Maya Payne Smart is Shaka Smart’s wife, but what do you know about the wife of the American men’s college basketball coach and former college basketball player? In this article, we are going to delve into the details of their relationship.

Also, you will get to know more about Shaka Smart, how his career panned out, the latest news surrounding him, and everything else that you need to know about him.

He is currently in the news, but what for? Read this article further to learn more about the reason why people have talked about him so much these past few days.

Who Is Shaka Smart?

Before we talk about Shaka Smart’s wife, Maya Payne Smart, let’s get to know more about Shaka.

American men’s collegiate basketball coach Shaka Dingani Smart was born on April 8, 1977, and he was also a college basketball player. He is Marquette University’s head men’s basketball coach at the moment.

In the 2011 NCAA tournament, Smart’s greatest coaching accomplishment was guiding Virginia Commonwealth University to its first-ever Final Four berth.

Winston Smart and Monica King welcomed Smart into the world on April 8, 1977, in Madison, Wisconsin. In 1994, Smart’s father abandoned the family because he was not supportive of Smart.

He was born and raised in Fitchburg, Wisconsin, and went to Oregon High School. As one of the “ten or so” students of color at Oregon High, Smart, who is biracial, faced bigotry there.

As a result, Smart was tasked with organizing intercultural activities and seminars on racism and homophobia for a student organization. He claims that these encounters fueled his desire to compete.

Shaka Smart was a member of the Oregon Panthers basketball team throughout his high school years. He started for the Panthers for three seasons as a point guard, setting records for assists in a single game (20), season (291), and career (458). He was selected for the All-Badger Conference second team during his senior year.

In 1999, Smart started his coaching career as an assistant coach under his former Kenyon coach, Bill Brown, at the California University of Pennsylvania.

He then went on to work as the director of basketball operations at the University of Dayton, University of Akron, Clemson University, and the University of Florida as an assistant coach.

Shaka Smart in Heated Exchanges With Bill Self

We will get to talk more about Shaka Smart’s wife, but here is a bit of news about Shaka this week, which has been a subject of discussion in some places.

During the No. 4 Golden Eagles’ 73-59 victory against the No. 1 Jayhawks on Tuesday night in the Maui Invitational semifinal, tensions between the head coaches of Kansas and Marquette erupted.

Shaka Smart of Marquette and Bill Self of Kansas were observed becoming upset with one another following a play that cleared both benches. With 3:19 remaining in the first half, Kansas guard Kevin McCullar made a nasty comment to Smart, which set off the entire incident.

“Kevin McCullar is one of the best competitors I’ve coached against in a long time,” Smart said after the game, per The Kansas City Star.

“He played at Texas Tech and he always has brought an edge that is different. He’s always enjoyed having a dialogue with me. He probably does that with all coaches. That kind of started the little dust-up. Their bench got involved. Our bench got involved. At the end of the day, it really had very little to do with the game.”

The “dust-up” required the intervention of referees to break up since players from both benches had entered the court. When Self and Smart were conversing with officials at the scorer’s table, an intriguing interaction occurred.

When Smart gave his side of the story following the team’s defeat, Self made it obvious that he did not agree with what Smart was saying.

“I doubt it was accurate, just so you know, and I don’t even care,” Self said about Smart’s version of the story. “I’m not going to talk about it. I guarantee it wasn’t accurate.”

Shaka Smart Wife: Who Is Maya Payne Smart?

Maya Payne Smart, Shaka Smart’s wife, is a writer, advocate for reading, and parent educator. The couple has, since their marriage, had one child.

Maya Payne Smart has held positions on the boards of several literacy and library organizations.

She works as an affiliated faculty member in educational policy and leadership at Marquette University’s College of Education, and she resides in Milwaukee with her family.

Parents can find resources and advice on her website, MayaSmart.com, to support, encourage, and educate their children as they progress toward reading.

ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7qLTBmqqeZpOkunDDx6hkoqtdqLWit8BmqqaZoql6uLXFnmSmmamWerGt2KecZqudlr%2B1ew%3D%3D