*Having already graduated from Valparaiso, enrolled in graduate courses at Butler and utilized his final season of NCAA eligibility immediately for the 2019-20 campaign.
*Led Valparaiso in both scoring and rebounding as a redshirt junior during the 2018-19 season
*Shot .564 from the field during his three seasons at Valparaiso, the third-best career mark in program history.
*Earned spots on both the 2018-19 Missouri Valley Conference's Most Improved Team as well as the Scholar-Athlete Second Team
*In the summer of 2018, played for the Dutch National “B” Team on a seven-game tour of Europe
2019-20 SEASON (AS A GRADUATE STUDENT AT BUTLER): Injuries limited him to a total of 17 games and 164 minutes...led Butler in scoring with a season-high 16 points in the Dec. 28 win over Louisiana-Monroe...went 5-of-7 from the field and 6-of-7 from the free throw line in that game...his first action of the season didn't come until Dec. 14 vs. Southern...played a season-high 19 minutes at DePaul Jan. 18...averaged 3.1 points and 1.7 rebounds per game...shot 59 percent from the field.
The 2019-20 season was canceled on March 12 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
2018-19 SEASON (AS A REDSHIRT JUNIOR AT VALPARAISO): Led Valpo in both scoring (12.2 points per game) and rebounding (5.7 rebounds per game), which were 17th and 11th, respectively, in the Missouri Valley…his .594 field goal percentage also led the Crusaders, was second in the conference, and the seventh-best single-season mark in program history…scored in double figures a team-high 22 times, including five efforts of 20+ points…paced Valpo in the scoring column 12 times and in rebounding on 13 occasions…finished second on the team with 31 blocks, which stood ninth in the conference…started 25 of the 32 games he appeared in…earned a spot on the Missouri Valley Conference Scholar-Athlete Second Team for his work on the court and in the classroom…named to the MVC’s Most-Improved Team…pulled down double-figure rebounds four times, each time posting a double-double…matched his season-high with 23 points against Indiana State Feb. 13, going a perfect 7-of-7 from the floor while also grabbing 11 rebounds…scored all 16 of his points in the second half in the win at Illinois State Feb. 5, going 8-of-9 from the field over the final 20 minutes…finished with his third double-double of the year in the win over Northern Iowa Jan. 19, tallying 21 points and 11 rebounds…led Valpo with 16 points, 14 of which came in the second half, and eight rebounds in the win at Southern Illinois Jan. 12…matched his season-high with 12 rebounds and scored a team-best 14 points for his second career double-double against High Point Dec. 4…led Valpo with 18 points (8-13 FG) and added six rebounds vs. UC-Riverside Dec. 2…posted his first career double-double in the Nov. 28 win at UNLV, finishing with a team-high 20 points and season-best 12 rebounds…scored 20 points (9-12 FG) and blocked a career-high five shots at West Virginia Nov. 24, the first Valpo player to reach both marks in the same game since 1998…named Honorable Mention All-Tournament at Myrtle Beach Invitational…led all players against Wake Forest Nov. 18 with a season-high 23 points - 19 of which came in the second half - and added seven rebounds.
ACADEMICALLY AT VALPARAISO: Graduated in December 2018 with a bachelor’s degree in communication, along with a business administration minor (3.29 cumulative GPA)…took graduate courses over his final semester at Valpo…MVC Academic Honor Roll honoree.
2017-18 SEASON (AS A REDSHIRT SOPHOMORE AT VALPARAISO): Appeared in all 32 games for the Crusaders as a sophomore, making 18 starts - including each of the final 16 games of the year...averaged 7.5 points and 3.6 rebounds per game while playing 17.8 minutes per game...finished second on the team with 21 blocked shots...scored in double figures on 10 occasions...went a perfect 6-for-6 from the floor, finishing with 12 points in Nov. 19 win over SE Louisiana...totaled 12 points, including 6-of-8 from the foul line, and six rebounds Dec. 9 at Ball State...scored in double figures in back-to-back wins in MVC play, posting 11 points Jan. 6 against Southern Illinois and 10 points Jan. 10 win over Drake...went 6-of-8 from the line in 14-point, six-rebound performance against Loyola Jan. 21...scored 17 points Jan. 27 at Illinois State...smashed season-high in regular season finale at Drake Feb. 24, hitting 10-of-14 from the floor to lead the way with 22 points and six rebounds in the Crusader victory.
2016-17 SEASON (AS A REDSHIRT FRESHMAN AT VALPARAISO): Appeared in all 33 games for the Crusaders during his first season of action, starting 15 consecutive games Dec. 28-Feb. 17...averaged 3.4 points and 2.2 rebounds per game in 12.8 minutes per game of play...finished second on the team with 17 blocked shots on the year...scored first career points in nine-point effort in win over Ball State Nov. 27...posted strong game to open Horizon League play at UIC Dec. 30, finishing with 11 points on 5-of-8 shooting and six rebounds - both of which were season-highs...would go on to grab six rebounds in a game four more times over the last two-plus months of the season...blocked season-high three shots in victory over UIC Jan. 22...went 5-of-7 from the floor for 10 points and recorded a season-best five assists in Feb. 9 win against Cleveland State.
2015-16 SEASON: Sat out season due to injury...awarded medical redshirt and maintained four seasons of eligibility.
HIGH SCHOOL: Named an Indiana All-Star following his senior year at Zionsville High School...had eight points, five rebounds and three blocks in Indiana's win over Kentucky to clinch two-game series sweep...averaged 14.9 points, 5.8 rebounds and 2.6 blocks per game as a senior, helping lead Zionsville to 19 wins...scored 10.6 points per game as a junior...two-time All-Conference honoree...played AAU for Spiece Indy Heat.
PERSONAL: Son of Rik Smits...father played 12 seasons in the NBA for the Indiana Pacers and was an NBA All-Star in 1998. He played a key role as the Pacers advanced to the 2000 NBA Finals in his final season.
