Top-20 transfer Keyon Menifield includes Louisville in his Top 6 schools

6-foot-2, 170-pound guard Keyon Menifield announced his intentions to enter the transfer portal on March 27, 2023. Two days later, a list of schools that had reached out to the former three-star prospect was released, and it included over 10 collegiate programs.

One particular program that has been connected to Keyon Menifield since very early on is the University of Louisville. Head Coach Kenny Payne knows he needs another true point guard on the roster to help fellow point guard Skyy Clark.

At this point in time, the verdict is still out on whether or not El Ellis will return to the Cardinals next season. But, if he does and Menifield comes, then a backcourt of Menifield, Ellis, and Clark would be deadly.

One of the biggest weaknesses that Louisville had last season was reliable point guard play and having three guys of their caliber would be monumental for the potential of the backcourt next season.

In his lone season at the University of Washington, his production greatly exceeded the attention he got in recruiting. Menifield was a three-star prospect from the state of Michigan and did not receive scholarship offers from the University of Michigan or Michigan State University, leaving him to go to the West Coast to join the Washington Huskies in the Pac-12.

After an impressive rookie campaign, he decided his time was best spent outside of Seattle. And now plenty of programs are vying for his services. It was unclear where he was thinking about spending the next few years playing basketball, until today when he released a graphic detailing his final six schools.

Kenny Payne and the University of Louisville made the list and are in a very good place to land the versatile guard. A source close to Big Red Louie has conveyed that he wants ‘to play for a coaching staff that has NBA experience and who has played on both levels.’

Well, that perfectly describes Kenny Payne who was an assistant coach for the New York Knicks prior to coming to Louisville and he also played in the NBA from 1989-1993 with the Philadelphia 76ers.

Arkansas Head Coach Eric Musselman did not play at the NBA level, nor has Ohio State Head Coach Chris Holtmann, nor has Alabama Head Coach Nate Oats, nor has Tennessee Head Coach Rick Barnes, and nor has Washington Head Coach Mike Hopkins.

Not only would Kenny Payne fit those criteria, but so would assistant coach Danny Manning, who played at the professional level from 1988-2003. So, he would make the perfect fit for Louisville in addressing a huge need at the point guard position and would be able to learn from Kenny Payne and Danny Manning what it’s like to play at both levels.

The commitment of Keyon Menifield would continue to raise the bar of excitement for the University of Louisville basketball program next season as the roster has nearly been overhauled completely at this point.