Two of the state's and nation’s best high school basketball players and coveted Arkansas hoops recruits are now officially on the same squad.
North Little Rock head coach Johnny Rice confirmed Thursday that former Sylvan Hills standout Nick Smith (6-5, 180) has moved into the district and is enrolled to play for the Charging Wildcats this upcoming season.
Smith, the 2021 Arkansas Democrat-Gazette All-Arkansas Preps Boys Player of the Year, joins returning star Kel’el Ware (7-0, 220) as North Little Rock players ranked in the top 50 nationally for a team coming off a Class 6A state championship.
“He is fully enrolled,” Rice said of Smith. “I know he is a long, athletic point guard. He is kind of today’s prototype point guard in that he can score also. In the little bit that I have seen him play, what I think will help us more than him just being a great player is the passion that he plays with.
“He makes everybody else on his team better. I think that will really, really push Kel’el. The speed that he plays with, Kel’el will have to match that and I think that will be great for him.”
Ware, who has officially visited Arkansas, Oregon and Ole Miss and has a visit scheduled in September to Texas, announced via Twitter that he would make his college choice known on August 9.
“He has a lot of great opportunities to choose from,” Rice said.
Ware was No. 11 nationally in the inaugural On3 Sports rankings released Thursday and is 33rd on Rivals, 36th on 247 Sports and 75th on ESPN.
He is coming off a junior season in which he averaged 16.4 points, 8.8 rebounds and 4.6 blocks per game and was named second team Arkansas Democrat-Gazette All-Arkansas Prep.
“All reports I’ve gotten is he really competed and played with a motor more consistently in the camps,” Rice said.
Smith, who averaged 25 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists as a junior, is 20th ranked nationally in 247 Sports, 32nd in On 3 Sports, 37th by ESPN and 39th by Rivals.
He announce via Twitter on Thursday that he would choose from Arkansas, Kentucky, Alabama, Auburn, Kansas, Oklahoma and two professional entities – the National Basketball League in Australia and Overtime Elite.
North Little Rock also added another former Sylvan Hills player. Small forward Corey Washington transferred to the Charging Wildcats.
“Corey is a 6-5 athletic kid that’s a great rebounder that can score from 15 feet in,” Rice said. “He has some mid-major interest and maybe a few offers.