Arkansas freshman guard Nick Smith Jr. was drafted No. 27 overall by the Charlotte Hornets in the 2023 NBA Draft on Thursday evening at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.
Fellow Arkansas freshman Anthony Black was selected No. 6 overall by the Orlando Magic in Thursday's draft to become the program's seventh ever lottery pick. With Smith going to the Hornets, the Razorbacks now have 15 first round draft picks in program history.
The 6-foot-5, 185 pound North Little Rock High School product played 17 total games for the Razorbacks this past season. He averaged 12.5 points, 1.6 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game as a Hog.
A McDonald's All-American and the No. 1 overall guard in the 2022 class on Rivals, Smith's season was hampered by a lingering right knee injury that kept him out for multiple extended periods and it likely played a big factor in his drop down draft boards.
"He had legitimate injuries," Arkansas head coach Eric Musselman said on SiriusXM NBA Radio on Tuesday. "Got hurt overseas in our fourth game. We took an overseas tour. He was absolutely phenomenal in our first three and a half games. The game that he got hurt, as a unit, Nick in particular, playing at a really, really high level.
"Then he got re-injured a few months later. He only got to play 17 games with us, but he did average 25.8 minutes a game. He can knock down the three ball. He can play the point and the off-guard. I think teams need to understand that he is a great ball-handler."
He did showcase why he was the No. 2 overall player in the 2022 class on Rivals with a few games, such as a 26-point performance against Georgia on Feb. 21 and a 24-point outing against Alabama on Feb. 25.
Smith's postseason was a struggle, as he scored just 17 total points across Arkansas' three games in the NCAA Tournament. He was 6-of-23 from the field and had just three rebounds across the three outings.
Smith is the first Arkansas player to be drafted by the Hornets. He and Black are just the second and third one-and-dones in program history as the pair joins Moses Moody, who went 14th overall to the Golden State Warriors in the 2021 NBA Draft.
Arkansas has now had 43 players selected in the NBA Draft in program history. Smith joins Alabama's Brandon Miller (No. 2 overall) as the Hornets' second first round pick of the draft.
