Nick Smith declares for NBA Draft

FAYETTEVILLE — Arkansas freshman guard Nick Smith has declared for the 2023 NBA Draft.

A native of Jacksonville and a former standout at North Little Rock High School, Smith made the announcement Thursday in a post to his Twitter account. He is the first Razorback to put his name in this year’s draft.

“This year has been an incredible journey, and I am grateful for all the love and support I have received from my hometown and all the hog fans,” Smith wrote. “I want to express my gratitude to [Coach Eric Musselman] and the entire coaching staff, who believed in my abilities and allowed me the chance to play for Arkansas.”

A projected top-five pick prior to the 2022-23 season, Smith’s lone season at Arkansas was marred by a knee injury that forced him to miss 19 games. He did not play in the first 6 games, played the following 5, then missed 13 more before re-joining the team Feb. 11.

Smith averaged 12.4 points on 37.2% shooting and 35.3% from three-point range, and 1.6 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 0.9 steals in the final 12 games of the season. 

For the season, he put up 12.5 points on 37.6% shooting and 33.8% beyond the arc.

The 6-5 guard scored 20-plus points in 5 games, including 26 against Georgia, 25 vs. Kentucky and 24 at Alabama. 

In December, he had 21 points against Oklahoma in Arkansas’ win in Tulsa.

Smith averaged 5.7 points on 26.1% shooting during the Razorbacks’ NCAA Tournament games against Illinois, Kansas and Connecticut. 

He scored 11 points in the season-ending loss against UConn, which followed a scoreless outing in the team’s second-round win over Kansas, the No. 1 seed in the Razorbacks' region. 

“[I learned about] timing, knowing how to handle situations, going about things a little differently,” Smith said in Las Vegas after the loss to UConn. “I’m just a normal 18-year-old going through life. Y’all have been 18 before and I’m pretty sure y’all know what I’m talking about.

“Pretty much just coming here and learning a whole bunch of stuff outside of basketball, man. It’s been an experience, for sure, but it’s an experience I’ll remember, for sure.”

Smith, named the top-rated high school player in the 2022 class by 247 Sports, on March 28 was projected by The Athletic’s Sam Vecenie as the No. 16 pick of the Atlanta Hawks.

“[He] proved at lower levels that he can be a terrific tough-shot maker and instant offensive creator,” Vecenie wrote. “Given his injuries, there are real, built-in excuses for why he struggled. But he has some work to do during the pre-draft process to rehabilitate his stock.

“His defensive play [in the NCAA Tournament] was consistently messy — something not all that surprising for a player who didn’t get any real time to mesh with his teammates and build cohesion.”

Bleacher Report listed Smith at No. 12 on its pre-Sweet 16 big board, and NBADraft.net projected him at No. 6 overall on March 24.

“It was a fun year for me,” Smith said. “The guys, I love these guys. It was probably one of the most [enjoyable teams] personality-wise I’ve been on individually, starting with Coach Muss. I just appreciate the time these guys gave me.

“I just appreciate the fans, I appreciate my parents and my friends and family that stuck behind me no matter what situation it was. Like I said, I get to learn from this experience.”