Greater Lansing Sports Hall of Fame: DeWitt's Jennifer Smith reached basketball dreams
Jennifer Smith was shining on the basketball court for DeWitt at the time when the WNBA was just getting started.
But she knew then she wanted to one day find herself playing at that level.
Smith went on to achieve that dream during a decorated career on the hardwood. And the success she had — first at DeWitt and then the University of Michigan — has led to Smith being part of the latest class set getting set to be inducted into the Greater Lansing Sports Hall of Fame on Aug. 10.
Having a chance to soon see her name included in the Hall was a big shock and honor for Smith, who discovered an early passion in basketball and fed off that while thriving in the sport.
"Honestly, it was just something I knew I wanted so bad," Smith said. "I just lived it and breathed it."
It started for Smith when her father built an indoor basketball court at her house where she had the opportunity to sharpen her skills while competing against family members. She further improved those skills while playing AAU basketball with standouts like Kristin Haynie and Heather Oesterle of Mason.
Those elements, Smith said, played a role in her strong high school career where she led DeWitt to a 67-9 record and three Ingham County League titles. The 2000 graduate ended her career as one of the top scorers in DeWitt history with 1,011 points.
The success continued at Michigan where she evolved into a standout for the Wolverines. After a limited role as a freshman, Smith became a fixture as the starting center. As a senior Smith earned All-Big Ten honors after averaging 20.3 points and 7.3 rebounds.
Smith ended her college career in 2004 ranked second in points scored (1,665), second in field-goal percentage (.517) and third in free-throw percentage (.811) for the Wolverines. That led to her being selected in the third round of the WNBA draft by the Detroit Shock. She appeared in the WNBA with the New York Liberty and also played professionally in Europe.
"Honestly, I didn't really think much about it when I was doing it because I was so focused on the goal at hand," Smith said of her basketball career. "I think what really put it in perspective was when I had my kids. Now that they're playing the sport, (I can) kind of teach them what it takes if they want to succeed. I think having them and being able to tell them what mom did is probably the best part of it all."
47th Greater Lansing Sports Hall of Fame
When: Aug. 10; 4:30 — Welcome, 5:30 — Dinner, 6:30 — Induction ceremony
Where: Lansing Center
Tickets: $40 per person, call (517) 484-0677 or email everyb21@gmail.com for information
2023 inductees: Christie Hursey, Desmond Ferguson, Melanie Miller, Henry Patino, Steve Schmidt, Bryan Smith, Jennifer Smith, 1985 Lansing Catholic Central football team, 1986 and 1987 Sexton boys track teams.
Sponsors: Dean Transportation, Applegate Home Comfort, Dan Henry Distributing, Shaheen Chevrolet/Cadillac, The Accident Fund, Gregory Eaton Associates, Edward Jones Inc., One North Restaurant, Auto Owners Insurance, The Bleacher Denizen, Roland Carter Enterprise, ASAP Printing, Magic Johnson Enterprises
Contact Brian Calloway at bcalloway@lsj.com. Follow him on Twitter @brian_calloway.
This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: DeWitt's Jennifer Smith found major success in basketball
