Five things to know about Arkansas men's basketball interim coach Keith Smart

Arkansas men's basketball coach Eric Musselman will miss Arkansas' next two games after having surgery Thursday to repair a shoulder injury. In his absence, assistant coach Keith Smart will serve as interim head coach.

Smart joined Musselman's staff in May 2021 after more than two decades as an NBA coach. Here are five things to know about Arkansas' temporary leader.

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Hoosier hero

Smart played college basketball at Indiana from 1986-88 after two years at Garden City Community College in Kansas. He's best known for hitting a game-winning shot against Syracuse to give Indiana the 1987 national title.

The Louisiana native was named Most Outstanding Player of the NCAA Tournament that year. In his two seasons with the Hoosiers, he played in 63 games and shot almost 52% from the field.

Professional playing career

Smart was selected in the second round of the 1988 NBA Draft by the Golden State Warriors. He then signed with the San Antonio Spurs, where he played in two games in 1988-89 season.

Smart became something of a journeyman after that, playing in the Philippines, France and Venezuela. He played for 10 different teams over the course of nine years, including multiple stops in the World Basketball Association. 

The WBA was a minor league in the U.S. and Canada from 1988-92. Smart was named the league's sixth man of the year in 1989 with the Worcester Counts.

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Stint in the CBA

Smart played his final season in the Continental Basketball Association with the Fort Wayne Fury. After retiring from the court, he became the team's head coach in 1997.

Fort Wayne was 31-25 in Smart's first year, winning its division in the CBA. and won the CBA’s East Division. In Smart's three years at the helm, the Fury were 85-83. Twenty-one of Smart's Fort Wayne players signed NBA contracts during his time there, a CBA record.

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NBA coaching experience

Smart served as interim head coach for the Cleveland Cavaliers during the 2000-01 season after more than two years as an assistant. He moved around the league as an assistant for the Golden State Warriors, Sacramento Kings, Miami Heat, Memphis Grizzlies and New York Knicks. 

His first head coaching job in the NBA without an interim tag was with Golden State in 2010. The Warriors went 26-36 in Smart's season as coach, finishing third in their division.

He later led the Kings for two seasons from 2011-13, finishing with a 48-93 record before being fired and joining the Heat as an assistant.

Musselman connections

When Smart was interim coach for the Cavaliers, Musselman was head coach of the Warriors. Both were under 40 years old and were the two youngest head coaches in the NBA at that time.

Musselman then hired Smart as an assistant with the Warriors for the 2003-04 season. Musselman was fired at the end of the season, but Smart stayed on for another six years. He later became Golden State's  coach after Don Nelson stepped down ahead of the 2010-11 season.Christina Long covers the Arkansas Razorbacks. You can email her at clong@swtimes.com or follow her on Twitter @christinalong00.