.jpg) Smart in 2021 | |
| Current position | |
|---|---|
| Title | Head coach |
| Team | Marquette |
| Conference | Big East |
| Record | 102–44 (.699) |
| Biographical details | |
| Born | (1977-04-08)April 8, 1977 (age 48) Madison, Wisconsin, U.S. |
| Playing career | |
| 1995–1999 | Kenyon |
| Position | Point guard |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| 1999–2001 | California (PA) (assistant) |
| 2003–2006 | Akron (assistant) |
| 2006–2008 | Clemson (assistant) |
| 2008–2009 | Florida (assistant) |
| 2009–2015 | VCU |
| 2015–2021 | Texas |
| 2021–present | Marquette |
| Administrative career (AD unless noted) | |
| 2001–2003 | Dayton (basketball ops.) |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 374–186 (.668) |
| Tournaments | 10–12 (NCAA Division I) 5–0 (NIT) 5–0 (CBI) |
| Accomplishments and honors | |
| Championships | |
| NCAA Division I Regional – Final Four (2011) NIT (2019) CBI (2010) CAA tournament (2012) Atlantic 10 tournament (2015) Big 12 tournament (2021) Big East regular season (2023) Big East tournament (2023) | |
| Awards | |
| AP Coach of the Year (2023) NABC Coach of the Year (2023) Henry Iba Award (2023) Big East Coach of the Year (2023) | |
Shaka Dingani Smart (born April 8, 1977) is an American men'scollege basketball coach and former college basketball player. He is the current head men's basketball coach atMarquette University.
Smart rose to prominence in 2011 after leadingVirginia Commonwealth University to its first and onlyFinal Four appearance in school history in the2011 NCAA tournament.
Smart was born April 8, 1977, inMadison, Wisconsin to Winston Smart and Monica King. Smart's father was not supportive of Smart and left the family in 1994.[1] He grew up inFitchburg and attendedOregon High School inOregon, Wisconsin.[2][3][4] Smart, who is biracial, was one of "10 or so" students of color at Oregon High and experienced racism while attending the school. This led Smart to lead a student group which held multicultural events and seminars on homophobia and racism. He has said these experiences helped him develop his competitive drive.[1]
While in high school, Smart played for the Oregon Panthers basketball team. He was a three-year starter as apoint guard for the Panthers and set school records forassists in a game (20), season (291), and career (458). His senior season he was named to the All-Badger Conference second team.[4][5]
After high school, Smart attendedKenyon College inGambier, Ohio. He graduatedmagna cum laude with a degree in history, focusing on issues of race and theGreat Migration. Smart was a four-year starter for the Kenyon Lords basketball team, and set school records for assists in a season (184) and career (542).[2][3][4] As a senior, Smart was named to the All-North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) team and NCAC Scholar Athlete of the Year. Smart was also named to the 1999USA Today All-USA Academic Team.[3][6]
After graduating from Kenyon, Smart received anNCAA postgraduate scholarship and earned amaster's degree in social science fromCalifornia University of Pennsylvania.[7]
Smart's coaching career began in 1999 as an assistant coach at California University of Pennsylvania underBill Brown, his former coach at Kenyon.[6] He followed that with a position as the director of basketball operations atUniversity of Dayton and assistant coaching positions atUniversity of Akron,Clemson University, and theUniversity of Florida.[7][8]
In 2009, Smart was hired as the head coach ofVirginia Commonwealth University (VCU) followingAnthony Grant's departure to become the head coach of theAlabama Crimson Tide men's basketball team.[9][10] At the time of his hiring, he was one of the youngest head coaches inNCAA Division I basketball.[6] Inhis first season, he led the Rams to a 27–10 record and aCBI Championship after VCU sweptSaint Louis in the championship best-of-three series.[11]
Smart's second season began with star forwardLarry Sanders declaring for the2010 NBA draft.[5] Without Sanders, the Rams went 23–11 and played in their second consecutiveColonial Athletic Association championship game, losing toOld Dominion.[12]
VCU was given an at-large bid to the2011 NCAA tournament. The decision was met with controversy given the Rams 3–5 record that February. They played in theFirst Four againstUniversity of Southern California (USC) for a spot in the main 64-team tournament bracket. VCU defeated USC and upsetGeorgetown University andPurdue University to advance to the Sweet 16 in the NCAA tournament for the first time in school history.[1][7] VCU beatFlorida State University 72–71 in overtime to earn the school's first spot in theElite Eight and subsequently upset the top-seededUniversity of Kansas 71–61 for its firstFinal Four appearance.[13] The Rams lost toButler 70–62 in the semifinal game.[2] Smart signed an eight-year, $1.2 million per year contract extension with VCU following the school's loss to Butler.[14]
