Louisville basketball got the update they were anxiously waiting for last night, as Milan Momcilovic officially announced he has withdrawn his name from the NBA Draft and will return to college basketball. The elite power forward entered the Transfer Portal back in April and also declared for the NBA Draft. With him now withdrawing from the draft, he emerges as the top transfer target available.
Louisville basketball's Milan Momcilovic dream stays alive after massive NBA Draft update
The Cardinals have been linked to Momcilovic throughout May, as Louisville looks to build a real National Title contender. Right now, the Cardinals have landed six transfers from the portal and have the No. 1 portal class in the nation, and if Pat Kelsey finds a way to land Momcilovic, Louisville has a real case to be ranked in the top five when the season starts.
However, it won’t be easy to land Momcilovic, as many powerhouse programs will start reaching out to the 5-star. Louisville is in an early recruiting battle with a few teams right now, and so here are the three biggest threats to land this elite 5-star transfer over Louisville.
3 Biggest threats for Louisville basketball to land elite 5-star transfer Milan Momcilovic
At this moment, the three biggest threats to land Momcilovic are Arizona, St. John’s, and Kentucky. The Cardinals are expected to be in a major recruiting battle with these three teams, as all three are reported to be making a strong push.
Arizona is the latest team in the mix as Jeff Goodman was the first to report the Wildcats. Earlier this week, The Field of 68 reporter reported the Wildcats are making a “strong push” for the 5-star power forward, especially if Koa Peat remains in the NBA Draft. And, the star forward for the Wildcats did remain in the draft, and so now Arizona is expected to be one of the main teams looking to add Momcilovic.
St. John’s has been named a frontrunner in this process for Momcilovic early on, according to Goodman. A couple of weeks ago, Goodman reported that Louisville and St. John’s are “frontrunners” for the 5-star power forward. Rick Pitino landed a massive transfer last night after the Baylor transfer Tounde Yessoufou committed to St. John’s, and Jon Rothstein quickly reported that “St. John's will still pursue” Momcilovic. So, now St. John’s is looking to build a National Title contender team with Yessoufou and Momcilovic, and they are emerging as a real threat to the Cardinals' dreams of landing the 5-star.
And lastly, the Kentucky Wildcats. Mark Pope and Kentucky are the other main teams involved in the Momcilovic recruiting process. Kentucky didn’t land the 5-star 2026 recruit Tyran Stokes, and hasn’t had the transfer run like Louisville. Kentucky has held multiple Zoom calls with Momcilovic and is emerging as one of the Cardinals' biggest threats in the race to land the 5-star. It is going to be an in-state recruiting battle between these two teams, and the rivalry will show as these two programs go head-to-head for the elite 3-point specialist.
The 5-star Iowa State transfer ranks as high as No. 2 overall in the Transfer Portal and is a unanimous top-three transfer, according to On3 Sports, which ranks him No. 3 overall. He is rated a 5-star transfer, the unanimous No. 1 power forward, and the No. 1 remaining transfer in the portal. The Cardinals are expected to be heavily involved in this recruiting process, and Kelsey will try to work his portal magic one last time and earn Momcilovic’s commitment over these three teams.
Also read: Louisville basketball has an obvious No. 1 target after Flory Bidunga update
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