Louisville basketball is coming up fast, and the Cardinals' fans are eagerly awaiting it. The Cardinals had an extremely busy offseason, adding nine players, including six from the top-ranked Transfer Portal.
Pat Kelsey didn’t get much downtime, as the head coach was recruiting right after the season ended, and it paid off. The Cardinals landed multiple notable transfers from the portal,  but the one that stands out the most is the 5-star transfer Flory Bidunga.
The Kansas transfer has incredibly high expectations, and if he needed some motivation entering this upcoming season, Bleacher Report just provided some.
Flory Bidunga projected outside first round in early NBA Mock Draft
The star center was at the NBA Combine this past spring, as he was trying to climb up the draft board and emerge as a potential first-round pick. After not being told a promise from a team, he ultimately decided to return to college basketball and play this upcoming year with the Cardinals.
Now, Bidunga has the dream of being a first-round pick after his third collegiate season, but Bleacher Report has him just on the outside. NBA draft insider Jonathan Wasserman put a way-too-early 2027 NBA Mock Draft, and Bidunga is projected to go as the No. 33 overall pick, making him the third pick in the second round.
The 5-star transfer from Kansas has the skill and potential to soar up these draft rankings and emerge as a first-round pick, but right now it appears he is trending as an early second-round pick. This isn’t the only 2027 NBA mock draft that has Bidunga left out of the first round, as most of them have the 5-star going in the early second round.
Bidunga is coming off an All-Big 12 season, where he won the Defensive Player of the Year award in the Big 12 after ranking in the top five in total blocks and blocks per game. The 5-star transfer made the All-Big 12 First Team after averaging 13.3 points and 9.0 rebounds per game and securing 13 double-doubles.
If Bidunga can expand his offensive game, be a bit more than a lob threat, and be a truly dominant big man in the paint on offense, the 6-foot-9 center will have the potential to rise in these mock drafts. Everyone knows he is an elite rim-protector on the defensive end, earning 91 blocks on the season and averaging 2.6 blocks per game, but to be a first-round draft pick, it is clear he must develop his offensive game.
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