When deciding to transfer from Wright State to the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga in May of 2019, Malachi Smith let his faith guide his decision.
So it’s no surprise that he’s letting his faith order his steps as far as future decisions he’s about to make.
Wednesday evening, the Mocs’ 6-foot-4 sophomore guard announced that he would be entering his name in the NBA Draft without hiring an agent, becoming the first Moc to test the process since Malachi London did it after the 2017-18 season, head coach Lamont Paris’s first in Chattanooga.
“It says a lot about the quality of player we have here,” Paris told the Times Free Press recently. “I want guys that are serious about making a professional career playing basketball, that are able to have that opportunity and have worked hard to get that opportunity. Being a professional basketball player doesn’t start when you start getting a check, it starts well before that.
“I’m excited for him to just get an opportunity to be evaluated by those guys and then knowing what you need to work on when you come back.”