Virginia Commonwealth University has taken it’s basketball program to new heights under the direction of head coach Shaka Smart, and after back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances with deep runs, the Rams have rewarded their coach with a $100,000 pay increase and added several new provisions to an already lucrative contract which he recently signed. Smart had been courted by much bigger colleges who play in major conferences, but with VCU moving to the Atlantic – 10, he made the “Smart” choice to stay on in Richmond. No pun intended.
Smart’s contract could top-off at around $1.3 million when all is said and done and is laced with many new incentives. The 35-year-old coach led the Rams to the Final Four two seasons ago, and just fell short of the Sweet 16 last season. His VCU teams are 84 – 28 in his three years at the helm, and he’ll receive extra incentives for an A-10 title, wins over any ACC teams, and for steady VCU ticket sales. Surely the Rams fans are thrilled that Smart decided to stay and expect positive results for the future.
