Louisville Basketball: Aidan Igiehon Would be a Program-Changing Player for Cards

Louisville basketball recruiting is heating up for the 2019 class. Could a talented big man be Chris Mack’s first great recruit?

Louisville basketball’s 2019 recruiting class is going to be a big one. Chris Mack is working to lay the foundation for his program, and will do so by signing at least six players that will be incoming freshmen on next year’s team. He has already locked down a commitment from 4-star shooting guard Josh Nickelberry, who is ranked 53rd in his class by 247 Sports.

Now, Mack is turning his attention to finding a player that could be the center piece for next year’s class.

One name that has generated a lot of buzz the last couple of weeks has been power forward Aidan Igiehon. I’m not going to lie, I would be absolutely ecstatic if Igiehon were to commit to Louisville. The 6’10,” 215 pound specimen is rising up every ranking possible. He is rated as high as No. 14 in 247 Sports’s 2019 recruiting rankings, and will likely be a top 10 player by the time the final rankings are released.

Igiehon was born and raised in Ireland, before realizing that he couldn’t reach his fullest potential in his home country. He then moved to the U.S., where he has been peaking coaches and expert’s interest levels ever since. His  story is one of an underdog rising to the top, and one of his likely destinations is the University of Louisville.

Chris Mack and staff recruited Igiehon when they were at Xavier, but Mack had reportedly not been putting all his eggs in the Aidan Igiehon basket because he said he never thought he would be able to land a player of his caliber at Xavier.

Now, Mack is at Louisville, where landing a top 25 player wouldn’t turn any heads, and he and assistant coach Luke Murray have been all in on Igiehon. It doesn’t take much video review to see why Mack and dozens of the best coaches in the country are salivating over him. And I’m not even talking about the highlight tape. Igiehon is a grown man already. Mentally, he is even more mature. He answers media questions like a seasoned professional. He is polite and humble, but self-assured.

On the court, Igiehon would make the Cards title contenders right away. He has a full repertoire, and would bring a low-post presence that Louisville supporters haven’t seen since Montrezl Harrell. He skies for rebounds, is willing to bang in the low post, and can muscle around the defender with ease. He is physically imposing on defense, and dunks the ball will ferocity on the offensive end.

What are the chances of the Cards landing Igiehon? Well, pretty darn good, actually.

After visiting Louisville a week ago, national recruiting experts Evan Daniels and Josh Gershon both registered predictions that Igiehon would choose the Cards. These are two analysts that are rarely wrong, and are confident that the “Irish Hulk” will be wearing Cardinal red in 2019. Additionally, when the Courier Journal’s Jeff Greer joined 93.9 The Ville last week, when asked to predict how the Cards’s recruiting class would pan out, he was most confident in predicting Igiehon to The Ville.

Igiehon could be a program-changing recruit for Louisville. His mix of incredible athleticism and work ethic, along with the ability to lead at such a young age could make him a one-and-done type of talent.

You don’t just build a recruiting class around a player like Igiehon, you can create a foundation for your program for years to come.

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It’s no wonder Chris Mack and company are not letting him out of their sights.