South Adelaide US-import Jeremy Smith leads Premier League scoring

BASKETBALL courts were few and far between for Jeremy Smith after Hurricane Katrina struck in 2005 – a decade on he is leading scorer in SA’s top flight.

01/05/15 - South Adelaide's American import Jeremy Smith is leading the league in scoring. He's regarded as an athletic, high-leaping and explosive player. Picture Dean Martin

BASKETBALL courts were few and far between in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina struck in 2005.

It is part of the reason why South Adelaide Basketball Club’s new import Jeremy Smith played more football than hoops at the start of high school.

His family fled the Louisiana city, which was smashed with 225km/h winds and mass flooding, for McComb, Mississippi, where they stayed for about three months.

“When I was back home we’d mainly play football,” Smith says.

“In New Orleans at that time, after the hurricane, there weren’t many basketball courts.

“It took two or three years (to rebuild courts) – some are still just opening.

“If we did play basketball, it was very seldom.

“When I got back to New Orleans there wasn’t even schools open.

“We didn’t lose that much but it was about the rebuilding process.

“I had to go to school across the river because my school was destroyed.”

A decade on, Smith, 24, is in Adelaide and the leading scorer in Basketball SA’s Premier League.

After nine matches, the swingman is averaging 25.75 points per game.

South has a 2-7 record.

“I think we’re going to open some eyes,” Smith said.

“We started off a little bit slowly but once we get grinding on all cylinders, we’ll be all right.”

Smith joined the Panthers on the advice of former South player Lachlan Prest, a teammate of his at Nicholls State University.

He plans to head to Europe after this season.