Elite high school guard from Arkansas completes men’s basketball campus visit to KU
Nick Smith Jr., a 6-foot-5, 175-pound senior combo guard from Sylvan Hills High School in Sherwood, Arkansas, completed his official campus visit to Kansas on Tuesday, he confirmed to The Star in a direct message on Twitter.
He indicated his parents accompanied him on the two-day stay in Lawrence.
Smith, the No. 22-ranked player in the recruiting Class of 2022 according to 247sports.com, No. 39-ranked player according to Rivals.com and No. 41 by ESPN.com, has now visited KU, Alabama, Auburn and Georgetown. According to Zagsblog.com, he has trips scheduled to Oklahoma (Sept. 17-19) and Arkansas (Oct. 15-17). He will announce his college choice on Nov. 20.
“The coaching staff was really open and the (KU) campus was very nice,” Smith told Zagsblog.com. “They (KU coaches) liked my game and felt like I could make a lot of noise at their campus. I knew some of the Kansas players so I got along with them a lot,” he added.
Smith averaged 25.0 points, 5.0 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game as a junior at Sylvan Hills.
On Saturday he was named 2021 Arkansas high school basketball player of the year as presented by the Arkansas Democrat Gazette. Earlier he was named MaxPreps’ Arkansas state player of the year.
MJ Rice is visiting KU
MJ Rice, a 6-5, 220-pound senior combo guard/small forward from Prolific Prep in Windsor, California, was slated to begin an official visit to KU on Tuesday, according to Rivals.com.
Rice — he is ranked No. 11 in the recruiting Class of 2022 according to ESPN..com and No. 22 by Rivals.com — attended Oak Hill Academy in Mouth of Wilson, Virginia last season.
He is considering Kansas, Boston College, Virginia Tech, Louisville, North Carolina State, Pittsburgh, Duke, and others. There are reports that Rice may elect to head to the G League rather than play college basketball.
“Rice is as tough as high school prospects come and seems to thrive on contact. He routinely finishes with defenders draped all over him and has a knack for getting to the line,” wrote Rob Cassidy of Rivals.com. “Rice, who has a knack for putting his matchups on the bench with foul trouble, is built like a brick wall and retains an incredibly quick first step for his size.”
Duke offers scholarship to Mitchell
Mark Mitchell, a 6-7, 190-pound senior small forward formerly of Bishop Miege High School now headed to Sunrise Christian Academy in Bel Aire, Kansas, has been offered a scholarship by Duke, he reported on Twitter.
Mitchell, the No. 8-ranked player in the recruiting Class of 2022 by Rivals.com, has taken official visits to Kansas, Missouri and UCLA. He will visit Duke on June 28-29.
Keyonte George posts pictures of trip to KU on Twitter
Keyonte George, the No. 5-ranked player in the recruiting Class of 2022 according to Rivals.com, begin his campus visit to KU on Monday night. He posted pictures taken on his trip to KU on Tuesday on Twitter.
George, a 6-5 senior combo guard from iSchool Entrepreneurial Academy in Lewisville, Texas, has a list of KU, Kentucky, Oklahoma State, Baylor and Texas.
George averaged 23.2 points, 4.8 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 2.1 steals a game his junior season at iSchool Academy.
“George is a smooth scoring guard who shows a high level of dedication to the game and looks to play the game the right way. He scores within the flow of an offense and can knock down jumpers from all three ranges on the floor,” wrote Brandon Jenkins of 247sports.com.
“His game is built upon skill and length more than elite quickness. His effort on defense could improve but he definitely is capable of becoming a solid defender because of the length and lateral mobility he possesses,” Jenkins added. “George’s talent, skill level, and scoring touch is undeniable. He has a high ceiling and given the spacing on the floor, he will have a shot at being very productive at the highest level of the sport.”
