Louisville Men's Basketball Class of 2023 Big Board 1.0
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - While head coach Kenny Payne and the rest of his staff at Louisville have spent a majority of their recent recruiting efforts trying to attract transfers and prospects to fill the immediate holes left by departing talent, that hasn't stopped them from also looking towards the future.
Payne has been incredibly selective in who he targets. As of June 23, Louisville has extended scholarship offers to just 13 uncommitted Class of 2023 recruits, and some are holdovers from the Chris Mack era. They have a single commitment in the class, coming from Kaleb Glenn, a 6-foot-2, 200-pound small forward who recently transferred from Louisville (Ky.) Male to La Porte (Ind.) La Lumiere.
But, that being said, who is Louisville targeting and who currently holds a scholarship offer? Let's take a look:
*mobile users can scroll left and right on the table*
*offered by Chris Mack
^No scholarship offer
| Point Guard | Shooting Guard | Small Forward | Power Forward | Center |
|---|---|---|---|---|
D.J. Wagner | Isaiah Coleman^ | Andrej Stojakovic* | Milan Momcilovic | Aaron Bradshaw |
A.J. Johnson | Taison Chatman* | Xavier Booker | Brandon White* | |
Lawrent Rice | Maki Johnson* | |||
Isaiah Collier* | ||||
London Johnson* |
Point Guard
It goes without saying that the top focus for Louisville in the entire class is D.J. Wagner. The 6-foot-3, 165-pound Camden, N.J. native is the top player in the nation according to the 247Sports Composite, and his grandfather and Louisville legend, Milt, is on Payne's staff. It will be tough to fend off Kentucky, who also has family ties to Wagner's family, but the Cardinals are in good standing. That being said, both A.J. Johnson and Lawrent Rice are both viable options for Louisville. The 6-foot-5, 160-pound Johnson was offered by Payne last month, and is a top-50 prospect. Rice, a 6-foot-3, 170-pound guard who was originally offered by Mack, says that he is still in regular contact with Payne. As for Isaiah Collier and London Johnson, it seems that contact with Louisville has faded since Mack departed.
Shooting Guard
Going over to the two guard spot, it also seems like that two players here with scholarship offers - Taison Chatman and Maki Johnson - have also cut down on their communication with Louisville. However, it seems that Isaiah Coleman could be on offer watch. Talking to 247Sports, the 6-foot-5, 160-pound top-50 prospect said that assistant coach Danny Manning "hit me a couple times" ahead of his showing at the Nike EYBL session in Louisville.
Small Forward
With Kaleb Glenn already firmly in the fold, it seems that Payne and his staff has been concentrating their focus on the backcourt and front court, and not so much on the wing. Though Payne has been extremely selective in who he offers so far in his tenure, so he could target another small forward sometime down the line. The lone offer here, Andrej Stojakovic, you guessed it, seemingly hasn't been in contact with Louisville after they parted ways with Mack.
Power Forward
The front court is where we really start to see some activity by the current staff. Xavier Booker was originally offered by Mack and his staff, but the 6-foot-10, 205-pound big man was re-offered by Payne last month. The recruitment at the spot that has seen the most recent movement has been that of Milan Momcilovic, who is a top-40 prospect. The 6-foot-8, 205-pound forward was offered earlier this month, then named the Cards to his top six schools just 10 days later.
Center
Wagner is undoubtedly Louisville's top target in the class, but their No. 2 target might be his high school and AAU teammate, Aaron Bradshaw. The 7-foot, 210-pound named the Cardinals to his top seven last month, and took an official visit to campus earlier this month. But like with Wagner, it will be hard to fight off Kentucky for the top-20 prospect, and the two very well could be a package deal wherever they go. Brandon White, as with most of the other Chris Mack offers, appears to have dropped contact with the Cardinals.
(Photo of D.J. Wagner: Gregory Payan - Associated Press)
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