One of the greatest coaches in high school basketball history is calling it a career at the conclusion of the 2021-22 season.
Oak Hill Academy head coach Steve Smith announced his plans to retire at the end of this season on Tuesday. Smith, 66, has a career record of 1,225-98 and has won nine national championships. This year’s Oak Hill team is currently 23-7 and ranked 10th in the USA TODAY Sports Super 25.
Smith’s Oak Hill teams have won national championships in 1993, 1994, 1999. 2001, 2004, 2005, 2007, 2012 and most recently in 2016. MaxPreps recently named Oak Hill the Team of the Decade for the 1990s after it went 314-20 with three national championships over that span.
Smith’s 1993 national championship team was his greatest at Oak Hill. With future NBA All-Star Jerry Stackhouse leading the way, Oak Hill went 36-0 for the best record in school history. Oak Hill went undefeated again in 1999 with a perfect 31-0 record.
Smith has coached 29 NBA draft picks, including Stackhouse, Carmelo Anthony, Rajon Rondo, Josh Smith and Rod Strickland. Smith coached two-time Naismith Award winner Brandon Jennings during his star-studded high school career and also coached Ron Mercer when he was the top-ranked recruit in the nation.
