Why You'll Recognize Law & Order Guest Star Stephen A. Smith, Who Played a Sports Agent
Stephen A. Smith was "ecstatic" to appear on Law & Order as sports agent Ted Hunter in the "Tough Love" episode. Learn more about his career.
Stephen A. Smith will be the latest murder victim on Law & Order — and the longtime fan of the series couldn’t have been more thrilled.
Smith, who has worked for decades as a sports analyst, parlayed his knowledge of the industry into a guest starring role on the drama as no-nonsense sports agent Ted Hunter in Season 24’s “Tough Love" episode, which debuts Thursday, May 8 at 8/7c p.m. on NBC.
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“It was an incredible experience,” Smith recently told Deadline of the role. “I did some acting before I was that dead body. So, it’s not like I just show up as a dead body. I actually have a scene where I’m doing some acting, and to have the opportunity to do it on one of my all-time favorite shows, is an honor beyond comprehension.”
This isn’t the first time Smith has taken on a dramatic role.
To learn more about his varied career and what finally brought him to Law & Order, read on.
What else has Stephen A. Smith been in?
While Smith is best known for being a popular NBA analyst, he’s also an accomplished sports writer, producer and actor. Since 2007, Smith has appeared in dozens of episodes of General Hospital. On that soap opera, he's played the role of Brick since 2016, appearing on the show every year since then. And before that, he appeared in the soap as a reporter in one 2007 episode.
Smith also played Allan in the 2007 Chris Rock-led comedy, I Think I Love My Wife, according to his bio on IMDB.
And he appeared as himself in films like Creed III and Almost Christmas, and on TV in La Máquina, The Best Man: The Final Chapters, Black-ish and Luke Cage.
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Who did Stephen A. Smith play in Law & Order Season 24?
Smith played Ted Hunter in Season 24's "Tough Love" episode, a sports agent whose no-nonsense attitude was on full display in the opening scene as he dressed down a basketball player throwing his money away to fund a big entourage.
“When they told me to be a sports agent, I’ve dealt with enough sports agents in my life to know the kind of things they say, how they say it, when to be forceful, when to back off a little bit, etc.,” Smith told Variety of taking on the part. “But still, being on a show as epic as Law & Order, you try to bring your A game. So that’s what I tried to do, because I’ve been a huge fan of the show for many decades.”
After Hunter was found stabbed to death in the park, detectives discovered that his demanding personality also earned him plenty of enemies along the way as they worked to uncover a surprising murder suspect.
The episode also included guest stars Dasan Frazier as Eric Hunter, Arthur McAlpine III as Josh Hunter, Dushaun Thompson as Jackson Dean, and Chi Mancho as Tommy Caro.
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Stephen A. Smith's Law & Order ambitions
Smith’s character may have met a grim fate, but the sports analyst told Deadline that he was “ecstatic” to be asked to take on the role and is now hoping it could lead to more opportunities in the future with the iconic series.
“I was ecstatic to be a part of it, and more importantly than that, I’m excited because there’s plenty of times where somebody’s been a dead body on Law & Order and then they come back as a different character at a later date for something more extensive,” he said. “And to be quite honest, I’m hoping that happens for me as well, because the experience was absolutely wonderful.”
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Smith revealed his dream gig on the show would be playing an attorney.
“That’s part of the bucket list, being on Law & Order, but not being the corpse,” he told Variety. “My goal is to ultimately be a lawyer in the courtroom, going up against one of the attorneys.”
Law & Order will wrap up its 24th Season on Thursday May 15, 2025 at 8/7c p.m. on NBC. The episode will also be available to stream on Peacock, beginning the next day.
