He played and led the US national team in scoring during the 1986 FIBA World Championship, where he won the gold medal,[2] and at the 1988 Olympics, where he finished with a bronze.

power forward was selected third overall in the 1988 NBA draft by the Philadelphia 76ers but immediately traded to the Los Angeles Clippers.

He was later traded to the New York Knicks with Doc Rivers and Bo Kimble for point guard Mark Jackson.

After retiring from the NBA, Smith served as Team Representative for the National Basketball Players Association (NBPA) and then as First Vice President.

Today, Charles D. Smith founded a construction company in Africa to develop sports and entertainment communities similar to LA Live in Los Angeles and Deer Park in Milwaukee.