Smith Got Right to Work
Apr 08, 2026 | Men's Basketball, Sports Extra
By: D. Scott Fritchen
Luke Smith was the first Kansas State men's basketball assistant coach to arrive in Manhattan. He pulled open the doors to the Ice Family Basketball Center at around 4:30 p.m., met head coach Casey Alexander in his office, and the two got to work.
Smith spent the last two seasons on Alexander's staff at Belmont, first as the director of player development and then as an assistant coach. Those two seasons, Smith was a part of 48 wins, including 26 this past campaign as Belmont captured its first-ever Missouri Valley Conference regular season championship.
Now Smith had joined Alexander in Manhattan. They spoke for three hours, grabbed dinner, and then continued talking late into the night.
They have big plans in the Little Apple.
"We just got to work," Smith says. "He and I started talking. We talked about players, the current roster, guys we might want to bring in. It's so much right now about players and roster construction. Really, as everyone knows, it's all in motion."
While the transfer portal lit up across college basketball on Tuesday, the plan, and the task, remains clear.
"We have to show (potential transfers) how special this place is and the fans and everything else, but really we just want to bring in guys and build a culture that they want to do it for K-State and they want to do it for their team, and really not care who's getting the credit," Smith says. "It's about all of us getting on the same page so we can accomplish great things, and do something bigger than ourselves, and give the people of Manhattan something that they're proud of — a team that's totally bought into winning and winning for K-State. We have to go find those guys."
The 27-year-old Smith, a finalist for 2017 Mr. Basketball Tennessee out of Knoxville Catholic High School, has a keen eye for basketball. He scored 1,588 points in his college career and drained 273 3-pointers. He was a part of 77 wins at Belmont with two Ohio Valley Conference regular season championships, an Ohio Valley Conference Tournament Championship, and an automatic bid to the 2020 NCAA Tournament and an at-large bid to the 2022 Postseason NIT.
Before coaching in the college ranks, Smith began his career where it started — his alma mater. He served as Knoxville Catholic High School head coach for one season and led the Fighting Irish to a 20-8 record. Then he spent one season as an assistant coach at Division II Trevecca Nazarene University.
Then he returned to his college alma mater — Belmont — and began to learn under Alexander, who Smith calls "one of the best coaches in the country."
"I admire so many things about him as a coach, but his overall consistency in how he prepares and attacks every day, he's just a relentless worker," Smith says. "He's in the office early and just consistent in how he approaches things, attacks the day. You wouldn't really know if we were on a three-game losing streak or had won 10 in a row. It's that kind of consistency that's brought him a lot of success in his career."
Now they hope that continues at K-State.
"Let's get to work," Smith says.
Smith spoke with K-State Sports Extra's D. Scott Fritchen about Casey Alexander and the journey to K-State men's basketball.
D. Scott Fritchen: What was your immediate reaction when you heard Casey accepted the K-State job?
Luke Smith: Excitement for him and his family. He's gotten what he deserves in terms of the ability to coach at the highest level. For the longest time, I thought he's one of the best coaches in the country, and he's as competitive as anyone. So, to get to do it now at the highest level, I'm super excited for him.
Obviously, you have conversations as things are transpiring, but you don't really know how serious those are or what that means. After he accepted the job, we had some more serious conversations. It's a no-brainer opportunity for me to stick with someone I know, trust and love, and know that we align a lot on how we see college basketball and developing young men and coaching young men. To be able to do that at the highest level with someone that I trust is a no-brainer.
Fritchen: What do you admire most about Casey as a person and then what do you admire most about Casey as a coach?
Smith: He's extremely honest, and he has no problem having hard conversations and telling you things that maybe you don't want to hear but that you need to hear. It's something I've always admired and have appreciated about him. It might not be the style for everyone, but for people who want to get better and want to hear how they can get better, it's an honest relationship that gives the opportunity for real growth.
I admire so many things about him as a coach, but his overall consistency in how he prepares and attacks every day, he's just a relentless worker. He's in the office early and just consistent in how he approaches things, attacks the day. You wouldn't really know if we were on a three-game losing streak or had won 10 in a row. It's that kind of consistency that's brought him a lot of success in his career.
Fritchen: Describe your chemistry with Casey and what makes you both tick?
