Kennesaw State University Athletics

A Georgia native playing his prep career at Wesleyan High School in Norcross, Tanner Smith returns to the Peach State for his first season with Kennesaw State after spending the last year as Mississippi State’s Director of Operations.
 
Before his stint at MSU, he spent three seasons with the Charlotte 49ers. Smith served his first two years as the 49ers’ Director of Operations before being promoted to assistant coach in 2017.
 
A former standout at Clemson, Smith spent two years overseas playing professional basketball in Europe, where he played one year with Landstede Basketball of the Netherlands in route to garnering Dutch League All-Star accolades. He then played one season with MHP Risen Lugwigsburg in Germany before entering the coaching ranks.
 
While at Clemson, Smith finished his illustrious career with 986 points, 459 rebounds, 320 assists and 159 steals while helping Clemson earn three NCAA Tournament bids. A 42.9 percent career shooter from the floor, Smith was the first player in Clemson history and the only ACC player in 2012 to average at least 10 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists.

Smith not only excelled on the court but in the classroom as well. He became only the second player in Clemson history to earn ACC All-Academic honors four times. In 2011, he was awarded the C.J. Spiller Award, which is presented annually to a Clemson student-athlete for excellence in both athletics and academics.

Off the court, Smith founded Tanner’s Totes, a non-profit organization that provides care packages and support for kids with cancer. In June 2017, he was honored by Major League Baseball's Atlanta Braves as a Community Hero for his work with Tanner's Totes. 
 
Smith graduated from Clemson with a bachelor’s degree in Marketing in 2012. He and his wife, Julia, were married on May 4, 2018, in Atlanta.