Emerson Names Basketball Court After Coach Smith
Emerson men’s basketball players walk across the newly christened Hank Smith Court. Photo/Derek Palmer 
Oklahoma City Thunder executive vice president and general manager Sam Presti ’00, right, hugs his former coach and mentor Hank Smith on Saturday, January 11. Photo/Derek Palmer 
Former men’s basketball coach Hank Smith speaks during an event to name Emerson’s athletic court after him. Photo/Derek Palmer 
Supporters cheer former Emerson basketball coach Hank Smith at a ceremony to dedicate the athletic court in the Bobbi Brown & Steven Plofker Gymnasium to Smith on Saturday, January 11. Photo/Derek Palmer 
Former men’s basketball coach Hank Smith, center, poses with President Jay Bernhardt, front row, third from left, and dozens of his former players. Photo/Derek Palmer
More than 125 alumni and friends returned to campus Saturday, January 11, to dedicate the athletic court of Emerson’s gymnasium to coach and mentor, former Emerson men’s basketball coach Hank Smith.
Among the alums was Sam Presti ’00, executive vice president and general manager of the Oklahoma City Thunder, who, with his wife Shannon, made a gift of $250,000 to establish the Emerson Basketball Legacy Fund, an endowed fund that will support both the men’s and women’s basketball programs and their players.
“[The Prestis’] philanthropy helps ensure the lifelong impact of playing basketball at Emerson and nurturing student-athletes who make significant impacts on the court and in their lives,” President Jay Bernhardt said.
Presti played basketball for Smith while a student at Emerson, and went on to make a successful career in the sport, as did many of Smith’s former players.
“When I was a student-athlete, we had to be very resourceful. We did a lot with very little,” Presti said. “Now with the Emerson Basketball Legacy Fund, Shannon and I can help provide the program and its athletes with additional support they may need to strengthen and grow. We hope that other former Emerson basketball players will join us in making gifts to the fund to provide more resources and make a significant impact.”
Other alums on hand to celebrate Smith, who himself attended the dedication ceremony prior to the men’s game vs. WPI, were Presti’s fellow NBA executives Rob Hennigan ’04, assistant general manager of the Thunder; and Will Dawkins ’08, general manager of the Washington Wizards. Television creator Alex Tse ’98 also was among the guests.
From 1994 to 2010, Smith coached at Emerson, where he led the team to 258 wins and had a lasting impact on many former athletes. His work helped elevate the program to its current spot in the NEWMAC league, and many of his former players credit his coaching with helping them on and off the court.
“The Emerson experience is special and unique. It extends well beyond the classroom to include all our students’ hands-on learning experiences in studios, theaters, sets, and gyms, including this one,” Bernhardt said in the Bobbi Brown & Steven Plofker Gymnasium during the January 11 ceremony. “That experience isn’t always easy or fun, but it shapes who you are and who you can become in life. Coach Smith understood that, and he modeled it.”
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