Louisville Men's Basketball 2026-27 Roster Outlook 2.0

It might be less than a week from our last update, but it's never too early to analyze how the 2026-27 roster for the Louisville men's basketball program shake out.

While there are still several roster spots open for the Cardinals to fill, we are starting to get an idea as to how Team 113 will look like when they lace 'em up for the first time this fall.

Departures and Arrivals

Since our last roster update back on Apr. 24, there has only been a couple moving pieces involving Louisville's roster. That being said, both the front court and the back court have been impacted in the week since.

Last Friday, former Dayton guard De'Shayne Montgomery pulled the trigger, opting to transfer to the Cardinals. One day later, UofL got another portal commitment, this time in the form of former USC center Gabe Dynes.

Up to this point, Dynes and Montgomery join a transfer class for Louisville that is now a half-dozen strong. They follow Kansas forward/center Flory Bidunga, Iowa forward Alvaro Folgueiras, Arkansas wing Karter Knox and Oregon guard Jackson Shelstad, with this incoming portal class ranking No. 1 on 247Sports.

These portal additions offset five transfers in the opposite direction, with forward Mouhamed Camara (TBD), forward/center Sananda Fru (Marquette), forward Kasean Pryor (TBD), forward Khani Rooths (Oklahoma) and forward/center Vangelis Zougris (Saint Mary's) all opting to continue their collegiate careers elsewhere. Put the incoming and outgoing portal pieces together, and On3 ranks it as the No. 3 transfer class in the nation.

Of course, guard Ryan Conwell, guard/forward J'Vonna Hadley, forward/center Aly Khalifa, guard Isaac McKneely and guard Kobe Rodgers all graduated, while Mikel Brown Jr. also declared for the 2026 NBA Draft. Only guards London Johnson and Adrian Wooley are returning, and Louisville does not bring in any Class of 2026 prospects (at least right now).

With all the roster moves that have taken place since the end of the 2025-26 season, Louisville currently sports a eight-man roster for year three under head coach Pat Kelsey. This leaves the Cardinals with seven open scholarships at their disposal, although it's not expected that UofL will fill all 15.

Projected Depth Chart

Given all that we know now about the current state of Louisville's roster, below is an early look into what the depth chart next year could look like:

*mobile users can scroll left and right on the tables below*

Probable Starting Rotation

Depth Chart by Position

Even before Louisville picked up Montgomery, Louisville's backcourt/wing was in a very good spot. While Wooley did take a little bit of time adjusting to this level of competition after transferring in from Kennesaw State, towards the end of the season, his overall play did take a step forward. Considering he was to both start and play more so on the ball (rather than off of it), there's reason to believe he can take another step forward this offseason. Then with Shelstad, he's a perfect fit for Kelsey's system considering he is one of the quickest guards in the sport, and can execute at a high level at the rim and on the perimeter. You'd like to see him take a step forward as a facilitator (as with Wooley), though he did show flashes of it this past season. Ideally, Louisville likely needs at least one more true point guard out of the portal considering we still don't know with certainty what Johnson can bring to the table - but it's certainly not a massive problem.

At the true wing spot, Louisville has two great options at their disposal in Montgomery and Knox. The former is an off-ball guard/slashing wing hybrid, and can play either position at a high level. Montgomery's aggressive around the rim and a highlight-style dunker, an efficient three-ball shooter, and a tenacious defender on the perimeter. With the latter, Knox is a legitimate slashing option, is an underrated shooter and rebounder, and is a positive asset on defense. Regardless of exact lineups regarding Montgomery and Knox (in theory you could play both at the same time), the two give Louisville athleticism on the wing - something they have not had with consistency in Kelsey's tenure.

Then in the front court, Louisville is a lot stronger here than they have been in the first two years under Kelsey. The Cardinals have been lacking an legitimate interior presence on offense and rim protector on defense, and Bidunga does both at an elite level. Folguieras compliments him extremely well, as the physical stretch four can space the floor both with his ability to put the ball on the floor and his three-point shooting. As for Dynes, while his offensive game leaves some to be desired, his capabilities on defense will assure him a role in the front court rotation - though likely not a major one.

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