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Tom Smith

b. 1944

American basketball coach

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About Tom Smith

Born 1944. Tom Smith is an American basketball coach.

Tom Smith (born September 8, 1944) was the head men's basketball coach at Valparaiso University from 1980 until 1988. Smith played basketball at Horace Mann High School in Gary, Indiana and collegiately for Valparaiso. During his leadership, the Crusaders joined the AMCU in 1982. The 1983–1984 season was the first in Crusader history to appear in a conference tournament, losing to Western Illinois. His career record with the Crusaders was 84–138. Smith coached the Griffons to 10 NCAA Division II national tournaments, five MIAA regular season championships and four MIAA postseason tournament titles. Smith has also been named MIAA Coach-of-the-year twice while he was at MWSU. Under Smith's guidance, Western has produced an MIAA Most valuable player, an MIAA tournament MVP, 45 All-MAA selections, six All-Region picks, and three NCAA All-Americans. He currently has a .586 overall winning percentage at the college level, ranking him in the top 20 active coaches, and also is the winningest coach in Missouri Western history.

Head coaching record at MWSU

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Important facts

Birth century
Occupation
Nationality

Contemporaries

People whose lives overlapped Tom Smith's

Frequently asked questions

Who is Tom Smith?

American basketball coach

When was Tom Smith born?

Tom Smith was born on 8 September 1944 in Detroit.

What is Tom Smith's occupation?

Tom Smith is a basketball coach.

What nationality is Tom Smith?

Tom Smith is American.

Sources & further reading

· Wikipedia: Tom Smith

· Wikidata: Q7817618

· DBpedia: Tom Smith (basketball)

Cite this page

APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Tom Smith. https://biography.guide/tom-smith/

MLA: "Tom Smith." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/tom-smith/.

Chicago: "Tom Smith." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/tom-smith/.

Data last updated: 2026-09-20 · Spot an error? Report a correction.

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