Harvest Leroy Smith Jr. (February 27, 1963) is a retired American professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

player, businessperson and former high school teammate of

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United St ...

(NBA) star Michael Jordan.

Early years

Smith was born and raised in

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

, before moving to

Wilmington, North Carolina Wilmington is a port city in and the county seat of New Hanover County in coastal southeastern North Carolina, United States. With a population of 115,451 at the 2020 census, it is the eighth most populous city in the state. Wilmington is t ...

in 1972 with his family.

High school

Smith and Michael Jordan were childhood friends who played together on their ninth-grade basketball squad. In 1978, during their second year at

Emsley A. Laney High School Emsley A. Laney High School is a public high school in Wilmington, North Carolina, United States. The school was named after Emsley Armfield Laney, a business and community leader for several decades in Wilmington. It is a part of New Hanover ...

, both tried out for the lone sophomore opening on the varsity basketball team. Smith, who was 6'7" (2.01 m), was selected because of his height, while the 5'11" (1.80 m) Jordan was sent to the JV basketball team by coach Clifton "Pop”" Herring. Jordan trained extensively over the next year, grew four inches and was selected for the varsity team as a junior exhibiting extraordinary competitive passion. In 1991, Jordan acknowledged the impact of the event, "It all started when Coach Herring cut me. What it did was instill some values in me. It was a lesson to me to dig within myself." Jordan would check into hotels under the alias “Leroy Smith” throughout his professional basketball career.

College

Smith attended the

University of North Carolina at Charlotte The University of North Carolina at Charlotte (UNC Charlotte or simply Charlotte) is a public research university in Charlotte, North Carolina. UNC Charlotte offers 24 doctoral, 66 master's, and 79 bachelor's degree programs through nine colle ...

from 1981–1985, earning a Bachelor of Arts degree in

Psychology Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. Psychology includes the study of conscious and unconscious phenomena, including feelings and thoughts. It is an academic discipline of immense scope, crossing the boundaries between ...

. He had a four-year basketball

scholarship A scholarship is a form of financial aid awarded to students for further education. Generally, scholarships are awarded based on a set of criteria such as academic merit, diversity and inclusion, athletic skill, and financial need. Scholars ...

, playing at

small forward The small forward (SF), also known as the three or swingman, is one of the five positions in a regulation basketball game. Small forwards are typically shorter, quicker, and leaner than power forwards and centers but taller, larger, and stronger ...

and

power forward The power forward (PF), also known as the four, is one of the five traditional positions in a regulation basketball game. Traditionally, power forwards have played a role similar to centers. When on offense, they typically play with their ba ...

positions for the

Charlotte 49ers The Charlotte 49ers are the college athletics in the United States, intercollegiate athletics teams that represent the University of North Carolina at Charlotte in Charlotte, North Carolina. The 49ers compete at the National Collegiate Athletic A ...

. In his senior year he captained the team and led the Sun Belt Conference in

rebounds 'Rebound' is a term used in sports to describe the ball (or puck or other object of play) becoming available for possession by either opponent after an attempt to put the ball or puck into the goal has been unsuccessful. Rebounds are generally ...

Professional sports career

Smith went on to play on various professional basketball teams including: the Hemel & Watford Royals of the Premier English Basketball League (1985–86), TuS Bramsche in the German Basketball League (1986–87) the Westchester Golden Apples of the

United States Basketball League The United States Basketball League (USBL) was a professional men's spring basketball league. The league was formed in 1985 and ceased operations in 2008. The USBL started in 1985 as one of the first basketball leagues to play a late-spring to ...

(summer of 1986), AST Tarrare in France (1987–88) and Kumagai Gumi Bruins of the Japan Basketball League (1988–90). In many instances, he led his team in scoring, rebounding and blocked shots.

Business career

After retiring from basketball, Smith worked for ASICS AMERICA before establishing himself in media, entertainment and the tech space. He is currently the Co-founder and President of a tech start-up and the President of a Hollywood film company. He also served as Vice President of sales and marketing for the TV Distribution group at

NBC Universal The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are ...

and was recognized as one of the most influential black men in cable. Smith was also the CEO of entertainment media consulting company HLS Entertainment.

Personal life

Smith is married with three children and resides in Rancho Cucamonga, California. Smith is on the advisory board for the Scholastic Basketball Academy, a

non-profit A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

basketball program dedicated to the educational and athletic development of youth.

References

External links

College statisticsCharlotte 49ers bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Leroy 1963 births Living people American expatriate basketball people in France American expatriate basketball people in Germany American expatriate basketball people in Japan American expatriate basketball people in the United Kingdom American men's basketball players Basketball players from North Carolina Basketball players from Philadelphia Centers (basketball) Charlotte 49ers men's basketball players Power forwards (basketball) Small forwards Sportspeople from Wilmington, North Carolina