The best parts of Heidi Smith’s second season with the Nipissing University women’s basketball team were gaining the trust of her teammates and stepping into a more important leadership role.
“I felt like my teammates and coach trusted me to get them the ball in a position for them to succeed,” the Oak Lake product wrote in an email interview. “They also trusted me to take important shots in games, which helped my confidence on the court as a both a player and a leader.”
The daughter of Wendy and Francis Smith enjoyed a strong second season for her North Bay, Ont. school squad. The 5-foot-7 starting point guard finished second on the team with an average of 8.1 points per game – up from 4.4 a year ago. She earned the Lakers Pride Award.
“Heidi's strength, without question, was her toughness and resilience on the court and in games,” Lakers assistant coach Rick Vanderlee wrote in an email interview. “Heidi understands the game at a very high conceptual level, which is crucial for a starting point guard who is quarterbacking our game plans and approaches to other teams.
“As our starting point guard, she has been playing against the quickest and best point guards in the country and knowing that at least 90 per cent of our possessions were led by Heidi on the court, she has provided some much-needed leadership on the court.”
Smith said her improvement from her first year related to her increased comfort level on the court in her second season.
“Being more comfortable allowed me to play without restrictions and allowed me to make better decisions to decrease my turnovers and take the ‘right’ shots,” Smith wrote. “My improvements were also partially credited to my teammates’ improvements as well. They pushed me every day in practice, forcing me to improve those aspects of my game.”
She led the Lakers with 32.1 minutes a game. Smith boosted her three-point shooting percentage from 22.2 as a rookie to 29.2 last winter.
“She has worked diligently on her fitness, strength and shooting in the offseason and was able to average 32 minutes per game for us,” Vanderlee wrote. “She has become an effective three-point shooter in her second year, all because of the work ethic and dedicated training in off-season.”
The point guard averaged 1.8 and 1.2 steals. She cut her turnovers from 5.2 a contest to 3.8 and improved her assist-to-turnover ratio from 0.4 to 0.5
“Heidi’s biggest area of improvement from her first year was passing with her weak hand and handling pressure on the court,” Vanderlee wrote. “Her assist to turnover ratio improved significantly from year one to year two.”
Off the court, Smith is studying physical and health education. After she finishes her degree, she plans to pursue a Masters of Occupational Therapy. Smith’s family has supported her on and off the basketball court.
“My family’s support is a major part in my success,” she wrote. “Knowing I have a support system always watching and encouraging me is also integral to my success on the court and in the classroom. My parents watch almost every game online and they’re the first people I call to talk about either a good or not so good game. Without them I would not be where I am today.”
