Louisville basketball: What are the Cards getting in Jay Scrubb?

LOUISVILLE, KY - FEBRUARY 19: Head coach Chris Mack of the Louisville Cardinals looks on during a game against the Syracuse Orange at KFC YUM! Center on February 19, 2020 in Louisville, Kentucky. Louisville defeated Syracuse 90-66. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)
LOUISVILLE, KY - FEBRUARY 19: Head coach Chris Mack of the Louisville Cardinals looks on during a game against the Syracuse Orange at KFC YUM! Center on February 19, 2020 in Louisville, Kentucky. Louisville defeated Syracuse 90-66. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)
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It was no small feat when Louisville basketball wrapped up its first commit in its 2020 class, securing a commitment from top Juco recruit Jay Scrubb. Here’s what his commitment means for the Cardinals next season.

Jay Scrubb comes to the Louisville Cardinals as a player who is widely accepted as one of the best college players in the country, with NBA potential. Louisville basketball‘s connections with Scrubb run deep, as he has had ties in and around Louisville for almost his entire basketball career.

Scrubb grew up playing AAU basketball in and around Louisville, and knows several players on the team personally, including former high school teammate David Johnson.

Playing his JUCO ball at John A. Logan College in Cartersville, Illinois, Scrubb is a Louisville native and an alum of Trinity High School. Scrubb was the only JUCO freshman to be named an All-American in 2019, and that’s only where his list of accolades begin.

In addition to All-American honors, he was the only player to come out of junior college basketball and get an invite to the USA Basketball U19 camp, a prestigious honor.

He will be a game one starter in Louisville’s backcourt as the Cards are set to lose guards Fresh Kimble and Ryan McMahon to graduation as well as wings Dwayne Sutton and Jordan Nwora. Scrubb should be an immediate plug and play option (assuming he actually enrolls at Louisville, which we’ll get to) meaning he and Johnson stand to be stars next season.

If Scrubb opts to forego the draft and come to his hometown Cardinals, he’ll quickly assert himself as one of the most talented players on the team, as an NBA ready guard. So what is it that Jay Scrubb will be bringing to this Cardinal team, and where is his game the strongest? Let’s take a look.