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| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1948-12-12)December 12, 1948 Bellport, New York, U.S. |
| Died | June 4, 2009(2009-06-04) (aged 60) Norwich, Connecticut, U.S. |
| Listed height | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) |
| Listed weight | 180 lb (82 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Bellport (Brookhaven, New York) |
| College | Buffalo State (1968–1971) |
| NBA draft | 1971: 7th round, 104th overall pick |
| Drafted by | Buffalo Braves |
| Playing career | 1971–1983 |
| Position | Shooting guard |
| Number | 9, 7 |
| Career history | |
| 1971–1979 | Buffalo Braves / San Diego Clippers |
| 1979–1981 | Cleveland Cavaliers |
| 1981–1982 | New York Knicks |
| 1982–1983 | San Diego Clippers |
| 1983 | Atlanta Hawks |
| Career highlights | |
| |
| Career NBA statistics | |
| Points | 16,262 (16.7 ppg) |
| Assists | 4,487 (4.6 apg) |
| Steals | 1,403 (1.7 spg) |
Stats at NBA.com  | |
| Stats atBasketball Reference | |
Randolph Smith (December 12, 1948 – June 4, 2009) was an American professionalbasketball player who set theNBA record for consecutive games played. From 1972 to 1982, Smith played in every regular season game, en route to a then-record of 906 straight games (since broken byA.C. Green).[1] In college, he was a Division II All-American basketball player, soccer player and track athlete. He was born inBellport, New York.
Randolph Smith was born on December 12, 1948, inBellport, New York. He attendedBellport High School inBrookhaven, New York, where he excelled inbasketball.
Smith was an outstanding all-around athlete atBuffalo State College, earning All-American honors in three sports: basketball, soccer and track. AtBellport High School on Long Island, Smith was a standout on the soccer and basketball teams, and also set a statehigh jump record of 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m). However, it was on the basketball court that Smith shone brightest, teaming with Durie Burns to lead the Bengals to three straight conference championships, including a trip to theFinal Four of theNCAA Division II Tournament in 1970, where Smith earned All-Tournament honors.
Smith surprised everyone in training camp, and he made the final roster cuts. Despite standing only 6-foot-3, he was assigned to play forward. He averaged 13.4 points per game in his rookie season. Smith continued to improve beyond expectation, drawing on his tremendous speed, quickness and leaping ability. His style of play, along with contemporaries likeJulius Erving, marked by fast breaks and "above the rim" ball movements influenced the offensive style of the NBA in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Playing alongside league scoring championBob McAdoo, Smith averaged 21.8 points per game in the 1975–76 season, and was named to the All-NBA Second Team.
The highlight of Smith's career was the1978 NBA All-Star Game, where he came off the bench to lead all scorers with 27 points, and was named the game's Most Valuable Player.[1]
Smith played for seven years for the Braves until the franchise became theSan Diego Clippers in 1978. That first year with the Clippers, Smith had his fourth consecutive season averaging over 20 points per game.
In 1979, Smith was traded to theCleveland Cavaliers, where he was named team captain and played for two years.
Smith spent the 1981 season with theNew York Knicks.
The next season, Smith moved back to San Diego for another season.
On November 3, 1982, Smith played in his 845th consecutive NBA game, breakingJohnny Kerr'siron man record.[2] The game was a 130–111 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers in which Smith started and scored 14 points. Smith'siron man streak ended at 906 games when he played his last game with the Clippers on March 13, 1983. He had requested to be waived to play for a contender late in the1982–83 NBA season and he missed a game while waiting to clear waivers. The record was later surpassed byA.C. Green in 1997.[3][4]
Smith was traded to the Atlanta Hawks, where he played 15 games before retiring.