Smith: I probably annoy him every now and then (laughs) but I believe in everyone getting their thoughts and ideas out on the table so we can all decide the best course of action. Ultimately, as assistants, it's our jobs to give him those ideas, talk about what we think we need, or what players we need to go after, and he gets to sign off on everything. Regardless of if it's what I wanted or what Kerron or JJ wanted, we all understand that he makes the decision at the end of the day, and if we can all get our ideas out there, whatever he chooses, we can all be on the same page and push forward with a united front. He's given me a lot of freedom and power to have a voice, coach the guys, and it's been amazing working for him.
Fritchen: How would you describe this transition from Belmont to K-State strictly from the aspect of leaving one job and moving to another? There are certainly a lot of good-byes, a lot of packing, then a lot of hellos and a lot of unpacking. It's probably a pretty emotional time, isn't it?
Smith: It was hard and exciting all at the same time. Anytime that you move cities or jobs there are hard conversations that come with that, and hard goodbyes that come with that, but the opportunity to be here, and to be in a place like this where the fans and people care so much is something we were all so excited about. I'm getting married in August, so I'm figuring out getting the fiancé here and everything else, and all of that is exciting. It just comes with the territory of the job.
Fritchen: What kinds of thoughts were running through your head as you opened the front door and entered the K-State basketball facility for the first time?
Smith: Let's get to work. This job requires a level of work and consistency to be successful. Honestly, I was just super excited to get here with Casey and get to work. I was the first one to arrive, so it was just me and him, and I think he was happy to have someone here with him. I got in at 4:30 p.m. and we worked until 7:00 p.m., ate dinner, came back and worked until 11:00 p.m. I think he was happy to have somebody else in the building.
Fritchen: You arrived at K-State at 4:30 p.m. Some people might call it a day. You went straight into the office. But what could you possibly work on between 4:30 p.m. and 7:00 p.m.?
Smith: We just got to work. He and I started talking. We talked about players, the current roster, guys we might want to bring in. It's so much right now about players and roster construction. Really, as everyone knows, it's all in motion.
Fritchen: What aspect of coaching do you enjoy the most?
Smith: Just being around the players. I coached high school for one year and there's just a level of maturity that's not there in the sense that you can't have real, real relationships with those guys, and the ability to talk about hard things and face hard things together. I love being able to go through a season with 18-to-24-year-olds and just be able to attack it together, because I'm still young enough to understand what they're going through, and what they are experiencing, and I think that's valuable on a staff. Just having a relationship with those guys and helping them face their problems and trying to achieve some great things.
Fritchen: I saw where you were set to see an increased role in game planning, scouting reports and recruiting this next year at Belmont. How excited are you to possibly take on those tasks at K-State?
Smith: Very excited. That's what's exciting about this, is that some of that stuff we won't have to completely start over in the sense of our style and how we attack things and how we want to recruit and develop players. So, I'm excited about that. Obviously, there's different challenges and other things, but the basketball part is what I'm best at, just being honest with you, and I'm excited to do that here.
Fritchen: Recruiting and signing guys out of the transfer portal is more crucial today than at any other time in the history of college basketball. It's a whole new world. What's the plan of attack and message to these players?
Smith: We have to show them how special this place is and the fans and everything else, but really we just want to bring in guys and build a culture that they want to do it for K-State and they want to do it for their team, and really not care who's getting the credit. It's about all of us getting on the same page so we can accomplish great things, and do something bigger than ourselves, and give the people of Manhattan something that they're proud of — a team that's totally bought into winning and winning for K-State. We have to go find those guys.
Fritchen: The NCAA Tournament just wrapped up. What kind of hunger do you feel this time of year in just imagining making a trip to compete in a NCAA Tournament?
Smith: Very excited. Hopefully we can accomplish that for K-State. Coaches and players, as competitors, you want to do it at the highest level, and coming to K-State gives you the opportunity to do that. It's a challenge, obviously, but it's super, super exciting, and something we should be looking forward to every day.
Fritchen: From that young coach at Knoxville Catholic High School in 2022, to the man you are today, what has Luke Smith learned most about himself during his journey?
Smith: My first year at Catholic, being a head coach and being 22 years old, I tried to make concessions and make everyone happy, and do all these things, and I wasn't really true to myself and what I believe about how basketball works, how life works, and how you should coach young men — all of that. I learned that I couldn't live with myself if I didn't get to do it that way, and coach guys in that way. I think I just learned a lot about myself in terms of — those are my values and regardless of where you are, you have to be able to stick to those and try to implement them, even if it's at a higher level.
