Smith Barrier

Who is Smith Barrier?

Smith Barrier, was an American sports journalist. He was the longtime Executive Sports Editor of Greensboro News & Record and served as president of United States Basketball Writers Association from 1970 - 1971. He is a charter member of the United States Basketball Writers Association Hall of Fame. In 1999, Barrier was awarded the Basketball Hall of Fame's Curt Gowdy Media Award for outstanding contributions in electronic and print media.

Barrier, who became the Daily News sports editor in 1944, graduated from the University of North Carolina. His account of UCLA's Lew Alcindor in the 1967 UCLA-Dayton game in the 1967 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament earned him a spot in the book "Best Sports Stories 1970".

Writing about UCLA's national champion basketball teams under John Wooden, he said, "Mister John Wooden has a watch factory out in Los Angeles. It's a bit different from most Swiss works. They don't make watches, they win 'em."