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ESPN star Mina Kimes has admitted she is 'deeply embarrassed' after deleting a tweet endorsing a sketchy Solitaire app backed by her colleague Stephen A. Smith.
Kimes was one of five well-paid ESPN talents who posted sponsored content for Papaya's Solitaire Cash game, promoting its new #BeatStephen challenge with their colleague Smith.
But as of Saturday, Kimes had deleted her post and offered a groveling apology to her 912,000 followers on X, writing: 'The truth is: I didn't spend any time looking into the whole thing, and that's 100% on me.
'Thought it was just typical marketing work, and I'm deeply embarrassed I didn't vet it. A colossal f***-up on my part.'
She then took to BlueSky for a follow-up post in which she claimed: 'Haven't been paid a dime (we'll see what happens now!!) but [if] I do I'm certainly giving it away.'
Dan Orlovsky, Laura Rutledge, Ros Gold-Onwude and Kendrick Perkins were the other ESPN hosts who promoted the app, but Orlovsky and Rutledge both also appear to have deleted any trace of the app from their social media accounts.
Mina Kimes has apologized for promoting a gaming company backed by Stephen A. Smith
Smith - who reportedly earns $40m a year - has repeatedly promoted the Papaya-owned game
Front Office Sports lifted the curtain on Papaya on Thursday, reporting that the gaming company is fighting a federal lawsuit over claims it falsely marketed 'games of skill' that were rigged with 'unbeatable' AI bots.
Smith - who reportedly earns $40m a year as one of the most influential sports broadcasters in the world - was last week announced as Papaya Gaming's 'official ambassador' for the World Solitaire Championship in February.
The move comes weeks after he went viral for being spotted playing the game on his phone while sat courtside at Game 4 of the NBA Finals.
Papaya's lawsuit fighting its competitor Skillz Platform Inc is still ongoing, though it last month suffered a significant setback.
In an October 27 opinion, as reported by FOS, the judge wrote: 'It is undisputed that Papaya used tailored bots to control the outcomes of tournaments.
'By doing so, Papaya could prevent players from winning –- or allow them to win — no matter how they performed in the game.'
Dan Orlovsky (left), Laura Rutledge (center) and Kimes (right) all tweeted about the game
Some have been deleted, but Ros Gold-Onwude's post is still available on her social media
Meanwhile, Stephen A. has been the subject of much derision from fans and fellow broadcasters for his involvement with the company.
Ex-ESPN host Michelle Beadle has publicly called him out, claiming on her podcast this week: 'It’s not secret how I feel about that human.
'Honestly, I’m not a religious person, but I pray for the downfall. I really do. It’s gross, man. You gotta have principles in this thing.'
She added: 'ESPN pays him a gazillion dollars to get a lot of stuff wrong and yell. He gets caught playing solitaire during the NBA freaking Finals, the thing he’s an expert in.
Kimes is one of ESPN's biggest stars, recently even appearing on Seth Meyers' late-night show
Kendrick Perkins' post is also still live, despite the lawsuit that has embroiled Papaya
'He made you look like fools for handing him a blank check in the first place, because doesn’t even give a s*** about the stuff that he’s paid a gazillion dollars to talk about.
'Now he’s turning around and turning that into a money-making opportunity… and it looks like a fraudulent crap business to begin with.'
Kimes, meanwhile, did receive some sympathy from fans, who sided with her and insisted she may not have known what she was getting herself into.
One wrote: 'I think [the apology] is a good post by Mina. I think most people who joined the ad campaign assumed it was fun and harmless, considering Stephen A. had signed on to be an ambassador. It turns out, the company is shady. I don't think Mina and Co. were trying to benefit from a scam.'
