JR Smith’s Golf Game Gets Roasted by His Own Cavs Brother on Social Media

The 2016 Cleveland Cavaliers championship reunion on the golf course took a sharp turn this week when Richard Jefferson decided to remind everyone that J.R. Smith’s swing might not be as smooth as his jumper.

Jefferson, never one to pass up a chance to needle a former teammate, posted a video on social media showing Smith fishing a golf ball out of a river. The caption was simple and devastating: “To those of you that said Swish.” The clip quickly circulated among fans who remembered Smith’s celebrated pivot from NBA journeyman to collegiate golfer at North Carolina A&T.

From NBA Sixth Man to Aggie Linksman

Smith’s story is one of the more remarkable second acts in recent sports memory. After retiring from the NBA in 2020, he enrolled at North Carolina A&T State University as a non-traditional student in 2021 and joined the Aggies’ golf program. His journey was documented in the Amazon Prime film Redefined: J.R. Smith, produced by LeBron James and Maverick Carter through their Uninterrupted media company.

Smith made headlines not just for picking up clubs but for his classroom performance. Shortly after starting his studies, he posted on social media that he had earned a 4.0 GPA during his first semester. In a 2021 appearance on SportsCenter with Scott Van Pelt, Smith reflected on the deeper meaning of his HBCU experience.

“I’m able to reach out and really express myself in an intellectual way where people don’t look at me just as J.R. Smith the basketball player,” he said. “When they see Earl J. Smith on that English paper…they don’t know who J.R. Smith is.”

Brothers Will Be Brothers

Smith graduated this May from North Carolina A&T, closing a chapter that earned him widespread respect. But among the 2016 Cavs crew, the bond runs deeper than accolades. Jefferson’s jab is less a critique of Smith’s golf game and more a reminder that once you’re part of that championship brotherhood, nothing is off-limits.

Jefferson posted the video alongside a group photo from the morning round that included LeBron James, Kevin Love, Tristan Thompson, and Channing Frye. The original caption read, “Let’s see who’s actually the best golfer.” Smith’s splashy retrieval answered that question in the most humiliating way possible.

Fans online noted the irony that Smith, who once hit one of the most clutch three-pointers in NBA Finals history, found himself in the water on a golf course. But the roasting is part of the fun. Ten years after that historic comeback against the Golden State Warriors, these guys still know how to keep each other grounded.