Pat Smith is back in Harlan County, and he's loving it.

Smith, basketball coach at Moberly (Mo.), a junior college national power, worked this week at the Hoopin' in the Hills camp conducted by Georgetown College coach Happy Osborne, returning just a few miles away from Loyall, where he grew up.

"There is no place like Kentucky for basketball," Smith said.

Smith, who said he wouldn't mind ending his career somewhere in eastern Kentucky, has compiled an impressive resume. He served under Leonard Hamilton as an assistant at Miami (Fla.), and since moving to Moberly, his most famous prodigy has been Qyntel Woods, who was drafted a year ago by the Portland Trail Blazers. Some of this year's Moberly basketball grads will play at St. John's, Miami (Fla.), Florida State and East Carolina.

In addition, Smith joined some elite company when he took the head job at Moberly. Cotton Fitzsimmons, who went on to record 832 wins in the NBA, current UNLV coach Charlie Spoonhour and current Creighton coach Dana Altman are among his predecessors at the school.

Yet despite having infiltrated basketball's most prestigious circles, Smith seems more intrigued by the game's intimate roots.

"The purest form of basketball is right here in eastern Kentucky," Smith said. "I've never seen more allegiance to high school basketball teams than I've seen in eastern Kentucky.

Smith fears, however, that this culture is fading away. He said he attended a game at a large high school recently and was "appalled" at the attendance.

"You know, when I grew up, everyday you woke up and all you thought about was playing basketball," he said. "I don't think there was a time I stepped on the court and didn't enjoy it.

"Consolidation has maybe, a bit, taken away from it."

Smith also thinks a great deal was lost when junior colleges dropped the sport.

"I would love to see jucos in Kentucky start their basketball programs back," he said. "It gave local kids a chance to play."

For the time being, however, Smith maintains his belief that basketball still holds a special place in the hearts of locals.

"I still think the game means a lot to a lot of people in eastern Kentucky," he said, adding that he is actively trying to re-establish recruiting connections in the state he lost after moving away.

Smith also lost touch with his childhood best friend, who just so happens to be Mike Anderson, the director of Hoopin' in the Hills.

He was reunited recently through Osborne, a mutual friend, and it was Anderson who told Smith about the camp.

Smith jumped at the chance to participate, and brought his family along on the trip so his children could see where he grew up.

"I have so many happy memories of eastern Kentucky," Smith said.