Girls who had once chased after Hunter now surrounded Smith. When he walked into the gym in his black-and-gold uniform, ball tucked under his elbow, kids asked for his autograph. That summer, he attended the Adidas abcd summer camp in New Jersey, where college and NBA scouts go to study the nation's best high school players. And he dominated them all. They voted him camp MVP and hailed him, according to one scout, as the number-one player in the country. "That was his true coming-out party," says Hunter, "his national debut." When Smith returned to Chicago he told reporters, "I never had a feeling like that in my life."

And that's when everyone started coming out of the woodwork, people Hunter had never seen before, street agents claiming they represented Michael Jordan, aunts and uncles who said they knew Smith from his days in the projects. At the first game of Smith's senior year his mother showed up in the stands. "I think she was wasted," says Coach Q. Leon even heard from his father. "Right when my brother started doing good in ball, that's when my dad called," says Jerry. "He knew where we were before this happened, but he never came. I knew what this was all about. And, to top this off, when he first tried to reach us, he didn't call me. He remembered one brother and forgot the other."

Then, one night just after his eighteenth birthday, Smith disappeared. Mr. Green reported him missing to the police, and his name went out on the radio. One of his sisters showed up at King, frantically asking if anyone had seen him. But no one had, not even Hunter. "Right now, Leon doesn't know who to turn to," Cox told reporters. "He is listening to a lot of bad advice.... This kid doesn't have any parents or relatives that he can talk to. That's why he can be befriended by anybody who shows him any kind of attention."

After his mother went to the newspapers and begged him to come back and his father, according to Jerry, tried to call him on his cell phone, Smith returned to Chicago. His fans greeted him outside the gym, and he didn't disappoint. From then on, he averaged 25.5 points, 14.5 rebounds, and eight blocks a game. The Chicago Sun-Times named him high school player of the year. College coaches trekked up the three flights of stairs at Sullivan House to meet with him and Mr. Green. They always carried a big clipboard and a diagram of a basketball court with four players on it. They'd point to it and say, "This is our team here, and we can insert you right here, and we'll be playing for the national championship."

As the pressures mounted, Smith moved out of Sullivan House and sought refuge with a friend named Steve Brown, a member of his entourage who seemed to be one of the only people who didn't want anything from him. Instead, Brown gave Smith whatever he wanted: money, car rides, food, all without strings. But then, late one night, Smith turned up on Hunter's doorstep with his bags. Brown, it turned out, was just another street agent paid to steer Smith to a Houston-based agency. "He was trying to mix his business with being a father figure," Smith later said, "and you can't mix business with family."

In the world of high school basketball, everyone knows the story of Kevin Garnett. He grew up in South Carolina, but in 1994, at the start of his senior year, he transferred across the country just to play in Chicago's public leagues, where he terrified opponents with his wingspan and leaping ability. Though nearly seven feet, he ran up and down the court like a little man. That year he averaged 26 points and 18 rebounds and won the city championship. Then, at 18, he did something almost unheard of: he turned pro.

That's an interesting story and just shows he can be a great ball player under the right system. Maybe a hard-nosed city like New York could set him straight, but still allow him to express himself on the court. Maybe in a few years we could turn this kid into a real decent player.

Posted by VG:

I agree that we should get rid of Larry Robinson and get Leon Smith. That guy could really help us.

Leon Smith is now with ATL. I wonder what the Insider has to say about whether Smith is worth the trouble or not...

Posted by Caseloads:

Posted by VG:

I agree that we should get rid of Larry Robinson and get Leon Smith. That guy could really help us.

Leon Smith is now with ATL. I wonder what the Insider has to say about whether Smith is worth the trouble or not...

From Insider:

"NBA Apocalypse: Here comes Leon Smith

There's a dearth of centers in the NBA . . . but this is getting ridiculous.
After spending the last three months jostling in the paint for a psedo-center, Marc Jackson, who has started a grand total of 35 games in the NBA . . . after spending the last month drooling over a high school junior, Kendrick Perkins, who some hope will be the next Shaq . . . after declaring Yao Ming the future of the NBA before even knowing if he'll ever be allowed to play in the NBA . . . NBA GM's have gone off the deep end. Where's Roy Tarpley when you need him?


