Trinity's Smith wins state player of year
By Earl Vaughan Jr. FAYETTEVILLE OBSERVER
Scholastic sports editor
Dennis Smith Jr. and his Trinity Christian basketball team didn't have the ending to their season they were looking for this year, but that didn't keep Smith from winning one of the state's top awards.
The junior guard, one of the top national college prospects at his position, has been named this year's North Carolina Gatorade boys' basketball player of the year.
The award recognizes players with outstanding athletic, academic and character accomplishments. It also makes Smith a contender for Gatorade's national player of the year award, which will be announced later this month.
Previous winners of that honor include Dwight Howard, Chauncey Billups, Jason Kidd, Paul Pierce and Chris Bosh.
"It's a huge honor for him and his family for sure,'' said Trinity coach Heath Vandevender. "We were not as good this year as we were last year as a unit, but he had a better year statistically and that's a credit to him.
"We tried to put the ball in his hands and run things through him. He can score and facilitate.''
Smith had an average of 21.8 points per game in helping Trinity to the final four of the N.C. Independent Schools Athletic Association 1-A boys' playoffs.
Last year, he was chosen for the NBPA Top 100 and the Adidas Unrivaled camps. He was also a member of the USA Basketball men's developmental team.
In the classroom, Smith has a weighted grade point average of 3.9. He has also worked in a variety of community service projects through his church.
Smith said his main goal this year, as last, was to win a state private schools title. "We didn't do that,'' he said. "When I got the award, I was shocked.''
While his statistics were good, Smith felt his work in the classroom may have made the difference in earning the award. "It helps out a lot,'' he said.
As for the decision on where he'll go to college, Smith said things are basically unchanged, with one exception. He's added Fayetteville State to the schools he's considering, making a total of 11 on his list now.
"I haven't started to cut down the list at all,'' Smith said. "I have no preference.''
Scholastic sports editor Earl Vaughan Jr. can be reached at vaughane@fayobserver.com or 486-3519.
By Earl Vaughan Jr. FAYETTEVILLE OBSERVER
Scholastic sports editor
Dennis Smith Jr. and his Trinity Christian basketball team didn't have the ending to their season they were looking for this year, but that didn't keep Smith from winning one of the state's top awards.
The junior guard, one of the top national college prospects at his position, has been named this year's North Carolina Gatorade boys' basketball player of the year.
The award recognizes players with outstanding athletic, academic and character accomplishments. It also makes Smith a contender for Gatorade's national player of the year award, which will be announced later this month.
Previous winners of that honor include Dwight Howard, Chauncey Billups, Jason Kidd, Paul Pierce and Chris Bosh.
"It's a huge honor for him and his family for sure,'' said Trinity coach Heath Vandevender. "We were not as good this year as we were last year as a unit, but he had a better year statistically and that's a credit to him.
"We tried to put the ball in his hands and run things through him. He can score and facilitate.''
Smith had an average of 21.8 points per game in helping Trinity to the final four of the N.C. Independent Schools Athletic Association 1-A boys' playoffs.
Last year, he was chosen for the NBPA Top 100 and the Adidas Unrivaled camps. He was also a member of the USA Basketball men's developmental team.
In the classroom, Smith has a weighted grade point average of 3.9. He has also worked in a variety of community service projects through his church.
Smith said his main goal this year, as last, was to win a state private schools title. "We didn't do that,'' he said. "When I got the award, I was shocked.''
While his statistics were good, Smith felt his work in the classroom may have made the difference in earning the award. "It helps out a lot,'' he said.
As for the decision on where he'll go to college, Smith said things are basically unchanged, with one exception. He's added Fayetteville State to the schools he's considering, making a total of 11 on his list now.
"I haven't started to cut down the list at all,'' Smith said. "I have no preference.''
Scholastic sports editor Earl Vaughan Jr. can be reached at vaughane@fayobserver.com or 486-3519.
