Louisville Men's Basketball Class of 2024 Big Board 1.0
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - 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. Now that the Cardinals' 2023-24 roster is set, those efforts can now shift more towards the future.
Like last cycle, Payne has been incredibly selective in who he targets. As of this writing, Louisville has extended scholarship offers to just eight uncommitted Class of 2024 recruits. They have a single commitment in the cycle, coming from Montclair (N.J.) Immaculate Conception point guard T.J. Robinson.
That being said, who else 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*
| Point Guard | Shooting Guard | Small Forward | Power Forward | Center |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Labaron Philon | Isaiah Elohim | Karter Knox | Ayden Evans* | Flory Bidunga |
Billy Richmond | Kon Knueppel | |||
Jalen Shelley | ||||
Bryson Tucker |
*No scholarship offer
Backcourt
With Robinson already firmly in the fold, it seems that Payne and his staff have cooled off some on a couple of their backcourt targets. Labaron Philon was offered back in January, but seems to be trending towards Auburn at the moment. The Cardinals offered Isaiah Elohim last summer, but haven't appeared to make any stride in that recruitment.
The one to watch here is Billy Richmond. The 6-foot-5, 200-pound shooting guard is an AAU teammate of Robinson's on the N.J. Scholars, with Louisville, Kentucky and Memphis as the three frontrunners. The No. 80 overall prospect told 247Sports in April that he wants to take a visit to UofL sometime in June, and make his commitment sometime around the Peach Jam.
Wing
If anything has been evident by Payne's recruiting style since he was hired, he loves to recruit versatile wings. As you can imagine, Louisville has some headway with several of their small forward targets in the class. Karter Knox has family ties with Payne, and the 6-foot-5 and 205-pound wing visited Louisville during last year's Louisville Live. The Cardinals recently made Knox's top eight, although it's perceived that them and Kentucky are the co-favorites for the No 9 overall prospect.
Kon Knueppel and Jalen Shelley are ones to watch as well. Knueppel was offered by Louisville back in January, and told 247Sports that he plans to visit the Cardinals later this month. The 6-foot-5 and 205-pound forward is the No. 32 prospect in the class, and recently led the Nike EYBL in scoring at 22.5 points per game. Shelley, a 6-foot-7 and 175-pound wing who ranks as the No. 54 overall prospect, visited Louisville back in March, and said afterwards that the Cardinals were "definitely" one of his top schools.
Frontcourt
Louisville has only offered one uncommitted frontcourt prospect in Flory Bidunga, but the Cardinals have long been on the outside looking in here. Schools like Cincinnati, Florida, Kansas Auburn and Michigan are deep in the mix here.
One that could be on offer watch down the line is Ayden Evans. The 6-foot-8 and 200-pound power forward plays just down the road at Elizabethtown High School, and has taken several unofficial visits. Despite being the No. 174 prospect in the class, he has high-major offers from Mississippi State, Missouri, Seton Hall, Txcas A&M and West Virginia.
(Photo of Kenny Payne: Jared Anderson - Louisville Report)
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