Louisville basketball’s only remaining known target for 2020 set to make decision

Louisville basketball’s top remaining recruiting target in the class of 2020 will pick between three schools on Friday.

It’s been quite some time since we’ve heard any sort of update on the recruiting front for Chris Mack and the Louisville basketball program. In fact, the last real newsworthy bit came from the Early Signing Period when the Cards signed three members to the class, including junior college star wing, Jay Scrubb, four-star forward D’Andre Davis, and combo forward JJ Traynor.

While recruiting has by no means been put on the back burner, Mack and staff have clearly been more focused on the current season at hand and making sure Louisville is prepared to make a run at the ACC Championship and National Championship when the time comes. With just about every target for the Cards off the board, there really wasn’t expected to be much movement in the class until then.

Or so we thought.

Per a report from Evan Daniels of 247 Sports, four-star guard and the top (and only) remaining target on the board for the Cardinals, Jalen Terry, will make his decision on Friday, January 17th and will choose between his final three schools; Louisville, LSU, and Oregon.

Terry’s recruitment by Louisville came full circle following the guard’s decision to decommit to Michigan State, after being committed for nearly seven months. Mack and Louisville had gotten involved very early in the process with the Michigan product but backed off following his commitment to Michigan State. With Terry no longer committed, Mack and company got involved once again, even hosting the four-star guard on campus for an official visit.

Things looked to be really good, but no commitment ever came – giving Louisville basketball fans nightmares following the never-ending summer of “no’s.”

Terry went on to take visits to LSU and Oregon, who now join Louisville in the top three. So what are Louisville’s chances?

Well as of now, it’s hard to say. Had a commitment come following the official visit the crystal ball almost definitely signaled that it would have been to Louisville. Following his visit, Terry’s Dad told 247 Sports:

"“We like what we have seen from Louisville. We’ll sit down as a family and see what’s the best fit, but we got a great vibe from Louisville and are highly considering them.”"

That could very well still be the case for the Terry family, but since that visit, things have gone quiet. There have been no reports of Terry communicating with the Louisville staff or providing any sort of update on where things are until his announcement date was set.

Louisville very well could still be in the mix and could land Terry, a player they desperately need. At 5’10, 160 pounds Terry is an elite athlete who has improved his game significantly over the last season and now sits as the nation’s 10th best point guard in the class of 2020 and the 57th best player nationally.

Many will wonder about Terry’s size, standing at just 5’10, especially considering Chris Mack’s comments about his smaller guards being dominated against Florida State as well as the pre-existing notion that he prefers larger guards. Make of it what you will, but should Terry decide to commit to Louisville, the Cards would no doubt be getting a future star.

Despite his smaller stature, Terry is an elite athlete who is able to do just everything you can ask for from your point guard. Whether it’s playmaking for others, scoring at all three levels, or defending, Terry has shown the willingness and ability to improve (and dominate) even having a size advantage.

Terry would bring to Louisville an ability to get into the paint, something the Cards have desperately struggled with this season, and make plays for himself or others. He’s got a sweet floater that he uses in the paint as well as nifty handles that make him a near uncontainable scoring and playmaking threat.

If I was a betting man, I’d say that Terry likely ends up at Oregon but I’ve been wrong before. Here’s to hoping Louisville can land the star point guard this class needs.