TUCSON, Ariz. - The top of the cap said it all.
 
Seven words. Perfectly defining the Ray Smith story.
 
"I got no quit in my DNA."
 
No quit, indeed.
 
The cap, of course, is the blue graduation cap Smith wore the morning of May 9th when he participated in Arizona's Student-Athlete convocation. It's the cap that sat perfectly still on his head as he walked on stage, hugged head coach Sean Miller, and secured one of the most memorable moments McKale Center has ever seen. 

"In the 27 years I've been in college athletics as a coach, I don't know if I've ever seen a story like Ray's," Miller said. "I look at it as one of the really great moments we've had in my time as coach of Arizona. So much of the spotlight is put on a team and individual players that are out there playing. This is one where all of that was taken from Ray.
 
"To see him fight and have dark moments and work through those dark moments and get to the end where he has his degree -- It's a tremendous accomplishment for him."
 
 
A Las Vegas native, Smith's future seemed settled at a young age. A tall, dynamic athlete, who was selfless on and off the court, Smith appeared on track for a promising basketball career. He was ranked as the 18^th best player in the 2015 recruiting class, coming in ahead of several players currently enjoying NBA careers.
 
But during his prep career at Las Vegas High School, Smith suffered a torn ACL. He said several coaches decided to stop recruiting him. Miller didn't.
 
So before the 2015-16 season, Smith committed to Arizona and showed up ready to do his part for one of college basketball's finest programs. Instead, he tore his ACL in a practice shortly after the Red-Blue season and was forced to miss the season.
 
He returned hungrier and stronger the next season. However, in the team's first exhibition game of the season, Smith tore his ACL for a third time.
 
His basketball career was over.
 
"I fell into a dark place," Smith said. "A place where nothing makes you happy. There were a lot of bad days."
 
Smith and Miller had come up with a plan that would keep Smith near the team after the injury. Miller wanted Smith to use his exemplary teammate skills to be an undergraduate assistant coach and help the process.
 
That sounded good to Smith at first. It then became too hard.
 
"I wanted to be around the program, but it was so hard to watch basketball knowing I couldn't play," Smith said. "That shows you the state I was in. I still knew and loved all of those guys, but I couldn't watch them. It was the hardest thing I've ever gone through."
 
Smith talked to his coach and both agreed a little separation from the game wasn't a bad thing. Miller, however, stressed to Smith right away that finishing college and receiving his degree was going to remain a focus and the men's basketball program wasn't going to forget that.
 
"To allow that separation, I think was a good thing," Miller said. "We wanted him with us, but understood his dreams, his goals on the basketball court were taken from him. Allowing him to go out on his own, in a way that best served him."
 
With the help of C.A.T.S. Academics, members of the Arizona Basketball staff and support from his teammates, Smith went to work on that degree. Former academic advisor Kiaira Ladd worked closely with Smith to get him to the finish line. Assistant athletic director for basketball, Ryan Reynolds, also kept close tabs on Smith with encouraging words throughout the school year.
 
"Ryan Reynolds was sending me texts pretty much every single day telling me how important it is for me to get my degree," Smith said. "He was always telling me that he believed me and knew I could do it. I knew the staff really cared about me, even though I was in a hard place mentally. Miss Kiaira always brightened my week to check in. It wasn't just about the grades either. She wanted to know how things at home were. How things at school were going.
 
"Those two really influenced me and made sure I took care of my business."
 
Take care of business he did. Smith formally walked with his fellow student-athletes in May and finished up his coursework this fall and received a bachelor's degree in general studies. He is hoping to become a youth probation and parole officer in Las Vegas, because "I've always been able to connect with kids."
 
"He will be good in whatever he does," Miller said," but if that's the chosen field he goes into, he'll be spectacular."
 
Because – as you know – there's no quit in Ray Smith's DNA.