan Wolverines an apology," Smith said. "I've completely underestimated this team.

"I watched them a couple of times this year, especially when they played Duke. I was looking so much forward, when they were the No. 1-ranked team in the nation, and they were playing Duke. I think it was at a neutral site. I didn't like the fact that it wasn't at Michigan or whatever. I wanted to see them in that, or the Cameron Indoor Stadium. I wanted to see that in the environment. I wanted to see how they acted as opposed to being at a neutral site. But whether it was Cadeau or Burnett or whatever, I just wasn't sold on their guard play. I remember walking away feeling that way about them. They didn't seem seamless to me, composed. They seemed incredibly athletic, very gifted, but in the same breath, a team that could be rattled, right? And you could take it. You could take them. That is not who I have watched in this NCAA Tournament. 

"They've ran roughshod over the competition. They've been head and shoulders above anybody they've gone against, and they put it on Tennessee yesterday. I mean, it was a romp in the first half. It was over, OK? You might as well just went out for a walk or whatever. It was just bad, OK? And I'm watching them, and I'm like, listen, they could beat anybody. They could win a national title. When we talk about the Fab Five, all right, with Jalen Rose, with C. Webb, with Juwan Howard, you know, with Jimmy King and Ray Jackson, these boys, I'm like, I love them. I appreciate what they did for college basketball. They didn't win a national championship, so I'm looking at this team right here talking about how they think they just as good, if not better. Well, hell, if they win a national championship, then that speaks for itself because they would do something a marvelous Fab Five never did. We know what the Fab Five meant to college basketball. We will always revere them, but in the same breath, that's the one thing missing from their resume, the national championship. 

"If Michigan pulls this off, we got to look at them with profound respect, no doubt about that. And this kid, Lendeborg, Lendeborg, I mean, yo, he can play, he can play. Big body, NBA body, got a handle, can pull up, hit a J, can get to the hole on his own. I'm like, yo, I underestimated Michigan, and whether they win or lose, I did not give them the respect that they deserved coming into this tournament. And I was wrong, plain and simple. They deserve major, major props. I like what I'm seeing from Michigan. They can win it all. Arizona's got their work cut out for them."

The Wolverines will face the Wildcats on Saturday night at 8:49 p.m. EDT at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis for the right to play in the national championship game.

This article originally appeared on Wolverines Wire: Why Stephen A Smith thinks Michigan can win the NCAA Tournament

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