Point guards less than 6 feet tall have played a major role in Virginia Union University’s storied basketball history.

Jemal Smith is the latest to fill that bill.

The 5-foot-10 senior from Bronx, N.Y., already has contributed to one Panthers championship CIAA title last March and is aiming for another.

“The year experience was so valuable. It took me a while to learn the system. Now I know what to expect,” said Smith, a business management major.

Smith transferred to VUU a year ago from Eugenio Maria de Hostos Community College in South Bronx. He has transitioned from being a primary scorer (1,103 points in two seasons) at Hostos to more of a traditional ball-handling point guard for the Panthers.

“I consider myself a play-maker, glue-type guard,” he said. “My job is to facilitate, create … to be a leader, to be a coach on the court.”

Last season, Smith averaged 5.1 points while leading the Panthers in assists (4.8 per game) and steals (38). Smith keyed the offense in Charlotte, N.C., as VUU rolled to its first CIAA Tournament since 2006.

VUU’s older fans have learned to admire smallish guards wearing maroon and steel. In 1980, the Panthers won their first NCAA Division II title with Derwin Lilly — 5-foot-9 — running the point. In 2005, it was Luqman Jabber — 5-foot-10 — who captained VUU’s most recent NCAA run.

There have been many others, such as Jonathan Walker, Eric Thompson and current head Coach Jay Butler, the point guard during Ben Wallace glory days.

Coach Butler said he learned of Smith through his “New York connections.” It helps that VUU assistant Coach Fred Burroughs in a native New Yorker.

“We get lots of calls,” Coach Butler said. “We were told Jemal wanted to play in the CIAA and we brought him in for a visit. He played for an excellent high school program in New York (Cardinal Hayes High School). Also he was on a premier AAU team (Gauchos).”

Smith was no stranger to Richmond. He is a cousin of former Virginia Commonwealth University standout Melvin Johnson. In fact, Johnson and Smith both played at Rice High School in Harlem before it closed.

“I came to Richmond to watch Melvin play,” Smith said. “Also, I went to see him in the A10 tournament at the Barclays Center (in Brooklyn).”

Smith feels there is a built in “toughness” among New York City guards. Smith hails from an especially challenging neighborhood, Soundview.

“It’s just like you see on television — lots of police sirens,” he said. “You learn when and where to go to avoid all that. Being an athlete really helps.

“Things in New York aren’t always sweet and pleasant. You learn how to handle adversity. You develop a certain mindset.”

When Rice High closed, Smith transferred to Cardinal Hayes, a private Catholic school. His tuition was paid for by sponsors, he said.

“Some great players were there — four D-1 (Division I) starters on my team alone,” Smith said of Hayes. Perhaps best known is Shavar Newkirk, an All-A10 pick last season at St. Joseph’s University of Philadelphia.

Now at VUU, Smith is the shortest player on the Panthers’ roster but among the most valuable as the Panthers seek to defend their CIAA title.

For many years during Dave Robbins’ coaching tenure, a size 22 Converse sneaker was displayed at VUU’s Barco-Stevens Hall. The caption under it read, “You don’t have to be a giant to be a Panther; you just have to play like one.”