JR Smith working on grassroots golf career after NBA stardom: I want to be the Snoop of golf

It’s a rarity for former pro athlete to become a analyst in a sport they didn’t play, but J.R.Smith believes he can be an anomaly.The two-time NBA champion guard with the Cavaliers and Lakers wants to take his involvement in the golf to a different level.“I want to be the Snoop of golf,” Smith, 40, said in a recent interview with The Post, referring to the rapper’s past gigs as a special correspondent and commentator with NBC for three Olympic Games.“It’d be a great spot for me.” That spot includes Smith tapping into the entertainment side of golf, which is seemingly growing by the day between celebrities and influencers as the sport goes through another popularity boom.At last year’s Ryder Cup, “Saturday Night Live” comedian and actor Colin Jost hosted a live pregame show and won an all-star celebrity match alongside Giants legend Eli Manning at Bethpage Black in New York.Smith is actively pushing the game forward for the younger generation after playing collegiate golf while enrolled at North Carolina A&T from 2021-26.“I’ve been working on getting into the more entrepreneurial side of golf,” he said.

“I honestly want to start hosting my own tournament and events.So, at the high school level, I really want to blow it out of the water from a grassroots side.

“I think there can be a better job of promoting golf and different events and tournaments for the younger generation… Black people playing the game of golf, that’s where I’m really trying to tap into — getting people who look like myself into the game.”His work includes immersing himself into buzzy events, as well as partnering with top brands around the game.Smith, an ambassador for Oakley Golf, helped test and promote the brand’s Fusion Collection, a full head-to-toe capsule of golf eyewear, apparel, shoes and accessories that honor the tradition of the game.

in January.“[Golf] is another way for me to be as competitive as I was on court, and even more so be...