Luke Smith was the first Kansas State men's basketball assistant coach to arrive in Manhattan. He pulled open the doors to the Ice Family Basketball Center at around 4:30 p.m., met head coach Casey Alexander in his office, and the two got to work.
Smith spent the last two seasons on Alexander's staff at Belmont, first as the director of player development and then as an assistant coach. Those two seasons, Smith was a part of 48 wins, including 26 this past campaign as Belmont captured its first-ever Missouri Valley Conference regular season championship.
Now Smith had joined Alexander in Manhattan. They spoke for three hours, grabbed dinner, and then continued talking late into the night.
They have big plans in the Little Apple.
"We just got to work," Smith says. "He and I started talking. We talked about players, the current roster, guys we might want to bring in. It's so much right now about players and roster construction. Really, as everyone knows, it's all in motion."
While the transfer portal lit up across college basketball on Tuesday, the plan, and the task, remains clear.
"We have to show (potential transfers) how special this place is and the fans and everything else, but really we just want to bring in guys and build a culture that they want to do it for K-State and they want to do it for their team, and really not care who's getting the credit," Smith says. "It's about all of us getting on the same page so we can accomplish great things, and do something bigger than ourselves, and give the people of Manhattan something that they're proud of — a team that's totally bought into winning and winning for K-State. We have to go find those guys."
The 27-year-old Smith, a finalist for 2017 Mr. Basketball Tennessee out of Knoxville Catholic High School, has a keen eye for basketball. He scored 1,588 points in his college career and drained 273 3-pointers. He was a part of 77 wins at Belmont with two Ohio Valley Conference regular season championships, an Ohio Valley Conference Tournament Championship, and an automatic bid to the 2020 NCAA Tournament and an at-large bid to the 2022 Postseason NIT.
Before coaching in the college ranks, Smith began his career where it started — his alma mater. He served as Knoxville Catholic High School head coach for one season and led the Fighting Irish to a 20-8 record. Then he spent one season as an assistant coach at Division II Trevecca Nazarene University.
Then he returned to his college alma mater — Belmont — and began to learn under Alexander, who Smith calls "one of the best coaches in the country."
"I admire so many things about him as a coach, but his overall consistency in how he prepares and attacks every day, he's just a relentless worker," Smith says. "He's in the office early and just consistent in how he approaches things, attacks the day. You wouldn't really know if we were on a three-game losing streak or had won 10 in a row. It's that kind of consistency that's brought him a lot of success in his career."
Now they hope that continues at K-State.
"Let's get to work," Smith says.
Smith spoke with K-State Sports Extra's D. Scott Fritchen about Casey Alexander and the journey to K-State men's basketball.
D. Scott Fritchen: What was your immediate reaction when you heard Casey accepted the K-State job?
Luke Smith: Excitement for him and his family. He's gotten what he deserves in terms of the ability to coach at the highest level. For the longest time, I thought he's one of the best coaches in the country, and he's as competitive as anyone. So, to get to do it now at the highest level, I'm super excited for him.
Obviously, you have conversations as things are transpiring, but you don't really know how serious those are or what that means. After he accepted the job, we had some more serious conversations. It's a no-brainer opportunity for me to stick with someone I know, trust and love, and know that we align a lot on how we see college basketball and developing young men and coaching young men. To be able to do that at the highest level with someone that I trust is a no-brainer.
Fritchen: What do you admire most about Casey as a person and then what do you admire most about Casey as a coach?
Smith: He's extremely honest, and he has no problem having hard conversations and telling you things that maybe you don't want to hear but that you need to hear. It's something I've always admired and have appreciated about him. It might not be the style for everyone, but for people who want to get better and want to hear how they can get better, it's an honest relationship that gives the opportunity for real growth.
I admire so many things about him as a coach, but his overall consistency in how he prepares and attacks every day, he's just a relentless worker. He's in the office early and just consistent in how he approaches things, attacks the day. You wouldn't really know if we were on a three-game losing streak or had won 10 in a row. It's that kind of consistency that's brought him a lot of success in his career.
Fritchen: Describe your chemistry with Casey and what makes you both tick?
