Six bold predictions for Louisville basketball in 2019-2020
By Jacob Lane
Presley Meyer (@meyer_presley): Darius Perry becomes leader of the Louisville backcourt
Defining a player’s season based on stats and analytics alone is nearly an impossible task to do preseason. There are a number of ways this season could play out in the Louisville backcourt, and given how many newcomers there are and how many injuries there have been over the summer, the Cards’ guard rotation is unpredictable.
To me, there are two guarantees in the Louisville backcourt: firstly that Ryan McMahon will continue to be the most accurate three-point and free-throw shooting threat in the country, and second that Darius Perry will bring the most energy on the team.
The Cards figure to be guided by graduate transfer Fresh Kimble and the fifth-year senior McMahon, while a trio of freshmen- Samuell Williamson, David Johnson, and Josh Nickleberry- will all get a considerable amount of playing time. However, it is Perry that seems to be the real X-factor for this squad.
Perry’s up-and-down career has given fans a lot of hope but not a ton of production in return. He is one of the quickest, most explosive players on the floor with the ability to guard both guard positions and score at every level.
However, Perry has also shown to be mistake-prone, turning the ball over at inopportune times and often times not playing within his game.
This season, Perry wants to turn things around, and he knows it starts with consistency in his game. Chris Mack spoke about Perry becoming an “everyday guy” in the offseason, something that it appears the junior guard is taking to heart.
When he is on, there are not many more talented guys on this 2019-20 squad. But it’s getting Perry to be “on” the majority of the time that seems to be the issue. After being entrenched as the starter during non-conference play last season, Perry only started one conference game. Just like his freshman season, however, Perry managed to turn his game around for a late surge late in the year and into the postseason.
Now, Louisville may go as far as their lesser talked-about players like Dwayne Sutton, Kimble, and Perry can take them. Perry enters the season a bit overlooked, but his style of play gives him a chance to turn some heads.
If Perry brings consistency and strives to be an “everyday guy,” he can become an unexpected star on this team.