Reports: Louisville Target '26 PG Taylen Kinney Announces Commitment Date

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - One of the Louisville men's basketball program's top targets in the Class of 2026 has finally announced a commitment date.

Atlanta (Ga.) Overtime Elite point guard Taylen Kinney, a top-15 prospect in the cycle, is set to announce his college decision on Sept. 28, according to both On3's Joe Tipton and 247Sports' Travis Branham.

Kinney was originally offered by the previous coaching staff at Louisville, but when Kelsey took over in March of 2024, he quickly made the Newport, Ky. native a priority target. He visited multiple times over the course of his recruitment, including an official visit during the weekend of June 5.

Pat Kelsey and his staff have also watched him at several stops over the last year, including the 3SSB All-American Camp, the KABC Titans Shootout and the Overtime Elite itself. Kelsey also paid Kinney an in-home midnight visit on the first day of the current evaluation period back on Sept. 1, and visited with Kinney again this past Tuesday.

The 6-foot-1, 185-pound ball handler is regarded as a five-star prospect by two of the four major recruiting services, ranking as high as the No. 1 point guard and 13th-ranked prospect overall by 247Sports' in-house rankings. The 247Sports Composite tabs him ranks as the No. 2 point guard and 17th-ranked overall prospect.

Should he commit to Louisville, with a composite rating of 0.9943, Kinney would be the third-highest rated prospect to ever commit to the Cardinals in the modern recruiting era. Samardo Samuels' 0.9985 rating in the Class of 2008 holds the top spot, while current freshman point guard Mikel Brown Jr. is the runner-up with a 0.9969 rating in the 2025 cycle.

During the Overtime Elite's 2024-25 season, Kinney established himself as one of the top players in the league. Playing for RWE, he averaged 20.1 points, 5.0 assists, 4.0 rebounds and 2.3 steals per game, while also shooting 55.6 percent from the field and 33.3 percent on three-point attempts.

As a sophomore, Kinney had a productive season in what was his final season at Newport (Ky.) HS. In 33 games, he averaged 17.5 points, 4.0 rebounds and 2.6 assists, and shot 48.4 percent overall plus 41.4 percent on threes. He helped guide the Wildcats to a 32-4 record, making it to the Sweet Sixteen of the 2024 KHSAA boys basketball playoffs.

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