Russ Smith (basketball)

Russ Smith
Russ Smith
Born	April 19, 1991 (age 35); New York City, New York, U.S.
Occupation	Professional basketball player
Years active	2010s–present
Known for	Collegiate career at Louisville Cardinals; NCAA championship (2013); NBA G League single-game scoring record (65 points)

Russ Antoin Smith (born April 19, 1991) is a professional basketball athlete from the United States currently competing for Pallacanestro Nardò in Italy's Serie A2 league. During his collegiate career, he played for the Louisville Cardinals and was instrumental in their 2013 NCAA championship victory as a junior. That season, he received third-team All-American recognition from both the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) and Sporting News. In his senior year, Smith achieved consensus first-team All-American status. He also holds the single-game scoring record in the NBA G League with 65 points.

High school career

Smith was born at NY Presbyterian Hospital in New York City to parents Paulette A. O'Neal and Russell Smith. He attended Archbishop Molloy High School in Queens, New York, where he played basketball under the guidance of coach Jack Curran. Leading the Catholic High School Athletic Association (CHSAA) scoring charts, Smith averaged 24.5 points per game as a junior and increased that to 29.6 points per game during his senior year. In addition to scoring, he contributed an average of 7.3 rebounds and 3.2 assists in his final season. Twice as a senior, he scored a career-high 47 points in a single game. His accolades included 2009 New York State Sportswriters Association all-state honors, first-team all-CHSAA "AA," and selection to the New York Daily News All-Queens first team as a senior. Smith participated in the 2009 Jordan Brand Classic Regional Game held at Madison Square Garden, where he tallied 27 points and earned co-MVP honors. The following year, he played prep basketball at South Kent School, averaging 19.7 points and 3.9 assists while helping South Kent achieve a 20–12 record.

Recruitment

Initially overlooked by Louisville, Smith was discovered by assistant coaches Ralph Willard and Steve Masiello during a September 2009 recruiting visit to South Kent while they were evaluating another player. Masiello's prior acquaintance with Smith’s father dating back to Masiello’s own teenage years helped generate interest in Smith. Louisville soon pursued him earnestly, and Smith attempted to commit even before receiving an official scholarship offer.

Freshman year

Upon joining Louisville, Smith selected jersey number 2. His freshman campaign was hampered by multiple injuries—including a broken foot, concussion, strained foot, and knee soreness—which limited him to just 17 games. Frustrated by these setbacks and limited court time, Smith considered transferring. However, after coach Rick Pitino inserted him into a game against West Virginia—where Smith made defensive contributions and scored three points—he resolved to remain with the program. That season, Louisville reached the championship game of the 2011 Big East men's basketball tournament but fell to Connecticut. The Cardinals concluded the year with a 25–10 overall record (12–6 in Big East play), tied for third place in the conference standings, secured an at-large #4 seed in the 2011 NCAA Tournament, but were upset in the second round by #13 seed Morehead State with a close score of 61–62.

Sophomore year

In the 2011–12 season, Smith emerged as an energizing presence off Louisville’s bench despite ranking sixth in minutes played on the team; he was second in scoring output. During January 2012, head coach Rick Pitino bestowed upon him the nickname "Russdiculous," which was also shared with one of Pitino’s racehorses. Smith established a new school record by accumulating 87 steals across 39 games. Louisville captured the 2012 Big East tournament title by winning four games over four consecutive nights and advanced to the NCAA Final Four after upsetting top-seeded Michigan State and seventh-seeded Florida; Smith led the Cardinals with 19 points in the regional final victory. Their run ended in the national semifinals against rival Kentucky, who went on to win the championship. Over the course of that season, Smith averaged 11.5 points, 2.5 rebounds, 1.9 assists, and 2.2 steals per game as Louisville finished with a 30–10 record.

