Arkansas 5-star commit Jordan Smith Jr. named Naismith High School Player of the Year

Washington (D.C.) Paul VI five-star point guard and Arkansas commit Jordan Smith Jr. has been named the Naismith Boys’ High School Basketball Player of the Year, the awards announced on Tuesday.

Smith led the Panthers to a 34-2 record, national No. 1 ranking and a fourth straight Virginia Independent Schools Athletic Association (VISAA) state championship in his final season at the high school level. Over his four seasons at Paul VI, Smith also led the program to a 126-15 overall record.

The 6-foot-2 scoring machine averaged 26.6 points, 6.3 rebounds, 5.6 assists and 3.2 steals per game, and shot 56% from the field and 37% from behind the arc.

And he was equally impressive on the summer circuit as well.

Playing with the Team Takeover this past summer on Nike’s EYBL Circuit, Smith averaged 19.2 points on 57.5 percent shooting to help lead his team to a 16-3 record in circuit games he played. He also added 7.1 rebounds and 3.1 STOCKS (steals + blocks) per game. Smith also earned his second FIBA gold medal this summer with USA Basketball. During the FIBA U19 World Cup, Smith averaged 8.4 points, 2.7 rebounds, and 2.7 STOCKS.

Smith headed to Arkansas as John Calipari’s next elite guard

Last month, Smith committed to the Razorbacks over group that also included Georgetown, Kentucky, Providence, Duke, and Syracuse. He is expected to be an immediate impact player for John Calipari next season as UA replaces a heavy load in the backcourt.

He’s eager to do it all in Fayetteville.

“I’m an energy giver,” Smith told Rivals‘ Jamie Shaw of his game. “I love my teammates, I’m willing to do whatever it takes to win, and I try to give really good leadership on and off the court. I can pass the ball, give out assists, but the main thing that I really like to do is get to my jump shot, my pull-up, and get to the rim. I’m getting more confident with my three-point shot, so I just have to keep working on it.

… With this team, we have fun. We can really beat anybody, and we can compete with anybody. So, definitely I’ve improved with my leadership and am just figuring out how to have fun.”

On Monday, he was also named to the Naismith first-team All-American list — joined by Jason Crowe Jr. (Missouri signee), Caleb Holt (Arizona commit), Deron Rippey Jr. (Duke signee), and No. 1 overall prospect Tyran Stokes.