Dennis Smith Jr. appeared to be out of the NBA this summer after playing for his fourth team in five seasons. He contemplated a career change before an old friend helped him get one last shot with the Charlotte Hornets.
“I told my previous agent, ‘I’m not going overseas,’” Smith explained. “If sh*t don’t work out, I’m just going to the NFL. I was dead-a** serious. I put on a lot of weight. I was going to try.”
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Smith planned to compete for a spot as an NFL defensive back. However, no NFL teams ever spoke with him before he got a one-year offer to play for the Hornets.
Nick Friedman, an assistant coach with the Hornets, trained Smith during his pre-draft process in 2017. The two remained in touch over the years and ran into each other during open pickup runs in Miami. After a solid showing, Smith was invited back three more times, played well, and ended up getting his contract with the Hornets.
“People were just trying to write me off,” Smith told HoopsHype. “I was like, you’ve got all these guys way older than me with whatever their situations are, and they’re getting an opportunity of this, that, and the third. I know I’m young. I’ve got time. I’m confident in myself.”
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Through four games this season, Smith is averaging 13.5 points on an efficient 52.2 percent shooting from the field and 50 percent from three-point range with 6.3 assists and 2.3 steals in 28.5 minutes.
“Some guys figure it out later, some guys figure it out right away,” Hornets coach Steve Clifford said. “He’s a talented guy. Even though with the injuries, he’s not the athlete he was, he’s still a really good athlete, even for this league. I don’t see that he’s doing anything that he can’t continue to do, frankly.”
After being traded from the Mavericks following Luka Doncic’s arrival, failing to live up to expectations on the Knicks as the top player acquired in the Kristaps Porzingis trade, and pit stops with the Pistons and Trail Blazers, Smith is thankful for his shot with the Hornets to salvage his NBA career.
“It’s been different,” Smith told HoopsHype when asked how he’d describe his NBA journey. “A roller coaster, up and down. I wouldn’t trade it for anybody else’s, though. I think it’s changed me in a lot of ways, made me who I am, and helped me grow. I’m thankful for it.”
You can follow Michael Scotto on Twitter: @MikeAScotto
