Louisville basketball fans learned Wednesday night that 5-star transfer Milan Momcilovic withdrew his name from the NBA draft. The Cardinals have been among the few teams involved in Momcilovic's recruiting process at this early stage, as many analysts linked him with Louisville if he does return to college basketball.
Louisville’s projected lineup if it lands Milan Momcilovic would put Cards in NCAA Title hunt
So, now with the 5-star available in the portal and the glaring No. 1 transfer available, the Cardinals are in another recruiting battle with some powerhouse programs. Leading up to the decision, Louisville was in a recruiting battle with Kentucky, St. John’s, and Arizona, but early this morning it was reported that one of those major programs is dropping out of the recruiting race for Momcilovic.
Latest Milan Momcilovic update boosts Pat Kelsey's chances of landing 5-star PF
A basketball insider, Adam Zagoria, reported on Thursday morning that St. John’s is no longer pursuing Momcilovic, giving Louisville a major update and suggesting the Cardinals are another step closer to landing the 5-star.
St. John's will no longer pursue Milan Momcilovic, per sources https://t.co/jnRjzizfEb
— Adam Zagoria (@AdamZagoria) May 28, 2026
After the news broke Wednesday evening that Momcilovic was withdrawing his name from the NBA draft, Baylor transfer Tounde Yessoufou withdrew his name from the draft and committed to St. John’s. The 6-foot-5 guard was trending toward a first-round pick, but decided to return to college. With St. John’s landing the elite guard, it appears they are moving on from Momcilovic.
So, as of now, it is down to the Cardinals, Arizona, and Kentucky. More teams will likely reach out and try to join this recruiting battle for the 5-star, but St. John’s moving on is massive news. Jeff Goodman reported multiple times that St. John’s was one of the “frontrunners” for Momcilovic, including a couple of weeks ago when he stated, “St. John’s and Louisville are probably the two schools as of today that would be the frontrunner for him.”
So, now that Zagoria is reporting St. John’s is out of this race, Louisville and Kelsey’s chances of landing this elite 5-star power forward just grew. Kelsey has already dominated the Transfer Portal, landing six commitments, including four 4-stars and one 5-star.
And if Kelsey lands Momcilovic, it would mean Louisville has earned commitments from the No. 1 overall transfer, Flory Bidunga, and Momcilovic, who ranks No. 2 overall in the portal. It still won’t be an easy battle, as Kentucky and Arizona are making strong pushes for the 5-star, but St. John’s removing itself from the race is a massive update for the 'Cardinals' chances of pulling this off.
Also read: Louisville basketball has an obvious No. 1 target after Flory Bidunga update
For all the latest news and updates on Louisville basketball's offseason and recruiting, stay tuned.
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