Junior year

Prior to the 2012–13 campaign, Louisville was projected by both media and coaches to top the Big East standings. The Cardinals concluded the regular season with a 26–5 record, sharing the Big East regular season title alongside Georgetown and Marquette, each holding a 14–4 conference mark. Shortly before the Big East tournament, Smith received news of the passing of his high school coach Jack Curran. Despite this, he delivered a strong performance by scoring 28 points in Louisville’s initial victory over Villanova and earned a place on the Big East All-Tournament Team as Louisville captured the championship by defeating Syracuse after rallying from a halftime deficit.

Entering the NCAA tournament as the overall #1 seed with a 29–5 record, Smith contributed 23 points against North Carolina A&T and followed with 27 points versus Colorado State. His energetic play inspired fans to chant "RussArena" and sparked the Twitter hashtag #RussArena. He matched his personal best by scoring 31 points in the Sweet Sixteen win over Oregon. In the Midwest Regional final against Duke, Smith put up 23 points and received recognition as the Most Outstanding Player of the region. The team found motivation after teammate Kevin Ware suffered a serious leg injury, going on to secure a commanding victory. Smith added 21 points during Louisville’s Final Four triumph over Wichita State. Over the course of the season, he averaged 18.7 points, 3.3 rebounds, 2.9 assists, and 2.1 steals per game as Louisville captured the national championship against Michigan with a 35–5 record; however, this title was later vacated due to NCAA sanctions concerning improper benefits provided to recruits.

Senior year

On April 24, 2013, Smith announced his decision to return to Louisville for his senior season in order to improve his prospects for the NBA draft. On February 28, he earned recognition as a semi-finalist for the Naismith College Player of the Year award.

Louisville finished that season with a 31–6 record and secured a No. 4 seed in the NCAA tournament. In the second round matchup against Manhattan, Smith led all scorers with 18 points. The Cardinals then overcame Saint Louis by a score of 66–51, with Smith contributing 11 points and sharing team-high assists at seven. He wrapped up his collegiate career by scoring 23 points in Louisville’s Sweet Sixteen defeat to Kentucky.

Smith was named to the Associated Press First Team All-American squad. On January 22, 2022, Louisville honored his contributions by retiring his No. 2 jersey.

College honors

2013 NCAA Midwest Regional Most Outstanding Player
2013 Big East All-Tournament Team
2013 Big East All-Conference First Team
2013 Lute Olson All-America Team
2013 Sporting News All-American Third Team
2013 NABC All-America Third Team
2013 College Sports Madness All-America First Team
2014 John Wooden Award All-American team

New Orleans Pelicans (2014–2015)

Smith was chosen with the 47th overall pick in the 2014 NBA draft by the Philadelphia 76ers on June 26, 2014. The following day, his draft rights were traded to the New Orleans Pelicans in exchange for rights to Pierre Jackson. After being drafted, Smith voiced disappointment regarding analysts’ critiques of his efficiency and skepticism about his capacity to fulfill point guard duties at the NBA level. He also mentioned that several top prospects had declined opportunities to work out with him before the draft. Smith officially signed his rookie contract with New Orleans on July 15. Throughout his first professional season, he was assigned multiple times to the Fort Wayne Mad Ants of the NBA Development League.

Memphis Grizzlies (2015)

On January 12, 2015, Smith was involved in a three-team trade that sent him to the Memphis Grizzlies, with the Pelicans and Boston Celtics also part of the transaction. During his rookie campaign, he was assigned several times to the Iowa Energy. Smith made his postseason debut on May 3, 2015, when the Grizzlies fell 101–86 to the Golden State Warriors in the Western Conference semifinals.

Smith was sent back to the Iowa Energy on December 17, 2015, but was recalled later that same day. He experienced another assignment on December 22 and returned to Memphis two days afterward. On December 29, the Grizzlies waived him.

