Adrian Smith (basketball)

Adrian Smith
Adrian Smith
Born	Adrian Howard Smith; October 5, 1936 (age 90); Farmington, Kentucky, U.S.
Occupation(s)	Professional basketball player (retired), banker
Years active	1961–1972 (professional basketball)
Known for	1960 Olympic gold medalist, 1966 NBA All-Star Game MVP

Adapted from the English Wikipedia article Adrian Smith (basketball), available under CC BY-SA 4.0Updated 11 August 2025

Adrian Howard "Odie" Smith (born October 5, 1936) is a retired American professional basketball athlete.

Early life

Smith was one of six siblings, the fifth child born to Oury and Ruth Smith in Farmington, Kentucky. Growing up in a farmhouse lacking electricity and indoor plumbing, he acquired the nickname "Odie" inspired by a comedian featured on the Grand Ole Opry. His education took place at a modest three-room schoolhouse located in rural Graves County, Kentucky, where he honed his basketball skills using a ball his mother crafted by bundling his father's socks.

During his time at Farmington High School, Smith almost missed out on playing basketball until the principal and coach agreed to transport him seven miles home after practices. As a senior, he received a single scholarship offer from nearby Murray State University, which he ultimately lost due to hesitation in accepting it.

College career

Smith initiated his collegiate basketball journey at Northeast Mississippi Junior College (presently known as Northeast Mississippi Community College). After demonstrating strong performance there, coach Bonner Arnold convinced University of Kentucky's Adolph Rupp to evaluate him, leading to a scholarship opportunity.

In his junior year at Kentucky, Smith saw limited action until an appendectomy sidelined star guard Vernon Hatton, allowing Smith to average 16.3 points over seven games. As a starting senior, he posted an average of 12.4 points per game. The Wildcats, nicknamed the "Fiddlin' Five," captured the 1957–58 national championship by defeating Seattle University 84–72, with significant contributions from Hatton and Johnny Cox. Across Kentucky’s four NCAA tournament victories, Smith averaged nearly 14 points, including seven points in the title game.

He completed his studies at Kentucky earning a degree in business.

After college

Though selected 85th overall in the 15th round of the 1958 NBA draft by the Cincinnati Royals, Smith opted against pursuing an NBA career immediately.

USAF All-Stars (1959–1960)

Instead, he enlisted in the U.S. Army and played for its All-Star basketball team. In 1960, Smith was a member of the undefeated U.S. men's basketball squad that secured Olympic gold in Rome. Featuring future Hall of Famers Oscar Robertson, Jerry Lucas, and Jerry West, the team dominated opponents with an average winning margin of 42.4 points per contest. Smith led scoring with 17 points during the opening match against host nation Italy.

Akron Goodyear Wingfoots (1961)

In 1961, Smith competed for the Akron Goodyear Wingfoots.

Cincinnati Royals (1961–1969)

Smith’s professional career commenced in the 1961–62 NBA season. Initially serving as a backup guard behind stars Oscar Robertson and Bucky Bockhorn, he averaged approximately 20 minutes per game while scoring 7.2, 8.9, and 9.4 points across his first three seasons.

During the 1964–65 campaign, Smith earned a starting role alongside Robertson, logging over 34 minutes per contest and averaging 15.1 points with shooting percentages of .456 from the field and .830 from the free throw line.

The following season (1965–66) marked Smith’s career peak as he averaged a personal best of 18.4 points and grabbed 3.6 rebounds per game. The Royals finished with a 45–35 record and challenged eventual champions Boston Celtics to a decisive fifth game in the Eastern Division semifinals. That year included career-high scoring performances of 34 and 35 points in separate games. Smith was named to the 1966 NBA All-Star Game, where he earned MVP honors by scoring 24 points in just 26 minutes—his sole All-Star appearance—and was awarded a new Ford Galaxie for his achievement.

In the 1966–67 season, Smith averaged 16.6 points per game, led the NBA with an outstanding .903 free throw percentage, and topped the league in games played for the fourth time in his career. The next season saw him average 15.6 points as a starter once again. In his final year with the Royals (1968–69), primarily coming off the bench behind Robertson and Tom Van Arsdale, Smith posted an average of 9.6 points per game.

