LOUISVILLE, Ky. – We might just be roughly a month into the Pat Kelsey era, but it’s never too early to take a glimpse into the future and break down the 2024-25 roster for the Louisville men’s basketball program.
So far this offseason, there has been a ton of player movement in both directions, and Kelsey’s first Cardinals squad is far from being completely set. This first roster update will serve mainly as update to all the moves that have transpired up to this point vs. an actual breakdown of the roster.
There will most certainly be additional transfer portal action in the coming days and weeks. But for now, let’s take a look at how this team currently shakes out.
As previously referenced, there have been a plethora of moving roster pieces for Louisville since the end of their season. Even since former head coach Kenny Payne was fired on Mar. 13, one day removed from the Cardinals’ season-ending loss to NC State in the ACC Tournament, the roster began to flip immediately.
In the two weeks following Payne’s dismissal, over half the roster entered the portal. Curtis Williams Jr., Kaleb Glenn, Dennis Evans, J.J. Traynor, Danilo Jovanovich, Skyy Clark and Mike James all opted to transfer fairly soon after the end of the season. Then after Kelsey’s official hiring on Mar. 28, Brandon Huntley-Hatfield, Tre White, Emmanuel Okorafor and Ty-Laur Johnson all followed suit as well.
On top of that, Koron Davis was dismissed halfway through the season, and walk-on Zan Payne graduated. Put it all together, and the only returners from the Kenny Payne era are walk-ons Aidan McCool and Hercy Miller. Additionally, Louisville’s lone commitment in the Class of 2024 – Montclair (N.J.) Immaculate Conception’s T.J. Robinson – backed off of his verbal pledge one day after Payne’s firing.
To counter all those departing players, Kelsey and Co. had to hit the transfer portal extremely hard. So far, they’ve done just that and then some, already landing eight transfers for next season.
Not long after Kelsey’s hiring, Reyne Smith and James Scott announced that they would be both following Kelsey from Charleston. In the days and weeks since, James Madison guard/forward Terrence Edwards Jr., Colorado guard J’Vonne Hadley, Washington guard Koren Johnson and Wisconsin guard Chucky Hepburn also opted to commit to Louisville.
BYU center Aly Khalifa is joining the fold next season as well, but will be redshirting the 2024-25 season to rehab a knee injury that he played through last season.
