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Player profile · CLE / SDC / SDR
Bingo Smith
Bingo Smith stats, teams and career impact
#410 all-timeCareer averages · 12.6 PPG · 4.2 RPG · 2.0 APGPeak-weighted regular-season model · playoffs, awards, and championships excluded
- Position
- Small forward
- Teams in final NBA season
- Cleveland Cavaliers and San Diego Clippers
- Height / weight
- 6 ft 5 in (196 cm) · 195 lb (88 kg)
- Born
- February 26, 1946
- Died
- October 26, 2023 (77 yrs old)
- College
- Tulsa
- NBA seasons
- 11 seasons · 1969–70 to 1979–80
Career summaryBingo Smith was a small forward who played 11 NBA seasons, from 1969–70 through 1979–80.
- Career PPG
- 12.6
- Career RPG
- 4.2
- Career APG
- 2.0
- #25 in 1970–71
- #410 all-time
Best-Season Impact Rank
Career Impact Rank
Peak-weighted regular-season model · playoffs, awards, and championships excluded
Career overview
Why Bingo Smith ranks #410 all time
Bingo Smith ranks #410 all time. Across his three best seasons, his average league finish was #32.3. His full-career value ranks #588, so this placement is driven more by dominance than longevity.
450+ minutes required per season
865 games · Career Value Rank #588
Head to head
Compare Bingo Smith with…
Suggested matchups from basketball rivalries, comparable roles, and similar careers. Compare career impact, peak seasons, and the numbers behind the result.
- Bingo Smith vs. Junior Bridgeman Similar career path
- Bingo Smith vs. Jack Marin Similar career path
- Bingo Smith vs. Harvey Grant Similar career path
- Bingo Smith vs. Glenn Robinson Similar career path
- Bingo Smith vs. Jamaal Wilkes Similar career path
- Bingo Smith vs. Purvis Short Similar career path
- Bingo Smith vs. Lucius Allen Same-era comparison
- Bingo Smith vs. Rudy Tomjanovich Same-era comparison
- Bingo Smith vs. Don Chaney Same-era comparison
- Bingo Smith vs. Pete Maravich Same-era comparison
Full player detailsTeam history, career shooting and sources
Full team history
- Teams
- San Diego Rockets, Cleveland Cavaliers, and San Diego Clippers
Career shooting
NBA regular season- Field goal
- 44.9%FG%
- Three-point
- 28.4%3P%
- Free throw
- 79.8%FT%
865 career games · 22,407 minutes
Sources and updateConventional stats and measurements: Basketball Reference, accessed Sep 13, 2026. hussEyquation ranking data through 2025–26. Life dates: Wikidata; conflicting dates checked against Basketball Reference, accessed Sep 17, 2026.
Traditional box score
Bingo Smith stats by season
Start with scoring and impact, then switch views for shooting or the full advanced picture. Career percentages use total makes and attempts.
Box impact is an estimate in points per 100 possessions, not the 0–100 Impact Rate score. Zero is league average; higher is better. Rate rank is a league place: No. 1 is best.
Swipe for PPG · RPG · APG · Box impact · Team · G · GS · MPG →
| pts/100 · higher is better | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1979–80 | 11.4 | 3.3 | 1.3 | -3.52 | CLE/SDC | 78 | 0 | 27.2 | 43.2% | 28.4% | 87.0% | #213 | -68.5 |
| 1978–79 | 11.2 | 2.9 | 1.7 | -2.24 | CLE | 72 | 0 | 22.9 | 46.0% | — | 78.3% | #183 | -8.4 |
| 1977–78 | 10.3 | 2.5 | 1.1 | -1.35 | CLE | 82 | 0 | 19.3 | 43.9% | — | 80.0% | #153 | 22.0 |
| 1976–77 | 14.5 | 3.9 | 1.9 | -0.67 | CLE | 81 | 32 | 26.4 | 44.6% | — | 81.8% | #128 | 59.9 |
| 1975–76 | 13.6 | 4.2 | 1.9 | -1.29 | CLE | 81 | 0 | 28.9 | 44.2% | — | 81.6% | #114 | 35.0 |
| 1974–75 | 15.9 | 5.0 | 2.8 | +0.31 | CLE | 82 | 0 | 32.1 | 48.3% | — | 82.5% | #68 | 127.5 |
| 1973–74 | 14.8 | 5.3 | 2.4 | -0.42 | CLE | 82 | 0 | 31.9 | 45.5% | — | 82.2% | #93 | 89.6 |
| 1972–73 | 8.2 | 2.7 | 1.5 | +1.48 | CLE | 73 | 0 | 14.6 | 44.4% | — | 79.0% | #27 | 83.9 |
| 1971–72 | 15.0 | 6.1 | 3.0 | +0.66 | CLE | 82 | 0 | 33.3 | 44.3% | — | 79.5% | #45 | 168.7 |
| 1970–71 | 15.2 | 5.6 | 3.4 | +1.71 | CLE | 77 | 0 | 30.3 | 44.8% | — | 76.1% | #25 | 199.5 |
| 1969–70 | 7.3 | 4.4 | 1.0 | -0.60 | SDR | 75 | 0 | 16.0 | 42.7% | — | 68.8% | #70 | 43.6 |
| Career | 12.6 | 4.2 | 2.0 | — | CLE/SDC/SDR | 865 | — | 25.9 | 44.9% | 28.4% | 79.8% | — | — |
Source: Basketball Reference regular-season totals, accessed Sep 13, 2026.
What these measures mean
- Box impact
- Estimated points per 100 possessions above that season's league average, from the historical box-score model. Zero is league average; higher is better. Historical defense estimates are included where labeled. This is not the live model's lineup-adjusted estimate.
