Athletics

Former Penn State Sweet 16 Letterman writes book, entertains crowds

Penn State letterman Tyler Smith, a starter during the program's Sweet 16 season of 2000–01, shared plenty of fun, entertaining and crazy stories last month at the Penn State All-Sports Museum. Smith accrued the stories while playing overseas for more than a decade and authored a book that's set to publish later this year titled "Called For Traveling: My Pro Basketball Adventures Overseas." Credit: John Patishnock / Penn StateCreative Commons

Editor's Note: This story originally appeared in AlumnInsider, the Penn State Alumni Association's monthly member e-newsletter. You can click here for information on becoming a member, and can follow the Alumni Association on Facebook and Twitter for more stories and updates on events. 

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — It’s been 14 years since the Penn State men’s basketball team made a Sweet 16 run, but Tyler Smith’s memories are vivid. The former letterman and 2002 Penn State graduate started for that team before playing overseas for more than a decade, and he’s written a new book detailing his post-Penn State playing career.

The book, titled “Called For Traveling: My Pro Basketball Adventures Overseas,” chronicles Smith’s time playing for 12 teams in seven countries and on four continents; Smith said a publishing date hasn’t been set yet, but he’s hopeful it’ll print sometime later this year. He talked about the book and shared plenty of fun, interesting and crazy stories during a presentation last month at the Penn State All-Sports Museum, located within Beaver Stadium.

Some examples: fans smoking during games as well as running onto the court and arguing with referees in Uruguay, not being paid by teams (or being paid in foreign cash); almost having his teammate deported from Holland; and doing an interview with a foreign reporter without a translator.

Tyler and Cara live in State College with their three daughters: Hannah (6 years), Lexi (2 years) and Victoria (3 months).  Credit: Tyler SmithAll Rights Reserved.

The best story might have been when Smith said he had a friend playing in another league whose game was interrupted when a fan threw a live chicken onto the court.

There was also the challenge of playing on hard tile floors, and living through the Japan earthquake and tsunami in 2011. Smith was in his hotel room when the natural disaster started, and he and teammates starting running down the stairway, losing their shoes as they scrambled to get outside. He’d often email friends and family back home and share his experiences from across the globe, and they suggested he write a book.

Smith relayed these stories — accrued from 2002-13 — with plenty of enthusiasm, energy and showmanship, delivering the comedic punchlines with precision.

He once played for a team called the Sun Rockers and against teams named the Eiffel Towers (who didn’t play in France) and the Sleeping Sheeps. The nicknames didn’t make sense to Smith, but he gained a worldwide perspective while still pursuing his life-long passion of playing basketball.

“It was awesome to experience different cultures, and not just go for a weekend or vacation,” Smith said after the presentation. “To really live there and immerse yourself there is quite an experience, and you see a lot of commonality: people want to make the most out of their lives, and spend time with their families and do their jobs.”

Smith did spend some time in the NBA, earning a workout with the Utah Jazz — the result of meeting Hall-of-Famer Rick Barry in the middle of an Oregon forest during a Chinese professional draft camp (subplots like this one started to sound normal halfway through Smith’s talk). He played in NBA arenas and had a locker next to Derek Fisher, who’s currently the head coach of the New York Knicks.

Smith spoke of the joys (and challenges) of playing overseas and also answered questions during his two-hour presentation. “It was awesome to experience different cultures, and not just go for a weekend or vacation,” Smith told the Penn State Alumni Association after the talk.  Credit: John Patishnock / Penn StateCreative Commons

Now, Smith is a medical sales representative and is the president of CryoZone, which offers whole body cryotherapy; this process reduces pain and inflammation, he said, which helps with athletic recovery and performance and is beneficial for pain management for non-athletes. 

But Smith’s journey started at University Park. He grew up in Chicago and didn’t know much about Penn State before he visited, but said he was impressed with what the University offered and with the newly built Bryce Jordan Center. The opportunity to play in the Big Ten Conference also was a draw.

Smith was a starting forward on the 2000-01 Nittany Lion squad that made that memorable Sweet 16 appearance in the NCAA Tournament, knocking off second-seeded North Carolina in the second round. Smith told the crowd that early in that contest, starting guard Joe Crispin (who played on the 2000-01 team and graduated in 2007) came into the huddle and told his teammates how the Tar Heels didn’t want to play against the Nittany Lions’ style, predicting the upset. Smith recalled the starting players for North Carolina with ease, giving tidbits on each individual opponent, saying Penn State’s win “messed up a lot of brackets.”

And when Smith mentioned that fans were waiting for the Nittany Lions at the University Park Airport upon their arrival, he bantered with Chris Buchignani, Class of 2002, who attended the presentation with his wife, Terri, Class of 2005. Buchignani was one of the fans who made signs and waited at the airport, and when Smith asked him how he knew to go to the airport in an age before social media, Buchignani said, “Back then, you just kind of figured it out, right? We thought, ‘We have to go out to the U-Park Airport,’” adding that Smith and his roommate, Stephan Bekale, Class of 2002, lived on the same floor in Pollock Halls as one of his friends.Given this connection and figuring nobody else would make a sign for Bekale, Buchignani explained that was the motivation behind his sign.“That’s awesome,” Smith told him, epitomizing the connection that he made with the attendees.

“It was a great program; I really enjoyed hearing about Tyler's life adventures as a globetrotting pro basketball player,” Buchignani said. “He's a very good storyteller, and he definitely brought those talents to bear in bringing his recollections to life.

“I was also struck that after traveling the world and experiencing all those different countries and cultures, the lure of the Nittany Valley brought an Illinois native back here to finally settle down.”

Smith, meanwhile, talked like he never really left Penn State, because in some ways he didn’t. Later on during his career, he and his wife, Cara, Class of 2001, lived in State College during the summer (which was his offseason), and he also was once an assistant coach at Penn State Altoona.  Now, Tyler and Cara live in State College with their three daughters: Hannah (6 years), Lexi (2 years) and Victoria (3 months). The book will focus mainly on his life after Penn State, but he said he’d highlight how his time as a Nittany Lion launched him into such a successful career in basketball.Like many of his stories, it was an unforgettable experience.

“Penn State played a big part in shaping who I am,” Smith said. “I met my wife here, I really grew a lot in my Christian faith here and I received an opportunity to play overseas after playing at a high level here.”

Smith acts as president of CryoZone, a business offering whole body cryotherapy, and lives locally in State College with his wife, Cara, a Penn State graduate who he met while in school. They have three daughters.  Credit: John Patishnock / Penn StateCreative Commons

Last Updated April 13, 2015

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