Joe Smith (basketball)

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Joe Smith

Position	Power forward
Height	6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)
Weight	225 lb (102 kg)
League	NBA
Team	Cleveland Cavaliers
Born	July 26, 1975 (1975-07-26) (age 32) Norfolk, Virginia
Nationality	American
High school	Maury High School
College	Maryland
Draft	1st overall, 1995 Golden State Warriors
Pro career	1995–present
Former teams	Golden State Warriors (1995–1998) Philadelphia 76ers (1998, 2006-2007) Minnesota Timberwolves (1999–2000, 2001–2003) Detroit Pistons (2000–2001) Milwaukee Bucks (2003–2006) Denver Nuggets (2006) Chicago Bulls (2007–2008) Cleveland Cavaliers (2008–present)
Awards	Naismith College Player of the Year (1995)
Official profile	Info Page

Joseph Leynard Smith (born July 26, 1975, in Norfolk, Virginia) is an American professional basketball player for the Cleveland Cavaliers in the NBA. His height is listed as 6'10".

Smith attended Maury High School and played at the University of Maryland. In a tighly contested draft, Smith was selected by the Golden State Warriors as the first overall pick of the 1995 NBA Draft over fellow power forwards Antonio McDyess and Rasheed Wallace as well as Jerry Stackhouse. Smith was named to the NBA All-Rookie First Team in 1995-96 season and finished second in the Rookie of the Year voting to Damon Stoudemire.

Joe Smith would play several years for the Warriors before being traded to the Philadelphia 76ers midway through the 1997-1998 season. Smith would see an immediate drop in his numbers as they would never reach the level he achieved in his first two and a half years in Golden State.

Despite a drop in production, Smith was seen still as a hot commodity in the free agency blitz^{[citation needed]} that followed the strike in late 1998. In what seemed at the time like a bizarre move, Smith signed for very little money with the Minnesota Timberwolves. For the next two years, Smith played very productively at small forward alongside All Star Kevin Garnett.

Following the 1999-2000 season, it was discovered that Smith was involved in a salary cap-tampering scandal involving Timberwolves executive Kevin McHale. Smith was allegedly promised a future multi-million dollar deal if he signed with the team for below market value, allowing the team to make some additional player moves in the short term. The league later found out about this violation and voided the last year of the contract, also severely punishing the Timberwolves by taking away five first-round draft picks (though two of the picks were ultimately returned) and fining the team $3.5 million.^[1]The move hurt the Timberwolves in the long run, as while the team still found success, the lack of draft picks set the team up for their eventual failure in the mid-2000s.

Joe Smith was released by the Timberwolves and signed with the Detroit Pistons for the 2000-2001 season as a backup. Joe Smith produced very good numbers for the Pistons and, at the end of the season, he resigned with the Timberwolves where he played for two more seasons.

For the next three seasons Smith played for the Milwaukee Bucks. Prior to the 06-07 season, Smith moved on to the Nuggets, where he only played in 11 games before being traded, along with Andre Miller, back to the 76ers for Allen Iverson. Despite being considered an add-in on the deal, Smith played a decent part in the 76ers spectacular second half to the season as they just barely missed the playoffs.

For the 07-08 season, Smith signed with the Chicago Bulls. With his career winding down and the Bulls considered a contender, it was seen as his best opportunity to win a title. Smith played very well for the Bulls, but the rest of the team struggled mightily. Smith was traded in a three team deal at the trade deadline to the Cleveland Cavaliers.

[edit] Highlights

• Was named All-Rookie First Team in 1995-96 after being chosen first overall in the 1995 NBA Draft.
• In 1995, was named National Collegiate Player of the Year by the Atlanta Tip-Off Club (Naismith Award), the Associated Press (Adolph Rupp Award), United Press International, Basketball America and Eastern Basketball.
• Portrayed Connie Hawkins in the movie “Rebound.” ^[2]

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• TheDraftReview.com - Smith's NBA Draft History Page
• NBA.com Profile - Joe Smith
• NBA Draft Busts - No. 4