Michael Smith (basketball, born 1965)

56
Michael Smith (basketball, born 1965) bigraphy, stories - American basketball player

Michael Smith (basketball, born 1965) : biography

May 19, 1965 –

Michael John Smith (born May 19, 1965 in Rochester, New York) is a retired American basketball player. As a professional player in the 1990s, he spent two and a half seasons in the NBA, two and a half in the Liga ACB and one in LEGA Basket.

After attending Los Altos High School in Hacienda Heights, California, Smith was a standout basketball player at Brigham Young University. He excelled in both football and volleyball before concentrating on basketball exclusively. Smith served two years (1984–86) as a Mormon missionary in Argentina before returning to BYU to finish his collegiate basketball career. He won the WAC Player of the Year in 1988 leading the team with 679 points and 248 rebounds. He finished his collegiate career as BYU’s all-time leader in rebounds (922) and second to Danny Ainge in career points (2319).

Smith was a first round draft pick of the Boston Celtics in 1989 (13th overall) as a 24-year-old. He played two seasons with the Celtics before being waived in 1991. He played the following season with Telemarket Brescia in LEGA Basket Serie A2 before returning to the States the following season to play in the CBA, first for the Capital Region Pontiacs and later, the Oklahoma City Cavalry.

The next season, 1993–94, Smith played for Pamesa Valencia. He continued in Spain, playing the first part of the following season for Estudiantes Caja Postal. In January 1995, he left Postal and the following month joined the Los Angeles Clippers, a club he remained under contract with until September. He next joined ACB club Gijón Baloncesto.

Smith has been, for a few seasons now, color analyst for the Clippers on Prime Ticket/Fox Sports West with longtime Clipper play-by-play announcer Ralph Lawler.