In early 1975 at age 26, while nearing the height of his basketball career, Smith tried out for the expansionTampa Bay Rowdies of theNorth American Soccer League. The Rowdies' management had hoped to sign the two-time college soccer All-American for the outdoor season as one of their "required" American players; however, his contract with the Hawks would not allow him to play professional soccer at the time.[5] A year later while in between basketball contracts, the Rowdies gave him another look,[6][7] but did not sign him to a contract. After a third and final tryout in 1977, Rowdies coachEddie Firmani felt that the combination of playing pro basketball and not playing any soccer for so long had diminished Smith's soccer skills too much.[8][9]
After retiring as a player, Smith was an NBA league executive whose duties included assisting former players in need, and he was a coach in theContinental Basketball Association before working atMohegan Sun inUncasville, where he worked in marketing.[1]
Smith was inducted into theSuffolk Sports Hall of Fame on Long Island in the Basketball Category with the Class of 1990. He was inducted into the Greater Buffalo Sports Hall of Fame in 1992.
On June 4, 2009, Smith died inNorwich, Connecticut, after a heart attack during a workout. He's buried at the Forest Lawn East Cemetery,Weddington, NC.[1][10]
| GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game |
| FG% | Field goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field goal percentage | FT% | Free throw percentage |
| RPG | Rebounds per game | APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game |
| BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game | Bold | Career high |
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1971–72 | Buffalo | 76 | – | 27.6 | .482 | – | .622 | 4.8 | 2.5 | – | – | 13.4 |
| 1972–73 | Buffalo | 82 | – | 31.7 | .443 | – | .727 | 4.8 | 5.1 | – | – | 14.8 |
| 1973–74 | Buffalo | 82 | – | 33.5 | .492 | – | .712 | 3.8 | 4.7 | 2.5 | 0.0 | 15.5 |
| 1974–75 | Buffalo | 82 | – | 36.6 | .484 | – | .800 | 4.2 | 6.5 | 1.7 | 0.0 | 17.8 |
| 1975–76 | Buffalo | 82 | – | 38.6 | .494 | – | .817 | 5.1 | 5.9 | 1.9 | 0.0 | 21.8 |
| 1976–77 | Buffalo | 82 | – | 37.7 | .467 | – | .762 | 5.6 | 5.4 | 2.1 | 0.1 | 20.7 |
| 1977–78 | Buffalo | 82 | – | 40.4 | .465 | – | .800 | 3.8 | 5.6 | 2.1 | 0.1 | 24.6 |
| 1978–79 | San Diego | 82 | – | 37.9 | .455 | – | .813 | 3.6 | 4.8 | 2.2 | 0.1 | 20.5 |
| 1979–80 | Cleveland | 82 | – | 32.6 | .452 | .189 | .823 | 3.1 | 4.4 | 1.5 | 0.1 | 17.6 |
| 1980–81 | Cleveland | 82 | – | 26.8 | .466 | .036 | .815 | 2.4 | 4.4 | 1.4 | 0.2 | 14.6 |
| 1981–82 | New York | 82 | 40 | 24.8 | .465 | .273 | .808 | 1.9 | 3.1 | 1.1 | 0.0 | 10.0 |
| 1982–83 | San Diego | 65 | 16 | 19.4 | .489 | .188 | .863 | 1.4 | 3.0 | 0.8 | 0.0 | 9.1 |
| 1982–83 | Atlanta | 15 | 0 | 9.5 | .439 | .000 | .929 | 0.5 | 0.9 | 0.1 | 0.0 | 4.7 |
| Career | 976 | 56 | 32.2 | .470 | .155 | .781 | 3.7 | 4.6 | 1.7 | 0.1 | 16.7 | |
| All-Star | 2 | 0 | 22.0 | .714 | – | .833 | 4.0 | 4.5 | 1.5 | 0.5 | 17.5 | |
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1974 | Buffalo | 6 | – | 37.8 | .400 | – | .650 | 4.3 | 4.5 | 1.7 | 0.2 | 14.2 |
| 1975 | Buffalo | 7 | – | 40.9 | .476 | – | .867 | 4.3 | 7.0 | 2.6 | 0.1 | 18.0 |
| 1976 | Buffalo | 9 | – | 42.9 | .503 | – | .837 | 5.8 | 8.6 | 1.6 | 0.0 | 22.6 |
| 1983 | Atlanta | 2 | – | 7.5 | .200 | – | 1.000 | 0.5 | 2.0 | 0.5 | 0.0 | 3.0 |
| Career | 24 | – | 38.1 | .465 | – | .816 | 4.5 | 6.5 | 1.8 | 0.1 | 17.5 | |