Kenny Smith

Kenny Smith

Smith working for TNT in 2011
Personal information
Born March 8, 1965
Queens, New York
Nationality American
Listed height 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Listed weight 170 lb (77 kg)
Career information
High school Archbishop Molloy
(Queens, New York)
College North Carolina (1983–1987)
NBA draft 1987 / Round: 1 / Pick: 6th overall
Selected by the Sacramento Kings
Pro career 1987–1997
Position Point guard
Number 30, 31
Career history
1987–1990 Sacramento Kings
1990 Atlanta Hawks
1990–1996 Houston Rockets
1996 Detroit Pistons
1996–1997 Orlando Magic
1997 Denver Nuggets
Career highlights and awards
Career NBA statistics
Points 9,397 (12.8 ppg)
Rebounds 1,454 (2.0 rpg)
Assists 4,073 (5.5 apg)
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com

Kenneth "Kenny" Smith, nicknamed "The Jet" (born March 8, 1965) is a retired American professional basketball player who played in the National Basketball Association and went on to become a TV basketball analyst, primarily for Inside the NBA on TNT and for CBS/Turner during the NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament.

Early life

Smith was born in Jamaica, Queens, New York and grew up in Lefrak City. He attended Archbishop Molloy, where he was coached by the legendary Jack Curran, the winningest coach in New York City and New York State history. Smith graduated in 1983 and then played basketball at the University of North Carolina for Dean Smith. In his young career he played for the New York Riverside Church.

Professional career

Smith was selected as a 6'3" 170-pound guard by the Sacramento Kings with the sixth pick of the 1987 NBA draft. 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. In his professional career, Smith scored 9,397 points and recorded 4,073 assists. He won two NBA championships with the Rockets in 1994 and 1995.[1] In the first game of the 1995 Finals against the Orlando Magic, Smith made seven three-pointers, including a game-tying shot which sent the game into overtime. The Rockets won the game 120–118.[2]

Off the court

Broadcasting

Smith joined Turner Sports in 1998.[3] He has teamed with Ernie Johnson Jr., Charles Barkley, and Shaquille O'Neal on Inside the NBA, a winner of the Sports Emmy Award for Outstanding Studio Show.[4] He occasionally appears on NBA TV as an analyst. He also served a stint as an analyst for the MSG Network's broadcasts of New York Knicks games from 2005-08, and has worked as an analyst for CBS/Turner during the NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament.

Personal life

Smith married model Gwendolyn Osborne on September 8, 2006. They have 2 children: Malloy Adrian Smith, b. March 26, 2008, and London Olivia Smith b. Sept. 29, 2012. His wife is a model on The Price Is Right.[5] He is the father of R&B singer Kayla Brianna.[6]

NBA career statistics

Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field goal percentage  3P%  3-point field goal percentage  FT%  Free throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high
† Denotes seasons in which Smith won an NBA championship

Regular season

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
1987–88 Sacramento 61 60 35.6 .477 .308 .819 2.3 7.1 1.5 .1 13.8
1988–89 Sacramento 81 81 38.8 .462 .359 .737 2.8 7.7 1.3 .1 17.3
1989–90 Sacramento 46 46 38.0 .461 .373 .809 2.6 6.6 1.2 .2 15.0
1989–90 Atlanta 33 5 20.4 .480 .167 .846 1.1 4.3 0.7 .0 7.7
1990–91 Houston 78 78 34.6 .520 .363 .844 2.1 7.1 1.4 .1 17.7
1991–92 Houston 81 80 33.8 .475 .394 .866 2.2 6.9 1.3 .1 14.0
1992–93 Houston 82 82 29.5 .520 .438 .878 2.0 5.4 1.0 .1 13.0
1993–94† Houston 78 78 28.3 .480 .405 .871 1.8 4.2 0.8 .1 11.6
1994–95† Houston 81 81 25.1 .484 .429 .851 1.9 4.0 0.9 .1 10.4
1995–96 Houston 68 56 23.8 .433 .382 .821 1.4 3.6 0.7 .0 8.5
1996–97 Detroit 9 0 7.1 .400 .500 1.000 0.6 1.1 0.1 .0 2.6
1996–97 Orlando 6 0 7.8 .462 .600 1.000 0.3 0.7 0.0 .0 2.8
1996–97 Denver 33 3 19.8 .422 .425 .854 1.1 3.1 0.5 .0 7.9
Career 737 650 30.1 .480 .399 .829 2.0 5.5 1.0 .1 12.8

Playoffs

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
1991 Houston 3 3 37.7 .474 .500 .889 2.7 8.0 1.3 .3 15.3
1993 Houston 12 12 32.6 .492 .500 .778 2.0 4.2 0.8 .1 14.8
1994† Houston 23 23 30.3 .455 .447 .808 2.3 4.1 1.0 .2 10.8
1995† Houston 22 22 29.6 .438 .442 .900 2.2 4.5 0.6 .1 10.8
1996 Houston 8 8 23.9 .434 .387 1.000 1.5 4.8 0.6 .0 8.9
Career 68 68 30.0 .457 .448 .847 2.2 4.5 0.8 .1 11.5

References

  1. ↑ "Kenny Smith." www.basketball-reference.com. Retrieved on January 28, 2010.
  2. ↑ "The 60 Greatest Playoff Moments: Honorable Mention." www.nba.com. Retrieved on January 28, 2010.
  3. ↑ "Kenny Smith.' www.tnt.tv. Retrieved on January 28, 2010.
  4. ↑ Reid Cherner. "Chemistry, characters carry NBA show above pack." USA Today, April 8, 2007. Retrieved on January 29, 2010.
  5. ↑ 'Gwendolyn Osborne, a Barker beauty on the Price is Right, wed former NBA Star Kenny "the Jet" Smith.' www.prweb.com, September 8, 2006. Retrieved March 28, 2010.
  6. ↑ Glenn Minnis. "Daddy’s Little Girl: Kenny Smith and Daughter Kayla Brianna Look to Rock Music Industry." Vibe, February 7, 2012. Retrieved on March 5, 2015.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Kenny Smith.