Louisville basketball: 5 under the radar transfers for Cards
By Jacob Lane
Alex O’Connell – SG
Duke, Junior (6’6, 190-pounds)
2019 stats: 5.2 ppg, 2.2 rpg,
At last, a name you probably are familiar with.
You probably remember seeing Alex O’Connell play for Duke each of the last two occasions that they’ve met up with Louisville. You may also remember him from his high school days, where Louisville was a major part of his recruitment right up until the very end before he ultimately chose Duke.
After three years of being overshadowed by the revolving door of five-star freshman, O’Connell was never able to break out and become the player that many expected him to be when he chose Duke over Louisville, Syracuse, and Auburn back in 2017. While O’Connell never shot the ball anywhere near the level he was expected to, a lot of that can be pinned on inconsistent usage by Coach K as well as what I would call “a lack of trust in his role.”
Much like what we saw with Darius Perry during his two years with Chris Mack, O’Connell never really looked comfortable and it resulted in him not being able to develop the way he’d like. It happens all the time, but it was clear that the junior guard needed a fresh start.
A look through game logs shows the inconsistency in scoring that plagued his career, as well as the inconsistent minutes he received in all three seasons. While his play wasn’t always warranting of more minutes, he also had to deal with a new wave of freshmen being brought in each year thus usually changing his role.
They also showed that in spurts, O’Connell could reach his potential as a three-point shooter. Throughout his career at Duke, O’Connell had 22 games where he was able to drain multiple three’s, including seven games with three or more.
O’Connell showed flashes of what could make him a nice fit for Louisville. Coming out of high school, he was most widely recognized and coveted for his ability to shoot the ball from deep. While that never came to fruition at Duke, especially in what “The Chronicle” called a “make or break year” O’Connell showed growth in others. He became a much more trustable defender, achieving career-highs in rebounds and steals (although he was still below average) and also showed some playmaking ability (again in small spurts).
One of Chris Mack’s best players during his time at Xavier was J.P. Macura, another big guard capable of doing a ton of different things on the floor. Each year he took the floor for Xavier he got better, adding something to his game even in the face of doubters. While O’Connell will only have one season remaining to play, I believe Mack could do similar good for his game; specifically with restoring confidence.
Unless the NCAA transfer rules are changed this summer, the rising senior will be forced to sit out next season. That means he would be eligible to play for the Cards starting in 2021-22 where he would join another veteran-laden team for Chris Mack. Assuming that David Johnson and Sam Williamson have both departed for the NBA, that would put O’Connell next to Josh Nickelberry and D’Andre Davis. Both of those guys are more than capable of scoring off the dribble and creating for others, which would more be beneficial to a shooter.
O’Connell is said to have received a ton of interest from high-major and mid-major programs, none of which have been Louisville at this point. While it’s a long shot for a match, there’s potential for it to work out well for both parties.