Stephen A. Smith Bids Max Kellerman Farewell on Final Episode of 'First Take'

Max Kellerman's First Take days are over. After five years of arguing with and alongside the ever-entertaining Stephen A. Smith, today was Kellerman's last day on the debate show.

In honor of his longtime studio partner, Smith gave a nice farewell speech to Kellerman via call-in during today's show.

ESPN officially announced the move last week and noted that Kellerman will be replacing Zubin Mehenti on morning radio alongside Keyshawn Johnson and Jason Williams to go along with his normal radio duties as host of the Max Kellerman Show. The network additionally hinted that Kellerman would have his own TV show, but the details and timeline of that new project are unknown.

First Take will not be the same without Kellerman. Patiently letting Stephen A. Smith monologue and then firing back without missing a beat is a skill not easy to replace. We wrote an entire article here at The Big Lead about that very aspect of Kellerman's job.

Now it's about what's next, for Kellerman and for First Take. We've yet to hear any rumblings about how ESPN plans to fill Kellerman's chair, and whether it will be one individual or a collective that does so. It's an important property for the four-letter network. It'll be fascinating to see what comes next.