Biography

Kenny Smith is an American sports commentator and former professional basketball player in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played in the NBA from 1987 to 1997 as a member of the Sacramento Kings, Atlanta Hawks, Houston Rockets, Detroit Pistons, Orlando Magic, and Denver Nuggets. He won two NBA championships with Houston.

Kenny Smith played college basketball with the North Carolina Tar Heels, earning consensus first-team All-American honors as a senior in 1987. He was selected by Sacramento in the first round of the 1987 NBA draft with the sixth overall pick, and was named to the NBA All-Rookie First Team with the Kings. After retiring from playing, Smith became a basketball commentator, and has won several Emmys for his work on Inside the NBA (1988) on TNT. He also worked as an analyst for CBS/Turner during the NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament.

Smith represented the United States in the 1986 FIBA World Championship, on a team that included David Robinson, Tyrone Bogues and Steve Kerr. He was second on the team in scoring behind Charles Smith with 14.7 points per game. Smith scored 23 points to lead the US to an 87-85 win and the Gold Medal over a Soviet Union team that featured Arvydas Sabonis.

In his professional career, Smith scored 9,397 points (12.8 avg.), recorded 4,073 assists (5.5 avg) while shooting .480 from the field, .399 from three-point range, and .829 from the free throw line. He finished in the NBA top ten in three-point percentage three times (1992-93, 1993-94, 1994-95), and top ten in free throw percentage twice (1992-93 and 1993-94). In the 1988-89 season Smith was fifth in the league in minutes played, seventh in minutes per game, and tenth in total assists. Smith holds the Denver Nuggets franchise record for career three-point percentage (.425), and he continues to rank among the all-time leaders in several categories for the Sacramento Kings and the Houston Rockets.
- IMDb mini biography by: Tango Papa