Louisville basketball receives commitment from the next Dwayne Sutton

Louisville basketball landed its first commitment of the 2021 class on Sunday when forward Bryce Hopkins pledged to the Cards.

It’s never too early to start looking at the future. Louisville basketball received its first commitment from the rising high school junior class on Sunday when versatile forward Bryce Hopkins pledged to Chris Mack.

While the Cardinals struggled early on to land some of their top targets in the 2020 class, Mack and the Louisville coaching staff are working on a more level playing field entering Louisville’s third recruiting cycle under the current leadership.

Louisville basketball has been in on Hopkins, an explosive forward from Chicago for a while now, and after his third visit, he decided to pull the trigger on his commitment.

"“I picked Louisville because this was the third time visiting Louisville and every time I’ve been the coaches have been genuine and they had a great vision for me that I loved,” he said speaking to 247 Sports."

"”They were all genuine and with me being away from my parents for that part of my life I feel like they will continue to groom me to become a better young man. It just felt like family with them.”"

Hopkins is cut from the same cloth as some of the current Louisville forwards. He has an arsenal of shots from long-range, but typical of a Chicago star, Hopkins is not afraid to absorb contact on the way to the bucket.

Looking at his tape, Hopkins reminds one of a Dwayne Sutton type of forward. He plays much larger than his size and is not afraid to get physical and contribute in other ways besides just scoring the ball.

The Chicago-Sun Times pegged Hopkins as a darkhorse Chicago player of the year candidate this season among future All-Americans DJ Steward and Adam Miller:

"Did you see the numbers the 6-6 do-it-all put up a year ago? As a sophomore? Hopkins averaged 23 points and had six games of 30-plus points.He has grown physically and as a player and should be even more efficient. He is one of the rare players in the state capable of putting a team on his back and carrying it.While Fenwick has some younger talent in place, how quickly will that translate into high win totals? By the end of the season, could Fenwick and Hopkins go on an extended March run in Class 3A and enhance his chances?"

Hopkins has offers from teams like Wisconsin, Kansas, Illinois, and Xavier among others, and as his career progresses, he will receive looks from other big-name schools.

For now, the Cards are already solidifying their future by landing a top-tier name in the class of 2021, and though we may not see Hopkins in red and black for nearly two years, that is no small feat.