| | By Jay Bilas
Special to ESPN.com
Kentucky coach Tubby Smith says he doesn't hear anything shouted from the crowd during a basketball game. His point guard, who also happens to be his son, doesn't miss a word the crowd yells his way.
"I hear everything," Saul Smith says of fans' heckling. "I feel like I'm right in the
middle of it."
Much of the time, the senior is the target. But, mostly, Saul just laughs off what is said.
"There's so much good material, its hard to pick out the best, but one time I remember someone yelling out at Scott Padgett, 'Hey Padgett. Two words: Plastic Surgery!' That was a good one."
|  | | Saul Smith's first three seasons as a Wildcat point guard have received mixed reviews from Kentucky fans. |
However, it can't be easy to laugh when the barbs are directed right at him.
For a starting point guard in the SEC, who owns a championship ring from the Wildcats' 1998 NCAA title, and will likely finish among the top 10 assist men in Kentucky history, Saul Smith takes a lot of heat. It's safe to say, he's been a lightning rod for criticism since he took over the point.
He is criticized for being the coach's son, as if to say that's the reason he
starts at the point.
He is criticized for Kentucky's recruiting at the point guard position, as if to say that no quality point guard will choose the Wildcats while Saul is at UK because Tubby Smith won't sit his son for anyone.
Talk radio discusses Saul ad nauseam. Experts pick apart his imperfections,
as if to say that Saul's shortcomings are solely to blame for Kentucky's
relative difficulties.
Saul Smith has become a worn out topic of discussion, especially within the Kentucky family.
"Of course I hear it," Saul says of the criticism. "But you have to realize where the talk is coming from. If you watch our practices, you know why we're each out on the floor."
Saul has been asked hundreds of times about the source and effect of such
talk, and he seems to have it figured out.
"What people say probably has something to do with my old man being the coach," Saul said joking. "I guess if my last name wasn't Smith, I wouldn't hear anything about it."
Yet, Saul says that the disapproval he hears doesn't bother him. "As long as I have the confidence of coach Smith, my teammates and myself, which I do, I'm fine."
Saul opines that only five percent of people are openly critical of him, and
they are the extreme fans who call into talk radio shows and are so vocal
at a game. He knows his supporters outnumber the naysayers. They just aren't as vocal.
"Ninety-five percent of the people out there are supportive," Saul said. "I get letters all the time, telling me to keep it up, that I am handling everything well. Fans send me stuff -- even fans of SEC opponents have sent me letters.
"The positive letters pump you up. They make it that much easier to get through a tough day."
But what about the negative letters?
"Actually, I have only gotten one. And that was from a Louisville fan that writes a letter to every Kentucky senior telling us about how much better his thinks Louisville is."
There is no question Saul Smith is an able basketball player, capable
of playing successfully at the highest level of college ball. He is a
tough, hard-nosed, well-conditioned defensive specialist who has proven to
be a solid point guard.
His supporters point to the fact that Saul averaged 6.6 points and 2.8 rebounds a game running the point for a team that won 23 games last season despite a brutal schedule. And while he will not be an NBA player, he gets the job done.
His critics point to the fact that he shot only 33.7 percent from the field (27 percent from 3-point range), turned the ball over 83 times and averaged only 3.5 assists a game (115).
One thing all must agree upon is that he gives maximum effort every time he steps onto the court.
|
“ |
What people say probably has
something to do with my (father) being the coach.
I guess if my last name wasn't Smith, I wouldn't
hear anything about it. As long as I have the
confidence of coach Smith, my teammates and
myself, which I do, I'm fine. ” |
|
|
— Saul Smith,
Kentucky senior point guard |
"I know I can play, and my teammates know I can play," Saul said. "They know I will go full speed all the time, all out, and I will bust my tail."
Saul also knows the "Coach" doesn't give him minutes he doesn't earn or deserve.
"If I wasn't up to the job, if I wasn't good enough, coach Smith wouldn't put me out there, and my teammates wouldn't support me."
"Saul's best attributes as a player are his leadership and his knowledge of the game," Tubby Smith said. "He gets people into the right spots, he calls out defenses and he, like most good point guards, he has a good feel. What he may lack physically, he makes up with work. He is our hardest worker, and he's a real calming influence out there."
In the context of Kentucky basketball, Saul Smith refers to his father as only "Coach" or "Coach Smith." He is not careful about it, it's just the way he refers to Tubby Smith. And if you weren't asking him specifically about his dad being the coach, you'd never know he was playing for his father.
"I guess he doesn't really call me 'dad' all that much," Tubby Smith said of his son, of whom he is understandably proud. "Kentucky is a family. I love my son, and I love these other kids, too, just as much, really. I guess I can take it for granted some, being so consumed in it, the issues we're dealing with, that my son is with me here."
Tubby Smith seems careful about what he says publicly about his son, so as
not to add to the father-son discussion. But his pleasure is evident when he
reflects upon who his son is as a person as well as a player.
"There are moments in a game when he's made an unbelievable decision, a great pass or
a defensive stop. You know, something that may not show up in a box score. And, yeah, I stick out my chest about Saul," Tubby said as a proud father.
Then the coach in him seems compelled to add, "But I feel the same way when
Keith Bogans or Tayshaun Prince makes that kind of play, too."
Tubby Smith says he is most impressed with the way Saul handles all that is thrown his way as a Kentucky basketball player and one that is the son of the coach.
"Saul carries more pressure than most as a point guard, and as the coach's son, it doubles the pressure. He handles it so well, better than I ever could, and that's what I am so impressed with. It tells me a lot about his
strength and character."
Even though playing for his father brings with it a glaring spotlight, Saul
cherishes the opportunity.
"My dad wasn't around as much when I was young because of basketball. My mom raised us. Playing for him, I know him a lot better, and if I didn't play for him, I don't think I would know him as well, and our relationship would be different," Saul said thoughtfully. "Our relationship has been so hands on, seeing him every day,
going through tough things together. I still would have been close to him
if I had played somewhere else, but it would have been more on the phone.
"We wouldn't be so involved in each other's lives. I'm really happy I'm with him at Kentucky."
His father aside, Saul is clearly thrilled to be a Kentucky Wildcat.
"The tradition here is incredible, and you really feel it, all the time. One of
the wildest things is happening now. I see my jersey in stores, and little
kids are wearing it around," Saul humbly recounts. "Look, I know I'm not
good enough for that kind of stuff, but it's still a great feeling. Now I
know what a musician must feel like when he hears his song on the radio for
the first time. I'm just trying to live up to it."
With the way he conducts himself on the court and off, Saul Smith is ably doing just that. | |
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