Delaware 87ers (2016)

Smith joined the Delaware 87ers of the NBA Development League on January 13, 2016. Just two days later, he made an immediate impact by scoring a team-high 37 points off the bench in a 119–104 victory over Raptors 905. On February 1, he was recognized as NBA D-League Performer of the Week after averaging 28.7 points (ranking fifth in the league), leading with 8.7 assists, along with 4.3 rebounds and 2.0 steals during a 2–1 stretch.

On March 18, Smith achieved his first career triple-double by posting 20 points, 13 rebounds, and 16 assists in a win against the Fort Wayne Mad Ants. Five days later, on March 23, he set a new D-League single-game scoring record with an astonishing 65 points on 24-of-42 shooting in a loss to the Canton Charge. As of 2022, this record remains unbroken along with his cumulative total of 105 points across consecutive games. He was waived on March 29 due to an injury that ended his season.

Europe (2016)

Smith inked a one-year deal with Galatasaray Odeabank of the Turkish BSL and EuroLeague on July 27, 2016. However, he parted ways with Galatasaray in December of that year.

Return to the Delaware 87ers (2017)

On January 20, 2017, Smith returned to the Delaware 87ers through reacquisition.

China (2017–2021)

Smith signed with Luoyang Zhonghe for the Chinese NBL season on June 3, 2017. In his first game, he tallied an impressive 62 points including seven three-pointers despite a 138–123 defeat against Anhui Lightning. On July 5, he reached a personal best by scoring 81 points along with eight rebounds and seven assists in a commanding 142–130 victory over Henan Golden Elephants. He averaged an extraordinary 61.2 points per game throughout that season, positioning himself as a candidate for a world record.

After completing the NBL season, Smith signed with the Fujian Sturgeons for participation in the 2017-18 CBA campaign.

Fort Wayne Mad Ants (2021–2022)

Smith was acquired and activated by the Fort Wayne Mad Ants of the NBA G League on December 30, 2021. Returning to G League action on January 7, 2022—his first since 2017—he scored an impressive 43 points in a narrow 94–103 defeat to Raptors 905. His season was cut short due to a shoulder injury sustained on January 31. He finished averaging 16.4 points, along with 1.7 rebounds and 1.4 assists per contest.

Hapoel Be'er Sheva (2022)

On September 2, 2022, Smith signed a contract to play for Hapoel Be'er Sheva competing in the Israeli Basketball Premier League.

Tabiat Eslamshahr (2024–2025)

On November 18, 2024, Smith became a member of Tabiat Eslamshahr, competing in the Iranian Basketball Super League.

Pallacanestro Nardò (2025–present)

Smith inked a deal with Pallacanestro Nardò on February 6, 2025, joining the ranks of Italy's Serie A2 league.

The Basketball Tournament

Smith took part in the 2023 and 2024 installments of The Basketball Tournament (TBT), representing The Ville, a team composed of Louisville alumni. He was the leading scorer for the squad during both tournaments, guiding them to the regional championship game in 2023 and experiencing a quarterfinal defeat to Kentucky alumni's La Familia in 2024.

Regular season

|- | style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"| New Orleans | 6 || 0 || 4.8 || .200 || .167 || — || .5 || .3 || .0 || .0 || .8 |- | style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"| Memphis | 6 || 0 || 6.0 || .400 || .200 || .923 || .5 || 1.0 || .5 || .0 || 4.2 |- | style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"| Memphis | 15 || 0 || 4.4 || .318 || .200 || .615 || .6 || .7 || .3 || .1 || 1.5 |- class="sortbottom" | style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"| Career | 27 || 0 || 5.4 || .250 || .167 || .786 || .5 || .7 || .3 || .0 || 1.9

Playoffs

|- | style="text-align:left;"| 2015 | style="text-align:left;"| Memphis | 2 || 0 || 1.5 || — || — || — || .0 || 1.0 || .0 || .0 || .8 |- class="sortbottom" | style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"| Career | 2 || 0 || 1.5 || — || — || — || .0 || 1.0 || .0 || .0 || .8

External links