After its excellent off-season moves, Louisville basketball is expected to be one of the top teams in the ACC and College Basketball. The Cardinals currently have the second-best odds to win the ACC and the fourth-best odds to win the 2026 National Championship.
Louisville fans know that the Duke Blue Devils are their biggest threat to the ACC Title. Jon Scheyer and his Blue Devils are bringing in three 5-stars and have the best 2025 class. Louisville will be a huge threat to the 2024 ACC champs as the Cardinals look to make history next season and earn their first ACC crown.
The Cardinals' nation learned excellent news Monday as they dodged a massive bullet and kept their ACC Title chances alive. North Carolina State is emerging as a gigantic threat for the ACC Title after its offseason and 2025 class, but the Wolfpack could not secure the nation's second-best transfer portal player, allowing the Cardinals to control the ACC still heading into the 2025-26 season.
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Louisville basketball dodges massive bullet after NC State misses on 5-star transfer
One of the biggest names in the transfer portal was the nation's third-leading scorer and second-best player in the transfer portal, PJ Haggerty. The Memphis transfer was linked to North Carolina State all offseason, but On3 Sports' Joe Tipton reported that Haggerty committed to the Kansas State Wildcats over the North Carolina State Wolfpack.
This was a massive report for the Louisville Cardinals, as the Wolfpack just recently landed the 5-star transfer from Texas Tech, Darrion Williams. The Texas Tech transfer is a consensus top-10 transfer this offseason and is ranked as high as the sixth best player in the portal.
The Wolfpack 2025 class includes two 4-stars to play along with Williams, and was already emerging as a threat. If Haggety had committed to NC State, Louisville's roster would still be one of the best in the ACC, but the chase for the ACC crown would have been a race between Duke, Louisville, and North Carolina State, while now the Cardinals and Blue Devils are still the heavy favorites, even after Williams commitment to the Wolfpack
Haggerty would have skyrocketed the Wolfpack ACC Title hopes, and would have even put them into 2026 NCAA Title conversations. The two 5-star transfers would have caused nightmares for all ACC teams, but now Louisville can sleep at night knowing that Haggerty transferred to the Big 12.
The Memphis transfer was a consensus All-American last season after he earned the 2024 AAC Player of the Year award. In his sophomore campaign, he averaged 21.7 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 3.7 assists per game while shooting 47.6 percent from the field and 36.4 percent from the 3-point line.
Louisville's 2025-26 roster will be led by its three transfer additions: 5-star Adrian Wooley, two 4-star Ryan Conwell, and Isaac McKneely. Also joining Pat Kelsey's squad are 2025 5-star Mikel Brown Jr., the No. 1 point guard in his class, and 4-star Sananda Fru. Louisville's recent addition to its roster is Mouhamed Camara from the NBA Academy Africa.
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For all the latest on Louisville basketball's offseason and recruiting, stay tuned.