A generation ago, when he was just a rake in his progress on the set of The Sports Reporters, no one would have guessed that the New Yorker turned Philly sportswriter Stephen A. Smith would one day become the biggest name on ESPN—the heir to Schaap and Berman, Patrick and Olbermann, Mike and Tony, etcetera. But Smith has undeniably become that star, volubly manifesting his talents from First Take to the network’s NBA coverage. As David Zaslav knows from the success of Inside the NBA, it is hard to make a studio show stand out. And Smith has proven that he can help differentiate a TV show in a way that boosts ratings and captures sponsorship dollars. In the process, Smith has become that rare talent who is more famous than most of the athletes he interviews, the sort who can gas up a jejune studio show into performance theater.