After guiding
Paul VI (Chantilly, Va.) to the No. 1 spot in the MaxPreps Top 25 high school basketball rankings,
Jordan Smith has been named the 2025-26 MaxPreps National Player of the Year.
Smith is the most decorated player in program history,
leading Paul VI to a record of 126-16 with four top 10 national finishes
during his career. The Panthers went 64-1 in Washington Catholic Athletic Conference games Smith suited up for.
The senior guard joins the list of past winners like Cade Cunningham, Chet Holmgren and Cameron Boozer.
"It's a lot of pressure, but pressure is a privilege and I am just glad to have it," Smith said of earning the high school basketball's highest honor.
Paul VI finished the season ranked No. 9 in the MaxPreps Top 25 during his freshman year in 2022-23, No. 10 during his junior campaign in 2024-25 and No. 1 in 2023-24 and 2025-26.
Individually, Smith was a MaxPreps Freshman All-America honorable mention selection, third team MaxPreps Sophomore All-American and MaxPreps National Junior of the Year last season.
As a senior, the 6-foot-3 guard led Paul VI to a 33-3 record while averaging 26.6 points, 6.3 rebounds, 5.6 assists and 3.2 steals per contest. He shot 56.0 percent from the field, 36.9 percent from 3-point range and 72.4 percent from the free throw line.
In an 82-76 double-overtime victory over St. John's (Washington, D.C.)
in the WCAC tournament championship
game, Smith tallied 39 points, seven assists and seven steals to help
his team erase a 16-point deficit in the fourth quarter.
Smith led the Panthers to a 14-1 record against
nationally-ranked opponents.
"We played with joy all
season and by doing that we upset some
teams in the beginning, but then over time it just became regular to us," Smith said. "The chemistry on this team is next level, its been probably my favorite
year in high school."
He also had a strong performance last week at the McDonald's All-American Game, producing 15 points, six rebounds, four assists and two steals for the East.
"If you told me my freshman year that I
would have all this I would look at you a little confused, but I would
kind of believe you because I just know that I put a lot of work in for
this," Smith said. "I don't let the grind stop, even on my bad days I don't feel like
touching a basketball I always commit to doing it."
In the final game of his high school career, Smith piled up 35 points in a 79-67 loss to CIA-Bella Vista (Phoenix, Ariz.) in the Chipotle Nationals quarterfinals. His 35-point outburst was two points shy of tying the all-time event record set by Austin Rivers of Winter Park (Fla.) in 2010.
Smith is regarded as the No. 2 prospect in the Class of 2027 according to Rivals, signing with Arkansas over finalists Duke, Georgetown, Indiana, Kentucky and Syracuse.
"Razorback fans, you're getting a guy that loves basketball, that loves defense and that is willing to do anything to win a championship or just any game in general," Smith said.
Past MaxPreps National Players of the Year
2006 — Greg Oden, Lawrence North (Indianapolis)
2007 — Kevin Love, Lake Oswego (Ore.)
2008 — Brandon Jennings, Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, Va.)
2009 — Derrick Favors, South Atlanta (Atlanta, Ga.)
2010 — Harrison Barnes, Ames (Iowa)
2011 — Austin Rivers, Winter Park (Fla.)
2012 — Kyle Anderson, St. Anthony (Jersey City, N.J.)
2013 — Jabari Parker, Simeon (Chicago, Ill.)
2014 — Stanley Johnson, Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.)
2015 — Ben Simmons, Montverde Academy (Montverde, Fla.)
2016 — Lonzo Ball, Chino Hills (Calif.)
2017 — Michael Porter Jr., Nathan Hale (Seattle, Wash.)
2018 — R.J. Barrett, Montverde Academy
2019 — Sharife Cooper, McEachern (Powder Springs, Ga.)
2020 — Cade Cunningham, Montverde Academy
2021 — Chet Holmgren, Minnehaha Academy (Minneapolis, Minn.)
2022 — Dariq Whitehead, Montverde Academy
2023 — Cameron Boozer, Columbus (Miami, Fla.)
2024 — Dylan Harper, Don Bosco Prep (Ramsey, N.J.)
2025 — Cameron Boozer, Columbus
