A journalist and author of two books, she was a writer/reporter for Sports Illustrated (1989–1997), Pacific Stars and Stripes in Tokyo, Japan (1982–84) and The San Francisco Examiner (1984–1987) where she won a William Randolph Hearst Award in 1986 for her series on Title IX in the Bay Area.
written with then New York Jets wide receiver Keyshawn Johnson following the 1996 NFL season and "Games Girls Play: Lessons to Guiding and Understanding Young Female Athletes," written with sports psychologist Caroline Silby, was released 2000.
Smith is the co-founder of the Magic Johnson Foundation newsletter, serves on various committees for The Boys and Girls Club of San Pedro and is a volunteer writer for many charity organizations, including the Serra Project, which provides homes for AIDS victims.
After extensive chemotherapy, she announced that she was "basically cancer free" and returned to ESPN in April 2015.
On May 14, 2017, she suffered a stroke in the Warriors' locker room after Game 1 of the NBA Western Conference Finals.