‘The Great Gatsby’? Well, here’s the great Smiley. Valparaiso’s Jack Smiley may be among the team’s best ever.

Valparaiso’s Jack Smiley is reaping the rewards this season.

The 6-foot-2 junior guard hit the ground running in November and hasn’t looked back, maintaining a level of performance he pretty much expected.

“In the summer, there was huge growth for me,” Smiley said. “I transformed my body and my athleticism, got a lot more explosive. I was working out, eating healthy, always in the gym.

“Me starting off good this year really isn’t a surprise to me because I know I put in the work for it. It was just a matter of time when it was going to show.”

Smiley was averaging 24.8 points, 5.6 rebounds and 5.8 assists as the Vikings (9-3) prepared to open Duneland Athletic Conference play at Portage on Friday. First-year Valparaiso coach Ben Lieske, a 2002 graduate who spent 18 seasons as an assistant, saw it coming a mile away too. Before the season, he described Smiley as one of the best players in the state and one of the best in Valparaiso history.

After contributing as a freshman, Smiley put up 14.5 points, 2.8 rebounds and 3.6 assists last season, setting the program record for points scored by a sophomore. He has continued to build on that this season, elevating his game to new heights.

“He does everything,” Lieske said. “He’s a willing passer, great rebounder, can score at all three levels. He’s made a huge jump in his defense as most players do as they age up. He has a great basketball IQ. His work ethic is beyond reproach.

“He’s an empathetic leader who trusts his teammates and is in it for team success. I can’t speak enough about him and the way he’s also bringing the others along with him to that same high standard. … If you have guys who are willing to row the boat with you, it’s fun. You have to have a leader, and when your star is willing to distribute that way and encourage those guys, it makes it possible.”

Sophomore guard KJ Avery is one of those players Smiley has taken under his wing.

“He tells me what to do,” Avery said. “If I make a bad pass, he’ll explain it to me, the right steps, the right way. Whenever I feel like today’s not my day, he’ll hype me up. He’ll say, ‘Keep going. Just keep playing.’

“What he’s doing, it’s amazing. He’s just been a great player, teammate, (with) decision-making, passing, shooting — just all-around.”

Smiley is taking his success in stride and going with the flow.

“I’m just letting the game come to me,” he said. “I’m just playing my game. I’m not forcing anything. I’m getting my teammates involved. When they start making shots, it just opens up everything for me. That’s when I really get going.”

Lieske said Smiley prepares both physically and mentally. Most days, Smiley is in the gym by 6 a.m. to get up shots before school starts. He also studies diligently.

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“He lives all of this,” Lieske said. “He wants to watch film. Hudl tracks everybody’s hours and minutes and how long they log in and what they watch and everything they do. You can see everybody on the team, and his hours are off the charts.

“Sometimes I have to get after him because his English teacher is like, ‘He’s watching film again instead of reading ‘The Great Gatsby.’”

Smiley has received Division I offers from Ohio and Valparaiso. Other mid-majors and high-majors have been tracking him.

“They’re seeing him, and if you watch him play, you know he’s something special,” Lieske said. “You know he’s about to blow up.”

Smiley believes in the ability and potential of the Vikings too.

“I like how we all play together,” he said. “We’re all there for each other. We’re all buying into each other. We’re tough. We push each other in practice. We’re competitive. We all love each other. We have a great bond, and that’s why we’re winning games.”