Louisville basketball received unfortunate news Thursday afternoon as they learned they did not make the cut for Amarri Monroe. The Quinnipiac transfer was linked with the Cardinals early in his transfer portal recruiting process, but they shifted their focus from the elite forward to the shooting guard position.
Monroe is a 4-star prospect in the transfer portal and is ranked as high as the No. 38 best player and the No. 8 best small forward. Joe Tipton announced that Monroe cut his list to six schools, and Pat Kelsey and the Cardinals unfortunately did not make that list, per Joe Tipton on On3 Sports.
His final six schools include, Rutgers, UConn, Miami, Ole Miss, Pitt, and Kansas. Monroe was the missing piece in Kelsey's incredible offseason. The Quinnipiac transfer is a dominant defender but would have thrived next to the Cardinals' lethal shooters on the offensive side.
Quinnipiac forward Amarri Monroe, the MAAC POY, is down to six schools, he tells @On3sports:
— Joe Tipton (@TiptonEdits) April 3, 2025
Rutgers, UConn, Miami, Ole Miss, Pitt, Kansas
The 6-7 junior averaged 18.1 points and 9.1 rebounds per game this season. https://t.co/pmF0VKtBXH pic.twitter.com/yxehV8pgah
Louisville basketball must get elite defender
The Cardinals landed three top-10 players in the transfer portal: Adrian Wooley, Ryan Conwell, and, most recently, Isaac McKneely. The news of Monroe is disappointing, as the Cardinals' defense is an area of concern that they should start trying to address. Last season, the Cardinals had their lockdown defender in Chucky Hepburn. The ACC Defensive Player of the Year was able to smother the opponent's best guard. Hepburn averaged 2.4 steals per game and was pivotal on the Cardinals' defense.
Louisville saw in the NCAA Tournament matchup against Creighton that a glaring weakness was the Cardinals perimeter defense. The Cardinals must try and land a primary defender who can lockdown their opponents best player, but at the same time not be unreliable on the offensive side. Monroe was the perfect player for this role as he was the MAAC Player of the Year and earned a spot on the First-Team All-MAAC at 6-foot-7 220 pounds.
He secured over 70 steals last season and set the programs record for most steals in a single season. Louisville's backcourt is loaded and the Cardinals are having the best offseason in college basketball. It is just worth noting that the Cardinals may want to try and target an elite point-of-attack defender next.
For all the latest on Louisville basketball's offseason, stay tuned.