Eric Musselman reveals expectations for Nick Smith moving forward

Nick Smith Jr. is back in the Arkansas lineup and doing his best to find a flow. With the former five-star working his way in, it’s obvious what kind of impact that Eric Musselman thinks he can still make for the ‘Hogs.

Mussleman reset the expectations on Smith during his press conference after Arkansas won 84-65 over Florida. He thought this weekend’s game was a key one for him because of how much time he was able to see on the floor. Now, with what’s coming up on the schedule, Musselman thinks how Smith can continue to integrate himself could make a world of difference.

“I think that this game was important to him to be able to get 30-plus minutes,” Musselman said. “We have a big game coming up on Tuesday (vs. Georgia), two big games on the road (at Alabama and Tennessee), and then a big one at home (vs. Kentucky). Every game right now for the Razorbacks is important. And him getting a little bit of a rhythm and flow? It’s a lot different than playing three-on-three.”

Smith had his first double-digit game since returning with 10 points in 32 minutes. He shot a decent 4-12 with a pair of steals, a rebound, and an assist in the 19-point win over the Gators. That brought his averages since his return up to five points per game on 20.6% shooting in just over 17 minutes.

Arkansas has a tough schedule over their final four and Smith continuing to take steps could help them really get rolling as they come down the stretch. It could also work wonders for their postseason aspirations if Musselman and the Razorbacks can get the Smith they thought they were getting all along as they head into the SEC Tournament.

Musselman shares what staff is evaluating with Smith’s injury

Eric Musselman has himself a quandary with Arkansas guard Nick Smith, who has recently returned from a knee injury. His minutes played have fluctuated since he has returned three games ago, ranging from four to 32 minutes.

After Saturday’s win over Florida, Musselman discussed how they are approaching ramping Smith back up to full strength.

“As a coaching staff, we try to be prepared,” Musselman said. “We try to have a reason for everything. (The staff) doesn’t just roll the dice out on lineups and substitution patterns. We have a lot of non-contact practices for eight years now. We have catapult numbers, where you can distinguish their energy, the jumps they have, how many miles they go in practice. And all those numbers go into effect on all this stuff, how we sub.”.

“We knew when Nick came back, there’s not a high school player, there’s not a college player, there’s not an NBA player — there’s there’s a reason Major League Baseball, when guys are out extended periods of time, send them down to the minor leagues to get the rhythm and their timing,” Musselman said. “We certainly felt with a basketball team and a program that does not go live and hasn’t gone live. It’s because we want to be fresh in March. So it’s hard for Nick to play three-on-three post practice and get rhythm. So really happy that he got the minutes that he got tonight. Happy how his teammates responded with him. He gives us a little bit of an edge. He’s competitive, and he’s verbal.I think that helps us tremendously.”