Missouri transfer Mark Smith is making the most of his lone season at Kansas State
Mark Smith only has one regret about his decision to play college basketball for Kansas State.
He wishes he would have joined the Wildcats earlier. Four years earlier, to be exact.
If he could go back and do things differently, Smith thinks he would have been much better off enrolling at K-State straight out of high school rather than waiting until he was a graduate transfer who had already played one season at Illinois and three more at Missouri.
“Being here now, that’s something I think about a lot,” Smith said. “I see how much my game has gotten better and how much I have developed. I am a much better basketball player now than I ever have been before. But at least I’m here now. I’m having a lot of fun.”
His favorite moment in a purple uniform may have occurred over the weekend when Smith drained a deep three-pointer with the shot clock winding down to clinch a 67-58 road victory over Nebraska.
But that was far from his only highlight with the Wildcats. He also had a clutch transition dunk during a win over Wichita State and has found unique ways to help his team in just about every game. His signature bicep-flex celebration has already become a staple at Bramlage Coliseum.
“I always thought I could get to the basket and make the right play,” Smith said. “That’s just something each end every day I’ve been growing with. I have gotten a lot better after watching film and playing for Coach (Bruce) Weber. My game has really gotten better in all aspects. I am better at shooting, getting to the basket, finishing, the whole deal.”
His decision to leave Missouri and join K-State as a “super senior” has worked out well for both player and team. Smith’s stats (10.9 points, 7.9 rebounds, 2.0 assists) are up in every category, and the Wildcats (7-3) are off to their best start in three seasons entering Tuesday’s game against McNeese State.
In some ways, Smith has surprised himself.
After getting off to a strong start at Missouri by averaging 11.4 points, 4.9 rebounds and 1.6 assists as a sophomore, his numbers regressed the next two seasons and he was known mostly as a streaky spot-up shooter than anything else. But he is doing much more with the Wildcats.
“At Missouri he was kind of more of a just catch-and-shoot guy, but I saw over the summer as he came in and developed that he was becoming versatile enough to get to the basketball and use his athleticism,” Nijel Pack said. “I knew he could help us this year. He is able to stretch the floor out and get to the basket and get rebounds.”
Indeed, he is now using his 6-foot-4 and 255-pound frame to score near the rim and lead his team in rebounding.
“The thing that surprised me about him is his athleticism and his strength,” Weber said. “I always tell him he’s a man child and he needs to use that body.”
Weber has actually been saying things like that to Smith since he was in high school.
He was one of the first college basketball coaches to offer Smith a scholarship when he was growing up in Edwardsville, Illinois. Weber told him how he would fit in to K-State’s system, and Smith was genuinely intrigued. But his recruitment blew up late and he ended up choosing Illinois instead of K-State.
A year later, Smith approached Weber about transferring to K-State as a sophomore, but the timing wasn’t right. The Wildcats weren’t looking to add wing players during that recruiting cycle, so Smith turned his focus to Missouri.
Smith has never said a negative word about the Tigers, but when the NCAA granted all players an extra year of eligibility during the coronavirus pandemic he didn’t hesitate to spend it with the Wildcats. Moments after announcing his plans to transfer away from Mizzou, Smith called Weber and told him he wanted to play for K-State.
The timing was finally right. He committed immediately. Smith doesn’t regret anything about that decision.
This story was originally published December 20, 2021 at 2:33 PM.