LOUISVILLE, Ky. – While Pat Kelsey and his staff have been heavily recruiting the transfer portal since being hired as the new Louisville men’s basketball head coach last month, he is starting to get involved with various high school prospects.
Now, Kelsey is getting in the mix for one of the best players in the current cycle.
Jayden Quaintance, a consensus five-star prospect in the Class of 2024 and McDonald’s All-American who had previously been signed with Kentucky, is set to take an official visit to Louisville, according to 24/7 High School Hoops’ Sam Kayser. A date for his visit has not been confirmed yet.
The center for for Raleigh (N.C.) Word of God Academy originally committed to and signed with Kentucky during the early signing period last November. However, after the departure of Wildcats head coach John Calipari to Arkansas earlier this month, Quaintance asked to be released from his National Letter of Intent.
The 6-foot-9, 230-pound big man holds nearly 19 scholarship offers, and for good reason. He is regarded as a five-star prospect in all four major recruiting services, and ranks as the No. 7 player in the 2024 cycle according to the 247Sports Composite. He was originally a member of the Class of 2025 before reclassifying.
During his junior season for Word of God, which plays in the Overtime Elite, Quaintance averaged 15.4 points per game, 10.9 rebounds, 3.5 blocks and 1.3 steals per game. In the McDonald’s All-American Game, he put up seven points, seven rebounds four steals, and three assists.
Quaintance also has some international experience with USA Basketball. During the FIBA Americas U16 Championship last summer, he averaged 6.7 points, 6.5 rebounds and 2.8 blocks per game, helping Team USA capture the Gold Medal.
There’s also a connection between Quaintance and Louisville’s staff. Prior to a two-year run as an assistant for Kelsey at Charleston before joining him at Louisville, assistant coach Thomas Carr was the athletic director at Word of God.
Not long after the end of Louisville’s disastrous 2023-24 campaign, one which resulted in the firing of second-year head coach Kenny Payne, the Cardinals’ roster began to flip. In fact, all 12 of Louisville’s scholarship players have entered the portal, with only walk-on guard Hercy Miller in line to return.
