He changed zip codes, classification, high schools and AAU teams. He began living on his own, doing his own laundry and cooking his own meals.
It’s been a year of change for Dayshon (Scoochie) Smith, the affable and media-friendly 6-foot-2 combo guard from The Bronx who has risen up college coaches’ big boards faster than he releases one of his patented 3-point attempts.
“I had to sacrifice to get to where I’m at now,” he says.
That would be one of the city’s top prospects in the Class of 2013, a dead-eye marksman from the perimeter and lead guard many mid-major programs have pegged as a top target. Smith has loads of Division I offers and is beginning to garner high-major interest. Drexel, Richmond, Dayton, Duquesne, Fairfield, St. Peter’s, Iona and Manhattan are some of his many offers while Providence and Pittsburgh are calling.
Smith was one of the many talented city standouts affected by the closing of Rice. Rather than transfer to nearby Cardinal Hayes like good friend Tyler Wilson or go across the river to New Jersey like Miami-bound guard Melvin Johnson, Smith went a lot further, leaving the Baychester home he lived in with his aunt and grandmother for Connecticut.
He ventured out to Putnam Science Academy, a rather new prep school located near his mother Janet Smith in Putnam, Conn. He lives in a house with teammates at PSA, basically living the life of a college student. He has nobody, aside from teachers or coaches, to get him to do his homework. He fixes his own meals, makes sure he had clean clothes for the next day of classes.
“It’s going to prepare me for college,” he says. “That’s how I look at it.”
That was just a part of the change for Smith. In the spring, he left the famed New York Gauchos for the New York Lightning, leaving the only AAU program he ever knew. The Gauchos lost their NIKE sponsorship this year and with that, several players, such as Smith’s good friends Josh James of Archbishop Stepiniac and Wilson.
He’s found a new home with the Lightning under coach Shandue McNeil, and is making the most of the opportunity. Smith has made major noise this spring, playing well in the Nike Elite Youth Basketball League even if the Lightning failed to qualify for Peach Jam.
“He does everything you want out of your lead guard,” one Division I coach familiar with Smith says.
College coaches are raving about his well-rounded game, his transition to point guard and acute basketball IQ. They love his always-in-attack mindset, refusing to give an inch yet rarely getting out of control.
“It doesn’t matter who you put in front of him,” another Division I coach says. “That’s another person for him to try to dominate to get his name out there.”
He was primarily a shooting guard last summer with the Gauchos, their closer. Playing at PSA enabled him to work on his on-the-ball skills, and he also has come along athletically.
Not revered for his athleticism, the long-armed Smith had the play of the game last week in the Battle of the Boroughs scrimmage against Queens, picking former Boys & Girls guard Rashad Andrews’ pocket and soaring above the talented defender for a crowd-pleasing dunk.
“He’s always been skilled,” advisor, family friend and former Gauchos coach Jerry McCullough says. “He can dribble and shoot, he passes with both hands, all his teammates like him. It was just a matter of time.”
McCullough recommended Smith get out of New York City and head to PSA, not because he felt the distractions of the area was bringing him down but McCullough thought establishing himself in a new place would be good for him.
He’s noticed a major difference in Smith, on the court and off. So has Wilson, his former Gauchos teammate who says Smith “is all business on the court” now and takes everything “a little more serious.”
“He’s taking on more of a leadership role with everything he does,” McCullough says.
More than his decision to leave New York City for PSA or leave the Gauchos for the Lightning, picking a college will be the toughest choice yet for Smith. Some feel he would get lost in the shuffle at a high-major, recruited over, while he could be a difference maker at a mid-major.
“If he stays at that Colonial/MAAC level range, he can have the same kind of impact Steve Burtt Jr. had at Iona or Keydren Clark had at St. Peter’s,” one Division I coach recruiting Smith says. “He’ll be on your scouting report as a guy you have to pay attention to.”
Smith, himself, isn’t sure what he wants to do. He admittedly has yet to go over the schools recruiting him. He’s enjoying the process, trying to make the most out of his summer on the court.
He’s not necessarily going to take his highest offer, he says. It makes sense, considering the two moves he’s most recently made. PSA is far from a prep juggernaut and Smith could’ve joined bigger AAU programs than the Lightning.
“If my best opportunity is the mid-major level, I’m going to go there,” he says.
The options presented to him now may have never present themselves if not for the two bold moves he made and his decision to reclassify, Smith flipping his world upside down.
Another difficult choice is coming soon. In the least, he has experience making tough decisions.