Louisville basketball is falling behind for key 5-star PG as the Duke Blue Devils and Kentucky Wildcats reportedly made in-house visits to one of the best point guards in the 2026 recruiting class.
Pat Kelsey was once the frontrunner to land Deron Rippey Jr., but after Louisville made it clear they are all-in on the nation's No. 1 point guard and Kentucky native Taylen Kinney, Louisville appears to have nearly fallen out of the race for Rippey.
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The Cardinals earned an official visit from Rippey last October for Louisville's white out game against the Tennessee Volunteers. The Cardinals were locked in on Rippey as they traveled to watch one of his practices and watch many games of his over the offseason. However, it is clear that Louisville made Kinney their priority, and because of that, they are missing out on Rippey.
Joe Tipton of On3 Sports/ Rivals reported that Duke and Kentucky made visits to Rippey's house last night when recruiting officially opened back up. Rippey is emerging as one of the best point guards in the 2026 recruiting class, as he is ranked as high as No. 12 in the nation and the second-best point guard.
Source: Duke’s Jon Scheyer and Kentucky’s Mark Pope will conduct in-home visits with 5⭐️ Deron Rippey Jr. today. https://t.co/D4KgWZ7KSM https://t.co/WKesYYSDNj pic.twitter.com/ygYHS1E6kT
— Joe Tipton (@TiptonEdits) September 3, 2025
Louisville made Rippey's top 12 in his updated recruiting list, but since the spring, the Cardinals went from being the frontrunner to now the fourth-best percentage, according to On3 Sports. Duke has now jumped Louisville and has the third-best odds.
Rippey is one of the best offensive players in the 2026 class, and after his MVP campaign at the Steph Curry Camp last month, he is emerging as Duke's top target for the guard position. The Cardinals are in a sticky situation right now.
They want the Kentucky native in Kinney, but, with Tipton reporting that Louisville is no longer the frontrunner, the Cardinals have to keep their relationship with Rippey. It will be interesting to see how the two point guards recruiting process plays out, but for right now, Duke has the upper hand on Louisville for Rippey, and the Cardinals are neck-and-neck with Kentucky for Kinney.
Related: Louisville basketball's 2026 recruiting class wish list
For all the latest on Louisville basketball's offseason and recruiting, stay tuned.