Former five-star recruit and Illinois transfer Skyy Clark committed to Head Coach Kenny Payne and the University of Louisville on Thursday evening. The announcement came via Twitter, just a few minutes after his former team suffered a 73-63 defeat to Arkansas in the first round of the 2023 NCAA Tournament.
today I am excited to announce my commitment to the University of Louisville. I am ready to play for Coach Kenny Payne and the city of Louisville. The time is now to chase my dream with Coach KP and staff but even bigger than that, the dream for Louisville Basketball! pic.twitter.com/DuK79Ebazl
— skyy clark (@skyyclark) March 16, 2023
The 6-foot-3, 200-pound guard was ranked No. 27 overall and No. 2 in the state of Florida for the class of 2022, according to ESPN. Skyy Clark averaged 7.0 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 2.1 assists in 13 games with the Illinois Fighting Illini during his freshman season. After a promising start to the 2022-2023 season, the star out of Montverde Academy announced on January 6th that he would be stepping away from the Illinois program “for personal reasons.”
While many of college basketball’s top programs remain focused on the 2023 NCAA Tournament, Kenny Payne and his staff have gone to work on the recruiting trail. On Monday, the University of Louisville men’s basketball team landed a commitment from class of 2023 five-star center Dennis Evans. The 7-foot-1, 210-pound prospect was ranked No. 11 nationally by Rivals and had decommitted from the University of Minnesota in late February.
Despite an underwhelming first season as the head coach at the University of Louisville, Kenny Payne is swiftly reminding fans that he is one of the top recruiters in college basketball and the right man for the job. Louisville has also recently received projections to land class of 2024 five-star forwards Trentyn Flowers and Carter Bryant.
Skyy Clark will provide some much-needed depth to the Cards’ backcourt, and the sky is certainly the limit when it comes to what he and the University of Louisville can accomplish together in the upcoming seasons.