Justin Smith (born March 1, 1999) is an American professional basketball player for Hapoel Jerusalem of the Israeli Premier League and the EuroCup. He played college basketball for the Indiana Hoosiers and the Arkansas Razorbacks.
 Smith in 2017 | |
| No. 0 – Hapoel Jerusalem | |
|---|---|
| Position | Power forward / center |
| League | Israeli Premier League EuroCup |
| Personal information | |
| Born | March 1, 1999 Highland Park, Illinois, U.S. |
| Listed height | 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) |
| Listed weight | 230 lb (104 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Stevenson (Lincolnshire, Illinois) |
| College | |
| NBA draft | 2021: undrafted |
| Playing career | 2021–present |
| Career history | |
| 2021–2022 | Raptors 905 |
| 2022–2023 | Delaware Blue Coats |
| 2023–2024 | Hapoel Holon |
| 2024–present | Hapoel Jerusalem |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| Stats at Basketball Reference | |
High school career
edit
Smith attended Stevenson High School in Lincolnshire, Illinois. In his sophomore season, he played alongside Jalen Brunson and won the 2015 IHSA Class 4A state title.[1] As a senior, Smith averaged 21.7 points and 10 rebounds per game.[2] A consensus four-star recruit, he committed to playing college basketball for Indiana over offers from Villanova, Stanford, Wisconsin and Xavier.[3]
College career
editAs a freshman at Indiana, Smith averaged 6.5 points and 3.2 rebounds per game.[4] On March 2, 2019, he scored a sophomore season-high 24 points in a 63–62 upset win over sixth-ranked Michigan State.[5] Smith averaged 8.2 points and 4.5 rebounds per game as a sophomore, his first year in a starting role.[6] In his junior season, he averaged 10.4 points and 5.2 rebounds per game, before leaving the program.[7] Smith moved to Arkansas as a graduate transfer.[8] On December 20, 2020, he recorded 22 points and 17 rebounds in an 87–76 victory over Oral Roberts.[9] Smith missed four games with an ankle injury that required surgery.[10] As a senior, he averaged 13.6 points and 7.3 rebounds per game, helping lead the Razorbacks to a 25–7 record and a berth in the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament. Following the season, Smith declared for the 2021 NBA draft.[11]
Professional career
editRaptors 905 (2021–2022)
editOn December 31, 2021, Smith was acquired via waivers by the Raptors 905 of the NBA G League. He was waived on February 7, 2022.[12] On February 10, 2022, Smith was reacquired and activated by the Raptors 905.[13]
Delaware Blue Coats (2022–2023)
editOn November 4, 2022, Smith was named to the opening night roster for the Delaware Blue Coats[14] and eventually helped the team win the NBA G League title.[15]
Hapoel Holon (2023–2024)
editOn July 23, 2023, Smith signed with Hapoel Holon of the Israeli Basketball Premier League.[16]
On June 13, 2024, Smith was drafted by the Valley Suns in the 2024 NBA G League expansion draft.[17]
Hapoel Jerusalem (2024–present)
editOn July 4, 2024, he signed with Hapoel Jerusalem of the Israeli Basketball Premier League.[18]
Career statistics
edit| 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 |
College
edit| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017–18 | Indiana | 31 | 9 | 14.9 | .550 | .300 | .673 | 3.2 | .2 | .2 | .3 | 6.5 |
| 2018–19 | Indiana | 35 | 32 | 24.8 | .496 | .219 | .514 | 4.5 | .8 | .6 | .4 | 8.2 |
| 2019–20 | Indiana | 32 | 32 | 30.4 | .492 | .263 | .673 | 5.2 | .9 | 1.0 | .3 | 10.4 |
| 2020–21 | Arkansas | 28 | 28 | 32.0 | .545 | .217 | .630 | 7.3 | 1.8 | 1.2 | .6 | 13.6 |
| Career | 126 | 101 | 25.4 | .519 | .243 | .625 | 4.9 | .9 | .7 | .4 | 9.5 | |
References
edit- ^ Narang, Bob (September 29, 2016). "Stevenson's Justin Smith looked up to teammates before choosing Indiana". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved March 5, 2021.
- ^ Shalin, Dan (March 29, 2017). "All-Area Boys Basketball First Team: Justin Smith, Stevenson". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved March 5, 2021.
- ^ Helfgot, Mike (September 27, 2016). "Stevenson basketball standout Justin Smith commits to Indiana". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved March 5, 2021.
- ^ Narang, Bob (September 17, 2018). "Hoosier hops: Stevenson grad Justin Smith putting on a show at Indiana". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved March 5, 2021.
- ^ Daniels, Tim (March 2, 2019). "No. 6 MSU Upset by Unranked Indiana; Justin Smith Drops 24 Points". Bleacher Report. Retrieved March 5, 2021.
- ^ Flaherty, Kevin (November 9, 2019). "Watch: Justin Smith attacks rim with posterizing dunks". 247Sports. Retrieved March 5, 2021.
- ^ Osterman, Zach (May 22, 2020). "Insider: IU has the pieces to replace forward Justin Smith, who will graduate and transfer". The Indianapolis Star. Retrieved March 5, 2021.
- ^ Brew, Tom (June 8, 2020). "Former Indiana Forward Justin Smith Transferring to Arkansas". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved March 5, 2021.
- ^ Bordelon, Scottie (December 20, 2020). "Smith 'remarkable' in Hogs' win over ORU". Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. Retrieved March 5, 2021.
- ^ Allen, Nate (February 20, 2021). "Smith's return a major boon for Hogs". Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. Retrieved March 5, 2021.
- ^ Muck, Jeremy (May 3, 2021). "STATE SPORTS BRIEFS: Smith to declare for draft, sign with agent". Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. Retrieved October 3, 2021.
- ^ "2021-22 NBA G League transactions". gleague.nba.com. December 31, 2021. Retrieved February 10, 2022.
- ^ "2021-22 NBA G League Transactions". gleague.nba.com. February 10, 2022. Retrieved February 10, 2022.
- ^ "Blue Coats Announce Opening Night Roster". OurSportsCentral.com. November 3, 2022. Retrieved November 3, 2022.
- ^ Levick, Noah (April 7, 2023). "Delaware Blue Coats win G League championship; Jaden Springer named Finals MVP". NBCSports.com. Retrieved April 7, 2023.
- ^ Skerletic, Dario (July 23, 2023). "Justin Smith joins Hapoel Holon". Sportando.basketball. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
- ^ "2024-25 NBA G League Expansion Draft". NBA.com. June 13, 2024. Retrieved June 14, 2024.
- ^ "Hapoel Jerusalem signs Justin Smith until 2026". Sportando. July 4, 2024. Retrieved July 4, 2024.