This post was contributed by a community member. The views expressed here are the author's own.

Sports

Gimme 5: Rich Central's Smith Hopes to Restore Basketball Tradition at Alma Mater

Bobby Smith, a member of 1986 state runnerup team, hopes to bring the Olympian boys basketball program back to relevance as he takes the coaching reins at Rich Central.

New Rich Central boys basketball coach Bobby Smith wants to bring the tradition back to a recently struggling Olympian program. His knowledge of that tradition stems from his playing days.

Smith teamed up with with former NBA star Kendall Gill in 1986 to lead the Olympians to a Class AA state tournament runnerup finish.

A 1987 graduate, Smith is humbled to be back at his alma mater coaching. He is excited to be home and hopes to restore the tradition from the glory days.

Find out what's happening in Chicago Heightswith free, real-time updates from Patch.

“There was a lot of pride around here in the '80s, and we had high expectations,” he said. “We had support from everyone, not just the schoo, but the whole community supported us. I haven’t seen that around here in a while.”

Outside of basketball, Smith likes to spend time with his two sons and his dog. He is also trying to become better at the game of golf.

Find out what's happening in Chicago Heightswith free, real-time updates from Patch.

“I am the Charles Barkley of the south suburbs with my golf game right now, but I am learning,” Smith said.

When tip-off approaches for Rich Central in late-November, Smith knows he will be ready, though he will be a little nervous.

“I will have butterflies in my stomach,” he said. “I have been to a lot of places at different levels, but this is probably the best job I ever had.”

Download the movie

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

The views expressed in this post are the author's own. Want to post on Patch?