By SAM LANCE
Jordan Smith Jr., the No. 2 overall prospect in the 2026 class, is down to six schools, per his Instagram page. Arkansas, Duke, Georgetown, Indiana, Kentucky and Syracuse made the cut.
The five-star prospect had a great summer with Team Takeover and with Team USA U19. On the EYBL circuit, Smith averaged 19.6 points, 7.7 rebounds, 3.8 assists and led Takeover to a 17-3 overall record. He also totaled 46 steals and 20 blocks and shot 57.1% from the field. In June, Smith started every game playing up with Team USA U19 at the 5×5 FIBA World Cup in Switzerland. The guard posted 8.4 points, 2.7 rebounds and 2.0 steals en route to a gold medal.
5
Jordan Smith Jr. just cut his list of schools down to SIX!
@slam_university
Where should he go to college
@sm23itty pic.twitter.com/0Yx3DU2tuE
— SLAM HS Hoops (@SLAM_HS) August 5, 2025
Smith recently gave thoughts on all six of his finalists to ZAGSBLOG:
Arkansas: “[John] Calipari, he just tells me if I want to reach my goals I should go there. He said he’s going to do anything he can to help me get to the NBA or just whatever I want to do. He said he’s going to develop me to be a professional point guard or versatile guard.”
Duke: “I watched practice, hung out with my old teammates, got to spend time with the coaches [on my visit]. Brandon McCoy was there too, so I got to spend some time with him, which was really cool. I really like the school and I like Jon Scheyer a lot, the way he recruits.”
Georgetown: “It’s really good. I love [Ed] Cooley. He was there in Switzerland. My parents hung out with him a lot. It was just good to see him there and really support me. He said he was staying until we won the gold medal, which he did. So it’s really good. He lets his guards rock out. That’s what he told me he was going to do, and I saw that a lot too.”
Indiana: Smith’s Takeover teammate, Prince-Alexander Moody, is committed to Indiana. His message?: “It will change my life if I go,” Smith said. “He just said I got to take the visit and I’ll commit. That’s all he’s been saying to me.”
“I’m trying to get him over there,” Moody said. “I’m trying to. I’m going to get him over there hopefully. I’m going to try to because I need him or somebody like him. But ain’t nobody like him, I’m not going to lie. So it’s going to be hard to get someone like him, but I’m going to try to get him for sure.”
Kentucky: “Mark Pope’s been telling I can come in and make an impact immediately, help him win a national championship. He said I don’t have to worry about the transfer portal too much with him. He said I’m going to come in, might start, and impact the game.”
Syracuse: “I love Syracuse. They have Takeover and PVI’s system. So they play just how we play at PVI, so I feel like I can fit their system.”
Smith has set official visits this fall to Arkansas (Sept. 20) and Kentucky (Oct. 11). He plans on visiting each of his finalists before making a decision. He’s previously visited Duke, Georgetown and Syracuse.
When choosing a program, Smith said he just wants a good environment.
“I have to be able to live there for six months to four years,” Smith said. “So I want good people. I just want good people I can make friends with.”
Smith is known as an elite defender, but really took steps in his scoring and playmaking this summer. He’s also seen as the ultimate winner.
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