What Brandon Huntley-Hatfield Brings to Louisville

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - With Kenny Payne being hired as the head coach of the Louisville men's basketball program, it ushered in a completely new era of Cardinals hoops.

Given Payne's status as one of the nation's top recruiters, the Cardinals have started to get back in the mix for some of the top players in the country. Recruiting is the lifeblood for any Division I program, and sooner rather than later, Payne could elevate Louisville back to national relevance.

But first, he had to land his very first player. It may have taken over a month to do so, but on Sunday, that's exactly what happened. Brandon Huntley-Hatfield, a forward who entered the transfer portal after playing his true freshman year at Tennessee, announced that he had committed to Louisville.

The 6-foot-10, 246-pound big man had a minor role with the Volunteers through the first three months of the 2021-22 season, but was inserted into the starting rotation for the final 13 games. He averaged 3.9 points and 3.0 rebounds per game on 45.4 percent shooting for the year, with some of his better performances coming in the postseason.

But beyond his stat line, what else does Huntley-Hatfield bring to the table for the Cardinals?

First of all, he gives Louisville's front court some added versatility with his extraordinary athleticism. He moves incredibly well for someone who is his size, but also provides plenty of toughness and physicality on both ends of the floor.

Even though he's now tied with Roosevelt Wheeler as the tallest player on team, he's more of a stretch four than a traditional center. He has a good fadeaway and turnaround jumper out of his post move, and has a good midrange jumper as well. He has shown that he can hit threes, but it's not his speciality. He's also underrated as both a ball handler and a passer.

Of course, with his massive frame and long wingspan, he's also someone who can score around the rim fairly easily - whether that's backing down a defender on a put back, or even in the drive. He also shows tenacity when rebounding and on defense - something that Louisville has desperately needed more of in recent years - and can guard multiple positions due to his overall length and mobility.

All that said, the Clarksville, Tenn. native is still fairly raw as a prospect. It's not a huge surprise, given that he reclassified from the Class of 2022 to 2021. But he did get much better towards the end of Tennessee's season, averaging 6.2 point and 3.2 rebounds per game while shooting 50.0 percent in the Vols' three SEC Tournament and two NCAA Tournament games.

Bottom line, this is a great pickup for Louisville that has loads of potential. Given his skill set, he can be useful in several different in-game scenarios and against a variety of opposing lineups. He'll need a bit more developing, but with a year in college already under his belt - plus Payne and assistant coach Danny Manning having the reputation as big man developers that they do - he could easily challenge either Sydney Curry or Jae'Lyn Withers for meaningful minutes.

(Photo of Brandon Huntley-Hatfield, Keion Brooks: Saul Young - News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK)

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