Smith: I probably annoy him every now and then (laughs) but I believe in everyone getting their thoughts and ideas out on the table so we can all decide the best course of action. Ultimately, as assistants, it's our jobs to give him those ideas, talk about what we think we need, or what players we need to go after, and he gets to sign off on everything. Regardless of if it's what I wanted or what Kerron or JJ wanted, we all understand that he makes the decision at the end of the day, and if we can all get our ideas out there, whatever he chooses, we can all be on the same page and push forward with a united front. He's given me a lot of freedom and power to have a voice, coach the guys, and it's been amazing working for him.
Fritchen: How would you describe this transition from Belmont to K-State strictly from the aspect of leaving one job and moving to another? There are certainly a lot of good-byes, a lot of packing, then a lot of hellos and a lot of unpacking. It's probably a pretty emotional time, isn't it?
Smith: It was hard and exciting all at the same time. Anytime that you move cities or jobs there are hard conversations that come with that, and hard goodbyes that come with that, but the opportunity to be here, and to be in a place like this where the fans and people care so much is something we were all so excited about. I'm getting married in August, so I'm figuring out getting the fiancé here and everything else, and all of that is exciting. It just comes with the territory of the job.
Fritchen: What kinds of thoughts were running through your head as you opened the front door and entered the K-State basketball facility for the first time?
Smith: Let's get to work. This job requires a level of work and consistency to be successful. Honestly, I was just super excited to get here with Casey and get to work. I was the first one to arrive, so it was just me and him, and I think he was happy to have someone here with him. I got in at 4:30 p.m. and we worked until 7:00 p.m., ate dinner, came back and worked until 11:00 p.m. I think he was happy to have somebody else in the building.
Fritchen: You arrived at K-State at 4:30 p.m. Some people might call it a day. You went straight into the office. But what could you possibly work on between 4:30 p.m. and 7:00 p.m.?
Smith: We just got to work. He and I started talking. We talked about players, the current roster, guys we might want to bring in. It's so much right now about players and roster construction. Really, as everyone knows, it's all in motion.
Fritchen: What aspect of coaching do you enjoy the most?
Smith: Just being around the players. I coached high school for one year and there's just a level of maturity that's not there in the sense that you can't have real, real relationships with those guys, and the ability to talk about hard things and face hard things together. I love being able to go through a season with 18-to-24-year-olds and just be able to attack it together, because I'm still young enough to understand what they're going through, and what they are experiencing, and I think that's valuable on a staff. Just having a relationship with those guys and helping them face their problems and trying to achieve some great things.
Fritchen: I saw where you were set to see an increased role in game planning, scouting reports and recruiting this next year at Belmont. How excited are you to possibly take on those tasks at K-State?
Smith: Very excited. That's what's exciting about this, is that some of that stuff we won't have to completely start over in the sense of our style and how we attack things and how we want to recruit and develop players. So, I'm excited about that. Obviously, there's different challenges and other things, but the basketball part is what I'm best at, just being honest with you, and I'm excited to do that here.
Fritchen: Recruiting and signing guys out of the transfer portal is more crucial today than at any other time in the history of college basketball. It's a whole new world. What's the plan of attack and message to these players?
Smith: We have to show them how special this place is and the fans and everything else, but really we just want to bring in guys and build a culture that they want to do it for K-State and they want to do it for their team, and really not care who's getting the credit. It's about all of us getting on the same page so we can accomplish great things, and do something bigger than ourselves, and give the people of Manhattan something that they're proud of — a team that's totally bought into winning and winning for K-State. We have to go find those guys.
Fritchen: The NCAA Tournament just wrapped up. What kind of hunger do you feel this time of year in just imagining making a trip to compete in a NCAA Tournament?
Smith: Very excited. Hopefully we can accomplish that for K-State. Coaches and players, as competitors, you want to do it at the highest level, and coming to K-State gives you the opportunity to do that. It's a challenge, obviously, but it's super, super exciting, and something we should be looking forward to every day.
Fritchen: From that young coach at Knoxville Catholic High School in 2022, to the man you are today, what has Luke Smith learned most about himself during his journey?
Smith: My first year at Catholic, being a head coach and being 22 years old, I tried to make concessions and make everyone happy, and do all these things, and I wasn't really true to myself and what I believe about how basketball works, how life works, and how you should coach young men — all of that. I learned that I couldn't live with myself if I didn't get to do it that way, and coach guys in that way. I think I just learned a lot about myself in terms of — those are my values and regardless of where you are, you have to be able to stick to those and try to implement them, even if it's at a higher level.
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