Mark Madden: Sports media industry is being burned to the ground

Stephen A. Smith played solitaire on his phone during Game 4 of the NBA Finals at Indianapolis. He was on duty and on site for ESPN.

ESPN pays Smith $20 million per year. But he couldn’t be bothered to watch what he was being paid to analyze.

That’s absolutely par for Smith’s course.

Smith believes that sports are merely fodder that he uses to create content.

Smith thinks that he is the real show. It’s not important till he talks about it.

Smith is the poisoned tip of sports media’s spear. The industry as we knew it is being burned to the ground. (Whether I should be leading the bucket brigade is a different debate.)

Smith and his ESPN cohorts Pat McAfee and Kendrick Perkins have made the NBA Finals about them: Smith by igniting a one-way feud with Indiana’s Tyrese Haliburton. McAfee by feuding with Smith, John Cougar Mellencamp, Ben Stiller and a whole lot of other “rats.” Perkins by feuding with McAfee. (Did I miss anything? It’s hard to keep track of.)

Sports media used to frown upon openly rooting for teams. But McAfee cuts hype promos at Pacers home games.

Can you imagine Dan Patrick grabbing a mic to pump up a crowd? Me neither.

McAfee and Smith absolutely melt down whenever they have to absorb even the slightest iota of criticism or bad publicity. What do they have to be mad about? They’re on top.

McAfee thought about producing his own pirate version of ESPN’s “College GameDay” when that program, which he co-hosts, showed video of him swinging and missing while batting against a University of Oklahoma softball pitcher.

McAfee demanded to know who decided to air that, presumably to no good end. He’s that thin-skinned. McAfee can make fun, but is only willing to play the fool on his terms.

At least McAfee comes by his nuttiness honestly. He’s copying WWE, not Chris Berman.

Smith seems a phony. He doesn’t love sports nearly as much as he loves himself. Or solitaire.

McAfee is just one of too many ex-jocks who have mics. (If a former punter is, indeed, an “ex-jock.”)

With 95% of ex-jocks, the players are never wrong.

When Toronto lost in the second round of the Stanley Cup playoffs, ex-NHLer P.K. Subban used his ESPN platform to deliver a long diatribe blaming everyone who had been recently involved in the Maple Leafs’ administration: Executives, GMs, coaches, everybody but the players.

But the Leafs’ core four of Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner, William Nylander and John Tavares has been together for seven seasons. They’re the common denominator for a long run of failure. (Which is connected to an even longer run of failure: 58 years without a Stanley Cup.)

Subban never mentioned them. Because he used to be a player. Don’t offend the brotherhood.

Subban isn’t the exception to the rule. It’s that way with almost every ex-jock: No player is at fault, every player should get the bag.

ESPN’s John Buccigross and Steve Levy are much better NHL analysts.

Buccigross and Levy never played serious hockey. But they learned hockey.

Regarding his current profession, Subban never learned anything besides how to be P.K. Subban. Just because you played a game doesn’t mean you know how to talk about it.

After Florida’s Brad Marchand scored a divine goal in Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final, Buccigross delivered exquisite, four-part analysis on Twitter. Buccigross covered Marchand’s anticipation, hockey sense, puck protection and precision.

Most ex-players would “analyze” thusly: “WHAT A BEAST! THE PANTHERS ARE A WAGON!”

It’s important to work in slang, nicknames and locker-room humor. Like TNT’s panel of hockey analysts does. (Somebody tell Anson Carter there’s only one “Ace,” and it’s not him.)

TNT’s Paul Bissonnette actually does better with analysis than most. You can tell he works at it. But he’s too eager to babble unfunny humor, to be one of the boys.

Memo to the TNT crew: Be Eddie Olczyk, not the Kelce brothers.

I could go on and on about hating media’s current state.

It’s hard to accept that it’s not likely to change. Every meathead who once wore cleats, sneakers or skates has a podcast (or will).

It is becoming the rule, not the exception.

Journalism is being phased out (and not just in sports).

I’ve also considered the possibility that if it’s too loud, I’m too old.