Louisville basketball is currently completely rebuilding its roster from the previous season, as Pat Kelsey had to replace all five starters and nine of his top ten players. Kelsey had  a lot of work to do this offseason, but he certainly didn’t disappoint as Louisville is sitting with the No. 1 Transfer Portal class in the nation after landing six transfer commitments.
Louisville basketball and Pat Kelsey making major push for elite 4-star SF
On top of those six commitments, Louisville added a 5-star center, Obinna Ekezie Jr., and guard Isaac Ellis reclassified to the 2026 class, meaning they will both join this offseason and be with the team this upcoming season. So, with Louisville getting eight new players this offseason and a couple returning, the question now becomes: what does the roster and the depth chart look like?
So, here is the updated version of Louisville basketball’s way-too-early depth chart for the 2026-27 season.
Louisville basketball's projected depth chart for the 2026-27 season
Below is the chart of what we think Pat Kelsey will do for the first game of the season, as of right now. Louisville fans will likely see the starting lineup consist of Jackson Shelstad at point guard and Adrian Wooley at shooting guard. And in the frontcourt, Karter Knox will lead the way at small forward, followed by Alvaro Folguieras at power forward and Flory Bidunga at center.
PG | SG | SF | PF | C |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Jackson Shelstad | Adrian Wooley | Karter Knox | Alvaro Folguieras | Flory Bidunga |
London Johnson | De'Shayne Montgomery | Obinna Ekezie Jr. | Gabe Dynes | |
Isaac Ellis |
The biggest question right now is where Ekezie will be. We believe the 5-star commit has the potential to jump up in the starting lineup and play along with Bidunga, and he made it clear he hopes that can happen. But right now, Louisville will likely have him serve as Bidunga’s and Folguieras’ backup.
While Ekezie is 7-feet and ranked as the No. 1 center, he will likely play some power forward minutes, especially with Louisville adding Gabe Dynes. So, for now, we have Ekezie serving as a backup power forward, but the 5-star will get a lot of center and power forward minutes.
When looking at the depth chart, Louisville fans notice they need a wing. The Cardinals fans are keeping a close eye on a 4-star 2026 recruit, Boyuan Zhang, as the small forward was recently on campus for an official visit.
The 6-foot-7, 220-pound forward averaged 20.2 points per game this past season in the Nike EYBL Scholastic League while also adding 5.7 rebounds. The 4-star ranks No. 57 overall in the 2026 cycle, and No. 20 among small forwards.
Louisville might want to try to add a true power forward to take some pressure off Ekezie and Folguieras and a legitimate 3-point specialist, but besides those two areas, this team is looking like a legitimate Final Four contender. So, the roster is almost done, and Kelsey exceeded all expectations.
Louisville is currently ranked as high as No. 5 in the nation in Fox Sports' way-too-early top 25, and if Kelsey can just get these final pieces, the Cards will have even higher expectations heading into the 2026-27 season than their expectations heading into the 2025-26 season, when they had the sixth-highest odds to win the NCAA Title.
Also read: Pat Kelsey and Louisville basketball gaining serious Final Four buzz in latest rankings
For all the latest news and updates on Louisville basketball's offseason and recruiting, stay tuned.
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