Smart became the second-youngest coach to win 100 games, with a 90–63 victory overDuquesne University in January 2013.[15]
In 2015, Smart became the head coach of theUniversity of Texas men's basketball team. In his first season at Texas, he led the Longhorns to a 20–13 record and received the sixth seed in theNCAA tournament, which theHouston Chronicle described as having "surpassed all realistic expectations."[2][16] That offseason, Smart received a contract extension which would keep him at Texas through the 2022–23 season.[17]
In May 2017, Smart received a commitment fromMohamed Bamba, the second-ranked overall player in the 2017 recruiting class, to play at Texas.[18] He also received commitments from Gerald Liddell, Brock Cunningham,Jaxson Hayes, andKamaka Hepa in what was the eighth-rankedrecruiting class in the country.[19] Smart led the2017–18 Longhorns to a 19–15 record. The team lost in the first round of the2018 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament to theUniversity of Nevada in overtime.[20]
In the 2018–19 season, Smart led Texas to a 21–16 record and aNational Invitation Tournament championship, the school's first since 1978.[21]
Smart ended a three-season absence from the NCAA tournament in 2021 when he led theLonghorns to a 19–8 record and aBig 12 conference championship.[22] The Longhorns were given the No. 3 seed in theNCAA tournament and were defeated byAbilene Christian University in the first round, after whichSan Antonio Express-News reporter Nick Moyle questioned Smart's job security. At the time, Smart had two years left on his coaching contract and could be bought out for $7.1 million.[23] Smart left Texas in March 2021.[24]
Marquette University hired Smart to replaceSteve Wojciechowski as the Golden Eagles' head coach in March 2021. Smart led the Golden Eagles to 19–13 record thefollowing season, where they lost in the first round of theNCAA tournament to theUniversity of North Carolina.[25] In his second season in Milwaukee, Smart led the Golden Eagles to a Big East regular season crown and a tournament championship, despite being chosen in preseason polls to finish ninth in the conference.[26]
At the close of the 2022–23 season, Smart won theHenry Iba Award as the national coach of the year.[27]
At VCU, Smart's teams employed a high-pressure style of play known as "havoc". In this style, offense is based on attacking inside and the defense heavily utilizesfull court pressure,double teams, and traps to force turnovers and disrupt opposing offenses. At Texas, Smart employed this style less frequently.[5][6]
Smart has been described as a relationship builder and been noted for his ability to increase team camaraderie.[28]
| Season | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Postseason | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| VCU Rams(Colonial Athletic Association)(2009–2012) | |||||||||
| 2009–10 | VCU | 27–9 | 11–7 | T–5th | CBI Champion | ||||
| 2010–11 | VCU | 28–12 | 12–6 | 4th | NCAA Division I Final Four | ||||
| 2011–12 | VCU | 29–7 | 15–3 | 2nd | NCAA Division I Round of 32 | ||||
| VCU Rams(Atlantic 10 Conference)(2012–2015) | |||||||||
| 2012–13 | VCU | 27–9 | 12–4 | 2nd | NCAA Division I Round of 32 | ||||
| 2013–14 | VCU | 26–9 | 12–4 | 2nd | NCAA Division I Round of 64 | ||||
| 2014–15 | VCU | 26–10 | 12–6 | T–4th | NCAA Division I Round of 64 | ||||
| VCU: | 163–56 (.744) | 74–30 (.712) | |||||||
| Texas Longhorns(Big 12 Conference)(2015–2021) | |||||||||
| 2015–16 | Texas | 20–13 | 11–7 | 4th | NCAA Division I Round of 64 | ||||
| 2016–17 | Texas | 11–22 | 4–14 | 10th | |||||
| 2017–18 | Texas | 19–15 | 8–10 | T–6th | NCAA Division I Round of 64 | ||||
| 2018–19 | Texas | 21–16 | 8–10 | 6th | NIT Champion | ||||
| 2019–20 | Texas | 19–12 | 9–9 | T–3rd | Postseason cancelled due toCOVID-19 | ||||
| 2020–21 | Texas | 19–8 | 11–6 | 3rd | NCAA Division I Round of 64 | ||||
| Texas: | 109–86 (.559) | 51–56 (.477) | |||||||
| Marquette Golden Eagles(Big East Conference)(2021–present) | |||||||||
| 2021–22 | Marquette | 19–13 | 11–8 | T–5th | NCAA Division I Round of 64 | ||||
| 2022–23 | Marquette | 29–7 | 17–3 | 1st | NCAA Division I Round of 32 | ||||
| 2023–24 | Marquette | 27–10 | 14–6 | T–2nd | NCAA Division I Sweet 16 | ||||
| 2024–25 | Marquette | 23–11 | 13–7 | T-4th | NCAA Division I Round of 64 | ||||
| 2025–26 | Marquette | 4–3 | 0–0 | ||||||
| Marquette: | 102–44 (.699) | 55–24 (.696) | |||||||
| Total: | 374–186 (.668) | ||||||||
National champion Postseason invitational champion | |||||||||
Smart was named after theZulu monarchShaka kaSenzangakhona. Though often teased about his name growing up, Smart has said being named Shaka was the "best thing" his father did for him.[7][29] Smart's middle name, Dingani, is aNdebele word meaning "one who is searching".[6]
Smart is married to Maya Payne Smart, an author and professor at Marquette University. The couple have one child.[30] He has six siblings.[2][8]
Smart campaigned forBarack Obama in Florida in 2008 and Virginia in 2012.[31]