Mark Pope has the Kentucky Wildcats in serious contention for several of the top-ranked prospects from the 2026 recruiting class. One of them is Jordan Smith Jr.
On Tuesday, Rivals’ Joe Tipton reported that Smith is down to just six schools: Kentucky, Duke, Arkansas, Georgetown, Indiana, and Syracuse. A 6-foot-2 shooting guard ranked as the No. 3 overall rising high school senior in the country, Smith has already taken an official visit to Duke and has two more OVs on the schedule for this fall. The Paul VI Catholic (VA) product will make trips to Arkansas (Sept. 19-21) and Kentucky (Oct. 10-12; Big Blue Madness) in the coming months.
“I’m just looking at the environment. I got to sit and talk with Mark Pope at the USA Mini Camp,” Smith, who was coached by Pope at Team USA Training Camp earlier this summer, recently told Tipton. “He was a really chill guy, I love Mark Pope. I just want to see how he is as a player, how he develops, how he leads his team to the National Championship.”
Smith has also taken unofficial visits to Georgetown and Syrcause. Louisville was once thought to be in the running and was expected to receive an official visit, but the Cardinals have been cut from his list.
Smith is coming off a terrific summer on the hardwood. Not only did he get to learn under Pope at Team USA Training Camp, but he made the final roster and helped the Americans win gold at the FIBA U19 World Cup. Playing alongside Kentucky incoming freshman Jasper Johnson, Smith averaged 8.4 points, 2.7 rebounds, and two steals in 18.3 minutes per outing across seven games played. He shot 54.5 percent from the field, 35.7 percent from deep on low volume, and 60 percent from the free throw line.
But Smith was even more impressive on the Nike EYBL circuit for Team Takeover. During five games at Peach Jam in July, he averaged 20.4 points, 7.4 rebounds, 4.2 assists, 2.4 steals, and 1.8 blocks per contest on shooting splits of 58.1 percent overall shooting.
Pope and associate head coach Alvin Brooks III have regularly watched Smith’s games over the last several months. Both coaches also stopped by his home in the spring for an in-person visit.
Looking at Smith’s recruitment from afar, Duke has been looked at as a recent pipeline school for Paul VI Catholic. A handful of players from that prep school have gone on to play for the Blue Devils, including Darren Harris, Patrick Ngonba II, Jeremy Roach, and Trevor Keels. But Kentucky (and Arkansas’ John Calipari) will have the opportunity to swing Smith away from Duke in the fall.
