The Transfer Portal has officially been open for over 48 hours now, and Louisville basketball is buzzing with excitement. Pat Kelsey has the Cardinals in the mix with some of the top players in the portal, as Louisville will host three elite transfers this weekend, including the nation’s No. 1 overall transfer, Flory Bidunga.
Predicting 2 Louisville basketball Transfer Portal commits coming this week
However, while Louisville needs a big offseason and must land some big-time commitments to meet the fans' standards and expectations, Kelsey also has to try to recruit from within. Louisville has already lost major contributors from last year in Mikel Brown Jr., Ryan Conwell, and Isaac McKneely, and with the Cards badly needing to address their frontcourt, keeping Adrian Wooley would be huge.
Pat Kelsey and Louisville must try and bring back Adrian Wooley
Conwell was the Cardinals' best player last year, as he played in 34 games, averaged 31 minutes per game, led Louisville in points per game, and made 3’s. The Xavier transfer averaged 18.8 points per game while shooting 41 percent from the field, and this offseason, the Cardinals will have a tough task replacing him.
However, Louisville might not have to look hard for Conwell’s replacement. Wooley had a bit of an up-and-down season, showing flashes of why he was ranked a 5-star transfer last offseason, but also running into some bumps in the road. The former Kennesaw State transfer averaged 18.8 points, 5.2 rebounds, 3.6 assists, and 1.4 steals per game while splashing 73 3’s on 42 percent shooting from beyond the arc in his true freshman season, and in his first year with the Cards, showed he could be one of the main guys if he returns.
He showed that when given the starting role and the keys to the offense, he is a crucial piece to this offense. Wooley is a crafty guard who can not only catch and shoot from beyond the arc at a high rate, but is an elite iso guard who can create his own shot.
He averaged 8.7 points, 3.9 rebounds, 1.8 assists, and 0.7 steals per game while shooting 45 percent from the field and 35 percent from downtown. However, his numbers don’t show his importance to the Cardinals' offense or the big role he played last season, especially when he started. The former 5-star started every game Brown missed this past season for Kelsey and showed at the end of the season that he can be an elite scorer, scoring 17 points on 70 percent shooting against Michigan State in the NCAA Tournament.
He also showed he can be clutch as he made a game-winning 3-pointer against Miami at the end of the season, where he finished with 15 points on 55.6 percent shooting from the field and added four rebounds, six assists, and zero turnovers.
So, the flashes of excellence were there, and while he might have had growing pains, he would likely take a huge step forward playing for Louisville and in the ACC another year. However, he has already received interest from Alabama and Arkansas, and so it might be hard to bring the 5-star back.
Wooley teased he might be entering the Transfer Portal when he posted “soon...” on his social media page, but with it now being Thursday and Wooley still not entering the portal, Kelsey and his staff might be trying to work with the former 5-star to keep him a Cardinal.
The Cardinals have a huge next two weeks ahead of them, and as Kelsey rebuilds his roster and tries to replace Brown, Conwell, and other key pieces, it is important for Louisville to not only add pieces but also avoid losing key ones, like Wooley.
3 elite transfers visiting Pat Kelsey and Louisville basketball this weekend
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