In 2001,10-year-old Greg Smith was already dreaming big.
The Vallejo native spent countless hours on the basketball court at Sereno Village, imagining he was facing the NBA’s biggest stars — Kobe Bryant, Tim Duncan and Shaquille O’Neal.
“I still have memories of doing that. Going outside with the ball, nobody out there with me and I’m talking to myself like I’m playing against my favorite players of all time,” Smith said. “I’m out there doing fadeaways and having that imagination.”
In 2012, Smith’s imagination became reality. The 6-foot-10 forward signed a multi-year deal with the Houston Rockets, giving him the chance to share the court with his idols.
“Being able to play against my favorite players was the greatest thing ever,” he said. “My first year, I didn’t play a lot, so I was like a fan on the sideline just watching my favorite players.”
Now, with his five-year NBA career and four-year career overseas behind him, Smith is returning to where his basketball journey began to be inducted into the Vallejo Sports Hall of Fame on Sept. 26.
“It’s a great honor,” Smith said. “Seeing all the past inductees and great athletes we had come through Vallejo, I’m honored to be a part of it. I’m super excited.”
Smith’s hoop dreams began at Jesse Bethel High School, where he spent his freshman season on the junior varsity team. Although his goal was to play varsity, playing at the JV level allowed him to fine-tune his game.
“Coach (Dwayne) Jones said ‘I can give you a chance (on varsity), but it’s nothing guaranteed, or you could play JV,” Smith said. “I just wanted to play, so I didn’t mind JV. It helped because I got to explore my game and get more comfortable.”
After his freshman year, Smith transferred to Edison High in Fresno, where he spent his sophomore and junior seasons before transferring to Westwind Preparatory Academy in Phoenix for his senior year.
“My uncle was trying to do everything possible to get me seen by colleges. He lived in Fresno, and one of the high school teams out there was really good. They had a history of developing college players.” he said.” My uncle was like a father to me, so when I had a chance to move in with him for those two years, I jumped at the opportunity.”
As a junior at Edison, Smith averaged 22 points, 15 rebounds, five assists and five blocks per game. As a senior at Westwind, he earned All-Arizona State honors and was nominated for the McDonald’s All-America Team after he averaged 26 points, 14.4 rebounds, six blocks, four assists and three steals per game.
“I don’t know if I ever thought making it to the NBA was a possibility in high school, but I felt like I was doing the correct things to get to college.” Smith said. “I was getting recruited by all the colleges that I dreamed of, so I’m like, ‘Okay, I’m on a good path here.’”
He certainly was.
After graduating from Westwind, Smith returned to Fresno and shined at Fresno State University, where he was named the 2009-10 Western Athletic Conference Freshman of the Year.
After his sophomore season, Smith declared for the 2011 NBA draft, forgoing his final two years of college eligibility. Although he had 22 separate team workouts and believed he had a shot at landing a rookie contract, he went undrafted.
“I knew there was a possibility of going undrafted, but I always had faith that I would hear my name called. Not getting my name called, it lit a fire to prove my doubters wrong,” he said. “It showed me nothing is promised, nothing is yours, you gotta work for it and earn everything possible.”
Smith did just that.
With the NBA lockout affecting players from signing with teams or playing in the summer league, Smith joined Soles de Mexicali of Mexico’s Liga Nacional de Baloncesto Profesional. After his stint down south, Smith returned to the U.S. for training camps where he caught the eye of then-Rockets general manager Daryl Morey.
“I went to Mexico with the mindset of getting better and working on my game every single day, so when the opportunity came, I was ready for it,” Smith said.
Former NBA player Greg Smith, shown here guarding Steph Curry of the Warriors, is headed into the Vallejo Sports Hall of Fame on Saturday, Sept. 26. (Courtesy Photo)
On December 28, 2011, Smith was acquired by the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, the Rockets’ D-League affiliate. He impressed with the Vipers’ squad and the Rockets quickly snatched him up on a contract through the 2014-15 season.
Having played mostly for the Vipers as a rookie, Smith was named to the All-NBA D-League first team and the NBA D-League All-Rookie first team.
“I was super proud of myself for making it and getting an opportunity,” he said. “That summer after my first year, I wanted to prove myself. They believed in me because they signed me out of the D-League, but I had to show them what they were getting.”
The following season, Smith played in 70 games and made 10 starts for the Rockets, averaging six points and 4.6 rebounds in 15.9 minutes per game. His first career start came in a 98-81 victory over the “Lob City” Clippers, featuring Chris Paul, Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan, on March 30, 2013.
“I didn’t know I was starting until before the game. We were going through our game plan, and (Kevin) McHale told me I was starting, and I was guarding Blake. I was excited because I took a lot of his game towards mine,” he said. “Then they come out and draw the first play for me, and I’m like, ‘Oh man, it is actually time to go.’
“Playing against Chris Paul, that was legendary, and for him to tell me at the end of the game, ‘Good job young fella. Keep working.’ That made me feel like I actually belonged there.”
He subsequently remained in the starting lineup for the remainder of the regular season and for the first game of the Rockets’ first round playoff series against the Oklahoma City Thunder. Leading Houston that season was star guard James Harden, who was in his first year on the team.
“I think he elevated my game and made it easier for me to score because I understood how he played and I knew how to play off of him,” Smith said. “I was a good screener, good roller, good finisher and I knew he was gonna draw a lot of attention. He was so good.”
Smith only played in 11 games for the Rockets during the 2013-14 season due to a knee injury that led to his release and brief stops with the Dallas Mavericks and Minnesota Timberwolves in 2015 and 2016, respectively.
In 2016, Smith signed with with İstanbul BŞB of the Turkish League, beginning a four-year career overseas that featured stops in Puerto Rico, Japan and the Philippines.
“At first, I didn’t wanna go overseas. I was scared of moving to another country and living there for six months to a year,” Smith said. “Then, I did it in the Philippines for the first time and I fell in love with it. I fell in love with learning other cultures, meeting different people and different fans.
“That was a blessing to visit all these countries and meet new people,” he continued. “I have friends all over the world now just because of basketball.”