Kenny Smith

Kenneth Smith (born March 8, 1965) is an American sports commentator and former professional basketball player in the National Basketball Association (NBA).

Smith was named a McDonald's All-American in 1983, then played basketball at the University of North Carolina for Dean Smith.

Kenny Smith credits former South Carolina State star Bobby Lewis with his development as a shooter and ballhandler.

Lewis averaged 30.9 points per game and was a First Team Division II All-American as a senior at South Carolina State.

He later developed the Bobby Lewis Basketball Skills Development Program, a training regimen that he presented at basketball camps around the country.

Smith attended several of his lectures while in high school, and continued to use Lewis's drills throughout his basketball career, to this day teaching them at his own basketball camps.

Of Lewis, Smith said, "He's the best lecturer ever. He had the best influence in terms of my workout regimen without question."

Kenny Smith joined Junior Michael Jordan and senior Sam Perkins on a North Carolina team that was a pre-season #1 and finished the season ranked #1 with a 28–3 record.

Smith helped North Carolina to a record of 115–22 from the 1983–84 to 1986–87 seasons, including two Elite Eight appearances (1985 and 1987) and a Sweet Sixteen appearance in 1986.

Smith averaged 9.1 points and 5.0 assists per game, and the Tar Heels lost to Indiana in the regional semifinals of the 1984 NCAA tournament.

They won the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) regular season conference championships in 1984 and 1987, and tied for first in 1985.

North Carolina never finished lower than eighth in the national polls during Smith's four years at the school.

He led North Carolina to the Elite Eight in 1985, losing to eventual national champion Villanova.

In 1986–87, the first season the NCAA added three-point field goals, Smith shot .408.

Smith represented the United States in the 1986 FIBA World Championship, on a team that included David Robinson, Muggsy Bogues and Steve Kerr.

He was second on the team in scoring behind Charles Smith with 14.7 points per game.

Smith scored 23 points to lead the US to an 87–85 win and the Gold Medal over a Soviet Union team that featured Arvydas Sabonis.

He played in the NBA from 1987 to 1997 as a member of the Sacramento Kings, Atlanta Hawks, Houston Rockets, Detroit Pistons, Orlando Magic, and Denver Nuggets.

Smith won back-to-back NBA championships with Houston.

Smith played college basketball with the North Carolina Tar Heels, earning consensus first-team All-American honors as a senior in 1987.

He was selected by Sacramento in the first round of the 1987 NBA draft with the sixth overall pick, and was named to the NBA All-Rookie First Team with the Kings.

After retiring from playing, Smith became a basketball commentator for the Emmy Award-winning Inside the NBA on TNT.

He also works as an analyst for CBS/Turner during the NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament.

Smith was born in Brooklyn, a borough of New York City and grew up in Queens, spending time in the LeFrak City neighborhood.

He played some of his earliest basketball at New York's Riverside Church and at Stephen A. Halsey Junior High School in Rego Park, Queens.

Smith attended Archbishop Molloy High School, where he was coached by Jack Curran, the high school coach with the most wins in New York City and New York State history.

Smith was named a Consensus All-American (1st Team) as senior in 1987, averaging 16.9 points, 6.1 assists per game while helping North Carolina to return to the Elite Eight.

Playing in a game that featured eleven future NBA players, Smith led the Tar Heels with 25 points and seven assists in a loss to Syracuse, 79–75.

During his career at North Carolina, Smith averaged 12.9 points and 6.0 assists per game, while shooting .512 from the field, and .823 from the free throw line.

Smith was selected as a 6'3" 170 lb point guard by the Sacramento Kings with the sixth pick of the 1987 NBA draft. He was named to the NBA All-Rookie Team (1st Team) after averaging 13.8 points and 7.1 assists per game for the Kings. Smith began his NBA career playing for Hall of Famer Bill Russell, who was head coach for Kings until he was fired 58 games into the '87-88 season.

Smith was traded to the Atlanta Hawks midway through the 1989–90 season, where he was a reserve player for the first time in his career, averaging 7.7 points per game while only starting five of thirty-games he played for the Hawks as a backup to team captain Doc Rivers.

After the 1989–90 season, Smith was traded to the Houston Rockets where he would spend the next six seasons.

In 1990–91 Smith averaged 17.7 points per game while leading the Rockets in assists per game (7.1) and free throw percentage (.844).

He helped the Rockets to a 52–30 record, the best regular season in franchise history at the time.

They were swept by the Los Angeles Lakers in the first round of the playoffs.

Head Coach Don Chaney was fired after posting a record of only 26–26 in the 1991–92 season.

He was replaced by former Rocket player Rudy Tomjanovich, who went 16–14 to close out the season, missing the playoffs by one game.

The Rockets then went 55–27 in 1992–93, losing to the Seattle SuperSonics in the second round of the playoffs in seven games.

As of 2016, he ranks second in school history in total assists (768), fourth in total steals (195), and fifth in assists per game.

Smith finished 17th in voting for the NBA Most Valuable Player Award, just ahead of teammate Hakeem Olajuwon.