NBA Draft: Previewing Arkansas Basketball's Top Prospects

We're less than three months away from the 2026-27 college basketball season, with Arizona, Arkansas, and Louisville among the top projected teams this upcoming season. Below we take a look at five NBA prospects to watch this season on Arkansas.

Jordan Smith Jr

Smith is a 6-foot-2, 200-pound guard and is the No. 3 ranked prospect in the 2026 high school class.

To start, Smith is an elite athlete. He showcases burst and power on drives, making him difficult to stop when he gets downhill. He can finish through contact and creates rim pressure fairly easily.

Additionally, he's an excellent shooter off the dribble -- he gets impressive elevation on his jumper, releases the shot near its apex, and can get into his shot and elevate very quickly (before the defender can react and contest effectively).

Smith is able to handle double teams as well -- consistently making the right read. The double teams themselves don't deter Smith from scoring at times either, as he can break doubles with athleticism or footwork when needed.

Overall, Smith reads the floor well -- he has a score-first mentality but is patient and knows how to get his teammates open too. He consistently creates rim pressure then makes the right pass to the dunker spot after drawing attention for an easy assist, for example.

Defensively, Smith is impactful both on and off ball. He's a physical on-ball defender with lateral quickness and can offer some level of weakside rim protection as well -- both just by rotating to the correct spot or with actual blocks. He also shows ground coverage and effort on closeouts as well, nearly blocking three point shot attempts after rotating crosscourt at times.

Perhaps most important, he has consistently improved. When watching the film of him and Paul VI against Montverde back in April 2024, he appeared to be a guard who showcased flashes of creating rim pressure, attacking closeouts, playmaking, on and off ball defense, while being impactful in transition. Now, he's put all of the flashes together to be the best player on the floor consistently.

Smith is an elite three-level scoring guard who can also create for others and defensively offer point-of-attack defense and flashes of weakside rim protection and overall off-ball activity. He's a projected top-five pick in the 2027 NBA Draft and will be one of the most talented players to watch this season in college basketball.

JJ Andrews

Andrews is a five-star recruit and No. 17 overall player in the 2026 high school class. He's a 6-foot-6, 220-pound wing known for his physicality and ability to put pressure on the rim. The Arkansas Gatorade Player of the Year also offers potential versatility as a defender with a projected 7-foot wingspan and having already averaged 2.3 steals per game in high school. A swing skill to watch this upcoming season is how his shot continues to develop.

JJ Andrews is currently projected to be a first round pick in the 2027 NBA Draft.

Miikka Muurinen

Muurinen is a 6-foot-10, 205-pound wing and consensus five-star in the 2026 high school class. He's played high-level basketball all over the world -- including Sunrise Christian Academy, AZ Compass, Partizan KK overseas this past season, the Finland National Team, the 2026 Nike Hoop Summit, and more.

He's currently an example of a player who's in the (lack of) production versus high-level skill/potential conversation. He's a capable shooter and transition player who has unique size, mobility, and talent -- whether he can put it all together at the college level will be key to watch.

Miikka Muurinen is also projected to be a first round pick in the 2027 NBA Draft.

Abdou Toure

Toure is a consensus five-star and No. 14 overall player in the 2026 high school class. The 6-foot-5, 200-pound wing is known for his ability to create rim pressure and finish with explosiveness at the basket. He's also already shown potential as a rebounder, on-ball defender, and defensive playmaker, while his shot and playmaking ability are continuing to develop.

Abdou Toure is also currently projected to be a first round pick in the 2027 NBA Draft.

Billy Richmond III

Richmond III is a rising junior at Arkansas. He declared for the 2026 NBA Draft but ultimately decided to return to Arkansas after being projected as an early second round pick. Like Jordan Smith Jr, JJ Andrews, and Abdou Toure, Richmond is known for his driving ability -- both in the halfcourt and in transition. He's an explosive athlete and elite finisher at the rim, making 127 of his 173 attempts (73.4%) at the rim last season.

His playmaking (career 12.5 assist percentage and 14.8 turnover percentage) is still developing, as is his ability to space the floor. He only had 16 three-point attempts his freshman season, and also only cashed in on 73.2% of his 56 free throw attempts. However, his numbers improved his sophomore season -- making 25.9% of his threes (58 attempts) and 78.4% of his free throws (74 attempts).

If his improved free throw percentage can help translate into a higher three-point percentage (at least over 33.3% on solid volume) and his playmaking can continue to develop to allow for more capitalization on his rim pressure creation, then Richmond III should be a first round pick in the 2027 NBA Draft. Defensively, Richmond III has the wingspan (measured in at 6-foot-8 at the combine), lateral quickness, and disruption (5.2 stock percentage) to provide value on that end of the floor in the NBA.

Other Players to Watch

While the entire Arkansas roster is talented, five other NBA prospects on Arkansas to watch this season are 6-foot-1 Georgia transfer Jeremiah Wilkinson, four-star center Caleb Ourigou, former Real Madrid 7-footer Ilia Frolov, four-star 6-foot-2 guard Davion Thompson, and four-star 7-footer Maper Maker.

Add us as a preferred source on Google