Time to shine

He spent last year waiting in the wings. Now, he's emerged as a starter and a go-to player. With opponents keying on Louis Bullock and Robbie Reid, this season could be Brandon Smith's ...

By Andy Latack

On their way to winning the inaugural Big Ten tournament, the Wolverines showed the fans in section 113 some spectacular stuff.

The title-clinching victory over a Purdue team that had beaten Michigan earlier in the year.

Robert Traylor throwing in dunk after thunderous dunk on his way to being named Tournament MVP.

Michigan State losing in the first round.

There was plenty of basketball that weekend, but there was one play, one single play, that stood out as the most spectacular. It wasn't a game-winning shot. It didn't come at a crucial time.

It wasn't even a basket.

After Michigan had already secured a first-round victory over Iowa, the majority of the starters had been taken out. Traylor was waving a towel in the air, and players were joking and hugging each other on the bench.

Just as the action on the court was taking a backseat to Michigan's victory celebration, it happened.

Brandon Smith, taking a pass at halfcourt, glided toward the basket on a fast break. His wiry frame surged toward the hoop, and he surveyed his options as he bounded in from the wing.

He had a man on the opposite wing, and he could have given him the ball for an easy layup.

He also could have pulled up for a jumper, as the Hawkeyes' lone defender, Ricky Davis, was sagging underneath the hoop.

And then there was option No. 3. It was what everyone in the building wanted to see. It was what Smith wanted to do. There was no reason not to do it, with the game in hand.

And so here was Smith, a freshman who had seen limited action on the season, improbably flying toward the basket with the ball held aloft.

At first, it was hard to tell what he was going to do, simply because he jumped from so far away. Like Evanston.

The kid hadn't played much up until that point - maybe he was nervous. Maybe he was just going to jump, and worry about what he would do with the ball later. Shoot an awkward leaner, dish it, who knows?

Smith knew. And as he kept soaring toward the basket, so did everyone else in the United Center.

Even Davis.

Smith, set to finish off a spectacular dunk, brought the ball thunderously toward the basket - where it was met by Davis' outstretched palm.

What? The arena was silent for a beat, as the crowd struggled to process the lightning-quick play that had just transpired.

Smith's sensational dunk had been blocked by Davis, also a freshman and now with the Charlotte Hornets. A collective 'ooooh' filled the United Center, and despite the block, Brandon Smith had just sent a message.

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Obviously, Smith could have made more of a statement.

He could have finished the dunk, showing the world that he could play with the big boys of college basketball.

But you had to see the play. Smith's grace, power and - let's face it - guts to try to pull off a dunk like that was impressive for a freshman.

And so it was a subtle message, as it had been all season. It was a hint of what Smith could do when he gets the ball on a regular basis.

A high-flying alley-oop here, with Smith hanging on the rim long enough to get a rise out of the stoic Crisler crowd. A floating layup there, with the freshman demonstrating a leaping ability that Michigan fans hadn't seen in some time. Throughout the year, Smith showed the fans glimpses of a flair that made them think, "Wow, this guy might be something special."

That was the unique thing about Smith. Despite scarce playing time, he looked like the type of player Michigan hadn't had in a long while.

Sure, the fans loved the Tractor's behemoth dunks in the paint. And Baston's follow-up slams were great too.

But Smith showed some remarkable athletic ability last year. Traylor would have needed a helicopter to get to the hoop from some of the places from which Smith took off. Michigan hasn't had a guy who can jump out of the gym like that since the Fab Five.

"When I got the ball, I was thinking he was either going to block it or foul me," Smith remembers of the play against Iowa, a smile spreading across his face. "He got the block."

But Smith has no regrets about the play.

"If I get the ball in that situation, I'm going to try and dunk on somebody," Smith continued. "Just go to the hoop and see what happens."

Not a bad motto. See what happens - it's interesting that Smith should say that. Because that's exactly what Michigan fans are doing right now.

Ellerbe has been stressing this for weeks, responding to disparaging preseason predictions about this year's squad. Just wait until we get out on the court, he says. We can surprise some people.

Not sure if Michigan can replace the considerable frontcourt strength it lost? We'll see what happens.

Do the Wolverines really have the depth to go more than six deep this year? We'll see what happens.

What about this guy Smith? We'll see what happens.

Because of Michigan's talent last year, Smith was only able to show flashes of his crowd-awing ability. He realized that he had dues to pay, and respectfully deferred to his elders.

"When I got in the game last year, I had to kind of pick and choose," Smith said. "We already had guys who could score and make plays."

