Louisville Men's Basketball 2024-25 Roster Outlook 1.0

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - We might just be roughly a month into the Pat Kelsey era, but it's never too early to take a glimpse into the future and break down the 2024-25 roster for the Louisville men's basketball program.

So far this offseason, there has been a ton of player movement in both directions, and Kelsey's first Cardinals squad is far from being completely set. This first roster update will serve mainly as update to all the moves that have transpired up to this point vs. an actual breakdown of the roster.

There will most certainly be additional transfer portal action in the coming days and weeks. But for now, let's take a look at how this team currently shakes out.

Departures and Arrivals

As previously referenced, there have been a plethora of moving roster pieces for Louisville since the end of their season. Even since former head coach Kenny Payne was fired on Mar. 13, one day removed from the Cardinals' season-ending loss to NC State in the ACC Tournament, the roster began to flip immediately.

In the two weeks following Payne's dismissal, over half the roster entered the portal. Curtis Williams Jr., Kaleb Glenn, Dennis Evans, J.J. Traynor, Danilo Jovanovich, Skyy Clark and Mike James all opted to transfer fairly soon after the end of the season. Then after Kelsey's official hiring on Mar. 28, Brandon Huntley-Hatfield, Tre White, Emmanuel Okorafor and Ty-Laur Johnson all followed suit as well.

On top of that, Koron Davis was dismissed halfway through the season, and walk-on Zan Payne graduated. Put it all together, and the only returners from the Kenny Payne era are walk-ons Aidan McCool and Hercy Miller. Additionally, Louisville's lone commitment in the Class of 2024 - Montclair (N.J.) Immaculate Conception's T.J. Robinson - backed off of his verbal pledge one day after Payne's firing.

To counter all those departing players, Kelsey and Co. had to hit the transfer portal extremely hard. So far, they've done just that and then some, already landing eight transfers for next season.

Not long after Kelsey's hiring, Reyne Smith and James Scott announced that they would be both following Kelsey from Charleston. In the days and weeks since, James Madison guard/forward Terrence Edwards Jr., Colorado guard J'Vonne Hadley, Washington guard Koren Johnson and Wisconsin guard Chucky Hepburn also opted to commit to Louisville.

BYU center Aly Khalifa is joining the fold next season as well, but will be redshirting the 2024-25 season to rehab a knee injury that he played through last season.

Projected Depth Chart

Given all that we know now about the current state of Louisville's roster, below is an early look into what the depth chart next year could look like:

All things considered, this is a very good core of players to build your remaining roster around for Kelsey's first team. It's also very clear what his focus on in the portal has been in this cycle: threes, defense, and winning.

Of Louisville's current crop of transfer commits, four of them shot 35.0 percent or better on three-point attempts, four had a top-500 D-PORPAGATU (Bart Torvik's defensive efficiency metric) rating, and seven of them made the NCAA Tournament last season with their respective school. There also seems to be an emphasis on landing players who are good at passing the ball, as five of them had an assist rate of 20.0 percent or more last year.

At of this moment, Louisville's strength heading into Pat Kelsey's first year at the helm is in the backcourt and at the wing. While this doesn't seem to be a team that will have a primary focal point (partially because of how many players Kelsey) like to play), if there was going to be one, it would be Edwards. He's one of the top players to enter the portal (No. 20 per On3), is a three-level scorer and playmaker, and is excellent on defense.

The other players at the wing are both very productive and very versatile. Hadley is your standard underrated "glue guy" who can play the two and the three on both ends very well. Traore is someone who plays much bigger than his height would indicate, as he provides both grit and hustle, and can be a mismatch on both ends of the floor at the two through four.

As far as true guards go, they'll have a sizable role as well. This is especially the case for Hepburn, as his prowess as a facilitator could be the key to unlocking the true potential of the offense, and he is a tone-setter on defense. Johnson, who is the reigning Pac-12 Sixth Player of the Year, gives Louisville a good backup option whether he's on the ball or off it. Smith could see some extensive run against teams who are susceptible to three-pointers, but he should be a good bench option regardless of who the Cards play.

Down in the post is where Louisville still needs to hit the portal the hardest. The staff really likes Scott's longterm upside and NBA potential, but he's got just one year of college experience. Khalifa, who is the best passing big man in men's college basketball right now, won't even play next season. Traore can battle down low, but the Cardinals - at minimum - need two more true big men on their roster.

For more in-depth analysis on each player, check out our individual breakdowns below:

• Reyne Smith and James Scott
• Terrence Edwards Jr.
• J'Vonne Hadley
• Aly Khalifa
• Koren Johnson
• Aboubacar Traore
• Chucky Hepburn

(Photo of Pat Kelsey: Michael Clevenger - Courier Journal / USA)

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