Louisville basketball has been dominant this offseason, landing the No. 1 overall transfer and holding on to the No. 1 overall Transfer Portal class. The Cardinals lost nine of their top 10 players from this past season, including their entire starting lineup, and their top three scorers in Mikel Brown Jr., Ryan Conwell, and Isaac McKneely.
Louisville basketball gets clarity on what the gap between Cardinals and Duke is now
So, with Louisville losing major pieces, Kelsey had to be heavily involved in the portal, and for the second straight offseason, Kelsey has had some portal magic. Louisville has landed six transfer commitments so far, including the No. 1 overall transfer, Flory Bidunga.
With the Cardinals' eye-popping portal class, the Cards are trending to be a top team in the nation, and Fox recently put out their way-too-early rankings, and Louisville’s sitting right in the Final Four conversation.
Louisville basketball cracks top five in latest rankings
Kelsey made it clear he understands what the standard is at Louisville, and the roster he is building is trending toward achieving that standard. Cardinals fans are starving for a conference championship and a Final Four birth, and Fox Sports is giving Louisville fans hope that this could be the year they accomplish those goals and dreams, as Casey Jacobsen ranks the Cardinals No. 5 in his latest way-too-early rankings.
"The Cardinals went out and spent a lot of money to put together a team that I think is title worthy. Let’s start with the best defensive center in the country: Flory Bidunga. He’s flanked by Iowa transfer Alvaro Folguieras, fresh off his clutch NCAA Tournament performances. In the backcourt, Oregon transfer Jackson Shelstad runs the point and Arkansas wing transfer Karter Knox rounds out a roster that has a little bit of everything."Casey Jacobsen
The Cardinals ranked No. 5 in these rankings prove this team is trending to be legit contenders to cut some nets down next season. Kelsey has added major pieces from the portal in Bidunga, former 5-stars Jackson Shelstad and Karter Knox, a 4-star transfer and stretch-four from Iowa, Alvaro Folguieras, and some key bench pieces in a two-way player, De’Shayne Montgomery, and a 7-foot-5 Kentucky native, Gabe Dynes.
Kelsey and the Cardinals aren’t done this offseason just yet, as they will likely try to add a 3-point specialist, another wing, and maybe some frontcourt depth, but Louisville is trending in the right direction to be a legit Final Four contender.
Every NCAA Transfer Portal player who committed to Louisville basketball so far
For all the latest news and updates on Louisville basketball's offseason and recruiting, stay tuned.
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