THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Tuesday, April 11, 1995 TAG: 9504110452
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY STEVE CARLSON, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: NORFOLK LENGTH: Long : 102 lines
The pressure is building on several fronts as Maryland's Joe Smith mulls whether to leave school early to enter the NBA draft.
The decision apparently has not been made, despite a story in The Washington Post on Monday in which Joe's mother, Letha Smith, was quoted as saying her son told her he was ready for the NBA.
``That's a tale,'' a perturbed Letha Smith said Monday morning. ``I have not told anyone that. I'm terribly upset.''
But the Baltimore Sun reported in today's editions that Joe Smith had confirmed the Post's account.
``We sat down and talked over the weekend and I told her that I thought I was mentally and physically ready for the next level,'' Joe Smith told the Sun on Monday at BWI Airport, shortly before boarding a plane for Atlanta, where he was honored with the Ban-Naismith Award as national Player of the Year.
ESPN reported Monday that Smith may announce his intentions to enter the draft at the Terrapins' basketball banquet Wednesday.
Several people in Smith's inner circle believe the All-American sophomore center from Norfolk has already made his decision, and apparently Smith and his mother are not seeking much input from outside sources.
``I think he's going to declare for the draft, no doubt,'' said one person close to Smith who asked not to be identified.
Smith has returned to Norfolk every weekend since the Terrapins were knocked from the NCAA tournament March 23.
``I don't even know what I'm going to do,'' Smith said Saturday. ``I still have a month before the deadline, and I'm going to take my time and relax.''
Smith has until midnight May 14 to inform the NBA if he intends to enter the draft. Relaxing hasn't been easy in College Park, causing Smith to flee at every opportunity to avoid the pressure from friends, fans, passers-by and the media.
``Everywhere I go, five or six people at least ask me, `What are you going to do and when are you going to decide?' '' said Smith, who made a brief appearance at the Portsmouth Invitational Tournament last weekend.
Even if he enters the draft, Smith would have the option of returning to Maryland for his junior year after the draft, as long as he does not hire an agent. It's a feasible scenario, because of the proposed NBA rookie salary cap that could go into effect this year and severely limit his earning potential.
``A guy like Joe is in a pretty good position to test the waters,'' Maryland coach Gary Williams said. ``The big thing is not to sign with an agent.''
But that absolutely final decision is a step ahead of where Smith is right now.
``He's just about fed up with everyone asking him and going to classes and people asking him,'' Maryland assistant coach Art Perry said. ``It's a very, very difficult time for him. He's a young kid, I don't know that he's ever had to deal with this kind of pressure before. It's getting to be overwhelming.''
Williams said everyone should be so lucky as to have this problem: stay in school and be one of five returning starters on a team that finished the season ranked in the nation's top 10, or go into the draft and sign a big contract.
``This is a no-lose situation,'' said Williams, who traveled with Smith Monday to Atlanta. Williams classified his conversation with Smith Monday as ``private discussions'' and would not offer specifics.
``It's a tough decision, but it's a nice decision to have to make,'' Williams said.
Williams said he has not advised Smith what he should do, but has attempted to lay out the pros and cons. Certainly the money is a primary factor. If a rookie salary cap does not go into effect for next season - it's a key element of the collective bargaining agreement being negotiated between the players and owners - there is strong sentiment that it will for the following season.
``If I think it would be in his best interest to go, I'd tell him,'' Williams said. ``I don't think there's too many people out there who would turn down $50 million.
``But I think it would be in a player's best interest to make sure they're ready to play. It's been proven the guys who play their junior year in college do much better in the NBA than guys who play one year or two years of college.''
Whether Smith's mother said it or not, on at least one level Smith is definitely ready for the NBA - because the NBA is ready for him.
The consensus is that he is too good a prospect to pass up.
``I don't think any kid should come out early, period,'' Los Angeles Lakers executive vice president of basketball operations Jerry West said. ``I think they are better served by staying in school.
``He's a terrific prospect and he will always be a terrific prospect. Obviously he's an attractive player.''
Smith said he will base his decision on whether he feels he is physically and mentally ready for the travel, an 82-game season and the fame and fortune of an NBA lifestyle.
``Money has a lot to do with it, but it's not the only factor,'' Smith said.
Letha Smith said she will attend Maryland's basketball banquet with her son Wednesday.
``I may sit around and talk to the coaches and ask them to advise us what we could do,'' Letha Smith said.
It may well be a farewell banquet for her son. ILLUSTRATION: Color staff file photo by PAUL AIKEN/
ESPN reported Monday that Maryland's Joe Smith will enter the draft
Wednesday.
by CNB