Former G-League SG is perfect target for Pat Kelsey and Louisville basketball

Louisville basketball recently lost out on a few of its top 2026 recruiting prospects, with the most recent one being Louisville native Tyran Stokes. The 5-star recruit ranks as high as the No. 1 recruit in the nation, but after he cut his list down to three schools it was officially time for the Cards to move on from Stokes.

Now that Louisville has yet to earn a commitment from a high school player, the fans are beginning to buy into the G-League players. Louisville was one of the first schools to earn a commitment from a former G League player, as they landed point guard London Johnson.

With the fans' growing interest in this route and more players looking to transition to college basketball from the G League, Louisville should target a specific player who has recently expressed a desire to make the jump to college basketball.

Louisville basketball must go target this elite G-League player

TJ Clark recently expressed interest in leaving the G-League and playing college basketball. He has already drawn interest from elite programs like Tennessee, Ohio State, Georgia, Clemson, and Auburn, meaning Pat Kelsey must start moving relatively quickly to enter the race.

Clark is a 6-foot-4 shooting guard who was a 3-star recruit out of high school, but decided not to play his senior season and opted for the professional route, signing with Overtime Elite. In his first season, he raised some eyebrows and stood out, scoring at least 10 points in 10 games.

In his second season, he showed why he would fit Kelsey's system, as he improved his defense and was a menace on the defensive side, averaging 9.5 points, 3.1 rebounds, 1.9 assists, and 2.3 steals per game, while shooting 40.5 percent from the field and 37.5 percent from beyond the arc.

He then went to the G-League, where he played for the Ontario Clippers and Texas Legends. However, after playing limited minutes, he moved to the Mexican CIBACOPA League and signed with the Rayos de Hermosillo. Here is where Clark really showed his skills and why the Cards should try to pair him up with Johnson. Clark went on to have an impact on both ends of the floor after averaging 10.2 points, 4.4 rebounds, 2.3 assists, 1.6 steals, and 0.5 blocks per game, while shooting 47 percent from the field.

The Cards are going to lose the majority of their backcourt after this season, and so, looking towards next year, they have London Johnson and Adrian Wooley, assuming he returns. A player like Clark would bring a lot of experience and provide much-needed depth to play behind Wooley. Louisville will most likely go to the Transfer Portal similarly to last year, but if the fans or Kelsey are interested in some more G-League players, Clark should be at the top of their list.