But this year, those guys are gone. And while it's definitely not Smith's team yet, this could be a breakout season for the 6-foot-7, 200-pounder from Amarillo, Texas.

We'll see what happens.

That's what's so thrilling about Smith's situation this year. Everybody in the country knows that Louis Bullock and Robbie Reid are going to score, including opposing defenses.

Yet Smith remains a mystery. If he hadn't been stuck behind so many other skilled players last year, he might be better known around the conference and the nation. But it's a safe bet that his almost-dunk isn't on the film Michigan's opponents are studying.

Since nobody knows what to expect from him, they're going to be pretty surprised if Smith starts playing the way he suggested he could last year.

And the small forward will reap the benefits of playing with Bullock and Reid, one of the better backcourts in the nation.

"I'll probably get a lot of shots when Lou and Robbie get double-teamed," Smith said. "I can live off Lou and Robbie this year."

Smith is still learning from the duo, a pair of seasoned veterans in the college basketball world.

"Robbie's been around the game for a long time - he's an old man," Smith joked about his 24-year-old housemate. "And Lou, to me, is the greatest shooter in the game."

Opposing defenses will have their hands full trying to stop Michigan's backcourt, and they won't be focusing on the relatively undiscovered Smith.

So people are excited to see what will become of this wild card. It is already clear how good Bullock and Reid can be - they got the minutes last year to show their ability - but who knows with Smith? And being an unknown thrills the 20-year-old even more.

"I'm excited about it and I hope people are too," he says with a gleam in his eye.

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Not surprisingly, Smith was a district high jump champion in his days at Amarillo's Palo Duro High School, capturing the title with a jump of 6-foot-8-inches. The basketball team didn't win any state championships during his time there, but Smith earned himself recognition by playing well at the right time.

Former Michigan assistant Brian Dutcher saw Smith play at a major tournament in Dallas, and recognized his potential. After that, Fisher and Dutcher set out to make Smith a Wolverine.

And Smith liked what 'Fish' and 'Dutch' had to say.

"They really portrayed Michigan as a family atmosphere," Smith said. "It was one of the places I always wanted to come to, and when I got the opportunity I couldn't pass it up."

But the family unit that the coaches stressed fell apart once Smith arrived at Michigan. An internal investigation found the basketball program guilty of minor NCAA violations. Fisher was eventually fired.

Quite a shock, especially coming just a week before Smith was to take the practice court for the first time wearing the maize and blue.

"I really didn't know what to expect when we first found out the news," Smith said. "I didn't know what I was going to do personally, because I wanted to play for Fish. I didn't know a lot about coach Ellerbe."

The unfamiliarity wouldn't last long. Ellerbe immediately began meeting with his players, letting them know that he wasn't giving up on the season.

"Once we got a chance to sit down and talk to coach Ellerbe, he told us his views and what he was trying to do for the season," Smith said.

"I think everyone calmed down, and it turned out to be a really great situation. I think coach Ellerbe is the ideal coach for me."

There were also some other adjustments Smith had to make in the early stages of his first year at Michigan.

Like any freshman, the lanky forward came to college with a lot of things from high school.

For example, the numerous tatoos that adorn his biceps, three of which he got the summer before coming to Michigan. The shaved head, a look that he tried before a tournament during his senior year and never gave up.

And his high school body, one piece of luggage that wouldn't be too helpful on the hardwood.

Smith was all arms and legs his freshman year, and his skinny frame took some abuse during that first season. Playing at the wing, Smith would run into - literally - some pretty big bodies.

Ellerbe saw his youngsters getting knocked around a little bit, and decided to be proactive.

The coach signed on to lead a Big Ten team on a foreign tour last summer, taking the job so that he could bring Smith and center Josh Asselin along. The group competed against professional teams in Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany.

"We were playing against older guys in their late twenties or early thirties every game," Smith said.

And he calls Reid an old man.

Ellerbe, who calls Smith "as good of a Division I athlete as you will find," was pleased with the strides the sophomore made overseas.

"He was forced to check a professional team's best player every night," Ellerbe said. "He was forced to go up against mature veteran players who were 30 years old."

In addition, Smith took part in a rigorous offseason conditioning and strength program, administered by University strength coach Jim Plocki.

Now, the tatoos that snake around Smith's biceps have a little more ground to cover. He is noticeably more muscular, and looks the part of a Big Ten small forward.

And Ellerbe has said that Smith and Asselin join Bullock and Reid as the nucleus of this year's team.

With defenses concentrating on Michigan's more proven players, this could be the year that Smith arrives as a big-time player.

"Last year, I had to sit back and wait," he says. "Now it's my turn."

11-12-98