JR Smith to play college golf at North Carolina A&T

The NCAA said Tuesday that former two-time NBA champion JR Smith was eligible to play golf at North Carolina A&T.

The move comes a day after Smith officially started classes at the school, located in Greensboro, North Carolina.

“It was probably one of the most exciting feelings I’ve had in a while,” Smith told The Undefeated Tuesday. “I really didn’t know how it was going to turn out. … But being able to think of myself as a student-athlete is a great feeling. “

Smith went straight from New Jersey high school to the NBA Draft.

The freshman, who turns 36 next month, has joined the A&T golf team as a substitute. Smith, who says he has a disability of 5, will be taking a liberal studies diploma.

“It’s going to be fun,” Smith said Monday. “Obviously different environments, ranging from playing in front of 20,000 people to playing in a college golf gallery. But it’s still as nerve-wracking as taking a free kick in front of 5,000 instead of putting it 5 feet in front of three. So everything is correlated the same for me.

The 16-year-old NBA veteran last appeared in the league in 2019-20, when he attended six games with the Los Angeles Lakers. A former 2004 New Orleans Hornets first-round pick, the goalie has career averages of 12.4 points, 3.1 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game in 977 career games (395 starts).

He played for the Hornets (2004-06), Denver Nuggets (2006-11), Knicks (2011-15), Cleveland Cavaliers (2015-19) and Lakers.

Smith won the NBA championships with the Cavaliers in 2016 and the Lakers in 2020.