Former UCLA Guard Chris Smith Suffers ACL Injury, Out Indefinitely For Detroit Pistons
Just 15 months removed from tearing his ACL in Westwood, Chris Smith is facing more injury issues in the pros.
The former UCLA men's basketball guard, who spent this season on a two-way contract with the Detroit Pistons, underwent an ACL reconstruction procedure in Chicago on Tuesday. Smith is set to begin rehab, but will be out indefinitely, according to the team.
Smith has spent his rookie year with the Pistons' G League affiliate, the Motor City Cruise. The injury occurred during the Cruise's game against the Canton Charge back on March 8.
After returning midseason from his previous knee injury, Smith appeared in 18 games for Motor City while playing 22.5 minutes per game. Smith had been averaging 8.7 points, 5.3 rebounds, 1.1 assists, 0.8 blocks and 0.5 steals per game since getting back on the court, all while shooting 35.4% from the field, 25.8% from deep and 72.7% from the line.
While it has not been confirmed whether or not the latest injury is related to the one he suffered while at UCLA, it is the same knee and same ligament.
Smith had appeared in all 97 of the Bruins' games across his first three years in the program, initially coming off the bench before joining the starting rotation midway through his sophomore season. Smith became UCLA's No. 1 option once coach Mick Cronin took over, with Kris Wilkes, Jaylen Hands and Moses Brown all leaving for the NBA that offseason.
With so much production to replace, Smith filled the void admirably, earning Pac-12 Most Improved Player in 2019-2020 by averaging 13.1 points, 5.4 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 1.0 steal per game. Smith also boasted .458/.341/.840 shooting splits that year, and he said his goal when he returned as a senior was to put up 50/40/90 splits.
Smith played in the Bruins' first eight games of the 2020-2021 season, and was knocking down 50% of his 3-pointers while putting up 12.6 points and 6.4 rebounds per game, but that's when his collegiate career would come to a close. Late in UCLA's game against Utah on Dec. 31, Smith tore his left ACL and he would not appear for the team again.
In 105 career games for the Bruins, Smith totaled 844 points, 401 rebounds, 126 assists, 60 steals and 33 blocks. While his career player efficiency rating was just below average at 14.7, Smith's 19.8 PER as a junior and senior made him an anchor for UCLA when he was on the floor.
Cronin has long designated Smith's injury as a bad luck turning point for the Bruins, who lost their leading scorer and only senior for the second half of the season. After powering through that loss to make it all the way to the Final Four, two more UCLA players tore their ACLs the following fall in Mac Etienne and Will McClendon, the Bruins were stuck in COVID protocols for a full month and several starters were in and out of the lineup with injuries of their own.
While Etienne and McClendon are in line to return for UCLA next season, there is no timetable on when Smith will be ready to suit up for the Pistons or Cruise again.
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