Louisville basketball: Three options for final 2020-21 scholarship

Immediately eligible big man/frontcourt depth

The leading school of thought from fans and those who cover the Cards alike is that a big man is needed to aid in the development of rising sophomore Aidan Igiehon. Coming into Louisville with just as much hype, if not more than Williamson, Igiehon needed more time to adjust to the college game and sitting behind Steven Enoch and Malik Williams, there never ended up being the opportunity needed to make a splash.

Even with concerns over the late-season injury that knocked him out for the final 10-plus games for Louisville, and the overall struggles in development, there’s no reason to believe that Igiehon won’t take a big step forward next year with more minute available eliminating the need for another big man to back up Williams.

Chris Mack spoke with local media last week and was specifically asked about the team’s need to add another player and if it needed to be in the front court. He said:

"“That’s a need we think we have, but we also have plenty of capable players that if we have to play differently we’ll do that.”"

When you look at Louisville’s roster you can instantly notice the youth and inexperience that Mack will be dealing with outside of Williams in the frontcourt – which would make sense as to why a need may be in the frontcourt. However, you can also a group of players with through the roof potential who just need time and minutes on the floor to develop.

Quinn Slazinski and Aidan Igiehon, who will play the three and four respectively, both played less than 60 minutes during the 2019-20 season (most of which came in garbage time), while JaeLyn Withers (who will play the three and four positions) sat out the year as a redshirt and will take the floor for the first time in his career against Western Kentucky.

That leaves the four-position as arguably the biggest question mark, and the backup five as a toss-up as well. While I envision all three players playing big roles, finding a player from either the transfer portal or the JUCO ranks could be worth it to give Mack a little more experience.

Who that player might be is the bigger question. As of now, the transfer portal sits rather empty of big men who are capable of playing at the highest level in the ACC.

We know the Cards reached out to Matt Haarms, arguably the top remaining player in the portal, but were left off his list of considered schools; while 7’3 giant big man Mattias Markusson decided to spurn Louisville to return back to Loyola Marymount. There are other options to watch, like 2021 big man and potential reclassifier Micawber Etienne, but as Chris Mack pointed out the team isn’t going to take anyone.

If Louisville is going to add a big man it’ll likely come later in the offseason, much like with Florida adding Virginia Tech standout Kerry Blackshear Jr. last year.

There is no denying there are a lot of questions about the frontcourt for Louisville, which signals there is a need, but would a potential big man transfer take too much away from the long-term development of the existing pieces?