Tubby Smith Reportedly Nearing Contract with High Point After Memphis Firing

Tubby Smith, who was fired as the Memphis men's basketball coach this offseason after two years with the team, is reportedly on the verge of becoming the new head coach at High Point, according to Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com.

High Point, Smith's alma mater, would represent his seventh college coaching job, following stints at Tulsa, Georgia, Kentucky, Minnesota, Texas Tech and Memphis.

Smith, 66, has a career record of 597-302, leading his teams to 18 NCAA tournament appearances in 27 seasons. He won a national championship with the Kentucky Wildcats in the 1997-98 season.

His last two stops have not gone well, however. He lasted at Texas Tech for three seasons, leading the team to just one tournament trip. Memphis didn't qualify for the tournament in either of his two seasons at the helm, which cost the university a significant amount of money, according to Gary Parrish of CBS Sports:

In Smith's last 11 seasons, his teams have only reached the tournament four times. Memphis hired former NBA star Anfernee "Penny" Hardaway as his replacement this past week.

High Point will be hoping Smith's pedigree can translate to dominance in the Big South, however. The Panthers have never reached the NCAA tournament since joining the conference in 1999 and have had just seven winning seasons in that time.

High Point has made two NIT appearances in the past five years, however, a step in the right direction for a program that was an NAIA school for most of its history and a Division II school from 1995-99.