Coach Rick Pitino has signed several players who might make an immediate impact in 2004, including junior college transfer Donta Smith.

Smith is making a lot of noise at Southeastern Illinois College this season and is turning into a player that could eventually be a first-round pick in the NBA draft. In his first three games at SIC this

year, Smith averaged close to 30 points, 6 assists, and 7 rebounds per outing. And these stats weren't achieved against "creampuff" competition. The

6-foot-7 guard/forward who played his high school ball at Oldham County High School in Kentucky did all of this against 3 teams ranked in the top 20 of junior college basketball.

During Smith's recruiting process, Southeastern Illinois College became a popular recruiting stop for some of the top coaching names in college basketball including Bob Huggins and Kelvin Sampson. But it was Rick Pitino who made an immediate impact when stopping by to see Smith. The Harrisburg Daily Register's sports editor Phil Knapper said that Pitino caused quite a stir: "I was doing a one-on-one interview that had not been publicized. Eventually, all of the students and faculty started hearing the buzz that he was there. All of a sudden there was a mob of people in the stands just watching him. They weren't paying attention to the workouts on the court, but to Pitino."

While Louisville fans know all too well about the Pitino charisma, it won't be too long before they get to know Donta Smith because of his abilities on the court. "'Tay' is the best junior college player I've ever seen play," said SIC's head coach Todd Franklin. "And that's not

hype. We've played against and I've coached against some of the best players and teams. If there's a better player out there, we haven't seen him and I would like to know where he's hiding."

Knapper concurs with Franklin's view: "Smith's really that good. He's a

legit 6-foot-7 and he can shoot and handle the ball. I've seen Shawn Marion and Antwain Barbour play around here and he's better than those guys." Shawn Marion, by the way, is currently averaging 17 points and 9 rebounds a game for the Phoenix Suns.

Anytime you speak of a player like Smith and his abilities, people begin to mention the possibility of him skipping Division I ball and going straight into the NBA. And while that is a possibilty for Smith, his coach said that they are not worried about that right now. "He's just scratching the surface of his ability and is getting better every day," said Franklin. "As for the NBA, that's something we don't talk

about. There are always people that are around that are probably in position to say whether he should go or not, but he just wants to play basketball and is not worrying about that right now."

But for now, it looks like Smith will return home to play for Pitino's Cardinals next year. He signed his national letter of intent on Friday morning.

The skills that Smith possess would make him a valuable asset to any team on any level. At 6-7, Donta can play down low or out on the court. In a game last week against West Plains Junior College, Smith played point guard during the second half and had 34 points, 9 rebounds and 9 assists. "Physically there is not much limitation to what he can do," Franklin said. "He can pull up, create his own shot, put the ball on the floor and pass the ball."

Smith has been honing his skills since high school, but according to Coach Franklin, he has come along way since graduating from Oldham County two years ago. "To compare him now and in high school - he's really not the same human being," said his current coach. "I really don't think Louisville knows what they're getting for sure. He's better than they think."