Louisville basketball has had a dominant offseason so far as Pat Kelsey has landed three top 10 players in the transfer portal, including the No. 3 overall player, Adrian Wooley.
The Cardinals had a glaring concern entering the offseason, and that was their shooting woes from last season. Louisville shot the three-ball inconsistently as they shot high-volume 3-pointers but did not have a high-volume split. The Cardinals shot over 800 3-pointers last season and around 32 percent. Well, the Cardinals will be expected to shoot around the same number of 3-pointers next season at a much higher rate. Their four newcomers, Mikel Brown Jr, Wooley, Isaac McKneely, and Ryan Conwell, are all sharpshooters from beyond the arc and will form one of the most explosive backcourts in the nation.
Louisville basketball will now shift its focus to the forward position. The Cardinals would like to try to land just one more dominant piece to cement themselves as National Championship contenders. One of the most recent portal entries could be the Cardinals' next big-time commitment, and he would skyrocket the Cardinals' title odds.
Recent transfer portal entry is the Louisville Cardinals missing piece
Yaxel Lendeborg recently entered the transfer portal earlier this week, as the UAB transfer is the unanimous No. 1 overall prospect in the portal, with a composite score of .9900 according to all recruiting websites. Lendeborg is the Cardinal's glaring missing piece, as this 6-foot-9, 230-pound power forward is one of the most dominant two-way players in college basketball.
Last season for UAB, the senior put up record-breaking numbers for the Blazers, averaging 17.7 points, 11.4 rebounds, 4.2 assists, 1.8 blocks, and 1.7 steals while shooting 52.2 percent from the field and 35.7 percent from downtown. The unanimous 5-star prospect earned 26 double-doubles last season, which led college basketball, and his 420 rebounds last year broke the Blazers' record for most rebounds in a single season. He also etched his name in the Blazers' history books, as he has the record for most double-doubles in UAB history.
The Cardinals need a player with height who can space out the floor and be an elite rim protector. Lendeborg is not only the best player who has entered the portal, but he is also the dream fit for what the Cardinals need. He is a two-time AAC Defensive Player of the Year, and last year, he averaged 1.8 blocks and 1.7 steals per game. No other player in college basketball averaged those numbers.
He will be a tough player to grab as the Cardinals have already spent a lot of money in the portal, but it was reported that Kelsey was going to spend nearly $10 million this offseason. On3 has his NIL value at $2.3 million, meaning he could potentially still be in the Cardinals' budget if they are willing to land four superstars and be content with the role players they had from last season.
Lendeborg's ability to dominate both ends of the floor while standing tall at 6-foot-9 is a dream fit for Kelsey and the Cardinals. SEC giants like Auburn, Kentucky, and Alabama have already contacted him, but Kelsey has beaten Alabama out for Wooley and Tennessee for McKneely. The Cardinals are one of the top landing spots this offseason, winning the recruiting battle against big-time SEC programs.
For all the latest on Louisville basketball's offseason, stay tuned.