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Louisville basketball: Way too early bold predictions for 2020-21

By Presley Meyer

LOUISVILLE, KY - JANUARY 25: David Johnson #13 of the Louisville Cardinals looks to pass the ball up court during a game against the Clemson Tigers at KFC YUM! Center on January 25, 2020 in Louisville, Kentucky. Louisville defeated Clemson 80-62. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)
LOUISVILLE, KY - JANUARY 25: David Johnson #13 of the Louisville Cardinals looks to pass the ball up court during a game against the Clemson Tigers at KFC YUM! Center on January 25, 2020 in Louisville, Kentucky. Louisville defeated Clemson 80-62. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /
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LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY – FEBRUARY 08: Samuell Williamson #10 of the Louisville Cardinals dunks the ball against the Virginia Cavaliers during the first half of the game at KFC YUM! Center on February 08, 2020 in Louisville, Kentucky. (Photo by Silas Walker/Getty Images)
LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY – FEBRUARY 08: Samuell Williamson #10 of the Louisville Cardinals dunks the ball against the Virginia Cavaliers during the first half of the game at KFC YUM! Center on February 08, 2020 in Louisville, Kentucky. (Photo by Silas Walker/Getty Images) /

Samuell Williamson leads the Cards in scoring

In the absence of Jordan Nwora and Dwayne Sutton, there are suddenly a ton of minutes up for grabs at the three and four spots.

Louisville will probably never be able to fill the void of an All-American and a fifth-year senior captain with a ridiculous motor. However, their next step in filling in where they left off may be in the development of rising sophomore Samuell Williamson.

We saw plenty of flashes of what Williamson can do as a freshman. He is the smoothest player on the team, gets to the bucket with ease, has a fantastic mid-range game, and is a developing three-point shooter. Sound like anyone? To me, it sounds like a freshman Jordan Nwora.

There are tons of differences in Williamson and Nwora’s games, but the similarities are what should have Louisville basketball fans excited. Williamson will have a similar opportunity to make a massive jump in 2020-21 just like Nwora did in Mack’s first season.

Coming off a season where Williamson averaged 4.4 points, 2.5 rebounds, and 0.6 assists, Williamson has an opportunity to be a difference-maker this coming season. With the bulk of Louisville’s scoring gone, Williamson will likely start and find the ball in his hands at a much higher rate than last season.

I don’t think there’s a single person who watched Williamson in 2019-20 who doesn’t think he has the ability. Now that he has the opportunity, great things are going to happen.

Nwora jumped from 5.7 points per game his freshman year to 17.0 points per game his sophomore year simply due to opportunity alone. I look for Williamson to make a similar jump and turn into a go-to guy during his sophomore season.

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