That's not cloying hyperbole from the school that won the recruiting battle for the USA Today and Parade magazine high school player of the year.

It's the analysis of one of the many coaches who wanted Smith, who averaged 28.5 points, 11.3 rebounds and 3.7 blocked shots as a senior at Waterloo (Iowa) West High School in 1998-99.

"I'm telling you that when you talk about a player who can take you to the promised land, she's a franchise player," Minnesota coach Cheryl Littlejohn said. "She's a hard worker. She's a scorer. She can rebound. She's a complete player. You probably haven't seen a post player of her caliber with her footwork. This conference hasn't seen the likes of a Nina Smith."

Madison is scheduled to see its first glimpse of Smith tonight at 7, when the UW women's basketball team opens its season with an exhibition game against Athletes in Action at the Kohl Center.

"It will just be exciting to be in the Wisconsin uniform, to be on the floor, to have people in the Kohl Center cheering you on," Smith said. "I think that will be the most intimidating, yet exciting, part, because I've waited so long to get here, and it's finally coming."

Smith, 18, appreciates hearing kind words like those from Littlejohn, but the endorsement also carries a burden. Despite her reputation as a dominating inside presence, Smith said she is somewhat intimidated by the college game.

"I don't know what I can do on the court," she said. "In high school, by the time my senior year came, I knew what I could do because I had played for four years. I'm a little intimidated. Our first game is coming up. I don't know what to expect. It's exciting when someone says that because they know I have potential to do that. It's me doing it that is the hard part."

Illinois coach Theresa Grentz said Smith will be aided by the talent that surrounds her. The cupboard certainly isn't bare on UW coach Jane Albright's roster with LaTonya Sims and Jessie Stomski already established on the Badgers' front line.

"All freshmen adjust at different rates," Grentz said. "It will be interesting to see how (Smith) does that. Some do it more quickly than others. ... I think there are some very, very talented players in the Wisconsin program, so that the pressure is not on Nina's shoulders, and Jane will let Nina come along at her own pace."

Albright doesn't mind discussing Smith, who joins Sims as a Parade first-team All-American signed by UW. When a reporter apologized for asking Albright another question about Smith at the recent Big Ten Conference media day, she replied: "I could speak about it 100 times. I could not get tired talking about Nina."

Albright beat out her former boss, Tennessee coach Pat Summitt, for Smith. In Smith's case, perennial power Tennessee's success actually worked against the Volunteers.

"This is a school that hasn't won much," Smith said about UW. "I was looking at Tennessee, where you have fingers-and-toes worth of national championships. This is a school that is on the brink -- with more talent and more chemistry, and everyone is working hard here.

"It would be exciting for me to come here and be able to win. It would be so amazing to win a national championship for the first time ever for this school. That's something no one else has accomplished here. It would be more important for me to be part of something great for the first time."

Penn State coach Rene Portland said she wasn't in the hunt for Smith. But Portland said keeping Smith, a player from Iowa, in the Big Ten was significant.

"Nina Smith is a great catch for the conference," Portland said. "One of the goals for the coaches is to keep Big Ten kids in the Big Ten, so it's a tribute to Wisconsin that they were able to keep her in our league."

Smith is close with her parents, Bev and James, and family, so she didn't want to be too far away from home. But she also was looking to make her own mark, and the Badgers were right on the edge of greatness, she believed.

"She was close to her family, so I thought we had a chance," Iowa coach Angie Lee said. "But it didn't work. I wish her the best, except when she plays against us."

Lee hoped Smith would stay in Iowa, but she could sense Smith's desire to branch out. Nevertheless, Lee hated to see a top recruit such as Smith leave the state.

"It would be ridiculous to say, 'No,"' Lee said. "Absolutely, I would have loved to see Nina wear the black and gold. Now, that's not my concern."

Now Lee's concern, like her coaching colleagues, is stopping Smith.

"I feel the same as anyone," Lee said. "Nina Smith is one of the best post players that's ever come out of the high school ranks. I think Nina will have an impact on the conference. She is a very quick and agile post player."

When Smith took a recruiting visit to Wisconsin in 1998 she wanted to know "the real deal" as to what Albright's program was like. UW forward Sims played host and leveled with Smith, who hasn't been disappointed.

"Everything was real to life," said Smith, whom Albright has described as "the real deal" in the low post. "Conditioning was a little bit of a surprise. It's been a little more than I expected. I came in (and have been) lifting weights, and I dropped a lot of weight since I've been here. I feel like high school conditioning was easy compared to here."

Smith said she has dropped 12 pounds since coming to UW this summer and now weighs 238 pounds. Taking into account the addition of muscle from weight lifting, Smith said she hoped to play at about 235 pounds this season.

Albright calls Smith a "thoroughbred," and Albright's and the athletic training staff's approach with her health has been cautious.

"We are trying to be very conservative and very smart," Albright said.

For instance, Smith sustained a left ankle injury as a senior in high school and felt soreness in the left foot during practice. Albright didn't overdo Smith's work on the court, and she maintained her conditioning by riding the stationary bicycle. Smith said she had X-rays on the ankle last Tuesday and received a clean bill of health.

The Badgers received a scare last Wednesday when Smith hit the floor hard after a collision to the side of the basket. She wound up with a bruised right knee, but one could hear the proverbial pin drop after Smith cried out in pain.

Smith will be tested by experienced centers of equal height and will have to get used to the physical rigors of collegiate play. She will need to learn man-to-man defensive skills after playing primarily zone in high school.

Albright, however, said Smith is a better defensive player than anticipated.

"She's so athletic and agile," Albright said. "My biggest worry is to keep her out of foul trouble."

There is little doubt that Smith, who plans to study sociology and art education, knows how to play on offense. Smith, who made 78 percent of her field goals as a high school senior, has a collection of moves.

"She has very good footwork for her size, which is impressive," UW forward Stomski said.

"Yeah, she's good," Sims said. "So far she's lived up to her stats. Hopefully, that will carry over for the games."