Louisville basketball in contact with under-the-radar versatile forward

The Louisville Cardinals' offseason is not done yet, as head coach Pat Kelsey must replace their starting center from last season, James Scott. The Cardinals still have a few roster spots, and Louisville is rumored to be involved with a few names.

The Cardinals have been in contact with a few players recently, but Louisville's two dream targets are 5-star Florida State transfer Jamir Watkins and 4-star FAU transfer Baba Miller. The noise has died down quite a bit recently, but with the team returning to campus soon for offseason camp, things are expected to pick back up, so Kelsey has his full squad for the 2025-26 season.

In recent news, it was reported by Jon Rothstein that the Cardinals are one of nine teams to reach out to this 6-foot-6 underrated forward from the University of Massachusetts.

Louisville basketball in contact with under-the-radar versatile forward

The Louisville Cardinals have reportedly been in contact with Daniel Rivera after he entered the transfer portal and plans to transfer from UMass. The senior will enter the transfer portal once more as he will play for his fifth school in five years.

Last season for the Minuteman, Rivera averaged 11.9 points, 7.4 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 1.4 blocks, and 1.2 steals in 28.6 minutes per game. He started in every game and shot the ball well as he shot 44.3 percent from the field.

Rivera was able to score 15 points or more in seven games last season and 20 points or more in four games, including his season-high 29-point performance against Fordham. The 6-foot-6, 215-pound forward is an under-the-radar target for Kelsey and the Cardinals if their top targets decide to commit elsewhere.

Rivera was able to log eight double-doubles last season, including that dominant performance against Fordham, where he secured 29 points, 12 rebounds, three assists, three blocks, and two steals while shooting 52.9 percent from the field.

Prior to his time with UMass he played one season with Bryant where he averaged 13.3 points, 8.1 rebounds, 2.2 assists, 2.2 blocks, and 1.0 steals per game while shooting an impressive 50.3 percent from the floor. He scored 20 points or more in six games with the Bulldogs, and his season-high was 29 points. He went on to secure 10 double-doubles in the 2023-24 season, including a stacked stat line against UAlbany, where he secured 19 points, 17 rebounds, one assist, and one block while shooting 61.5 percent from the floor.

Other programs that have shown interest in the UMass transfer include Oklahoma State, Memphis, Mississippi State, Virginia Tech and others.

Louisville missed out on the fans dream target, Chad Baker-Mazara, and now will shift their focus to Miller and Watkins. Other names to keep an eye out on is Stephon Payne III and Nana Owusu-Anane.

For all the latest on Louisville basketball's offseason, stay tuned.