Makel Smith is a rising UNCW backcourt piece with scholarship momentum
In the 2025-26 season, Makel Smith went from walk-on to scholarship player at UNCW, a strong signal that the staff sees real value in his development and fit[6]. His on-court sample was still small in 2025-26, but he showed clean shooting touch in limited minutes and enough versatility to stay in the rotation conversation[2][5][13]. The bigger takeaway: he’s a young guard on an upward path, with room to grow into a useful low-drama, high-effort role player who can reward a team looking for upside and work ethic[6][10].
