NCAA Tournament 2023: Top 10 biggest x-factor players to watch for
By Elijah Campbell
#5 – Nick Smith Jr. – Arkansas
Nick Smith Jr. was the highest-rated recruit in one of the best recruiting classes coming into the season. Unfortunately for Arkansas, injuries in December kept Smith out of a large portion of the season. It took him a while to get acclimated after his injury but starting with his 26-point game against Georgia, he was back in prime prospect form.
He followed that up with a 24-point outing against Alabama on the road. For a team that is marvelous defensively, they can get cold on offense and are one of the worst three-point shooting teams in the tournament. In the NCAA Tournament, the teams that go far are the ones who are able to have a confident go-to scorer late in games. Davonte Davis can be that guy but at times can be streaky and miss a ton of shots. Smith will be heavily relied upon like he was in the SEC Tournament when he hit a big jumper late in the game to knock out a really good Auburn team.
If Smith continues the scoring success, they’ll have a good chance to beat Illinois, and assuming they have to face Kansas in the second round, can give the Jayhawks a real scare.