The Knicks, Magic, Blazers and Hawks were among numerous NBA teams extensively scouting former first-round pick Leon Smith. This weekend, the competition began to heat up, and from all indications, Smith was supposed to surface in Atlanta Sunday night to sign a 10-day contract with the Hawks.

Smith, a 6-foot-10, 260-pound forward who entered the 1999 draft directly from high school, is doing all the right things on the court, albeit a CBA court. In 24 games, Smith has averaged 18.3 points and 16.8 rebounds, which has gotten everyone's attention.

But it is what Smith is notorious for off the court that should be raising more red flags than the People's Republic of China.

"Incredible," former coach Don Nelson told the Dallas Morning News. "I'm really happy for Leon, and I'll always root for him. The one thing you could never question about Leon was his talent. It was only a matter of time before someone else took a chance on him."

Smith has had several suicide attempts (including a time he painted his face green, downed 200 aspirins, and told police he was an Indian fighting cowboys), multiple arrests in Chicago and a month in a Dallas psychiatric facility. And all of that was before the Mavericks released him. He hasn't done much to tone down his exploits in the CBA.

According to the N.Y. Daily News, CBA officials say that at intermission of games, Smith has thrown furniture in the locker room. His new coach in Gary, Ind., Barry Stevens, reportedly is leery of taking Smith out of games because he's fearful of what Smith will do on the sidelines.

Scary stuff? Apparently not. The Hawks, who you would think had enough of bad seed Isaiah Rider to last them a decade, seem more than willing to bring him into a losing situation and see what happens. "We've talked to his coaches and his counselors, and we believe Leon deserves a chance," Hawks general manager Pete Babcock told the Atlanta Journal Constitution. "He appears to have turned his life around, and we'll see if he can handle the pressures of the NBA. We do feel he has the skills. From everything we've heard and seen, he is the most talented player in the CBA."

The Magic are desperate for a big man. How desperate? Listen to Magic GM John Gabriel. "We have no way of knowing if he's overcome his problems, but I doubt it," he told the N.Y. Daily News. "He's the kind of player, like a second-round pick or a questionable pick, who are best when you get them on the rebound, after their first team. His first cup of coffee probably won't be the last one for him. Maybe somebody can find the real guy, if he perseveres."

The Knicks? At least Smith would have taken all of the media glare off interim coach Don Chaney and disgruntled guard Latrell Sprewell. Instead, the Knicks are courting Olden Polynice. If they had landed them both, perhaps they could have convinced Smith that Olden was his parole officer. Any excuse for Olden to flash his badge.


And the Blazers? Do we even need to go there?

As for Smith, he thinks he's ready. "I'm excited, but I'm not gonna get jumpy," the 21-year-old told the Gary Post Tribune. "I'm gonna remain focused. I'm just going to make the best of the opportunity." Ironically, he could have his first chance Tuesday versus the Mavs.

Smith might be the biggest reach -- but Polynice and others aren't far behind. Since Polynice opted out of his contract with the Jazz this summer, the Knicks and Mavs have shown the most interest in the troubled big man. According to the N.Y. Post, Polynice, along with senior citizen Otis Thorpe, are at the top of the Knicks' list. Other also-rans, including Shawnelle Scott, who couldn't make it on the Nuggets, who were in desperate need of a big man, are also suddenly in vogue."

How can the knicks be so dumb not to sign this guy the suck and they need size. the hornets took a chance on lee nalion and now hes starting adn playing very well and he was on the same boat as smith before the horents picked him up. i just hope when layden starts trading players hes smart and tries to free up some money some how.

Indeed funny, used to be with Dickerson as well but Babcock slipped through the censorship as well.

Didn't know Smith still has tantrums, still he's young and with proper counseling his talent is enormous.