Ferd Lewis: University of Hawaii basketball team gets assist in landing latest recruit

Twice Kyle Smith applied to be the head coach for the University of Hawaii men’s basketball team, a position he had considered “a dream job.”

Each time, five years apart, he was turned down as UH first hired Gib Arnold (the other finalist) in 2010 and, then, Eran Ganot in 2015.

So when guard Ahmed Ali, one of his players at Washington State, was considering transferring and UH was one of the options, nobody would have been surprised had Smith tried to sabotage it. Either out of self interest or just pure spite.

He could have harped on the distance from Ali’s home in Toronto or a half-dozen other things to try to deter him.

Instead, Smith said, “I told him, ‘It is a pretty awesome place, you should go.’ ”

Perhaps the 5-foot, 11-inch, 165-pound Ali would have ended up in Manoa no matter what Smith said. But it sure didn’t hurt the Rainbow Warriors’ chances of picking up a much-needed combo guard in the final weeks before school started that Smith had good things to say about Ali to coaches at UH or about the coaches and program to Ali.

“I’ve known Eran for a long time and I felt there would be a comfort level (for both),” Smith said. “You try to help out the guys you have worked with and know.”

Smith was a young assistant coach at Saint Mary’s when Ganot was a graduate assistant for the Gaels. “He used to sleep on the floor at my place (rent free),” Smith said. “True story.”

Smith went on to become the head coach at Columbia for six seasons and then to San Francisco. After three consecutive 20-win seasons at USF, he was hired at Washington State in March, where Ali had played one season under Smith’s predecessor, Ernie Kent. Ali averaged 7.3 points and 2.9 assists per game, starting 24 of 32 games.

After Smith’s first recruiting haul for the Cougars, Ali submitted his name to the NCAA transfer portal in April. Later, he chose to pull it back and stay at WSU to have a better idea of where he might fit in.

“He could have played for us, he could have played a lot,” Smith said. And the Cougars could have used the backcourt depth as they try to climb out of the Pac-12 cellar.

But it became apparent that Ali’s chances of being a starter for the Cougars as a senior weren’t promising.

When Ali got interested in Hawaii, Smith said, “I told him, ‘Let me see if I can help.’ Eran and I are good friends and I wouldn’t want to steer either of them wrong. I thought it could be a win-win.”

Smith said he told Ganot, “(Ali) could help them, that he was a little like (Brocke) Stepteau. I saw Stepteau play and he did a good job for them. (Ali) is an excellent ball-handler and shooter. He can be terrific there (at UH).”

Smith said, “I think (UH) can have a chance to be pretty good (this season). It can be a win-win for everybody.”

If Ganot were to help Smith and the Cougars “get in the Diamond Head (Classic) tournament, that’s what I’d like for a payback, a little (Diamond Head) invite.”

But, given a piece of their history, Smith said he isn’t sure if that will happen. “When he moved out of my apartment he left a PF Chang’s gift certificate for $25, I’ll never forget it,” Smith said. “He thought that was a really generous donation for six months of no rent.”

Reach Ferd Lewis at flewis@staradvertiser.com or 529-4820.