Smith to NLR

Nick Smith, last season’s Arkansas Democrat-Gazette All-Arkansas Preps boys basketball player of the year while at Sylvan Hills who is one of the nation’s top players in the Class of 2022, will finish his high school career at North Little Rock.

The reigning Class 6A state basketball champions were already going to have a large target on their backs when the 2021-22 season kicks off later this year, but that bull’s-eye got bigger Wednesday afternoon when it was confirmed that one of the nation’s top players was transferring in.

Nick Smith, the 2021 Arkansas Democrat-Gazette All-Arkansas

Preps boys player of the year and the

No. 20 player in the Class of 2022 by 247Sports, will finish his high school career at

North Little

Rock, a team four months removed from winning its fifth state title since 2013. However, prospects of a repeat weren’t overwhelming, particularly because of what the team has lost.

The Charging Wildcats graduated its starting backcourt of D.J. Smith and Tracy Steele, as well as key reserves Mario Frazier, Kareame Cotton and Ubong Etim. But the cupboard is never bare for head coach Johnny Rice.

North Little Rock is returning several contributors from last year that would’ve allowed the team to at least be in the mix to capture another title. Senior Kel’el Ware, rated as a five-star center and the nation’s No. 17-ranked player by 247Sports, is back, as are senior guards Charles Maris and Felix Wade, both of whom had impressive outings as juniors.

The Charging Wildcats also had junior Tyler Frederick, an all-conference guard from Hot Springs Lakeside, move in just before the previous school year ended and got a boost when all-state forward Corey Washington, who’d been Smith’s teammate at Sylvan Hills for the past two seasons, announced last week that he, too, would be joining the Charging Wildcats.

But Smith’s addition swayed the balance of power back in North Little Rock’s favor about as quickly as news of his transfer circulated through Twitter two days ago.

Rice couldn’t discuss Smith being a part of his roster because he hasn’t completed the enrollment process, but the long-time coach didn’t have to. He knows just how good of a team he’ll have when the 6-4 guard, who’s also ranked as a five-star by 247Sports and averaged 25 points last season, officially dons a Charging Wildcats uniform.

“I’ve had some unreal talented teams in the past,” Rice explained. “That 2013 team, we finished No. 9 in the nation. That may have been my most complete team because we could play big, we could play small, play full-court up and down, play half-court by slowing it down. … any way we wanted to play, we could do it. The 2014 team with Anton [Beard], K.J. [Hill] and KeVaughn [Allen] at the guard spots may have been my most aggressive offensive team.

“The 2018 team with Moses [Moody] and Collin [Moore], I’ve never had a team that peaked at the perfect time like they did. And even last year, over the last month, they guys, led by D.J. and Tracy, just bought into their roles and didn’t care about individual accolades. But if everything I’ve been seeing holds true and is finalized, this team could be the most talented we’ve had.”

It’ll also be one that has two five-star players in Smith and Ware, a luxury that’s usually reserved for prep schools and national powers that have the ability to attract kids from everywhere, are regularly ranked among the country’s best and find themselves on television networks at various points throughout a season. Last season, there was only one team, Sunrise Christian (Kan.) Academy, that had two five-star players in Kennedy Chandler and Kendall Brown. But in 2020, three schools featured five-star duos: Zaire Williams and Boston of Sierra Canyon (Calif.) School, Cade Cunningham and Scottie Barnes of Montverde (Fla.) Academy and Jaden Springer and Mark Williams of IMG (Fla.) Academy.

That idea alone is expected to make North Little Rock a hot commodity on a national level. The Charging Wildcats routinely schedule out-of-state games, but that slate is expected to be more extensive this season.

Still, Rice knows that potential won’t win games for the Charging Wildcats.

“We did well during our team camps and games in June,” he said. “Of course in July, it’s been more individual stuff because so many are playing travel ball. Hopefully, the last week before school starts, we’ll have everybody together. But after what I saw earlier in the summer, I felt pretty good about our team.”