- Impact Rate
- A 0–100 score comparing performance within one season. Higher is better. This is a score, not points per possession.
- Impact estimate
- The season model's final estimated points per 100 possessions above league average, before conversion to the 0–100 Impact Rate score. It includes lineup evidence where available. Zero is league average; higher is better.
- Impact Rate rank
- The player's place among qualified players in that season's Impact Rate ranking. No. 1 is best. This is a rank, not an impact score.
- Value contribution / Season Value
- Completed seasons use a fixed-baseline contribution to Career Value. The live season instead uses Season Value, combining that season's impact with workload.
- Career Impact Rank
- An all-time rank weighted toward the player's best three, five, and ten seasons.
48.4 composite · lower is better
47.0 average league finish
753 total value
- Impact Rate
- 0–100 score within one season. Higher is better.
- Box impact
- Estimated points per 100 possessions above league average, from the historical model. Zero is average; higher is better.
Career standing
How Bingo Smith ranks all time
These are league placements, not raw scores. Each season is judged against that season's qualified player pool.
Best in the league
Elite finishes
Upper-tier finishes
Tie-breaker across top-ten seasons
Career Composite Score48.4
Best 3, Best 5, and Best 10 average league finishes receive 50%, 30%, and 20% window weights. Missing seasons receive a replacement finish just below the player's typical qualified field. Lower is better.
- Best 3 effective weight
- 74%
- Missing-season finish
- 189.0
- Qualified seasons
- 11
- All-time rank
- #410
Strongest seasons
Every season
Bingo Smith advanced stats by season
Era-centered box impact supports comparisons through time. Impact Rate and its rank compare players only within that season.
More advanced statsAge, minutes, impact, rank, value and data coverage
Scroll for more columns
| pts/100 · higher is better | 0–100 · higher is better | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1979–80Historical Defense Estimate | CLE/SDC | 33 | 78 | 2,123 | -3.52 | 8.2 | #213 | -68.5 | 2nd | Broad |
| 1978–79Historical Defense Estimate | CLE | 32 | 72 | 1,650 | -2.24 | 19.8 | #183 | -8.4 | 20th | Broad |
| 1977–78Historical Defense Estimate | CLE | 31 | 82 | 1,581 | -1.35 | 35.6 | #153 | 22.0 | 35th | Broad |
| 1976–77Historical Defense Estimate | CLE | 30 | 81 | 2,135 | -0.67 | 47.7 | #128 | 59.9 | 53rd | Broad |
| 1975–76Historical Defense Estimate | CLE | 29 | 81 | 2,338 | -1.29 | 39.9 | #114 | 35.0 | 46th | Broad |
| 1974–75Historical Defense Estimate | CLE | 28 | 82 | 2,636 | +0.31 | 64.2 | #68 | 127.5 | 72nd | Broad |
| 1973–74Historical Defense Estimate | CLE | 27 | 82 | 2,612 | -0.42 | 47.7 | #93 | 89.6 | 64th | Broad |
| 1972–73Historical Defense Estimate | CLE | 26 | 73 | 1,068 | +1.48 | 84.9 | #27 | 83.9 | 58th | Modeled |
| 1971–72Historical Defense Estimate | CLE | 25 | 82 | 2,734 | +0.66 | 73.2 | #45 | 168.7 | 76th | Modeled |
| 1970–71Historical Defense Estimate | CLE | 24 | 77 | 2,332 | +1.71 | 85.6 | #25 | 199.5 | 81st | Modeled |
| 1969–70Historical Defense Estimate | SDR | 23 | 75 | 1,198 | -0.60 | 51.1 | #70 | 43.6 | 43rd | Modeled |
Career movement
Bingo Smith's box impact by season
Peak box impact +1.71 points per 100 possessions in 1970–71 · 11 seasons · 22,407 minutes
Box impact estimates points per 100 possessions above each season's league average. Zero is average; higher is better. Rank labels show Impact Rate league places, not ranks on this chart's box-impact scale.
Box impact · points per 100 possessionsMinutesModeled estimate
Player-specific impact scaleWorkload
Career comparison
Compare the shape, not the calendar
Align by NBA experience to compare season one with season one, or by age to compare players at the same stage of life.
Bingo SmithJunior Bridgeman
| NBA season | Bingo Smith | Junior Bridgeman |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | -0.6 | -1.8 |
| 2 | 1.7 | -1.0 |
| 3 | 0.7 | 0.3 |
| 4 | 1.5 | 2.0 |
| 5 | -0.4 | 0.4 |
| 6 | 0.3 | 0.8 |
| 7 | -1.3 | -0.1 |
| 8 | -0.7 | -0.1 |
| 9 | -1.4 | -1.0 |
| 10 | -2.2 | -1.9 |
| 11 | -3.5 | -2.6 |
| 12 | Did not play | -3.1 |
NBA season number
Similar career arcs
Players with careers similar to Bingo Smith
The career-similarity score compares era-centered box impact, peak, prime, workload, career length, position, and experience-aligned trajectory. It describes career shape, not playing style, equal ability, or probability.
SF · All-Time Career #700
Junior Bridgeman
95career similarity score
94/100 closest-season score · 1970–71 ↔ 1978–79SF · All-Time Career #403Jack Marin
94career similarity score
90/100 closest-season score · 1970–71 ↔ 1968–69PF · All-Time Career #1055Harvey Grant
93career similarity score
89/100 closest-season score · 1970–71 ↔ 1991–92Impact Rate shows how strong a player was compared with everyone else that season. Season Value adds how much he played; completed player-profile rows instead show each season's fixed-baseline contribution to Career Value. Career Impact Rank rewards a high peak, a long prime, and repeated seasons near the top. Older seasons use clearly labeled estimates where the NBA did not record today's full set of statistics. Read how every ranking works →