San Francisco Warriors (1969–1971)

During the 1969–70 season, Smith was traded from the Royals after participating in 32 games to the San Francisco Warriors. He played 45 games with the Warriors, posting an average of 5.9 points per contest. In his tenth NBA campaign, the 1970–71 season, Smith's involvement was limited to 21 games, where he averaged 5.3 points per game before concluding his NBA career.

Virginia Squires (1971–1972)

In the 1971–72 season, Smith became a member of the Virginia Squires in the American Basketball Association. Throughout that season, he averaged 5.1 points per game. Additionally, he represented the United States in a total of 13 matches.

Honors

On August 13, 2010, the entire USA basketball team from the 1960 Olympics, including Smith, was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. Furthermore, Smith holds induction honors in both the Northeast Mississippi Community College Sports Hall of Fame and the Mississippi Community College Sports Hall of Fame.

Post-playing career

Following his playing days, Smith embarked on a lengthy career as a commercial relationship manager at Cincinnati-based Fifth Third Bank, where he currently holds the position of vice president. He resides in Cincinnati with his spouse, Paula, and continues to own the Ford Galaxie that he was awarded at the 1966 NBA All-Star Game.

NBA/ABA career statistics

*	Led the league

Regular season

Year	Team	GP	MPG	FG%	FT%	RPG	APG	PPG
1961–62	Cincinnati	80	18.3	.405	.775	1.9	2.1	7.2
1962–63	Cincinnati	79	19.3	.443	.811	2.2	1.8	8.9
1963–64	Cincinnati	66	23.1	.406	.782	2.2	2.2	9.4
1964–65	Cincinnati	80	34.3	.456	.830	2.8	3.0	15.1
1965–66	Cincinnati	80	'37.3'	.405	' .850 '	'3.6'	'3.2'	'18.4'
1966–67	Cincinnati	81	'32.5'	' .438 '	.903*'	'2.5'	'2.3'	'16.6'
' 1967-68 '	' Cincinnati '	'82'	'33.9'	' .464 '	' .829 '	' 2.3 '	' 3.3 '	' 15.6 '
' 1968-69 '	' Cincinnati '	'73'	'18.3'	' .432 '	' .807 '	' 1.4 '	' 1.7 '	' 9.6 '
' 1969-70 '	' Cincinnati '	'32'	'14.2'	' .405 '	' .867 '	' 1.0 '	' 1.4 '	' 5.4 '
' 1969-70 '	' San Francisco '	'45'	'14.1'	' .347 '	" .909 "	' 1.1 '	' 1.9 '	' 6.4 '
' 1970-71 '	' San Francisco '	'21'	'11.8'	' .427 '	' .854 '	' 1.1 '	' 1.4 '	' 5.3 '
' 1971-72 '	' Virginia (ABA) '	'53'	'12.9'	' .446 '	" .893 "	' .9 '	" .8 "	" 5.1 "
Career"		"772"	"24.6"	" .430 "	" .838 "	"2.1"	"2.3"	"11.3"

Playoffs

"| colspan=2 " style="text-align:center;" |Career" "|47"

Year	Team	GP	MPG	FG%	FT%	RPG	APG	PPG
"1962"	"Cincinnati"	"4"	"13.3"	" .421 "	" 1.000 "	"1.3"	" .8 "	"5.3"
"1963"	"Cincinnati"	"12"	"16.7"	" .402 "	" .705 "	"1.3"	"2.3"	"8.1"
"1964"	"Cincinnati"	"7"	"9.4"	" .308 "	" .714 "	"1.3"	" .6 "	"3.0"
"1965"	"Cincinnati"	"4"	"37.5"	" .375 "	" .955 "	"2.8"	"5.3"	"14.3"
"1966"	"Cincinnati"	"5"	"31.4"	" .955* "	" .373 "	"2.4"	"2.6"	"13.0"
"1967"	"Cincinnati"	"4"	"30.0"	" .375 "	" .750 "	"2.0"	"2.8"	"11.3"
"1972"	"Virginia (ABA)"	"11"	"27.0"	.465"	" .865 "	"1.7"	"1..5 "	"11..4 "
"22..2 "	"..402 "	"..832 "	"1..7 "	"..21 "	"9..2 "

External links

Book: Cincinnati's Basketball Royalty by Gerry Schultz